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JAPAN
Jan 15, 2024

Japan to bolster measures against bears waking up from hibernation

Each prefecture will be given ¥3 million to ¥5 million in financial resources to help with the measures.
Participants take part in a 'senior cafeteria' event at a nursing home in Tokyo's Meguro Ward on Dec. 14.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 21, 2024

‘Senior cafeterias’ gaining steam to support elderly

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government launched a subsidy program this fiscal year for municipalities promoting local dining events.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako attend a ceremony marking the 150th anniversary of the Metropolitan Police Department's founding in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 15, 2024

Tokyo police mark 150th anniversary of founding

Founded on Jan. 15, 1874, Tokyo's MPD appointed as its first chief, who had studied European police systems and laid the foundation for Japan's modern law enforcement.
Shipping containers at a port in Lianyungang, eastern China's Jiangsu province, on Friday
BUSINESS
Jan 15, 2024

Most Japanese firms don’t see China’s economy improving in 2024

More than 400 companies said they cut investment in China last year, according to a survey of 1,713 firms by the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China.
Corporate bankruptcies with liabilities of at least ¥10 million increased 35.2% in 2023 from the previous year.
BUSINESS
Jan 15, 2024

Business failures in Japan hit eight-year high in 2023

Failures rose in all 10 surveyed sectors for the first time in 31 years, due to rising prices, deepening labor shortages and the start of repayments of COVID relief loans.
The Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance headquarters in Tokyo. The insurer isn't interested in buying Japan’s superlong sovereign bonds until yields start rising.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 16, 2024

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance to avoid Japan sovereign bonds for now

Japanese life insurers are the main buyer of bonds due in more than 10 years and typically increase purchases toward the end of the fiscal year.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2024

Doctors and nurses support families at morgues after Noto quake

Teams were sent after the 2016 quakes in Kumamoto Prefecture and a major mudslide in Atami in Shizuoka Prefecture in 2021.
A worker carries a tray containing steamed kamaboko at a factory in Ise, Mie Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Jan 22, 2024

As costs rise, kamaboko producers struggle to stay afloat

Many have little choice but to raise the prices of their own products after having exhausted other measures.
Japan's input inflation was flat in December, the weakest showing in almost three years.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 16, 2024

Japan’s input inflation flatlines for weakest result since 2021

Input prices were unchanged last month from a year earlier, the weakest showing in almost three years as the yen’s recent gains helped cap import costs.
A volunteer places a box containing medicines into a drone on Jan. 8 in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 16, 2024

Drones' potential put to test in Ishikawa quake relief

As relief efforts continue, some hope to see a boost in the role of drones in responding to disasters in the future.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 16, 2024

Abe faction's seven senior members won't be prosecuted, reports say

Proving a criminal conspiracy between them and the group's treasurer to not report excess income from fundraising parties has been deemed too difficult by investigators.
Ryotaro Nakashima, the eighth-generation owner and tōji master brewer of Nakashima Shuzoten in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, speaks on Friday about how his brewery was devastated by the New Year's Day earthquake.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 17, 2024

Future unclear for 150-year-old sake brewery after Noto earthquake

After key facilities were badly damaged in the quake, eighth-generation owner and tōji master brewer Ryotaro Nakashima is struggling to see a way ahead.
People cross a street in the Mong Kok district in Hong Kong in 2011.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jan 17, 2024

Hong Kong loses global lead for life expectancy, trailing Japan

Women in Hong Kong were expected to live for 86.8 years on average in 2022, compared with 87.1 for their Japanese counterparts, according to the latest statistics.
Mitsuko Tottori (right), incoming president of Japan Airlines, speaks alongside Yuji Akasaka, the outgoing president, during a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 17, 2024

Japan Airlines names former flight attendant as first female president

Mitsuko Tottori, a senior managing executive officer who joined JAL in 1985, will become president from April 1, the firm said in a statement.
All Nippon Airways airplanes at Haneda Airport in Tokyo
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2024

U.S.-bound ANA plane turns back after man bites flight attendant

The passenger, reported to be 55-year-old American man, allegedly sunk his teeth into the flight attendant's arm while "heavily drunk," leaving her mildly injured.
Japan's core machinery orders, a highly volatile data series regarded as a leading indicator of capital spending in the coming six to nine months, fell more than expected in November.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 18, 2024

Japan's core machinery orders fell more than forecast in November

Capital spending is one of the key drivers for Japan's economy and a major indicator of business confidence.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 18, 2024

Japanese Communist Party picks first-ever female leader

Upper House member Tomoka Tamura takes over the chair of the 102-year-old political party — Japan’s oldest — from Kazuo Shii, who held the post since 2000.
In August 2019, Toru Takamatsu became the youngest master sommelier in history at just 24 years old.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 21, 2024

Japan’s first master sommelier dreams of Hokkaido wine glory

Why would a master sommelier go from Michelin-starred restaurants to the hands-on life of an apprentice winemaker in Hokkaido?
JAPAN
Jan 19, 2024

Japan to use ex-believers' help for Unification Church victim aid

Some will participate as instructors in the training of consultation staff, to help them understand the feelings of victims.
Japan's core inflation stayed above the central bank's 2% target in December but slowed for a second straight month, reinforcing expectations it will be in no hurry to phase out its massive monetary stimulus.
BUSINESS
Jan 19, 2024

Japan’s slowing inflation supports case for BOJ to wait longer

Growth in consumer prices excluding fresh food slowed to 2.3% in December from a year earlier.
Sunset at Cape Puyuni in Hokkaido, Japan. The northern island is home to the indigenous Ainu.
JAPAN / History / The Living Past
Jan 21, 2024

To Bird, a savage. To Chiri, alive and aglow.

When given a pen, Yukie Chiri wrote about the Ainu in ways outsiders never tried to understand.
A worker builds a home in Lillington, North Carolina, in June. Appetite among Japanese companies in the U.S. homebuilding market is growing as they struggle with a declining population at home.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 19, 2024

A $4.9 billion Japan deal for a U.S. builder heralds more M&A

Appetite among Japanese buyers in the U.S. homebuilding market is growing as they struggle with a declining population at home.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 19, 2024

Debate grows over whether expo funding should go to Ishikawa recovery

It has been suggested it would be better to postpone, or even cancel, the troubled 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo.
A clock thrown away at a trash site in Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Monday shows the approximate time that an earthquake hit the area on Jan. 1.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 19, 2024

Nanao mayor says Line group chat was essential to relief efforts

The group chat consisting of 300 municipal leaders nationwide allowed Yoshitaka Chatani to directly communicate with other mayors who were eager to help.
A single mom in Kobe moonlights as a sleuth in Simon Rowe’s “Mami Suzuki: Private Eye.”
CULTURE / Books
Jan 21, 2024

'Mami Suzuki: Private Eye': Kobe sleuth's colorful mysteries take readers around Japan

Simon Rowe’s straight-talking detective cuts a sophisticated figure as she solves matters the police won’t touch, all while looking after her young daughter and mother.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 19, 2024

LDP turmoil continues as three major factions announce dissolution

Lawmakers from the 98-member political faction that was previously led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made the decision during a meeting Friday night.
Keisuke Honda is joining an inflow of investment in Japan’s long-neglected startup scene.
BUSINESS
Jan 20, 2024

Retired soccer star Honda sets up $100 million Japan startup fund

In a country where celebrities shy away from speaking about their money or investments, the former AC Milan midfielder faces little competition from other sports stars.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Jan 20, 2024

Sungoliath leave it late to see off Dynaboars in classic

The Sungoliath, who came back late to win a week earlier, repeated the trick for their fifth win from six games.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 20, 2024

Record-low public support sends shockwaves through LDP

The falling support for the LDP is primarily due to a political funds scandal involving the party's powerful factions.
South Korea's Kim Tae-Hwan (left) battles with Jordan's Anas Al Awadat during Asian Cup group stage play on Saturday in Doha.
SOCCER
Jan 21, 2024

South Korea salvages Asian Cup draw as Bahrain leaves it late

One day after Iraq beat tournament favorites Japan, the Koreans needed an injury-time own goal to salvage a point.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years