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A Mynavi survey has found that even dual-income households are facing financial strain in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
May 16, 2025

Finances are tight for dual-income households too, survey finds

Nearly half of full-time workers whose spouses also work say they are struggling financially.
Chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa and his delegation in the Oval Office of the White House in April. Since then, Japan's trade negotiations with the U.S. have produced no tangible results.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 16, 2025

Akazawa's dilemma: no tariff deal or a half-baked deal

Japan has realized the U.S. has no intention of seriously talking about duties on automobiles now.
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures with a clenched fist as he prepares to board Air Force One in Abu Dhabi at the end of his Middle East tour on Friday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
May 17, 2025

Trump reshapes U.S. Mideast policy. Can deals work instead?

The president proclaimed a decisive break with decades of U.S. interventionism, promising a new foreign policy based instead on the art of the deal.
Vocaloid idol Hatsune Miku and kabuki actor Nakamura Shido II first performed together in 2016. This month, they’re reviving the show for the Osaka World Expo.
CULTURE / Stage
May 17, 2025

Traditional performing arts are plugging into modern audiences

Noh and kabuki are getting an image update by teaming up with pop culture figures such as Vocaloid idol Hatsune Miku and DJ Ken Ishii.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 17, 2025

Ex-South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol leaves conservative party

The announcement comes as PPP's presidential candidate is badly trailing liberal Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myung in the polls before the June 3 snap election.
The first blood test to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, which is made by Fujirebio Diagnostics, a unit of Japan’s H.U. Group Holdings, was cleared for people 55 years and older who exhibit signs and symptoms of the disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement.
WORLD / Science & Health
May 17, 2025

FDA clears first blood test to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease

The test made by Fujirebio Diagnostics, a unit of Japan’s H.U. Group Holdings, was cleared for people 55 years and older who exhibit signs and symptoms of the disease.
Moody's first gave the United States its pristine "Aaa" rating in 1919 and is the last of the three major credit agencies to downgrade it.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 17, 2025

Moody's cuts America's pristine credit rating, citing rising debt

The move that could complicate U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to cut taxes and send ripples through global markets.
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency President Hiroshi Yamakawa speaks at a press briefing in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 17, 2025

Japan remains committed to moon missions as Trump cuts NASA budget, JAXA chief says

U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed a $6 billion cut to NASA's budget could upend the Artemis program to return people to the moon.
U.S. President Donald Trump lashed out Friday at the Supreme Court after it blocked his bid to resume deportations of alleged Venezuelan gang members, saying the justices are "not allowing me to do what I was elected to do."
WORLD / Politics
May 17, 2025

U.S. Supreme Court maintains block on Trump deportations under wartime law

The top court faulted his administration for seeking to remove the Venezuelan migrants without adequate legal process.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Canberra "is appalled at the sham trial and 13-year sentence given to Australian man Oscar Jenkins."
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 17, 2025

Canberra slams Russian jailing of Australian who fought for Ukraine

Oscar Jenkins, 33, was convicted of being a "mercenary in an armed conflict" by the court in Ukraine's Russian-occupied east Luhansk region.
An oil refinery behind Hamadera Park in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture
JAPAN
May 17, 2025

One dead after possible gas leak at Eneos refinery

The company believes they may have inhaled hydrogen sulfide gas, according to informed sources.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un stands beside a MiG-29 aircraft and air-launched weaponry on display during anti-air combat and air raid drills at an undisclosed location in the country on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 17, 2025

North Korea's Kim oversees air drills and calls for stepped-up war preparations

Kim, who inspected anti-aircraft combat and airstrike drills, called for "all units in the entire military" to bring about "a breakthrough in war preparation."
Maserati's Stoffel Vandoorne holds up the trophy after winning the Tokyo E-Prix on Saturday, alongside Nissan's Oliver Rowland (left) and McLaren's Taylor Barnard.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
May 17, 2025

Stoffel Vandoorne rides perfect strategy to Tokyo E-Prix win

The Belgian’s triumph was to the dismay of the loyal Nissan fans at the track, with championship leader Oliver Rowland slipping down to second after starting on pole. 
Satoko Sodeno moves into temporary housing and arranges her belongings in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Saturday.
JAPAN
May 17, 2025

Iwate wildfire victims begin moving into temporary housing

Seven housing units were built on the grounds of a former elementary school in Ofunato's Akasaki district.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to deliver a speech marking his 100th day in office at Macomb County Community College Sports Expo Center in Warren, Michigan, on April 29.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 18, 2025

Trump’s deals cast China both as foe and prize, blurring signals

Pick through the details of recent U.S. trade negotiations and an outline of Donald Trump’s vision for the global economy starts to come into focus. As do its contradictions.
Nozomu Hagihara reaches the goal at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi on Thursday after dribbling a soccer ball for about 2,000 kilometers across India.
JAPAN
May 18, 2025

Japanese man dribbles soccer ball 2,000 km across India

Hagihara, who is working to contribute to Indian society through soccer, plans to apply for a Guinness World Record for the longest journey dribbling a soccer ball.
Austrian singer Johannes Pietsch, known as JJ, celebrates with the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest trophy after winning the grand final at the St. Jakobshalle arena in Basel, Switzerland, on Sunday.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
May 18, 2025

On a high: Austria's JJ wins Eurovision 2025

After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel on 357 and Estonia on 356.
Muneyuki Izawa, a chef at the Japanese ambassador's official residence in Phnom Penh, prepares Japanese cuisine dishes.
JAPAN
May 18, 2025

Japan working to improve treatment of 'culinary diplomats' in diplomatic missions

In July, the ministry will start accepting applications for chef positions under improved working conditions, with the improved treatment set to take effect next January.
British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper arrives for a news conference in London on May 12.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 18, 2025

British police charge three Iranians as part of spying probe

The three men have been charged with engaging in conduct likely to assist Iranian intelligence service between August 14, 2024, and February 16, 2025.
An area is taped off after an explosion at the American Reproductive Centers clinic, in Palm Springs, California, on Saturday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 18, 2025

Bomb at fertility clinic in California kills one

The blast tore through downtown Palm Springs, ripping a hole in the clinic and blowing out the windows and doors of nearby buildings.
Princess Aiko is greeted by Ishikawa Gov. Hiroshi Hase (left) at the Kanazawa Station on Sunday.
JAPAN
May 18, 2025

Princess Aiko arrives in Ishikawa to visit quake-hit areas

It will be the first time the 23-year-old princess has visited an area hit by a disaster.
Founded with a mission of promoting electric vehicles, Formula E has always placed sustainability at the forefront of its raison d’etre.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
May 18, 2025

For Formula E, ‘sustainability is at the heart’

Now in its 11th season, Formula E's efforts to reduce emissions and promote electric vehicles are paying off.
Then-U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington on Jan. 17.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2025

Joe Biden diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer

The former U.S. president has a form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, and is reviewing treatment options, his office said Sunday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a news conference at the Kremlin in Moscow last Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
May 19, 2025

Putin heads into Trump call confident that Russia has upper hand

Putin is confident that his forces can break through Ukraine’s defenses by the end of the year to take full control of four regions that he has claimed for Russia.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer (left) U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick (second from left), U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (second from right) and Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's economic revitalization minster, pose for a photo ahead of a meeting in Washington on May 1.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 19, 2025

China-U.S. trade truce prompts nations to consider tougher tactics

After China’s tough negotiating tactics earned it a favorable deal, nations taking a more diplomatic and expedited approach are questioning whether that’s the right path.
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a house in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on Sunday.
WORLD
May 19, 2025

Israel to let limited amounts of food into Gaza as new ground assault begins

Facing mounting pressure over an aid blockade it imposed in March and the risk of famine, Israel has stepped up its campaign in Gaza.
Presidential candidate Nicusor Dan speaks as he reacts to exit polls of Romania's second round of the presidential election, in Bucharest on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2025

Centrist Nicusor Dan wins Romanian presidency over hard-right, pro-Trump rival

The election drew the highest percentage of voter turnout in a Romanian election in 25 years.
The Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shoots over Nuggets guard Julian Strawther during Game 7 of their Western Conference semifinal series in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on Sunday.
BASKETBALL / NBA
May 19, 2025

Thunder blow past Nuggets in Game 7 to reach Western Conference finals

The Thunder advanced to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2016.
Supporters of far-right Portuguese party Chega celebrate general election results at its party headquarters in Lisbon on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2025

Ruling party tops Portugal polls marked by far-right surge

Prime Minister Luis Montenegro's Democratic Alliance remains short of a parliamentary majority.
A Rheinmetall  Leopard 2 tank production line in Unterluess, Germany. The country's new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has pledged to make the Bundeswehr Europe’s strongest army, marking a sharp departure from post–Cold War pacifism and sparking economic optimism rather than fear.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 19, 2025

German rearmament is a welcome 'war dividend'

Merz’s planned arms buildup means the definitive end to the "peace dividend” that the Western world had enjoyed since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan