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Corey Morrison (back center) and Siggy Sauer (front, center) at Asakayama stable. While pathways into ōzumo have become more streamlined in recent years, stables are still remarkably willing to let amateurs show up and train with the superstars of the sport.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Feb 21, 2024

Texan newcomer helps dispel the myth that sumo is a closed world

While pathways into sumo have become more streamlined in recent years, stables are still remarkably willing to let amateurs show up and train superstars.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks on the second day of the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 21, 2024

China-Europe ties worsen on Ukraine and disputes over trade

Beijing’s support for Russia has been a sticking point in relations with Europe.
The Japan Pavillion is seen at the Singapore Airshow on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Feb 21, 2024

At top airshow, Japanese firms explore defense export opportunities

They are offering a diverse and sophisticated range of products following a revision of guidelines on defense equipment and technology transfer.
During a time in which Western acts have seen their place of prominence in the Japanese market drop in favor of K-pop, Swift is a notable exception.
CULTURE / Music
Feb 22, 2024

What makes a Taylor Swift show worth flying in for?

Swifties say the pop star's concerts provide camaraderie and a sense of validation.
A man who struggles with a panic disorder (Hokuto Matsumura, left) and his colleague (Mone Kamishiraishi) who suffers from severe premenstrual syndrome learn to support each other in “All the Long Nights.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 22, 2024

‘All the Long Nights’: Leads’ chemistry delivers in heartwarming drama

Sho Miyake’s observant film, which explores the healing powers of a heartfelt friendship, is enhanced by evocative visual and aural beauty.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 21, 2024

Chinese 'overseas police station' in Tokyo raided over benefit fraud

According to papers submitted to prosecutors, the raids stemmed from an alleged illegal receipt of COVID-19 subsidies.
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, at a House Oversight Committee meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 10.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 21, 2024

FBI informant got false dirt on Bidens from Russia: prosecutors

Alexander Smirnov, 43, a dual U.S. and Israeli national, was arrested last week.
A bloody demonic outbreak strikes Japan in “Visitors: Complete Edition.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 22, 2024

‘Visitors’ revels in all its gory glory with deadpan humor

Kenichi Ugana’s extended version of his brilliant splatter short is endearingly shaggy — and messy.
Moody’s predicts China's potential economic growth will decline to 3.5% by 2030, with weaker demographics and a graying population being a major driver of the slowdown.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 21, 2024

China’s economic engine is running out of fuel

Moody’s now predicts that China's annual economic growth will fall to 4% in 2024 and 2025, before slowing further, to 3.8%, on average, for the rest of the decade.
A Ukrainian serviceman with the call sign "Skorpion" prepares to fire a multiple launch rocket system toward Russian troops near a front-line, at an undisclosed location in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Feb. 4.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 22, 2024

Ukraine outnumbered, outgunned and ground down by Russia

Heavy casualties at the hands of Russian forces have been compounded by dreadful conditions on the eastern front.
Iranian ballistic missiles in Tehran. Iran's hard-line clerical rulers have steadily sought to deepen ties with Russia and China, betting that would help Tehran to resist U.S. sanctions and to end its political isolation.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 22, 2024

Iran sends Russia hundreds of ballistic missiles, sources say

An Iranian military official said there had been at least four shipments of missiles and that there would be more in the coming weeks.
As their popularity grow, Shein and Temu together send almost 600,000 packages to the U.S. every day.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 22, 2024

Rise of fast-fashion Shein and Temu roils global air cargo industry

Their pursuit of limited air-cargo space to woo consumers with rapid transit times make off-peak seasons almost disappear and cause capacity shortages.
Brooklyn-based startup HEVO is working with other firms to develop wireless EV charging systems.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 22, 2024

Wireless charging for electric cars is inching closer to reality

Major hurdles include slow charging speeds and the money and interest needed to build stations and get more carmakers on board.
Though not wild about other cats (nor impressed at all by dogs), Jewel’s love of people has helped her bear the drastic upheaval in her life.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Feb 26, 2024

A purr like a symphony

Jewel's purr rises in a slow crescendo that’s almost lyrical — pure music to a cat lover’s ears.
This simple bento recipe is perfect for meal prepping, school lunches and any other meal where you want maximum flavor for minimum effort.
LIFE / Food & Drink / JAPANESE KITCHEN
Feb 25, 2024

Recipe: 'Rainbow' bento lunch box

The idea of making a bento every day can seem daunting, but there are a few tricks that you can add to your arsenal that will make the task go smoothly.
Laws governing global e-commerce and the growing tidal wave of data that crosses borders may soon change.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 22, 2024

Streaming a movie abroad may soon come with taxes at the border

It's still unclear exactly how governments would implement digital tariffs.
Specimen M831 stored at the National Museum of Nature and Science’s Tsukuba Research Departments in Ibaraki Prefecture
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / OUR PLANET
Feb 22, 2024

How a 13-year-old discovered a possible Japanese wolf specimen

A new paper by Hinako Komori and two academics says a specimen she found could be one of two Japanese wolves kept at Ueno Zoo in the late 19th century.
SUMO
Feb 22, 2024

Sumo great Hakuho facing demotion over protege's alleged bullying

The JSA will hold an emergency board meeting on Friday to discuss the recommendation that the Mongolian-born protege, Hokuseiho, retire.
Gunma Bank's video message in English is geared toward those from overseas who are flocking to Japan to buy up stocks, bonds and real estate as the nation’s assets emerge from decades of slumber.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 22, 2024

English video shows Japanese regional banks opening up to overseas investors

Foreigners are flocking to Japan to buy up stocks, bonds and real estate as the nation’s assets emerge from decades of slumber.
The LDP's Takuo Komori stepped down from his post as parliamentary vice minister for internal affairs after it was revealed he had underreported political funds.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 21, 2024

Will the LDP funding scandal change Japanese politics?

What can we learn from the LDP funding scandal? One thing is certain: The saga fits a pattern that is anything but unseen in Japanese politics.
TikTok parent company ByteDance's offices in Singapore. Chinese companies are increasingly using the city-state as a springboard into the U.S. market.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 22, 2024

'Singapore-washing' and China’s sneaky trade practices

Chinese firms are using Singapore as a springboard into the U.S., circumventing restrictions. The island nation shouldn't enable these deceptive tactics.
The sport was created in the town of Kushiro in 1978 by former Olympic ice hockey goalkeeper Katsuji Morishima, who married two things every East Hokkaido resident has — a pair of rubber rain boots and a love of ice hockey.
MORE SPORTS / Ice Hockey
Feb 22, 2024

A pastime in frozen Hokkaido: Rubber boots ice hockey

No skates are needed for Hokkaido's unique brand of ice hockey, which is a popular way to stay active during the north's long winters.
People take photos of electronic screens showing the Nikkei average surging to its highest level ever, outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets / ANALYSIS
Feb 22, 2024

Nikkei tops late '80s peak, but is a bubble forming?

Market watchers say gains experienced by Japanese equities are well backed by earnings this time.
An artist rendering of Japan's first Arctic research vessel, "Mirai II"
JAPAN
Feb 22, 2024

Japan's first arctic research vessel to be named "Mirai II"

The name was selected from over 7,000 suggestions from the public.
Demonstrators hold a rally in Tel Aviv on Wednesday calling for the release of hostages kidnapped in the deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from Gaza.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 23, 2024

Israel steps up attacks in Gaza Strip amid cease-fire talks

A new draft of a deal is being negotiated after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu withdrew from the last one over Hamas' "ludicrous" demands.
Members of the 31st Separate Mechanized Brigade fire at a Russian target in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine on Tuesday. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States and China and their allies are pulling apart, World Trade Organization economists say.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Feb 23, 2024

Global trade rift widening as Ukraine war passes two-year mark

There are clear signs that the global economy is fragmenting into two separate blocs, World Trade Organization economists say.
U.S. President Joe Biden chats with Kiribati President Taneti Maamau as Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown looks on during a summit at the White House in Washington in September.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 23, 2024

Chinese police are working in Kiribati, Hawaii's Pacific neighbor

Kiribati has not publicly announced the policing deal, which comes as Beijing renews a push to expand security ties in the Pacific islands.
The International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington. The IMF sees downside risks in the Japanese economy, which unexpectedly slipped into a recession at the end of last year.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 23, 2024

IMF sees downside risks for Japan in 2024

Japan unexpectedly slipped into a recession at the end of last year, losing its title as the world's third-biggest economy to Germany.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Feb 23, 2024

Noto quake highlights aging water systems in depopulating areas

Nearly 22,000 homes in Ishikawa Prefecture are still without water, and the shortage has sparked debate on how to maintain services in depopulating areas.
A member of the Ukrainian State Emergency Service attends a transfer ceremony of special vehicles from Japan to Ukraine in Kyiv on Nov. 20, 2023.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Feb 23, 2024

An ominous portent emerges for Japan as Ukraine war enters third year

There are growing indications that the once-durable coalition of partners backing Kyiv’s war effort is crumbling — an ominous sign for Japan.

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