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BUSINESS
May 11, 2001

Omron unveils earnings targets

KYOTO -- Omron Corp., a major automated control equipment manufacturer, said Thursday it intends to raise return on equity to 10 percent from the current 6.7 percent through sales of 750 billion yen and pretax profits of 80 billion yen by the end of fiscal 2004.
JAPAN
May 9, 2001

Koizumi orders changeover to low-pollution autos by '05

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi instructed Cabinet members Tuesday to replace the central government's fleet of cars with low-pollution vehicles by March 2005.
JAPAN
May 8, 2001

Japan wants temporary UNSC seat

Japan has decided to run in an annual election in 2004 for a nonpermanent seat on the U.N. Security Council, the Foreign Ministry announced Monday.
COMMENTARY
May 5, 2001

Give Taiwan the means of self-defense

The Bush administration won't sell Taiwan the most advanced weapons available, but it says it will defend Taipei from a Chinese attack. Instead of initiating a new military commitment, Washington should use increased weapons transfers to distance itself from any conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
BUSINESS
May 5, 2001

Competition fuels plastic tank firm's quest for market share

As global groupings of carmakers force auto parts makers to intensify domestic competition, Inergy Automotive Systems SA, a French plastic fuel-tank maker, is gearing up to take a larger bite of the fuel tank market in Japan with its advanced technology and worldwide activities.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2001

Sanwa, Tokai merger ahead of schedule

Sanwa Bank and Tokai Bank will form UFJ Bank by Jan. 15, completing their merger two and a half months earlier than planned, due to better-than-expected progress toward computer systems integration, Sanwa and Tokai presidents said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2001

Matsubara wins second term in Nagoya mayoral race

NAGOYA -- Nagoya Mayor Takehisa Matsubara defeated two independent candidates in the mayoral race Sunday to win his second term in office.
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2001

UFJ to detail extra measures for restructuring this month

UFJ Holdings Inc. is to announce further bold restructuring programs later this month, in addition to those unveiled in March.
BUSINESS
Apr 4, 2001

IHI, Kawasaki Heavy to merge shipbuilding operations

Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. said Tuesday they will integrate their shipbuilding operations into an equally owned venture to be formed on Oct. 1, 2002.
JAPAN
Mar 31, 2001

24 trillion yen set aside for research from '01

The government said Friday it will invest 24 trillion yen in scientific and technological research from fiscal 2001 to fiscal 2005.
BUSINESS
Mar 31, 2001

GlaxoSmithKline aims for top 10

GlaxoSmithKline K.K., formerly known as Glaxo Wellcome K.K., aims to be one of Japan's top 10 pharmaceutical makers by 2003 after its merger Sunday with SmithKline Beecham Seiyaku K.K., a company executive said Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 27, 2001

War flick touting Japan's role in Indonesia's birth irks Jakarta

A new Japanese film depicting the role of Imperial Japanese Army soldiers in Indonesia's war for independence from the Netherlands highlights a stark difference in views between Indonesians and Japanese over the republic's 1945 birth.
BUSINESS
Mar 24, 2001

Asahi Bank faces 10 billion yen loss

Asahi Bank announced Friday that its efforts to write off 50 percent more of its nonperforming loans than initially targeted will result in a consolidated net loss of 10 billion yen for the business year ending March 31.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 2001

Elementary school kids test online educational, cultural waters

Pupils of Nankadai Higashi Elementary School near Osaka are learning firsthand the significance of communicating with their counterparts in other countries via the Internet.
BUSINESS
Mar 16, 2001

UFJ Group banks go into red

The three banks that will form the UFJ Group in April announced Thursday they will post pretax losses of 289 billion yen for fiscal 2000 due to writing off 1.13 trillion yen in nonperforming loans, around twice the amount they had earlier predicted.
JAPAN
Mar 16, 2001

Diesel woes spur truck firms to seek out alternative fuels

Delivery companies are starting to use trucks that run on compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas in the face of stricter regulations on diesel-powered vehicles.
BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2001

Japan turns its attention to Brazil, MERCOSUR

After years of near neglect, Japan is now eager to cozy up to Brazil -- by far the largest Latin American economy.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2001

National agency to sell space station images

Japan's space agency has announced it will sell the rights to use live broadcasts and video footage from the International Space Station.
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2001

Nestle Japan, Seiyo Food plot Italian job

Seiyo Food Systems Inc. said Wednesday it has agreed with the Nestle Japan Group to jointly set up and operate a new chain of Italian restaurants.
LIFE / Travel
Feb 19, 2001

Coming soon: cheap space travel

If all goes well, American millionaire Dennis Tito will this year become the world's first space tourist, flying on the Soyez rocket to the International Space Station. The ticket price? A cool $20 million. But a new fueling system developed by Andrews Space & Technology of Segundo, Calif., could soon...
BUSINESS
Feb 15, 2001

Japan carmakers bite deeper into Europe

VALENCIENNES, France -- After securing a firm footing in the U.S., Toyota Motor Corp. is now gearing up its European operations in a bid to bite deeper into the world's second-largest market.
ENVIRONMENT
Feb 14, 2001

Sakhalin oil sparks hopes and fears

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, Russia -- Sakhalin Island is a remote former penal colony where the sea freezes for up to six months a year and villagers have been known to sleep in tents pitched in their bedrooms when the central heating fails.
BUSINESS
Feb 8, 2001

Government to rely on bonds for 41% of all revenue by 2004

Rising social security costs will force the government to issue bonds worth 41.1 percent of its total revenue in fiscal 2004, up from 38.5 percent in fiscal 2000, the Finance Ministry says in a simulation report released Wednesday.
JAPAN / STAGING A COMEBACK
Feb 7, 2001

LDP still kowtows to vested interests at the economy's expense

Pop into a convenience store and you may still find inconvenience: They don't sell medicine and you may not find cigarettes or alcohol at some shops.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2001

New French plant aims to build up Toyota's Europe presence

VALENCIENNES, France -- Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's largest automaker, started manufacturing the Yaris compact model at its first plant in France here on Wednesday, part of the company's efforts to increase its presence in Europe.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2001

New French plant aims to build up Toyota's Europe presence

VALENCIENNES, France -- Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's largest automaker, started manufacturing the Yaris compact model at its first plant in France here on Wednesday, part of the company's efforts to increase its presence in Europe.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2001

Mori apologizes for ministry scandal

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori opened this year's regular Diet session Wednesday by apologizing for recent scandals that have rocked his administration.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2001

Mori apologizes for ministry scandal

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori opened this year's regular Diet session Wednesday by apologizing for recent scandals that have rocked his administration.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past