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The surge in share buybacks followed a request by the Tokyo Stock Exchange in March 2023 that listed companies put more focus on improving capital efficiency.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 20, 2025

Listed Japanese firms' share buybacks hit record in 2024

The increase has been attributed to accelerated corporate efforts to improve capital efficiency and pressure from activist shareholders.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba entering the Prime Minister's Office on Monday
JAPAN
Jan 21, 2025

Japan to disclose names of malicious AI businesses

The planned legislation on dealing with the risks of AI and boosting Japan's international competitiveness on the technology is not expected to include penalties.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 21, 2025

Trump seizes control: his executive actions, from tariffs to immigration

Actions so far include pardoning nearly all charged over the 2021 Capitol riot, rescinding 78 orders by the previous administration, and again exiting the Paris Agreement.
A trailer transports Nissan’s NV200 Venette minivans in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 21, 2025

Nissan to end production of compact van as Honda rescue looms

Manufacturing unit Nissan Shatai hasn’t made any decisions on job cuts, a Nissan spokesperson said.
In this long exposure photo, a helicopter surveys the scene during the Lilac fire in unincorporated San Diego County, California, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Jan 22, 2025

Fire-scarred Los Angeles to face dry winds with promise of weekend rain

This weekend could bring much-needed rain, with up to 1.3 centimeters forecast for the drought-stricken Los Angeles area.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks on Stargate, as Oracle Executive Chairman Larry Ellison, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman look on in the Roosevelt room at the White House.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2025

SoftBank to help fund and lead Trump-backed Stargate AI project, a $500 billion venture

The president said it will be the largest AI infrastructure ever built and that it will help counter technology threats from China and other countries.
Fuji Media Holdings' headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward. The company will hold an extraordinary board meeting on Thursday over the firestorm sparked by TV host Masahiro Nakai's alleged sexual misconduct.
JAPAN / Media
Jan 22, 2025

Fuji TV scandal sparks probes on exploitation within TV industry

The sexual misconduct allegations against TV host and former SMAP member Masahiro Nakai have thrown a spotlight on the TV industry's culture and ethics.
The crime scene where three people were attacked near JR Nagano Station on Wednesday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2025

Search for suspect underway after fatal stabbing at Nagano Station

One person died in the attack, which happened around 8 p.m. Wednesday, while two others sustained injuries.
Regular gasoline was priced at ¥194 per liter at a gas station in Nagano on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 23, 2025

Japan's average gas price exceeds ¥185 for first time in 17 months

The price hike reflects reduced government subsidies to oil wholesalers.
In the survey, 36.7% of respondents said that they have not taken measures to prevent customer harassment.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2025

Customer harassment pushes part-timers to quit

The proportion of companies whose part-time workers faced customer harassment, such as yelling, within the past year was 45.7%.
Takuya Mori, a curator of Yokkaichi Municipal Museum in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, works on converting magnetic recordings kept at the museum into digital files.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Mar 3, 2025

Magnetic tapes at risk without digitization, archive groups warn

UNESCO has called for the digitization of audio and video recordings kept in academic and cultural institutions.
Emmanuelle Moureaux in her office, which looks like a museum, at emmanuelle moureaux INC.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 31, 2025

How Tokyo taught a French architect the power of colors

French-born architect Emmanuelle Moureaux took inspiration from Tokyo's vibrancy to create her "100 colors" series.
National Police Agency Commissioner-General Yasuhiro Tsuyuki speaks during a news conference on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2025

Japan police agency sets rules for fake IDs in undercover yami baito probes

Investigations involving the use of fake IDs will target crimes such as robbery, special fraud, investment fraud and romance fraud.
"We will demand more than in the previous year to fulfill our role as a leading industry in Japan," Masashi Jinbo, head of the union, said in a news conference in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 23, 2025

Japan's electronics unions to seek ¥17,000 pay hike

"We will demand more than in the previous year to fulfill our role as a leading industry in Japan," union group head Masashi Jinbo told a news conference.
Restaurant of Mistaken Orders staff serve lunch to participants at an event at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government cafeteria.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 31, 2025

Addressing dementia through a human-centered approach in Tokyo and beyond

A recent symposium on dementia featured Dr. Katarina Nagga, who discussed a Swedish program that emphasizes the importance of early detection and a people-centered approach.
Afghan citizens, who are in the process for resettlement in the U.S., attend an English class on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Society
Jan 24, 2025

Afghans awaiting U.S. resettlement feel betrayal after Trump order

Some feel betrayed, with many — including those who fled Taliban rule in Afghanistan — having already spent years in limbo.
Syrian police members attend their graduation ceremony at the Police Academy under the Syrian Salvation Government in Damascus, Syria, on Jan. 14.
WORLD
Jan 24, 2025

Syria's new leaders turn to Islamic law in effort to rebuild Assad's police

Syria's new authorities are using Islamic teachings to train a fledgling police force.
Though he comes from a troubled home, Bach is a sweet fellow who loves to play.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / ADOPT ME!
Jan 24, 2025

Bach the bobtail will warm your lap and heart

This tuxedo cat loves to play with toys, but is just as happy taking it easy.
Aside from purely aesthetics, the flowers in Mika Ninagawa’s art carry deep cultural and spiritual meaning.
CULTURE / Art
Jan 25, 2025

Mika Ninagawa transforms the Kyocera Museum into a vibrant dreamworld

The artist’s most expansive exhibition in the Kansai region to date is an experience that straddles the boundaries of photography, film and installation art.
Fuji Television's poor handling of sexual misconduct allegations against celebrity Masahiro Nakai has led to an exodus of sponsors from the broadcaster.
JAPAN / Media / FOCUS
Jan 24, 2025

What are the real issues behind the Fuji TV scandal?

Fuji TV's handling of sexual misconduct allegations against TV personality Masahiro Nakai led to a firestorm of public disapproval. Where did it go wrong?
The U.S. head office of TikTok in Culver City, California
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 26, 2025

White House in talks to have Oracle and U.S. investors take over TikTok

Under the deal, ByteDance would retain a stake in the company, but data collection and software updates would be overseen by Oracle.
A worker assembles temporary shelters in preparation for mass deportations at the U.S.-Mexico border in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 27, 2025

Wall Street banks on Trump not following through on immigration pledges

Mass deportations would likely upend industries as varied as service-heavy hospitality and leisure, labor-intensive agriculture, food production, manufacturing and construction.
A worker walks past cattle carcasses at the municipal slaughterhouse in Sao Felix do Xingu, Brazil.The country is in talks with Japan over exports of its beef.
BUSINESS
Jan 27, 2025

Brazil in talks for beef shipments to Japan in threat to U.S.

The U.S. is currently one of Japan’s major beef suppliers, but the country is dealing with a severe shortage of cattle that drove a spike in beef imports from Brazil.
Fuji TV President Koichi Minato (left) and Chairman Shuji Kanoh, also chairman of the broadcaster's parent company Fuji Media Holdings, bow during a news conference in Tokyo on Monday. The two have announced their resignations.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 28, 2025

Fuji TV president resigns over handling of Masahiro Nakai scandal

Koichi Minato has been the target of criticism following the revelation that he became aware of the incident involving Nakai right after it occurred in June 2023.
US Steel’s Mon Valley facility in Pennsylvania. Activist investor Ancora Holdings Group has nominated nine candidates for U.S. Steel’s board and is pushing for the company to abandon a takeover by Nippon Steel.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2025

Ancora seeks U.S. Steel board revamp and end to Nippon Steel deal

The Cleveland-based activist investor intends to push U.S. Steel to end litigation aimed at rescuing the Nippon Steel deal and instead collect a $565 million breakup fee.
The sign of Greenlandic representation in Copenhagen on Sunday
WORLD / Society
Jan 27, 2025

Adopted without consent, a Greenlander woman seeks justice

Kalanguak Absalonsen is one of four Greenlanders seeking compensation from Denmark for wrongful adoption. If the state refuses their request, they will take their case to court.
China's DeepSeek carries far-reaching implications for the global tech industry and supply chain.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 27, 2025

Why is the AI world freaking out over China's DeepSeek?

DeepSeek has far-reaching implications for the global tech industry, upending the widespread belief that the future of AI will require ever-increasing amounts of power.
A worker at a Kongo factory in Kashima, Kumamoto Prefecture, carefully processes an aluminum plate using a forming press.
BUSINESS / Companies / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jan 28, 2025

Companies in Kyushu struggle to enter TSMC’s supply chain

One report shows that firms in the region make up less than 10% of Japanese companies doing business with TSMC or its unit in Japan.
Most of Nomura's recent personnel cuts were in London, according to a person familiar with the matter, who added that three worked in rates and another three in the digital office.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 28, 2025

Nomura cuts about 10 global markets staff to reduce costs

A year ago, Japan’s biggest brokerage planned to cut about 60 staffers as the firm sought ways to pare expenses across its investment bank.
Berlin's landmark Brandenburg Gate is illuminated with the inscription "WeRemember" on Saturday as part of the remembrance ceremonies for the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau.
WORLD / Society
Jan 28, 2025

Auschwitz survivors warn of rising antisemitism at 80th anniversary of camp's liberation

More than 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, perished in gas chambers or from starvation, cold and disease at Auschwitz.

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Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’