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JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

More workers embrace early retirement

As economic woes prompt companies to pare down workforces and job-security anxiety grows amid widening cracks in Japan's storied lifetime employment system, at least one new breed is rising from the ashes -- older workers who are eager to pocket a payoff and branch out in a new direction.
COMMENTARY
Nov 16, 2001

Failure to reform will doom the economy

We no longer hear about "automatic increases in tax revenue." Instead, over the past decade we have heard so much about "deficit-covering government bonds" and "bad debts" that they have almost become household words.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

JAL reports plunge in interim profits, sees red for full year

Japan Airlines Co. said Thursday that the Sept. 11 terror attacks caused its interim net profit to plunge 61.3 percent to 16.4 billion yen and may lead the group into the red by the end of fiscal 2001.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

CD industry aims at aging music buffs

The Japanese compact disc market is finally showing signs of recovery, but only after manufacturers set their sights on a different demographic -- those aged between 30 and 60.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

No plan to allow female ascension: Aso

Taro Aso, policy chief of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said he thinks it is too early to consider revising a male-only inheritance law for the Imperial family to allow a woman to ascend to the throne.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

Satellite may fall anywhere

A Japanese satellite that stopped operating in 1998 will probably enter the atmosphere and fall to Earth between Nov. 31 to Dec. 10, the National Space Development Agency of Japan has announced.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

Ministry urges companies to report greenhouse gas emissions

The Environment Ministry proposed Thursday establishing a mechanism to encourage companies to publicize their greenhouse gas emissions and a system of neutral third parties to evaluate and check reported emissions.
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Nov 16, 2001

Coming to Japan with his eyes wide shut

Omar Karlin would be blind today if it weren't for that crazy, half-baked business scheme of his.
EDITORIALS
Nov 16, 2001

The nuclear shadow lightens

The world took a giant step toward disarmament this week when U.S. President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, agreed to slash their nuclear arsenals. The deep cuts were the most significant outcome of a three-day summit that seems to herald a new era in relations...
LIFE / Lifestyle / MATTER OF COURSE
Nov 16, 2001

Sewing and cookery aren't just for the girls

On a recent observation day at the Japanese public elementary school that my children attend, I wandered into unfamiliar territory. I saw a mother entering a classroom I had never noticed. I followed her in and got quite a surprise.
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2001

NPA instructs local cops not to get trigger-happy

The National Police Agency has instructed prefectural police nationwide in charge of training and education to ensure their officers do not overuse their service revolvers.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2001

Koizumi gives WTO accord his blessing

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Thursday welcomed the previous day's accord by World Trade Organization trade ministers to launch new multilateral trade negotiations.
EDITORIALS
Nov 15, 2001

Australia opts for stability

Australian voters opted for stability and continuity last weekend when they gave Prime Minister John Howard a third term in office. Although the margin of victory was greater than expected, Mr. Howard's Liberal-National coalition government only picked up a few seats in Parliament. Moreover, the policies...
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

Expatriates in Japan uneasy over Northern Alliance advance

Many Afghans residing in Japan distrust the Northern Alliance and do not support its recent seizure of Kabul.
JAPAN / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE
Nov 15, 2001

Automakers steering toward financial markets

As the nation's banking sector continues to struggle with bad debts and falling stock prices, major automakers from Japan, Europe and the United States are seeking to expand the scale and scope of their financial businesses here.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Casio Computer to delete 3,000 jobs

Casio Computer Co. said Wednesday it will chop 3,000 jobs, about 17 percent of its group workforce, by March, after falling into the red in the first half of the business year.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Cabinet Office says economy going down

The government on Wednesday downgraded its diagnosis of the Japanese economy's health for the seventh time this year, as the effects of the September terrorist attacks in the United States began to be felt.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

University probes accident at cosmic ray laboratory

The University of Tokyo is conducting an investigation into a major accident that occurred Monday at its Super-Kamiokande cosmic ray research facility in Gifu Prefecture, where the groundbreaking discovery that neutrinos have mass was made in 1998.
COMMENTARY
Nov 15, 2001

Legacy of 'jihad' may linger

ISLAMABAD -- Chants of "jihad" (holy war) have repeatedly resonated on the streets of Pakistan in the weeks following Washington's decision to launch military attacks on Afghanistan.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Bankruptcies hit postbubble high

The nation's prolonged recession forced more small and midsize firms into bankruptcy in October, with the number of failures surging 11.7 percent from a year earlier to 1,911, the worst since the nation's asset-inflated bubble economy burst a decade ago, a credit research firm said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

Miyazaki film sets new box-office record

Innovative animation director Hayao Miyazaki has set a new Japanese box-office record with his latest film "Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi" ("Spirited Away"), according to film distributor Toho Co.
COMMENTARY
Nov 15, 2001

The dilemma at Doha: balancing security and commerce

HONOLULU -- Terrorism is very much on the minds of trade ministers meeting since the weekend in Doha, Qatar, to discuss a new round of global trade talks. Some are worried about personal safety: Many received security briefings from their national intelligence services on the possibility of a terror...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

Japan makes pitch for Afghan peace role

The United States has high expectations of Japan's role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan after Taliban rule ends, and Tokyo should engage in the peace process from an early stage, former Japanese Ambassador to the U.S. Shunji Yanai said.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 15, 2001

All together now, come on feel the noise

Having spent the last few years attending rugby games in Japan and noting how much the Japan Rugby Union, and the game's players and followers, need to learn from their counterparts overseas, I decided a change was as good as a rest.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Nov 15, 2001

Scent of a stickleback

We all know why we find certain people attractive and want to form relationships with them. Those special people might be more than usually compassionate, intelligent or funny -- or might be physically well-endowed in some way. And neurologists know which areas of the brain become active when we meet...
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2001

Expatriates in Japan uneasy over Northern Alliance advance

Many Afghans residing in Japan distrust the Northern Alliance and do not support its recent seizure of Kabul.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2001

Short-selling surge shows confidence at all-time low

The balance of shares sold short is threatening to outrun that of margin buying, indicating investor confidence has hit an all-time low.

Longform

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’