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Katsumi Murakami, a Lawson convenience store owner in Kobe, talks about his experience in the 1995 earthquake and how convenience stores can serve a lifeline in times of disaster.
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2025

Convenience stores' importance grew after Kobe earthquake, one owner says

The owner recalled handing out food from his Lawson convenience store following the 1995 earthquake and ensuring it was open for business three months later.
Police officers from the Metropolitan Police Department conduct a search at the premises of Natural, one of Japan's biggest sex worker scout groups, on Monday in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 28, 2025

Tokyo police arrest members of major sex worker scout group

The group had up to about 1,500 scouts nationwide, and its annual revenue is believed to have reached about ¥5 billion.
Yuji "Gump" Suzuki, the Japanese runner and social media sensation, runs with supporters while pushing his rickshaw as he nears his goal in Cape Town, South Africa, on Sunday.
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2025

Japanese man ends his 6,000 kilometer Africa rickshaw trek in Cape Town

His latest quest started in the Kenyan capital in July and took him through Tanzania, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia.
Yusuke Yaguchi leaves the Nagano Chuo Police Station in the city of Nagano for his transfer to prosecutors Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 28, 2025

Nagano stabbing suspect altered appearance and hid before arrest

Authorities pieced together the suspect's movements using security footage and citizen tip-offs, ultimately tracking him down at his apartment 3 kilometers away from the scene.
Members of the media raise their hands for questions as outgoing Fuji TV President Koichi Minato attends a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Jan 28, 2025

What we learned at Fuji TV's marathon Nakai scandal news conference

Longtime executive of Fuji TV Hisashi Hieda, who has been dubbed the “emperor” of the broadcaster, was not present at the news conference and did not resign.
Members of the media crowd the venue before the start of a news conference at Fuji TV's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Society / First person
Jan 28, 2025

Yelling and random tangents: What it was like covering Fuji TV's 10-hour presser

The once-in-a-lifetime news conference showed what would happen when the Japanese press was given total freedom with no time limits.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends an ordinary session of parliament along with his Cabinet ministers on Friday. Ishiba has toned down his stance on legally allowing married couples to have separate surnames.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jan 28, 2025

Ishiba tones down stance on dual-surname debate

While previously being all in favor of a dual-surname system, the prime minister has recently suggested considering a "compromise" of legally expanding the use of maiden names.
Firefighters and others work to rescue a truck driver who fell into a sinkhole at a Saitama prefectural road intersection in Yashio on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2025

Massive sinkhole engulfs truck in Saitama, trapping driver inside

The sinkhole is believed to have been caused by an underground sewage pipe rupturing.
Hoshoryu (front, second from left) celebrates after being promoted to yokozuna on Wednesday in Tokyo.
SUMO
Jan 29, 2025

Sumo’s newest yokozuna is all smiles — but major challenges await

For all the feel-good energy that has surrounded Hoshoryu the past few days, the Mongolian will need to take his sumo to another level if he is to last in the rank.
People were more concerned about the direct and specific impact of the Bank of Japan's latest rate hike on their personal lives, according to an artificial intelligence-driven analysis of various platforms, including social media.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 29, 2025

Japan begins feeling the pain of BOJ rate hikes more concretely

As time goes on, the BOJ’s rate increases appear to be having a stronger impact on people’s everyday lives, shifting from more abstract concepts to more concrete effects.
Female runners do not tend to have an increased risk of cardiac arrest with age, according to the results of the survey by a Japanese research team.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 29, 2025

Men over 60 at greater risk of cardiac arrest during marathons

The frequency of cardiac arrests for men of that age group was six times the rate of those age 49 or younger, according to Keio University researchers.
Tokyo is expected to lead the season with its first cherry blossoms on March 21, followed by Fukuoka, Kochi and Hiroshima prefectures as well as the city of Yokohama on March 22.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2025

Cherry blossom season predicted to begin in Tokyo on March 21

This year’s cherry blossom season is expected to align with or slightly precede historical averages in western and eastern Japan.
JR Central's "Doctor Yellow" T4 train arrives at Tokyo Station on Wednesday after completing its final shinkansen track inspection.
JAPAN
Jan 29, 2025

'Doctor Yellow' train completes final shinkansen track inspection

JR Central's T4 Doctor Yellow entered into service in 2001, and covered some 1.57 million kilometers.
Nippon Ishin no Kai leaders Hirofumi Yoshimura (left) and Seiji Maehara attend the party's executive meeting in the city of Osaka in December.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 30, 2025

Shared concerns could bring LDP and Nippon Ishin together on 2025 budget

Nippon Ishin's challenge is to get the LDP to secure free high school education and ensure support for the financially troubled Osaka Kansai Expo.
The Lower House Budget Committee vote to summon Jun Matsumoto, a former LDP faction's accountant, in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 30, 2025

Budget Committee votes to summon former LDP faction accountant

The move ends a stalemate between the LDP and opposition parties, the latter of which had conditioned the start of budget deliberations on the inquiry.
The koji room at Fukuwagura brewery in Mie Prefecture, where metals such as stainless steel, which are easy to manage for hygiene, are widely used
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jan 30, 2025

Japanese food makers step in to preserve sake breweries' legacy

The initiatives by food companies coincide with a growing recognition of traditional sake-making techniques.
Sea turtles in Amami Oshima, Kagoshima Prefecture. Their nesting activity has continued to decline in recent years.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 30, 2025

Amami Oshima sea turtle nesting declines to second-lowest level

Scientists believe declining populations may be a key factor and have warned that a long-term analysis is needed to assess the situation.
Lawyers representing Masako Akagi at a news conference in the city of Osaka on Thursday following an Osaka High Court ruling that revoked the Finance Ministry's decision not to disclose documents related to a document-tampering scandal
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 31, 2025

Court nixes Finance Ministry decision against document disclosure

The Finance Ministry has said that public disclosure in a document-tampering case would impede investigations.
Fuji TV President Kenji Shimizu speaks to reporters at the company's headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday following a board meeting.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2025

Fuji TV expects ¥23 billion dent in revenue over Nakai scandal

The broadcaster, projecting its ad revenue to total ¥125.2 billion in the year through March, expects to fall into the red.
Jumpei Yasuda in November 2018
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 31, 2025

Tokyo high court rules denying a passport to journalist is illegal

The journalist had applied for a passport in 2019, but the Foreign Ministry refused to issue one to him because Turkey had banned his entry.
Prices of some 1,600 food items, including Ezaki Glico's chocolate snack Pocky, will be raised in February.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2025

Prices of 1,656 food items to increase in Japan in February

There are notable price hikes for chocolate confectioneries, flour products and frozen food using rice.
Tokyo saw a net population inflow of 79,285 in 2024, up 11,000 from the previous year and returning to prepandemic levels.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2025

Tokyo area's net population inflow accelerates in 2024

The government aims to reverse the trend in fiscal 2027 to address the issue of overconcentration in the Tokyo area.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba answers questions during a Lower House budget committee meeting on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 31, 2025

LDP gets a taste of life with an opposition-led budget committee

A move to summon a former LDP faction accountant risks upsetting the party's parliamentary timetable and exposing it to criticism.
Tokyo’s notoriously crowded trains and train stations can be stressful for many. Unfortunately, the ぶつかり男 (butsukari otoko, bumping man) takes his stress out on others through shoving, elbowing and shoulder checks.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 31, 2025

Mind the gap — and the shoulder checking: Dealing with pushy people in Japan's crowded spaces

Knowing what to say in the moment is good, knowing how to report it to the authorities is even better.
Spring negotiations in 2024 resulted in salaries rising by over 5% on a whole, but hikes at small and midsized companies, which account for some 70% of Japan's employment, were far lower than the average.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2025

Japan's spring wage talks begin with labor-management forum

Rengo, the umbrella organization for labor unions, is seeking an overall wage hike of at least 5%.
Snow falls as cars and pedestrians cross an intersection in Tokyo. The meteorological agency is warning of possible traffic disruptions caused by snow and icy roads.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2025

Snow may disrupt traffic in Tokyo area from Sunday

Delays and cancellations may occur on some train lines in the Tokyo metropolitan area, according to JR East.
Branded bags are displayed at a secondhand store in Tokyo in December.
BUSINESS
Feb 2, 2025

Secondhand shops rush for branded goods in Japan

Some operators have partnered with department stores, while others have use AI to determine the value of vintage luxury goods.
Yoshihiko Noda, the head of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, attends a news conference last week.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 2, 2025

CDP to present 'full package' of budget revisions in mid-February

The opposition party's upcoming revisions will include a gasoline tax cut, free school lunches and tuition-free high school education regardless of parents' income levels.
An H-3 rocket, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, is launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima on Feb. 17, 2024.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 2, 2025

Fifth H-3 rocket with Michibiki No. 6 satellite successfully launched

The rocket blasted off at 5:30 p.m. from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture. The satellite was placed into its target orbit.
Rescuers on Thursday continue to try and free a truck driver after his vehicle plunged into a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, earlier in the week.
JAPAN
Feb 2, 2025

Residents near Japan sinkhole urged to evacuate

The growing sinkhole in Saitama Prefecture could be the result of corroded sewerage pipes, according to local authorities.

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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