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The Imperial Household Agency's Instagram account boasts over 1.8 million followers.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Feb 3, 2025

Imperial Household Agency finds success on Instagram amid public relations push

With the account boasting over 1.8 million followers, the agency is aiming to boost engagement.
People who were onboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship when the COVID-19 cluster infections in the ship broke out in February 2020 pray Monday in Yokohama for those who died of the disease.
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2025

COVID-19 victims of Diamond Princess ship remembered five years on

Of a total of 3,711 passengers and crew members on the ship, 712 became infected with the novel coronavirus and 14 died from the disease.
A snowy street in the city of Aomori in early January
JAPAN
Feb 3, 2025

Weather agency warns of heavy snow in many areas from Tuesday

The Meteorological Agency urged people to be on high alert for possible traffic disruptions.
Taiwanese star Barbie Hsu, who was hugely popular across Asia for her leading role in the 2001 television drama "Meteor Garden," died from a respiratory illness during a family trip to Japan over the Lunar New Year holiday.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Feb 3, 2025

Taiwan's 'Meteor Garden' star Barbie Hsu dies at 48

The actor, who rose to fame as the romantic lead in a 2001 television drama based on a manga series, died from a respiratory illness during a family holiday in Japan.
According to the National Police Agency, 99% of speech venues during last year’s House of Representatives election had baggage inspections carried out.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 4, 2025

Election speech sites step up security after failed 2023 Kishida attack

The National Police Agency has applied greater pressure on speech organizers to enforce security measures following the 2023 failed attack on former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
MUFG virtually reached its full-year profit goal with a quarter to spare, earning a record ¥1.749 trillion in the first nine months.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 4, 2025

MUFG profit soars in bumper earnings season for Japan banks

Japanese banks are benefiting from rising interest rates following more than a decade of ultra-easy monetary policy.
The proportion of respondents who said that the surname debate was something they felt they had a personal stake in increased by 2.7 percentage points from the previous survey by the Cabinet Office in 2022.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 2025

44% in Japan feel they might be affected by dual-surname debate

The possible introduction of a selective dual-surname system was one of the key issues in last year's election for the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
A passenger plane for Japan Airlines sits on the tarmac at Tokyo International Airport at Haneda in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 4, 2025

Two ex-Japan Airlines pilots grounded after lying about drinking

JAL said last month its two most senior executives would take a 30% pay cut for two months over the incident.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama has been credited with convincing opposition parties to remain at the negotiating table with his diplomatic skills.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Feb 5, 2025

Who is Hiroshi Moriyama, the man behind the prime minister?

The Liberal Democratic Party secretary-general is known for his negotiation skills and diplomacy, making him integral for a party that now rules as a minority government.
The area near the site where the remains of a dismembered body was found in the city of Higashiosaka, on Jan. 30.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 5, 2025

Osaka police identify dismembered body as ministry official

The deceased, 52-year-old Takamichi Kamioka, had been missing since late last year, prompting his family to file a missing persons report.
Households continue to be squeezed as inflation outpaces pay increases.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 5, 2025

Real wages in Japan rise in December, but fall for third straight year

Inflation continued to outpace pay increases, which have been generous on a nominal basis in recent years.
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura (second from left) hands a letter regarding the 2025 Osaka Expo to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2025

Same-day ticket sales under consideration for Osaka Expo

As of Jan. 29, the number of advance tickets sold stood at some 7.66 million — about the half of the target number.
Tanks containing water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant at the facility in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, in March 2023
JAPAN
Feb 5, 2025

Fukushima plant operator to dismantle treated water tanks next week

The step is a milestone of a sort as Tokyo Electric Power Company moves ahead with a decades-long project to dismantle the entire plant.
The panel will discuss ways to help Fuji Television Network improve governance, compliance and financial performance, as the broadcaster has been under fire over its handling of the scandal.
JAPAN
Feb 6, 2025

Fuji Media eyes panel to rebuild TV network

The panel will discuss ways to help Fuji TV improve governance, compliance and financial performance in the wake of a scandal.
All Blacks flyhalf Beauden Barrett takes a selfie with children at an event in Yokohama on Nov. 28, 2017.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Feb 6, 2025

Beauden Barrett wants Japan back in expanded Super Rugby

"I'd love to see the Japanese become part of the competition," Barrett said. "I feel like we need to grow the competition and in that respect, that would be great."
United Steelworkers President David McCall
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 6, 2025

Union chief files motion to dismiss suit by U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel

United Steelworkers called the U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel lawsuit a "frivolous and unsubstantiated attack" on the union.
A video clip shows former lawyer Yamato Eguchi remaining silent during an interrogation by prosecutors.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 6, 2025

Tokyo High Court upholds compensation order over interrogation abuse

The Tokyo High Court upheld a lower court's ruling that the state must pay compensation to a former lawyer over the verbal abuse he suffered while he was interrogated.
David Burritt, president and chief executive officer of U.S. Steel, in Detroit in September
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 7, 2025

Trump meets U.S. Steel CEO as Nippon Steel hopes to save deal

The meeting took place one day before Trump is due to meet with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Philippine National Security Council Assistant Director-General Jonathan Malaya says information and psychological warfare have "become part and parcel" of China's malign influence in his country.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 7, 2025

Chinese hybrid warfare ops surge in Philippines: top security official

There has been a rise in Chinese disinformation tactics as well as suspected surveillance and espionage activities in the Philippines, the official said.
Japanese household consumption in December grew at the fastest pace since August 2022, but it is uncertain whether the gains are sustainable, given wage growth in the month was largely supported by the temporary effect of bonuses.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 7, 2025

Japan’s household spending jumps the most since 2022 as wages rise

Outlays adjusted for inflation gained 2.7% in December from a year earlier, according to internal affairs ministry data.
Masako Akagi, wife of late Toshio Akagi, holds Toshio's picture and his glasses during a news conference in Osaka on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 7, 2025

Government accepts ruling backing disclosure of Moritomo documents

Moritomo Gakuen was once linked to the wife of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Whips, cages and other items that were seized from Hiroshi Tsuji, who has been rearrested on suspicion of violating the animal welfare law, by the Metropolitan Police Department are displayed in the city of Tachikawa, Tokyo, on Thursday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 7, 2025

Kawasaki taxi driver rearrested on suspicion of killing pigeon

It is believed Hiroshi Tsuji initially gave the bird food and water but began abusing it when it showed no affection in return.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito responds to an interview on Friday at the prefectural office.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 7, 2025

Hyogo governor’s reelection sparks investigation into PR firm payments

Authorities are examining seized materials to determine the nature of financial transactions between the governor’s camp and the company.
The government plans to provide university tuition aid to families with three or more dependent children attending universities, junior colleges, technical colleges or vocational schools, regardless of income levels.
JAPAN
Feb 7, 2025

Japan's government plans expanded university tuition aid for families

A proposed legal revision would slash or fully eliminate the cost of university tuition for families with three or more dependent children.
“Light Court” (2024) is based on the “Lightcourt” space at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, designed by metabolist architect Kisho Kurokawa (1934-2007).
CULTURE / Art
Feb 9, 2025

Yuki Harada's contemplative artworks ponder vanishing

The artist spent time researching Japanese migrants who left Hiroshima and Yamaguchi prefectures for Hawaii, and the U.S. island state often features in his art.
Nippon Steel's pursuit of U.S. Steel has stretched on for more than a year, with U.S. President Donald Trump vociferously condemning the proposal on numerous occasions, before Friday's more tempered remarks at the Oval Office with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at his side.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 8, 2025

Trump says Nippon Steel will invest in U.S. Steel, not buy it

It was unclear if the investment referred to a new deal structure and what the details of the transaction would be.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shows a gift from U.S. President Donald Trump, as they hold a joint news conference in the East Room at the White House in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 8, 2025

Foreign leaders embrace the art of flattery in wooing Trump

Ishiba became the latest figure to offer ample compliments to a president known for his transactional approach to foreign policy.
Priority lanes for test runs of self-driving trucks will be introduced on a roughly 100-kilometer section of the Shin-Tomei Expressway in Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2025

Self-driving lanes to open on Japan's Shin-Tomei expressway

The move is part of a plan to create a road network that can handle so-called Level 4 autonomous driving amid labor shortages in the logistics industry.
The Takahama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2025

Kansai Electric to ship more spent nuclear fuel to France

The move comes as Fukui Prefecture, home to several nuclear plants, urges Kansai Electric to address shrinking storage capacity for spent nuclear fuel, the sources said.
The three megabank groups including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group posted record consolidated net profits in April-December 2024.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 9, 2025

Japan firms to log record profits — driven by finance and AI biz

Leading the growth is the financial sector, buoyed by the return of positive interest rates to Japan thanks to the Bank of Japan's rate hikes

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo