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COMMENTARY / World
Mar 16, 2001

Failed experiment haunts Jakarta

SINGAPORE -- As Indonesia assesses the carnage from the recent ethnic violence in its province of Kalimantan, a poignant legacy of the failure of its transmigration policy slowly but surely emerges.
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

Sumitomo execs to pay redress for losses

OSAKA -- Former executives of trading house Sumitomo Corp. reached a court-mediated settlement Thursday on a lawsuit filed by one of its shareholders over huge losses the firm sustained due to a rogue copper trader.
BUSINESS
Mar 16, 2001

All told, a strong rebound is in the offing?

There has been mounting alarm around the world that a global stock market rout might be developing.
JAPAN
Mar 16, 2001

Rise in shares stems fears of rout

Tokyo share prices rebounded strongly toward the close of trading Thursday, shrugging off worries about a global stock market rout.
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.
CULTURE / Music
Mar 16, 2001

Post-rockers toil in obscurity and they like it like that

Anonymity is the nemesis of pop. History is filled with earnest, well-meaning bands who did whatever they could to keep the music up front and the personalities in the background, often to the point where they wouldn't even reveal their names (like early Pavement). But unless you intend to toil in obscurity...
SUMO
Mar 16, 2001

Kaio grabs sole lead in Osaka

OSAKA -- Ozeki Kaio dodged a bullet Thursday to preserve his unbeaten record and take sole possession of the lead, while yokozuna duo Takanohana and Musashimaru joined a logjam of wrestlers at 4-1 in the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament.
EDITORIALS
Mar 15, 2001

Making sense of the slide

The blood-letting in international stock markets continues. The U.S. Nasdaq index plunged below the 2,000 level for the first time in 27 months. The S&P 500 lopped 20 percent of its peak, officially becoming a "bear market." The U.S. free fall triggered a domino effect, pushing Asian and European markets...
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2001

Slips of politicians' tongues hurt economy

The dollar appears likely to continue hovering around 120 yen for some time.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 15, 2001

The choice is North Korea's

WASHINGTON -- The curtain has come down on the first act of the Bush administration's Asia policy, and there are far more questions than answers about U.S. policy after President Kim Dae Jung's visit to Washington. The media feasted on the mixed messages from a skeptical President George W. Bush and...
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 15, 2001

Troussier names squad to face France

Japan manager Philippe Troussier was in a confident mood Wednesday as he announced his senior team for an upcoming friendly international against world champion France, slated for March 24 at Saint-Dennis.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2001

Saving the forests through photos

KYOTO -- The blue mushrooms in the Australian state of Tasmania seemed like windows onto the soul of the forest to French photographer and environmentalist Jerome Hutin.
COMMUNITY
Mar 15, 2001

Queuing for the exclusive

Harajuku, on any given Saturday, is filled with shoppers. On the main streets, the shops see a steady stream of customers move freely through their doors. In the back streets, however, the clientele is made to wait. The young people queue up -- for the privilege of buying basic street clothing off near-empty...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Mar 15, 2001

Time for NHL to quit whining and get the red out!

The National Hockey League general managers wrapped up their annual meetings in the California desert last week. As usual, one major topic of conversation was how to speed up the game and increase the flow of play.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2001

Officials reprimanded for accepting KSD treats

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry on Wednesday reprimanded eight senior officials who were treated by scandal-tainted mutual aid organization KSD to meals and games of golf.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2001

Grad jobs set to rise again in '02

About half of 40 major Japanese companies polled by Kyodo News plan to hire more new university graduates next spring than this year, making it certain overall job offers will increase for the second year in a row.
JAPAN
Mar 15, 2001

Honma chief to quit in golf club scandal

The president of Honma Golf Co. is expected to step down by the end of this month over a series of scandals involving his company, police sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 15, 2001

Soccer lottery: A tax to fund bureaucrats' whims

The worst thing about the new soccer lottery system may be its name. "Toto" is taken from the Italian word totocalcio, which is the name of a similar lottery that has been in place in Italy for more than 50 years.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Mar 15, 2001

Let Tokyo Q be your guide

TOKYO 2001-2002: Annual Guide to the City, by the staff of Tokyo Q with Rick Kennedy. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 2001, 160 pp., 130 b/w images, $9.95. Tokyo, the largest city in the world, cornucopia turned upside-down, has always required a guide book. Not only are there competing attractions,...
LIFE / Style & Design / BEAUTY EAST AND WEST
Mar 15, 2001

An audacious urge for color

Shimmer and glimmer have been around long enough for their glint and sparkle to start to seem a bit boring, don't you think?
CULTURE / Books
Mar 15, 2001

Taking the long view on history

EAST ASIA AT THE CENTER: Four Thousand Years of Engagement with the World, by Warren I. Cohen. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000, 516 pp. You don't have to believe in the Asian Century or any other form of that nonsense to admit that Western understanding of Asia is woefully inadequate. The intellectual...
EDITORIALS
Mar 14, 2001

No more secret funds

The criminal complaint filed in January by the Foreign Ministry against the former official in charge of logistics for VIP trips overseas has led to his arrest on a charge of fraud. An internal investigation has revealed that Mr. Katsutoshi Matsuo, who was fired in January for embezzlement, had swindled...
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2001

LDP policy chief calls for extra budget

Shizuka Kamei, policy chief of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said Tuesday that a supplementary budget should be compiled to boost the economy.

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’