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U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard (second from right) poses with U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass (third from left) and U.S. Marines during a visit to the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture on June 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 11, 2025

U.S. intel chief warns ‘warmongers’ fomenting nuclear war after Hiroshima visit

U.S. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s unusual remarks seemed to echo Russian talking points on the war in Ukraine.
Kenji Nanba, a former manager of Nihon University’s weightlifting club, is believed to use his authority as manager to compel staff to give him rides.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2025

Ex-Nihon University weightlifting manager allegedly forced staff to give him rides

Kenji Nanba, 63, allegedly used his authority as manager to compel staff to give him rides to and from work.
World Bank Deputy Chief Economist Ayhan Kose speaks during an interview on Monday in Washington.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 11, 2025

World Bank sees Japan's growth slowing in 2025

The institution has lowered its 2025 growth estimate for Japan's gross domestic product to 0.7% in inflation-adjusted real terms.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi eats a rice ball made of stockpiled rice during a tasting event in Tokyo on May 29.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2025

How long can Koizumi stay frenemies with the agriculture lobby?

The farm minister's aggressive advocacy for change in the agriculture sector sets him up for a direct showdown with Japan Agricultural Cooperatives.
Serious labor shortages in the bus and taxi industries have prompted the government to consider easing language requirements for non-Japanese drivers.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2025

Eased language requirement proposed for non-Japanese bus and taxi drivers

Currently, foreign nationals wanting to work as bus or taxi drivers are required to have the N3 level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test.
In Japan, the National Police Agency and others secured the safety of 129 domestic servers under the Interpol-led operation.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 12, 2025

Japan joins international crackdown on malware-linked servers

The National Police Agency and others secured the safety of 129 domestic servers under the Interpol-led operation.
SMBC Nikko Securities has already introduced a family trust system under which relatives can act as agents for older customers for their investments.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 12, 2025

New securities system enables those with dementia to invest with family's help

Under the system, investors can designate trusted family members as their agents while they are still mentally capable.
Jera's LNG agreements with U.S. suppliers bolster Japan’s role as the world’s second-largest LNG importer, and come as U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing to expand exports of the fuel.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 12, 2025

Jera touts 20-year LNG agreements with U.S. suppliers

Japan’s largest power generation company has reached agreements to buy as much as 5.5 million tons per year of liquefied natural gas from U.S. suppliers.
The Business Sentiment Index for large firms registered minus 1.9 for the April-June quarter, slipping into negative territory for the first time since the first quarter of 2024.
BUSINESS
Jun 12, 2025

Japan’s firms see business climate worsen amid U.S. tariff hits

The Business Sentiment Index for large firms slipped into negative territory for the first time since the first quarter of 2024.
Mitsubishi Estate is one of Japan’s largest property companies and the firm has been growing its investment management business.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2025

Mitsubishi buys stake in private equity real estate firm Patron

The deal will see Mitsubishi commit about €600 million of equity to Patron’s funds to help it build out new strategies including its nascent credit business.
Aichi police have arrested a 19-year-old woman and a 23-year-old man in connection with the discovery of a man found dead in a hotel in Nagoya's Sakae district last Saturday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 12, 2025

Aichi police make two more arrests over Nagoya hotel robbery-murder

Investigators believe the suspects conspired to extort the victim by threatening to report him to the police for alleged sexual misconduct.
University of Tokyo President Teruo Fujii (left) and Y.J. Mii, a TSMC executive vice president, at a news conference Thursday. The school and the company have been working together since 2019.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 12, 2025

TSMC and Tokyo University team up to establish a chip lab

The chip giant and university will work together on chip-related technologies and supporting educational and research and development opportunities.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (center right) meets with Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda (center left) in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 12, 2025

Ishiba on the counteroffensive in parliament’s final rush

A recent bump in approval ratings and a show of bipartisan unity have given the prime minister a boost in parliament.
Research showed that amounts of tau protein accumulation, a factor leading to dementia, were larger among people diagnosed at age 40 or more with mood disorders compared with healthy individuals of the same age group.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 13, 2025

Middle- to old-age depression may be tied to dementia

A study has found that abnormal tau protein causing dementia accumulates in the brains of middle- to old-age patients with mood disorders, such as depression, at a higher rate.
Kimiko Nishimoto poses next to a picture of her on a sliding window at her house in the city of Kumamoto in January 2018.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 13, 2025

Japan's 400,000-follower 'Insta-gran' dies age 97

Dubbed the "selfie queen" by Japanese media, Kimiko Nishimoto's posts showed her in various candid poses.
People gather for a campaign speech in Tokyo's Suginami Ward on June 1.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2025

Parties to test political waters in Tokyo election ahead of Upper House vote

The election is seen as an early indicator of how voters nationwide might cast their ballots in next month’s Upper House poll.
The government is looking to ease the overconcentration of businesses in Tokyo to tackle labor shortages in the countryside, ensure nationwide economic growth and realize a sustainable society.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2025

Government aims to create 10,000 jobs via business relocations from Tokyo

The move is aimed at easing overconcentration of companies in the capital and bridge an urban-rural divide in economic growth.
Momentum appears to be building toward what Osaka Expo organizers hope will be a boom period for the event as they try to recoup ballooning costs via ticket sales. But long lines are making some guests weary.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2025

Two months in, Osaka Expo organizer struggles to improve experience as crowds grow

Even before the expo reaches its peak attendance, some visitors are already growing weary of the long lines.
Parliament passed a revised pension reform bill aimed at strengthening basic pension benefits.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2025

Parliament enacts revised pension reform bill

The legislation passed the House of Councilors by a majority vote.
A 250-meter-long bus stop roof using perovskite solar cells in the city of Osaka
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2025

Government paper seeks to link next-gen energy tech to business opportunities

The white paper stated that Japanese products are leading the world in terms of their durability and larger sizes, which are key features for commercialization.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to reporters last month in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 13, 2025

Ishiba pledges cash handout for all citizens ahead of election

The handout would be ¥20,000 per person and an additional ¥20,000 would be added on top of that per child or low-income earner, Ishiba said.
U.S. President Donald Trump holds a joint news conference with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House in February.
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2025

In phone talks, Ishiba and Trump confirm meeting next week to discuss tariffs

The call came as Japan's top tariff negotiator gets set for a sixth round of discussions with his U.S. counterparts over Trump's tariffs.
The Nippon Steel logo is displayed at the company's East Nippon Works Kimitsu Area plant in Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, last month.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2025

Trump gives formal blessing to Nippon Steel's $14.8 billion bid for U.S. Steel

The approval capped a tumultuous 18-month effort by the companies, beset by union opposition and national security reviews.
A production line at a plate rolling mill is seen at Nippon Steel's East Nippon Works Kimitsu Area plant in Kimitsu, Chiba Prefecture, last month.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Jun 14, 2025

Debt to decarbonization: challenges for Nippon Steel

The Japanese giant faces numerous headwinds going forward, including onerous U.S. trade tariffs and lackluster global demand.
An Upper House plenary session earlier this month. The Upper House election is likely to take place on July 20.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2025

Upper House election likely to take place July 20

Whether the CDP will submit a no-confidence motion against the Ishiba Cabinet is set to be the main focus in the closing days of the current parliamentary session.
Local authorities in Tokyo are resorting to unconventional measures to raise voter turnout, including partnering with public bathhouses amid Japan’s ongoing sauna boom and collaborating with high school students to create promotional materials.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 16, 2025

Tokyo teams up with bathhouses to boost voter turnout for assembly election

The previous election in 2021 showed a much lower turnout rate among younger demographics.
Two suspects arrested for allegedly assaulting riot officers in Tokyo have remained silent during questioning.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 16, 2025

Suspected far-left activists arrested for allegedly assaulting riot police

The two suspects, who have not been identified, have remained silent during questioning.
Nippon Steel is buying United States Steel in a deal that gives the U.S. government a golden share in the U.S. steelmaker.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 16, 2025

Nippon Steel may have gotten the deal it wanted all along

The Japanese company has already committed to heavy investment in U.S. Steel and a U.S.-controlled board of directors at the American steelmaker.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi talks to rice farmers in Fukushima Prefecture on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 16, 2025

Agriculture ministry aims to stop publishing rice index amid accuracy concerns

A gap between the rice crop situation index and farmers’ testimonies about actual yields occurred because the agriculture ministry was using outdated sampling numbers.
The national government's envisioned disaster management agency is a signature project of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba,
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 16, 2025

Many regions eager to host branches of upcoming disaster agency

A total of 28 entities representing prefectures, municipal government and other bodies have expressed their interest.

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