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Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 20, 2015

Hirai predecessor Stringer sees Sony turnaround taking hold

Sony Corp. President and CEO Kazuo Hirai is getting a vote of confidence from predecessor Howard Stringer in his effort to turn around the electronics maker.
COMMENTARY / World
May 19, 2015

Effort to revive Soviet glory backfire on Putin

Failed attempts by Vladimir Putin to reclaim glory for Russia in areas where the Soviet Union once excelled may present a bigger threat to his regime than falling living standards.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 19, 2015

Canada, Mexico ready trade sanctions after WTO nixes U.S. meat labeling appeal

Canada and Mexico are readying trade sanctions against the United States after they won a meat labeling dispute on Monday, increasing pressure on the U.S. Congress to scrap the laws.
COMMENTARY / World
May 18, 2015

Is corruption key to China's economic growth?

China's 'selectocracy,' which promises promotions to the officials who prove most effective in promoting growth, could be the key to explaining the country's impressive economic track record.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
May 14, 2015

Messenger, agent disappointed with how Hanshin handled demotion

Matt Sosnick, the agent for Hanshin Tigers ace Randy Messenger, says both he and his client are very disappointed in the way the Tigers handled the right-hander's demotion to ni-gun earlier this week.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
May 14, 2015

Maya Inoue makes a play to refine her father's theatrical legacy

Hisashi Inoue's death at the age of 75 on April 9, 2010, at his home in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, was a major event in the postwar Japanese theater world. It moved many dramatists to stage works by the great author and playwright who combined comedy and searing social and political commentary into...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 13, 2015

Toshiba default risk surges most in Japan on accounting probe

An accounting probe of Toshiba Corp.'s infrastructure and energy projects caused its default risk to jump the most in Japan, just as the creditworthiness of Sharp Corp. and Sony Corp. had been improving.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
May 9, 2015

Keeping the yakuza away from the 2020 Olympics

The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo should be a cause for celebration but this may depend on who you talk to.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / YEN FOR LIVING
May 9, 2015

Stores struggle to adjust in a shrinking Japan

From McDonald's to izakayas and konbinis, food outlets are learning the hard way that as Japan's population drops, so will consumption.
EDITORIALS
May 5, 2015

Europe takes on Gazprom

If Moscow is determined to pick a fight with Europe, it may discover that the economic battlefield is the wrong place for a showdown.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 1, 2015

Japan Tobacco to buy U.S. e-cigarette brand as operating profit falls

Japan Tobacco Inc.'s first-quarter operating profit declined 8.4 percent as domestic cigarette sales fell and the weakness of the Russian ruble hurt earnings from its biggest overseas market.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 1, 2015

Italy hopes Milan's scandal-dogged Expo 2015 will feed economy, raise spirits

Italy opens the Milan Expo on Friday, torn between hopes that the showcase of global culture and technology will cheer up a gloomy national mood and fears that it will be overshadowed by scandal, delays and street protests.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 30, 2015

Investors seek out risky U.S. loans in throwback to pre-crisis days

Japanese investors are plowing back into the same types of risky U.S. corporate-loan investments that caused them losses during the 2008 financial crisis.
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Apr 27, 2015

So many "you" and "I" words, but best used sparingly

Today we will introduce the proper use of 'you' and 'I' in Japanese.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 27, 2015

These tips for Japanese mastery go out to the muddlers

When it comes to learning Japanese, most of us muddle through. This article is for the muddlers.
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Apr 27, 2015

Let's discuss Taco Bell in the news

U.S. fast food chain Taco Bell Corp. made a much-hyped re-entry into the Japanese market on Tuesday, opening a store in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward through Asrapport Dining Co., a Japanese operator of restaurant franchises.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 26, 2015

Honeymoon over for Indonesian leader as policy flip-flops erode authority

When Indonesian President Joko Widodo wanted to push this year's budget through the opposition-dominated parliament, he left it to his advisers to hash out a deal with lawmakers.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 21, 2015

Globalism in need of revival

Heavily dependent on other countries for markets and resources, Japan must take a leading role in promoting globalism.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 21, 2015

Abe administration nominates former Toyota executive to BOJ Policy Board

The Abe administration has picked a veteran executive of Toyota Motor Corp., one of the biggest beneficiaries of "Abenomics," to replace a Bank of Japan board member who in October had opposed expanded monetary stimulus.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 21, 2015

GE said to be in talks with Blackstone, Mitsubishi on sale of assets

General Electric Co. is discussing the sale of parts of its finance business, including the $74 billion U.S. commercial-lending unit, with potential buyers including Blackstone Group LP, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co., said people with knowledge of the matter.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / LOCAL POLLS '15
Apr 20, 2015

Naturalized Kabukicho denizen hopes to teach China lesson in democracy

Komaki Lee gained fame as a pioneering 'Kabukicho guide' who showed foreign visitors the ins and outs of the capital's seedy nightlife entertainment district in Shinjuku Ward. Now he's going into politics.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / BLACK EYE
Apr 19, 2015

Meeting Miss Universe Japan, the 'half' who has it all

Progress occurs when people of substance assume the mantle of leadership, and it appears Ariana Miyamoto is equal to the task.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2015

Putin bests Obama in Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin is building on a tactical advantage he has over the U.S. in talks with Iran: He can be the first to begin rapprochement with Iran's leaders, without worrying too much about its compliance with any nuclear deal's requirements.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2015

New Yamanashi liberal arts college seeks to put students in 'zone' of critical thinking

Michael Lacktorin, founding dean of a unique new college at Yamanashi Gakuin University in Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture, says his most important role as an educator is to help students discover where their passion lies, and to find out what they really want to do with their lives.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 16, 2015

Making the vision of sustainable energy a reality

Thanks to lower oil prices, innovation, and economies of scale in the renewable-energy sector, the vision of sustainable energy can now be turned into reality.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 16, 2015

Sharp eyeing ¥200 billion bailout: source

The loss-making company will also pledge to scale back its North American TV operations and cut around 5,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its global workforce, a source said.

Longform

After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic