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BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 23, 2001

Maeda leaves Dragons for Giants

The Yomiuri Giants announced Thursday the acquisition of free agent Yukinaga Maeda, signing the southpaw to a four-year contract worth an estimated 500 million yen with performance-tied incentives.
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Blueprint on public corporations agreed upon by coalition leaders

Leaders of the ruling coalition on Thursday approved Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's blueprint to abolish or privatize seven major government-backed corporations.
BUSINESS
Nov 23, 2001

UFJ writeoffs will balloon to 2 trillion yen

UFJ Holdings Inc. said Thursday its member banks' total bad-loan writeoffs will balloon sixfold from original estimates to an unprecedented 2 trillion yen for the full business year ending March 31, on the back of likely failures among major borrowers.
JAPAN
Nov 23, 2001

Insurer Taisei folds in wake of Sept. 11

Taisei Fire & Marine Insurance Co. filed Thursday with the Tokyo District Court for protection from creditors, becoming the first Japanese insurer to collapse under the weight of obligations arising from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 23, 2001

Kickoff time may be changed

The kickoff time for cohost Japan's final first-round group match may be switched to 6 p.m. from 3:30 p.m. as scheduled at next year's World Cup finals, informed sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Nov 22, 2001

Happy ecology-economy medium urged at confab

NAGANO -- Adoption of more environmental economic indicators and accounting measures is necessary to keep the economy from outpacing the environment, according to proposals put forth at a recent environmental conference held in Nagano Prefecture.
BUSINESS
Nov 22, 2001

Koizumi adamant on reform of state firms

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi expressed his determination Wednesday to reform loss-making public corporations despite strong opposition from within his ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 22, 2001

Protecting the public from the threats of terror and depression

In his Sept. 30 New York Times article, "The Fear Economy," MIT economist Paul Krugman warned that the American public should be prepared for a possible deflationary spiral comparable to the Great Depression of the 1930s and Japan's milder but chronic depression of the 1990s. A major depression could...
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2001

Thai leader urges more investment, trade

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called on Japanese business leaders Tuesday to increase long-term investment and trade in Thailand.
JAPAN
Nov 21, 2001

'Sakura' dubbed a diplomatic tool

A group that believes "sakura" cherry trees are a vital tool in exchanging international goodwill is trying to raise the blossoms' profile ahead of the 90th anniversary of Tokyo's gift of cherry trees to Washington.
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2001

Honda best Fit for car of the year

Honda Motor Co.'s compact car Fit has been named the 2001 RJC Car of the Year, a group of automobile researchers, critics and journalists said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 21, 2001

Nation struggles with drug abuse

A suspended prison term handed down six years ago was not enough to stop the 34-year-old gas station worker from using amphetamines, which had already badly damaged his life.
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2001

Thai leader urges more investment, trade

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra called on Japanese business leaders Tuesday to increase long-term investment and trade in Thailand.
JAPAN
Nov 20, 2001

Fiery meteors mesmerize stargazers

Thousands of amateur astronomers across Japan braved the cold early Monday to witness the Leonids meteor shower -- the biggest in decades.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 20, 2001

Automakers now turning to 'telematics'

Automakers around the world are increasingly turning to information technology to improve the driving experience for commuters facing longer periods of time in their vehicles.
BUSINESS
Nov 20, 2001

JR East and JR Tokai doing OK

East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) and Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) fared relatively well, but West Japan Railway Co. (JR West) registered weak earnings for the first half of fiscal 2001, according to their midterm earnings reports released by Monday.
BUSINESS
Nov 20, 2001

BOJ glum as economy continues to deteriorate

The Bank of Japan downgraded its view of the economy for the sixth consecutive month Monday, reinforcing fears that the slump will further delay needed structural reforms.
BUSINESS
Nov 19, 2001

Dollar likely to stay firm against yen this week

The U.S. dollar will likely stay firm against the yen this week on growing optimism about the U.S. economy and hopes for developments in Afghanistan that are favorable to the United States.
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2001

White paper draft suggests tax hike

A soon-to-be-released government white paper says raising the 5 percent consumption tax to 8 percent and cutting social security benefits for each generation by 20 percent beginning in 2005 should be considered as ways to alleviate the financial burden on future generations, according to the final draft....
EDITORIALS
Nov 18, 2001

A turning point for Afghan art

Most Afghans have good reason to be celebrating the Taliban's departure from Kabul and Jalalabad last week. Chief among them, of course, are Afghanistan's brutally subjugated women, but there are others, too -- not least those who cherish the country's cultural treasures and have mourned their destruction...
COMMUNITY
Nov 18, 2001

Hell on four wheels

It is a bad, humiliating start to the day. Usually, I can get from my office to the platform of JR Tamachi Station in about 10 minutes. Today it has taken just under 50 minutes.
COMMUNITY
Nov 18, 2001

Charting a route through the obstacle course

Whoever said "It's a jungle out there" must have been talking about Tokyo. Or perhaps it's more of a gigantic maze, with buildings squashed together, and stations with stairs and escalators going in every direction -- all filled with crowds of irritated people.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 18, 2001

Competition winners featured in free screening

There will be a free screening of the winners of the 45th Competition for Films and Videos on Japan at Tokuma Hall in Higashi-Shinbashi, Tokyo, on Dec. 5, starting at 10:30 a.m.
CULTURE / Music / HOGAKU TODAY
Nov 18, 2001

The rich legacy of the biwa

The pear-shaped biwa lute has enchanted listeners in Japan for centuries. Played with a large wooden plectrum, the instrument has four or five strings of twisted silk stretched over four or more deep frets positioned on the neck. Along with the rich, percussive sounds of the wood striking these silk...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 18, 2001

Booksellers looking for competitive edge online

E-commerce ventures have been flourishing in Japan, and they are expected to bring dramatic changes to the nation's traditional book distribution business.

Longform

"Shake hands with Lima-chan," a statue that shares the name of the Peruvian capital looks in the direction of Peru, where a sister statue, "Sakura-chan," is located. Erected in Yokohama's Rinko Park in 1999, it commemorates Peruvian-Japanese friendship.
The journey of Peru’s Nikkei: Finding identity in Japan