Search - news

 
 
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 16, 2021

New studies raise hopes that vaccines prevent severe omicron cases

Scientists reported on several studies suggesting that T cells in vaccinated people can put up a strong defense against the variant.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2021

Jerome Powell declares inflation big threat as Fed signals rate hikes

In an abrupt shift, the Fed sped up the drawdown of its asset-purchase program and laid out a plan for a series of interest-rate increases over the coming years.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Dec 16, 2021

Putin and Xi show united front amid rising tensions with U.S.

The leaders' meeting seemed intended as a riposte to the 'Summit for Democracy” that Biden hosted last week.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 15, 2021

Forget bitcoin. Railroads are the new bubble.

Railway carriers will benefiting from the North American manufacturing renaissance that resulted from the supply-chain snarls of the pandemic and trade tensions with China.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 15, 2021

Are Japan's onsen sustainable?

Japan Times contributor Mara Budgen takes a look at the history of onsen in Japan and asks whether Japan's iconic hot-spring resources are sustainable.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 14, 2021

Vaccine sites to open in U.K. stadiums as omicron cases rise

The move comes after news that the variant accounts for 20% of confirmed COVID-19 cases in England, with around 200,000 daily infections.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 14, 2021

Amazon rethinks warehouse cell phone ban in wake of tornado

For years, Amazon prohibited employees from having their phones on warehouse floors and required them to leave them in their vehicles or in lockers near break rooms.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Dec 14, 2021

Paris 2024 floats openness after two closed-door Olympics

The organizing committee said it planned to send more than 10,000 Olympians down the Seine in a parade of some 160 boats instead of having a traditional march into the Olympic Stadium.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Dec 14, 2021

No regrets in awarding Olympic Games to China, IOC's Dick Pound says

The United States, Canada, Britain and Australia are among the countries that recently announced a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games over the China's human rights record.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 13, 2021

Britain says omicron accounts for 40% of London infections

Britain said on Monday that the omicron variant of coronavirus was spreading at a "phenomenal rate" and accounted for about 40% of all infections in London so people should get an additional dose of the vaccine because double-jabbed people are vulnerable.
JAPAN
Dec 13, 2021

'Kin' (gold) chosen as the kanji character of 2021

With references to Olympic medals, baseball legends and cash handouts, the 2021 selection highlighted 24-karat moments from a turbulent year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Explainer
Dec 11, 2021

After a month of shifting rules, who can enter Japan?

Over the past month, Japan's border control policies have flip-flopped over the newly discovered omicron variant of the coronavirus, leaving many would-be travelers confused.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito after the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him on Sept. 19 
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2024

Hyogo governor to seek reelection after automatically losing his seat next week

Motohiko Saito, who has been at the center of a series of controversies, announced his decision at a news conference Thursday afternoon.
U.S. President Joe Biden meets with Vietnam's President and ruling Communist Party Chief To Lam on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United National General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 26, 2024

Biden meets with Vietnam leader to counter ties with China and Russia

A senior U.S. official said the two leaders discussed how to accelerate a strategic partnership agreed to last year.
Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba waves after he was elected as the new head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party during a leadership vote on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 27, 2024

Fifth time's a charm: Shigeru Ishiba set to be Japan PM after LDP poll win

Ishiba, who has also served as party secretary-general, won the LDP presidential election on Friday, defeating economic security minister Sanae Takaichi in a runoff vote.
New Liberal Democratic Party leader Shigeru Ishiba (right), economic security minister Sanae Takaichi (left) and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Ishiba won the LDP leadership race on Friday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 27, 2024

Yen rallies as Ishiba beats Takaichi in LDP race

Ishiba has shown support for the BOJ’s rate policies and the independence of the central bank.
Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Friday. Koizumi stressed that the granting of the special residency permits to children subjected to deportation orders was a one-time measure.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 27, 2024

Japan fine-tunes issuance of humanitarian visas

The move comes amid a near-tripling of technical intern trainees from Myanmar going missing from their programs in 2023.
Damaged buildings following an overnight Israeli airstrike in the southern Lebanese village of Shebaa on Friday.
JAPAN
Sep 27, 2024

Japan to dispatch military planes for possible Lebanon evacuations

Israeli bombing has killed hundreds of people this week in Lebanon, particularly in Hezbollah strongholds.
Shigeru Ishiba, newly-elected leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks at a news conference after winning the party's leadership election in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 27, 2024

China, Taiwan and South Korea weigh in on Ishiba victory

All three of Tokyo's neighbors said they hoped for improved relations under the former defense chief, who is set to be named prime minister in the coming days.
Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba takes a seat in the Liberal Democratic Party president's office in Tokyo after being elected to the post on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 27, 2024

Ishiba wins: An unusual result for an unusual election

The very lawmakers who long shunned former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba made him president in an unexpected twist to the Liberal Democratic Party leadership race.
A photo of Chinese leader Xi Jinping is displayed at the National Security Exhibition Gallery in Hong Kong on Monday. The 24-man Politburo led by Xi has recently unveiled a series of pro-growth goodies to help the country's economy.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Sep 28, 2024

Xi’s big stimulus week aims to draw a line under China slowdown

A recent barrage of policy announcements marked a sea change in Xi’s approach to managing China’s $18 trillion economy.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi shake hands at a meeting in New York on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 28, 2024

After meeting, Blinken says Beijing's talk of Ukraine peace 'doesn't add up'

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken underscored strong U.S. concerns about China's support for Russia's defense industrial base in talks Friday.
Shigeru Ishiba, the newly elected leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, holds a news conference after the LDP leadership election, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 29, 2024

Ishiba calls for loose monetary policy amid fragile economic recovery

On fiscal policy, Ishiba said he will aim to compile a package of measures at an early date to cushion the economic blow from rising living costs.
Wozme, founded by dancer and choreographer Wakaba Kohei, is composed of Kana Kitty, Ami Ishii, Akane Watanabe and Natsuki. Its aim is to inject elegance and beauty, traits traditionally associated with femininity, into the sometimes grotesque art form of butoh dance.
CULTURE / Stage / Longform
Sep 29, 2024

Wozme, an all-women dance troupe, wants to move the needle in butoh

The art form’s younger dancers are experimenting with long-standing approaches to the choreography, marketing and image of this captivating piece of Japanese culture.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past