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BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

Foreign companies slightly optimistic, survey shows

Most foreign companies in Japan expect business confidence to remain flat over the next six months, although there are signs of improvement on the horizon, according to a joint survey recently released by foreign chambers of commerce.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2002

Keidanren debut no joking matter

Yoshimoto Kogyo Co., an Osaka-based entertainment management company, will join the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren), Chairman Takashi Imai said Monday.
BUSINESS
May 11, 2002

Softbank posts 88.76 billion yen net loss

Internet business investor Softbank Corp. dipped into the red in the year that ended March 31, due to costs to build infrastructure for broadband online services and a devaluation of the firm's stockholdings, company officials said Friday.
JAPAN
May 9, 2002

McDonald's joins stampede toward personalized marketing

Ltd. revealed its plans to launch a new e-shopping venture targeting users of cellular phones and personal computers. While the e-business entry by the fast-food giant underscores the huge potential of the sector, some experts believe consumers need to be aware that greater convenience carries with it...
BUSINESS
May 6, 2002

Sony launches work on successor to PlayStation2

Sony Corp. has started work on developing a successor to its popular PlayStation2 game console by 2005 with a view to putting it on the market after use of fiber-optic networks becomes widespread, according to Sony sources.
LIFE / Language
May 3, 2002

Never too young to start making a difference

You don't have to wait until you're grown up to be counted. In fact, if you're between 10 and 12 years old, you're the perfect age to take part in the International Children's Conference on the Environment. And to start thinking of how to preserve and improve the world that you are living in.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 1, 2002

Haiku seascapes make an impression

In an art world increasingly turning to digital media, traditional techniques nonetheless retain a small and dedicated following. Printmaker Peter Miller, who in 1991 founded the Kamakura Print Collection workshop, is one such traditionalist. "Ink on paper has a certain take on the world," he explains....
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 1, 2002

Mizuho boasts of 12-million-transaction day

The Mizuho financial group, hit by serious computer problems upon the launch of its two banks at the beginning of April, completed 12 million settlements Tuesday, the largest number of daily online transactions handled by a bank.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 27, 2002

Waseda project hatching entrepreneurs

Inside decades-old school buildings in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, that had been used by Waseda Jitsugyo High School until a year ago, university students and entrepreneurs work around the clock to realize their dream of launching successful startup businesses.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Apr 26, 2002

Laughing all the way to English proficiency

"When Genki English visits our school, the kids simply love it," says Kimie Chu, an English teacher at Shin Tokorozawa preschool in Saitama Prefecture.
LIFE / Language / KANJI CLINIC
Apr 26, 2002

Forget the textbooks and discover the pleasure of real books

At the start of each new school year, I would confidently advise my university students: "Becoming a fluent reader in English is like learning to play the piano -- it requires constant practice.
COMMENTARY
Apr 19, 2002

China puts growth before 'reunification'

HONG KONG -- The launching of the U.S. Congressional Taiwan Caucus on April 9, which already includes 85 members of the House of Representatives, is but the latest sign of Washington's moving inexorably closer to Taiwan, 30 years after the signing of the Shanghai communique. So far, China has shown remarkable...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CLOSE NEIGHBORS
Apr 18, 2002

Grassroots ties aim to bypass diplomatic gridlock

One click on a mouse turns the hankul characters on an Internet chat site into a Japanese message of welcome, delighting elderly Japanese participants in an online exchange with some of their South Korean counterparts.
LIFE / Digital / SURFERSPUD
Apr 18, 2002

From hotels to self-pumping soccer balls

www.jtbusa.com/enhome/ If you're looking for hotel deals in Japan, it seems you're better off getting out of the country first. A weekend of frantically trying to locate Tokyo hotels with vacancies turned up a lot of discount sites, few of which were really cheap and most of which were difficult to traverse....
COMMUNITY
Apr 13, 2002

Support for foreign wives to make their own lives

Joanne Elbinger Higashi recalls the hardships of being newly married to a Japanese in the wilds of Mie Prefecture 20 years ago with a wry smile. "Returning here after visiting the States to show my 8-month-old son to my parents, it rained for weeks on end. It was a nightmare trying to get the diapers...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Apr 10, 2002

Remaking form, recapturing spirit

Hand grenades, gas burners and patio furniture are not items usually associated with ancient potting centers, yet in Shigaraki, southern Shiga Prefecture, even these odd items have been fired.
COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2002

Speaking in tongues with many a twist

A long time ago, in a university far, far away, I began studying Japanese with a text that our well-meaning instructors told us was standard Japanese, the kind of Japanese that could be used anywhere in Japan.
COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2002

War of the words

Ah, Nihongo. Of all foreign languages, this is the one that keeps you on your toes. An Occidental beginner might suspect that the Japanese did it on purpose -- sowed their language with mines and pitfalls to thwart non-native penetration. To 16th-century European missionaries, Japanese was the devil's...
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2002

Kyodo photos go online in English

Kyodo News on April 1 will launch an English-language photo data service that will allow customers to search and download photos via the Internet.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / J-POPSICLE
Mar 20, 2002

Come back, come back wherever you were . . .

As part of its continuing effort to promote J-pop overseas, Sony last week released an album in the United States titled "Japan for Sale 2," which is a great all-around introduction to Japanese music.
BUSINESS
Mar 11, 2002

Airline consolidation taking off

BANGKOK -- The lingering impact of Sept. 11 is prompting airline companies to "integrate deeper and quicker" into the safety of alliances, and these groups will form the basis of future competition in the industry, a top airline executive said in a recent interview with Japan Times.
BUSINESS
Mar 6, 2002

METI drafts e-commerce guidelines

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Tuesday that it has drafted guidelines on how the Commercial Code and other laws should be applied to the growing field of e-commerce.
BUSINESS
Mar 2, 2002

Auction site to introduce new fees

Internet portal Yahoo Japan Corp. said Friday it will introduce new fees for its online auction service starting April 15.
BUSINESS
Feb 27, 2002

NEC and telecom firms eye tieup as Internet provider

NEC Corp. has begun talks with Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. and two other major telephone carriers to create an Internet service coalition, sources said.
BUSINESS
Feb 25, 2002

Possible global meltdown 'frightening'

The final session of the London Business School economic forum considered the recovery of the global economy. In her opening statement, Noriko Hama, research director at Mitsubishi Research Institute Inc., said, "We might just as well be talking about no recovery of the global economy.
BUSINESS
Feb 19, 2002

Patent Law update aims to protect Net companies

The government plans to revise the Patent Law to enhance protection of intellectual property rights held by Internet firms, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Monday.
COMMUNITY
Feb 17, 2002

'Konbini wars' coming to a street corner near you

A young woman running late for a job interview realizes she's forgotten her lipstick. Minutes later, a 70-year-old steps into a store to buy some oolong tea and finds he's out of cash. Turn the clock forward to midnight, and a bachelor steps off the last train home wondering where he can find a bite...
BUSINESS
Feb 15, 2002

Investors swap stocks, MMFs for gold

Japanese individual investors are increasingly shying away from financial products with potential risk, especially after the sudden collapse of U.S. energy giant Enron Corp. dealt a severe blow to popular money management funds.

Longform

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