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JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Jun 13, 2022

As COVID-19 fears subside, Japan debates the future of masks

How much longer before the nation reaches a tipping point when people start ditching their masks en masse?
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Jun 13, 2022

Lions' Brian O'Grady makes good on vow to fans

The Seibu Lions outfielder was struggling just over a week ago when he went on social media to assure fans things would get better.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 13, 2022

A third of social recluses are in their 40s and 50s, Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward finds

The ward's survey also showed that 1 in 4 hikikomori had isolated themselves from society and not participated in any social activities for at least a decade.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2022

Amid geopolitical tensions, Japan firms put focus on economic security

Mitsubishi Electric, NEC and Hitachi are just some of the companies that have set up divisions to internally coordinate on supply chain resilience and the assessment of geopolitical risks.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 13, 2022

Kurdish tensions stymie Iraqi region's gas export ambitions

The impasse could also undermine stability in Iraq's north, where ruling families have their own security forces.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Jun 13, 2022

Mr. Exit or Mr. BOJ? Race for Japan's top central bank job to intensify

Hiroshi Nakaso and Masayoshi Amamiya both have deep expertise in central bank affairs, but the two could differ on how soon the Bank of Japan should roll back its monetary policies.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 13, 2022

What the Ukraine war should teach China

Russia's military has performed far worse than expected in Ukraine. This does not bode well for the Chinese People's Liberation Army, which shares many of the same weaknesses.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 13, 2022

For Tesla, Facebook and others, AI’s flaws are getting harder to ignore

Investors are pouring money into artificial intelligence, despite clear setbacks in self-driving cars, social media and even health care.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Jun 13, 2022

How fashion giants recast plastic as good for the planet

An explosion in the use of inexpensive, petroleum-based materials has transformed the fashion industry, aided by the successful rebranding of synthetic materials into hip alternatives.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 13, 2022

China walks back eased virus measures just weeks after reopening

Beijing reported 51 new local cases for Sunday, after having single digit cases on most days last week.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2022

Japan has opened the door to Ukrainians. Its tech sector may get a boost in return.

Businesses are taking note of prewar efforts in Ukraine to improve its tech capabilities, and some see lessons for Japan as it attempts to level up its own digital economy.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Jun 13, 2022

Breathalyzers in short supply in Japan amid stricter rules for work drivers

Although alcohol checks can be done visually for the time being, companies that use a certain number of noncommercial vehicles will be required to use breathalyzers starting in October.
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2022

Yen tumbles to lowest since 1998, sparking Kuroda warning

The yen has tumbled almost 15% this year, making it the worst-performing major currency.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 13, 2022

They inhabited separate worlds in Taiwan. Decades later, they collided in a California church.

David Chou — armed with two guns, four Molotov cocktails and a deep-seated rage against Taiwanese people — opened fire inside the Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Southern California.
Kenji Imata, mayor of Togo, Aichi Prefecture, speaks during a news conference in the town on Thursday after a third-party committee found he had continuously engaged in "power harassment" and sexual harassment against several town employees.
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2024

Two town mayors in central Japan resign over harassment scandals

Kenji Imata of Togo, Aichi Prefecture, and Kazuo Okazaki of Ikeda, Gifu Prefecture, have stepped down.
Core inflation in Japan's capital slowed much more than expected in April, falling below the central bank's 2% target.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 26, 2024

Tokyo inflation slows sharply as education subsidy cuts outlays

A plunge in costs for public and private high schools shaved around half a percentage point from the overall figure, the internal affairs ministry said.
Indonesian fans cheer as they watch the Under-23 Asian Cup quarterfinal between Indonesia and South Korea at a cafe in West Java, Indonesia, on Thursday.
SOCCER
Apr 26, 2024

Indonesians celebrate as soccer team moves one step from second Olympic berth

Indonesia defeated South Korea 11-10 on penalties after a 2-2 draw in the Under-23 Asian Cup in Doha on Thursday night.
TikTok accounts for a small share of ByteDance's total revenues and daily active users, so the parent would rather have the app shut down in the U.S. in a worst-case scenario than sell it to a potential American buyer, sources said.
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 26, 2024

ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, sources say

A shutdown would have limited impact on its business, and it would not have to give up its "secret sauce" — the algorithm that pushes videos to users.
Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
WORLD / Politics
Apr 26, 2024

Israel prepares forces as conflict with Hezbollah intensifies

Israeli forces have been exchanging cross-border fire with Hezbollah almost daily since October as the potential for an all-out war only grows.
The Oresundsverket natural gas-fired power plant, operated by Uniper, in Malmo, Sweden
WORLD / Politics
Apr 26, 2024

Sweden plans for worst-case scenario: War spreading in Europe

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has prompted Sweden to prepare for any possible contingency, including war coming to Europe.
Specializing in gastronomy-themed tours, Arigato Travel, founded and directed by Anne Kyle, was once a one-woman operation. Today, it counts more than 100 employees.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Apr 26, 2024

Anne Kyle: 'People want to know what life actually is like here’

The founder and CEO of Arigato Travel grew her business from a one-woman operation to a national outfit of more than 100 employees in a matter of years.
Twenty-three Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned substance before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 26, 2024

WADA asks 'independent prosecutor' to examine its handling of China case

The United States Anti-Doping Agency branded WADA's announcement of an independent investigation "self-serving."
Ukrainian soldiers fire artillery toward Russian positions. Ukraine's allies are looking into ways to use frozen Russian assets to aid the war-torn country, but the process remains highly complex.
WORLD / Politics / EXPLAINER
Apr 26, 2024

How the West might use Russia's frozen reserves to help Ukraine

Ideas being looked at remain highly complex given it would set a controversial precedent.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (left), Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe (center) and Ontario Premier Doug Ford walk in the company's automotive assembly plant in Alliston, Ontario, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 26, 2024

Honda to spend $11 billion on electric vehicle strategy in Canada

The move is meant to tap long-term demand in North America and pushes the automaker toward having electrified cars account for 100% of sales by 2040.
More investors are calling on Japanese firms to abolish cross-shareholdings, a practice that has been criticized as undermining discipline in corporate governance and leading to anti-competitive behavior.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 26, 2024

Investor group calls for zero cross-shareholdings at Japanese firms

"Strategic shareholdings," where companies hold stocks in businesses they have ties with, have decreased slightly, but progress is slow.
Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (third from left) attends a ceremony last month for the Ground Self-Defense Force's systems communications and cyber school.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 26, 2024

The glitch in Japan's plans to bolster U.S. defense

Japan has suffered high-profile hacks in recent years that have elevated concerns over whether Tokyo can fully support its security partners.
A woman walks past the Bank of Japan headquarters in central Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2024

BOJ leaves policy unchanged despite yen’s continued weakness

Investors and market observers had been watching for whether the bank would send more hawkish signals to prop up the Japanese currency.
The smartphone screen of a man in his 70s from the Aizu region of Fukushima Prefecture shows exchanges with a person claiming to be a woman from Taiwan discussing investment in gold.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / Regional Voices: Fukushima
May 6, 2024

Online predators seduce elderly victims into investment scams

Cases of people being swindled out of money show working-age people are also falling victim.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida rides on a forestry processor during an inspection of afforestation in Hitachiomiya, Ibaraki Prefecture, in October.
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2024

Japan groups eye online market to promote use of domestic lumber

The process of reforestation has faced obstacles, primarily stemming from the considerable burdens placed on forest owners.

Longform

Juzo Itami’s “Tampopo” was released Nov. 23, 1985, and though it wasn’t a hit at the time, it has gained a cult following in the years since.
Eat, slurp, love: 'Tampopo' turns 40