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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2015

Daihatsu dismantling 'Toyota Way' as market changes

When Daihatsu Motor Co. launched the Mira e:S minicar in 2011, the Toyota affiliate thought it had found a model for emerging markets. The Mira e:S — e for eco, S for smart — was capable of going 30 kilometers on a liter of gasoline (72 mpg) for a sticker price of just ¥795,000, or $6,637. And indeed,...
WORLD
Jan 16, 2015

China renews its atomic ambition with additional reactors

China is expected to start building at least five nuclear reactors in 2015 while facing a further delay at a plant that had been slated to start this year.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Jan 15, 2015

Revolving door with coaches damaging growth of Japanese game

A troubling trend is one of the hallmarks of the 2014-15 Japan men's pro basketball season.
EDITORIALS
Jan 15, 2015

Cost of putting off reform

The draft government budget for fiscal 2015 paints a positive picture with regard to expectations of more tax revenue but indicates little effort to rein in government spending to restore Japan's financial health.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 15, 2015

Shaping China's influence

It is in the best interests of Japan, the U.S., South Korea and Australia to become members of the China-established Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, to join China in shaping the future.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Jan 14, 2015

Budget was no easy feat amid ¥1.5 trillion tax revenue shortfall

The Abe administration faced a daunting task to make up for a revenue shortfall from a delay in the consumption tax hike, and amid a snowballing social security bill, analysts say.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 13, 2015

S. Korea nuclear hack ups aging reactor risks

The hacking of South Korea's nuclear operator means the country's second-oldest reactor may be shut permanently due to safety concerns, said several nuclear watchdog commissioners, raising the risk that other aging reactors may also be closed.
BUSINESS
Jan 12, 2015

Administration readies record ¥96 trillion budget

The government will propose a record budget for the 2015 fiscal year of more than ¥96 trillion but cut borrowing for the third year in a row.
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2015

Chocolate shortage spurs call to revive cocoa farming in Amazon basin

With chocolate prices surging, a former Credit Suisse Group AG banker wants to help revive cocoa farming in the Amazon basin, where the beans are thought to have evolved about 15,000 years ago.
Japan Times
JAPAN / AT A GLANCE
Jan 4, 2015

Ginza: Tokyo's beacon of prosperity

Ginza, Tokyo's posh shopping and entertainment district, has delighted visitors for over a century with high-end shops selling everything from jewelry and clothing to sweets and stationery.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 2, 2015

Challenges of providing safe water in Africa

In Africa's developing countries, waste management often endangers health and the environment, yet it is given low priority by governments often besieged by other problems such as poverty, hunger, unemployment and war.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 1, 2015

Curtains up on 2015

Innovation adds sparkle to traditional forms
Japan Times
SPORTS
Jan 1, 2015

Most read Sports stories of 2014

With the exception of shooting star on the tennis court and a questionable ref at the World Cup, much of the big sports news stories  for Japan happened on the ice year.
EDITORIALS
Dec 31, 2014

A watershed year for Japan

Japan is at a crossroads in many ways as the nation greets the 70th year since it set out on the path of rebuilding after its defeat in World War II.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 30, 2014

For fuel cell vehicles to be viable, hydrogen stations must expand

Fuel cell vehicles made their world commercial debut in mid-December, possibly setting the stage for a new wave of environmentally friendly cars.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 30, 2014

Wanted: brides for millions of Chinese men

A fast-growing underclass is sure to pose an array of challenges for China. The victims are the millions of poor, mostly rural men, who cannot meet familial and social expectations that a man marry and start a family because of the country's skewed demographics.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 30, 2014

Behind every good number is a good story

This is the time when we make lists. The best movies of 2014. The best books. The funniest cartoons. The greatest photos. The most amazing sports performances. The 10 best botched athlete celebrations. (No kidding, The Washington Post ran that.) Not to be outdone, here's my contribution: The year's best...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 27, 2014

Learning to love robots

With half the decade complete, we examine an industry that has significantly changed the way we think about ourselves.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 26, 2014

North Korea's nukes are much scarier than its hacks

While the world's attention focuses on North Korea's cyberwar with Sony Pictures, the Hermit Kingdom is rapidly increasing its stockpile of nuclear weapons material, with real little pushback from the U.S.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 26, 2014

Scam shows China's shortage of brides reaching critical mass

In the villages outside Handan, China, a bachelor looking to marry a local girl needs to have as much as $64,000, the price tag for a suitable home and obligatory gifts. That is a bit out of the price range of many of the farmers in the area.
EDITORIALS
Dec 25, 2014

Testing students' ability to think

An education ministry council could be presenting an over-idealized picture of its proposed reforms of Japan's university entrance exams, often criticized for placing too much emphasis on rote learning.
CULTURE / Art
Dec 25, 2014

From tradition to trash: Tokyo's art in 2014

This year has been a memorable one for art exhibitions at museums in Tokyo, with a surprisingly diverse array of shows and events, ancient and modern, foreign and domestic, metropolitan and provincial.

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan