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Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2008

Foreign magazines stuck in limbo

The National Azabu supermarket in the posh Minami-Azabu district in Minato Ward, Tokyo, offers an impressive variety of imported foods and other goods. But its selection of foreign magazines and books has been sharply curtailed since July 31, when Yohan Inc., which had a virtual monopoly on the sector,...
BUSINESS
Sep 18, 2008

Lehman-linked losses could hit ¥245 billion

Japan's banks and insurers, including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., announced a combined ¥245 billion of potential losses tied to the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
COMMENTARY
Sep 17, 2008

A tale of two women candidates

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — This is a tale of two high-profile political candidates who don't simply happen to be women. They are political women up for very big jobs. This is also a story of two very different political cultures.
BUSINESS
Sep 17, 2008

Tokyo stocks plunge 5% to three-year low

The Tokyo Stock Exchange's key Nikkei average plunged 5 percent Tuesday to its lowest level in more than three years as the failure of the U.S. securities firm Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. spooked investors.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2008

Forum addresses public's aversion to China

Chinese and Japanese political, economic and academic leaders shared their apprehensions about the ever-growing aversion to China among the Japanese public when they met for a two-day forum in Tokyo starting Tuesday.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2008

DPJ and Kokumin Shinto join up on postal issue

A fundamental review of postal privatization will be included in the platforms of both the Democratic Party of Japan and Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party) for the general election expected later this year, they agreed Tuesday.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 14, 2008

Kitanoumi epitomizes all that is wrong with sumo

Every time I hear somebody refer to sumo as "Japan's national sport," I just have to shake my head in amazement.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 14, 2008

Feed, don't fight, Afghanistan

The circumstances surrounding the kidnapping and killing of Japanese aid worker Kazuya Ito in Afghanistan last month remain unclear. In the web journal Japan Focus, Michael Penn conjectures that Ito's death resulted from a "botched effort to abduct him, not . . . premeditated murder." The gunshot wounds...
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2008

ASDF Iraq mission could end this year

The Air Self-Defense Force unit flying transport operations between Kuwait and Iraq may be withdrawn by the end of the year, the government said Thursday.
Reader Mail
Sep 11, 2008

Postwar treatment good enough

Regarding the Sept. 6 article "Occupiers favored with postwar plenty": Yes, the U.S. military and others stationed in Japan right after World War II did live better than most. Then again, what did Japan expect after attacking the United States? Was the U.S. supposed to starve its own personnel, and pay...
BUSINESS
Sep 10, 2008

Vale seeks to hike iron-ore price extra 12%

Cia. Vale do Rio Doce, the world's biggest iron-ore producer, is asking Nippon Steel Corp. and its Japanese rivals to pay 12 percent more for the material on top of a 65 percent increase agreed to in February, according to two sources familiar with the negotiations.
JAPAN
Sep 9, 2008

Koike, Yosano declare bids for LDP leadership

Former Defense Minister Yuriko Koike and Kaoru Yosano, economic and fiscal policy minister, officially announced their candidacies Monday to run in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election.
COMMENTARY
Sep 8, 2008

Finding accord in the fight

On July 7, when leaders of the Group of Eight industrialized nations gathered at Toyako Lake, Hokkaido, for their annual summit, I happened to be in Istanbul for the opening session of the multinational Global Conference on Global Warming.
Reader Mail
Sep 7, 2008

Real barriers to foreign nurses

The Sentaku magazine article published in The Japan Times on Sept. 1, "Japanese nurses blocking skilled help from overseas," appears to give a very one-sided view. While the Japan Nursing Association may have objections to the introduction of foreign nurses, job protection does not seem to be the reason....
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 7, 2008

New book on pioneer Yonamine a must-read

There are a couple of new baseball books on the scene. One about the life of a foreigner who spent almost four decades in Japanese baseball, and the other a collection of heart-warming tributes by some well-known former players to those who convinced them not to give up chasing the dream of becoming...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / ON THE ROAD
Sep 7, 2008

Toyota's iQ — a smart move in microcar stakes

As a reporter who covers motor shows in Paris, Geneva and Frankfurt, I get to chat with a lot of European car engineers, designers and journalists. And I'm sorry to say but, no folks, they are not all in a lather about skyrocketing oil prices. Global warming's No. 1 cause, rising carbon dioxide levels,...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2008

Brothers take on 101-task mission

Most people would welcome a couple of weeks of vacation and many may even have further daydreamed of taking a whole year off, possibly to backpack around the world or do volunteer work.
LIFE / Language
Sep 2, 2008

So is it respect for 'the aged,' 'the elderly' or 'the seniors'?

As it is every September, people in Japan are looking forward to keirō no hi, the coming national holiday dedicated to the older members of the population. Respect for the Aged Day provides an annual opportunity to visit one's elderly relatives, get involved in various welfare activities or just stay...
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 2, 2008

Against high odds, masses chase luck

What would you do if you won ¥400 million? Would you buy a convertible, a new house, start a business? All of the above?
BUSINESS
Sep 2, 2008

Zen-Noh's U.S. corn dock idled by storm

Zen-Noh, Japan's largest corn buyer, suspended the operation of its grain export facility in the U.S. Gulf as Hurricane Gustav approached the region, threatening shipments from the world's biggest exporter.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Aug 31, 2008

New company casts light on power saving

The use of solar energy to generate power and to heat water is gradually spreading in Japan, but the most basic use of sunshine is yet to come out of the shadows — namely, for lighting.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years