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BUSINESS
Mar 9, 2002

Bank lending falls for 50th consecutive month

Lending by Japanese banks fell 4.6 percent in February from a year earlier, down for the 50th month in a row, the Bank of Japan said Friday.
BUSINESS
Mar 9, 2002

Fund to fight AIDS set to debut

In an effort to bring the spread of infectious diseases under control, the multibillion-dollar Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will make its official debut at a ceremony in New York next month.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 9, 2002

Finding stories behind the headlines for translation

As the founding managing editors of Kotan Publishing, Gavin Allwright and Atsushi Kanamaru are a match made in the heaven and hell of small independent book making. Certainly they could not be more physically different, one so tall, well-meaning and -- dare I say -- well padded; the other small, neat...
BUSINESS
Mar 9, 2002

Business heads call for reforms

Business leaders on Friday called on the government to promptly carry out tax reforms and take other steps to bolster economic activity after the latest key data confirmed that Japan is in a dire recession.
LIFE / Lifestyle / MATTER OF COURSE
Mar 8, 2002

Getting used to accentuating the negative

Whatever you do, don't say anything nice about your child at parents' meetings
BUSINESS
Mar 7, 2002

Tokyo eyes countermeasures, appeal to WTO

Japanese government officials and business leaders reacted with measured anger Wednesday to a decision by U.S. President George W. Bush to slap tariffs on imported steel.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 4, 2002

Bush suffers economic jet lag

What is it about a trip to East Asia that turns the minds of shrewd politicians like President George W. Bush and his national security advisers into mush? Once again, an American president and his entourage have traveled to Asia. And once again, jet lag, inadequate oxygen in Air Force One or something...
COMMENTARY
Mar 4, 2002

Research needs cutting edge

Since Japan has already decided to reorganize national universities into public corporations in fiscal 2004, it would be useless now to discuss the pros and cons of the plan. I happen to feel the plan will do neither harm nor good.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Mar 3, 2002

Gone fishing

Fly-fishing is like pachinko. You know how some people get a rush from watching things go into little holes? Well, replace the smoke, noise and flashing lights with tumbling brooks, mountains and fresh air and you've got fly-fishing.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE WAY OF WASHOKU
Mar 3, 2002

A simple, elegant mix to celebrate girl power

I first encountered the Hina Matsuri (Girls' Day, or Doll Festival) as a youngster in Washington, D.C., when my father and I attended an event hosted by future Prime Minister Yoshio Mori at the then new Japanese Embassy. As we entered the grand foyer of the modern concrete building, we saw a stadium...
SOCCER / World cup
Mar 1, 2002

FIFA 'ready' for World Cup

FIFA officials and representatives of the 32 teams competing in this year's World Cup wrapped up a two-day workshop in Tokyo on Thursday by declaring that they are ready to stage the World Cup in May and June.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Mar 1, 2002

A prizewinning talk from the heart

When Jason Hancock took the grand prize at the NHK-televised 42nd International Speech Contest last June, he surprised everyone -- not least of all himself. After a series of impeccable orations by the other finalists (on such topics as the Japanese political system and Japanese linguistics), Hancock...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Feb 28, 2002

Japanese teams treat Guam to rugby spectacle

For many Japanese people, the island of Guam conjures up images of duty-free shopping, cheap golf courses and unequaled diving around the reefs that surround this Pacific island.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 28, 2002

State urged to double reform efforts

Private economic experts urged lawmakers during Wednesday's Diet session to double their efforts to make Japan's public finances sound again.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2002

Sonar echoes may come from sunken 'spy' vessel

A sonar search that began Monday for an unidentified ship that sank in the East China Sea in December after a firefight with Japanese patrol vessels has picked up telltale echoes from the seabed where the vessel is believed to have gone down, Japan Coast Guard officials said.
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2002

LDP brochure appeals for help in solving abductions

The Liberal Democratic Party has printed an English-language brochure to drum up support from foreign diplomats in Japan to try to solve the alleged abduction of Japanese nationals by North Korea, LDP lawmakers have said.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 24, 2002

Dubya's campaign to bring tourists to America

During this past Christmas season, it became something of a joke in the United States when Americans were asked by their government to go shopping as a means of pursuing the War on Terrorism at home. The idea was that the Forces of Evil wanted nothing less than the destruction of Our Way of Life, so...
COMMUNITY
Feb 24, 2002

Overseas and under pressure

For people moving to a foreign country, the simplest daily activities can become a nightmare.
BUSINESS
Feb 22, 2002

Auto industry head ready to talk to U.S.

A Japanese auto industry leader said Thursday he is ready to talk with his counterparts among the U.S. Big Three automakers, who have asked U.S. President George W. Bush to pressure Japan to refrain from talking down the yen.
LIFE / Language / FOR KIDS
Feb 22, 2002

Don't let big economic words daunt you

It's never too early to get your facts straight about the economy. Many people, even the leaders of powerful countries, still get them mixed up. Using the wrong terms, like U.S. President George W. Bush did this week, can create a lot of confusion for everyone.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2002

Prince Takamado may go to Seoul for World Cup

Prince Takamado, honorary president of the Japan Football Association, will probably attend the opening ceremony of the World Cup finals in Seoul, according to government sources.
JAPAN
Feb 21, 2002

Online music trade riles labels

The battle between online music-swapping service providers and the Japanese music industry is intensifying, with the industry vowing to crack down on what it calls illegal sharing of digital copies of music.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 21, 2002

Chino cements image as ADB's best chief ever

MANILA It was the most important night of the year. As "Show 2001" got off to a start, the hall was packed to standing room only, and talented employees -- mostly Filipinos -- strutted their stuff in aid of local charities.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Feb 21, 2002

'Rainbow Warrior' talks rugby, politics, life

Francois Pienaar is best known as the man who unified a nation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Feb 20, 2002

The mind has mountains

"It's true," a friend who has lived here for more than a decade insisted. "Because for them it's the most important mountain in the world, Japanese schoolchildren don't draw Mount Fuji the sloping shape it really is, but as incredibly tall and pointed."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 20, 2002

Onward klezmer voyager

Like people, music travels. How else could a handful of Japanese musicians have come to embrace klezmer, a centuries-old Eastern European folk music historically associated with traditional Jewish weddings?
EDITORIALS
Feb 19, 2002

Economic revival vital to alliance

Tuesday's summit meeting in Tokyo between Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and U.S. President George W. Bush helped further strengthen personal rapport and mutual understanding between the two leaders. Mr. Koizumi reconfirmed that the U.S. president is a strong supporter of his structural reforms. Similarly,...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2002

Celebration of folk traditions keeps national identity alive for Peruvian

TSU, Mie Pref. (Kyodo News) Her family's playing of the traditional Peruvian folk song "El Condor Pasa" for a Japanese audience helps Rosa Ochante Muray keep her national identity alive.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2002

Bushes take in archery show at shrine

U.S. President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, on Monday visited Meiji Shrine, a major venue for Shinto worshippers in Tokyo.
COMMUNITY
Feb 17, 2002

Who's afraid of the Big Bad mouse?

OSAKA -- If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then for the past two decades Tokyo Disneyland has been the focus of much admiration. The stunning success of the theme park -- average annual visitors for the past 10 years is 17 million -- has spawned countless imitators across Japan. Apparently,...

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb