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BUSINESS
Nov 18, 2008

Merrill to exit Japan electricity business

U.S. securities firm Merrill Lynch & Co. said Monday it will cease to trade electricity in Japan in January after failing to meet its expansion targets for the business.
BUSINESS
Nov 18, 2008

GM will sell its remaining 3% stake to Suzuki

General Motors Corp., seeking a federal bailout as its cash dwindles, said Monday it will raise ¥22.4 billion, or $230 million, by selling its 3 percent stake in Suzuki Motor Corp.
Reader Mail
Nov 16, 2008

Cacophony of automated service

It's 9:45 a.m. While I sit by the department store entrance, the automatic doors have begun talking. If you're in Japan long enough -- about 30 minutes -- you'll understand what I'm talking about. Automated devices talk. That includes ATMs, drink and train-ticket machines, elevators, escalators and even...
BUSINESS
Nov 12, 2008

Nissan eyes South Korea imports

With sales in major markets worldwide shrinking because of the financial turmoil, Nissan Motor Co. aims to double its share of South Korea's auto-import market by adding Nissan-brand vehicles, the automaker said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2008

Tsingtao to buy into Asahi venture

Tsingtao Brewery Co., China's largest brewer by sales, has agreed to buy a 39 percent stake in Asahi Breweries Ltd.'s China venture.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 11, 2008

It's fall, when kids in kimono fete 7-5-3 rituals

From October to November, Japanese parents take their young offspring to shrines as part of the traditional "shichigosan" (7-5-3) ceremony of presenting the children to Ujigami, the Shinto guardian god of good health.
BUSINESS
Nov 8, 2008

Profitable battery, solar cell biz key behind acquisition of Sanyo

What does Panasonic Corp., already one of the most powerful and profitable electronics companies in the world, want with Sanyo Electric Co., a company just one-fourth its size in terms of revenues?
EDITORIALS
Nov 7, 2008

Taxi industry in trouble

Japan's taxi industry was deregulated in 2002. But in July 2008, the transport ministry started reviving some regulations, saying that that an oversupply of taxis has led to lower profits for taxi companies and poorer working conditions for taxi drivers. In about 80 percent of the nation's taxi operation...
BUSINESS
Nov 6, 2008

Daikyo to cut jobs 15% amid slump

Daikyo Inc., one of the nation's biggest apartment builders, will cut jobs as its largest shareholder, Orix Corp., the country's biggest nonbank financial company, considers investing more in the condominium builder.
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Nov 4, 2008

Which candidate would like to see as the next U.S. president?

BUSINESS
Oct 31, 2008

Nintendo trims profit forecast

Nintendo Co. said Thursday it posted a 9.4 percent gain in first-half profit but cut its full-year outlook as a surging yen undercut brisk sales of its popular Wii console and DS hand-held device.
EDITORIALS
Oct 30, 2008

Crisis knocking at Japan's door

The global financial crisis is battering the Japanese stock market and threatening the real economy. The erratic Nikkei 225 index dipped below 7,000 at one point this week, the lowest in about 26 years, and the recent gains of the yen against the dollar and euro cast a dark spell over companies that...
JAPAN
Oct 30, 2008

Foreign workers are first to feel impact of economy's slowdown

HAMAMATSU, Shizuoka Pref. — Brazilian Stenio Sameshima came to Japan last year planning to make a bundle of money at the country's humming auto factories. Instead, he's spending a lot of time in line at employment agencies.
BUSINESS
Oct 28, 2008

Mori sees 'full-blown' decline in Tokyo housing

Tokyo residential property prices may be poised for a major decline because of excess supply and flagging demand, according to Minoru Mori, chairman of Japan's biggest privately held developer.
Reader Mail
Oct 26, 2008

Typical reaction of the vested

Regarding the Oct. 24 article "Aso gets riled when quizzed over swanky wining, dining": Isn't this how it goes? As long as the folks at the top have enough money to wine and dine in exclusive restaurants, why should they worry about "ordinary" people who have to check for special discounts and look for...

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes