Search - 2003

 
 
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Dec 21, 2003

Year's top commercials 'ad' up to great Japanese TV

Anyone who reads this column regularly probably believes that I find Japanese television completely worthless. It's not true; or, at least, not completely true. I think Japanese TV commercials are very good and often more representative of the hopes and dreams of the nation than the programming is.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Dec 21, 2003

Mysteries along the Mekong

BANGKOK 8, by John Burdett. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2003, 318 pp., $24.00 (cloth). WAITING FOR THE LADY, by Christopher G. Moore. Bangkok: Heaven Lake Press, 2003, 342 pp., $24.95 (cloth). Can a Western author convincingly put himself inside the mind of a Thai cop? Writing in the first person in...
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2003

Average surface temperature falls to five-year low

Bucking the recent warming trend, the average surface temperature in Japan this year was the lowest since 1997, according to the Meteorological Agency.
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2003

Smaller yearend shrine turnout expected

Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples are expected to draw fewer visitors during the upcoming New Year's holidays than they did in 2003, the National Police Agency said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Dec 19, 2003

Toyota aiming to sell 7 million vehicles

The Toyota group aims to sell a total of 7.08 million vehicles in calendar 2004, up 4 percent over projected sales of 6.78 million units for this year.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

Current account surplus rose 38.9% in October

Japan's current account surplus rose 38.9 percent in October from a year earlier to 1.259 trillion yen, logging its fourth straight monthly rise.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

'Happoshu' to eclipse beer for first time

Shipments of "happoshu" for general household consumption are expected to surpass those of beer in 2003 for the first time since the low-malt beverage was launched in 1994, industry data showed Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 10, 2003

Nation's blue chip firms said on firm recovery track

The current fiscal year has seen Japan's blue chip companies put themselves on a firm recovery track, absorbing the negative impact of the yen's strength, Nomura Securities Co. said Tuesday.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Dec 10, 2003

Pacific League holds much promise for 2004 season

The Pacific League has lost 10-year veteran Seibu Lions all-star Kazuo Matsui, one of its best performers, to the major leagues and the New York Mets. Tuffy Rhodes, having been released by the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes, will probably be gone as well, moving to the Yomiuri Giants or another Central League...
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2003

New highs forecast for imports, exports

Imports and exports are expected to rise to new highs for a third straight year in fiscal 2004, a trade industry association said Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Dec 4, 2003

"Lionboy," "The English Roses"

"Lionboy," Zizou Corder, Puffin Books; 2003; 352 pp. How old do you have to be to write your first book? Thirty years old? Twenty? How about 10? If you're Isabel Adomakoh Young, 10 is as good an age as any.
EDITORIALS
Dec 4, 2003

Returning a bank to health

The collapse of Ashikaga Bank, a major regional bank in Tochigi Prefecture, shows that Japan's debt-heavy banking system is not yet out of the woods. The government, which has nationalized the bank temporarily, is expected to provide a cash injection of more than 1 trillion yen. The bank will be sold...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 30, 2003

A couch potato's guide from the experts' side

THE DORAMA ENCYCLOPEDIA: A Guide to Japanese TV Drama Since 1953, by Jonathan Clements and Motoko Tamamuro. Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 2003, 442 pp., 100+ photos and illustrations, $24.95, (paper). THE COUCH POTATO'S GUIDE TO JAPAN: Inside the World of Japanese TV, by Wilhelmina Penn. Sapporo: Forest...
JAPAN
Nov 29, 2003

Ashikaga Bank faces government bailout

Ashikaga Bank appears to be on the brink of becoming Japan's second bank this year to receive an injection of taxpayer money, sources said Friday.
MORE SPORTS
Nov 25, 2003

Gilmour wins Nippon Cup regatta

HAYAMA, Kanagawa Pref. -- Australian Peter Gilmour won the 2003 Nippon Cup yacht race Sunday, prevailing over Magnus Holmberg of Sweden.
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2003

Isuzu improves but Nissan Diesel bleeds more red

Two truck makers saw their consolidated earnings go in opposite directions in the first half of fiscal 2003, with Isuzu Motors Ltd. returning to profitability and Nissan Diesel Motor Co. widening losses.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 21, 2003

Chen winning back respect for Taiwan's position

NEW YORK -- Chen Shui-bian, Taiwan's president, recently made a whirlwind international tour. During a three-day transit in New York three weeks ago, he received the 2003 award from the International League for Human Rights. He attended centennial independence anniversary celebrations of Panama, then...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2003

Tanigaki wants bond issues to stay below tax revenues

Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki told a meeting of business leaders Thursday he wants to keep the issuance of fresh government bonds below the amount of tax revenues in the fiscal 2004 budget, a participant said.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 16, 2003

Political intrigue and mystery imagined in present and past

THE THIRD WORLD WAR: A Terrifying Novel of Global Conflict, by Humphrey Hawksley. London: Pan Books, 2003, 514 pp., £6.99 (paper). THE HELL SCREEN, by I.J. Parker. New York: St. Martin's Minotaur, 2003, 338 pp., $24.95, (cloth). Long before Dec. 7, 1941, at least three novels -- the earliest published...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Nov 15, 2003

Did Godzilla roar? Or simply growl?

Let's see . . . our world is writhing through some of its worst turmoil ever, the Japanese economy continues to stumble about like a man on uneven stilts, crime is up, jobs are down and the ozone layer has begun to resemble Swiss cheese without the cheese.
BUSINESS
Nov 13, 2003

Eco-friendly cars to take big bite out of tax revenue

Revenue prefectures get from car taxes will plunge 18.4 billion yen next fiscal year because of a tax break for low-emission vehicles, the home affairs ministry said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Nov 12, 2003

MMC posts major losses in first half

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. on Tuesday reported hefty losses for the fiscal first half that ended Sept. 30 due to sluggish sales in North America.
EDITORIALS
Nov 11, 2003

A viable two-party system?

In Sunday's election, the voters opted for stability -- with a twist. They gave the three-party ruling coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party a continued mandate to run the country but, at the same time, handed the LDP a slap on the wrist: the loss of a majority in the 480-seat influential Lower...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Nov 9, 2003

Down Under at its fun-filled best

Australia has never really needed any ploys to lure travelers to this vast country. The natural beauty of the rain forests in the north, deserts in the dry interior and mountains in the south, all surrounded by some of the greatest beaches in the world, are more than enough reasons to take a trip Down...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Nov 9, 2003

In with le new!

It's Beaujolais Nouveau time again, and Japan -- despite its piffling per capita consumption of just three bottles of wine a year -- will suddenly become a nation of tipplers and quaffers (if not connoisseurs) of this fresh-from-the-vine red wine from France.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 7, 2003

Cutting costs helps Mazda double profit

Mazda Motor Corp. said Thursday its consolidated net profit in the first half of fiscal 2003 doubled from a year earlier to 11.15 billion yen.
BUSINESS
Oct 30, 2003

Widespread risk-hedging seen limiting short-term menace of rising yen

A strong yen is not good news for Japanese export-driven companies. But the impact of the yen's recent surge against the dollar to three-year highs is expected to be limited for now since firms have hedged the currency risk, economists and major manufacturers said.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Oct 29, 2003

Japan Series: Should have known better with those Tigers fans

I should have known better than to predict the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks would win the 2003 Japan Series in five games over the Hanshin Tigers.
BUSINESS
Oct 28, 2003

Daihatsu first-half net profit almost triples to 3.8 billion yen

Daihatsu Motor Co. said Monday its consolidated net profit nearly tripled to 3.78 billion yen in the first half of fiscal 2003 from the previous year.
COMMUNITY
Oct 26, 2003

IT star shines over 'Silicon Valley'

BANGALORE -- Weatherwise, Bangalore tends to be cooler than most cities in India, but businesswise it's the hottest destination.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight