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Sony Group President Hiroki Totoki told a news conference last month that the Playstation maker had been preparing for tariffs by building up inventory from its gaming and electronics divisions in the United States.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Mar 6, 2025

Sony and Suntory build U.S. stockpiles as Japan faces Trump tariff threat

In his latest trade salvo this week, U.S. President Donald Trump hinted that he might target Tokyo next, after imposing tariffs on Mexico and China.
Nomura Holdings and Japan's other big brokers are having second thoughts about selling so-called structured loans to regional lenders.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 11, 2025

Japan brokers rethink repackaged JGBs after regulator warning

There are concerns that buyers might lack proper risk management for the product and could suffer mounting losses if market interest rates move against them.
Chinese leaders attend the second plenary session of the National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing's Great Hall of the People on Saturday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 11, 2025

DeepSeek-fueled AI fever injects new energy into China’s annual meeting

Communist Party cadres from different regions competed to market their locales as China’s next AI hub at the National People’s Congress seven-day gathering.
Alimentation Couche-Tard founder Alain Bouchard (center), CEO Alex Miller (left) and CFO Filipe Da Silva attend a photo session after a news conference on their bid for Seven & I Holdings in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies / EXPLAINER
Mar 17, 2025

Why Couche-Tard's deal with Seven & I isn't going anywhere

The buyout bid has seen a mixed response in Japan, with some expressing concerns over the convenience store chain being taken over by a foreign company.
Lyft envisions a hybrid future where human drivers will complement autonomous vehicle fleets, especially during periods of peak demand.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 21, 2025

Lyft to offer driverless ride-hails ‘as soon as this summer’

The company sees its human drivers transitioning to other work such as fleet management as autonomous rides become more ubiquitous.
U.S. President Donald Trump walks toward Air Force One in Morristown, New Jersey, on Saturday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 23, 2025

Trump plans his tariff ‘Liberation Day’ with more targeted push

Trump is preparing a "Liberation Day” tariff announcement on April 2.
Japan has become one of the biggest markets for activist investors, with the government and institutions such as the Tokyo Stock Exchange pushing companies to pay more attention to stock prices and shareholder returns.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 24, 2025

Elliott said to have built up significant stake in Sumitomo Realty

The size of the stake in isn’t known but the activist investor has engaged with the Tokyo-based real estate developer on measures to improve shareholder value, sources say.
William Lu, president and partner of Xiaomi, presents the new Xiaomi 15 series ahead of the 2025 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on March 2.
BUSINESS
Mar 25, 2025

Xiaomi raises $5.5 billion in upsized Hong Kong share sale

Xiaomi has been investing aggressively in its nascent EV business to drive growth and recently increased its 2025 delivery target.
An advertisement featuring Shohei Ohtani in Tokyo.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 26, 2025

Tokyo Series proves to be big business for MLB — and Japanese companies

The weeklong festival of all things baseball highlights how Shohei Ohtani has created myriad business opportunities on both sides of the Pacific.
Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing's CK Hutchison has entered into a deal with a BlackRock-led consortium to sell ports in Panama and elsewhere, putting his conglomerate’s flagship entity in the crosshairs of U.S.-China tensions.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2025

China pauses new deals with Li Ka-Shing family after Panama ports plan

The directive was issued to state-owned enterprises last week at the behest of senior Chinese officials.
Empty shelves with "Buy Canadian Instead" signs are seen in the American Whiskey section of the BC Liquor in Vancouver, British Columbia, on March 10.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 1, 2025

As ‘Buy Canadian’ grows, more U.S. firms say retailers turning away products

A dramatic reshuffling of Canada's retail shelves illustrates the impact of patriotic consumerism in the country.
The Bank of Japan's tankan survey indicates that large business are still positive on their prospects.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 1, 2025

Japanese businesses maintain optimism ahead of looming tariff storm

In the BOJ's latest tankan survey, the headline index for big manufacturers was 12, which indicates confidence in the business outlook.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt holds a press briefing, as headlines from articles on U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs are displayed, at the White House in Washington on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 2, 2025

White House says Trump to go ahead with tariffs as nervous world awaits trade war

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said reciprocal tariffs on countries that impose duties on U.S. goods would take effect immediately after Trump announces them.
New vehicles parked at a pier in Yokohama on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2025

'Give me a break': Trump tariffs threaten Japan auto sector

The 5.6 million people employed directly or indirectly in the auto sector are now fearful about their future.
U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war has spurred the biggest market losses since the COVID-19 pandemic.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 5, 2025

Stocks slump again after China fires back in trade war with tariffs on U.S. goods

The trade war has spurred the biggest market losses since the COVID-19 pandemic.
A vandalized sign indicating an ultralow emission zone in west London.
ENVIRONMENT
Apr 10, 2025

Clean streets versus business woes: Pollution charge divides Londoners

The plan in London requires motorists to switch to low-emission vehicles or face a daily charge.
A pedestrian walks past an electronic board showing the morning numbers on the Tokyo Stock Exchange along a street in the Japanese capital on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 13, 2025

Punch drunk traders across Asia ready for another week of drama

Even though investors were fearful of events last weekend, the reaction in markets was more extreme than many countenanced.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore during an interview in Tokyo. The governor is in Japan on a four-day trade and investment mission.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 14, 2025

Maryland governor talks trains and trade while in Japan

Gov. Wes Moore said he believes the Northeast Maglev — which may use technology from Japan — could transform the region's economy.
MS&AD forecasts that net profit for its North American operations will reach ¥166 billion in the fiscal year ended in March, a 3.5fold increase from the previous fiscal year.
BUSINESS
Apr 22, 2025

Insurer MS&AD plans to invest $5 billion to double U.S. profits

The Tokyo-based casualty insurer has the highest market share in Asia among global firms, but it’s No. 3 among Japanese peers in North America.
Fees from dealmaking also helped net income climb 27% from a year earlier to ¥72 billion ($501 million) in the three months ended March 31, Nomura said in a statement Friday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 25, 2025

Nomura profit beats estimates on equity trading and dealmaking

The result caps a record year of profits, helped by robust trading and dealmaking and a resurgence in investing by Japanese individuals.
A company linked to the son of former Liberal Democratic Party heavyweight Makoto Koga is at the center of an income concealment case involving about ¥100 million tied to massage chair operations at Haneda Airport.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 27, 2025

Haneda terminal operator unit underreports income by ¥100 million

The subsidiary, Big Wing, was found to have concealed the income in connection with the business of installing massage chairs.
Digital screens at Piccadilly Circus display an advertisement for the Jaguar Type 00 concept car in London on Dec. 5, 2024.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 28, 2025

Advertising giants brace for tariff-induced cuts to ad spending

The car industry, one of the sectors most vulnerable to a trade war, is likely to lead the way in curtailing ad spend.
While for Aston Martin, it’s all about delivering luxury, their regional president for Asia Gregory Adams' start in the auto industry in Japan was far more humble.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 6, 2025

The drive for luxury: Aston Martin Asia's president explains the desire for more

“No one needs an Aston Martin,” said the company's regional president for Asia — it is more about emotion and less about practicality.
A pullback by some of Asia's richest families from U.S. assets marks a rapid change from just a few months ago, when many in region’s business elite cheered U.S. President Donald Trump’s election win, sending share prices at banks and major tech firms to record highs.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2025

Asia’s superrich rapidly scale back U.S. exposure amid trade war

The pullback marks a rapid change from just a few months ago, when many in the region’s business elite cheered the election win of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Sharp aims to focus its business resources on competitive fields by selling its Kameyama LCD plant to Hon Hai Precision Industry.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2025

Japan's Sharp to sell Kameyama LCD plant to Hon Hai

Sharp aims to focus its business resources on competitive fields by downsizing the LCD panel business, which has been operating in the red.
Overall net profit is expected to go down 42.9% from the previous year to ¥200 billion at Nippon Steel, 18.4% to ¥75 billion at JFE Holdings and 16.8% to ¥100 billion at Kobe Steel.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 13, 2025

Three major Japan steelmakers say they expect profit falls in fiscal 2025

Overall net profit is expected to go down 42.9% from the previous year to ¥200 billion at Nippon Steel, 18.4% to ¥75 billion at JFE and 16.8% to ¥100 billion at Kobe Steel.
Carlyle Japan is expanding hiring of investment professionals as it believes Japanese companies that are focused on domestic businesses are actually very appealing amid the global trade turmoil.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2025

Carlyle on Japan hiring spree after new $3 billion buyout fund

Private equity has found a sweet spot in Japan in recent years, where borrowing costs remain low and companies have become receptive to selling off operations.
Goldman Sachs’ unit in Japan, although posting lower profit last year, kept its spot as the most profitable among foreign banks in the country that close their books in December.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2025

Goldman Sachs leads in a patchy year for foreign banks in Japan

The varied results suggest that 2024 was a tricky year for the world’s largest lenders operating in Japan, as investors adjusted to rising interest rates.
Yoshinobu Tsutsui (left), who is expected to become the new Keidanren chairman, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on March 25, as the current chairman, Masakazu Tokura, looks on.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
May 23, 2025

Keidanren to install first leader from financial sector

The post of Keidanren chairman has traditionally been held by leaders from the manufacturing sector.
Denso is expanding its agricultural business and hopes to become a key supplier of industrialized greenhouses capable of producing food in any climate.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 26, 2025

Denso in talks to buy Temasek-backed seed supplier for $500 million

A purchase would align with Denso’s ambition to become a key supplier of industrialized greenhouses capable of producing food in any climate.

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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