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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 18, 2020

Take COVID-19, add a trade war and raise taxes: A recipe for disaster

Japan is facing a trifecta of challenges with severe economic consequences.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 18, 2020

Tokyo commuters set for Olympic crush as many firms rule out telework

When Emi Tanimura failed to find a day care slot for her newborn daughter, the need to avoid long periods away from her job at communications firm Sunny Side Up made it necessary to take what is a radical step in Japan; she started working from home.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Feb 18, 2020

Fear grows that coronavirus will push Japan into recession

With Japan taking a hit from the unabated outbreak of the coronavirus soon after a plunge in its economic performance in the last quarter of 2019, some fear the country may be on the brink of recession.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Feb 18, 2020

'Every scenario on the table' in China virus outbreak, says WHO chief

The latest data provided by China on people infected with coronavirus indicate a decline in new cases but "every scenario is still on the table" in terms of the epidemic's evolution, the World Health Organization said on Monday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 17, 2020

Sharp unveils Japan makers' first 5G-ready smartphone

Sharp Corp. unveiled its first 5G smartphone model Monday, ahead of the ultrafast network service launch scheduled for March.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Feb 17, 2020

Gay candidate Pete Buttigieg says he won't be lectured on morality by Rush Limbaugh

Openly gay Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg pushed back Sunday against recent homophobic comments from conservative radio personalities as he rises to become a 2020 front-runner.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 16, 2020

Tourism hit from coronavirus will carry into 2021, travel experts say

Even as infections of the novel coronavirus seemed to be slowing at one point last week, the effects of the epidemic on the global tourism industry were accelerating rapidly.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 16, 2020

North Korea's Kim back in public amid virus outbreak

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made his first public appearance in 22 days amid an outbreak of coronavirus, state media reported on Saturday, to visit a national mausoleum and mark the anniversary of the late leader Kim Jong Il's birth.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 16, 2020

China reports slight fall in new COVID-19 cases as France confirms first death outside Asia

The number of new cases of a coronavirus in China fell slightly on Sunday, more than three weeks after the outbreak's epicenter was locked down, and a Chinese tourist died from the virus in France, the first fatality in Europe.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 15, 2020

Unmarried single parents find an unlikely ally in scrap over tax deduction

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party submitted an amendment to the Diet in January to expand the "widow's deduction" to cover single parents who have never been married. This system allows single parents who have lost spouses to death or divorce to deduct a certain amount of money from their taxable income...
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Feb 15, 2020

COVID-19 tests Osaka's ability to reach East Asia

Since Kansai International Airport opened in 1994, business and political leaders in Osaka have touted the region as the gateway to Asia. Often showing little interest in other parts of the world, they would tell each other in conference rooms, cocktail parties, symposiums and seminars that China and...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Feb 15, 2020

China counts 2,641 new coronavirus cases and 143 deaths as it struggles to slow spread

More than 2,600 new cases were confirmed from a coronavirus outbreak in mainland China, the National Health Commission said on Saturday, a day after people returning to the capital from holidays were ordered to quarantine themselves for 14 days to try to contain its spread.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 14, 2020

On heels of quarterly loss, Nissan again slashes full-year outlook amid economic uncertainties

After posting only its first third quarterly loss in 11 years, Nissan Motor Co. on Thursday again cut its annual profit forecast due to weak demand and economic uncertainties.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2020

As quarantine nears end, clearing coronavirus-hit ship is daunting task for Japan

With thousands to be tested before the quarantine ends on Wednesday, the outgunned health ministry is mum about the idea of an extension.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 14, 2020

Historian Niall Ferguson: 'We are in Cold War II'

China's global ambitions are no longer something that can be ignored.
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2020

Olympics minister denounces South Korean posters of Tokyo 2020 torch runner in a hazmat suit

Seiko Hashimoto, minister for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, on Friday denounced South Korean-made posters showing an Olympic torch relay runner wearing a hazmat suit and what appears to be radioactive material spewing from the torch.
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2020

Concerns linger as tests of new Haneda routes over Tokyo wrap up

The transport ministry said Thursday it has completed tests for new flight paths to Haneda Airport, which involved arriving aircraft flying over central Tokyo at a low altitude for the first time.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Feb 14, 2020

China moves on two fronts to ease anger over coronavirus

China took action on two fronts to gain control of the spiraling coronavirus outbreak gripping the country: reporting a dramatic increase in cases and ousting top officials who failed to check the disease's expansion.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 14, 2020

Fires in Australia's New South Wales contained for first time in nearly six months

Fires across Australia's most populous state are now contained for the first time in nearly six months, authorities said on Friday, as heavy rains aid firefighters and boost some dam levels to their highest in nearly two years.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 13, 2020

SoftBank chief welcomes activist investor Singer as Vision Fund logs loss

SoftBank Group Corp. founder Masayoshi Son opened the door to making at least some of the changes championed by activist investor Paul Singer, after the company reported a second quarter of losses from its startup investing.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / Commentary
Feb 13, 2020

Can Japan kick-start paternity leave among workaholic dads?

In January, Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi received worldwide attention after surprising the public with his plan to take parental leave shortly before the birth of his first child.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Feb 13, 2020

U.S. Senate advances resolution limiting Trump's ability to wage war against Iran

The U.S. Senate advanced legislation on Wednesday intended to limit President Donald Trump's ability to wage war against Iran, paving the way for a final vote as eight Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the war powers resolution.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Feb 13, 2020

Results from Chinese drug trials for coronavirus due in weeks: expert

Chinese scientists are testing two antiviral drugs against the new coronavirus and preliminary clinical trial results are weeks away, the co-chair of a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting said on Wednesday.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past