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COMMENTARY
Mar 25, 2003

Weak tobacco pact reflects Japan's lukewarm attitude

The member-nations of the World Health Organization have recently approved a draft Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), putting an end to four years of negotiations. The draft is expected to be adopted at the general meeting of the WHO in May, and will take effect after 40 countries have ratified...
Japan Times
JAPAN / PREFECTURAL FARE
Mar 22, 2003

Tokyo gets taste of Okinawa longevity

Last in a series Okinawa is well-known for the longevity of its people. Its subtropical climate may be one reason, but a major contributing factor is most likely the southern-most prefecture's healthy foods.
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2003

Boost sought for loan-firm checks

The Financial Services Agency has asked prefectural governments to screen applications from prospective loan business operators more stringently to stave off illegal lending.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 19, 2003

Market intervention not the right solution

GUATEMALA CITY -- Japan's Nikkei average is below 8,000 for the first time in 20 years, putting it 80 percent below its 1989 high. A fall in the Nikkei below 7,500 could mean that some Japanese banks would not meet their international capital adequacy requirements.
BUSINESS
Mar 18, 2003

SMBC disbands and merges with subsidiary

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. disbanded Monday and merged with Wakashio Bank, a tiny SMBC subsidiary.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 18, 2003

Energy deal will fuel East Timor's growth

SYDNEY -- Southeast Asia's newest and poorest nation has done an oil deal that should bankroll its way to real independence.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 16, 2003

'Bogus' theme parks becoming the last resort

On Jan. 23, Tokyo Disneyland held a preview event for the media in anticipation of the park's 20th anniversary, which will be celebrated April 15. About 1,400 celebrity guests showed up trailed by 50 camera crews, all from domestic television stations, which means that most of them were from outside...
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2003

Business failures down, liabilities up

Corporate bankruptcies were off 7.4 percent in February for the second straight month of decline on a year-on-year basis, but liabilities left by the failed firms jumped 20.6 percent, Teikoku Databank Ltd. said Friday.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2003

Orient eyes capital boost through share issuance

Struggling consumer credit firm Orient Corp. said Friday it will issue 150 billion yen in preferred shares to be purchased by Mizuho Corporate Bank to boost its depleted capital base.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2003

Firms plug their toys' ability to lick stress

It seems as though everyday life is getting more and more stressful, and toy manufacturers are coming up with new products they say can soothe mind and body of young and old alike.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2003

Deprived, ignored and scorned, North Korea driven into a corner

CAMBRIDGE, England -- For several years now North Korea has been carrying out a process of economic reform and opening up. Sound familiar? That is what the Chinese did 25 years ago when they, too, realized that their economic system was out-of-date and unable to meet the aspirations of its people.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2003

Stock resuscitation plan unveiled

In a bid to end a tailspin in Tokyo stock prices, the government on Thursday unveiled six emergency steps, including stricter control of speculative sales.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2003

Ministry says economy is firming

The vice finance minister said Thursday that Japan's real economy is firming, although it is currently being weighed down by geopolitical concerns.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2003

How the U.S. piqued Pyongyang

CAMBRIDGE, England -- If it weren't for the fact that the lives of several million people are at stake it could be fun watching the game of diplomatic poker being played by North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and U.S. President George W. Bush. Those lives are at stake, however, as is the future stability...
BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2003

'Happoshu' claims big market share

"Happoshu," a low-malt beverage, grabbed a 46.4 percent share of the beer market in February, its largest share ever, according to data released Wednesday by the nation's five major brewers.
BUSINESS
Mar 12, 2003

S&P rating on Fast Retailing stable

Standard & Poor's Corp. said Tuesday its rating on Fast Retailing Co. will not be immediately affected by the casual-clothing retailer's downsizing of its store operations in Britain.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Mar 11, 2003

Building projects defy huge cash woe

Until a year ago, the tallest structure I could see from my apartment in Hashimoto, Kanagawa Prefecture, was the neon sign for the local Denny's. Not any more.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 8, 2003

Hitachi may sell HQ and rent office space

Hitachi Ltd. said Friday it is considering selling its headquarters building in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward and renting space in a nearby building.
Japan Times
JAPAN / PREFECTURAL FARE
Mar 8, 2003

Miyazaki's Tokyo foothold a success story

Shuji Yoshida, joint owner of Miyazaki Konne, is all smiles when asked how things are at the Miyazaki Prefecture satellite shop.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 8, 2003

Making it big-time in the world of glamour, glitz

Forget baubles, bangles and beads. Hiroko Suzuki designs pieces of jewelry that take the craft to a new level of glamorous extravagance.
BUSINESS
Mar 8, 2003

Nikkei sinks to 20-year low as nerves fray over Iraq war fears

The Tokyo Stock Exchange tumbled Friday, driving the benchmark Nikkei index to a 20-year closing low on growing fears that a military strike will be launched on Iraq.
EDITORIALS
Mar 7, 2003

WHO clears the air

There are more than 1 billion smokers worldwide. The World Health Organization estimates that the number of people dying each year from cancer, cardiovascular disease and other smoking-related conditions has reached 4.9 million a year -- up from 4 million deaths a year when negotiations began on a treaty...
BUSINESS
Mar 7, 2003

Nippon Steel changes fiscal 2002 forecast to 45 billion yen loss

Nippon Steel Corp. forecasts a consolidated net loss of 45 billion yen for fiscal 2002 after absorbing losses of 142 billion yen, including one-time costs for restructuring a subsidiary, the world's third-largest steel maker said Thursday.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2003

Miyake Island inspires ballad

Popular "enka" ballad singEer Hiroshi Itsuki plans to reEcord a song for the residents of Miyake Island, who were evacuated in September 2000 because of volcanic activity, it was announced Wednesday at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building.
BUSINESS
Mar 6, 2003

Business leaders sink deeper into despair

Business sentiment at major companies remained negative in the January-March period but is expected to improve in the next two quarters, according to a Finance Ministry survey released Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Obituary: Jiro Ikushima

Jiro Ikushima, a pioneer of hard-boiled fiction in Japan, died Sunday night of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital, his family said Monday. He was 70.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2003

Japan looks to H-IIA as it enters satellite-launching business

Japan's aerospace industry is getting ready to enter the commercial satellite-launching business amid moves to transfer the government's H-IIA rocket technology to the private sector.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2003

Postal agency lifts lid on account scam

The Postal Services Agency has discovered about 49,000 illegal accounts for its postal insurance policy that provides tax-free capital gains if the money is applied to the purchase of a home or for use as a pension, agency sources said Monday.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami