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BUSINESS
May 28, 2008

TCI rethinks J-Power strategy

TCI, the U.K. hedge fund whose bid to increase its stake in J-Power was blocked by the government, bought shares in Mizuho Financial Group Inc. and Kajima Corp. to get major shareholders to prod the utility to boost returns.
BASKETBALL
May 27, 2008

Machida drafted No. 1 by Shiga

This is a sign of the emerging significance of the bj-league: More than 350 players participated in the tryout process this season. And then the 2008 bj-league draft was held on Monday.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
May 27, 2008

Tycoon aims to speed up politics

Business tycoon Hiroshi Okuda is said to be meeting frequently but secretly with leading figures of both the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the No. 1 opposition Democratic Party of Japan, apparently with an eye to reorganizing the political landscape after general elections expected in the not-too-distant...
SUMO / SUMO SCRIBBLINGS
May 27, 2008

Asashoryu mars Kotooshu's day of glory

In a shade over 250 years of recorded sumo history, no European has ever been crowned king of the ring. No European has ever held aloft the Emperor's Cup. No European has ever won a Grand Sumo Tournament.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
May 27, 2008

Giants hold off Fighters on evening of milestones

Alex Ramirez broke a record, Marc Kroon reached a milestone and Takuya Kimura took care of the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
May 27, 2008

Kobe saw discussion but no accord

KOBE — Group of Eight environment ministers held their weekend summit in Kobe hoping, in vain, to emerge with a strong commitment by developed nations to agree on greenhouse gas reduction targets by 2020.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
May 27, 2008

Toothpaste tube chandeliers, eco-seats and other design highlights

A toothy light
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
May 27, 2008

Giants' Gonzalez gets one-year suspension

Yomiuri Giants infielder Luis Gonzalez has been suspended for one year for violating Nippon Professional Baseball's drug policy, the league announced Monday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 27, 2008

Home alone

When Web designer Soko Hirayama moved to Tokyo five months ago, she did not expect to be living solo.
LIFE / Language
May 27, 2008

Mastery of kanji takes time to build, just like Rome

If you want yuyujiteki no seikatsu wo suru, to live the life of Riley, in Japan, then you should learn as many four-kanji expresssions as you can. (Yuyujiteki implies living in unsurpassed comfort for the rest of your days, an admirable goal if there ever was one.)
Japan Times
JAPAN / AFRICA LIFELINE
May 27, 2008

Investors looking beyond raw materials to consumers

Japan and its trading houses have scrambled in recent years to court resource-rich African countries as competition has intensified with Europe and China to secure natural resources and raw materials prices have surged with the demand of rapidly growing emerging economies.
BUSINESS
May 27, 2008

Daiwa to sell Shariah-compliant fund

SINGAPORE (Kyodo) Singapore's stock and derivatives exchange has teamed up with the Daiwa securities house to offer an investment fund based on Japan's top 100 companies whose activities comply with Islamic laws, the two sides announced Monday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WORDS TO LIVE BY
May 27, 2008

Osamu Miyawaki

Osamu Miyawaki 80, is the founder of Kaiyodo, a world-famous maker of collectable figures and tiny statues that are the epitome of Japanese monozukuri ("making things," signifying superb manufacturing). Kaiyodo's super-deformed characters, many from manga and anime, are easily recognizable for their...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 27, 2008

Arbitrary rulings equal bad PR

Getting to know Japan is hard work: a complicated language, cultural esoterica, mixed messages about prudent paths to take. People who find their way around and assimilate deserve kudos and respect.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
May 27, 2008

Is it easy for foreigners to integrate into Japanese society?

T. Mutoh Dentist, 49 I think it's easy; there's not much prejudice here. When you consider some places, where people of certain backgrounds won't even eat dinner together, Japan is almost like heaven, right?
JAPAN
May 27, 2008

Nuke flattop fight goes to high court

People seeking to block a nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier from being permanently based in Japan took their lawsuit to a high court Monday.
JAPAN / G8 SUMMIT 2008
May 27, 2008

Kobe meet fails to set 2020 goals

KOBE — Environment ministers from the Group of Eight industrialized nations ended a three-day meeting in Kobe on Monday united on the need for a long-term goal of at least halving greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
EDITORIALS
May 27, 2008

Sustainable rural municipalities

An internal affairs study panel has called for the creation of "autonomous permanent settlement areas" around core cities in the countryside. The idea, submitted in a report to internal affairs minister Hiroya Masuda, is aimed at stemming population outflows from rural areas.
EDITORIALS
May 27, 2008

Common sense on eating

The recently issued fiscal 2007 government white paper on agriculture conveys a strong sense of crisis over Japan's food supply, stating that "unprecedented changes are taking place." The government must take measures to increase domestic food production and stabilize food imports, and consumers should...
BUSINESS
May 27, 2008

MMC to cut workers in U.S. as sales drop

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. will eliminate 105 factory jobs by August at a U.S. plant as it cuts production on slowing sales there.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 27, 2008

Treasury exec: Calm returning

A U.S. Treasury official said Monday in Tokyo the global credit crunch is gradually easing following efforts by the Federal Reserve and other central banks.

Longform

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