Search - 2002

 
 
BUSINESS
Nov 24, 2001

Kokusai Securities plans merger

Kokusai Securities Co. plans to merge with two other medium-size brokerages affiliated with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi in 2002 to form Japan's fourth-largest brokerage, sources close to the deal said Friday.
BUSINESS
Nov 24, 2001

NTT seeking to boost regional earnings

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. will try to boost earnings at its two regional carriers by 265 billion yen on a pretax basis next business year, partly through transfers of employees to lower-paid subsidiaries, NTT sources said Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2001

White paper draft suggests tax hike

A soon-to-be-released government white paper says raising the 5 percent consumption tax to 8 percent and cutting social security benefits for each generation by 20 percent beginning in 2005 should be considered as ways to alleviate the financial burden on future generations, according to the final draft....
BUSINESS
Nov 14, 2001

Shiokawa confident on cutting subsidies to public firms

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday he was confident the government will fulfill its pledge to slash subsidies for special government-affiliated corporations by 1 trillion yen in the fiscal 2002 budget.
JAPAN
Nov 13, 2001

State, doctors, patients wrangle over health bill

As Japan's population ages at an unprecedented pace and the economy fails to generate high growth, the question of who should shoulder the nation's rising health costs is becoming a bone of contention.
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2001

Asahi Mutual may sell off unit to Tokio

Asahi Mutual Life Insurance Co. is in final talks with Tokio Marine & Fire Insurance Co. to sell off its sales division to the nonlife insurer's wholly owned subsidiary, Tokio Marine Life Insurance Co., sources close to the talks said Saturday.
SOCCER / World cup
Nov 9, 2001

FIFA generally satisfied with Japan's venues

Having completed their check of all the 10 Japanese venues for the 2002 World Cup, the FIFA inspection team on Thursday expressed their overall satisfaction with the preparations in Japan but also commented on the poor condition of the pitch at Saitama Stadium and the problems with traffic control around...
BUSINESS
Nov 7, 2001

0.9% contraction is expected

The government looks set to revise downward its economic forecast for fiscal 2001 to negative growth of around minus 0.9 percent from its original projection of 1.7 percent growth, government sources said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Nov 3, 2001

Economy deteriorating, government confirms

Economic and fiscal policy minister Heizo Takenaka said Friday that the economy is deteriorating further, signaling that the government plans to downgrade its assessment of the state of the economy in a report later this month.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 3, 2001

Delegates shape Kyoto Protocol's future

Conventional wisdom has it that the devil is in the details. It is exactly devilish details that are waiting for climate-change negotiators trying to put the finishing touches on the Kyoto climate accord at negotiations in Marrakesh, Morocco that will run until Nov. 9.
BUSINESS / ON THE FRONT LINE
Oct 31, 2001

Dollar could ride out rash of negative data

Although hopes for an early U.S. economic recovery are receding, the dollar seems likely to hold firm against the yen for the time being.
BUSINESS
Oct 31, 2001

Nissan, Renault tighten alliance

Nissan Motor Co. and Renault S.A. announced Tuesday they will strengthen their partnership by increasing Nissan's stake in the French automaker to 15 percent. Likewise, Renault's stake in Nissan will increase from the current 36.8 percent to 44.4 percent.
JAPAN
Oct 22, 2001

Full text of APEC leaders' declaration in Shanghai

Following is the full text of the declaration adopted Sunday by leaders of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum after their two-day summit in Shanghai.
BUSINESS
Oct 13, 2001

Chinese tariffs to cost Japan's car firms 420 billion yen

Carmakers are likely to miss out on 420 billion yen in earnings in 2002 if China retains its retaliatory import tariffs on Japanese vehicles, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association Inc. said Friday.
JAPAN
Oct 12, 2001

Japan ready to seek ratification of Kyoto Protocol

After months of wavering and foot-dragging, Japan will seek ratification of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on curbing global warming during a 150-day ordinary Diet session that is to open in January, government sources said Thursday.
JAPAN
Oct 11, 2001

Interministerial team to target cyberterrorism

Japan will set up an interministerial team to prevent cyberterrorism and protect its planned "cybergovernment" from attack, government officials said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Oct 1, 2001

Foreign sand spreading acid: experts

A yellow sand that blows into Japan from deserts in China and Mongolia each spring is carrying massive volumes of acid gases that may cause long-term soil depletion, researchers at the National Institute for Environmental Studies in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, said Sunday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 24, 2001

Pictograms counted on to bridge language gaps

As the country prepares to host the 2002 Soccer World Cup, a growing number of local authorities and transportation operators are employing visually oriented communication means called pictograms on streets and at public facilities.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2001

Kawasaki Heavy, IHI torpedo tieup

Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co. and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. have called off their plan to integrate shipbuilding operations, the two companies announced Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Sep 13, 2001

Nexion gets Winter Games contract

Tokyo-based Nexion, a subsidiary of trading company Marubeni Corp., said Wednesday it had received an order to provide trans-Pacific video transmission services for high-definition digital broadcasts of the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics.
JAPAN
Sep 7, 2001

Top U.N. official criticizes Japan's plan to cut back on ODA

Japan's plan to cut back on official development assistance will worsen the nation's economic prospects by shrinking the volume of trade it enjoys with the rest of the world, a high-ranking official of the United Nations Development Program said.
BUSINESS
Sep 1, 2001

Daiei to triple intake of graduates

Daiei Inc. plans to more than triple the number of graduating students it will hire to 400 in 2002, company officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 30, 2001

Defense Agency seeks 5 trillion yen budget

The Defense Agency will request 5.0278 trillion yen from the 2002 general account budget, an increase of 1.8 percent from this year's initial budget, according to a plan submitted to the Liberal Democratic Party's defense panel Wednesday.
JAPAN
Aug 30, 2001

Continued UNICEF funding sought

Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, Japan's goodwill ambassador to the U.N. Children's Fund, on Wednesday urged Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi not to cut Tokyo's contributions to the organization in the fiscal 2002 state budget.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
Aug 29, 2001

A bearded Gore and the shrinking surplus

WASHINGTON -- At long last, Al Gore has reappeared! He is pursuing the political training school program that he had floated in a more full-blown way last spring. Al, sporting a full beard, is working with his fellow Tennessee loser, Republican presidential wannabe Lamar Alexander, training young people...
JAPAN
Aug 29, 2001

Fukuda pays up over staff fraud scandal

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda said Tuesday he has returned wages he received from October to June in response to the public outcry over a Foreign Ministry fraud scandal involving the Cabinet Secretariat's secret funds.
JAPAN
Aug 29, 2001

Robot project seeks to give industry boost

The government has announced plans to launch a project to foster the robot industry, viewed as a possible dynamo for economic growth, with subsidies and related legislative measures in fiscal 2002.
JAPAN
Aug 28, 2001

State to finance NGOs' participation in conflict-prevention activities abroad

In a bid to raise its low profile in international peacekeeping efforts, Japan is embarking on a significant financial-assistance program for domestic nongovernmental organizations participating in overseas conflict-prevention activities.
JAPAN
Aug 27, 2001

LDP execs begin debate over size of extra budget

Senior members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Sunday butted heads over the size of a supplementary budget it is urging Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to compile to support Japan's sagging economy.

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