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JAPAN
Dec 20, 2006

Abe's honeymoon Diet session ends with whimper

The first extraordinary Diet session on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's watch ended Tuesday without fanfare, having finished business last week by passing his legislation to revise the education law and to turn the Defense Agency into a ministry.
JAPAN
Dec 20, 2006

LDP will not accept contributions from banks, Abe decides

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday the ruling Liberal Democratic Party will not accept political donations from major banks, whose plans to resume contributions have drawn heavy criticism.
JAPAN
Dec 20, 2006

Osaka chemical plant blast hurts two

An explosion Tuesday at a chemical factory near Osaka injured at least two people, local officials said.
JAPAN
Dec 20, 2006

Osaka chemical plant blast hurts two

An explosion Tuesday at a chemical factory near Osaka injured at least two people, local officials said.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Dec 20, 2006

The swimming dead

The midwinter solstice is here again, and our nights have reached their longest and our days their shortest, driven by our planet's sun-centered rotation and the tipping of our orbiting Earth.
EDITORIALS
Dec 20, 2006

A natural partnership in Asia

Last week's visit to Japan by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is an important step forward in the long-delayed process of creating a durable and forward-looking relationship between two Asian powers. Japan and India are natural partners, whose relationship is based on shared interests, values and...
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2006

BOJ, noting weak data, leaves interest rates alone

The Bank of Japan wrapped up its two-day Policy Board meeting Tuesday by saying the benchmark short-term interest rate will remain unchanged, causing market watchers to look for any clue from Gov. Toshihiko Fukui's remarks to gauge when the next rate hike may occur.
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2006

Honda speeds up engine plant plan, projects record '06 sales

Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it plans to build a new engine plant in Ogawa, Saitama Prefecture, to accelerate efforts to meet rapidly growing demand for fuel-efficient cars.
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2006

Restaurants plan to ask government to ease up on U.S. beef restrictions

The nation's restaurants will urge the government to ease import restrictions on U.S. beef, saying the stringent rules are causing a serious supply crunch, officials said Tuesday.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Dec 20, 2006

Focused Matsui aims to promote squash

When the name of the sport is mentioned, most people would probably say they have heard of it. But they probably don't know how difficult it is to play it in Japan.
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2006

Fed goes after BTMU over lax scrutiny

WASHINGTON (Kyodo) U.S. financial regulators took enforcement action Monday against Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ and some of its U.S. operations for their failure to comply with programs against money-laundering.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight