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BUSINESS
Jul 4, 2006

First-half auto sales finally lose grip on 2 million

Domestic sales of new motor vehicles excluding minivehicles from January to June totaled 1.99 million units, marking the first time in 23 years that first-half sales have failed to break 2 million, an industry body said Monday.
SPORTS / MULLY'S MISSIVES
Jul 4, 2006

Overheard somewhere in Germany

HAMBURG, Germany -- Rumor, gossip and half-truths fly around the stadium media centers where the journalists at the World Cup do their work. Here's some of the juiciest tittle-tattle regarding players and coaches I've heard in the past couple of weeks:
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 3, 2006

England players seeing red after Rooney slapped with card

GELSENKIRCHEN, Germany -- Owen Hargreaves blamed Argentine referee Horacio Elizondo for ruining England's chances against Portugal on Saturday by unjustly sending off Wayne Rooney.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2006

TV sky diver lands at royal home

A comedian who was sky diving as part of a television quiz program and his instructor were blown off course by strong winds Sunday afternoon and landed within the Akasaka Goyochi residential quarters of Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako in Minato Ward, police said.
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 3, 2006

Curse of the penalty shootout sends England packing

GELSENKIRCHEN, England -- The curse of the penalty shootout struck again for the English.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2006

Hashimoto brought a rare passion to politics during his long career

Former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, who died Saturday at age 68, was a passionate, tough politician with a great deal of policy expertise.
COMMENTARY
Jul 3, 2006

Will India-China border talks ever end?

NEW DELHI -- For 25 years, India has been seeking to settle by negotiation with China the disputed Indo-Tibetan frontier. Yet, not only have the negotiations yielded no concrete progress on a settlement, but they also have failed so far to remove even the ambiguities plaguing the long line of control....
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2006

Yamazaki Baking to acquire over 60% stake in Tohato

Yamazaki Baking Co. plans to acquire a stake of more than 60 percent in struggling confectionary maker Tohato Inc., sources said Sunday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 3, 2006

A new door opens with Ireland

A n announcement at the Foreign Ministry last week that Japan and Ireland have agreed to let their young people work part-time in each other's countries for up to a year was a reminder of how much benefit flows from the little-mentioned but widely utilized "working holiday program."
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2006

Ignoring warning, Chinese ship operates near Senkakus

A Chinese maritime survey ship was spotted early Sunday near the Senkakus, a group of Japan-controlled islets claimed by China, and ignored a warning by a patrol boat against conducting survey activities, the Japan Coast Guard said.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2006

Flag change eyed to protect ships

The government is planning to allow foreign-registered oil tankers and other energy transporter ships operated by Japanese firms to fly the Japanese flag as a way to protect them from pirates, a transport ministry official said Sunday.
COMMENTARY
Jul 3, 2006

A public-relations disaster

LONDON -- Politicians and officials are sometimes their countries' worst enemies. Some politicians and officials behave ineptly and tactlessly in ways that damage the national interests of their country.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Jul 3, 2006

Inflation, Japanese monetary policy and global imbalances

Here are three questions to ponder over in the summer season: Is inflation back? When will Japanese interest rates start rising? Do global imbalances matter?
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2006

European women caught in leisure trap

PRAGUE -- Black Friday in the United States traditionally is the day after Thanksgiving that signals the start of the holiday season sale. At daybreak, people line up before department stores to get the special "early bird" bargains.
COMMENTARY
Jul 3, 2006

Regaining the spirit to build

I had thought that Japan's Internet mogul Takafumi Horie, arrested Jan. 23 by public prosecutors for allegedly violating the securities and exchange law, was likely to be the last person to "pay the price" for the excesses associated with the nation's bubble economy from 1987 to 1990.
EDITORIALS
Jul 3, 2006

For Tokyo, a drop in the rankings

How is a city supposed to feel when it has just learned it is no longer the world's most expensive in which to live? Peeved, since there's a certain cachet attached to being No. 1 anything? Relieved, since a reputation for overpricing isn't the kind of cachet any self-respecting city actually needs?...
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 2, 2006

Toni fires Italy into semis

HAMBURG, Germany -- Things are falling into place for the Italians, and it couldn't come at a better time.
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 2, 2006

Defense powers Italy in quarters

HAMBURG, Germany -- Marcelo Lippi lavished praise on his "first class" defense after the Italians' 3-0 victory over Ukraine gave them their fourth clean sheet in five matches.
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 2, 2006

Kawabuchi bashed by JEF officials

The president of the Japan Football Association has come under fire over his handling of the search for a new coach for Japan's national team.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji