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Components of a Huawei Technologies smartphone. Lawmakers in the U.S. are pushing to block Huawei suppliers from buying American chipmaking gear.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 17, 2024

Key lawmakers push to cut off Huawei suppliers from U.S. chip gear

The U.S. and its allies have broadly blocked sales of the most advanced chips and manufacturing gear to China.
An electric stock board at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, operated by Japan Exchange Group, in Tokyo on April 19
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 21, 2024

Asian IPOs set for blockbuster week as ‘animal spirits’ return

Asian markets are seeing a return of "animal spirits," or changes in market behavior often driven by emotions.
The ASML headquarters in Veldhoven, Netherlands, on Thursday. Semiconductor equipment makers such as ASML have unusually long-range views of how their customers are feeling, and at the moment, they’re flashing a caution signal for everything other than artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 21, 2024

ASML shows chasm in chip land: AI winners versus everyone else

The semiconductor equipment makers’ results sparked worries about the health of the chip industry, which is being hurt by weakness in non-AI businesses.
People from Thailand look at used smartphones in Tokyo's Akihabara district in October 2022.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 23, 2024

Japan's secondhand smartphone market booms as households struggle

Sales of used goods in Japan have grown rapidly as households struggle to make ends meet.
A McDonald's Quarter Pounder hamburger. The fast-food chain has pulled the Quarter Pounder from about one-fifth of its U.S. restaurants.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 25, 2024

Fast-food chains hold the onions after McDonald's E. coli outbreak

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said late on Wednesday that fresh onions were the likely source of the E. coli outbreak.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and senior officials and delegates at the National Peoples Congress in Beijing in March
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 4, 2024

China stimulus questions to persist long after meeting this week

It may be months before detailed plans to support consumption come into focus.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs one of five executive orders related to the oil pipeline industry in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Jan. 24, 2017.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 7, 2024

From oil to EVs, here’s how Trump’s victory affects energy

The prospect of a Trump-era pullback from some policies promoting emission-free energy has already helped spark a slide in shares of renewable power firms.
Sanwa Koutsu's Kuroko Taxi service has drivers dressed in traditional stagehand garb communicate with passengers only through gestures and written messages.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 9, 2024

The sound of silence: Japan's no-conversation services

“Constant social interaction can feel like torture for us introverts,” one customer says. "I think it’s a pretty smart business move."
Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito (left) urged Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to resolve the slush funds scandal during their meeting on Saturday at the Prime Minister's Office.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 14, 2024

Upper House LDP members hope to face ethics panel over scandal

LDP lawmakers in the Lower House are generally opposed to such moves.
Lecanemab was developed by drugmakers Eisai of Japan and Biogen of the United States.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 15, 2024

European agency switches to recommending new Alzheimer's drug

The committee judged that the efficacy of lecanemab outweighs the risk for some patients.
Oitomi's decision to send superstar Shohei Ohtani one of the company's traditional ironware tea kettles has paid off with a surge of interest from general consumers.
LIFE / Style & Design
Nov 23, 2024

After Shohei Ohtani bump, Iwate ironware maker sees brighter future

Thanks to the Dodgers superstar, the waitlist for Oitomi’s Miyabi Tetsubin kettle now stretches to more than a year.
A wafer on display at the Semicon China expo in Shanghai on March 20
WORLD / Politics
Nov 28, 2024

U.S. readies China chip curbs that stop short of earlier proposals

American chip equipment makers have warned that tougher measures would bring catastrophic harm to their business.
A business district in Tokyo in 2020
BUSINESS
Nov 28, 2024

Share of female presidents at Japanese firms hits record 8.4%

The proportion of female presidents has been rising slowly but steadily since it stood at 4.5% in 1990, the oldest data available.
A Shiseido at a consumer products exhibition in Haikou, China, in 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 29, 2024

Shiseido profit outlook squeezed by China downturn, president says

Shiseido joins other luxury brands that have been hurt by slowing growth, increased competition and weaker consumer confidence in China.
A sign at the entrance to the Vauxhall van factory in Luton, England, on Nov. 27. Stellantis plans to close the factory, and has made efforts to pin the blame on the government's mandate for more electric vehicle sales.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 2, 2024

The EV transition is leaving the U.K. auto industry behind

The country wants to be a leader in EVs but has lagged others in establishing the necessary plants and battery factories.
Makoto Uchida, President and CEO of Nissan, holds a press briefing at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 in Tokyo on Oct. 25, 2023. Uchida is under presser to deliver a turnaround and to keep his job at the troubled carmaker.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 8, 2024

Nissan boss Uchida races to save the automaker — and his job

Makoto Uchida is under pressure to reverse Nissan’s fortunes after years of turmoil following the 2018 arrest of former chairman Carlos Ghosn.
Tokyo Union Church volunteers prepare food for unhoused individuals. The church helps people regardless of religion, race or sexuality.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Dec 16, 2024

From the stage to the streets, make a difference this holiday season

Discover the joy of giving back through a variety of charitable efforts. Helping others helps you, too.
People's Bank of China Gov. Pan Gongsheng meets with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in Beijing in April.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 23, 2024

What will happen to China’s economy in 2025?

Economic activity in China has been relatively weak since the COVID-19 crisis. This was not unexpected, at least not at first.
Hisamido set up a return box at its bookstore in Machida, Tokyo, to allow its customers to borrow and return books owned by municipal libraries.
JAPAN
Dec 30, 2024

Japanese bookstores collaborate with libraries for survival

A survey found that 493 municipalities had no bookstores as of November 2024.
An undated photo of a poster in a window promoting shows at Lincoln Center by Shen Yun, which in its 2023-2024 season performed more than 800 times on five continents, in New York. Over the past decade, the dance group Shen Yun Performing Arts has made money at a staggering rate in large part by getting followers of the Falun Gong religious movement to work for free and pay its bills.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 31, 2024

How Shen Yun tapped religious fervor to make $266 million

Shen Yun’s success flows in part from its ability to pack venues worldwide — while exploiting young, low-paid performers with little regard for their health or well-being.
A Tesla Cybertruck
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 3, 2025

Tesla annual deliveries fall for first time as incentives fail to drum up demand

CEO Elon Musk had earlier predicted "slight growth" in 2024 deliveries and offered a range of promotions including interest-free financing and free fast-charging to boost sales.
U.S. President Joe Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on Nov. 13. Trump’s presidency is expected to disrupt U.S. energy transition efforts through weakened policies and heightened trade tensions.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2025

Can Biden’s green boom survive Trump’s wrecking ball?

The incoming administration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump promises to undo at least some of the progress made on decarbonization under President Joe Biden.
Seven & I Holdings reported Thursday that its operating profit was ¥128.4 billion during the three months to the end of November, compared with ¥169 billion a year earlier.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 9, 2025

Seven & I profit drops despite recovery in convenience stores

Operating profit was ¥128.4 billion during the three months to the end of November, compared with ¥169 billion a year earlier.
A message welcoming users back and thanking U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on the TikTok app
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2025

A beauty industry hooked on TikTok braces for an uncertain future

Last year, TikTok was one of the top 10 largest beauty e-commerce platforms in the U.S.
Upon the release of Dragon Quest VII in 2000, hundreds of customers lined up outside stores in Tokyo to secure a copy of the new game. With a remake of a 1988 title, the rest of the world is understanding why Japanese gamers love the series so much.
LIFE / Digital
Jan 25, 2025

Japan’s love affair with Dragon Quest spreads worldwide

The remake of a 1988 game serves as the latest chance for the rest of the world to learn why Japan loves Dragon Quest so much.
Hong Kong's commercial real estate sector is going through one of its worst slumps in history.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 27, 2025

Hong Kong’s property distress is catching up with city’s banks

Banks with soured loans and mortgages have been reluctant to sell the underlying real estate assets at a loss — but that is changing.
Honda's electric two-wheeler concept models are on display at it's headquarters in Tokyo. Honda aims to capture half of the world’s motorbike market.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 28, 2025

Honda sets its sights on 50% share of world’s motorcycle market

The company's global motorcycle sales are forecast to reach 20.2 million for the fiscal year ending this March, which would give it a share of about 40%.
Motorcycles on display at the Honda pavilion at the Bangkok International Motor Show in Bangkok in March 2024
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 3, 2025

Honda’s motorcycle business is the gem in a messy Nissan union

Two-wheelers accounted for about 16% of Honda’s sales last fiscal year but an outsized 40% of its operating profit.
Toyota is investing in increased capacity for electric vehicles and has unveiled plans to establish a subsidiary in Shanghai.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 5, 2025

Toyota raises annual profit guidance despite quarterly income drop

The automaker now expects a profit of ¥4.7 trillion ($31 billion) for the fiscal year ending March, up from its previous forecast of ¥4.3 trillion.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and U.S. President Donald Trump. Microsoft and Nvidia are quietly engaging with the Trump administration on policies affecting AI, chip exports and data centers
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 9, 2025

Tech giants Microsoft and Nvidia taking a quieter approach to Trump

Under Biden, the United States curbed the sale of Nvidia chips to China and capped the sales of its AI chips to more than 100 other countries

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