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JAPAN
May 25, 2004

Banking giants log black ink as stocks rise, bad loans fall

All but one of the nation's four major banking groups returned to the black in fiscal 2003, according to their financial reports released Monday.
JAPAN
May 25, 2004

Wrangling over new Kobe airport rumbles on

OSAKA -- Tension over the future of airports in the Kansai region boiled over recently, with politicians and business leaders in Kobe and Osaka engaging in public skirmishes with the central government and with each other.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 25, 2004

The mane attraction

In 1979, Japan was in the Dark Ages. Dark that is, in terms of hair. No one dyed their hair any other color but black and when they reached for lighter tints, were considered a bit on the bizarre side.
JAPAN / POLITICS IN FOCUS
May 25, 2004

LDP factions commanding less loyalty

The Liberal Democratic Party's largest faction, led by former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, held its annual fundraising party April 21 at a Tokyo hotel and generated the majority of its annual revenues -- all in one night.
EDITORIALS
May 24, 2004

A qualified success for Mr. Koizumi

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has completed his second trip to Pyongyang. Unlike with his first visit, there were no surprises this time. He returned home with the families of four abductees, a promise to arrange a reunion between a fifth abductee and her three family members in Beijing, and pledges...
BASEBALL / MLB
May 24, 2004

Tigers claw back

OSAKA -- At Koshien Stadium, Norihiro Akahoshi connected for a "sayonara" triple off Junichi Kawahara with two out and runners on the corners in the 10th inning to lift the Hanshin Tigers over the Yomiuri Giants 5-4 after Makoto Imaoka hit a game-tying double in the ninth to force an extra inning.
MORE SPORTS
May 24, 2004

MJ opens Tokyo's 'Jordan Court'

NBA great Michael Jordan now has a basketball court named after him in the center of Tokyo.
MORE SPORTS
May 24, 2004

Daiwa el Cielo wins Oaks in big upset

The 65th running of the filly classic Oaks was the stage for a huge upset Sunday as Daiwa el Cielo handed the overwhelming favorite Dance in the Mood her first loss.
JAPAN
May 24, 2004

Jenkins wanted a guarantee from U.S.

Charles Robert Jenkins, the alleged U.S. Army deserter and husband of a repatriated abductee, told Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi he wants a clear guarantee from the United States that he won't be court-martialed if he comes to Japan, government sources said Sunday.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 24, 2004

Matsui's HR lifts Mets over Rockies

NEW YORK -- Kazuo Matsui hit a leadoff homer in the first inning to jump-start his team's offense as the New York Mets went on to beat the Colorado Rockies 5-4 on Saturday.
SUMO
May 24, 2004

Asashoryu nails Emperor's Cup

Grand champion Asashoryu overpowered Hokutoriki in a playoff Sunday to win his second bout of the day and capture his third straight Emperor's Cup on the final day of the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
May 24, 2004

Making the shift from 'defensive' to 'offensive' restructuring

Most of the major Japanese corporations have released their earnings results for the latest business year ended in March. Many of them reported brisk earnings, including Toyota Motor Corp., whose net profit topped 1 trillion yen for the first time. According to the Bank of Japan's "tankan" survey and...
JAPAN
May 24, 2004

Jenkins wanted a guarantee from U.S.

Charles Robert Jenkins, the alleged U.S. Army deserter and husband of a repatriated abductee, told Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi he wants a clear guarantee from the United States that he won't be court-martialed if he comes to Japan, government sources said Sunday.
JAPAN
May 24, 2004

Political leaders weigh in on value of Koizumi's visit to North Korea

Political leaders continued debating Sunday the outcome of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, with an opposition leader denouncing it as a "big failure."
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 24, 2004

Hasuikes bring their children home

Kaoru and Yukiko Hasuike, two of the five abductees repatriated from North Korea in 2002, arrived back in their hometown in Niigata Prefecture on Sunday along with their son and daughter with whom they were reunited the night before for the first time in 19 months.
COMMENTARY / World
May 24, 2004

On the move after decades of pacifism

A quiet pride is evinced in the dispatch of Japan's Self-Defense Forces troops for peacekeeping in Iraq even though the polls say a bare majority opposes the deployment. Says a business executive: "That's their profession; that's what they've been trained for."
COMMENTARY / World
May 24, 2004

People of Myanmar need Asia's support to hasten their passage to democracy

BANGKOK -- It was ridiculous to hear Myanmar's prime minister, Gen. Khin Nyunt, call on the literati to collaborate with the government in building a military-dominated nation.
COMMENTARY
May 24, 2004

Blowing smoke on tobacco

The government has begun belated efforts to restrict smoking in Japan, which has long been a smokers' haven. In May 2003, the government enacted the Health Promotion Law to reduce exposure to passive smoking. In March it signed the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control --...
EDITORIALS
May 23, 2004

Flight of memory

Almost 60 years after the end of the Pacific War, a very unusual meeting took place in San Diego last Tuesday, when veteran American and Japanese fighter pilots gathered for a special ceremony aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway, soon to become a floating museum. It was an occasion designed for giving...
SUMO
May 23, 2004

Hokutoriki closes in on title

Hokutoriki took a giant step closer to claiming his first Emperor's Cup on Saturday with a one-sided victory over Takekaze at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Tokyo's Ryogoku Kokugikan Arena.

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