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A customer buys a ticket for ramen at a vending machine at Goumen Maruko ramen shop in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 8, 2024

Japan runs on vending machines. It’s about to break millions of them.

New yen notes set to be introduced this summer won't be compatible with many machines that businesses like ramen shops rely on.
Sharp's LCD production site in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, in 2009
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 9, 2024

Sharp's LCD plant in Osaka set to be transformed into massive AI data center

The new large-scale facility will support SoftBank’s generative AI and other AI-related businesses.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks to journalists following an election campaign event at Melksham Town F.C. on Friday. Sunak apologized after skipping events to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day in France to return early to the U.K.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 8, 2024

The moment the Tories have long dreaded is finally upon them

With Labour so far ahead in the polls, few Tories expect to stay in power after the election.
People wait for the main act to begin at Summer Sonic, which holds simultaneous music festivals for those in Tokyo and Osaka.
CULTURE / Music / Longform
Jun 9, 2024

Can Japan's summer music festivals adapt to a post-pandemic reality?

Soaring temperatures, the cheap yen and a dearth of headline options may require reshaping the outdoor concert formula.
People wait for the start of the Sumidagawa Fireworks Festival in Tokyo last year, marking the return of the event after pandemic-era cancellations.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 9, 2024

Start circling the dates for fireworks season now

When you think of a Japanese summer, inevitably you'll think of fireworks. The displays have been a part of the culture for centuries.
This screenshot taken from Niconico's website says that the video-sharing service is under a large-scale cyber attack, and as a result, it has temporarily suspended its services.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2024

Japan video-sharing site Niconico hit by cyberattack

In addition to Niconico, its parent company Kadokawa's official website and its e-commerce site, ebten, were also affected by possible unauthorized access.
The Asia Peace March is held in observance of Human Rights Day in Tokyo in December 2021. This year, as Japan sits on key U.N. bodies, the government can show leadership in tackling human rights issues in Asia.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 7, 2024

Japan can aid in preventing human rights slide in Asia

As a stable democracy and big development donor, Japan should lead in tackling human rights abuses in countries like China, North Korea and Myanmar, and across Asia.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 10, 2024

Japan’s jammed AGM season limits shareholder engagement, investors say

Almost 60% of companies will hold meetings this month, with 30% hosting on June 27.
A Saudi Aramco logo outside an oil storage tank at the Juaymah tank farm at the firm's Ras Tanura oil refinery and terminal at Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, in October 2018
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 10, 2024

Saudis said to hand about 60% of Aramco offer to foreign investors

The firm's stock sale generated strong demand from the U.S. and Europe, sources said.
Bankruptcies rose especially among restaurant operators amid labor shortages and rising labor costs.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 11, 2024

Japan corporate bankruptcies surge above 1,000 in May

The latest result came as many companies struggle with rising prices, as well as labor shortages mainly in the service sector.
Naoki Okamura, chief executive officer of Astellas Pharma, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Astellas seeks green light for eye drug Izervay in Europe and Japan

The drugmaker is in discussions with Japanese regulators about whether clinical trials for local patients are needed, Chief Executive Naoki Okamura said.
U.S. President Joe Biden
WORLD / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

U.S. to widen sanctions to curb chip sales to Russia’s war machine

Russia is still sourcing chips from third-party countries to use in missiles and other inputs critical to the battlefield.
The Grand Kremlin palace in Moscow
WORLD / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

How a Russian operative worked to shape Moscow’s story in Europe

The operative has contacted at least six European journalists and at times appears to have offered to pay for planted news articles.
A notice put up in front of a near-finished condominium in the city of Kunitachi in Tokyo on Saturday, saying the complex will be demolished
JAPAN
Jun 12, 2024

Near-finished Japan condo blocking Mount Fuji to be razed

The company Sekisui House said in a statement late Tuesday it had "voluntarily decided to discontinue the project."
Police officers patrol on the Trocadero square in front of the Olympic rings displayed on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic games in Paris on June 7.
WORLD
Jun 13, 2024

Paris Olympics crowd scans fuel AI surveillance fears

Campaigners worry AI surveillance could become the new normal.
A BYD Atto 3 electric SUV on the streets of Frankfurt, Germany, on Feb. 21, 2023
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 13, 2024

EU hits Chinese EVs with tariffs, drawing rebuke from Beijing

The move comes less than a month after the U.S. announced plans to quadruple duties for Chinese EVs.
Joey Chestnut (left) and Takeru Kobayashi compete in the Nathan's Famous hot dog eating contest in New York on July 4, 2009.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 13, 2024

Netflix to air 'ultimate' hot dog eating contest

The announcement comes a day after the esoteric world of speed eating contests was rocked by news that Joey Chestnut had been banned from a popular New York event.
Daichi Nomiyama, 30, had posed as a reporter from the Asahi Shimbun since April, conducting interviews with members of various university cheerleading teams.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 13, 2024

Kamakura firefighter arrested for impersonating Asahi Shimbun reporter

The 30-year-old man passed himself off as a reporter for the newspaper to secure interviews with university baseball cheerleaders.
Honda unveiled small electric commercial van N-VAN e: on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

Honda to start selling micro-sized electric vans in October

Honda is determined to pursue EVs despite a slowdown in global demand
A hydrogen storage tank with an under-construction green hydrogen compressor at a liquid fuels facility in Sasolburg, South Africa.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

South Africa’s biggest green-hydrogen project woos Japanese investors

If approved, the plant will use 3,700 megawatts of renewable power generation capacity to split water to produce 1 million tons of hydrogen a year.
Harmony Korine (center-left, in orange) DJs a set with his EDGLRD crew at a Tokyo event promoting his film, “Aggro Dr1ft,” at WWW X on June 6.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 14, 2024

Harmony Korine wants us to dream movies, and he’s working on a ‘pill’ for that

Korine and his collaborators came to Tokyo to screen his new film "Aggro Dr1ft," his first visit to Japan in 17 years.
Renho speaks to reporters on Wednesday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024

Renho, the liberal politician who might dethrone Tokyo's Koike

Her candidacy in July's gubernatorial race presents voters in the capital with two choices: Change or stability.
Mrs. Green Apple has posted an apology on its official website after backlash over a music video that portrayed explorer Christopher Columbus in a charming way.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jun 13, 2024

J-pop act Mrs. Green Apple spikes ‘Columbus’ video after viewer backlash

A video in which band members portray Italian explorer Christopher Columbus "teaching" ape-like beings about culture? Japanese viewers are not on board with this one.
U.S President Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Fasano, Italy, on Thursday
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 14, 2024

G7 agrees on $50 billion loan to support Ukraine with Russian assets

The loan to the war-torn country will be repaid using interest generated by $300 billion worth of immobilized Russian funds, G7 leaders said.
Isamitsu Knives makes their blades in large batches to optimize the use of both the resources at its disposal and its small team of three smiths.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 16, 2024

‘A good knife is not only about the steel’

Founded in 2022, the knife-making process at Isamitsu Knives differs from industrial manufacturers in small but significant ways.
Boeing has been under scrutiny from regulators and customers since a Jan. 5 incident in which a smaller 737 MAX operated by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing after a fuselage panel blew out mid-flight.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2024

Boeing investigates quality problem on undelivered 787s, sources say

It involves incorrect "torquing" or tightening of more than 900 fasteners per plane, but there is no immediate concern about flight safety.
The Niigata Prefectural Government holds a seminar in January 2021 for parents of students seeking jobs.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 14, 2024

Japan in urgent need of personnel for local public service

A shortage of civil servants to support the lives of local residents is raising serious concerns.
Opal Lee, the "Grandmother of Juneteenth," visited Japan last month shortly after receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Joe Biden.
COMMUNITY / Voices / Black Eye
Jun 14, 2024

U.S. civil rights icon Opal Lee brings her Juneteenth walk to Tokyo

Juneteenth, held on the 19th of the month, celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. Opal Lee sees it as more than an American holiday.
The Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission on Friday recommended administrative action against MUFG Bank and two brokerage units of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group for sharing nonpublic information on client companies without their permission.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2024

Watchdog backs penalties over sharing of Mitsubishi UFJ client data

The Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission said that MUFG's banking and securities units had engaged in unauthorized sharing of information.
Kirin's acquisition of Fancl will enable more "flexible and drastic measures” to integrate the two companies and maximize their corporate values, Kirin said in a statement.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2024

Kirin to buy Fancl for ¥220 billion in shift away from beer

The move comes as Japan’s alcohol companies try to rely less on their original products for revenue.

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