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BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Steel makers want imports monitored

The Japan Iron and Steel Federation has asked the government to monitor steel imports in the wake of the U.S. decision to impose hefty tariffs on them, federation officials said Thursday.
BUSINESS / ON THE FRONT LINE
Mar 15, 2002

Bull run may wane if stock-propping fails

A buying frenzy sent Tokyo share prices forging ahead in recent weeks, lifting the key Nikkei average back above the 11,000 level.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Anyone can be a manager at Ito-Yokado

In a radical move for a Japanese company, Ito-Yokado Co. has scrapped its traditional promotions track and introduced an open practice that allows all employees, including part-timers, to apply for management posts, company officials said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Corporate failures rise record 18.2%

Corporate failures rose 18.2 percent in February from a year earlier to 1,712 cases, a postwar record for the month, Teikoku Databank Ltd. said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Hitachi proposes one-year wage reduction of 5%

Hitachi Ltd. has proposed to its labor union that workers take a 5 percent wage cut for one year beginning April 1, company sources said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

New condos put on sale in Tokyo rose 16% in February

The number of new condominiums put on sale in the Tokyo metropolitan area logged a year-on-year rise of 16 percent in February, marking the first such increase in five months, the Real Estate Economic Institute said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Government considering tax cuts for fiscal 2002

The government may cut taxes in fiscal 2002, which starts April 1, instead of waiting until fiscal 2003 if the economy shows signs of worsening, officials said.
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Mar 15, 2002

Harvest mouse

* Japanese name: Kayanezumi * Scientific name: Micromys minutus * Description: This is Japan's smallest mouse, growing 5-8 cm long and weighing only 5 grams. Harvest mice have long, prehensile tails which they use for gripping the stems of grass when climbing. They have stubby noses and hairy ears;...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Mar 15, 2002

There ain't no mountains high enough

During Golden Week of 1999, 26-year-old Tom Fearnehough and six friends skied down Mount Fuji. A Japanese man had attempted the same feat the year before and plummeted 2,000 meters to his death. Fearnehough and his friends, however, were better prepared.
LIFE / Language / FOR KIDS
Mar 15, 2002

Join the global St. Patrick's Day party

How would you like to spend Sunday afternoon dancing jigs to Irish pipes? Or marching with a group of baton-twirling cheerleaders? Or making friends with leprechauns?
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2002

Tough talk preludes steel meeting

Japan may retaliate against proposed U.S. curbs on steel imports if bilateral talks fail to resolve the issue, a senior trade bureaucrat said Thursday. Katsusada Hirose, vice minister for economy, trade and industry, made the comments ahead of bilateral negotiations scheduled to begin Thursday in Washington....
EDITORIALS
Mar 14, 2002

Death of a warmonger

The death of Mr. Jonas Savimbi offers Angola its first real chance for peace in a decade. War has been a constant feature of Angola's history; Mr. Savimbi has been a key antagonist in the fighting. His death deprives UNITA, the rebel group he commanded since 1966, of its chief source of inspiration and...
SOCCER / World cup
Mar 14, 2002

Troussier taps Alex for Japan squad

Two previously uncapped players -- Shimizu S-Pulse midfielder Alessandro "Alex" Santos and Kashima Antlers' Mitsuo Ogasawara -- have been called up for Japan's upcoming two friendlies, against Ukraine next Thursday in Osaka and Poland away on March 27, Japan coach Philippe Troussier announced Wednesday...
SUMO
Mar 14, 2002

Tochiazuma tossed

OSAKA -- Grand champion hopeful Tochiazuma could not handle No. 2 maegashira Kotonowaka on Wednesday and was thrown for an upset loss four days into the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Sasebo Heavy cuts profit outlook

Sasebo Heavy Industries Co. said Wednesday it has lowered its unconsolidated net profit forecast for the current business year through March 31 because it has been forced to return government money obtained by fraud.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Panel hopes to spur reform with deregulation zones

A government advisory panel on deregulation has proposed creating special deregulation zones and compiling an interim report as early as June.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2002

Premier raises peace hopes in Sri Lanka

There is now hope, however faint, of peace in Sri Lanka after almost two decades of bloody ethnic conflict between the majority Buddhist Sinhalas and the minority Tamils, who are fighting for a separate homeland in the northern and eastern parts of the small island.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 14, 2002

Noam Chomsky: America is a leading terrorist state

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts -- Noam Chomsky, a linguistics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is world-famous as the originator of the "Transformational Grammar" theory, a framework of principles accounting for all language-specific rules.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Toshiba, Mitsubishi in new 3G deal

Toshiba Corp. and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. announced Wednesday they will jointly develop a third generation dual-mode mobile phone platform that will allow users of rival technology to use their handsets around the world.
COMMENTARY
Mar 14, 2002

A demand-starved economy

What do you do if you are Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and the "structural reform" policies you have been advocating with tight lips and a steely gaze are now hit by the deflation you have caused? Simple. You do an about-face and tell the world with tight lips and a steely gaze that you are now absolutely...
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Japan firms open to hackers: group

About 20 percent of Internet servers at Japanese companies use deficient software that leaves them vulnerable to attacks by hackers, a Tokyo-based nonprofit organization said Wednesday.
BUSINESS / ON THE FRONT LINE
Mar 14, 2002

Rally has put 12,000 in Nikkei's cross hairs

During the recent rally on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the 225-issue Nikkei average broke the 11,000 resistance line.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Air France eyes '05 Nagoya return

The general manager of the Japanese office of Air France said Wednesday that the airline may resume its flights from Nagoya in 2005, the year in which a new international airport is scheduled to open and a world exposition will be held in Aichi Prefecture.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Firms stand hard against pay-scale hikes

Most companies in the nation's four major industrial sectors on Wednesday offered no pay-scale increases beyond standard yearly hikes in spring wage talks with their labor unions, highlighting the severity of the economic slump.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

S&P downplays drug price cuts

Standard & Poor's Corp. said Wednesday that the Japanese government's planned cuts in drug reimbursement prices will have a limited impact on its ratings for seven Japanese pharmaceuticals.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Kansai businesses on China mission

OSAKA -- Business groups in the Kansai region said Wednesday they will send a mission to China on Sunday to discuss economic changes with government leaders.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

METI reviews R&D, investment incentives

A trade ministry study panel on Wednesday began considering revisions to tax incentives on corporate research and development and capital investment.
BUSINESS
Mar 14, 2002

Furukawa Electric to see red for '01

Furukawa Electric Co. said Wednesday it expects to fall into the red in fiscal 2001 as the slump in information technology businesses in North America affected sales of the company's fiber-optic products.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDENS FOR ALL
Mar 14, 2002

Garden jewels in the Tofukuji Temple crown

Tofukuji Temple is one of Kyoto's most magnificent jewels and is one of the city's 17 UNESCO-designated World Heritage sites.

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