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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023

Wagyu goes high tech to meet surging demand

Farmers say overseas wagyu fans help make up for weak domestic demand, particularly in premium cuts such as sirloin.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 16, 2023

In China, no easy way to get Pfizer's COVID drug Paxlovid

Beijing has acknowledged that supplies are still insufficient to meet demand, even as millions of courses of the treatment were shipped to the country recently.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2023

Japan marks three years since first COVID case

With experts saying that the mortality rate for omicron is lower than that of seasonal influenza, the government is currently discussing reviewing the classification of COVID-19.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Jan 16, 2023

Si-woo Kim rallies to win Sony Open

The key moment came at the par-3 17th, where Kim's tee shot missed the green. He chipped in from about 28 feet away for a birdie that proved pivotal.
Japan Times
TENNIS
Jan 16, 2023

Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk won't shake hands with Russian players at Australian Open

Russian and Belarusian players are allowed to play at Melbourne Park this year without their flag or country displayed.
Japan Times
Rugby
Jan 16, 2023

Eddie Jones appointed Wallabies coach in 'major coup' after Dave Rennie dumped

It will be the veteran's second stint in charge after his 2001-05 spell during which he took the Wallabies to the 2003 World Cup final, where they lost to England.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023

Japanese CEOs facing inflation are talking more about merit-based pay

On one hand, such talk can be seen as a sign of corporate Japan casting aside the remains of a compensation system based on across-the-board rewards and seniority.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023

Japan's sharp wholesale price rise heaps pressure on BOJ's ultraeasy policy

While global commodity prices slipped, companies continued to pass on past increases in raw material costs for goods such as auto parts and electricity equipment.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2023

India-Japan defense ties enter new phase with first joint fighter drills

The ASDF said that the purpose of the exercises is to “promote mutual understanding, strengthen defense cooperation between the air forces” and enhance the ASDF's tactical skills.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jan 16, 2023

Japan looks beyond U.S. alliance for help to deter China military

Yet Japan's deepening unease about the dangers in its neighborhood has prompted a fresh push to build a bulwark of other partnerships.
Paul Kraft
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / The Big Questions
Apr 29, 2024

JapanIQ consultancy eases entry to tough market

Kraft began his career at The Schwan Food Company, then moved to C.H. Robinson Worldwide before starting his consulting firm, JapanIQ, in 2023
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference as part of the EU-Japan Summit at the European Union Building in Brussels on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 15, 2023

My Number, Fukushima concerns push Kishida Cabinet support rate down

The support rating dropped to 34.3% from 40.8% in the previous poll in mid-June, while the disapproval rating increased to 48.6% from 41.6%.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi pose for a photo during their meeting in Jakarta on Friday.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

U.S., Japan and South Korea condemn North Korean missile launch

The condemnation came after North Korea fired a powerful long-range missile that flew for a record 74 minutes to an altitude of 6,000 kilometers.
Rapidus' semiconductor foundry construction site in Chitose, Hokkaido, in December
BUSINESS
May 19, 2024

Government to consider more aid to Rapidus, industry minister says

Rapidus plans to start operating a prototype production line at the Chitose plant in April 2025 and launch mass production in 2027.
Tourists and locals stroll along Tokyo's Ginza shopping district where some roads are closed off for pedestrians due to the national holiday on April 29.
JAPAN
May 15, 2024

Japan visitors exceed 3 million for second straight month, tourism agency says

While the surge in arrivals is good news for the economy, it has caused some friction with locals.
Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi waits ahead of a high-level meeting with Chinese Communist Party officials at Beijing's Great Hall of the People in December 2017.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

Japan ruling bloc lawmakers facing hurdles to China visit plans

Trips to China by Komeito leader and senior LDP official both put on ice over Chinese anger at planned release of treated Fukushima water.
Visitors can make their own instant noodles at the Cup Noodles Museum in Yokohama.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 16, 2024

‘Mystery meat’ in cup noodles sells out in Japan as a solo product

For Nissin Food Products, tapping into new trends is a way to respond to consumers in a market that now offers a wide range of choices.
Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi meets with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Friday in Jakarta.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2023

Japan calls on China to approach Fukushima water release in 'scientific manner'

The issue of the water release took up a substantive amount of the hourlong talks between the nations' top diplomats, but the two did not come to a clear agreement on the matter.
Support for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet dropped to 30.8% in July, a survey shows.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 13, 2023

Poll shows Kishida Cabinet approval down to 30.8%

The slide in support may have reflected the string of problems related to My Number personal identification cards.
South Korea, with the world’s lowest total fertility rate, is is pondering a radical solution to fix the probelm — offering a baby bonus that is about twice the nation’s annual per-capita income.
COMMENTARY / World
May 16, 2024

Could a $70,000 baby bonus solve South Korea's fertility crisis?

Unfortunately, it’s impossible to say how much impact the South Korean baby subsidies would have, as there is no precedent.
A man stands atop a float holding a portable shrine at this year’s Sanja Festival in Tokyo.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 20, 2023

Why 2023 will be a deciding year for Japan’s iconic summer festivals

As the population gets older do we risk losing the summer festivals that make Japan unique?
U.S. President Joe Biden signs orders that increase tariffs on China during an event at the White House on Tuesday. The escalating trade tensions risk slowing the transition to green technologies by boosting production costs.
EDITORIALS
May 17, 2024

Looming U.S.-China 'trade war' bodes ill for green tech

China has denounced the new U.S. tariffs as bullying and warned of potential retaliation, arguing that they could harm global green economic transition efforts.
Some economists hope the labor ministry panel will make an annual average minimum wage proposal of above ¥1,000 this week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 23, 2023

The average minimum wage may top ¥1,000 this year. But is that enough?

Aside from the symbolic hurdle, a more substantial issue remains: Will momentum for wage hikes from this spring continue or will it be short-lived?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
SUMO
May 15, 2024

Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?

It would be premature to dismiss Onosato’s win as the product of circumstance, or downplay its significance.
Asia's best bartenders congregated in Hong Kong for the unveiling of the 2023 list of the continents top watering holes.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 21, 2023

Tokyo’s Ben Fiddich inches toward top of Asia’s 50 Best Bars

A total of 14 bars in Japan cracked the top 100 of this year’s continent-wide rankings.
Lawmakers from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the Democratic Party for the People and Yushi no Kai jointly submit a bill to revise the political funds control law to the Lower House on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 20, 2024

Opposition parties submit bill to revise political funds law

The groups have positioned the legislation as a counterproposal to the ruling LDP's bill submitted Friday.
Elon Musk said he was looking to change Twitter's logo, tweeting: "And soon we shall bid adieu to the twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds."
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 24, 2023

Elon Musk says Twitter to change logo and bid adieu to 'all the birds'

In a tweet Sunday, the social media platform's billionaire owner added: "If a good enough X logo is posted tonight, we'll make go live worldwide tomorrow."
New series "Shogun" focuses on power struggles during Japan's samurai era, with warlord Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) finding himself in danger of being bested — and perhaps beheaded — by rival Lord Ishido and his allies.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Mar 9, 2024

New ‘Shogun’ series is a cut above the original

From the 1980 original to ‘Last Samurai’ to now, Hollywood is getting better at depicting Japan.
Japan Times contributor Laura Pollacco (front right) was offered the role of one of her all-time favorite heroines, Elizabeth “Lizzie” Bennet, in the Tokyo International Players’ production of “Pride and Prejudice.”
CULTURE / Stage
May 18, 2024

Local theater in Japan is more than a hobby — it’s a community

For contributor Laura Pollacco, companies such as Tokyo International Players and Sheepdog Theatre offer a home away from home.
Employees of a fishing net manufacturer, including Ainu Indigenous people, work at a facility in Urahoro, Hokkaido, in June.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET
Jul 23, 2023

In Hokkaido, an Ainu group's lawsuit and climate change converge on salmon fishing

The Raporo Ainu Nation in Hokkaido is fighting for its Indigenous rights to fish for salmon. But warming waters are raising questions about future fish stocks.

Longform

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How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan