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Masayoshi Son, chairman and chief executive officer of SoftBank Group, speaks during the SoftBank World event in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 3, 2024

SoftBank’s Son envisions AI running households in the next few years

Masayoshi Son's rosy view of AI's potential often comes with a warning to skeptics that they may be left behind if they do not embrace the technology.
Mobile phone numbers with a 060 prefix could be available as soon as December.
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 3, 2024

Japan considers new 060 mobile number prefix as 070 runs low

Numbers starting with 060 could be available as early as December, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Analysts say Warren Buffett may be looking to buy Japanese financial firms and shipping companies.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 3, 2024

Buffett may target Japan banks or insurers for next purchase, analysts say

The billionaire’s company this week mandated banks to manage a yen bond sale in the global market, in a sign he may increase holdings in Japan.
Starbucks has 10 support centers around the world where agronomists work with farmers on research and best practices.
BUSINESS
Oct 3, 2024

Starbucks buys research farms as climate change threatens coffee supply

Bolstering the coffee industry’s climate resilience has taken on fresh urgency this year.
International Monetary Fund spokesperson Julie Kozack
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2024

IMF says Japan should keep raising rates if inflation data warrants it

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Wednesday that Japan is not in an environment requiring an additional rate hike.
Digital minister Taro Kono attends an Upper House committee session in June. The cautioning of Kono over his use of his smartphone to respond to a question in the Upper House last November attracted significant attention and led to a bipartisan call for digital transformation within parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 4, 2024

Digitalization advances gradually in Japan's parliament

Improvement plans have been adopted but certain practices, such as the use of tablets at the podium during plenary sessions, remain off-limits.
Shigeru Ishiba's nascent administration is attracting something of a reputation for flip-flopping — and it hasn’t even been a week.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 4, 2024

Don’t take Japan's new leader literally. But should you take him seriously?

Ishiba will discover that his supply of capital with the public will run out quickly if he offers no break from his predecessor.
The Japanese market for secondhand items is growing, with more consumers using flea market apps such as Mercari.
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2024

Japan's used goods market is expanding, but that may hurt its GDP

The trend is seen as friendly to consumers and the environment, but it can have the undesirable consequence of pushing down the country's GDP.
A Geely assembly line in Chengdu, China, in April 2023
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2024

EU presses ahead with Chinese EV tariffs after split vote

The proposed duties on Chinese-built EVs of up to 45% would cost carmakers billions of extra dollars to bring cars into the bloc.
Electric vehicles bound for shipment to Europe at the Port of Taicang in Taicang, China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 5, 2024

EU tests its mettle to take on China with new EV tariff fight

The EU voted on Friday to boost tariffs as high as 45%, arguing that Beijing provides unfair subsidies to its carmakers.
Containers are stacked at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal (PMT) in Portsmouth, Virginia, on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Oct 5, 2024

U.S. port strike throws spotlight on big union foe: automation

Companies view automation as a path to better profit while unions see it as a job-killer.
Zackree Kline works as a manager in a diner and also at a funeral home. "I work every single day of the week. I never have a day off," he said.
WORLD / Society
Oct 5, 2024

One job by day, another by night as U.S. voters make ends meet

Rising costs of living are weighing heavily on voters who want the next president — whoever it may be — to "do the right thing."
There's long been one mantra in mainstream economics: Growth is good. But recently, an alternative term has begun taking root in popular culture and policy: "degrowth."
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 5, 2024

These are boom times for ‘degrowth’

Kohei Saito believes one reason degrowth has had increasing appeal is because "younger generations are not enjoying the fruits of economic growth.”
Jera's liquefied natural gas fired power plant inside the company's Anegasaki Thurmal Power Station in Ichihara, Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 5, 2024

Japan firms unite to cut methane emissions from LNG supply

Twenty-two firms are joining an initiative that aims to leverage their buying power to curb methane emissions from liquefied natural gas supply chains.
Three-month basis swaps for dollar-yen dropped to negative 53.5 basis points on Thursday, a level not seen since November 2023.
BUSINESS
Oct 5, 2024

Boom in samurai bond issuance drives up yen swap costs

Three-month basis swaps for dollar-yen dropped to negative 53.5 basis points on Thursday, a level not seen since November 2023.
 A giant mural of Shohei Ohtani on the side of a hotel in Little Tokyo in Los Angeles
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 5, 2024

Japanese baseball fans flock to LA to see playoff-bound Ohtani

Inside Dodger Stadium, the influence of Japanese fans is clear, from Japanese-language merchandise to cuisine that included bento boxes, sushi and fried octopus.
Nintendo merchandise during the grand opening of Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood in Los Angeles last year.
BUSINESS
Oct 5, 2024

Saudi Arabia's PIF mulls larger stake in Nintendo: report

PIF currently owns 8.58% of Nintendo and also has stakes in video game companies Nexon, Capcom, and Koei Tecmo.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba inspects the area around a morning market, which was heavily damaged in the Jan. 1 earthquake, in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Saturday.
JAPAN
Oct 5, 2024

Torrential rain in Noto Peninsula to be designated a severe disaster, Ishiba says

Ishiba announced the plan during a visit to areas damaged heavily by the rain and the powerful Jan. 1 earthquake.
The industry ministry plans to set up a liaison committee of officials from relevant government agencies to discuss support measures for brick-and-mortar bookstores.
BUSINESS
Oct 6, 2024

Ministry reports issues facing bookstores

The ministry will set up by year-end a liaison committee of officials from relevant government agencies to fully launch discussions on support measures for bookstores.
Eni is in talks with Japan on supplying the country with liquefied natural gas, an executive said Sunday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 6, 2024

Italy's Eni in talks with Japan on supplying LNG, executive says

Eni plans to build its LNG portfolio to 18 million metric tons per year by 2027 and would be ready to commit part of it to Japan.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has replaced his chief of staff and must now review key tax-raising plans that have been questioned over their viability.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 7, 2024

Starmer forced into messy reset less than 100 days in power

He has replaced his chief of staff, Sue Gray, and is reviewing key tax-raising plans amid questions over their viability.
An electronic ticker displays stock figures in Pudong's Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai on Aug. 14.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 7, 2024

China stock skepticism gets louder as world-beating run extends

Some are concerned many Chinese stocks are already reaching overvalued levels.
The Bank of Israel building in Jerusalem in 2020. The costs of financing Israel's conflict in Gaza has led to credit ratings downgrades, which are amplifying economic effects that could reverberate for years, while the cost of insuring the country's debt against default is near a 12-year high and its budget deficit is ballooning.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 7, 2024

After a year of war, Israel's borrowing costs reflect burden of conflict

While Israel's domestic bond market is liquid, foreign investors have pulled back, while global funds' ownership of the country's stocks is now at its lowest in a decade.
WTI futures surged as much as 11% amid concern that Israel might strike oil facilities in retaliation for Iran’s missile attack.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 7, 2024

Oil bets are the most bullish in two years as Mideast tension flares

The escalation in the Middle East has changed everything, with most traders now looking to buy insurance against a surge in oil prices.
Padres starter Yu Darvish pitches against the Dodgers during Game 2 of the NLDS in Los Angeles on Sunday.
BASEBALL
Oct 7, 2024

Yu Darvish shuts down Dodgers and Shohei Ohtani as Padres even series

Darvish retired Ohtani three times during his gem at Dodger Stadium.
A showroom in Budapest for electric vehicles made by BYD, a Chinese auto manufacturer, on Sept. 16
BUSINESS / Tech / ANALYSIS
Oct 7, 2024

Climate change and economics muddy West's drive to curb Chinese EVs

EU states have voted to impose tariffs on electric vehicles made in China, but experts say this complicates the push to get cleaner cars on the road.
Players on Nintendo Switch game consoles. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is reportedly weighing deploying more capital to Nintendo and its sector peers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 7, 2024

Nintendo jumps after Saudi fund expresses interest in bigger stake

The Saudi government is keen to mold the kingdom into a global gaming industry player and diversify its oil-heavy portfolio.
A solar power plant operated by Chubu Electric Power in Aichi Prefecture. Japan's significant renewable energy potential is little understood, even by its political leaders.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 7, 2024

To empower Japan, new PM has to get hot on renewables

LDP leadership candidates all toed the party line on energy policy. But now, as Ishiba deals with the reality of governing, renewable ambitions need to be stepped up.
Tokyo Metro is seeking to raise at least ¥319.6 billion at a time when the nation’s equity market is showing signs of recovery.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 8, 2024

Tokyo Metro unveils range for biggest Japan IPO since 2018

The price range of ¥1,100 to ¥1,200 values the subway operator at between ¥639.1 billion and ¥697.2 billion.
While unlikely to revisit the record hit in July, the 225-issue Nikkei average may finish this year up 1.3% from its current level, according to a forecast by analysts.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 8, 2024

Solid earnings will spur hope Japan stocks hold onto 2024 gains

While unlikely to revisit the record hit in July, the 225-issue Nikkei average may finish this year up 1.3% from its current level, according to a forecast by analysts.

Longform

Eme-Ima Kitchen is one of over 10,000 kodomo shokudō in Japan. A term first used in 2012 to describe makeshift eateries offering free or cheap meals to disadvantaged kids, it now refers to a diverse range of individuals, groups and organizations working to provide not only food but a sense of belonging to both children and adults.
Japan’s ‘children’s cafeterias’ are booming — but is that a good thing?