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August 10, 2025
 

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BATTERIES

A mobile battery ignites during a simulation experiment.
JAPAN
Jul 25, 2025
Agency warns of fire risks from lithium-ion batteries
Lithium-ion batteries are vulnerable to heat and impact, making them prone to accidents when temperatures rise.
Polymetallic nodules — bulbous lumps of rock that are rich in battery metals such as cobalt and nickel which carpet huge tracts of Pacific Ocean seabed — in Rarotonga in the Cook Islands on June 12.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 22, 2025
Trump’s critical minerals obsession reignites deep-sea mining
President Donald Trump has issued an executive order expediting U.S. licensing of seabed mining, departing from international law.
Megan Myungwon Lee, head of Panasonic's North American operations, says the company's newest battery plant in Kansas will reach full production this year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 15, 2025
Panasonic aims for full output at Kansas battery plant this year
The new factory will ship battery cells to Tesla as well as several other EV makers, including Lucid and Hexagon Purus.
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2025
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The move comes in response to a series of incidents involving battery packs emitting smoke or catching fire during flights.
An event to promote Japan-India cooperation on supply chains for minerals was held at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 3, 2025
New Delhi event highlights Japan's bid to deepen India ties on critical minerals
The event brought together a total of some 70 companies from both countries, including members of the Battery Association for Supply Chain, a Japanese industry group.
An employee welds lithium batteries in Verrieres-en-Anjou, western France, on June 10.
BUSINESS
Jun 23, 2025
Europe's lithium quest hampered by China and lack of cash
The bloc's broader energy security and climate goals could depend on securing a steady supply of the key mineral, used in batteries and other clean energy supply chains.
A staff member at the Osaka Expo wears clothing featuring a cooling fan powered by electricity generated by perovskite solar cells.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2025
Wearable perovskite solar cells tested at Osaka Expo
The cells, jointly developed by Toyoda Gosei and a startup company, weigh just 10 grams each.
A worker at a rare earth metals mine in Jiangxi province, China, in 2012
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 8, 2025
China says it may speed up rare earths application approvals from EU
Beijing's recent suspension of rare earths-related exports upended the supply chains central to numerous industries around the world.
A mining machine at the Bayan Obo mine containing rare earth minerals in Inner Mongolia, China, in 2011
WORLD / Politics
Jun 3, 2025
China’s rare earths grip gives Xi leverage in U.S. trade duel
For years, Washington was believed to have the advantage over China in the fight for technological dominance thanks to its grip on semiconductor supply chains.
A CATL recruitment advertisement in Germany
BUSINESS / Tech
May 21, 2025
CATL's $2 billion German plant boosts China’s invest-abroad bet
"I see ourselves as a blueprint for Chinese companies who are looking to expand in Europe,” said Matthias Zentgraf, the battery giant’s European president.
Robin Zeng, founder and chairman of battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), attends the company’s listing ceremony at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 20, 2025
Chinese battery giant CATL soars more than 13% on Hong Kong debut
A global leader in the sector, CATL produces more than a third of all electric vehicle (EV) batteries sold worldwide.
TDK will begin shipping its third iteration of silicon-anode batteries by the end of June, Chief Executive Officer Noboru Saito said.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 16, 2025
IPhone supplier TDK readies batteries geared for thin AI gadgets
TDK’s battery technology is helping the world’s biggest smartphone makers slim down their gadgets without shortening battery run times.
Panasonic may be poised to benefit from having factories in the U.S. as Tesla and others seek to reduce their reliance on Chinese battery-makers.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 14, 2025
Panasonic CEO says battery plans align with slower EV demand
The supplier of lithium-ion batteries to Tesla is getting ready to start production at a second U.S.-based factory in Kansas, but has frozen plans for a third plant.
A sign for battery manufacturer CATL is seen at the Auto China 2024 exhibition in Beijing on April 25, 2024.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 12, 2025
CATL starts taking investor orders for world’s biggest listing this year
The Chinese electric vehicle battery giant is seeking to raise as much as HK$41 billion ($5.3 billion).
Idemitsu Kosan President Noriaki Sakai speaks during an interview in Tokyo on April 23.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 11, 2025
Idemitsu to enhance all-solid-state battery business
All-solid-state batteries have shorter charging times and enable vehicles to travel longer per charge, compared with conventional batteries.
A Nissan plug-in hybrid truck at the Shanghai Auto Show last month. Nissan is looking to invest in its China operations and use the nation’s intensely competitive market to accelerate its development of electric vehicles.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 9, 2025
Nissan drops plan for Fukuoka battery plant to focus on recovery
The carmaker has abandoned plans to build a battery plant in Fukuoka Prefecture to focus on rescuing itself from a deepening financial crisis.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, arrives in Washington on Wednesday for talks with U.S. officials.
BUSINESS
May 1, 2025
EV charging format to be discussed in Japan-U.S. tariff talks
The U.S. side has taken issue with Japan's subsidies for developing CHAdeMO stations, but not for foreign designs such as those of U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla.
Burnt power banks containing lithium-ion batteries are shown at the Consumer Affairs Agency
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2025
Japan urges proper disposal of lithium-ion batteries
The Environment Ministry issued a notice to local governments on Tuesday requesting the thorough separation and collection of such batteries.
Brine pools at the Atacama salt flat in Antofagasta region, Chile, in 2023. Local Chilean Indigenous communities are pushing for greater control over lithium extraction in the country just as the government plans to raise production.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Apr 8, 2025
As Chile revs up lithium plans, Indigenous people demand more control
Mining companies describe a potential system as "unprecedented" in Chile, adding that it would comply with international treaties on Indigenous rights.
Masahide Takano, Chief Researcher of the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), points to a plan to use americium in small batteries for space probes at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on Friday.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 2025
JAEA developing space probe battery fueled by radioactive waste
The battery is expected to be used in probes that operate in places where solar power generation is not possible.
U.S. backtracks on Japan tariff calculation, taking effective rate lower
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, said the U.S. made a clerical error in not including a “reciprocal” tariff rate ceiling for Japan in the trade deal.
Japan's inheritance tax is high, unforgiving and sometimes avoidable
The National Tax Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo. Japanese tax authorities can bill foreign residents in Japan for assets inherited globally.
Japan starts survey on foreign nationals' unpaid resident taxes
In the most recent regular session of parliament, problems were highlighted regarding some foreign workers leaving Japan without paying outstanding taxes.
How Pakistan shot down India's cutting-edge fighter using Chinese gear
An Indian Air Force pilot gets out of a Rafale fighter jet during its induction ceremony at an air force station in Ambala, India, September 2020.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person
Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
At Himawari Shokudo 2, Italian food with a Japanese soul
At Himawari Shokudo 2, chef Hozumi Tanaka serves Italian-inspired fare with a focus on Toyama produce, such as this appetizer of lightly blanched "hotaru ika" (firefly squid) served atop mixed wild plants and a crepe prepared from "yamato-imo" yam.
Cheer with caution: Expert advises sports fans have game plan for extreme heat
A Cardinals fan fans himself during the seventh inning of a game against the Pirates in St. Louis, Missouri, in June 2022.
Australia's warship selection signals Japanese defense industry's arrival
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami-class frigate. Australia's selection of an upgraded version of the Mogami-class warship for its next frigate class could prove to be a watershed moment for Japan’s defense industry.
Japan's inheritance tax is high, unforgiving and sometimes avoidable
The National Tax Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo. Japanese tax authorities can bill foreign residents in Japan for assets inherited globally.
Will the movement seeking Ishiba’s resignation succeed?
Liberal Democratic Party youth division head Yasutaka Nakasone (center) and other members speak to reporters in Tokyo on July 25.

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Longform

Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person
By Naoko Abe

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