NEWSWORTHY
Japanese firms face tough choices as U.S.-China trade war drags on
The companies must either make massive changes to how their products are assembled or bide their time until a compromise is reached.
80% of major Japanese firms expect domestic economy to grow in 2018
Over 80 percent of major companies expect the economy to grow toward the end of this year, but most do not see the expansion lasting beyond the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, according to a recent Kyodo News survey. Around 82 percent of the 113 companies surveyed ...
Government-led campaign hopes to ease 2020 Tokyo Olympic traffic by promoting telecommuting
A government-led campaign began Monday to encourage more companies to introduce telecommuting, with hopes that letting employees work away from the office could help ease traffic congestion during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics. Around 2,000 companies and organizations are expected to join the "Telework ...
Majority of job-seeking university students put off by AI-powered candidate screening
As more companies turn to artificial intelligence to discover new talent, a recent survey has shown that a majority of job-seeking university students don't want their abilities judged by the technology. About 67.5 percent of 1,258 university and graduate students slated to graduate in March ...
Japan firms in Thailand plan to raise wages by 4.4% on average this year
Japanese companies operating in Thailand are considering raising wages by an average 4.4 percent this year, according to an annual survey by NNA. Of 403 Japanese companies surveyed, 305 firms, or 75.7 percent, plan to implement wage hikes for workers and those in managerial positions. The ...
Japan's corporate tax to be slashed by up to 20% for some wage-boosting firms
The government and ruling bloc are in the final stages of talks on a plan to slash corporate taxes by up to 20 percent for companies that increase wages, as part of measures to help boost productivity, according to sources. The plan will cover large ...
Japan looking to fuel 'productivity revolution' by doubling growth in labor productivity
The Abe administration will aim to double labor productivity growth to 2 percent in the three years through 2020 from 0.9 percent, the average for the five years through 2015, according to informed sources. The government is set to include the target in a package ...
Investment by Japanese firms rises 4.2% on year in July-September
Capital spending by Japanese companies rose 4.2 percent from a year ago in the July-September period, the Finance Ministry said Friday, reinforcing the view that the economy remains on a moderate recovery trend. Business investment by all nonfinancial sectors on plants, equipment and other purposes ...
Banks sees higher loan demand from Japanese firms in third quarter
Demand for bank lending among companies grew in July-September for the first time in three quarters, a Bank of Japan survey showed Monday. The diffusion index for corporate loan demand came to plus 6 in the latest reporting period, up from plus 3 from the ...
Japanese firms operating in Thailand plan bigger wage increases
More Japanese companies in Thailand are implementing increased relative wage hikes this year on the back of an improving economic outlook in the Southeast Asian country. A new survey by the Japanese Chamber of Commerce, Bangkok, shows that 26.7 percent of manufacturers are offering larger ...
Japan's social security burden frustrates BOJ's inflation, spending efforts
Japanese companies are paying more for employees these days. Problem is, the money is going toward social security payroll taxes instead of wages, adding to the frustrations of Bank of Japan policymakers seeking higher wages and stronger inflation. While businesses haven't raised salaries much, their ...
