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February 04, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
February 04, 2025
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SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son (right) and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman at an event on Monday to pitch AI for businesses in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Companies
SoftBank forms joint venture with OpenAI in enterprise play
By Kazuaki Nagata
SoftBank and OpenAI said that the joint venture will help large Japanese enterprises in the adoption and training of Cristal intelligence in order to improve their businesses.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son (right) and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman at an event on Monday to pitch AI for businesses in Tokyo
The 225-issue Nikkei stock average loses more than 1,000 points Monday ahead of steep U.S. tariffs taking effect on imports from Mexico and Canada.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nikkei sheds over 1,000 points as markets react to Trump's tariffs
The trend among investors in Tokyo is to lower risks by reducing their holdings and selling futures for now, a Japanese brokerage house official said.
Construction workers near a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, on Monday
JAPAN / Society / EXPLAINER
Why it's taking so long to reach the driver trapped in a Saitama sinkhole
By Jessica Speed
The biggest challenge for the operation, now in its seventh day, is that the sinkhole continues to expand, complicating the rescue efforts.
The Old Yokohama District Court
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Woman pleads guilty over involvement in fatal ‘shady’ burglary
A group of suspects are accused of breaking into the home of Hiroharu Goto, 75, in Yokohama’s Aoba Ward, killing him and stealing about ¥200,000 in cash.
Japanese workers are increasingly job-hopping from one full-time position to another.
BUSINESS / Economy
Job-hopping Japanese workers push salaries higher
By Kazuaki Nagata
Job mobility in Japan has traditionally been low due to lifetime employment arrangements and strong labor laws.
Japanese workers are increasingly job-hopping from one full-time position to another.

JAPAN

A snowy street in the city of Aomori in early January
Weather agency warns of heavy snow in many areas from Tuesday
The Meteorological Agency urged people to be on high alert for possible traffic disruptions.
An H-3 rocket, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, is launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima on Feb. 17, 2024.
Fifth H-3 rocket with Michibiki No. 6 satellite successfully launched
The rocket blasted off at 5:30 p.m. from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture. The satellite was placed into its target orbit.
Ex-Tokyo medical school chancellor served new warrant over payments
The harsh reality of migration outflow on Okinawa’s least populated island
COVID-19 victims of Diamond Princess ship remembered five years on
Imperial Household Agency finds success on Instagram amid public relations push

BUSINESS

The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BOJ discussed worries about price upward deviation in January
One member referred to "a growing possibility that underlying CPI (consumer price index) inflation will rise steadily toward achieving the price stability target of 2%."
Motorcycles on display at the Honda pavilion at the Bangkok International Motor Show in Bangkok in March 2024
Honda’s motorcycle business is the gem in a messy Nissan union
By Nicholas Takahashi
Two-wheelers accounted for about 16% of Honda’s sales last fiscal year but an outsized 40% of its operating profit.
KKR and Gaw look to sell Tokyo Hyatt Regency for over ¥100 billion
By Lisa Du
Car prices face $3,000 increase in U.S. as tariffs hit auto sector
By Jacob Lorinc, David Welch and Amy Stillman
Trump says Americans could feel 'pain' in trade war with Mexico, Canada and China
By David Lawder, Doina Chiacu and Jarrett Renshaw
Trump’s ‘tariff thrashing’ spurs crisis response from Canada
By Randy Thanthong-Knight and Christine Dobby

WORLD

Norwegian soldiers and U.S. Marines work together during a military exercise in Finnmark, Norway, on March 10, 2024.
NATO scrambles for drones that can survive the Arctic
By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen and Gwladys Fouche
Cold, fog, rain or snow can cause a malfunction or crash.
A member of the former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stands guard near an image of Assad at the fourth division headquarters in Damascus on Jan. 23.
Digital discord: Online disinformation sows discontent in Syria
By Nazih Osseiran
There are fears online disinformation is derailing the transition of power after Sunni Islamist rebels defeated Assad in December.
Mass shootings horrify the Balkans, but illegal guns still thrive
By Aleksandar Vasovic and Edward McAllister
More USAID staff ousted after clash with Musk's team as Trump dismantles agency
In first budget of third term, Modi puts short-term tax cuts above deep reforms
By Aftab Ahmed and Ira Dugal
At least 160,000 rally in Berlin against far right
By Sophie Makris

Sports

Masahiro Tanaka signed with the Giants in December.
Star pitcher Masahiro Tanaka looking to revive glory days with Giants
By Jason Coskrey
Masahiro Tanaka is one of the most recognizable faces in Japanese baseball, but sightings of the new Giants pitcher were few and far between in 2024.
Kings set to trade De'Aaron Fox to Spurs as part of three-team deal
Dynamic Black marching bands are Super Bowl stalwarts
By Emmanuel Morgan
Fay Vincent, who tangled with owners as MLB Commissioner, dies at 86
Canadian sports fans boo U.S. anthem amid anger over Trump tariffs

Opinion

A map of the South China Sea is shown during a Philippine Coast Guard mission to the Second Thomas Shoal, claimed by both the Philippines and China. Each country has its own name for this area, signaling the use of toponyms to stake territorial rights.
What’s in a name? In the South China Sea, a whole lot.
Dalbir Ahlawat
In the South China Sea, disputed territories have been given different names by the states vying for them. Will Trump's moves thousands of miles away validate this approach?
Confronting the pandemic’s toxic political legacy
By Jan-Werner Mueller
Bollywood’s dark past is threatening to return
By Andy Mukherjee
The Trump test begins: Tariffs, power plays and economic risk
Why Chinese tech keeps surprising the West
By Catherine Thorbecke

ENVIRONMENT

Though vegan restaurants have been on the upswing since 2017, Japanese vegans still lack a wide variety of options.
In meat- and fish-loving Japan, veganism is making a comeback
By Sachi Kitajima Mulkey and Joseph Winters
Tourism, climate goals and animal rights concerns are sparking a plant-based renaissance in a country famous for sushi and pork ramen.
Mitsubishi reviews Japanese offshore wind after economic changes
By Shoko Oda
Brazil's carbon trade takes off, but agribusiness escapes scrutiny
By Andre Cabette Fabio
Vanishing mountains: Winter air pollution smothers Iran
By Sanam Mahoozi
The global climate order teeters under a second assault from Trump
By Akshat Rathi, Ewa Krukowska and Alfred Cang

CULTURE

After a long wait, Beyonce proudly holds the one prize that has alluded her for many years: the Album of the Year award. "Cowboy Carter" also garnered the Best Country Album award.
Beyonce finally wins top album, as Kendrick Lamar sweeps Grammys' rap category
By Maggy Donaldson
Beyonce made history at the Grammys as she became the annual event's most decorated artist while the night paid tribute to the community of fire-ravaged Los Angeles.
In pictures: The Grammys 2025 moments to remember
By Maggy Donaldson
Taiwan's 'Meteor Garden' star Barbie Hsu dies at 48
Louvre opens first fashion exhibition after shock memo about decay
By Sandra Biffot-Lacut and Adam PLOWRIGHT
'Cute and murderous': How the iconic killer doll in 'Squid Game' came to life
By Minwoo Park and Hyunsu Yim

LIFE

Dress-up games and dating sims were once forgotten genres, but now expanded player bases are helping to generate major profits.
Gaming’s feminine side is starting to make big bucks
By Samantha Low
Two recent releases — a sci-fi dating sim and a souped-up dress-up simulator — are starting to change the conversation around previously dismissed genres.
Sipping down the rabbit hole at Craft Sake Shoten
By Melinda Joe
Mind the gap — and the shoulder checking: Dealing with pushy people in Japan's crowded spaces
By Yuko Tamura
How Tokyo taught a French architect the power of colors
By Ran Kawai
For two weeks only, cold-water yellowtail can give you chills
By Elizabeth Andoh

COMMUNITY

Billed as a “cultural bridge that connects Japan and Vietnam,” Tet Viet Saitama drew tens of thousands of attendees from across the Kanto region.
Home away from home: My first time at a Tet festival in Japan
By Nguyen Bao Anh
A longtime resident of Japan attends Saitama’s first public celebration of Vietnam’s most important holiday.
Ken Rodgers, a fixture of the Kyoto literary scene, dies at 72
By Eric Johnston
Kenny Colvin: ‘Work hard, drink hard, eat hard … relax hard’
By Mike Fu
Namnam reborn: A queer, anarchist space resettles in Tokyo's Koenji
By Aku Owaka-Haigh
Due north: Foreign-born guides introduce Hokkaido’s unique charms
By Justin Randall

Editors' Picks

CULTURE
At the new Ginza Sony Park, listening is an art form
By Patrick St. Michel
In addition to the commercial benefits from Ginza Sony Park's music-centered exhibition — such as promoting Sony's artists and products — there is a real effort to put music in focus.
COMMUNITY
Home away from home: My first time at a Tet festival in Japan
By Nguyen Bao Anh
Billed as a “cultural bridge that connects Japan and Vietnam,” Tet Viet Saitama drew tens of thousands of attendees from across the Kanto region.
LIFE
First official survey set to change backcountry Hokkaido skiing
By Justin Randall
The first official government survey of Hokkaido backcountry skiing could spell changes for trails in the northern prefecture.
BUSINESS
Fuji TV’s go-big PR strategy wins grudging praise globally
By Elizabeth Beattie
Fuji TV executives take questions during a news conference on Monday in Tokyo in which some participants became unruly.
CULTURE
Two decades of unparalleled access into the world of Hayao Miyazaki
By Erik Augustin Palm
Documentary director Kaku Arakawa’s filming style — naturalistic, intimate and unobtrusive — proved essential to portraying anime powerhouse Hayao Miyazaki as a man as flawed and human as he is a visionary artist in “Hayao Miyazaki and the Heron.”

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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?
By Alex K.T. Martin

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WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
Residents near Japan sinkhole urged to evacuate
Rescuers on Thursday continue to try and free a truck driver after his vehicle plunged into a sinkhole in Yashio, Saitama Prefecture, earlier in the week.
WORLD
Crashed U.S. Army Black Hawk unit was responsible for doomsday readiness
A U.S. Coast Guard vessel attempts to retrieve the remains of a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Friday after it crashed into the Potomac River near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport earlier in the week.
JAPAN
LDP conservatives frustrated by Ishiba's diplomacy with China
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a Lower House plenary session last week.
JAPAN
Japan’s ‘children’s cafeterias’ are booming — but is that a good thing?
By Alex K.T. Martin
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
Fifth H-3 rocket with Michibiki No. 6 satellite successfully launched
An H-3 rocket, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, is launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima on Feb. 17, 2024.