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August 15, 2024
 

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Jun Hongo

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Jun Hongo
Jun Hongo graduated from Boston University and joined The Japan Times in 2006. He covers a wide range of domestic news, including politics and business. He is an avid Red Sox fan.
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2012
Plan for new marketplace on Tsukiji site gets mixed reviews
Moves by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to build a new marketplace on the site of the Tsukiji market have drawn mixed reactions, with some critics saying it is an attempt to bulldoze through the controversial relocation of the famed fish market to a new site.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2012
Foreigners' poor test grades force rethink on nurse tests
Non-Japanese applicants hoping to become certified nurses could see the government's notoriously rigorous exams get easier with the inclusion of English-language tests and a new set of communication exams based on basic Japanese.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 26, 2012
Nation logs its first trade deficit since 1980
Japan suffered its first trade deficit in over three decades in 2011, a year that saw natural disasters and a nuclear crisis, a historic rise in the yen and a sharp drop-off in global demand stemming from the European financial crisis.
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2012
BOJ downgrades '11 growth forecast
The Bank of Japan on Tuesday revised downward its economic growth forecasts for fiscal 2011 from 0.3 to minus 0.4 percent, citing the impact of Europe's sovereign debt issues and the yen's appreciation.
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2012
Weak euro's perks said few, unlike dollar's
Having reached a historic high against the dollar last year, the sky seems to be the limit for the yen as it forges on against the euro.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 24, 2012
Nadeshiko Japan eyes London Olympic gold
Japan's overtime defeat of the United States in the 2011 women's World Cup soccer finals inspired a nation suffering from the March 11 disaster and ensuing nuclear crisis. This year will see the club dubbed Nadeshiko Japan attempt to repeat their success at the Summer Olympics in London. Following are...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 2012
Japan urged to both engage with, hedge on China
Japan will have to carry out a delicate balancing act to develop healthy relations with China, and this will involve both collaborating with the emerging superpower and maintaining strong bilateral ties the United States, a group of professors and former diplomats said Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2012
Entrance exam system faces review
The education ministry on Monday ordered a review of how the nation's unified college entrance exams are managed after delays and slipups affected more than 4,500 test-takers over the weekend.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2012
Noda hoping latest reshuffle bucks trend of dismal failures
Cabinet reshuffles are generally called a gamble prime ministers take to reverse dismal approval ratings, but in recent years most of them have failed miserably.
JAPAN
Jan 13, 2012
Iranian oil imports to be cut to aid U.S. pressure: Azumi
Japan is ready to reduce crude oil imports from Iran to help Washington put pressure on Tehran to give up its nuclear program, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Thursday in Tokyo.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2012
ODA transforming Mozambique
Japan's international aid took a back seat in 2011 as the nation was besieged by natural and man-made disasters, a historically strong yen and political turmoil that unseated yet another prime minister.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2012
Tohoku orphans get aid despite donation shortfall
Financial aid is on the way faster than anticipated for children who lost family in the March 11 disasters, but donations are still short of covering all of those in need.
Japan Times
JAPAN / NUCLEAR AWAKENING
Jan 1, 2012
DIY cesium scanning store may be 'new normal'
Kashiwa, about 30 km northeast of Tokyo, is known for its humble beginnings as a 1970s bedroom community for Tokyo workers.
JAPAN
Dec 25, 2011
Fiscal health deteriorates despite Noda's pledges
On paper, the draft of the fiscal 2012 budget appears to indicate Japan has found a way to trim about ¥2 trillion in spending compared with the current year, but in reality the national debt is snowballing as bond issuance will exceed tax revenues for the third year in a row.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 22, 2011
BOJ warns recovery has 'paused,' keeps rate policy
The Bank of Japan said Wednesday it will maintain its zero interest rate policy but gave a somber assessment that a pickup in economic activity has "paused."
JAPAN
Dec 21, 2011
Immigration changes to come as new law takes effect in July
The revised immigration law will take effect next July 9 and the government will start accepting applications for new residence registration cards on Jan. 13, the Cabinet decided Tuesday, paving the way for increased government scrutiny through a centralized immigration control of foreign nationals.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2011
Business confidence battered by strong yen, Europe's crisis
Business sentiment among large manufacturers deteriorated in December, according to the Bank of Japan's quarterly "tankan" index released Thursday, underscoring the growing concern over Europe's sovereign credit risk and the persistent rise of the yen.
JAPAN
Dec 7, 2011
Specifics on consumption tax increase due before end of month: Azumi
The government will aim to specify when and by how much the 5 percent consumption levy will be hiked in the social security and tax reform plan it hopes to present by year's end, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Tuesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 26, 2011
Woodford: Board must be purged
Rehabilitating disgraced Olympus Corp. should begin with the ouster of many of its current board members, former President Michael C. Woodford said Friday in Tokyo.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 22, 2011
Last trial brings dark Aum era to end
The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by condemned killer Seiichi Endo, lowering the curtain on the trials over the cult's heinous crimes, which began in the 1980s and culminated in the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

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mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

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