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November 22, 2024
 

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Kanako Takahara

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Kanako Takahara
Kanako Takahara is a staff writer who has covered national politics, diplomacy, business and the economy at The Japan Times. A graduate of Sophia University, she is currently a national news editor.
BUSINESS
Nov 23, 2006
Big banks see high profits in first half
Most major banks posted big profits in the April-September first half as brighter business activities led to a reduction in bad loans, allowing them to shift money from loan-loss reserves to the profit section.
BUSINESS
Nov 16, 2006
Nissin's Myojo tender may stir instant-ramen bidding battle
Nissin Food Products Co. announced Wednesday it will launch a public tender offer for Myojo Foods Co. to help the rival instant-noodle maker stop a hostile takeover by a U.S. investment fund.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2006
Aozora lists on Tokyo Stock Exchange
The formerly government-controlled Aozora Bank went public Tuesday -- eight years after its predecessor, Nippon Credit Bank, was delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange -- fetching an initial quote of 495 yen, or 13 percent less than its public offering price of 570 yen.
BUSINESS
Nov 3, 2006
FSA soliciting bids for Ashikaga bank
The Financial Services Agency began soliciting bids Thursday for the sale of state-owned Ashikaga Bank Ltd., publishing the conditions that buyers must satisfy to purchase the Tochigi Prefecture-based bank.
BUSINESS
Oct 28, 2006
Matsushita scores huge in flat-panel TV market
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., maker of the Panasonic brand, said Friday that its group net profit jumped 78.7 percent to 115.1 billion yen in the April-September period, thanks to brisk sales of its flat-panel plasma televisions and air conditioners.
BUSINESS
Oct 27, 2006
Sony profit dives 94% in quarter
Sony Corp.'s group net profit for the July-September quarter took a 94.1 percent nosedive from the previous year due the massive global recalls of its defective lithium-ion batteries and sluggish sales in its gaming division, the company announced Thursday.
BUSINESS
Oct 25, 2006
Sony apologizes for defective batteries
Sony Corp. Vice President Yutaka Nakagawa apologized Tuesday for causing concern among customers over problems with its lithium-ion batteries that have led to a massive worldwide recall.
BUSINESS
Oct 21, 2006
Daiei operating profit up, net profit down
Daiei Inc. said Friday its operating profit for its March-August half was 25.45 billion yen, up 41.9 percent from the previous year, on sales of 672.1 billion yen, due to strong sales in its credit card subsidiary OMC Card Inc.
BUSINESS
Oct 19, 2006
Inpex to drill for Indonesian gas
Inpex Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it plans to develop a gas field in southern Indonesia to produce about 3 million tons annually beginning as early as 2014 in a bid to ensure Japan has a steady supply of liquefied natural gas.
BUSINESS
Oct 14, 2006
Nuke test casts cloud over markets: Fukui
The nuclear test North Korea claimed it conducted Monday will negatively effect Japan's economy, Bank of Japan Gov. Toshihiko Fukui said Friday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 12, 2006
Sony's battery fiasco a symptom of bigger woes at legendary firm
It was a fine day at Los Angeles International Airport on Sept. 16 when a passenger's ThinkPad laptop, containing a Sony Corp. battery already recalled by other companies, was suddenly wreathed in smoke and started emitting sparks.
BUSINESS
Oct 3, 2006
Business sentiment hits two-year high
Business confidence at large manufacturers rose to a two-year high in the three months through September, according to the Bank of Japan's latest "tankan" survey, despite forecasts by economists it would either remain flat or slightly decline.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / CABINET INTERVIEW
Oct 3, 2006
Transport minister wants road taxes to be spent on more than just roads
Gas and vehicle taxes should not be spent only on road construction but also on protecting the environment, including maintaining the nation's forests, according to the new minister of land, infrastructure and transport.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / CABINET INTERVIEW
Sep 30, 2006
Single rate cap needs five years, FSA chief says
A transition period of about five years in introducing a lowered, single interest-rate ceiling for consumer loans is necessary to meet potential demands from customers who want to borrow money for a short period, Financial Services Agency chief Yuji Yamamoto reckons.
BUSINESS
Sep 26, 2006
Nissan to sell off stake in truck maker to Volvo
AB Volvo said Monday it will acquire 34.5 billion yen of Nissan Diesel Motor Co.'s preferred stock and purchase 6 percent of Nissan Diesel's outstanding shares from Nissan Motor Co. -- a move that will push Volvo's stake in the truck manufacturer closer to 50 percent by April 2014.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 23, 2006
Sony takes center stage at Tokyo Game Show
CHIBA -- The nation's biggest game exhibition kicked off at the Makuhari Messe convention center in Chiba on Friday as industry officials and media reporters took a peek at the next-generation video-game consoles before they hit the stores later this year.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2006
Top Lexus model glides into showrooms
Toyota Motor Corp. unleashed the Lexus LS, its flagship model, on Japan on Tuesday in hopes of improving flagging sales of the internationally known brand, which has not lived up to expectations here since debuting in August 2005.
JAPAN
Sep 19, 2006
'Gyudon' return sets off stampede to Yoshinoya
Fans of Yoshinoya's beef bowls thronged the fast-food chain Monday to get their first taste of the popular dish in more than 2 1/2 years since it was scratched from the menu due to the ban on U.S. beef.
BUSINESS
Sep 16, 2006
Lenders to get five years until 20% rate cap: LDP
A key Liberal Democratic Party panel agreed Friday to shorten a transition period for the creation of a single interest-rate ceiling for consumer loans to five years instead of the original nine proposed by the Finance Services Agency, panel members said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 16, 2006
Government says deflation still not beaten
The government on Friday stopped short of declaring the death of deflation in its September economic report, but dropped the dreaded word for the first time since April 2001.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Tokyo Metro’s overseas efforts begin in earnest with London deal
Tokyo Metro will soon have a role in the running of London's Elizabeth Line, a major train route serving the U.K.’s capital city and environs.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ex-yokozuna Kitanofuji dies at 82
Yokozuna Kitanofuji enters the ring during the May 1970 grand sumo tournament in Tokyo.
Man charged with murder allegedly made victim date other men for money
A car carrying suspect Ryotaro Masuda, who was indicted for allegedly beating his 25-year-old girlfriend to death, leaves the Shibuya Police Station in Tokyo on Thursday.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
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Longform

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mission sustainability vol.12 : Kose Corp.Kose takes pride in creating beauty in the world
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