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Tomoko Otake

Tomoko Otake is a senior writer with a strong interest in health, medical and social issues. A native of Nara Prefecture, she obtained an M.A. in journalism from The University of Montana.

BUSINESS

Oct 15, 2003

Japan, Mexico work late into night on FTA

Japan and Mexico, racing against the clock ahead of President Vicente Fox's visit to Tokyo, extended talks late into the evening Tuesday to hammer out a free trade agreement.

BUSINESS

Oct 8, 2003

Japan hopes to find key to Mexico FTA behind locked doors

Japanese and Mexican negotiators will lock themselves away in a conference hall in Tokyo's Minato Ward beginning Wednesday in an attempt to hammer out a free-trade accord.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Sep 27, 2003

Nakagawa's farm trade background brings mixed bag to METI portfolio

The appointment earlier this week of Shoichi Nakagawa as minister of economy, trade and industry is a mixed blessing for the nation's trade policy.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Sep 27, 2003

IRCJ takes salvage target list up to six

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan announced Friday that it will bail out Matsuya Denki Co., an Osaka home appliances retailer, and Meisei and Co., a chemical trading company also based in Osaka, under its corporate resuscitation scheme.

Japan Times

BUSINESS / CABINET INTERVIEW

Sep 26, 2003

IRCJ not only interested in 'small potatoes': Kaneko

New industrial revival minister Kazuyoshi Kaneko shrugged off accusations that the Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan has a "small potatoes" approach to rescuing ailing firms.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Sep 24, 2003

Shizuoka pulls out all the stops in bid to woo foreign investors

Shizuoka wants you badly -- if your company is considering building a base in the prefecture or doing business with any of the 100 or so local firms.

Japan Times

BUSINESS / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE

Sep 9, 2003

Hello Kitty, Pokemon, Doraemon battle for global supremacy

A number of U.S. celebrities have been spotted toting Hello Kitty paraphernalia in the past year or so, leaving officials of Sanrio Co., the maker of the long-selling character, scratching their heads.

BUSINESS

Sep 2, 2003

IRCJ opts to bail out ailing Mitsui Mining

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan announced Monday that it has decided to bail out Mitsui Mining Co. under its resuscitation program.

BUSINESS

Aug 16, 2003

Farm policy may switch from defense to offense

Japan has long been on the defensive over agricultural trade as it sought to protect the nation's farmers, but it may soon go on the offensive.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Aug 9, 2003

Debt-collectors push professionalism, not pain

Despite popular perceptions, profanities and threats are not screamed down the phone and the receiver doesn't end up getting slammed down.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Jul 18, 2003

Town hopes wind bells ring in some new vitality

The tinkling of some 3,000 glass wind bells in a small mountain town in Aichi Prefecture is not just a sign of summer but a sound of hope for community revitalization.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY

Jul 13, 2003

Shin Yoshida leads a double life. And everyone, including his boss, his wife and three children, knows about it.

BUSINESS

Jun 27, 2003

Revival body chief claims applications are flooding in

More than 20 pairs of banks and borrower firms of varying sizes have applied for help from the Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan, IRCJ Chief Operating Officer Kazuhiko Toyama said Thursday.

BUSINESS

Jun 26, 2003

GET BROADBAND (but ignore fine print)

You may have already tuned out the incessant commercials by broadband Internet service providers on TV, in magazines and on the Net, but the Fair Trade Commission is tuning them in.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Jun 25, 2003

Foreign meat producers blast tariff plan

A food service industry group and meat producers from the U.S. and Australia on Tuesday urged the Japanese government not to invoke emergency curbs on imported beef, saying such restrictions would hurt consumers as well as the food industry and exporters.

BUSINESS

Jun 21, 2003

IRCJ needs more time to select first help case

The state-backed Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan is taking longer than expected to select its first revival candidate, IRCJ President Atsushi Saito said Friday.

BUSINESS

Jun 18, 2003

Red tape hinders Singapore Airlines campaign

Attempts by the SARS-battered Singapore Airlines to offer travelers bargain deals have been stalled here by domestic regulations, despite high hopes for mutual promotion of tourism under a bilateral free trade agreement signed recently.

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.

Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.

The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'

By Tomoko Otake

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