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Winnie Hsu
Naomi Koshi, CEO of OnBoard K.K., says pressure from foreign investors is pushing Japanese companies to seek out more female board members.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 8, 2023
Foreign investor pressure spurs Japanese boards to appoint women
The scramble came after institutional investors set rules to vote against firms with few or no female board members.
Warabeya Nichiyo Holdings has apologized after a video went viral that showed one of its rice ball products appearing to contain a cockroach at a Seven Eleven convenience store.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2023
Cockroach contamination sends rice-ball supplier’s stock reeling
The company said it is recalling all relevant goods from the factory in Omiya where the food was produced.
A stock board at an intersection in Shanghai in October
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 6, 2023
China is losing out as global funds chase returns in Japan stocks
Foreign buying of Japanese equities has exceeded that of Chinese peers for the first time since 2017, according to a Goldman Sachs Group report.
Hitachi CEO Keiji Kojima. The company’s metamorphosis belies the argument that the bastions of Japan Inc. are set forever in their ways.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 4, 2023
Hitachi reinvents itself in sign of hope for Japan
The old-school conglomerate revamped its governance, shrank its empire to focus on growth and evolved into a more global enterprise.
Nikko Asset Management is ditching its bearish view on the yen, and now has a ¥135 target against the dollar by year-end.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 20, 2023
Nikko Asset shifts to bullish yen slant as Ueda bides his time
The shift in his view highlights potential upside for the yen, where inflation-adjusted interest rates have exacerbated its decline to multidecade lows.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 19, 2023
Japan's retailers see earnings windfall as consumers tolerate inflation
Profits and rising share prices in the sector, undiminished by customer hesitancy, are adding to speculation the Bank of Japan may upgrade its inflation forecast next week.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 7, 2023
Rakuten’s ¥1.8 trillion debt fuels concern despite funding
The e-commerce giant has racked up four years of losses as its mobile-phone business drains cash.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 4, 2023
Top-ranked fund trims Japan chip stocks for makers of soap and noodles
The Alma Eikoh Japan Large Cap Equity fund has cut its position in Renesas Electronics by almost a third over the past month as the stock more than doubled in value to date.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 26, 2023
Japan unveils ¥904 billion deal to buy out chip linchpin JSR
The government-backed Japan Investment Corp. plans to offer shareholders ¥4,350 a share in a tender offer around December.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 22, 2023
Japanese startups are catching up to broader market rally
An upcoming rush of initial public offerings has lifted sentiment toward startups, with more than 10 new stocks expected to start trading in Tokyo between now and the end of June.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 13, 2023
Japan’s sticky inflation is key to a long-lasting bull market
Investors are hoping that under inflation, companies will be able to raise prices without encountering too much pushback from customers.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 2, 2023
Japan workers are shifting from lifetime employment, LinkedIn's country head says
Firms also need to adapt to changing attitudes among workers who value family life and flexibility more than they did in the past, the company's first female country chief has said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
May 20, 2023
A $518 billion rally shows Japanese stocks are all the rage in 2023
Some of the world’s most famed investors are voicing a near consensus that Japan’s stock market is the place to be as its larger peers grapple with rising economic headwinds.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
May 19, 2023
Japan stocks extend rally as Nikkei 225 hovers at 1990 high
The Nikkei stock index advanced as much as 1.2% to 30,924.57, putting the blue-chip gauge at the highest intraday level since August 1990.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 20, 2023
Man Group shares Warren Buffett’s renewed optimism for Japanese stocks
Stocks in Japan are primed to outpace global peers this year as improving corporate-governance standards and the central bank’s potential policy normalization burnish the nation’s appeal.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 28, 2023
Suntory Beverage’s first female CEO seeks $5 billion in drinks acquisitions
The company sees potential in health-related drinks in the U.S., Asia and regions where Suntory has currently little presence, said Makiko Ono.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 22, 2023
Bad timing as Japan hosts this year's first bank IPO
Amid ongoing global financial turmoil, Tokyo-based SBI Sumishin Net Bank shares were priced at the bottom of a range at ¥1,200 each against an expected price of as high as ¥1,260.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 16, 2023
The Japanese venture capital star bagging 35% returns mining science papers for gold
Tomotaka Goji, a bureaucrat-turned-technology guru, has his sights set on transforming Japan's startup culture.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 7, 2023
China's demand for Japanese cosmetics remains weak, says analyst
With premium brands now available online and on Hainan Island at lower prices than in the past, there is no longer a reason to travel to Japan just to buy them, Wakako Sato says.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023
TV announcer turned portfolio manager beats 97% of Japanese peers
Maiko Uda reckons the Bank of Japan will raise its cap for 10-year sovereign yields to at least 1.5% within two years from 0.5% now.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals