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Himari Semans
Three political parties' secretaries-general sign a confirmation letter in Tokyo on Friday regarding the tax-free income threshold.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 20, 2024
Ruling camp approves tax reform proposal
The ruling bloc agreed to “continue talks in good faith” with the DPP, which wants to further raise the tax-free income threshold.
The average retail gasoline price is expected to rise by over ¥5 per liter as the government has announced that it will reduce subsidies to oil wholesalers.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 19, 2024
Gasoline prices rise as Japanese government cuts subsidies
Until now the industry ministry has subsidized 60% of gasoline costs over ¥168 and under ¥185, but from Thursday the subsidy dropped to 30% for prices in that range.
U.S. first lady Melania Trump, U.S. President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife, Akie Abe, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, in May 2019
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 12, 2024
Widow of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hopes to meet with Trump
Akie Abe's late husband was once dubbed the “Trump Whisperer” for his close ties with the former U.S. president.
Keidanren chief Masakazu Tokura speaks to reporters in the city of Nanao, Ishikawa Prefecture on Nov. 20.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 10, 2024
Keidanren urges tax hike for rich with eye on ¥1 quadrillion GDP
Such a move will help the nation achieve a “virtuous cycle of growth and distribution,” Keidanren chief Masakazu Tokura says.
The Liberal Democratic Party proposed abolishing the system of political activities funds — criticized as a hotbed for slush funds — and obligating party members to submit balance reports to a publicly accessible online database.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 9, 2024
LDP submits bill banning most political funding but leaves 'loophole'
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba hopes to pass the bill this year, but that may not be possible with opposition parties holding out for a further ban on corporate donations.
A line of police officers stand guard as protesters gather at the edge of Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul on Wednesday after President Yoon Suk Yeol formally lifted martial law earlier, six hours after having declared it.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 4, 2024
Yoon fights for political life as martial law repercussions reverberate
A coalition of lawmakers from six opposition parties on Wednesday submitted a motion to impeach the South Korean president, with a vote set for Friday or Saturday.
A fire broke out on the sixth floor of an apartment building where Upper House lawmaker Kuniko Inoguchi resides on Wednesday in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 28, 2024
Two dead after fire at Upper House lawmaker Kuniko Inoguchi’s apartment
The lawmaker's husband and eldest daughter, who were captured on security camera footage entering the building earlier, remain unaccounted for.
In last month’s Lower House election, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who also serves as president of the Liberal Democratic Party, excluded members implicated in a slush funds scandal who refused to attend a Lower House ethics hearing earlier this year from the party’s proportional representation candidates list.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 28, 2024
More scandal-hit LDP lawmakers to attend Upper House ethics hearing
The lawmakers could be at a disadvantage in next summer's Upper House election if they do not attend the hearing.
“What Divides Us" producer Cannon Hersey says his grandfather, who wrote about the aftermath of nuclear destruction in Hiroshima, never spoke about what he had seen while working with Japanese minister Kiyoshi Tanimoto to preserve the stories of survivors.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 27, 2024
‘What Divides Us’ producer honors grandfather’s Hiroshima reportage
The feature film centers on the bond between a Japanese minister and an American journalist who worked together to document the aftermath of nuclear destruction.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a Liberal Democratic Party meeting on political reform on Thursday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 22, 2024
LDP approves proposal to ban political activities funds
The ruling party will look to revise the political funds control law by the end of this year.
Shuntaro Tanikawa
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2024
Poet Shuntaro Tanikawa dies at 92
Tanikawa, who is also known for translating the Snoopy and Charlie Brown comic strip “Peanuts” into Japanese, died of natural causes.
A Ferrari F12tdf fetched a record-high price of ¥171,001,000 ($1.09 million) in a tax agency auction this week.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2024
Ferrari sells for ¥171 million at Japanese tax sale
The gunmetal gray Ferrari F12tdf, registered in 2017 and with only 1,509 kilometers on the odometer, received 127 bids during the auction.
The Lower House plenary session on Monday
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 13, 2024
Ishiba in for a bumpy ride as CDP takes Budget Committee post
In a rare move, the Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, Komeito, conceded the Budget Committee post to the opposition.
DPP leader Yuichiro Tamaki speaks to reporters on Monday at parliament.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 11, 2024
Head of key opposition DPP admits affair ahead of parliament vote for PM
Yuichiro Tamaki admitted to the affair after a tabloid reported on the relationship, jeopardizing his future in the party and any tie-ups with the LDP and Komeito.
Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Itsunori Onodera (right) and his Democratic Party for the People counterpart, Makoto Hamaguchi, meet in Tokyo on Friday to discuss policies their parties could potentially agree on.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 8, 2024
LDP between a rock and a hard place in struggle to get DPP support
The opposition party wants to raise the threshold for tax exemptions from the current ¥1.03 million ($6,740), a move that would cost the government tax revenues.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who serves as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks during a party meeting in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 7, 2024
LDP lawmakers urge Ishiba to step down after budget passage next year
But neither the prime minister, nor LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama, said they would step down.
In a group interview at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Thursday, Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya declined to make predictions about the Liberal Democratic Party’s approach to any revisions to the Status of Forces Agreement, but said he believes “some wisdom will probably come about” from planned talks within the party.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 4, 2024
Top diplomat says Foreign Ministry will ‘quietly examine’ revising SOFA pact
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya says finding a "mutually acceptable" solution to issues in the pact governing the U.S. military presence in Japan is key.
One shortcoming of the Freelance Act — a new law designed to improve the working conditions of freelancers — is that freelancers and clients don't know much about it.
JAPAN / Explainer
Oct 31, 2024
What is the Freelance Act, Japan’s first-ever law to help freelancers?
The law introduces new measures to help self-employed workers. However, some shortcomings remain, experts say.
The number of female CEOs in Japan in 2024 rose 37,038 from the year before, or by 6%.
BUSINESS
Oct 25, 2024
Proportion of female CEOs in Japan breaks 15% for first time
Survey finds progress but notes that prejudice based on gender roles remains an issue.
A cyclist stops to look at an electronic share price board in Tokyo on Sept. 30. From Nov. 1, cyclists who use their cellphones while cycling or ride under the influence of alcohol may be fined or jailed.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 20, 2024
Road traffic law revisions for cycling offenses to kick in next month
Cyclists who use their cellphones while cycling or ride under the influence of alcohol will be liable to fines and imprisonment from Nov. 1.

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Yasuyuki Yoshida stirs a brew in a fermentation tank at his brewery in Hakusan.
The quake that shook Noto's sake brewing tradition