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JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

Blair hails Toyota plan to expand production in U.K.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Hiroshi Okuda, president of Toyota Motor Corp., announced at a press conference Friday that the automaker has decided to expand an engine factory in Great Britain.Toyota will increase the annual manufacturing capacity of 1,000cc to 1,300cc gasoline engines at a Toyota...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

Fiscal woes plague Osaka governor

Staff writerNearly three years ago, comedian and Diet member "Knock" Yokoyama shocked the nation by winning Osaka Prefecture's gubernatorial election as an independent, despite entering the race only three weeks before the voting.Yokoyama won because voters, angry with the former governor for his involvement...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

St. Ignatius Church reveals initial phase of facelift

The first phase of construction of a new building for St. Ignatius Church, near Yotsuya Station in Tokyo, is finished and was unveiled to the press Friday.The building, a Catholic church well known in the Japanese and foreign community alike, is oval-shaped and has a floor space of 1,450 sq. meters,...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

Emissions-cutting panel holds first meeting

A government panel on global warming launched efforts Friday to find ways to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 6 percent from 1990 levels, in accordance with a convention signed last month at an international conference in Kyoto.The panel, headed by Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and consisting of all...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

Committee agrees to begin work on new bullet train sections

A committee of representatives from the government and the three ruling parties agreed Friday to begin construction on three new bullet train sections in fiscal 1997.The committee had been discussing the proposed public work projects, under which runs would be built between:1) Hachinohe and Shin Aomori...
JAPAN
Jan 9, 1998

Free home stays available for Paralympics participants

The Nagano Olympic and Paralympic Homestay Program Committee is inviting friends and families of officials and athletes participating in the Games to apply for free accommodation in Nagano.Between Feb. 1 and Mar. 15, qualified visitors will be able to stay two or three nights -- but no more than a week...
JAPAN
Jan 8, 1998

Agency rates 20 life insurers' ability to pay claims

Amid growing public concerns about financial institutions, the Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) on Thursday released a ranking of 20 major life insurance firms in terms of ability to provide payouts.The list included 10 life insurers whose ratings had been previously released in accordance with paid...
JAPAN
Jan 8, 1998

Finance revision to qualify preferred stock buys by DIC

Financial institutions that want the Deposit Insurance Corp. to purchase their preferred stock will first be required to submit management improvement plans to ensure that public funds will not be used too freely to bail out ailing banks, a top Finance Ministry official said Thursday.Banking Bureau Director...
JAPAN
Jan 8, 1998

Hashimoto dismisses calls for any further tax cuts

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto indicated Thursday that he opposes income and residential tax cuts above the 2 trillion yen already announced.Speaking before the House of Councilors' Finance Committee, Hashimoto said he was aware of calls from business leaders and opposition parties for a greater reduction...
JAPAN
Jan 8, 1998

Heavy snow blankets Tokyo region

Tokyo and its surrounding areas were hit by heavy snow Thursday which disrupted traffic and prompted the Meteorological Agency to issue the capital a heavy snow warning -- its first in two years.The snowfall played havoc with Tokyo's highly organized transportation system, forcing train delays in several...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

Kumon left estate of 1.91 billion yen

Takeshi Kumon, president of Kumon Education Institute, left an estate valued at about 1.91 billion yen when he died last year, Tokyo tax authorities disclosed Wednesday.The property, mainly made up of the late Kumon's house and land in Tokyo's Meguro Ward and shares of the institute, has been inherited...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

LDP aims to take Upper House majority

A draft of the Liberal Democratic Party's policy platform for 1998 carries a call to arms to win a majority in the Upper House in the July election.The LDP currently holds 120 seats in the 252-seat chamber. It lost its majority in the chamber in July 1989, following the introduction of the consumption...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

Priest held over stimulant possession

Tokyo police have arrested a Shinto priest for possessing 2 grams of stimulant drugs in violation of the Stimulant Drug Control Law, police said Wednesday.According to police, Masanori Sagara, 50, of the Oizumi Hikawa Shrine in Nerima Ward, was found in possession of 2 grams of stimulants near JR Ikebukuro...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

Man arrested over Osaka murder

OSAKA -- The partial remains of a female Osaka restaurant owner missing since late December were unearthed Wednesday and the man who led police to the site has been arrested in connection with her slaying, police said.Osaka Prefectural Police arrested Yoshio Ishida, 51, of Osaka's Minato Ward, on suspicion...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

Brokers' shady deals target of amendment

Steps to amend the Securities and Exchange Law will be submitted to the upcoming Diet session so that profits made by brokerages through shady means such as market manipulation can be confiscated, Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka said Tuesday.The proposed revision is part of the ministry's package...
JAPAN
Jan 7, 1998

Opposition parties unite over policy, 6 trillion yen tax cuts

Six opposition parties agreed Wednesday to specific policy measures, including a call for tax cuts worth 6 trillion yen, for their planned joint parliamentary group.The leaders of the Democratic Party of Japan, Shinto Yuai (New Party Fraternity), Kokumin no Koe (Voice of the People), the Taiyo Party,...
JAPAN
Jan 6, 1998

Hashimoto renews pledge to reform economy

With the leaders of the four leading economic organizations before him, Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto renewed on Tuesday his pledge to make the greatest efforts to rebuild the economy and stabilize the financial system."The government will do its best to make this new year a good one for the nation,"...
JAPAN
Jan 6, 1998

Yen keeps losing ground to dollar

The yen gave up further ground against the dollar Tuesday amid concerns over the ailing Japanese economy and financial crises in Southeast Asian countries.The yen fell to 134.38 yen to the dollar at one point, its lowest in almost six years, before settling at 133.57-60 yen at 5 p.m., compared with Monday's...
JAPAN
Jan 6, 1998

Mitsuzuka proposes stock market stabilization measures

Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka announced Tuesday a set of measures -- including the introduction of more stringent restrictions regarding the short-selling of stocks -- aimed at reducing volatility in Tokyo's stock markets.Specifically, the definition of short-selling under the Securities and Exchange...
JAPAN
Jan 6, 1998

Big business calls for political leadership

Shoichiro Toyoda, chairman of the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren), said Tuesday that political leadership is needed to swiftly pass planned measures to cope with the economy."Toward the end of last year, various measures were drafted," Toyoda told a joint news conference with other...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 1998

TSE, yen decline sharply on first trading day of '98

The Tokyo stock market and the yen fell sharply Monday, the year's first trading day, amid lingering fears about the ailing economy and the beleaguered banking industry.The 225-issue Nikkei average fell 301.90 points, or 1.98 percent, to end the half-day session at 14,956.84.The gloom in the financial...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 1998

Aoshima wants foreign panel's views, not politics

Staff writerThe foreign residents' council recently launched in Tokyo should not be political, but it will be a valuable source of foreigners' opinions for the governor, Yukio Aoshima said in a New Year's interview."I don't want the council to have a political meaning," the Tokyo governor said. "It is...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 1998

Yokoyama looks to save Osaka from financial woes

Osaka Gov. "Knock" Yokoyama says that the prefecture's financial woes left him on the verge of despair but that talks with the national government over reform measures are continuing."I felt desperate, at times, because the situation was so bad," Yokoyama said. "But we must do what we can to turn the...
JAPAN
Jan 5, 1998

Authorities ready to intervene on yen's behalf, Komura says

Authorities are prepared to take appropriate action to stabilize currency markets, Vice Finance Minister Takeshi Komura said Monday, adding he is concerned about the yen's recent weakening.The ministry's top bureaucrat told a regular press conference that the yen's depreciation is "undesirable."Touching...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1998

The Telecoms Race: TTNet takes lead in domestic price war

Second of two partsStaff writerDeregulation in the telecommunications sector began to be slowly implemented over a decade ago, but it is only now that the industry is entering cutthroat price competition, accelerated by the imminent breakup of NTT.On Jan. 7, Tokyo Telecommunication Network Co. (TTNet)...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1998

Tokyo, Pyongyang bending to renew ties

Staff writerPositive developments have been emerging between Japan and North Korea in their efforts to resume negotiations aimed at establishing diplomatic ties, but a bumpy road still lies ahead, partly because of the deterioration of the South Korean economy.A resumption of full-scale normalization...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1998

Into the Fast Lane: Multilateral netting to break forex 'oligopoly'

Staff writerBye-bye banks. Some major manufacturers and trading houses are trying to bypass banks for foreign exchange transactions.While it may benefit these firms, the April 1 deregulation will lead to a tough survival game for banks in the foreign exchange business. Under the revised law, firms in...
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1998

JAS stewardesses first to qualify as Red Cross aid instructors

Two Japan Air System flight attendants have passed qualification tests to become Red Cross first-aid instructors so they can teach colleagues such emergency techniques as heart massages.Yuko Hiiragi, 37, and Taeko Kunishige, 34, are the first Japanese cabin crew members to acquire the qualifications....
JAPAN
Jan 2, 1998

Mitsui set to rebuild its 'zaibatsu' empire

The prewar Mitsui "zaibatsu" conglomerate appears to be making a comeback after being outlawed for five decades as Sakura Bank and other financial institutions belonging to the Mitsui group of companies are contemplating forming a holding company.Financial industry sources said Friday that Mitsui Trust...
JAPAN
Dec 31, 1997

Into the Fast Lane: Freer forex laws offer multiple benefits

First in a series

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