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JAPAN
May 26, 1997

Izui denies bribing, is mum on fraud

Osaka-based oil dealer Junichi Izui pleaded not guilty May 26 to bribing a former official of Kansai International Airport Co., and postponed entering a plea on his fraud charge.
JAPAN
May 26, 1997

Land prices limit RCB's bad loan efforts to 7.6%

The Resolution and Collection Bank said May 26 that it has succeeded in collecting only 7.6 percent of the problem loans it has taken over from failed credit unions.
JAPAN
May 26, 1997

Remains of 2,508 dead laid to rest at war memorial

The remains of 2,508 people who died abroad during World War II were laid to rest at Tokyo's Chidorigafuchi war memorial May 26 in a government-sponsored ceremony.
JAPAN
May 26, 1997

Braille 'meishi' make new impression

For businesspeople in Japan wanting to make a strong first impression, "meishi," or business cards, are as invaluable as an Armani suit or a reverential bow.
JAPAN
May 26, 1997

Forum on sexual exploitation set for May 28

The Swedish Embassy and the Japan Committee for UNICEF will hold a meeting and international symposium May 28 in Tokyo on the problem of commercial sexual exploitation of children.
JAPAN
May 26, 1997

'Kaiware' farmers sue state over reported link to E. coli

OSAKA -- The Osaka District Court opened hearings May 26 in a 53 million yen compensation suit filed by farmers in Habikino, Osaka Prefecture, over a state announcement that linked "kaiware" daikon sprouts from their farm to the O-157 E. coli epidemic last summer.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Sumitomo Bank shuffles leadership

OSAKA -- Sumitomo Bank announced May 23 that Vice President Yoshifumi Nishikawa will replace Toshio Morikawa as president, effective June 27.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Diet committee passes J. League lottery bill

The Lower House Education Committee approved a soccer lottery bill May 23, paving the way for the implementation of a system to obtain funds from the public to promote sports.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Nine city banks log pretax profits for '96

Nine of the nation's 10 city banks managed to post pretax profits in the year that ended March 31, thanks to their progress in disposing sour loans, according to business reports released May 23.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

The Asahara Trial: Commuter recalls gas attack victims

A Tokyo company employee described in court May 23 how he helped three victims of the 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system, for which some members of the religious cult Aum Shinrikyo are now on trial.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Mitsuzuka backs BOJ's easy money policy

Finance Minister Hiroshi Mitsuzuka, commenting on increasing calls by members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party for interest rates to be boosted, reiterated his support for the Bank of Japan's current easy monetary policy.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

McGill University to offer MBA program

In association with Sophia University, a Canadian university will launch the first foreign graduate degree program in Japan in July of next year, officials announced May 23.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Survey of foreigners leaves Tokyo officials amazed

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government unveiled May 23 the results of its first comprehensive poll on living conditions for foreign residents in Tokyo, which it says is one of the largest ever conducted on foreigners in Japan.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Rights group says hospital padded staff in '93

OSAKA -- A local volunteer group advocating rights of people with mental disabilities told reporters here May 23 that the Osaka Prefectural Government has neglected charges that a hospital padded the size of its staff to get more money.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

JR Tokai's net profit jumps 34.7%

Central Japan Railway Co. said May 23 that it posted a pretax profit of 66.3 billion yen in the 1996 business year, up 6.1 percent from the previous year, on operating revenues of 1.15 trillion yen.
JAPAN
May 23, 1997

Ogawa Securities to shut down

OSAKA -- Ogawa Securities Co., burdened with mounting bad loans, will halt operations May 27 and plans to go out of business July 31, the company said May 23.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Experts debate pitfalls of nursing care plan

Many Japanese who go into a blue funk over the rapid aging of society may see a silver lining with the Lower House's approval May 22 of key social-welfare bills.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Only two speak at 'open' Takashimaya meeting

OSAKA -- Takashimaya Co., tainted by a scandal involving alleged payoffs to a gangster, said May 22 at its annual shareholders' meeting that it would be more open and transparent.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Asahi Solar ordered to halt 'persistent' sales practices

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on May 22 ordered Asahi Solar Co. of Oita, a leading maker of solar water heaters, to halt its aggressive home-call sales tactics, authorities said.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Nonlife insurers report 2.2% decline in profits

The nation's five major nonlife insurance firms on May 22 released earnings reports for the year that ended March 31, revealing that their combined pretax profits fell 2.2 percent from the previous year.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Electronics firms leapfrog falling semiconductor market

Buoyed by strong sales of computer-related equipment and communications devices such as cellular phones, the nation's major electronics manufacturers on May 22 reported increases in sales revenues in the business year that ended March 31.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

Editor rues not probing Aum for body-burning story

The deputy editor of the Sunday Mainichi weekly magazine testified in court May 22 that he regrets not pursuing rumors that Aum Shinrikyo was burning bodies in an incinerator in 1989.
JAPAN
May 22, 1997

ANA feud takes new twist: Wakasa to resign from board

Tokuji Wakasa, the powerful and controversial 82-year-old honorary chairman of All Nippon Airways, will resign as a board member next month in an apparent move to take responsibility for a recent feud that shook the firm's top management.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

BOJ bill clears Lower House panel

A government-proposed bill to revise the Bank of Japan Law and give the central bank greater independence cleared the Lower House Finance Committee late May 21.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Nation's largest underground mall opens

OSAKA -- Crysta Nagahori, the nation's largest underground shopping mall, was opened to the public May 21 in Chuo Ward here.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Rengo hits up BOJ for swift interest rate increase

The Japan Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) called on the Bank of Japan on May 21 to give up its current easy monetary policy, saying it is having a detrimental effect on the economy.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Man survives leap from Rainbow Bridge

A man survived after jumping 50 meters into Tokyo Bay from the Rainbow Bridge on May 21 after authorities were unable to talk him out of trying to commit suicide, police said.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Japan Olympic Committee to visit rival cities' sites

The Japanese Olympic Committee study group tasked with selecting Japan's candidate for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games will make a two-day visit next month to Osaka and Yokohama, the two cities trying to attract the international event, the JOC said May 21.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Tokyu laying track to ease crowded trains

Construction is now in full swing to ease one of the most notorious problems in Tokyo -- overcrowded trains during rush hour.
JAPAN
May 21, 1997

Weak yen helps lift Toyota profits to 620 billion yen

Supported by brisk sales and the weaker yen, Toyota Motor Corp. said May 21 that its unconsolidated pretax profit surged 82.1 percent to 620.4 billion yen -- the third-highest level for the firm -- in the 1996 business year that ended March 31.

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