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Inspectors analyze saliva collected with test kits at SalivaTech.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Jan 8, 2024

Tohoku startup offers way to detect cancer early using saliva

SalivaTech's SalivaChecker is a test kit that provides high-precision analysis of around 10 types of salivary metabolites.
Fans praised Nintendo for following up one of the best open-world games ever made with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, a worthy sequel that introduced enough new mechanics to keep the experience fresh for players new and old alike.
CULTURE / 2023 in Review
Dec 22, 2023

Zelda was a gem among many in a crowning year for gaming

Japanese studios’ hits included: Street Fighter 6, remakes of Metroid Prime and Resident Evil 4, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, to name a few.
A young woman (Hana Sugisaki) slips through the cracks of Japan’s family register system in “Ichiko.”
CULTURE / Film
Dec 24, 2023

‘Ichiko’: Hana Sugisaki transfixes with career-high performance

Akihiro Toda’s impressive drama shows different sides of its slippery protagonist without passing judgment.
A drugstore in Tokyo in October
BUSINESS
Dec 23, 2023

Fund that got in before Buffett now likes Japan drugstores

A top fund manager says there’s opportunity to profit from consolidation in the sector.
Local media in China exposed a secretive surrogacy service that may be helping to deliver more than 300 babies a year.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 27, 2023

Chinese media expose prompts probe into illegal baby surrogacy

Despite Beijing’s repeated crackdowns and an outright ban, underground surrogacy services continue to thrive in China.
The No. 6 and No. 7 reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture in April 2021
JAPAN / Society
Dec 27, 2023

NRA lifts ban on operations at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear plant

When the plant will be reactivated remains uncertain as Tepco, the operator, needs to gain consent from local governments as well.
Prime minister Fumio Kishida reviews Japan Self-Defense Forces troops at Camp Asaka in Tokyo in November 2021.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 27, 2023

Reviewing Japan's security moves in 2023

With Japan's economic malaise and scandals eroding political capital in Tokyo, 2024 may yield an extended waiting period for new security measures.
An Afghan woman holds her newborn child at a maternity hospital in Khost, Afghanistan. According to the latest World Health Organization figures, from 2017, 638 women die in Afghanistan for every 100,000 viable births, compared with 19 in the United States.
WORLD / Society
Dec 28, 2023

For women in Afghanistan, every birth carries heavy risks

Afghanistan is among the worst countries in the world for deaths in childbirth, "with one woman dying every two hours," according to the U.N.
A woman points at a Glock handgun during the annual National Rifle Association convention in Dallas in 2018.
WORLD / Society
Dec 28, 2023

Gaston Glock, inventor of cult guns, dies at 94

His gun, wielded by police and outlaws alike, certainly made its mark worldwide, matched by few other weapons.
Erin Lim, CEO of baby products company Konny, in front of her company's new office in Seoul. Early starts and late finishes to workdays are routine in South Korea, a country notorious for its hard-driving corporate culture, but Erin Lim knew she wanted to do things differently at her business.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 28, 2023

South Korean mother's office-free firm sparks hope amid birthrate woes

South Korea has some of the world's lowest birth rates, and despite government incentives many women choose not to become mothers.
After being whipsawed by false starts calling for the end of the Fed’s rate hiking regime, a Bloomberg gauge of the greenback is down nearly 3% since January in the steepest annual drop for the U.S. currency since 2020.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 29, 2023

U.S. dollar is set for worst year since 2020

The dollar’s fall stands in contrast to the pound, which is set for its best year since 2017.
Daihatsu Motor President Soichiro Okudaira speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Dec. 20. 
EDITORIALS
Dec 29, 2023

Daihatsu scandal is a warning for Japan Inc.

Investigations indicate that improprieties at Daihatsu stretch as far back as 1989, indicating a profound problem with the company’s culture.
New recruits for the People's Liberation Army attend a ceremony at a railway station in Ganzhou, in China's Jiangxi province, in March.
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 30, 2023

China’s legislature ousts nine military cadres as turmoil widens

The removals are a sign Chinese President Xi Jinping’s nearly decadelong drive to clean up the People’s Liberation Army is still incomplete.
A wafer is pictured at Semicon Taiwan in Taipei
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 30, 2023

This startup shows it won't be easy to contain China's chip industry

The story of Seida illustrates the challenges the West faces in thwarting Chinese development of advanced microchip technology.
Naomi Osaka leaves the court after losing her match against Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday in Brisbane.
TENNIS
Jan 3, 2024

Pliskova rallies to oust Osaka in Brisbane

Osaka had eased through her first tour match in 15 months on Monday but former world No. 1 Pliskova proved an altogether tougher prospect.
Books published by Tuttle Publishing on a bookshelf in Infinity Books in Tokyo's Sumida Ward on Saturday
CULTURE / Books
Jan 3, 2024

Asia publishing mainstay Tuttle rides new wave of interest in Japan

The back catalog of Tuttle, which traces its history in Japan to 1948, is in high demand, and it has even branched out to graphic novel versions of classic Asian literature.
People gather near a body lying on the ground at the scene of explosions during a ceremony held to mark the death of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani, in Kerman, Iran, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 4, 2024

Iran vows revenge after blasts kill nearly 100 at commander's memorial

No one has claimed responsibility for the explosions at the cemetery where Qassem Soleimani, a former head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, is buried.
Demonstrators hold signs protesting Jeffrey Epstein as he awaits arraignment in the Southern District of New York on charges of sex trafficking of minors in 2019. While Epstein died by suicide that same year in a Manhattan prison cell before he could stand trial, his crimes have continued to resonate across Wall Street.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 4, 2024

Confidential Jeffrey Epstein documents unsealed in New York

Many of the people whose names will be unsealed are already known to have associated with the disgraced financier, and some have been named in similar litigation as well.
A South Korean soldier stands guard at the Joint Security Area in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas on Feb. 7, 2023. Since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a stalemate, both nations have had policies that treat each other differently than other countries.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 4, 2024

In threatening shift, Pyongyang moves to redefine relations with Seoul

Changes to North Korean policy and government organizations effectively treat South Korea as a separate, enemy state.
People gather at the scene of explosions during a ceremony held to mark the death of late Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, in Kerman, Iran, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 5, 2024

Islamic State claims responsibility for deadly Iran attack

The militant Sunni Muslim group said two IS members had detonated explosive belts in the crowd in Kerman on Wednesday.
Racing Louisville players celebrate a goal during a game in September. Japan's Yuuka Kurosaki is joining the club on a two-year deal.
SOCCER
Jan 5, 2024

NWSL's Racing Louisville sign Japanese midfielder Yuuka Kurosaki

The 26-year-old former University of Kentucky player signed a two-year deal with a mutual option for 2026.
Not only is Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” a billion-dollar blockbuster, it’s also a fun movie that’s full of heart.
CULTURE / Film
Jan 6, 2024

They can’t all be nominated for best picture, can they?

It’s a very competitive year for the top Oscar. With precursor awards like the Golden Globes coming soon, here’s what may make the cut.
A screen next to a police station in the city of Okayama featuring a road safety campaign video in November.
JAPAN
Jan 5, 2024

Japan sees rise in traffic deaths for first time in eight years

Japan still saw the third-lowest death toll on record, with data dating back to 1948.
Egypt's Hamdi Fathi chases after Senegal's Sadio Mane during the Africa Cup of Nations final in Cameroon in February 2022.
SOCCER
Jan 7, 2024

Stars of African soccer descend on Ivory Coast for Cup of Nations

Sadio Mane's Senegal team is aiming to retain their title and Mohamed Salah is chasing a first trophy with Egypt at this year's Africa Cup of Nations.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump appears during a campaign event in Durham, New Hampshire on Dec. 16.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 7, 2024

How Trump has used fear and favor to win Republican endorsements

The former president keeps careful watch over his endorsements from elected Republicans, aided by a disciplined and methodical behind-the-scenes operation.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi visits the bedside of a person injured in Jan. 3 twin blasts in Kerman, at a hospital in the southern city.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 7, 2024

Middle East player Iran weakened by internal woes

Tehran is accused by the West of playing a key role in unrest plaguing the Middle East, but recent twin bombings are a keen reminder of its own weaknesses.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida delivers his Quad Fellowship Announcement as the leaders of the United States, India and Australia look on after meeting in Tokyo in May 2022.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 8, 2024

Dialogue can boost security where military deterrence can’t

Military buildup without dialogue is too risky — civil society actors in East Asia understand this better than their governments.
The Yangshan Deepwater Port in Shanghai. China’s manufactured goods surplus relative to global gross domestic product is now around 2%, and an estimated 45% of China’s manufacturing output is being exported as the nation’s 1.4 billion people can’t buy enough goods such as electric vehicles, ships and household appliances to meet the increased supply.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 8, 2024

Xi Jinping’s solution for China’s economy risks triggering new trade war

Manufacturing focus sets up Beijing for renewed tensions with both developed countries and emerging economies pushing to reach the lower rungs of the industrialization.
Masaki Sato, who owns an 85-year-old property in the Akasaki district of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, walks in the district on Saturday after a major earthquake struck the Noto region on New Year's Day.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 8, 2024

Still standing: Unique houses survive quake in Japanese village

Despite a magnitude 7.6 quake only kilometers away, one small fishing village stood strong thanks to decades-old smart architecture.
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000-5 aircraft prepares to land in Hsinchu, Taiwan, on Jan. 2. In the event of a conflict with China, Taiwan would face a military that rivals that of the U.S.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 9, 2024

Xi, Biden and the $10 trillion cost of war over Taiwan

The price tag — equivalent to about 10% of global GDP — dwarfs the blow from the war in Ukraine, COVID-19 pandemic and 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?