Search - 2023

 
 
People wait in line to take a COVID-19 oral swab test on a sidewalk in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City on June 20.
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 25, 2023

Highly mutated COVID variant BA.2.86 found in two more countries

Omicron offshoot BA.2.86 carries more than 35 mutations in key portions of the virus compared with XBB.1.5, the dominant variant through most of 2023.
People attend a job fair in China's southwestern city of Chongqing on April 11. China on Aug. 15 said it would suspend the release of youth unemployment data, fueling data transparency concerns and heightening worries about the country’s economic slowdown.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Aug 25, 2023

China braces for wider youth unemployment problems

Last week, Beijing decided to halt the release of urban youth unemployment data, which has been soaring in recent years.
Infielder Jose Osuna is two home runs away from his second straight 20-homer season for the Swallows.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Aug 25, 2023

Confident Jose Osuna says Swallows just have to keep fighting

Jose Osuna still has faith in the Swallows despite the team's underwhelming performance this season.
Angels two-way player Shohei Ohtani has a torn UCL, the team announced on Wednesday night.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 25, 2023

Will Ohtani’s injury pick his pocket in free agency?

Baseball’s history-making two-way player has a torn ulnar collateral ligament.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell attends the Jackson Hole economic symposium in Moran, Wyoming, on Friday.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Aug 26, 2023

Fed chief's 'higher for longer' mantra fans investor caution

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has left open the possibility of further rate increases and stressed the U.S. economy’s surprising strength.
Seawater sampling operations near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant after treated water was discharged into the ocean on Friday
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 27, 2023

More tests show radiation levels of Fukushima seawater remain below limits

Tokyo hopes what it says is a transparent release of data will serve as a strong rebuttal to claims by Beijing that the discharge is dangerous.
Pham Minh Chinh, Vietnam's prime minister, at a summit in Brussels in December 2022
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 28, 2023

Flagging growth fuels tensions clouding Vietnam premier’s future

Despite some successes, failure to hit the country's ambitious growth target could be career-damaging for PM Pham Minh Chinh.
Security personnel guard the BYD booth at the Auto Shanghai show in April 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2023

China's leading electric carmaker BYD triples half-year profit

This month the company became the first global manufacturer to pass the 5 million milestone in electric vehicle production.
Workers unload sacks of onions from a truck at a wholesale market in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India, on April 5.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 4, 2023

How these grocery staples became emblems of inflation in Asia

From war to disease to the effects of climate change, global food prices have been shaken by various factors in recent years.
The threat of Mosquito-borne dengue fever is not restricted to South Asia as infection rates are rising globally with 4.2 million cases reported in 2022.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife
Sep 8, 2023

Mosquito-borne dengue grows deadlier in South Asia as planet warms

Disease experts say the worsening outbreaks of dengue are linked to the impacts of climate change.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto's second career no-hitter was also the 100th such game in Japanese professional baseball history.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Sep 10, 2023

Yama-no-no: Orix ace puts world on notice with second no-hitter

The right-hander's superb form for the PL-leading Buffaloes is expected to bring him more awards this offeseason — as well as a bidding war by MLB clubs.
Veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers' (right) injury came just four plays into his Jets debut at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Monday.
MORE SPORTS
Sep 13, 2023

Jets QB Aaron Rodgers to miss rest of season with torn Achilles

Rodgers fell awkwardly during the team's fourth play from scrimmage and eventually had to be helped off the field by two members of the medical staff.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks at a news conference during the trilateral summit at Camp David, Maryland, on Aug. 18.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 13, 2023

South Korea’s political bifurcation will stifle any trilateral agreement

The South Korean left, which is currently out of power, has a foreign policy agenda that is incompatible with the Camp David Principles.
A self-driving Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle in San Francisco in 2017
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 17, 2023

With self-driving cars, it's the ethics we have to navigate

Do accidents involving self-driving cars today save lives tomorrow? When it comes to self-driving cars, the challenges aren't just technical, but ethical.
While India’s gross domestic product is still smaller than China’s, the country is currently the world’s fastest-growing major economy and is projected to account for 12.9% of global growth over the next five years.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 18, 2023

India’s quiet rise as Asia's other demographic giant

While India appears stable and resurgent under Modi, its future will depend on its ability to maintain political stability and rapid economic growth.
The Bank of Japan's headquarters in Tokyo
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 19, 2023

The Bank of Japan faces a monetary policy conundrum

The BOJ may need to interpret the 2% price stability target more flexibly.
Yuki Tsunoda arrives at Suzuka Circuit on Friday ahead of the first practice sessions for the Japanese Grand Prix.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 23, 2023

AlphaTauri makes it official: Yuki Tsunoda keeps seat for 2024

The Japanese driver's immediate future in Formula One is secure, with his AlphaTauri team confirming that his contract has been finalized for 2024.
The World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai in 2020
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 21, 2023

Human success means evolving with AI, not shunning it

Most future jobs will be hybrid, powered by human and artificial intelligence. The challenge lies in striking the right balance.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has overseen foreign policy successes during his two years in power, including on the nation's approach to development aid and climate change.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 28, 2023

Kishida's mixed bag of successes and shortcomings

Kishida has also been adept in terms of diplomacy in at least four areas: the war in Ukraine, the Taiwan issue, development aid and South Korea relations.
South Korean tourists shield themselves from the sun in Ronda, Spain, on Aug. 9. Much of the world sweltered through unseasonably warm weather in September, in a year expected to be the hottest in human history.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Oct 5, 2023

September hottest on record by 'extraordinary' margin: EU monitor

The average surface air temperature for the month was around 1.75 C hotter than the September average in the 1850-1900 pre-industrial period.
U.S. President Joe Biden joins members of the United Auto Workers union as they strike in Belleville, Michigan, on Sept. 26 to demand higher wages.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 8, 2023

Down on the Biden economy: Why Americans aren't happy

The U.S. economy is doing well. Why, then, are people not satisfied? The answer lies in their pockets.
Since Prime Minister Fumio Kishida launched his administration in 2021, he has vowed to boost spending by trillions of yen to tackle some deep-rooted issues. But how exactly the government will fund such efforts remains unclear.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 8, 2023

Private group calls for independent body to monitor long-term fiscal policy

The proposal suggests future projections can help citizens think more seriously about how fiscal matters could affect future generations.
Smoke rises after Israeli strikes on the seaport of Gaza City on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 11, 2023

Gaza's 75 years of woe: A brief history

The narrow strip of land has been under military rule for most of the last century and is now a fenced-in enclave of more than 2 million Palestinians.
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban meet in Budapest in October 2021. Modern autocrats focus on manipulating public opinion while gradually weakening the democratic institutions from which they claim legitimacy.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 5, 2023

No, the world's democracies are not 'backsliding'

Fears that we're turning the clock back on democracy are inaccurate — and unhelpful for dealing with new shades of authoritarianism.
A gender-equality supporter protests against discrimination at an event held in Tokyo for International Women's Day in March 2021
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 13, 2023

Japan’s gender gap has never been wider. Can Kishida close it?

The government emphasizes the need to improve gender equality, but correcting Japan's dismal record requires a nuanced approach.
Palestinians in Gaza City evacuate after an Israeli airstrike on Oct 9.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 13, 2023

The spiral of violence that led to Hamas

If Palestinians are ever to regain the moral high ground, they must hope for the destruction of Hamas.
Visitors walk down the main shopping street of Nanjing East Road, one of Shanghai's main commercial and tourist areas, on Sept. 30.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 17, 2023

China data likely to show fragile economy in need of support

Data due Wednesday will likely show gross domestic product expanded 4.5% in the July-to-September period from a year earlier.
When COVID-19 first emerged, companies across the health care industry raced to reconfigure themselves. That transformation is now unraveling.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 18, 2023

Life after COVID turns rocky for reshaped health care businesses

When the coronavirus first emerged, companies across the health care industry raced to reconfigure themselves. That transformation is now unraveling.
U.S. Army soldier Travis King. Details are still scarce about King's treatment in North Korean custody and the soldier has not publicly explained why he fled to one of the world's most reclusive nations on July 19.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 20, 2023

U.S. Army charges Travis King with desertion over North Korea dash

Details are still scarce about King's treatment in North Korean custody
As G7 leaders pledge to combat economic coercion with an eye on China, this could be counterproductive and end up hurting global trade.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 23, 2023

The G7's anti-coercion campaign against China could backfire

When G7 trade representatives convene in Osaka starting Saturday, Chinese “economic coercion” is expected to be high on the agenda.

Longform

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