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JAPAN
Oct 23, 2001

Trade surplus down 43.1% in first half

The nation's customs-cleared trade surplus plunged 43.1 percent from a year earlier to 3.3 trillion yen during the first half of fiscal 2001, the Finance Ministry said Monday in a preliminary report.
JAPAN
Oct 21, 2001

December deadline for SPEs: draft

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will finalize a plan on reforming special public entities in early December if the government fails to reach a consensus on the issue, according to a final draft of the plan released Saturday.
BUSINESS
Oct 20, 2001

Yamaha revs up restructuring plan

Motorcycle maker Yamaha Motor Co. said Friday that it will give full management independence to sales unit Yamaha Motor Marketing Japan Co. in April.
BUSINESS
Oct 20, 2001

Economy policy council approves extra budget

The Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy on Friday approved an outline of a planned 2.7 trillion yen supplementary budget for this business year, with 1 trillion yen earmarked for structural reform measures.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 20, 2001

Food from home, direct to your door in Japan

Chuck Grafft spends much of his life surrounded by the stronger sex. Not that he is complaining. As president and CEO of the Foreign Buyers Club (FBC) in Kobe, most of his staff are women -- women representing nine cultures, including Japanese. Also, wife Kelly, now back to work, with four daughters,...
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2001

First meeting of Asian city leaders outlines 15 projects to boost region

Leaders of major Asian cities issued a declaration Thursday, outlining 15 joint projects that include the development of the region's air industry, online education and environmentally friendly vehicles.
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2001

Failure of Japan's reforms may cause global crisis

Although economic issues appear to have recently taken a back seat in Japan-U.S. relations -- particularly since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks -- the failure of Japan's economic reform initiatives could lead to another financial crisis that would also have a serious impact on the U.S., warned a U.S....
JAPAN
Oct 19, 2001

How will terrorist atrocities in U.S. affect business elsewhere?

The terrorist attacks on the United States last month will cause economic hardship across North America, but experts discussing the outlook for east Asia's major economies at the Brookings Institution-Keizai Koho Center Regional Forum were divided on the knock-on impact here.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2001

Hands-free messages set for debut

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. and Honda Motor Co. have developed a new communication system for vehicles that lets drivers exchange e-mail and make telephone calls without using their hands.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2001

Toshiba, Matsushita plan two joint ventures

Toshiba Corp. and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. announced Wednesday they will set up two joint ventures in April, each dealing with a different type of electronic display.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2001

Bankruptcy rush simmering: Teikoku Databank expert

Katsuyuki Kumagai has witnessed an abundance of corporate bankruptcies during his 17-year tenure at a credit research firm.
SOCCER / THE BALD TRUTH
Oct 18, 2001

No-fry zones a must during World Cup

It used to be good being Swiss, apparently. Now the country that gave us the cuckoo clock and Toblerone finds itself without an airline and, worse still, without World Cup soccer on the telly next year.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2001

U.S. to ride second IT wave of recovery

Despite the global economic woes fueled by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, the U.S. economy will probably come out of its slump as early as the second quarter of next year, according to a senior Wall Street watcher who was recently in Japan.
CULTURE / Art
Oct 17, 2001

Defining Style

In the 10,000 years since the Arctic icecap receded sufficiently to enable human inhabitation of the land we now know as Sweden, the curiously creative nation has gifted the world with the likes of Beowulf, Strindberg, Bergman and, well, Abba.
CULTURE / Art
Oct 17, 2001

Sweden's other ambassador

Ewa Kumlin pondered the question, "What is Swedish style?" Then she set her mind to answering it.
BUSINESS
Oct 16, 2001

Trade balance for August down 27%

The current account surplus fell 27.1 percent in August from a year earlier to 708.6 billion yen, the Finance Ministry said Monday in a preliminary report.
Events
Oct 16, 2001

Ecotourism campaign spotlights Shiga area

MAIHARA, Shiga Pref -- In an effort to draw more visitors to this area, the Shiga Prefectural Government is running a one-month ecotourism campaign.
BUSINESS
Oct 14, 2001

Singapore free trade pact set to be signed by yearend

Japan and Singapore effectively concluded negotiations on a comprehensive free trade arrangement Friday, opening the way for Japan to conclude its first FTA by the end of this year.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 14, 2001

Country roads take them to new homes

Get away. Away from squeezing yourself into a packed train, making your way in a slow-moving human tide up stairs and through ticket gates. From walking in a crowd like a soldier ant, trotting ahead to avoid cigarette smoke from a man in front, only to breathe in foul diesel fumes at intersections on...
JAPAN
Oct 13, 2001

JAL to post 50 billion yen pretax losses

Japan Airlines said Friday that it is likely to post pretax losses of 50 billion yen in fiscal 2001 on both a parent-only and group basis due to a decline in passengers in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.
BUSINESS
Oct 13, 2001

Matsushita predicts deficit will deepen to 68 billion yen

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. has revised downward its earnings projections for the first half of fiscal 2001, company officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Oct 13, 2001

Japanese abroad told to be on guard following FBI alert

The Foreign Ministry renewed calls Friday to Japanese abroad to ensure their own safety in the wake of an FBI alert on imminent terrorist attacks.
BUSINESS
Oct 13, 2001

Japan to propose use of IT to cut APEC customs costs

Japan plans to propose in a ministerial meeting next week in Shanghai that information technology be used to cut procedural costs for customs clearance in the 21 Pacific Rim economies, Japanese officials said Friday.
JAPAN
Oct 13, 2001

Singapore free trade pact seen concluded by yearend

Japan and Singapore effectively concluded negotiations on a comprehensive free-trade arrangement Friday, opening the way for Japan to conclude its first FTA by the end of this year.

Longform

It's back to the classroom for some residents as municipal governments across the country conduct lessons to learn how to use new technologies.
Can aging Japan go digital without leaving anyone behind?