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Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani hits a home run during the fifth inning of a preseason game against the White Sox on Tuesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Feb 28, 2024

'Shotime' arrives for Dodgers as Ohtani homers in preseason debut

"Definitely a big first step," Ohtani said after the game. "The biggest thing was that I was able to finish off the game without any problems."
Nissan is planning an autonomous vehicle ride-share service for Japan with a 2027 launch date to address a lack of taxi drivers due to the nation’s aging population.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 28, 2024

Nissan plans 2027 driverless ride-share service for aging Japan

Nissan will trial the service in Yokohama's Minato Mirai area, with 20 vehicles equipped with a safety monitor in each driver’s seat.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tells reporters that he plans to attend a Lower House ethics committee hearing, in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 28, 2024

Kishida says he will attend ethics committee hearing on funds scandal

In addition to Kishida, five senior LDP members will face the committee in front of a fully-open session of the Lower House on Thursday and Friday.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Biden cracks down on U.S. data flows to China and Russia

Seeking to protect American personal data, Biden unveiled an executive order barring genomic data transfers to China and other "countries of concern."
Christmas lights decorate downtown Brampton, a suburb of Toronto, on Jan. 5. In Canada, a post-COVID explosion in foreign students has resulted in housing shortages and flawed academic programs being taught in strip malls.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Canada’s welcome for foreign students becomes 'trafficking’ nightmare

An open-door policy has caused rental prices to soar, soured the electorate on new arrivals, and allowed colleges to take advantage of young people.
Japan's revised law on eliminating discrimination against people with disabilities is scheduled to take effect in April.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 2024

Websites in Japan becoming more friendly to people with disabilities

Japan's revised law on eliminating discrimination against people with disabilities is scheduled to take effect in April.
Shohei Otani
BASEBALL / MLB
Feb 29, 2024

Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani announces marriage

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani announced his marriage via Instagram on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a Lower House ethics committee hearing in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Kishida apologizes over slush funds scandal at ethics committee meeting

In a rare appearance in front of the committee, the prime minister also vowed to implement political reforms in the wake of the scandal.
Factions, cliques, caucuses — whatever they may be called, groupings in legislatures are not unusual in many countries.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Perspectives
Mar 2, 2024

Is the funding scandal unraveling the LDP?

The media is caught up in the money-politics scandal of the moment, framing factions as all good or all bad. Things are a lot more nuanced than that.
An electronic board shows the rate of the yen versus the U.S. dollar in Tokyo on Feb. 26.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 2, 2024

Yen’s carry-trade reign in flux as BOJ hints at policy shift

As speculation builds that the BOJ will change its path, so does the potential for the yen to strengthen.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to reporters outside the White House in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 3, 2024

For Democrats pining for an alternative, Biden team has a message: Get over it.

While a new poll shows that 2 in 5 Democrats say the president shouldn't be the nominee, no one who matters to Biden is willing to suggest he step aside.
TENNIS
Mar 4, 2024

Yuan beats Wang in Austin final to capture first WTA title

In her only prior WTA final, Yuan had lost to American Jessica Pegula last October in Seoul.
A U.S Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter lands as U.S. soldiers wait during the Freedom Shield joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States, at a training field near the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in Pocheon, South Korea, on March 19, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

South Korea and U.S. kick off annual drills focused on North's nuclear threats

The Freedom Shield joint exercise, which features twice as many field training drills as last year, will run through March 14.
Alexei Navalny delivers remarks during his election campaign in Moscow on Aug. 1, 2013. Russian authorities vilified the opposition leader with a viciousness that suggested he was more influential than Moscow would admit. Little has changed since he died.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

Kremlin seeks to suppress Navalny’s influence, in death as in life

Russian authorities have vilified late opposition leader Alexei Navalny with a viciousness that suggested he was more influential than Moscow would admit.
J-Power is making a AU$380.9 million bid for Australian renewable energy firm Genex Power.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2024

J-Power makes bid for Australian renewables firm Genex

The move comes as part of the Japanese company's efforts to boost its renewable energy assets.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang speaks during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

China scraps premier's briefing, breaking years of convention

The decision removes a rare platform for investors to learn more about the nation’s policy direction under President Xi Jinping.
Nikolai Nozdrev, who arrived in Tokyo on Sunday, succeeds Mikhail Galuzin as Russia's ambassador to Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

Russia’s new ambassador arrives in Japan after more than yearlong absence

Moscow had left the post unfilled for over a year amid strained ties with Tokyo.
Fox Chief Executive Officer Lachlan Murdoch
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 5, 2024

Fox's Lachlan Murdoch targets 5 million subscribers for new sports venture

The streaming service will feature all of the sports programming from the three media giants, including ESPN, Fox Sports 1 and channels such as TNT.
Former world No. 1 Simona Halep arrives at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, in February.
TENNIS
Mar 6, 2024

Simona Halep free to return after four-year doping ban reduced by CAS

The two-time Grand Slam singles champion had appealed to CAS in February, arguing that her positive test was the result of a "contaminated product."
Naoya Inoue, who has a 26-0 record with 23 knockouts, speaks at an event in Tokyo last month.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
Mar 6, 2024

'Monster' Inoue officially set to face Nery at Tokyo Dome in May

The unbeaten Inoue will be back in action for the first time since beating Marlon Tapales of the Philippines in December.
Japan’s stock market is breaking records right when the government has launched an expanded tax-free investing account. But due to government regulations, stocks still remain out of reach for many starting investors. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 6, 2024

Everyone’s buying Japan shares. I only want to buy one.

An expanded tax-free investment account program that launched to much fanfare at the start of the year has come at a perfect time.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shake hands in Hiroshima on May 21. The two leaders have met seven times in a year.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 6, 2024

Challenges remain after Japan-South Korea wartime labor resolution

There is discontent in South Korea that Japanese firms have not made apologies or compensation payments.
In 2019, Japan tightened penalties for the use of smartphones and other mobile handsets while driving.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024

Record high number of distracted drivers causing death or serious injury

In 2023, 25 incidents were fatal and 97 caused serious injury, with about 10% of drivers using mobile phones to talk and 90% looking at screens.
Naomi Osaka hits a return against Sara Errani during their first-round match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, on Thursday.
TENNIS
Mar 8, 2024

Naomi Osaka off to winning start at Indian Wells

Osaka joked about heading back to her hotel to change her infant daughter's diapers after the match.
Plaintiffs who have filed a lawsuit over Japan's separate surname rule head into the Tokyo District Court on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 8, 2024

Group files lawsuit over Japan law that mandates couples share a surname

Similar lawsuits have been filed before, but public opinion appears to be shifting in favor of allowing couples to have separate surnames.
A solar farm owned by the Huaneng Group in Shilin, China on March 2. Beijing is set to further increase its manufacturing and installation of solar panels, as it seeks to master global markets and wean itself from imports.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 9, 2024

China racing ahead on plans to dominate solar energy industry

Beijing is set to further increase its manufacturing and installation of solar panels as it seeks to master global markets and wean itself from imports.
Machida's Yu Hirakawa in action during his team's win over Kashima on Saturday in western Tokyo.
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 9, 2024

J1 debutants Machida see off Kashima for first home win

Attacker Yu Hirakawa's 13th-minute winner gave the western Tokyo side all three points at Machida Gion Stadium.
Coco Gauff hit a forehand during her match against Clara Burel in Indian Wells, California, on Saturday.
TENNIS
Mar 10, 2024

Gauff survives scare; Osaka moves into third round

The third-seeded Gauff came out tight, spraying errors around the court and double faulting on two break points in a poor first set.
A hiker walks toward Asahidake in Hokkaido. The health and environmental issues around PFAS could be a particular problem for Japan, which boasts a number of globally renowned outdoor brands and related suppliers.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Mar 10, 2024

Japan’s revered outdoor brands face down PFAS challenge

Outdoor apparel consumers are generally more environmentally conscious, but are likely to be using products that have a big environmental footprint.
Many countries including the U.S. and China are prioritizing domestic production and shortening supply chains to enhance economic self-reliance — but they are doing so at the  risk of fueling systemic instability and intensifying great-power tensions.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 10, 2024

Economic self-reliance is a dangerous delusion

Countries around the world have given high priority to shortening supply chains, rebuilding domestic production capacity and diversifying suppliers.

Longform

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