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BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
May 1, 2015

Kuroda shifts to defense in BOJ's struggle to reach inflation target

For the first time, Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda said his original two-year time frame for reaching 2 percent inflation will not be reached. But it did not prompt him to step on the stimulus accelerator.
EDITORIALS
Apr 30, 2015

Scrutinize health insurance reform

The national government needs to provide sufficient support to prefectural governments, which will be tasked to play a larger role in maintaining the nation's health insurance system.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Apr 28, 2015

46 teams have submitted documents for new hoop circuit

All 47 clubs of the NBL, NBDL and bj-league, including expansion teams for the 2015-16 season, are scheduled to join the new men's basketball league in Japan in 2016. The Japan 2024 Task Force made the announcement in Tokyo on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 23, 2015

Bush, in rare Republican nod to Obama, hits Clinton's reservations over Asia trade talks stance

Republican Jeb Bush on Wednesday bashed Democratic 2016 presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton for voicing reservations about overseas trade talks, a rare issue on which the White House enjoys support from Republicans, with many Democrats opposed.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 19, 2015

IMF fudges BOJ inflation target timeline

The International Monetary Fund said it has become harder to estimate when the Bank of Japan will achieve its inflation target, suggesting the global fund is backtracking from its prediction of around 2017 or 2018.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Apr 18, 2015

Spring chills pose challenges for baseball players, fans

The weather throughout Japan may be warming now that we have passed the middle of April, but there were some cold, wet days at the end of March and the beginning of this month that made it uncomfortable to play — and watch — baseball.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 17, 2015

In positive sign ahead of Abe visit, members of Congress offer bipartisan fast-track trade bill

Senior U.S. lawmakers reached agreement on Thursday on a bill to give the White House "fast track" authority to negotiate a trade pact with 11 other Pacific nations that is central to President Barack Obama's strategic shift toward Asia.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 16, 2015

Pushing Social Security reforms risky gambit, Christie admits

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who is making cutting Social Security and Medicare the centerpiece of a possible presidential campaign, conceded on Wednesday that he is taking a risk with the proposal.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Apr 14, 2015

China set to surpass U.S. as main emitter of greenhouse gases in modern times: experts

In a historic shift that may raise pressure on Beijing to act, China is poised to overtake the United States as the main cause of man-made global warming since 1990, the benchmark year for U.N.-led action.
EDITORIALS
Apr 13, 2015

Textbooks toe the government line

The government would do well to remember that uniform textbooks compiled by the state during and before World War II went hand in hand with Japan's militarism.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 13, 2015

Republicans look to deepen probe into Clinton's response to attack on Benghazi consulate

As Hillary Rodham Clinton begins her presidential campaign, Republicans are vowing to intensify their latest investigation into the former secretary of state's response to the deadly 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya.
EDITORIALS
Mar 31, 2015

Local politics matter

Races for this year's nationwide series of local elections kicked off with the start of official campaigns last week for gubernatorial elections in 10 prefectures on April 12 — the same day that local assembly seats in 41 prefectures and 22 major cities will also be contested.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 30, 2015

Former HP CEO Fiorina puts chances of presidential bid at 'higher than 90%'

Former Hewlett-Packard Co. Chief Executive Carly Fiorina said Sunday that the chances she would run for the U.S. presidency in 2016 were "higher than 90 percent" and that she would announce her plans in late April to early May.
EDITORIALS
Mar 29, 2015

Letting popular will prevail

Political parties and lawmakers should not put off trying to resolve the vote-value gap between the nation's electoral districts just because recent high court rulings on the matter have been inconclusive.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 28, 2015

Upset by Warren's calls for break-ups, U.S. banks debate halting some Senate campaign donations

Big Wall Street banks are so upset with Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren's call for them to be broken up that some have discussed withholding campaign donations to Senate Democrats in symbolic protest, sources said.
EDITORIALS
Mar 13, 2015

Amending for amendment's sake?

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Liberal Democratic Party are moving to put amendment of the Constitution at the forefront of their agenda, with specific timetables already discussed for revising text that has remained unchanged since it took effect in 1947.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2015

Ships beached for scrap as returns reach record low

Scrap yards are preparing for record numbers of freighters as shipping rates tumble to all-time lows.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 13, 2015

South Korea's tallest skyscraper rises in cloud of fear

At 92, the man who built South Korea's biggest retail empire is finally making his mark in the Seoul skyline as the country's tallest tower takes shape — just as public faith in corporate giants crumbles into safety fears and mistrust.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Mar 11, 2015

Clinton admits it would have been better to have second email address

Likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton said Tuesday it would have been better if she had used a government email account and a separate mobile device as U.S. secretary of state, but said the vast majority of her correspondence went to employees using government addresses.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Mar 4, 2015

Kawabuchi upbeat as Japan tries to solve basketball impasse

Sometimes making absurd demands can be the best way to drive people to better their efforts.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 1, 2015

The not-ready-for-prime-time Republicans

In their first couple of months dominating the U.S. Congress, Republicans have passed no major legislation, taken largely negative positions and may be about to impede the operation of a crucial government department. In short, they're not where national leaders hoped they would be.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 27, 2015

Megabank dividends lure funds from bonds

As Japan's sovereign bond yields languish near zero, the regular payouts to shareholders of the megabanks are starting to appeal to a wider group of investors.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Feb 17, 2015

Kawabuchi draws on J. League success to push for Japan basketball's transformation

When the J. League was being set up in the early 1990s, its chairman, Saburo Kawabuchi, said that he heard a lot of pessimistic voices about its formation. But the Japan Football Association stuck with its plans and started the league.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 17, 2015

The world is less dangerous than we imagine

The world is a dangerous place and can be even more so by making errors bred by unwarranted pessimism.
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 7, 2015

Measles outbreak spurs new action in California, New Mexico

Students at all 10 campuses of the University of California will be required to be screened for tuberculosis and vaccinated for measles, mumps, rubella and other diseases under a new health plan set to take effect in 2017, the university said on Friday.
EDITORIALS
Jan 27, 2015

Obama unleashed

U.S. President Barack Obama's State of the Union address was a campaign speech, one intended to define and frame the stakes in the 2016 presidential election.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jan 27, 2015

Republican hopefuls Rubio, Paul, Cruz appear at U.S. billionaire Koch brothers' retreat

Three potential Republican presidential candidates appeared before a gathering of wealthy donors organized by the conservative billionaire Koch brothers in California on Sunday night.

Longform

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