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A health worker prepares a dose of the Covishield vaccine, co-developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, and manufactured by Serum Institute of India.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

World’s largest vaccine maker sees demand doubling in five years

Serum Institute of India plans to double its vaccine production to 3 billion doses annually over five years, expecting a surge in demand as global health budgets rise.
The Bank of Japan is expected to discuss cutting bond purchases at a two-day policy meeting ending Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 11, 2024

BOJ expected to weigh bond buying cuts as rate hike timing nears

A paring back of bond purchases would mark the BOJ’s first clear step toward quantitative tightening after pivoting away from its massive stimulus program in March.
The Dior investigation focused on four suppliers employing 32 staff who worked in the surroundings of Milan, two of whom were immigrants in the country illegally while another seven worked without the required documentation.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

LVMH's unit put under court administration in Italy over labor exploitation

A probe alleged that the Italian subsidiary, which makes Dior-branded handbags, had subcontracted work to Chinese-owned firms that mistreated workers.
Carlyle will probably announce another two or three transactions in Japan this year, the fund's co-head of the Japan buyout advisory team says.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Carlyle sets sights on 300 Japanese businesses as PE deals boom

Carlyle, which has been operating in Japan since 2000, has made more than 40 private equity investments locally.
Migrant workers harvest and package vegetables in a greenhouse in Gasan-myeon, South Korea, in December 2023. Though a shrinking population makes imported labor vital, migrant workers routinely face predatory employers, inhumane conditions and other abuse.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 11, 2024

South Korea accused of 'human trafficking' with seasonal worker program

Filipino workers say brokers charge excessive fees to find them back-breaking work, confiscate their passports and documents, and cheat them out of wages.
Glen Fukushima, former deputy assistant to the U.S. Trade Representative for Japan and China, is interviewed in New York last week.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

U.S. Steel buyout may be approved if Biden reelected, former U.S. official says

Pennsylvania, where U.S. Steel's headquarters is located, is regarded as one of the swing states that will decide the outcome of the U.S. presidential election.
Bankruptcies rose especially among restaurant operators amid labor shortages and rising labor costs.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 11, 2024

Japan corporate bankruptcies surge above 1,000 in May

The latest result came as many companies struggle with rising prices, as well as labor shortages mainly in the service sector.
Naoki Okamura, chief executive officer of Astellas Pharma, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Astellas seeks green light for eye drug Izervay in Europe and Japan

The drugmaker is in discussions with Japanese regulators about whether clinical trials for local patients are needed, Chief Executive Naoki Okamura said.
Soldiers stand at attention on the day German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier attends a Bundeswehr training exercise in Munster, Germany, on April 18.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 11, 2024

Infighting over budget imperils Germany’s defense upgrade

Uncertainty is growing about how to achieve a key spending goal when topped-off funds are exhausted in 2028.
African National Congress President Cyril Ramaphosa arrives ahead of the National Executive Committee meeting in Johannesburg last Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 11, 2024

South African parties straddle opposing visions to build unity government

Efforts to form a broad-based unity government are set to test Nelson Mandela's 1994 aspiration for a "rainbow nation at peace with itself."
Toyota Industries holds its shareholders meeting in Takahama, Aichi Prefecture, on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Scandals and profitability in focus as Japan firms hold shareholders meetings

The strong interest in compliance follows a string of testing fraud scandals at automakers, while the focus on profitability has led to a flurry of shareholder proposals.
Between November and May, five major incidents involving Japan Airlines aircraft were reported, prompting the transport ministry to issue the airline a stern warning and conduct an on-site inspection at its facilities late last month.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

JAL vows to raise crew safety awareness following emergency probe

The airline promised to implement measures to prevent a recurrence of recent months' safety lapses in order to regain the trust of passengers.
Employees of a seafood restaurant work in their kitchen space at Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo. Side gigs are becoming increasingly common in Japan as companies look for flexible sources of labor while workers look to top up income in their spare time.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Japan spot work startup Timee targets July listing, sources say

The startup, founded in 2017, is aiming for a valuation of roughly $1 billion and the joint global coordinators are Daiwa Securities and Morgan Stanley, the people said.
Some overseas airlines scrapped plans to add or increase services to Japanese airports due to the uncertain jet fuel supply, trade minister Ken Saito acknowledged on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Jet fuel crunch sees airlines servicing Japan demand more supply

Eneos Holdings has been fielding calls from carriers and is working with the government to ease the problem, a spokesperson said via phone.
The Fair Trade Commission in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 12, 2024

Hashimoto Sogyo inspected over nonpayment of overtime

The antimonopoly law prohibits the abuse of a shipper's dominant position over an operator.
The corporate goods price index rose 2.4% in May from a year earlier, driven by higher prices for utilities, petroleum and chemical goods as well as nonferrous metals.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 12, 2024

Japan's wholesale inflation rose in May, complicating BOJ rate outlook

Price rises driven by cost pressures could cool consumption, and dampen the chances of achieving the demand-driven inflation the central bank is seeking to foster.
The Chinese national flag and the Hong Kong flag outside government headquarters in Hong Kong in November 2017
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

Hong Kong uses new national security law against exiled activists

Hong Kong authorities have outlawed more than a dozen overseas activists based in the United States, Britain and other countries.
A rohingya refugee child from Myanmar walks along the road in the evening at Balukhali camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, in 2018.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 12, 2024

Myanmar poverty deepens, economic growth stagnant, World Bank says

The ongoing civil war in Myanmar has displaced over 3 million people and raised poverty rates to 32.1%, reverting to 2015 levels.
Researchers are still years away from understanding the actual impact of AI on addressing human diseases. But given the speed with which the technology is evolving, its increasingly looking like the impact could be vast.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 12, 2024

Inventing medicines is one of the most exciting uses of AI

AlphaFold has advanced significantly since its earlier version, offering static images of protein interactions.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivers remarks during a press conference following the announcement that the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 13, 2024

Fed leaves rates unchanged and says cuts delayed to possibly December

U.S. policymakers are content to leave rates where they are until the economy sends a clear signal that something else is needed.
A tourist from the U.S. (second right) sings karaoke as "mama" Kuri Awaji (left) waves a glow stick at her bar Kuriyakko in Tokyo.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 13, 2024

Tourists get taste of old Japan at hidden 'snack bars'

Snack bars are cozy, retro establishments often crammed into small buildings and equipped with karaoke systems that echo late into the night.
A BYD Atto 3 electric SUV on the streets of Frankfurt, Germany, on Feb. 21, 2023
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 13, 2024

EU hits Chinese EVs with tariffs, drawing rebuke from Beijing

The move comes less than a month after the U.S. announced plans to quadruple duties for Chinese EVs.
Tourists take pictures from a boat on the Chao Phraya river in Bangkok.
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2024

Thailand is already seeing signs of a 'White Lotus' travel bump

The series recently wrapped filming at several resorts and locations in the nation.
Tim Cook (left), chief executive officer of Apple; John Giannandrea (center), senior vice president of machine learning and AI strategy at Apple; and Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering at Apple, during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in Cupertino, California, on Monday
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

Apple to ‘pay’ OpenAI for ChatGPT through distribution, not cash

The partnership is apparently not expected to generate meaningful revenue for either party — at least, not at the outset.
Honda unveiled small electric commercial van N-VAN e: on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

Honda to start selling micro-sized electric vans in October

Honda is determined to pursue EVs despite a slowdown in global demand
Debt rating firms have raised SoftBank Group’s grade as the Tokyo-based company’s earnings from investments begin to stabilize.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

SoftBank’s bond underwriting fee drops for first time in decade

The firm paid brokerages ¥1.10 per ¥100 to underwrite ¥550 billion of seven-year notes for individual investors, according to a company filing.
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrive with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a State Dinner at the White House in Washington on June 22, 2023. As the United States prioritizes teamwork with its partners in the Asia-Pacific region, many believe they are witnessing a lasting change in American power.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 13, 2024

In China’s backyard, the U.S. has become a humbler superpower

The United States no longer presents itself as the confident guarantor of security but as an eager teammate for military modernization and tech development.
Gyaru Daijin poses in the city of Oita. Now a staffer at CGO.com, she has worked at Tenjin Core, a recently closed commercial complex in the city of Fukuoka that features gyaru fashion.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jun 24, 2024

‘Gyaru’ culture makes comeback as businesses aim to loosen up meetings

The subculture is attracting attention as a way to make unproductive meetings and boring presentations more interactive and flexible.
Boeing has been under scrutiny from regulators and customers since a Jan. 5 incident in which a smaller 737 MAX operated by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing after a fuselage panel blew out mid-flight.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 14, 2024

Boeing investigates quality problem on undelivered 787s, sources say

It involves incorrect "torquing" or tightening of more than 900 fasteners per plane, but there is no immediate concern about flight safety.
A demonstration of Microsoft's Copilot artificial intelligence on screen during an event in Sydney on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 14, 2024

Microsoft pulls back wide release of criticized Windows AI tool

Recall, a Windows feature unveiled in May, creates a record of everything people do on their PCs.

Longform

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