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An electronic stock quotation board inside a building in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 17, 2024

What panic? Stocks are quickly on way back to record highs.

With U.S. equities on the rebound, this summer’s selloff is looking more like a pause in the bull market than the beginning of its end.
A growing number of ransomware attacks has forced Japanese firms to take measures to combat computer viruses that encrypt data until a ransom is paid.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 17, 2024

Ransomware attacks force companies to take precautionary measures

In many cases, attackers apparently gain entry via network devices for remote work, through clients and affiliated companies or systems at data centers.
A tug boat assists a container ship to its berth in Long Beach, California, on June 17.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 19, 2024

Busiest U.S. ports absorb import surge nearing pandemic-era frenzy

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which account for roughly a third of all U.S. container imports, had their third-strongest month ever in July.
People take part in a protest organized by pro-abortion rights, pro-LGBT rights and pro-Palestinian activists, on the eve of the Democratic National Convention, in Chicago on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 19, 2024

Pro-Palestinian delegates to Democratic convention to push for Israel arms embargo

Pro-Palestinian activists say Harris has been more sympathetic to Gazans than Biden has been.
Bags of Indian spices and dry fruits at a roadside shop in New Delhi on May 3
BUSINESS
Aug 19, 2024

Nearly 12% of India's tested spice samples fail quality and safety standards

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India conducted inspections, sampling and testing of mixed spice blends.
The listing ceremony of Ola Electric Mobility at the National Stock Exchange in Mumbai, India, on Aug. 9
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 19, 2024

Mumbai debuts deliver for SoftBank after market retreat from AI trims gains

Three firms backed by SoftBank have made solid debuts in the past week, in a positive sign after the Vision Fund fell to a loss of ¥204.3 billion in the June quarter.
Activist funds added to their holdings during the Aug. 5 selloff in the Japanese stock market, an indication that they don’t mind taking significant risks to boost their stakes in target companies.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 19, 2024

Activists bought Japanese stocks during worst rout since 1987

Activists bought a total of 2.8 million shares during the Aug. 5 selloff, the most in at least 60 days.
The 225-issue Nikkei average ended in negative territory Monday for the first time in six sessions.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 19, 2024

Nikkei falls on yen's gain, while Seven & I surges

The Nikkei index closed 1.77% lower at 37,388.62, snapping a five-day winning run that pushed up the index 8.7% last week.
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi announces his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 19, 2024

Rising star Takayuki Kobayashi launches bid for LDP president

The former economic security czar has touted his candidacy as a symbol of radical change in a party embattled by scandals.
A wall mural depicting Nintendo's Super Mario characters in an underground walkway in Kyoto. The company will open the Nintendo Museum in October.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 20, 2024

Nintendo to open museum showcasing video game history this fall

The museum in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, will feature vintage video games and an interactive shoot-em-up with Super Mario characters.
E-scooter startup Lime has launched its service in some of Tokyo’s most densely populated neighborhoods
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 20, 2024

Uber-backed e-scooter startup Lime enters Japan after Korea exit

Lime, which has a global fleet of around 200,000 e-bikes and scooters, on Monday launched its service in some of Tokyo’s most densely populated areas.
Some investors are still betting on more interest rate hikes in Japan in the coming months.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 20, 2024

Big-name investors still betting on further BOJ rate hikes

Major asset managers are doubling down on their short positions in Japanese government bonds based on the prospect of further hikes.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, speaks on the first night of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 20, 2024

Democratic Party platform emphasizes Asia, but muted on Harris

The platform laid out a familiar list of priorities and also criticized Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump over his shaky history with regional allies.
Samples of rare earth minerals cerium oxide (left), bastnasite (center left), neodymium oxide (center right) and lanthanum carbonate
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 20, 2024

Not-so-rare earths: Ample supply weighs on prices of key minerals group

Exports of rare earths from China, the dominant producer, climbed 7.5% year-on-year in the first seven months of 2024, but prices still fell during that period.
U.S. President Joe Biden enters the stage after an introduction by his daughter, Ashley Biden, on the first night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 20, 2024

Joe Biden begins a long and necessary goodbye

It took grace, maturity and generosity for Biden to bow out. A measure of resentment has also accompanied his exit.
Lawson Bank's automated teller machines. The number of Lawson Bank ATMs installed outside convenience stores rose to 174 as of the end of June from 80 three months before.
BUSINESS
Aug 21, 2024

Convenience store ATMs on the increase in Japan

Competition for making ATMs multifunctional, going beyond just withdrawing cash, and more user-friendly has been intensifying.
Solar cell panels over the water surface of Sirindhorn Dam in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. Four countries in Southeast Asia including Thailand account for more than 40% of solar module production capacity outside of China.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 21, 2024

Southeast Asia’s solar boom threatened by U.S.-China trade tension

Chinese firms that set up shop in the region over the last decade are being accused of skirting U.S. import levies on their home market.
An electronic ticker at the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo earlier this month
BUSINESS
Aug 21, 2024

Sticky money stays in Japan while short-term players dump stocks

Foreign investors sold $5.28 billion in Japanese equities, cash and futures combined in the first week of August.
Vehicles bound for shipment parked in front of the Lyra Leader vehicles carrier ship at the Nagoya Port in Nagoya. Japan's exports rose in July but shipment volumes extended their declines.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 21, 2024

Japan's July exports growth lags expectations as volumes fall again

Japanese exports rose 10.3% year-on-year in July, less than a median market forecast for an 11.4% increase.
Mizuho Financial Group changed its personnel system in July to "role-based pay" that makes salary increases possible regardless of age or number of years in the company.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 21, 2024

Japan banks moving away from seniority-based personnel system

Major banks are attaching more importance to employees' roles as banking operations have diversified.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Rostec CEO Sergei Chemezov in Moscow on July 30.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 21, 2024

In rare interview, key Putin ally says West risks global war over Ukraine

The head of the Rostec arms maker slams U.S. over moves to "provoke" the Ukraine conflict by allowing Kyiv to attack Russian territory.
The Italian Navy's aircraft carrier ITS Cavour at the Yokosuka naval base on Thursday. The 244-meter, 27,100-ton Italian flagship arrived at the base in Kanagawa Prefecture Thursday morning for a port call.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 22, 2024

Italy-Japan ties enter ‘new era’ amid deepening alignment, top envoy to Tokyo says

Underscoring this rapidly expanding partnership was the 244-meter, 27,100-ton flagship's visit to the Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture.
Katsunobu Kato, former health minister, speaks in an interview in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 22, 2024

Japan should keep rates and prices moving, prime minister hopeful Kato says

The former health minister is a dark horse but also the type of person who could emerge as a compromise candidate.
University students in Varanasi, India, protest against a recent rape and murder of a doctor in West Bengal. Despite some improvements in legislation following high-profile cases, such as the 2012 gang rape, violence against women has worsened, with recorded rapes increasing.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 22, 2024

Protests won’t change India's attitude toward rape

Despite some improvements in legislation following high-profile cases, such as the 2012 gang rape, violence against women has worsened, with recorded rapes increasing.
Astellas Pharma's headquarters in Tokyo
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2024

Japanese citizen indicted on suspicion of espionage, China confirms

Chinese prosecutors have indicted a Japanese citizen on suspicion of espionage, China's foreign ministry said.
Robert C. Neff, passed away at after a long illness at 77 years old on July 31, 2024, at his home in Hayama, south of Tokyo.
COMMUNITY
Aug 25, 2024

The American journalist ahead of the game on an ascendant Japan

Neff was part of a golden age of magazine journalism as Tokyo bureau chief for Businessweek magazine and a lover of hot spring retreats.
A toppled sign reads "customs control zone" near a destroyed Russian border post in Sudzha, Russia, on Aug. 12.
WORLD
Aug 23, 2024

Kremlin seeks to play down Ukraine's incursion

Ukrainian officials said they hope the surprise incursion will force Russia to negotiate "on our own terms," but the reality is likely to be very different.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks at a news conference in Warsaw on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 23, 2024

Indian PM Modi set to visit Kyiv for talks with Zelenskyy

The visit, which follows a trip by Modi to Moscow in July, is important for Western-backed Kyiv.
Iga Swiatek hits a return against Mirra Andreeva at the Cincinnati Open on Aug. 17.
TENNIS
Aug 23, 2024

Tennis great Chris Evert expects No. 1 Iga Swiatek to bounce back at U.S. Open

"Iga's very disciplined, very organized, very serious about her game and very mature," Evert, now a tennis analyst for ESPN, told reporters.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, arrives to speak on the fourth day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 23, 2024

Harris accepts historic nomination to start election sprint

Her challenge now is to harness the energy and excitement of a party reinvigorated by her rapid ascent.

Longform

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