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COMMENTARY / World
Mar 29, 2011

Unrequited hope for Kan

OSAKA/LONDON — More than two weeks after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake triggered a horrendous tsunami and crippling damage to a major nuclear plant in northeast Honshu, it is as if Japan is still sleeping through a raging nightmare. Initially, economists tried to play down the damage, saying that this...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2011

Tohoku disaster buys Kan time

It was only two weeks ago that Prime Minister Naoto Kan seemed on the verge of stepping down — his foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, had resigned, his popularity was at a historic low and a divided Diet had given him little hope of passing bills needed to enact the 2011 budget.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 24, 2011

Disaster agency eyed to oversee recovery

A reconstruction agency may be created to oversee disaster repairs, while data showed the central bank pumped record liquidity into lenders as the nation grappled with its worst disaster since World War II.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 17, 2011

Nikkei turmoil threatens economy

The failure to contain radiation risk from the crippled nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture, and the resulting turmoil in stocks, threaten to worsen damage to the economy from last week's earthquake and tsunami.
BUSINESS
Mar 11, 2011

October-December GDP setback exceeds government estimate

The economy contracted more than the government initially estimated in the calendar fourth quarter because of a downward revision to capital investment and consumer spending.
Reader Mail
Mar 10, 2011

Trace betrayal of voters to the top

Simon Foston's Feb. 23 letter, "DPJ can do without some people," seems intent on spreading the image that some Democratic Party of Japan lawmakers support former DPJ Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa just for money and that Ozawa is to blame for the DPJ's recent election losses.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2011

Matsumoto new foreign minister

Prime Minister Naoto Kan named political blue-blood and former banker Takeaki Matsumoto as foreign minister Wednesday, promoting the deputy foreign minister to replace Seiji Maehara, who stepped down over a political donation scandal.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Mar 8, 2011

DPJ loses potential successor to Kan

Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara's abrupt resignation Sunday may have averted even more turmoil in the Diet, but his loss bodes ill for the Democratic Party of Japan because he was a leading candidate to succeed Prime Minister Naoto Kan.
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2011

DPJ revolt shows signs of growing

The rebellion against Naoto Kan is far from over and a few more lawmakers are likely to get on the bandwagon, a Democratic Party of Japan source said Friday, fueling speculation the uprising within the party could force the prime minister to step down.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 10, 2011

EU envoy says no arms sales for China

The European Union's new ambassador to Japan denied speculation the EU may remove its arms export ban against China in the near future, and that even if that were to happen, the bloc wouldn't automatically begin selling weapons to Beijing.
JAPAN
Feb 9, 2011

Multilanguage hotline opens for domestic violence victims

The government opened a hotline Tuesday for victims of domestic violence, with counseling staff available for consultations in Japanese and six other languages.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Feb 8, 2011

The second-most powerful job

Second in power only to the prime minister, Tokyo's governor manages a metropolis with a population several times that of any other prefecture and a gross domestic product larger than that of most other nations.
COMMENTARY
Feb 5, 2011

The Arab world's '1989'?

LONDON — It was the Egyptian Army's statement that brought it all back: "To the great people of Egypt, your armed forces, acknowledging the legitimate rights of the people . . . have not and will not use force against the Egyptian people." In other words, go ahead and overthrow President Hosni Mubarak....
BUSINESS
Feb 5, 2011

Costs driving steel merger

Nippon Steel Corp. and Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd.'s plan to create the world's second-largest steelmaker is aimed at gaining leverage over raw material purchases and metal pricing as costs soar.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CABINET INTERVIEW
Feb 3, 2011

Eda unsure if he will sign hanging orders

New Justice Minister Satsuki Eda openly opposes capital punishment but can't decide whether to perform his duty and sign off on executions or stick to his personal beliefs.
EDITORIALS
Feb 2, 2011

Indictment of Mr. Ozawa

Former Democratic Party of Japan chief Ichiro Ozawa was indicted Monday over accounting irregularities linked to his political funds management body Rikuzankai.
JAPAN
Jan 27, 2011

Poll to precede any tax hike

Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Wednesday he has no plans to dissolve the Lower House for a snap election anytime soon but will do so before the government raises the consumption tax.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 25, 2011

Opposition sees red over Yosano

Prime Minister Naoto Kan kicked off the year by sacking his right-hand man, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku, and appointing a one-time critic of him in Kaoru Yosano to the Cabinet, reaching out to the opposition to gain support for the fiscal 2011 budget.
EDITORIALS
Jan 25, 2011

Progress in hepatitis settlement

The Sapporo District Court, one of 10 district courts across Japan handling lawsuits filed by hepatitis B sufferers and bereaved families seeking state compensation, on Jan. 11 made a proposal aimed at reconciling the two sides. On Jan. 22, an association of the plaintiffs throughout the country decided...

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