Search - 2023

 
 
Sengu Capital, based in Hong Kong, will start a new hedge fund focused on Japanese firms improving management quality.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 9, 2024

New hedge fund gains backing for bets on Japan market revival

Investors have been trying to put more money to work in Japan, as the country emerges from more than a decade of deflation.
Plaintiffs in a lawsuit seeking recognition as atomic bomb victims hold up a sign saying "Partial victory" in Nagasaki on Monday, after the Nagasaki District Court recognized some of them as hibakusha.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 10, 2024

Nagasaki court recognizes some plaintiffs as A-bomb victims

The court ordered the issuing of atomic bomb survivor's certificates to 15 of the 44 plaintiffs in the lawsuit, four of whom have already died.
Counterfeit bills used by men who were arrested on suspicion of stealing cash under the guise of a gold transaction
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 9, 2024

Two Liberian men arrested for alleged fake gold deal in Tokyo

The two are charged with stealing ¥34 million from a 43-year-old secondhand goods dealer in Tokyo in November 2023.
While nuclear weapons are difficult to use without catastrophic consequences, Vladimir Putin’s rhetoric aims to frighten Ukraine's allies into halting arms support.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 9, 2024

How to read Putin’s next nuclear threat

Historical analogies show that nuclear threats rarely succeed, but Russia’s signals of desperation should not be ignored.
Global investors are expecting the yen may rise further since the Bank of Japan raised interest rates in July.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 10, 2024

Yen rally prompts an unwind of hedges in Japanese stocks but investors wary of earnings hit

Expectations that the yen may strengthen further have prompted strategists to recommend unwinding currency hedges on Japanese shares that have outperformed peers.
Novak Djokovic reacts during his third-round match against Alexei Popyrin during the U.S. Open in New York on Aug. 30.
TENNIS
Sep 10, 2024

Djokovic shut out as young guns usher in new Grand Slam era

This year, Djokovic endured a lackluster Grand Slam campaign by his lofty standards.
Soccer player Junya Ito has filed a criminal complaint against two women and a weekly magazine for suspected defamation, saying that the magazine article on his alleged sexual assault has damaged his reputation and credibility.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 10, 2024

Soccer player Ito appeals against nonindictment of two women

Police had sent to public prosecutors papers on the two women for allegedly making false allegations against two men including Ito, but both women were not indicted.
While there are similarities between the geopolitical competition involving the U.S. and the former Soviet Union, such as global rivalry and ideological divisions, key differences suggest the situation with China does not constitute a new Cold War.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 10, 2024

A new ‘Cold War’ with China might be the best hope for the future

The current situation is often described as "a new great game," a world in which our time and challenges result from the stirring of old empires.
Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi announces his decision not to seek reelection in his party's Sept. 28 presidential election, in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 10, 2024

Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi announces decision to step down

The decision not to seek reelection marks the end of an era for the party and raises questions on how it might impact the LDP's presidential race.
Adrian Newey, the new managing technical partner of the Aston Martin Formula One Team, during a news conference in Silverstone, England, on Tuesday
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 11, 2024

Aston Martin hopes to win big with 'bargain' design guru Adrian Newey

Cars designed by Newey have won 25 drivers' and constructors' championships for Williams, McLaren and Red Bull.
Commuters sit at a cafe in Sydney on Feb. 26.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 11, 2024

Over a third of Australians say they’ll never be able to retire

Australia’s proportion of retirees is expected to surge from 8% today to 19% over the next 40 years.
Vadim Morus, a Russian professional skater and trainer, practices for his performance in Belgrade, Serbia, on June 19.
WORLD / Society
Sep 11, 2024

A mini-Russia emerges in Serbia as thousands flee war

Russian-owned clubs, kindergartens and medical practices have sprung up in Belgrade, a city of less than two million people.
A barista fills a customer’s order at a Starbucks in Odessa, Texas. Starbucks has more than 16,000 locations in the United States, including this one in Odessa.
BUSINESS
Sep 10, 2024

A funnel cake macchiato anyone? The coffee wars are heating up.

From the giant Starbucks to small coffee shops, the battle is on for who can come up with the craziest, calorie-laden, not-really-coffee drink.
A suicide crisis helpline worker in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Sep 11, 2024

Women comprise 60% of attempted suicide and self-harm cases in Japan

People in their 20s accounted for the biggest share of cases of attempted suicide and self-harm in Japan from December 2022 to December 2023.
Environment Minister Shintaro Ito (right) receives the International Atomic Energy Agency's final expert report on Japan's plan to reuse soil and radioactive waste from decontaminated areas affected by the Fukushima nuclear accident, in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN
Sep 11, 2024

IAEA supports Japan's recycling and disposal plan for Fukushima soil

After three expert safety review missions on the issue of contaminated soil since 2023, the IAEA says Japan's approach is consistent with international standards.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa announces her candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 11, 2024

Yoko Kamikawa banks on overseas experience in LDP leadership race

Her candidacy could increase attention on foreign policy questions in a race so far dominated by party reform and domestic economic issues.
With the world's democracies and authoritarian regimes watching, the U.S. election on Nov. 5 will have global implications.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 10, 2024

The choice confronting American voters

Republicans and Democrats differ significantly on the role of government in society, a divide that the U.S. Supreme Court used to mediate.
From Malaysia to Brazil, free speech is being pitted against social media regulation.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 11, 2024

To hold Big Tech accountable, focus on the harms

The Malaysian case underscores the urgent need for effective safeguards against online abuse, while raising concerns about the potential misuse of regulatory power.
A pedestrian walks down Bourbon Street on Wednesday as Hurricane Francine approaches New Orleans.
WORLD
Sep 12, 2024

Hurricane Francine makes landfall in Louisiana, putting New Orleans on edge

Francine packed maximum sustained winds of 150 kilometers per hour after the eye of the storm traveled inland over southern Louisiana.
The town of Jasper, Alberta, on Aug. 15 after a wildfire devastated the tourism hot spot
WORLD
Sep 12, 2024

Canada's tourism continues to reel from threat of wildfires

Scientists paint a gloomy future for Canada, with more and larger blazes sparked by a warming climate.
Ikeda Suisan's saury fishing boat is also being used for tuna fishing.
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2024

To stay afloat, some Japanese saury fishers turn to tuna and squid

Saury fishers in Japan are also trying to secure enough income by working during the saury fishing offseason.
Ispace CEO Takeshi Hakamada speaks during a news conference in Tokyo in April 2023, after the firm's first attempt to land on the moon failed.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 12, 2024

Ispace aims for December launch of second moon landing mission

The Hakuto-R Mission 2 spacecraft will be delivered by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida and attempt a lunar touchdown after four to five months of spaceflight.
Hong Kong’s property tycoons are eagerly awaiting interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve due to their struggles with slow home sales, vacant office buildings and tenants pushing for lease renegotiations.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 12, 2024

The Fed is making Hong Kong's billionaire landlords anxious

Many Hong Kong property companies have significant amounts of debt at floating interest rates tied to Hibor, which tracks the Fed's rate changes.
Pedestrians cross an intersection in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. Japan has experienced a postpandemic travel boom, with tourists pouring back in after restrictions closed the country’s borders to travelers.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 12, 2024

Japan jumps to No. 2, from sixth place, in Best Countries index

It jumped from 6th place on the 2023 list as a post-COVID boom and reforms helped bump it up on the subindexes used to calculate the overall score.
The Osaka Prefectural Police recently arrested three people who allegedly had some ¥4.9 billion in total paid into their bank accounts from about 10,000 people who took part in overseas online gambling.
JAPAN
Sep 12, 2024

Three arrested over alleged laundering of online casino money

The suspects allegedly had some ¥4.9 billion in total paid into their bank accounts from about 10,000 people who took part in overseas online gambling.
A self-proclaimed lover of great cocktails, YouTuber Chris Broad says his new Shibuya watering hole is more a place to get yourself a solid drink than it is anything related to his social media career.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 15, 2024

Chris Broad's new bar puts cocktails first, YouTube second

Elements of Lost hint at Broad's prolific content creation career, but it also wants to thrive on its merits as a place to find a decent drink.
The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau in Tokyo's Chuo Ward
JAPAN / Society
Sep 13, 2024

Chief priest of Tokyo shrine allegedly took ¥250 million from amulet sales

The priest and the corporation that runs the shrine have been hit with additional taxes, including penalties, worth about ¥130 million.
A Tokyo Star Bank branch in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 13, 2024

Tiny Japan bank looks to grow by lending to offshore homebuyers

Japan’s weak yen and low interest rates have drawn overseas interest in Japanese property and boosted prices.
Aeon is selling an assortment of 'osechi' (traditional New Year's cuisine) curated with the support of artificial intelligence.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 13, 2024

AI fried chicken, retro chic collabs: Retailers rebrand Japan's New Year's cuisine

Major department stores and supermarkets are trying unorthodox methods to entice younger generations to buy traditional New Year's dishes in Japan.
Workers with picket signs outside the Boeing Seattle Delivery Center during a strike in Seattle on Friday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 14, 2024

Boeing and union negotiators to resume talks next week amid strike

A long strike could further damage Boeing's finances, already groaning due to a $60 billion debt pile.

Longform

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