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A 2-megawatt solar farm in the city of Fukushima. “Megasolar” refers to farms with a minimum output of 1 MW of electricity — enough to power around 300 homes for a year.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy / OUR PLANET
May 26, 2024

‘Megasolar’ is a dirty word in Japan. Where do solar projects go from here?

Vocal campaigns are pushing back against projects as dangerous eyesores, but "dual-use" approaches and community engagement may offer a solution.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the UNITED24 fundraising platform summit in Kyiv on Thursday.
WORLD
May 26, 2024

Zelenskyy invites Biden and Xi to attend Ukraine peace summit

Switzerland said it has invited 160 delegations but Russia will not attend the event, which is expected to last just over a day.
Grayson Murray practices for the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, in April.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
May 27, 2024

Grayson Murray's parents say golfer 'took his own life'

Murray's death was announced on Saturday.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks at the central bank's annual international conference in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS
May 27, 2024

BOJ to 'proceed cautiously' with inflation-targeting frameworks

Gov. Kazuo Ueda said Japan has "made progress in moving away from zero and lifting inflation expectations."
Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving moves with the ball while being defended by the Timberwolves' Kyle Anderson during Game 3 of the Western Conference finals in Dallas on Sunday.
BASKETBALL / NBA
May 27, 2024

Mavericks beat Timberwolves in Game 3 to move to brink of NBA Finals

"We need one more," said Mavericks star Luka Doncic.
A Starbucks coffee shop in Beijing on May 22
BUSINESS
May 27, 2024

In China, Starbucks tries to avoid price war but gets dragged into discounting

A coffee price war in China has arisen amid persistent deflation, weak consumer sentiment, and stagnant wages.
Hakone in Kanagawa Prefecture will host one of three ryokan Hyatt is set to launch with Kyoto-based developer Kiraku in 2026.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 2, 2024

Hyatt doubles down on Japan with line of luxury ryokan

The first three locations are scheduled to start opening in 2026 in Kanagawa, Oita and Kagoshima prefectures.
Ichiro Kanke, former state minister for post-disaster reconstruction, speaks at a news conference on Monday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2024

LDP member admits to getting tax breaks by donating kickbacks

A member of the LDP has admitted to donating kickbacks from a party faction to a chapter he heads, receiving tax breaks totaling ¥1.48 million.
Firefighters work at the site of an agriculture equipment factory in Kharkiv, Ukraine, hit by a Russian air strike on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
May 28, 2024

EU nations fume over Hungary’s vetoes of Ukraine weapons aid

As long as Hungary continues to block the disbursement of funding for military weapons donated to Ukraine, the bloc can’t use the money to help Kyiv.
A Nuri rocket takes off from the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Korea, on June 21, 2022.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 28, 2024

South Korea is gearing up to become space powerhouse

KASA will work on ambitious projects such as an uncrewed moon landing by 2032, with a Mars mission proposed by the middle of the following decade.
Shipping containers at the port in Ningbo, China, March 27, 2024. The U.S. and Europe are trying to catch up to China’s lead in industrial policy, a rival skilled in using all the levers of government and banking to dominate global manufacturing.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 28, 2024

How China pulled so far ahead on industrial policy

In 2022, Beijing accounted for 85% of all clean-energy manufacturing investment in the world, according to the International Energy Agency.
The latest blow to hit the administration of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida came at the weekend when the candidate backed by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party lost to an opposition-backed rival in Shizuoka Prefecture's gubernatorial election.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2024

Early dissolution of Lower House unlikely after another LDP election loss

The view spreading within the Liberal Democratic Party is that it will be difficult for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to call a snap election.
Members of the New Zealand team huddle before the Rugby World Cup 2023 final against South Africa in Saint-Denis, France, on Oct. 28.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
May 28, 2024

New Zealand Rugby set for pivotal vote after breakaway threat

Powerbrokers will vote for one of two proposals about a new leadership structure for the national governing body for rugby.
Opposition parties' senior lawmakers discuss political reform in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 28, 2024

Japan's parties ramp up reform discussions as clock ticks for legal revision

While lawmakers have agreed to expedite discussions, gaps remain on some contentious issues.
Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson (left) and YouTuber Jake Paul face off during a news conference in New York on May 13.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
May 29, 2024

Tyson says he feels '100%' after plane health scare

The 57-year-old reportedly needed medical treatment on Sunday after feeling unwell during a flight.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during the National Memorial Day Wreath-Laying and Observance Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
May 29, 2024

Biden's blurred red lines under scrutiny after Rafah carnage

Despite global outrage over a recent deadly attack in Rafah, the White House has insisted that it did not believe Israel had launched the major operation.
Mainland Chinese tourists on a converted car ferry in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor on April 19, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 29, 2024

Business-first Hong Kong now comes with a catch: Beijing politics

The former British colony is hewing closer to mainland China, blurring distinctions that once cemented the city’s status as mostly free from Chinese politics.
Health ministry officials enter Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's plant in the city of Osaka for inspection on March 30.
JAPAN
May 29, 2024

Two more unexpected compounds found in beni kōji supplements

The two compounds are believed to have been created by contamination of blue mold.
Foreign private credit funds are focusing on Japanese investors as they move more money into higher-paying assets.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 29, 2024

Private credit chases Japan’s trillions as inflation spurs shift

Private credit funds are betting that inflation will prompt investors to channel more money into riskier overseas investments.
Onosato receives the Emperor's Cup from Japan Sumo Association Chairman Hakkaku at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on Sunday.
SUMO / Inside Sumo
May 29, 2024

Onosato's path to sumo greatness was plain for all to see

Sumo’s latest top division champion tore through the collegiate and amateur circuits at an almost unprecedented clip.
The North Korean flag flutters at the North Korea consular office in Dandong, China, in 2021.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 29, 2024

Rare spat shows China and North Korea still at odds on nuclear weapons

Pyongyang condemned China, Japan and South Korea on Monday for discussing denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
A Correctional Services vehicle arrives at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts ahead of the verdict hearing in Hong Kong on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 30, 2024

Fourteen Hong Kong democrats found guilty in landmark subversion trial

Critics say the trial could deal another blow to the city's rule of law and its reputation as a global financial hub.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the West that NATO members in Europe were playing with fire by proposing to let Kyiv use Western weapons to strike deep inside Russia, something he said could trigger a global conflict.
WORLD / Politics
May 30, 2024

Think tank close to Kremlin says Russia should consider a 'demonstrative' nuclear explosion

The idea was suggested as a way to cow the West into refusing to allow Ukraine to use its arms against targets inside Russia.
A taxi in which the driver was shot and injured late Wednesday night in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 30, 2024

Police hunt for man who shot cab driver in Saitama

The suspect, in his 50s or 60s, was wearing a black cap, glasses, a white mask, a black short-sleeved shirt and long pants when he shot the driver.
Chinese electric vehicles bound for shipment at the Port of Taicang in China
BUSINESS / Tech
May 30, 2024

EU seeks roadblocks for Chinese EVs without sparking trade war

Crucially, the bloc must strike a balance with its aim for more Europeans to drive EVs as it prepares to outlaw the sale of new fossil fuel-powered cars from 2035.
Farm minister Tetsushi Sakamoto stands as an amendment on Japan's farm policies clears parliament on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 30, 2024

Japan enacts revised 'constitution' for farm policies

The revised law newly underscores the necessity of ensuring food security at a time when supply chains are being destabilized.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday. According to four U.S. officials, Biden has quietly authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied weapons against military targets inside Russia.
WORLD / Politics
May 31, 2024

Biden allows Ukraine limited use of U.S. arms to strike inside Russia

Revelation by U.S. officials marks a policy shift by Biden, who had refused to allow Ukraine to use U.S. weaponry for strikes inside Russia.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government is implementing a tax cut of ¥40,000 per person from June to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024

Kishida government's much-touted tax cut to start in June

The prime minister has stressed that the tax cut is designed to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
A residential development under construction in Shanghai in February. Problems in the property sector have had a negative impact across broad areas of China's economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 31, 2024

China's factory activity unexpectedly dips as property pain persists

The disappointing number adds to a series of recent indicators showing the $18.6 trillion economy is struggling to get back on its feet.
Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun (center) arrives with his delegation for a bilateral meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on the sidelines of the 21st Shangri-La Dialogue summit at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 31, 2024

U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs agree on importance of military talks

The meeting marked the first face-to-face talks by the U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs in 18 months.

Longform

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