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A protest accusing Deutsche Bank of greenwashing. Its subsidiary DWS was fined $25 million last year for misstating its environmental, social and governance activities.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 17, 2024

Too many companies make false claims about their social impact

Exaggerated claims about companies' positive social and environmental impact ruin our chances of achieving a sustainable future. An entirely new system is needed.
Masako Egawa forged a successful career in business and academia in the United States and Japan.
BUSINESS / WOMEN AT WORK
Sep 1, 2024

A quiet triumph of excellence in the worlds of banking and academia

Masako Egawa navigated a changing business world with her arms open to any opportunities that came along.
A Google logo at the firm's Bay View campus in Mountain View, California, on Aug. 13
BUSINESS / Tech
Oct 30, 2024

Alphabet's AI investments boost cloud sales and lift maturing ad business

Alphabet shares rose nearly 6% in after-market trading on Tuesday.
Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
BUSINESS / Longform
Nov 11, 2024

A boom for business tourism in Japan?

Japan’s MICE sector is expanding rapidly, adapting with tech upgrades, flexible venues and sustainable initiatives as the Osaka Expo approaches.
Rakuten Group plans to consolidate its payments and points businesses and fold them into Rakuten Card, its credit card and loans unit.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 10, 2023

Rakuten to combine credit card and mobile payments business

The move could set the struggling e-commerce company up to eventually list its card business.
With more and more young people entering the workforce, terms that were once popular in the so-called bubble era are falling out of fashion.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 15, 2023

Outdated business jargon strikes out with Japan's Gen Z

Around 70% of survey respondents say jargon leads to misunderstandings that end up wasting time.
Jun Sawada, head of the Japan-U.S. Business Council, holds a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2023

Business leaders call for boost to supply-chain investment

The governments of Japan and the U.S. were urged to step up cooperation with Southeast Asian nations to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Bangkok in November last year.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Nov 14, 2023

How an executive's arrest struck a blow to Japan-China business

The arrest of a Japanese company executive in China has had what some Tokyo officials described as a considerable chilling effect on business.
Haneda Innovation City, a new business hub near Tokyo's Haneda Airport, held its grand opening on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 16, 2023

Haneda’s new business hub holds grand opening

While Tokyo has a number of business hub facilities, Haneda Innovation City's proximity to an airport makes it unique.
The government reiterated that the recovery in capital investment appeared to have stalled, while industrial production showed signs of picking up.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 19, 2023

Japan ups assessment of business mood and sticks to view on economy

In a report, the Cabinet Office said the economy was "recovering moderately although some areas stalled recently."
Toshiba Vice President Koji Ikeya says the company will aim to boost profitability by investing about ¥50 billion in fiscal 2026.
BUSINESS
Jun 13, 2024

Toshiba to double investments in power and defense business

The Japanese electronics and machinery maker will aim to boost profitability by investing about ¥50 billion in fiscal 2026.
Yumiko Takano, chief executive officer of Oriental Land, speaks during a news conference in Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture, on Tuesday. Oriental Land has secured a deal with Disney Enterprises to launch Disney Cruises in Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 10, 2024

Disney to add new ship in Tokyo to expanding cruise business

The new ship will be modeled after the Wish, the largest vessel in Disney's fleet.
Yokohama Rubber has agreed to acquire Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s off-the-road tire business as part of its global expansion plan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 22, 2024

Yokohama to buy Goodyear’s off-road tire business for $905 million

The off-the-road business will be a future growth driver, Yokohama Rubber said in a statement about the acquisition.
 Atsushi Ukawa
BUSINESS
Sep 8, 2024

Japanese bank seeks to help regional economy with bus business

The company is in talks with around 10 municipalities. Senshu Ikeda plans to expand operations possibly to neighboring Hyogo Prefecture.
Keidanren chief Masakazu Tokura (center, left) presents the business lobby group's policy requests to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba alongside the Japan Association of Corporate Executives' Takeshi Niinami (far left) and Ken Kobayashi of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, on Friday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
Oct 4, 2024

Japan's three major business lobbies submit policy requests to Ishiba

Ishiba told the three business leaders that ending the Japanese economy's deflationary state is a top priority.
A factory in Kakamigahara, Gifu Prefecture. Even among profitable small and medium-sized enterprises, it is not uncommon for business owners to shut down due to aging and a lack of successors.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Nov 16, 2024

Japan issues warning over bad-faith buyers in small business M&As

As M&As gain attention as a viable option for business succession, measures are being introduced to raise awareness and safeguard companies.
A rebound in auto output and falling raw material costs helped lift Japan's business sentiment in the third quarter.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 2, 2023

Japan's business mood improves as economic revival continues

The tankan survey suggests conditions for the BOJ to phase out its massive stimulus could fall into place, even as policymakers remain cautious.
Overseas fish buyers participating in a business tour organized by the Japan External Trade Organization visit a fish market in the city of Aomori on Monday.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023

Overseas fish buyers begin business trip in Japan

JETRO organized the tour to help fishery business operators find alternative buyers in the wake of China's ban on Japanese marine products.
Corporate bankruptcies with liabilities of at least ¥10 million increased 35.2% in 2023 from the previous year.
BUSINESS
Jan 15, 2024

Business failures in Japan hit eight-year high in 2023

Failures rose in all 10 surveyed sectors for the first time in 31 years, due to rising prices, deepening labor shortages and the start of repayments of COVID relief loans.
Since September 2022, Patagonia has allocated profits amounting to $71 million to environmental initiatives that include stopping a proposed mine in Alaska and conserving land in South America, as well as helping to elect pro-environment U.S. Democrats.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 6, 2024

The competitive edge of doing good in business

Are companies that give all profits to charity also doing good for their business? Some examples show they are, and that this model is worth pursuing.
Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks at the China Development Forum 2024 in Beijing on Sunday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 26, 2024

Western business leaders help China challenge economic slump fears

Global executives are keen to show interest in participating in China's giant market despite deepening political tensions and moves to favor local firms.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida toast during an official state dinner at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Apr 11, 2024

Business leaders attend Biden's state dinner for Kishida to deepen ties

Kishida's visit has seen the leaders unveil a number of initiatives to strengthen partnerships and investment in technology.
The wealthy don’t live only in global glamour cities, and family offices are now popping up in places like Perth in Western Australia.
BUSINESS
May 28, 2024

Catering to the ultrarich is a booming business in Western Australia

After an almost two-decades-long mining boom, Perth has 64 centimillionaires, and family offices are now popping up in the city.
Mizuho Financial Group is seeking to develop its business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 3, 2024

Mizuho hires ex-OTPP executive Karen Frank as senior adviser for EMEA business

Her appointment will likely be announced in the coming days, sources said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
The U.S. sushi market has grown to almost 1.6 times the size of the market in Japan, according to Sojitz.
BUSINESS
Jul 30, 2024

Japan's Sojitz buys U.S. sushi business in seafood expansion drive

Sojitz is aiming to boost annual net profit from seafood operations to ¥4 billion ($26 million) in the year to March 2027.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris hosts a roundtable discussion with Japanese business executives from companies in the semiconductor industry in Tokyo on Sept. 28, 2022. In a recent survey, some 43% of Japanese firms polled said they preferred a Harris presidency.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 15, 2024

Japan firms see Harris presidency as better for business than Trump

The results of a Reuters survey reflect respondents' concerns about protectionism and policy unpredictability.
Founded in 1879, Tokio Marine was Japan's first nonlife insurance company and it has since expanded into life insurance and now has a presence in 46 countries besides Japan.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2024

Tokio Marine pauses sale of Southeast Asia life insurance business, sources say

The delay appears to be due to the firm's dispute with a Malaysian partner.
Nomura Holdings CEO Kentaro Okuda. In addition to the financial penalties for market manipulation, Nomura is suffering a fresh blow to its reputation following various scandals over recent years including several data leaks.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 30, 2024

Trader's $10,000 spoofing profit haunts Nomura as the fallout widens

The firm’s problems are deepening as Nomura's rivals double down on efforts to poach clients.
China's Premier Li Qiang (right) speaks with U.S, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo during their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Aug 30, 2023

U.S. commerce chief says business with China is key, but risky

The comments by Washington’s top trade promoter underscore that commerce has become one of the main strands of tension between the two powers.
Campaign leader Hiske Arts speaks during a meeting of climate group Fossielvrij Nederland in Amsterdam in August.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 13, 2023

Airlines face a storm over climate claims

A growing number of lawsuits, consumer complaints and rulings from advertising regulators are seeing to restrict airlines' sustainability claims.

Longform

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