Search - 2019

 
 
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 18, 2019

As Japan's labor crunch bites, companies look to robots to plug the gaps

In the not-so-distant future, more robots may be interacting with customers at shopping complexes, serving food at restaurants or cleaning floors at offices in Japan amid a serious labor crunch.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Dec 18, 2019

[VIDEO] Gunpla Builders World Cup 2019

Japan Times
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Dec 17, 2019

Yuzuru Hanyu's return, Daisuke Takahashi's farewell headline nationals

Yuzuru Hanyu returns to the Japan Championships this week for the first time in four years. After winning the title four straight times (2012-15), Hanyu has missed the last three installments due to illness and injury.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / 2019 in Review
Dec 17, 2019

Creative expression stifled by 'safety concerns' in Japan

As the taboo-busting comic Joan Rivers used to say after pressing her audience's buttons, 'Can we talk?' On the evidence of this year's Aichi Triennale, if it's about World War II atrocities, the answer seems to be 'no.'
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Dec 17, 2019

From bad to worse: Japan slides 11 places to 121st in global gender equality ranking

The nation's attempts to create “a society in which women shine” are falling well short of its G7 peers and much of the rest of the world.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 17, 2019

Boeing's 737 crisis deepens as production stops for first time in two decades

Boeing Co. said Monday it is suspending production of its best-selling 737 Max jetliner in January, its biggest assembly-line halt in more than 20 years, as the consequences of two fatal crashes of the now-grounded aircraft look set to drag into 2020.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 16, 2019

Japan- South Korea ties: What's in a flag?

Japan's Rising Sun Flag has emerged as a key element of the strain in bilateral relations.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 16, 2019

The impeachment articles are a vindication for Trump

The Democrats have effectively admitted the U.S. president did not commit any statutory crimes.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Dec 16, 2019

China's Xi vows support for Hong Kong leader during 'most difficult' time

Chinese President Xi Jinping met Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam in Beijing on Monday, saying he recognizes her courage to govern the financial hub in these "most difficult" times.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 16, 2019

Shareholder activism rises in Japan as firms go hostile and investors speak out

Record shareholder activism is combining with rare hostile takeover bids in Japan, in a trend that's seen as good news for investors in the country's ¥675 trillion stock market.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
Dec 16, 2019

The push for change in the 2010s: The first step is recognizing the problem

Japanese companies have been waking up to the idea that offending some of their customers might be bad for business.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Dec 15, 2019

December 16, 2019

Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 15, 2019

Henoko dispute between Okinawa and Japan's central government seen further intensifying

While Saturday marked the first anniversary of the start of landfill work Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki blasted the Abe administration's “illegal” landfill work, calling it “an act of trampling on democracy.”
Japan Times
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Dec 15, 2019

Major issues loom as Kansai looks ahead to the new year

It was a busy 2019 for Kansai, particularly in the days leading up to the June Group of 20 leaders summit in Osaka. While the Tokyo Olympics will be the focus of much of the nation's attention in 2020, here are some major issues that will impact Kansai next year:
COMMUNITY / Voices / OVERHEARD
Dec 14, 2019

Honesty is the best policy

'Sir, can I help you? Are you not going into the stadium?'
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 14, 2019

Looking at the lives you can still save

Living ethically involves helping people suffering in ways we could easily prevent. Many people seem to have taken that message to heart.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Dec 14, 2019

Winding back the years in Yokohama’s Yamate district

One of Japan's '100 Cityscapes,' Yokohama's Yamate district — also known as 'The Bluff' — preserves some of the city's elegant European structures and international heritage.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 13, 2019

Trump approves U.S.-China trade deal to halt Dec. 15 tariffs

President Donald Trump has signed off on the first phase of a trade deal with China, averting the Dec. 15 introduction of a new wave of U.S. tariffs on about $160 billion of consumer goods from the Asian nation, according to people familiar with the matter.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 13, 2019

Boeing drops 2019 timing for 737 Max return after CEO meets with FAA

Boeing Co. on Thursday abandoned its goal of winning approval this month from the Federal Aviation Administration to unground the 737 Max after Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg met with senior U.S. aviation officials.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Dec 12, 2019

Welcome the new year with a bubbly toast

Are there any sights more welcoming than a freshly poured glass of Champagne? With occasions for celebration becoming more frequent up until the end of the year — and indeed, the decade — the answer is undoubtedly "No!"
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 12, 2019

Short electric flight advances fossil fuel-free air travel

A five-minute test flight of an all-electric commercial aircraft by Vancouver-based Harbour Air has taken a significant step in the quest to replace aircraft powered by fossil fuels, a mode of transportation increasingly viewed through the prism of global warming.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 11, 2019

Remembering Nakasone and America’s 1980s Asia policy

The prime minister's leadership proved key to the broader evolution of the Japan-U.S. alliance.
Japan Times
SOCCER / From the Spot
Dec 11, 2019

Celebs hog spotlight at subpar J. League gala

Sunday's J. League Awards should have been an opportunity for the league and its promotional team to take a victory lap after a 2019 season that shattered attendance records and drew unprecedented interest from overseas.
Japan Times
Rugby
Dec 11, 2019

Brave Blossoms express gratitude at Tokyo parade

Members of Japan's men's national rugby team marched through Tokyo's Marunouchi Naka-dori street on Wednesday in a parade held to express appreciation for the support they received from fans during the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2019

Japan's government hoping to stop net population inflows into Tokyo by 2024

The central government aims to stop net population inflows into the greater Tokyo area by fiscal 2024, it was learned Tuesday.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat