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Jan 31, 2003

Takahashi to follow coach Koide

Olympic marathon champion Naoko Takahashi said Thursday she will leave the Sekisui Chemical athletics team and continue to train with her longtime coach Yoshio Koide.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2003

Hiroshima island may host night drills

The government may shift noisy night-flying drills by U.S. Navy warplanes to an uninhabited island in Hiroshima Prefecture and away from the Atsugi air base in Kanagawa Prefecture, defense sources said Thursday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2003

Shinsei experience: lattes in the lobby, free ATM transactions

A typical Japanese bank looks a bit like the dowdy, paper-shuffling office of a shoddily run company. There are plenty of bowing clerks. But don't count on conveniences like 24-hour ATMs.
JAPAN
Jan 30, 2003

Ship conveyed 1974 assassination order

A North Korean ship that makes irregular visits to Japan may have been used to convey orders from Pyongyang for the attempted assassination in 1974 of then South Korean President Park Chung Hee in Seoul, sources close to police investigations said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2003

Snow Brand vows to restore image with safety steps

Snow Brand Milk Products Co., which has recently revamped its corporate structure, restated its pledge Wednesday to restore its image by ensuring safety and ethical conduct.
BUSINESS
Jan 29, 2003

Sony executive Ohga decides to retire

Norio Ohga, Sony Corp.'s chairman of the board, said Tuesday he will step down for health reasons.
EDITORIALS
Jan 28, 2003

Can we trust 'Davos man'?

The rich, the powerful and the famous last week descended once again on the Swiss village of Davos for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF). This year, the assembled luminaries pondered the loss of "trust" that has sapped institutions worldwide. The question is a vital one. Of the many...
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2003

Ling Ling jets off to Mexico to mate with three pandas

Ling Ling, the only giant panda at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo, departed Monday for Mexico for a third attempt at breeding with female pandas there, following two previous failures.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 28, 2003

Turning Japanese no simple process

Japan's aging society and low birthrate demand dramatic measures, some say.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 27, 2003

China leaves India in the dust

NEW DELHI -- While I was in India recently, the first phase of an underground railway was inaugurated in New Delhi. At about the same time, in Shanghai, the world's first magnetic levitation train was inaugurated between the airport and the city. This is a fitting metaphor for the two countries. China...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jan 26, 2003

Cleaning up Japan is one tall order

Thanks to improved nutrition, the height of the average Japanese person has increased considerably since World War II. Nevertheless, many Japanese, especially those over a certain age, despair over what they believe is their short stature.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 26, 2003

Should zoos become extinct?

Though I prefer seeing animals in the wild, I confess to being intrigued by zoos. I'm certainly not alone in my interest, as the long and varied history of zoological institutions shows.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jan 26, 2003

Replica habitats aim to create more natural animal displays

Spending the day at the zoo isn't one of the first things families think of any more when they're looking for weekend recreation. As both new alternatives -- from the recent upsurge of interest in soccer to the rash of flashy theme parks -- as well as more familiar ones -- like the movies -- vie for...
COMMENTARY
Jan 26, 2003

Undoing a dictator's legacy

HONG KONG -- There was a largely unseen symmetry underlying two political bombshells that recently exploded in the northern Philippines, one after the other: Early on Dec. 29, the effigy of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, seemingly carved into rock in northern Luzon, was at long last blown up. Then,...
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 25, 2003

Only Mitzna offers real hope for peace

NEW YORK -- The Jan. 28 elections in Israel offer voters a clear choice: either they choose to continue with policies that have only brought increased violence and misery to their country, or they can take the bold step of choosing a candidate with risky but novel ideas on how to deal with the ongoing...
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2003

Daihatsu, FAW Huali tie up on compact SUV production

OSAKA -- Daihatsu Motor Co. said Friday it has agreed to provide technology to China's FAW Huali (Tianjin) Motor Co. to manufacture Daihatsu's Terios compact sport utility vehicle.
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2003

Bank tax may be frozen for extra year in Osaka

OSAKA -- The Osaka prefectural government told the assembly Friday of its intention to freeze for another year the imposition of a planned local bank tax if the Tokyo metropolitan government loses an appeal over the legality of a similar levy.
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2003

Kumagai Gumi ponders spinoff

Ailing construction company Kumagai Gumi Co. plans to spin off its money-losing real estate business and carry out a massive restructuring in the hope of surviving as a slimmer company half its present size, industry sources said Friday.
BUSINESS
Jan 25, 2003

Cerberus, SMFG vie for controlling stake in Aozora

The number of contenders for a controlling stake in Aozora Bank was effectively trimmed Friday to two -- U.S. private equity fund Cerberus K.K. and the Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group.
JAPAN
Jan 25, 2003

Third time lucky for Ueno panda?

The Ueno Zoological Gardens in Tokyo unveiled a plan Friday to loan its only giant panda, Ling Ling, to a Mexican zoo in order to carry out a third breeding attempt, following two previous failures.
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2003

Tertiary industry activity continues downward slide

Tertiary industry activity fell 0.7 percent in November from October for the third consecutive monthly dip, the government said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2003

Taiwan firm inks deal for more shinkansen line

A group of nine Japanese companies and two Taiwanese firms said Thursday it has landed an order from Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp. to lay the northern 150-km section of a bullet train line in Taiwan, in addition to the order it landed for the southern 180-km section.
BUSINESS
Jan 24, 2003

MMC may expand production in North America

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. President Rolf Eckrodt said Thursday the carmaker is considering expanding its production capacity in North America and will come up with a plan in the next few weeks.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 23, 2003

Suzuki names new president, launches hybrid

Suzuki Motor Corp. made a number of announcements Wednesday, naming its new president, unveiling fiscal 2003 sales projections and launching what it says is the world's first commercially available hybrid minivehicle.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2003

Ex-wrestler loses assault suit appeal

The Tokyo High Court dismissed an appeal by former professional wrestler Akira Maeda on Wednesday and ordered him to pay damages for assaulting the owner of a rival combat-sport promotion company.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2003

Pet cats in Okinawa to carry microchips

The Environment Ministry will begin implanting microchips in pet cats in northern Okinawa that will carry data about the animal and its owner.

Longform

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