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The National Police Agency coined the term "tokuryū" to classify individuals involved in dark part time jobs and quasi-gangsters, using the words "tokumei" (anonymous) and "ryūdo" (fluid) to reflect their characteristics.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
May 6, 2024

Tokuryū, a new crime menace in Japan, emerges from the shadows

Unlike the yakuza, which have a hierarchical structure and strict codes of conduct, they lack a clear organizational structure and thrive on anonymity.
McLaren's British driver Lando Norris celebrates on the podium after winning the 2024 Miami Formula One Grand Prix at Miami International Autodrome in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS
May 6, 2024

McLaren's Norris wins Miami Grand Prix for maiden F1 win

Mercedes pair Lewis Hamilton and George Russell finished sixth and eighth with RB's Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda ending seventh.
French President Emmanuel Macron warns of existential threats to Europe from Russia, China and the U.S.
COMMENTARY / World
May 6, 2024

Is this Macron's moment to shine?

Underlying all the problems that Europe faces in a new age of geopolitical, economic and climate insecurity is a crisis in leadership.
Rafael Nadal takes part in a training session on Monday before the start of the Italian Open at the Foro Italico in Rome.
TENNIS
May 7, 2024

Nadal to make Rome return against qualifier

The 37-year-old last won in Rome in 2021 and dropped out last year with injury ahead of the tournament.
Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel is set to open in June in the theme park's new section featuring areas based on "Frozen," "Tangled" and "Peter Pan."
BUSINESS
May 7, 2024

Tokyo DisneySea taps ‘Frozen’ and 'Peter Pan' in ¥320 billion expansion

The expansion, which opens to the public June 6, is expected to help boost total annual sales by ¥75 billion.
Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge (center) among his pacers during a training session in Kaptagat, Kenya, on Saturday.
OLYMPICS / Athletics
May 8, 2024

Kipchoge's road to third Olympic gold starts in Kenya's Rift Valley

"I'm feeling good. But I think the next months will be more interesting," the athlete said after a training session.
A police officer handles money seized during an operation against 'Ndrangheta in this photo taken at an unknown location in Italy on Sept. 6.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 8, 2024

Italy's mafia forgoes extortion, turns to white-collar crime

With extortion rackets falling out of fashion and murders largely frowned upon by the godfathers, Italy's mafia is venturing into white-collar crime.
A building in the city of Osaka housing the Osaka District Court
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 8, 2024

Court orders deletion of disparaging portrayal of Osaka area

The comments were targeted at a "dowa" district — an area designated under an assimilation project to help integrate marginalized communities.
Grant Shapps, U.K. defense secretary, departs following a meeting of cabinet ministers at 10 Downing Street on Nov. 22, 2023.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 8, 2024

China seen hacking systems to build profiles of U.K. defense personnel

The U.K. is accusing China of using hacked data to build up their profiles of British military personnel and those in sensitive roles.
A soldier from the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) holds an RPG launcher at a Myanmar military base at Thingyan Nyi Naung village on the outskirts of the Thailand-Myanmar border town of Myawaddy on April 15.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 8, 2024

In Myanmar war, crucial window looms for junta and rebels

What happens in the next few weeks in the scramble for strategic locations in Myanmar could determine the next phase of the bloody conflict.
Sony employees simulate the physical sensations of pregnancy at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo in February. The simple power of numbers can begin to remake workplace cultures, but many Japanese women still struggle to balance their careers with domestic obligations.
JAPAN / Society
May 8, 2024

It took decades, but Japan’s working women are making progress

Employers have taken steps to change a male-dominated workplace culture. But women still struggle to balance their careers with domestic obligations.
Brazil's Ronaldo (left) celebrates his goal against Turkey with teammate Ronaldinho during a World Cup match in Ulsan, South Korea, in June 2002.
SOCCER
May 8, 2024

Is Brazil still the land of soccer?

"We're at a low point. We used to have more top-quality athletes," the late Pele's eldest son, Edinho, said recently.
Taro Aso (center), vice president of the Liberal Democratic Party, hands the party's proposals for securing a sufficient number of imperial family members to Lower House Speaker Fukushiro Nukaga (left) at the parliamentary building on April 26.
JAPAN
May 8, 2024

Interparty talks on shrinking imperial family may start next week

The talks are likely to focus on retaining female imperial family members after marriage and adopting male relatives.
Toyota said its group net profit in the fiscal year that ended in March nearly doubled from the previous year to hit a record high, due to robust sales of hybrid vehicles.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 8, 2024

Toyota posts record net profit on weak yen and strong hybrid sales

The carmaker saw a 31% jump in sales of hybrid vehicles, bringing the total to 3.7 million, while sales of purely electric cars were 116,500.
Philippine Marines wave to Philippine Navy personnel and the media during a resupply mission at their military outpost, the BRP Sierra Madre, a warship run aground in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal in 1999, in the South China Sea, in March 2014.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
May 8, 2024

Stormy seas ahead as Beijing and Manila trade barbs over secret deal

China has accused the Philippines of reneging on a "gentlemen's agreement" concerning activities in the South China Sea.
Head of North Korean propaganda Kim Ki Nam has died at 94.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 8, 2024

North Korea propaganda boss who shaped image of leaders dies at 94

He played an essential role in shaping the country’s messaging as leadership transferred to Kim Jong Il, and helped in the succession of Kim Jong Un.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan President Kenta Izumi has vowed to resign if his party fails to win at least 150 seats in the next general election.
JAPAN / Politics
May 8, 2024

Pact with JCP a double-edged sword for the CDP

While some of its members wish to further the cooperation, others might prefer to work with opposition parties considered more moderate or right wing.
A member of staff at Momuri responds to a request for assistance in submitting a resignation in Tokyo on April 18.
JAPAN / Society
May 8, 2024

Japan's workers turning to agencies that help them quit jobs

One firm that provides such a service saw the highest-ever number of requests following the long Golden Week holiday.
Ippei Mizuhara, seen during Shohei Ohtani's introductory news conference with the Dodgers in December 2023, has agreed to plead guilty to charges of bank fraud and filing a false tax return.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 9, 2024

Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter to plead guilty to bank fraud

Mizuhara agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony bank fraud and one count of filing a false tax return.
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (left) works against the Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert during the second quarter in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series in Denver on May 4.
BASKETBALL / NBA
May 9, 2024

Nuggets star Nikola Jokic named NBA MVP for third time in four seasons

Jokic is the ninth player to win the award three or more times.
Cambodia's then-Prime Minister Hun Sen and Aung San Suu Kyi walk past the honor guard during her visit to Phnom Penh on April 30, 2019. Myanmar's junta said on Wednesday that it would not permit Hun Sen to meet with Suu Kyi, who has been detained since a 2021 coup.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 9, 2024

Myanmar junta rebuffs Hun Sen's request to meet Suu Kyi

Cambodia's former leader said he had requested a meeting with the Nobel laureate, detained since 2021, during talks with junta chief Min Aung Hlaing.
A container was used as a temporary toilet facility at a roadside station in Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in January after the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
JAPAN
May 9, 2024

High-tech containers provide relief to quake-hit Noto areas

The land ministry is advocating the use of these containers to enhance the disaster-relief capabilities of roadside stations.
Hong Kong is looking to Saudi Arabia in efforts to attract a new set of investors to replace Western nations who may be deterred from doing business in China at a time of rising geopolitical tensions.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 9, 2024

Hong Kong woos Saudi money in attempt to revive stock market

Its bourse operator has been having a tough time in recent years amid a stuttering Chinese economy and saber-rattling by Beijing and Washington.
China’s fading appeal to foreign firms comes despite Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pledge in November to take more "heart-warming” measures to ease access to the world’s second-largest economy.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 10, 2024

EU firms’ appetite for China investment sinks to record low

Only 13% of firms surveyed earlier this year saw the country as a top destination for investments, a survey found.
The apartment complex where Toshino Hirasawa was stabbed in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 10, 2024

Man arrested over fatal stabbing of woman had lent victim ¥18 million

It has emerged that the suspect, Manabu Wakui, was arrested for stalking the victim, Toshino Hirasawa, two years ago.
A customer uses a mobile phone at a contactless payment terminal in a pub in London. As with so many other industries, technology has been a primary driver of the change.
WORLD / Society
May 10, 2024

American-style tipping is testing British pub culture

Restaurants, cafes, pubs and bars, account for more than 90% of tipping across the country.
Japan Post CEO Tetsuya Senda (right) and his Seino Transportation counterpart Satoshi Takahashi announce their companies' agreement on joint long-haul truck operations, in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 10, 2024

Japan's logistics firms seek partnerships to cope with driver shortage

Japan Post and Seino Transportation have reached a basic agreement to work together on joint long-haul truck operations.
The Hong Kong market's recent rally has been fueled by a reassessment of investment strategies, with previously favored markets such as Japan and Taiwan losing appeal. Bloomberg
COMMENTARY / World
May 7, 2024

What is behind the Hong Kong market’s fast and mysterious rally?

The reallocating of investments toward Chinese assets is likely to continue, despite the historical volatility associated with the Chinese market.
Employees work on a production line at an automotive plant producing electric cars near Ningbo, China. The U.S. is set to announce new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and other goods as early as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.
BUSINESS
May 11, 2024

Biden set to hit China EVs and strategic sectors with tariffs

The decision, which could come as early as next week, represents one of Biden’s biggest moves in the economic race with China.
The transport ministry will begin talks this summer with expressway operators on details of a system aimed at controlling traffic volumes by flexibly setting highway tolls nationwide, depending on sections and the time of day.
JAPAN
May 11, 2024

Japan to introduce variable expressway tolls nationwide

The government is considering including the plan in its basic economic and fiscal management guidelines to be compiled in June, sources said.

Longform

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