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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 29, 2016

Marilyn Monroe's Tokyo honeymoon spot frets over impact of yen rise

Tokyo's Imperial Hotel, the luxury inn that counts Marilyn Monroe among past guests, raised room rates last year to levels it last charged before the bubble economy imploded in the early 1990s. A surging yen now threatens those gains.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Aug 29, 2016

Foreign part-timers proliferate in Chubu as scarce Japanese flee drunks at pubs

Foreign students working part-time in izakaya (pubs) are rising rapidly in the Chubu region amid the increasing tendency of many young Japanese to avoid drunk customers.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 29, 2016

Singapore logs 41 cases of locally transmitted Zika, mainly among foreign construction workers

Singapore has confirmed 41 cases of locally transmitted Zika virus, mostly among foreign construction workers, and said it expected more cases to be identified.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 28, 2016

Japan's men and women must stand together against the scourge of sexism

Sexism is one of the scourges of the nation. Fortunately, it's a problem that can be tackled through education. So why isn't anyone doing this?
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 28, 2016

Minnesota sets broadest U.S. limits on chemicals blamed for bee declines

Minnesota's governor on Friday ordered the broadest restrictions yet in a U.S. state on the use of agricultural pesticides that have been blamed for hurting bees, fueling concerns that farmers there will not be able to protect crops from insects.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Aug 28, 2016

Singapore confirms first case of locally transmitted Zika virus

Singapore has confirmed its first case of a locally-transmitted Zika virus, which has been linked to microcephaly, a rare birth defect, in Brazil, the health ministry said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Aug 27, 2016

Single mothers courted to plug Japan's local labor gaps

While some employers are unsympathetic to the circumstances of single parents, others see them as a solution rather than a problem.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Aug 27, 2016

Yellen rejects radical overhaul of Fed's policy tools

For all the talk of a radical shift in central banking policy, from the permanent use of negative rates to printing "helicopter money," Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen appears to believe she can tackle any downturn using the tools currently at her disposal.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2016

IPhone ready to play catch-up in Japan with swipe-to-pay chips

Apple Inc. is planning a new iPhone feature for Japan that will let people pay for mass-transit rides with their smartphones instead of physical payment cards. A future iPhone will include technology called FeliCa, a mobile tap-to-pay standard in Japan developed by Sony Corp., according to people familiar...
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 26, 2016

Coastal land expands as construction outpaces sea level rise

The Earth has gained coastal land equivalent to the size of Jamaica in the past 30 years with man-made construction outpacing erosion caused by rising sea levels, mapping data showed on Thursday.
WORLD
Aug 26, 2016

Don't count on technology to save you in a disaster; planning is better: researchers

Newfound enthusiasm for the latest technologies, such as drones and smartphones, to improve the way aid is provided to people in disasters may be overblown, experts warn.
Japan Times
JAPAN / TICAD VI SPECIAL
Aug 26, 2016

Summit seeks expanded investment and development

African nations and Japan will be seeking a new type of win-win partnership at the sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI) that will be held for the first time in Africa when it kicks off in Nairobi on Aug. 27 amid uncertain situations in Japan and the region.
Japan Times
JAPAN / TICAD VI SPECIAL
Aug 26, 2016

Home to exotic wildlife, lush nature

Kenya is popular for tourism because of a rich natural environment that can be enjoyed throughout the year. White sandy beaches on the coast, beautiful landscapes, unforgettable mountain treks and the grand beauty of many varieties of vegetation and animals are must-sees.
Japan Times
JAPAN / TICAD VI SPECIAL
Aug 26, 2016

Expanding business with Africa

Africa is a dynamic and growing market, one that has steadily drawn the interest of Japanese companies across all major business fields in recent years. As we approach the sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI) to be held on Aug. 27 and 28 in Nairobi, I would like to use...
Japan Times
JAPAN / TICAD VI SPECIAL
Aug 26, 2016

Side events offer a variety of business fairs and symposiums

The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism are among organizations holding side events at TICAD VI, an excellent opportunity to highlight development issues of the fast-growing continent....
Japan Times
JAPAN / TICAD VI SPECIAL
Aug 26, 2016

Improved infrastructure key to success moving forward

The Yokohama Plan of Action adopted under fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) in 2013 has centered its priorities on the development of African infrastructure, the growth of its economy and capacity building. To this end, many projects are being implemented on the ground....
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 25, 2016

Building the foundations of Pacific stability

At a time when six of the world's 10 largest armies are located in the Pacific theater of operations, and 22 of the region's 27 countries have army officers as their defense chiefs, the need to invest in the U.S. Army's mission in the region is clear.
WORLD / Science & Health
Aug 25, 2016

California legislature passes climate change bills

California lawmakers voted to extend the state's climate change fighting efforts to 2030 on Wednesday, giving a new lease on life to the most ambitious greenhouse gas reduction program in the country.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 25, 2016

As Abenomics loses shine, Japan's shoppers seek bargains

Three years of Abenomics, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's bold stimulus program, has failed to dislodge a deflationary mindset among businesses and consumers.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2016

Infant deaths underscore accountability gaps in Japan's nurseries

When Yuki Kai went to pick up her 14-month-old son, Kento, from a nursery in Tokyo after his nap time, she found him dead.
WORLD
Aug 25, 2016

Obama declares Maine forest new monument ahead of National Park Service centennial, draws GOP flak

President Barack Obama on Wednesday designated 87,500 acres in Maine's North Woods as a national monument, as the administration prepares to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 24, 2016

Beyond silence: lessons learned from a Japanese spouse

You see it often in Tokyo: the attentive Japanese woman and the Western man filling silence. In fact, a lot of them end up married, sharing a house and 1,000 meals, albeit hardly a life of the mind.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 24, 2016

Roads blocked, press barred as tempers flare over landing pads in Okinawa

Public anger is rising on Okinawa at a proposed site for new U.S. military landing pads, with residents and reporters criticizing what they say are heavy-handed tactics by the Japanese authorities to push the project through.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2016

Akie Abe prays at Pearl Harbor, fueling speculation Japan's prime minister will follow suit

Known for making free-thinking comments and actions that are politically awkward for her husband, Akie Abe has done it again.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2016

Government to loosen rules on using maiden names for My Number, residence cards

The government tackles another social problem as it attempts to create a more female-friendly work environment.
Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Aug 22, 2016

Rio passes Olympic flag to Tokyo, 'Super Abe' during closing ceremony

Tokyo took center stage as Rio de Janeiro handed over the Olympic flag to the 2020 host city at a rain-lashed but joyous closing ceremony for the Rio Games on Sunday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 21, 2016

Sukiyaki Meets the World music festival thinks global and acts local

In his classic polemic against modern Japan, "Dogs and Demons," Alex Kerr described how a system of government loans and subsidies in the 1980s spurred a nationwide outbreak of grandiose construction projects. Today, the Japanese countryside is littered with oversized, underused cultural centers, many...

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