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JAPAN
Apr 20, 1999

State to subsidize R&D at smaller firms

The government said Tuesday it will grant a subsidy of 11 billion yen in the current fiscal year to small and medium-size enterprises in promoting development and research of innovative industrial technology, officials said.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 1999

No. 2 prosecutor may resign over sex scandal

Japan's second-highest ranking prosecutor indicated Friday that he is ready to step down over allegations that he used public funds to take his mistress on business trips.
JAPAN
Apr 8, 1999

FSA to declare Kokumin in capital deficit

The Financial Supervisory Agency next week will declare that Kokumin Bank, a second-tier regional bank, is in a capital deficit of 50 billion yen, raising the specter of yet another government takeover, sources at the state agency said Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 7, 1999

Foreign policy to the fore in Washington

WASHINGTON -- After a year that was unusual, peculiar and unbelievable enough to qualify as one long April Fool's Day, the U.S. government is finally back doing governmental work. It isn't boring, but it is less colorful than the year of Monica et al. We have lost some of our more entertaining characters...
COMMENTARY
Mar 21, 1999

Consensus or confrontation?

LONDON -- The popular image in Japan is that Britain is a society governed by confrontation and that this has been the source of British failures. Japan, on the other hand, is a society where consensus prevails, and this has led to harmony and to economic success. The popular image is at best a caricature...
COMMENTARY
Mar 17, 1999

What real bank reform means

Japan seems to like the new and shiny. Tack the word "shin" (new) onto the name of a product -- anything from a detergent to a political party -- and automatically you gain an edge over the opposition.
JAPAN
Mar 16, 1999

JAL plans executive echelon makeover

Japan Airlines will reduce the number of board members and adopt an "executive officer" system as part of its three-year business plan, JAL President Isao Kaneko announced Tuesday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 1999

Japan should foster risk-takers, MIT president says

Staff writer
COMMENTARY
Mar 2, 1999

A world bereft of leaders?

LONDON -- Hardly a day goes by without someone deploring the lack of political and economic leadership in our world. Commentators bemoan that with the departure of politicians like former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl the world is bereft of political leadership....
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 25, 1999

Courage pays off in Seoul

The crisis that has hit emerging-market economies around the world may not yet be over, but the "policy courage" that the South Korean people and the Seoul government have shown in reaction to it is already bearing fruit. South Korea has impressed its OECD partners by turning the crisis into an opportunity...
CULTURE / Art
Feb 25, 1999

Uncovering the treasures around us

KYOTO -- Some adventurers explore shipwrecks for lost treasure. Jay Gregg makes a living "uncovering" treasure simply by recognizing it before anyone else does.
EDITORIALS
Feb 19, 1999

The Japan-U.S. performance gap

The U.S. economy has extended its sparkling performance into a ninth year, albeit attended by sentiments of rising caution on Wall Street. The contrast with Japan's decline in the 1990s is so strong that events in the United States look as though they are happening on another planet. In a global era,...
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1999

Bills on aiding small firms go to Diet

The government will submit to the Diet today two bills aiming to help small and medium-size enterprises revive their operations and create new businesses, government officials said Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 4, 1999

21st century Japan plan means overhaul: Shingu

KYOTO — The government has done all it can to bring the nation out of its economic slump and now everyone else has to pitch in, Yasuo Shingu, chairman of the Kansai Economic Federation, said Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 2, 1999

JR Tokai coughs up 20.5 billion yen for JNR burden

Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) officially announced Tuesday that it will accept the additional financial burden imposed by the government in a scheme to repay about 28 trillion yen in debts left behind by the former Japanese National Railways.
JAPAN
Feb 2, 1999

Dentsu to acquire stake in Nomura IR

In a bid to move into the potentially lucrative investor relations business, Dentsu Inc. announced Tuesday that it will acquire a 10 percent equity stake in Nomura Investor Relations Co., an affiliate of Nomura Securities Co.
JAPAN
Jan 25, 1999

Thai canal envisioned to promote trade

To boost regional investment and cross-border trade in Southeast Asia, Gen. Chavalit Yongchaiyudh, a former Thai prime minister, is advocating a bold plan to cut a canal across the narrow part of southern Thailand between the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea.
LIFE / Digital / CYBERIA
Jan 20, 1999

Toys today, tools tomorrow

Cybersurfers never had it so good. The efforts of Apple's Steven Jobs to revive his legacy mean that we can order the iMac in one of five "flavors." Thanks, Steve. Bill Gates wants you to be able to go anywhere you want on the Net -- as long as Microsoft escorts you on the journey
JAPAN
Dec 3, 1998

Menem urges increase in investment

Argentine President Carlos Menem urged business leaders Thursday to promote investment in the republic to help correct a trade imbalance between the two countries.
JAPAN
Nov 11, 1998

JR East first-half profits down 9%

East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) reported 166.6 billion yen in unconsolidated operating profit during the first half of fiscal 1998, down 9.1 percent from the same period last year because of the stagnant economy, officials of the carrier announced Wednesday.
JAPAN
Oct 29, 1998

Banks again asked to take public funds

OSAKA -- For the second time this week, Bank of Japan Gov. Masaru Hayami on Thursday urged Japanese banks to quickly apply for public funds to accelerate their bad-loan writeoffs.In his keynote speech at the 24th ASEAN-Japan Business Meeting here, he said that Japanese financial institutions, facing...
JAPAN
Oct 22, 1998

ANA changes course for Star Alliance

In an effort to pull in business class customers for its international routes, All Nippon Airways Co. will join the Star Alliance, a multilateral strategic linkup of international carriers, next October, ANA officials said Thursday.The alliance is made up of Air Canada, Lufthansa German Airlines, Scandinavian...
JAPAN
Oct 8, 1998

LTCB merger now 'option' for Sumitomo Trust

Sumitomo Trust & Banking Co. President Atsushi Takahashi hinted Thursday the bank's planned merger with the troubled Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan was effectively dead, saying the LTCB is now "one of the options" among the bank's alliance strategies.Takahashi, however, said it is too early to make...
JAPAN
Oct 7, 1998

Public funds the best medicine, U.S. chamber says

Staff writerIf you cut your arm and blood was flowing like a river, the first thing you would have to do is stop the bleeding, the head of the world's largest business organization in the United States said.In the same manner, Japan must expeditiously inject public funds into its ailing banking sector...
JAPAN
Oct 1, 1998

Nissan to take 76 billion yen loss on shareholdings

Nissan Motor Co. announced Thursday that it will report 75.961 billion yen in unrealized losses on its stockholdings in its earnings results for the first half of fiscal 1998.Nissan, which has been hurt recently by poor business performance, has been aggressively trying to sell assets, including its...
JAPAN
Sep 22, 1998

Sumitomo Life buys into Taiheiyo

In an aggressive move to expand its financial services, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. has purchased about 10 percent of outstanding shares in ailing Taiheiyo Securities Co. and its subsidiary Taiheiyo Investment Trust Management Co., the two companies announced Tuesday.
JAPAN
Sep 16, 1998

Emperor takes trip to the future

The Emperor visited the Time 24 Building on the Tokyo waterfront in Koto Ward on Wednesday to get a firsthand look at future business activities and shopping via computer. The building mainly houses government organizations promoting future high-tech businesses.
JAPAN
Aug 17, 1998

JAL officials admit payoffs to 'sokaiya'; pair arrested

Police arrested two members of a "sokaiya" corporate extortionist group Monday on suspicion of receiving about 23 million yen over 2 1/2 years from Japan Airlines Co. in violation of the Commercial Code.
JAPAN
Jul 29, 1998

Hayami defends easy monetary policy

Bank of Japan Gov. Masaru Hayami on Wednesday explained the central bank's wait-and-see attitude in its recent monetary policy decision, ruling out the possibility of further lowering the official discount rate or pursuing an inflationary policy to help revive the economy.
JAPAN
Jul 23, 1998

Patent Office to offer online trademark database search

A free Internet service will be launched by the Patent Office on July 31 to enable users to rummage through some 2 million trademarks that have already been registered or applied for, officials said Thursday.

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