Search - 2022

 
 
Lantoko, a company operated by Taiwan native Ping-Fang Lan, offers drift ice walking tours and other exhilarating experiences in and around Shiretoko National Park.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jan 13, 2025

Due north: Foreign-born guides introduce Hokkaido’s unique charms

With adventure tourism on the rise in Hokkaido, a new generation of foreign-born guides is eager to greet travelers.
Commuters inside Zurich's main railway station
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 13, 2025

Widening pay gap for women on boards is ‘red flag’ for Europe

Women were paid 36% less than men on average in 2023 on the boards of banks, insurers and asset managers, an analysis shows.
Police arrested former chancellor of Tokyo Women's Medical University on Monday on suspicion of breach of trust involving fictitious payments of construction consulting fees by the university, according to people familiar with the investigation.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 13, 2025

Ex-Tokyo medical university chancellor arrested for breach of trust

The former chancellor was dismissed in August last year over allegations about illegal expenditures linked to the university's alumnae association, Shiseikai.
The TikTok logo is displayed outside the offices of the social media app's company offices in Culver City, California, in 2023.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 14, 2025

China discusses sale of TikTok U.S. to Elon Musk as possible option

Under one scenario that’s been discussed by the Chinese government, Musk’s X would take control of TikTok U.S. and run the businesses together.
Cook Islands-registered oil tanker Eagle S is seen anchored near the Port of Kilpilahti in Porvoo, on the Gulf of Finland, on Monday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 14, 2025

Oil tanker crew were poised to cut more cables when caught, Finland says

The Eagle S vessel carrying Russian oil is suspected of damaging the Finnish-Estonian Estlink 2 power line and four telecoms cables by dragging its anchor across the seabed.
SoftBank's Arm Holdings may be interested in taking over chip designer Ampere Computing.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 14, 2025

SoftBank's chip designer Arm considers acquiring Ampere Computing

Oracle-backed Ampere makes processors for data center machinery using Arm’s technology.
Participants observe a minute of silence for the victims of the Jan. 17, 1995, earthquake during an event for the the Coming-of-Age Day in Kobe on Monday.
JAPAN
Jan 14, 2025

20-year-olds celebrated in Kobe 30 years after earthquake

A minute of silence was observed for the victims of the Jan. 17, 1995, earthquake.
Epidurals during childbirth have long been uncommon in Japan, though they have been growing more popular in recent years.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 14, 2025

Tokyo plans to subsidize epidurals, but are hospitals ready?

If all goes to plan, Tokyo will be the first to offer prefecture-level financial support for epidurals.
Akan Mashu National Park in Hokkkaido on Dec. 18. A rising number of Hokkaido towns and villages are discussing the introduction of a local accommodation tax for tourists.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Jan 20, 2025

Hokkaido areas examine benefits of taxing tourists

Niseko plans to use accommodation tax revenue to strengthen transportation services and increase the number of tourism-related officials.
U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Steel Works in Braddock, Pennsylvannia, in 2019. Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel face significant legal challenges in their case against the United States.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 15, 2025

Nippon Steel’s case against Biden probably unwinnable, attorneys argue

A U.S. president's rejection of a deal following review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has only been successfully challenged once.
Akutagawa Prize winners (from left) Jose Ando, author of "Dtopia" and Yui Suzuki, author of "Goethe wa Subete o Itta," and Naoki Prize winner Shin Iyohara, author of "Ai o Tsugu Umi."
CULTURE / Books
Jan 15, 2025

Japan's most prestigious literary awards go to a trio of contemporary voices

Jose Ando and Yui Suzuki take home Akutagawa honors, while Shin Iyohara nabs the Naoki Prize.
Red strawberry-flavored candy. The Red No. 3 artificial coloring will no longer be allowed in U.S. food or ingested drugs starting Jan. 15, 2027, according to a Food and Drug Administration document posted online.
WORLD / Science & Health
Jan 16, 2025

U.S. bans cancer-linked Red No. 3 coloring in cereal and other foods

The artificial coloring will no longer be allowed in U.S. food or ingested drugs starting Jan. 15, 2027.
Iga Swiatek hits a return against Rebecca Sramkova during their match at the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Thursday.
TENNIS
Jan 16, 2025

Dominant Iga Swiatek sets up clash against Emma Raducanu at Australian Open

Swiatek will face former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu, who beat Amanda Anisimova, for a place in the last 16.
It's taken Takuma Watanabe little time to establish himself as one of New York's hottest bartenders.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 16, 2025

From Tokyo to Manhattan, Takuma Watanabe stirs up a stiff drink

Tokyo native Takuma Watanabe offers a formidable addition to New York’s pantheon of cocktail bars.
"A Very Asian Guide to Japanese Food" is the first edition of the Asia-centric series to focus on rice balls, fermented soybeans and other Japanese staples.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 19, 2025

For kids, Japanese food ‘is a doorway to exploration’

Begun as a response to Asian-directed violence during the pandemic, the “Very Asian” series of cookbooks-slash-cultural primers turns its gaze toward Japan.
Elon Musk, the world's richest man, has expressed ambitions to build an "everything app," and adding TikTok to X, formerly Twitter, could bring him closer to that vision.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2025

Elon Musk won’t save TikTok

A Musk takeover of TikTok remains far from a done deal. It would require a wildly complex spinoff and it’s not immediately clear how he would fund a purchase.
Fuji TV in the Odaiba waterfront area in Tokyo in 2021
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2025

Fuji TV scrutinized over handling of allegations against ex-SMAP member Nakai

The scandal has sparked widespread criticism, with many questioning Fuji TV’s corporate governance and crisis management.
Filmmaker David Lynch at his Hollywood Hills home in Los Angeles in 2002. The painter turned avant-garde film artist, whose fame, influence and distinctively skewed worldview extended far beyond the movie screen, died on Thursday at 78.
CULTURE / Film
Jan 17, 2025

David Lynch, maker of florid and unnerving films, dies at 78

A painter turned artist whose films included “Eraserhead,” “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive,” Lynch also brought his visionary view to the small screen with “Twin Peaks.”
A bus driver turns people away after filling his vehicle with Ukrainian evacuees who have just crossed the border in Medyka, Poland, in February 2022.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Jan 17, 2025

Ukrainian migrant exit could squeeze Eastern Europe's economies

Ukrainian workers have helped the region's manufacturing and export-driven economies expand quickly.
Private firefighters gather near their vehicles at a mall in Pacific Palisades, California, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Society
Jan 17, 2025

Private firefighters highlight wealth divide in ruined Los Angeles

Questions are being asked about how some of the city's superrich seem to have survived almost unscathed after enormous blazes spread through the metropolis.
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo hold a joint news conference in Taguig City, Metro Manila, the Philippines, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 17, 2025

Japan looks to up the ante with more money and partners in military aid program

As funds for Japan's official security assistance increase, so will Tokyo's efforts to boost the number of countries it assists, according to the Foreign Ministry.
Aryna Sabalenka hits a return against Clara Tauson during their match at the Australian Open in Melbourne on Friday.
TENNIS
Jan 17, 2025

Aryna Sabalenka survives tough battle to reach fourth round of Australian Open

The day's first match at Rod Laver Arena was hardly vintage tennis, but Sabalenka was pleased to come away unscathed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian leader Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 18, 2025

Russia and Iran draw closer with new pact before Trump returns

The comprehensive strategic partnership agreement seeks to deepen political and economic ties as the two countries grapple with sanctions imposed by the U.S. and its allies.
Most of the grant funding for U.S. President Joe Biden's ambitious Chips and Science Act has been awarded, and the initiative has spurred more than $400 billion in planned company investments. But much of the job remains unfinished — and broader upheaval in the chip industry will only add to the challenges.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Jan 18, 2025

Biden’s chips team hands off $52 billion program to a skeptical Trump

Before the election, Donald Trump described the Chips Act as "so bad” and suggested tariffs would be a better solution.
Then-Rep. Brandon Williams, a Republican from New York, during a House Committee on Education and the Workforce hearing in Washington last May
WORLD / Politics
Jan 18, 2025

Trump picks one-term congressman to manage U.S. nuclear arsenal

Brandon Williams represented a New York congressional district for one term, but little is known about his experience in the management of atomic weapons.
Poland's Iga Swiatek hits a forehand during her third round match against Britain's Emma Raducanu on Saturday in Melbourne.
TENNIS
Jan 18, 2025

Rampant Swiatek has ball 'listening' to her in rout of Raducanu

Swiatek has only once reached the semifinal in Melbourne but signaled she is ready to go all the way with a 6-1, 6-0, destruction of the 2021 U.S. Open winner.
Reporters listen as President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Jan. 7
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 18, 2025

Once an interloper, Trump returns to White House more powerful than before

The former real-estate developer now plausibly stands as the defining political figure of the early 21st century.
Carlos Alcaraz hits a backhand against Jack Draper during their fourth round match at the Australian Open on Sunday.
TENNIS
Jan 19, 2025

Alcaraz through to quarterfinals after Draper retires

The third-seeded Spaniard was well on top in the afternoon match at Rod Laver Arena against the Briton, who exited the court for a long medical timeout between sets.
Although direct Chinese exports to the U.S. have shrunk a little in importance over the past four years, the world’s largest economy is still the most important source of final demand for China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 20, 2025

China faces Trump’s return just as reliance on exports soars

China’s record trade surplus of nearly $1 trillion last year was equivalent to more than 5% of its gross domestic product.
Sepp Straka celebrates with the trophy after winning the The American Express in La Quinta, California, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Jan 20, 2025

Sepp Straka shakes off nerves to win The American Express

Former world No. 1 Justin Thomas finished second.

Longform

Atsuyoshi Koike, the president and CEO of Rapidus, says there is a “sense of urgency” when it comes to Japan’s efforts in manufacturing semiconductors. “We have to make sure we are successful,” he says.
Atsuyoshi Koike’s big game: Fourth down and 2 nanometers to go