Search - 2013

 
 
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 24, 2014

Splitter expected to be 'money pitch' for Tanaka in the majors

Now that the New York Yankees have agreed to part with a whopping $175 million in order to fit Masahiro Tanaka for pinstripes, baseball fans and observers will spend the next several years trying to figure out if "Ma-kun" was worth the hefty price tag.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 23, 2014

Toyota outsold GM, VW in '13, sees 3% growth this year

Toyota Motor Corp. outsold General Motors Co. and Volkswagen AG in 2013 to lead the global auto industry for the second straight year and forecast 3.4 percent growth for 2014 on rising demand in the U.S. and China.
EDITORIALS
Jan 22, 2014

Tobacco's red flag turns 50

It was 50 years ago that a landmark study by the U.S. Surgeon General identified the links between tobacco use, cancer and death. The number of tobacco-related illnesses and fatalities remains too high.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 22, 2014

Hiraki Sawa’s dream world: Worth the pause for thought

Sometimes it can be irritating visiting an exhibition of video-based art. You come in halfway through one of the videos or near the end of another, and you feel that you've missed something and wonder if you should stick around to watch it from the start.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2014

BOJ misfire seen in regional banks' turn to aircraft loans

Chugoku Bank Ltd. wants to get into the global airline debt market after loans to local businesses fell for a fourth straight year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2014

Toyota, Honda at record output in N. America

Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. set production records at their North American auto assembly plants last year even as the yen weakened against the dollar for a second consecutive year.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jan 22, 2014

Akita, Ryukyu a cut above at halfway point of season

With the eighth annual All-Star Game slated for Sunday afternoon in Akita, it's an appropriate time to take a look at highs and lows of the season's first half.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 21, 2014

Korean credit card firms under fire as 20M user details are swiped

South Korea's biggest theft of personal information on credit card holders prompted dozens of top executives at financial firms, including KB Financial Group Inc., to offer their resignations this week as a regulatory probe widened.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues
Jan 20, 2014

My niece, the drug smuggler

Imagine two New York Jewish women groomed among the stylish and well-educated on opposite shores of Long Island. They meet up in Tokyo for the first time. In a strange twist of fate, they are not sipping tea from fine bone china, as they might have back home. Instead they find themselves seated on opposite...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 20, 2014

BOJ near limit for bond buys but boost may be needed

The Bank of Japan is approaching the upper limit of its target for buying bonds, raising prospects it will need to expand the scope of its stimulus program to support the economy before a tax increase.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 19, 2014

Marketers succeed by generating hitto products

Japanese consumers and marketers alike certainly love their ヒット商品 (hitto shōhin, hit products). To understand how this term came about, we need to look back to the decade following World War II. When living standards gradually began to improve from the early 1950s, Japanese consumers eagerly...
COMMUNITY
Jan 19, 2014

Team-teaching rules can lead to confusing situations

At present, Japanese labor law restricts foreign native English-speaking teachers, referred to as ALTs (assistant language teachers) from team-teaching with Japanese classroom teachers. Students get the short end of the stick, as team teaching is considered a highly effective foreign-language teaching...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jan 18, 2014

After Aum, post-9/11 lull, weeklies rediscover faith

March 20 will mark the 19th anniversary of the toxic nerve-gas attack on the Tokyo subway system by members of the Aum Shinrikyo (Supreme Truth) doomsday cult. That attack, which shook Japanese society to its very foundations, resulted in 13 deaths and thousands of injuries. Thirteen high-ranking Aum...
ENVIRONMENT
Jan 18, 2014

Will Japan prepared mean nature ruined?

"Resilience" is a hot topic these days — not in self-help books, but among policymakers worldwide. As governments become convinced that climate change is a real threat, they are taking steps to ensure communities can bounce back from the increasing impact of floods, storms, fires and droughts they...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jan 18, 2014

Lexicon for today's Japan: Reading between the lies

Plowing through the news, one is often struck by the proliferation of acronyms, jargon, new names and terms. It can be a baffling experience, so I thought I would provide some explanations, keywords, synonyms, associative notions and interpretations to aid comprehension — even at risk of differing...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 18, 2014

Unilever slips into buttery embrace

Paul Polman, CEO of margarine maker Unilever, has criticized butter in the past, saying the dairy fat "kills." With sales of the company's spreads sagging, he is now embracing it.
EDITORIALS
Jan 17, 2014

Global economic prospects

As the world watches for signs of stable global economic growth this year, Japan should be ready to take remedial measures for its own economy if the consumption tax increase in April causes negative effects.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
Jan 17, 2014

Mourinho in form ahead of Man United showdown

With Jose Mourinho it is usually a metaphorical knife in the ribs followed by a supportive arm around the shoulder.
EDITORIALS
Jan 15, 2014

The 'Internet of everything'

The advent of the 'Internet of things,' the ever-expanding array of connectedness between computer sensors and consumer devices, promises convenience as well as privacy and security concerns.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat