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A mural showing Los Angeles Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani is seen on the Miyako Hotel in Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday. The mural, by artist Robert Vargas, is 150 feet (46 meters) tall and is titled "LA Rising."
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 30, 2024

Shohei Ohtani is home and focused on baseball. Dodgers fans are relieved.

Los Angeles finally got a close look at baseball’s megastar, as a gambling situation involving his former interpreter took a back seat to opening day.
With emerging headwinds in the U.S. and Japan, U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will have their work cut out for them next month as they look to maintain the momentum driving change in the alliance between both countries.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 31, 2024

Kishida heads to U.S. with a mission — maintain alliance momentum amid challenges

Defense and security will likely top the agenda, though it is unclear how the PM will handle the issue of Ukraine assistance amid a split U.S. Congress.
People place their bets at the Fanduel sportsbook in East Rutherford, New Jersey, during the Super Bowl in February 2019.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 31, 2024

U.S. sports leagues bet on gambling. Now they’re facing its risks.

Leagues have signed lucrative marketing deals with betting apps like FanDuel and DraftKings and recent incidents have highlighted issues.
Employees work at a factory that produces LED displays in Huaian, in eastern China's Jiangsu province, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 31, 2024

China factory activity expands for first time in six months

The official manufacturing purchasing managers index rose to 50.8 from 49.1 in February, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement Sunday.
Children wash their hands with a new public pump installed as part of a climate resilient water system in Inn Chey in Kratie Province.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Mar 31, 2024

Japan sits at the forefront of climate resilient infrastructure in Southeast Asia

Japanese businesses and government agencies are pouring billions of yen into various programs across Cambodia and Southeast Asia to reduce climate risks.
A woman pays her respects at a makeshift memorial in front of the Crocus City Hall in Moscow on Friday, a week after a deadly attack by gunmen there killed at least 143 people.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2024

Putin's conspiracy theories make Russians less safe

The Kremlin hopes that blaming Kyiv and the West for the attack will turn a difficult domestic political situation to its advantage.
A site in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, that formerly belonged to the British Embassy, was discovered to have artifacts and dwellings from the city's past.
JAPAN / History / Longform
Apr 1, 2024

The complications in digging up Tokyo's ancient past

When traces of history are found at construction sites, businesses need to sport the cost of removing them. But then, the build goes on.
A mural showing Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani is seen on the side of the Miyako Hotel in Little Tokyo, downtown Los Angeles, on Thursday. The mural is by artist Robert Vargas and is 46 meters tall.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 1, 2024

Ohtani’s arrival brings hope and nostalgia home to Little Tokyo

In Los Angeles, home to one of the nation’s oldest Japanese American enclaves, rooting for the Dodgers is a cherished tradition.
The Bank of Japan's tankan survey showed that large nonmanufacturers saw improvement in their sentiment with the index reaching the highest level since 1991, helped by a surge in inbound tourists.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 1, 2024

Japan service firms’ optimism tempered by softer factory sector

The deterioration in manufacturing sentiment partly reflects the impact from scandals among some vehicle producers.
Tadashi Imai, who became Nippon Steel's new president on Monday
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2024

Nippon Steel emphasizes its roots in the U.S. as it pursues deal

The Japanese firm has agreed to buy U.S. Steel for roughly $15 billion but the deal faces an uphill battle to approval in a U.S. election year.
Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, mayoral candidate of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), celebrate following early results in front of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality in Istanbul on April 1.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 1, 2024

Inflation delivers shock defeat for Erdogan in Turkey’s municipal vote

Higher lending costs have dented consumer sentiment but have yet to reverse the trajectory of price increases running at an annual rate of just under 70%.
CrowdTangle, bought by the firm now known as Meta in 2016, offers crucial real-time transparency into the spread of conspiracy theories and hate speech on influential Meta-owned platforms including Facebook and Instagram.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2024

Meta to switch off tool that tracks misinformation months before U.S. vote

CrowdTangle offers crucial real-time transparency into the spread of conspiracy theories and hate speech.
Tugboats guide the Maersk Atlanta container ship at the Port of Newark in Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday. The bridge collapse Tuesday that shut the Port of Baltimore and closed a major highway will cause weeks or months of transportation disruptions in the Mid-Atlantic region.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2024

Baltimore ship accident has east coast ports scrambling to absorb cargo

The bridge collapse will accelerate a shift of cargo to the U.S. West Coast in order to avoid potential bottlenecks at trade gateways from Boston to Miami.
An employee of Jet Blue airlines walks around an engine of an Airbus A320 passenger aircraft in a maintenance hangar of the company at JFK International Airport in New York on March 4.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2024

Maintenance staff shortage in U.S. could clip aviation industry's wings

The sector lacks some 24,000 aviation maintenance technicians in North America, a figure due to reach nearly 40,000 by 2028.
Cans of Asahi Super Dry beer move on the production line inside an Asahi Breweries plant in Moriya, Ibaraki Prefecture, in April 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2024

With U.S. push, Asahi aims to sate evolving tastes

The drink-maker is placing its “premium” offerings and low-alcohol and nonalcoholic beverages front and center in a bid to differentiate itself.
New regulations took effect this month to cap the working hours of hospital doctors, with the health ministry also specifying that hours spent on duties and self-development directly associated with education and research should be considered work hours.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 1, 2024

Japan starts work style reform to cap doctors' overtime

Medical services in Japan have historically relied to some extent on the self-sacrifice of doctors.
Akihiro Fukutome, head of the Japanese Bankers Association, said new takeover guidelines from the industry ministry last year have helped lower psychological hurdles associated with unsolicited bids.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2024

Japan's banks less hesitant with hostile takeovers, lobby chief says

His comments offer evidence of a sea change in Japan — which once shunned hostile bids — that has helped bring it closer to Western-style dealmaking.
A smoke plume erupts during Israeli bombardment on Khan Yunis as seen from Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 1, 2024

Fighting rages across Gaza amid revival of truce talks

More than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive in Gaza since Oct. 7.
Around 90% of China’s increased oil demand between 2021 and 2024 comes from chemical feedstocks, driven by the manufacturing of products such as those sold by fast-fashion retailers Shein and Tamu.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 1, 2024

China's Shein and Temu are driving oil, not Toyota and GM

The cause behind recent a surge in China's oil demand is not to be found in people's transport habits, including car use, but in fast-fashion clothing.
Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich (right) with then-wife Dasha Zhukova in 2014. Zhukova's mother, Elena Zhukova, is engaged to media mogul Rupert Murdoch.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2024

The oligarch, his ex-wife, her mother and Rupert Murdoch

Were it not for other stories coming out of Russia, Rupert Murdoch's engagement to Roman Abramovich's ex-mother-in-law would have made more headlines.
Customers browse Gashapon official shop “Ikebukuro Sohonten” in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2024

Top capsule-toy maker Bandai bets on huge market outside Japan

Machines for capsule toys have become ubiquitous in Japan, found not only in arcades, but also malls, supermarkets, airports and train stations.
The moon rises behind the State Historical Museum, the Kremlin's towers and St. Basil's Cathedral in central Moscow on March 21. Russia has dismissed new allegations about its role in Havana syndrome as "groundless."
WORLD / Politics
Apr 2, 2024

'Havana Syndrome' linked to Russian intelligence unit, report says

The U.S. State Department has said it stands by its assessment that no foreign actor is responsible.
As they enter the workforce, the young employees who grew up texting one another have their own rules for communicating.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 2, 2024

Fear of a full stop? Young Japanese say drop the period in your texts.

In addition to "maruhara," or "period harassment," younger employees want to cut down on the unnecessary emails that are a part of work culture.
The European Commission has been investigating Microsoft's tying of Office and Teams since 2020.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2024

Microsoft to separate Teams and Office globally amid antitrust scrutiny

The company started selling the two products separately in the EU and Switzerland on Oct. 1 last year.
People dressed as King Kong and Godzilla attend the world premiere of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood last month.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Apr 2, 2024

'Godzilla x Kong' tops North American box office with $80 million haul

Japan's favorite monster seems to be on a roll this year, winning an Oscar and topping the box office in a prized market.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told dismayed supporters overnight that they "must not waste" the four years remaining before the next presidential vote.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 2, 2024

Opposition defeat of Erdogan redraws Turkey's political map

Opposition candidates and voters celebrated inflicting a stinging defeat on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party in municipal elections.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has a long-running feud with Qatar-based channel Al Jazeera.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 2, 2024

Israel's Netanyahu vows to ban Al Jazeera broadcasts

The Qatar-based broadcaster slammed the ban as "part of a series of systematic Israeli attacks to silence Al Jazeera."
Ayuko Kato, minister for policies related to children, speaks at a parliament session on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Apr 2, 2024

One year on, Japan's children agency struggles to show leadership

The agency is facing challenges to demonstrate leadership, unable to move forward with unprecedented measures to combat the declining birthrate.
Chinese President Xi Jinping made the call for the PBOC to gradually increase the buying and selling of government bonds in October but his remarks were publicized recently in a new book and newspaper article, hinting at a policy pivot for a central bank that hasn’t made a significant bond purchase since 2007.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 2, 2024

Xi’s cryptic bond comments hint at PBOC becoming more like Fed

PBOC could pivot toward strategies used by other central banks in heeding the call to "gradually increase the buying and selling of government bonds.”
A giant mural of baseball star Shohei Ohtani appears on the side of a hotel in downtown Los Angeles in March. ANA Holdings said it has reached a multi-year deal to be the official Japanese airline for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2024

ANA to be official Japanese airline of Ohtani's LA Dodgers

The carrier will also collaborate with the Dodgers in celebrating Japanese culture at heritage nights events.

Longform

Passengers that were on a morning train attacked by members of the Aum Shinrikyo group wait for medical assistance outside Kasumigaseki Station on March 20,1995.
The day a religious cult brought terror to Tokyo