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Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2023

Japan marks three years since first COVID case

With experts saying that the mortality rate for omicron is lower than that of seasonal influenza, the government is currently discussing reviewing the classification of COVID-19.
Yuki Tsunoda arrives at Suzuka Circuit on Friday ahead of the first practice sessions for the Japanese Grand Prix.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 23, 2023

AlphaTauri makes it official: Yuki Tsunoda keeps seat for 2024

The Japanese driver's immediate future in Formula One is secure, with his AlphaTauri team confirming that his contract has been finalized for 2024.
Alpha Tauri's Yuki Tsunoda is the first Japanese driver in Formula One since 2014.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 30, 2023

Foul-mouthed Yuki Tsunoda becoming cult star in Formula One

Tsunoda's foul mouth and devil-may-care attitude have inspired a cult following and an international appeal.
Max Verstappen won his third straight Formula One title in Qatar on Oct. 8.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Oct 20, 2023

Max Verstappen keeping foot on gas with more milestones in sight

Max Verstappen will be racing for pride, points and records this weekend at the United States Grand Prix.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen drives ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris during the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Oct 23, 2023

Dominant Max Verstappen earns 50th career win

Yuki Tsunoda finished 10th for Alpha Tauri and secured an extra point for the fastest lap.
The Disney store in Times Square, New York, on Oct. 29
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 9, 2023

Disney tops earnings forecasts as Iger sets 'building' phase

Disney now says it is on track to achieve $7.5 billion in annualized savings
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen arrives at the U.K. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Safety Summit at Bletchley Park in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, Britain, on Nov. 2.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 6, 2023

EU set to hold talks to finalize agreement on world's first AI law

Brussels wants a legal armory to protect EU citizens' rights, while some member states worry that too much regulation will stifle innovation.
Few could have predicted what artificial-intelligence proponents are dreaming up these days.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 7, 2023

Wall Street quants see mixed results from chatbots amid AI boom

As AI tools get more sophisticated, companies are updating their presentations to incorporate a positive vocal tone and upbeat sentences, research shows.
After more than 33 hours of negotiations this week, delegates from the European Commission, the European Parliament and 27 member countries agreed to a set of controls for generative artificial intelligence tools.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 9, 2023

EU strikes deal to regulate AI tech in landmark act

The bloc’s internal market chief said the deal strikes a balance between fostering innovation and protecting the rights of people and companies.
Ayao Komatsu speaks during an event ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture on Sept. 21.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Jan 11, 2024

Tokyo native Komatsu takes over as Haas F1 boss after Steiner's departure

"In appointing Ayao Komatsu as Team Principal we fundamentally have engineering at the heart of our management," the team owner said.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen during preseason testing on Wednesday in Sakhir, Bahrain
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Feb 25, 2024

Verstappen eyes fourth title as rivals face 'brutal' reality

With stable regulations and no changes to the driver lineups, a year of deja vu appears likely in Formula One.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has upended Communist Party norms since consolidating power and installing a coterie of loyalists in 2022, marking a shift from the more collective decision-making that helped propel China’s economic rise.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 1, 2024

Xi’s one-man rule over China’s economy is spurring unrest

While the Chinese leader attempts to put the China's economy on a more sustainable footing, he is failing to convince the nation that's a good idea.
RB's Yuki Tsunoda drives during the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sakhir on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Mar 3, 2024

Yuki Tsunoda's temper flares over team orders in closing laps of Bahrain GP

Tsunoda did not take kindly to being asked to let his teammate by and showed his frustration over the team radio and on the track.
Yuki Tsunoda attends a promotional event ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, in Tokyo on Wednesday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Apr 5, 2024

Japan favorite Tsunoda looks to shift career into higher gear at Suzuka

Without a race seat yet for 2025, the driver's future is up in the air.
Apple CEO Tim Cook attends the Wonderlust event at the company's headquarters in Cupertino, California, on Sept. 12, 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 3, 2024

Apple unveils record $110 billion buyback as results beat low expectations

Apple's quarterly revenue fell, but less than analysts had expected, and CEO Tim Cook said revenue growth would return in the current quarter.
The Netflix series "House of Ninjas" partially succeeds in elevating its subject, but there is still room in Hollywood to give ninja the "samurai" treatment.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
May 8, 2024

Shine and shadow: Unpacking favoritism in ‘Shogun’ and ‘House of Ninjas’

When it comes to Japanese archetypes in Hollywood, samurai are like rock stars compared to the less-considered ninja. It's time ninja took the spotlight.
Wanxiang America’s Neapco manufacturing plant in Belleville, Michigan
BUSINESS / Companies
May 29, 2024

Once embraced, Chinese companies now shunned in U.S. on security fears

It doesn’t matter if it’s mining or health care, even Chinese furniture could one day be seen as a national security issue, a lawyer who represents Chinese clients said.
Korean skincare routines tend to be more complex than Japan’s counterpart beauty industry of “less is more,” making K-beauty something of a sweet spot between Japan and the West.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jun 9, 2024

K-beauty or J-beauty? The two 'are not so different these days.'

In early 2024, imports of Korean beauty products to Japan topped French cosmetics for the first time.
A man walks past a store of luxury brand Burberry at a shopping mall in Beijing in 2021.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 17, 2024

Luxury brands feel the sting as Chinese growth slows

China accounted for 16% of $393.8 billion of global luxury spending last year, but the economy grew slower than expected in the last quarter.
Toyota Motor has been issued a correction order for the first time.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 31, 2024

Toyota Motor receives correction order from transport ministry

The ministry found indications of additional misconduct, such as falsifying test results.
Yoshifumi Matsumura (second from right), head of the National Public Safety Commission, inspects Tokyo's Kabukicho entertainment district in June.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 5, 2024

Tokyo host bar worker arrested over kickbacks for brokering prostitution

It is the first time a worker at a host bar has been arrested over receiving kickbacks for brokering prostitution.
Held annually in Cologne, Germany, Gamescom is the world's largest gaming convention, meaning it attracts attendees and exhibitors from near and far.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Sep 7, 2024

Traveling to Germany is ‘worth the cost’ for Japan’s indie studios

"Nothing beats seeing players' faces as they play our game in person, and getting to ask them directly about their experience, both positive and negative.”
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference following a two-day meeting on interest rate policy in Washington on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 8, 2024

Powell signals readiness to defy Trump in defense of Fed

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell insisted the incoming president doesn’t have the power to fire him or other senior Fed leaders.
Chinese Finance Minister Lan Foan attends a news conference about a bill on raising ceilings on local government debt, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 9, 2024

China unveils $1.4 trillion debt swap, saving stimulus for Trump

China gave indebted local governments a 10 trillion yuan ($1.4 trillion) lifeline but stopped short of unleashing new stimulus.
Rachel Accurso, in character as the internet personality Ms. Rachel, in New York on Nov. 4.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 30, 2024

Ms. Rachel’s improbable journey from toddler whisperer to holiday toy sensation

A series of toys depicting children’s YouTube sensation Ms. Rachel is quickly becoming one of the hottest holiday gifts.
David Sacks during an event in San Francisco in 2016. President-elect Donald Trump announced on Thursday that Sacks would take on the role of "White House A.I. & Crypto Czar."
BUSINESS / Tech / ANALYSIS
Dec 7, 2024

Trump's crypto team takes shape but questions remain over who will drive policy

Some analysts said the creation of a crypto czar, a new role, sowed ambiguity over who would drive policy and flagged the potential for clashes.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market 250 Index is down about 11% so far this year and set for its fourth yearly loss.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 24, 2024

Japan startups set for longest rout on record as rate hike looms

A rate hike by the Bank of Japan would make it more expensive for new companies to finance research and development.
A member of the medical staff treats a woman with COVID-19 next to her four-day-old baby at a hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, in November 2021.
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 27, 2024

COVID pregnancies may have boosted autism risk, study shows

"There’s something really going on,” pediatric infectious diseases physician Karin Nielsen says. "We don’t want to alarm the world, but that’s what our data are showing.”
Frustrated by policy uncertainty and modest stimulus, investors are shifting from long-term bets to short-term trades in China.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 29, 2025

Growth engine or casino? Global investors rethink China playbook

Investor uncertainty and policy shifts have fundamentally changed how analysts and money managers view China’s markets.
Students learn heavy machinery maintenance using virtual reality at a United Tractors vocational institution in Jakarta on March 6..
BUSINESS
Mar 11, 2025

Indonesia’s industrial growth goals at risk as education system falls short

Poor teaching and a dearth of basic equipment has led to a pressing shortage of qualified workers and high unemployment among young people.

Longform

Wealthier women in the prewar era had been the targets of various media-related health campaigns that mistakenly encouraged them to avoid everything from riding bicycles to reading novels when their monthly cycles came around.
Menstruation in Japan: Breaking the silence, slowly