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BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 9, 2013

A first: Nation's debt tops ¥1 quadrillion

The national debt exceeded ¥1 quadrillion for the first time, underscoring the case for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to proceed with a sales tax increase to shore up government finances.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 8, 2013

Cross-purpose BRICS scheme

The absence of developed cooperative ties and of commercial turnover growth within the BRICS grouping may only perpetuate existing structural differences.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 8, 2013

Politicians unwilling to revisit tax hike law: adviser

Lawmakers are reluctant to reopen legislation on the sales tax rise, raising the bar for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should he seek a shallower path of increases, according to one of his advisers.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 8, 2013

BOJ puts off more monetary easing

The Bank of Japan on Thursday put off additional monetary easing and maintained its assessment from the previous month that the economy is "starting to recover moderately."
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 8, 2013

Honda to double Brazilian output in emerging market sales push

Honda Motor Co. announced Thursday that it plans to double its production capacity in Brazil as part of efforts to double sales in emerging markets.
EDITORIALS
Aug 7, 2013

Ever upward Chinese economy?

The laying of the last beam on China's tallest building reflects the ego and ambition of a worldbeating economy. But how will Beijing deal with slower growth
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2013

Can a battery jolt economy?

In a windy town in Hokkaido, an experiment is about to begin with a battery designed to transform the way electricity is supplied and at the same time boost Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic rescue plan.
EDITORIALS
Aug 6, 2013

Take a stand against nuclear weapons

Sixty-eight years since atomic bombs were used against people for the first time, U.S. President Barack Obama's call for further cuts in nuclear arsenals is up in the air.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 6, 2013

Political Islam loses legitimacy

The progress of political Islam depends on whether Turkey's AKP and Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood commit to safeguarding the principles of pluralism and the rule of law.
BUSINESS
Aug 6, 2013

Hybrid Corolla debuts in Japan

Toyota Motor Corp. began selling a hybrid version of its best-selling Corolla in Japan on Tuesday to attract cost-conscious buyers seeking better fuel economy.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 4, 2013

China may relax one-child policy to let more couples have second child

China is studying whether to relax its one-child policy to allow more couples to have two children, the official Xinhua News Agency has reported, citing the National Health and Family Planning Commission.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2013

23 residents sue to keep Setagaya off plates, claiming violation of their privacy

Residents of Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, are suing the central government to stop the introduction of license plates that they claim will violate their privacy and are being forced on them.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 2, 2013

Tax delay and Fed paring called threat to JGB bubble

Takeshi Fujimaki, a former adviser to billionaire investor George Soros who won a seat in the Upper House election last month, said a delay in increasing the sales tax and a reduction in the U.S. Federal Reserve's stimulus could cause the Japanese government bond "bubble" to burst.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 1, 2013

Son reshaping Softbank seen in $20 billion loan

Softbank Corp.'s cost of refinancing debt from its purchase of Sprint Corp. will be less than half of what it paid seven years ago to acquire the Vodafone unit that launched its mobile phone operations.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 31, 2013

A prince's push for workplace equality

Prince William's decision to take two weeks of job-protected, paid statutory paternity leave represents bold support for workplace equality between men and women.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 31, 2013

Deficit cut mulled as sales tax debate intensifies

The Abe administration is considering an ¥8 trillion target for budget-deficit cuts over the next two years as officials debate how to proceed with the planned consumption tax increases that threaten to take the wind out of the economic rebound.
JAPAN
Jul 30, 2013

Low-lying ward boosts rain forecasts

Susceptible to flooding, Tokyo's Edogawa Ward, 70 percent of which is below sea level at high tide, will start posting rainfall forecasts on its website from Thursday in a pilot program aimed at improving its flood control as much of the nation grapples with a spate of torrential downpours.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 29, 2013

Nation can weather April tax hike: Kuroda

Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda showed little concern that the first phase of the sales tax hike could derail an economic rebound as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe decides whether to proceed with it.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 28, 2013

Cheer over Reagan's arrival won't trickle down to most Japanese

The Ronald Reagan moment Japan investors have long fantasized about has finally arrived.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 27, 2013

China betting on overland energy-supply lines

China's strategy to diversify supply routes for its rapidly rising energy imports has taken a major step forward as natural gas flows through a Myanmar pipeline.
EDITORIALS
Jul 26, 2013

The MOX fuel conundrum

Power companies' attempt to use mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel in some of their nuclear reactors deepens the conundrum in which Japan's power industry finds itself.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 26, 2013

Aflac wins wider access to Japan Post's insurance sales network

Japan Post Holdings Co., the country's biggest holder of bank deposits, will start selling more insurance products by Aflac Inc., the largest provider of supplemental health insurance.
BUSINESS
Jul 24, 2013

U.S. health-care law tied to pay cut for part-timers

For Kevin Pace, the president's health care law could have meant better health insurance. Instead, it produced a pay cut.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / BALANCING INTERESTS
Jul 23, 2013

Food looms large as trading houses plot overseas forays under new pact

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Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?