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BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 8, 2014

BOJ stays policy course, aware of sales tax hike hit

The Bank of Japan on Tuesday left its ultra-loose monetary policy unchanged, while acknowledging the consumption tax hike introduced this month will have a negative impact on the economy.
BUSINESS
Apr 8, 2014

February current account rebounds for first surplus in five months

The nation's current account rebounded into surplus in February from a record deficit the previous month as income from overseas investments outweighed deficits in trade and services.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2014

'Gods' edging out robots at Toyota facility

Inside Toyota Motor Corp.'s oldest plant, there's a corner where humans have taken over from robots in thwacking glowing lumps of metal into crankshafts. This is Mitsuru Kawai's vision of the future.
BUSINESS
Apr 4, 2014

Toyota's N. America chief bullish on fuel cell sedan advances

Toyota Motor Corp.'s North American chief, preparing to sell Camry-sized hydrogen sedans next year, said he's "bullish" about advances in the company's fuel cell system and wants more U.S. supply of the Japan-built cars.
EDITORIALS
Apr 4, 2014

Opportunity to rethink whaling

The government should take the International Court of Justice's ruling against Japan's Antarctic whaling activities as a cue to work out ways to balance declining consumer demand for whale meat with the desire of some to preserve the nation's whaling tradition.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 4, 2014

Abe's immigrant dream is a wage nightmare

Prime Miniser Shinzo Abe wants to import 200,000 foreign workers a year into Japan to counter the decline in the population. But the gambit might work at cross-purposes with his push to get companies to increase wages.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 3, 2014

Seven & I shatters operating profit record as convenience stores thrive

Seven & I Holdings Co. said Thursday it logged a record consolidated operating profit of ¥339.6 billion for the business year through February, thanks mainly to the strong performance of its convenience stores, which gave the group a 14.9 percent boost.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 3, 2014

Cash-rich firms spurn banks' offers

Banks are the most keen to lend companies money in 17 years. Corporate treasurers don't need the cash.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 3, 2014

Will Ukraine's new boss be like the old boss?

The question facing Ukrainians is whether Petro Poroshenko, the man who seems poised to win the presidency on May 25, will prove that all their recent efforts to put an end to decades of corrupt, oligarchic rule have been in vain.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 3, 2014

U.N. Arms Trade Treaty takes leap toward entry into force

The U.N. Arms Trade Treaty took a major step forward on its eventual entry into force on Wednesday as 18 countries, including five of the world's top 10 arms exporters, delivered proof of its ratification to the United Nations.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2014

Mori Building, LVMH to invest ¥83 billion in Ginza retail development

Mori Building Co., Japan's biggest closely held developer by sales, and LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, the world's largest luxury-goods maker, will form part of a group developing a retail and office complex in central Tokyo, in a bid to cash in on expectations of increasing consumer spending leading...
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Apr 2, 2014

West stumbles as autocratic forces trumps economics

A quarter-century after the fall of the Soviet Union, authoritarian rulers such as Vladimir Putin and Bashar Assad are showing they can and will defy international norms, suppress dissent and use military force. American policymakers are struggling with how to respond.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 31, 2014

MH370 not the work of terrorists, U.S. says

Senior U.S. lawmakers on Sunday said that investigators have found no evidence thus far pointing to terrorism in the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 three weeks ago, and that it is critical to find the plane to understand what happened on board.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2014

Why Russia won't tank U.S. Treasury market

Do the U.S. government's vast debts to foreign nations present a threat to its national security?
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 30, 2014

Airports eager to cater to Muslims' needs

Motivated by a surge in Islamic visitors, Japan's major airports are falling over themselves to capitalize on the trend by installing prayer rooms and offering halal meals.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 28, 2014

Hidden tax hike surprises await unwary consumers

Tuesday's consumption tax hike will in principle affect all domestic purchases of goods or services, but there are still gray areas where consumers may get surprised by unexpected levies, government officials warn.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2014

Flush Toyota ends pause in buybacks

Toyota Motor Corp. said it will buy back stock for the first time in five years as its cash pile swells and profit climbs.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2014

ANA splits 70-airplane order with Boeing, Airbus to modernize fleet

ANA Holdings Inc., the nation's largest airline, split a ¥1.7 trillion order for new aircraft between Boeing Co. and Airbus Group NV in the biggest purchase in the carrier's history.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 27, 2014

Yen repatriation 'fiesta' fades as more exporters move abroad

For yen traders, March used to be a time for extra vigilance. Traders knew they needed to be careful selling the currency because the nation's exporters would place big yen bids ahead of their financial year-end.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2014

SMBC ups pay for first time in 19 years

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.'s lending unit has agreed to raise salaries for the first time in 19 years as an economic recovery spurs profit at Japan's second-largest bank by market value.
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2014

SMBC aiding Osaka airport rights

Government-owned New Kansai International Airport Co. is working with the brokerage unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. to sell rights to operate two of the country's largest airports, sources said.
EDITORIALS
Mar 26, 2014

A year into the deflation fight

A year after taking the helm of the Bank of Japan, Haruhiko Kuroda appears on course to achieving the targets he set in the quest to rein in Japan's protracted deflation and put the economy on a growth path. Unfortunately bank lending to businesses has not expanded as hoped.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 25, 2014

Japan Display earns big return for INCJ despite IPO flop

Look beyond the messy initial public offering of Japan Display Inc. and there's a surprising tale in the numbers: The government helped combine three struggling businesses, restructure them to turn the combined entity profitable — and made money in the process.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 25, 2014

Babymetal aren't the latest chapter in the 'wacky Japan' story

The British are mad, aren't they? That Kate Bush with her crazy gyrating around a cello in the video for "Babushka," that daft loon Robbie Williams with his funky skeleton costume, those kerrr-azy Tellytubbies with their wacky dance routines — what is it about the British that makes them so totally...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 24, 2014

Monetize state debt when deflation risks persist

How will central banks achieve a final 'exit' from unconventional monetary policy and return balance sheets swollen by unconventional monetary policy to 'normal' levels?

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