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EDITORIALS
Mar 7, 2006

A battle that has barely begun

One year since the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control went into effect, Japan's smoking rate still remains high compared with other developed nations. The government needs to create a strong momentum toward lowering the rate.
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Mar 6, 2006

Oita's example can give clues on how to close rural gap

Japan's overall economic conditions are steadily improving, but the large gap between urban and rural areas is often cited as a serious problem. While business is brisk in Tokyo and other big cities, rural parts of Japan still lack the vigor.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2006

CPI registers third increase in a row

In a move expected to push the Bank of Japan to start specific debate on ending its ultraeasy monetary policy next week, the government said Friday the January core consumer price index rose 0.5 percent from a year before, marking the third consecutive year-on-year increase and the biggest jump since...
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2006

Yen fall, Dow rise send TSE to 65-month high

The key Nikkei stock index rose Monday to end at a fresh five-year, five-month high on buying prompted by the yen's fall against the dollar and recent strength on Wall Street.
JAPAN
Jan 26, 2006

Imperial Couple to visit Miyake in March

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will make a day trip to Miyake Island in March to offer encouragement to the islanders, who are rebuilding their communities destroyed by volcanic eruptions that began in 2000, the Imperial Household Agency said Wednesday.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 24, 2006

Can Japan absorb foreign influx?

When discussing the recent ethnic riots in France, The Economist newsmagazine ("Minority Reports," Nov. 10, 2005) posed an important question: How come some countries assimilate immigrants more peacefully than others?
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2006

Digital shakeup leaves most traditional camera makers reeling

Business is booming at the camera shop managed by Hiroaki Kitahara, but he has a sense of emptiness regarding the past and is worried about the future.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 11, 2006

Lasorda hopes Cuba makes it to World Baseball Classic

Cuba's exclusion from the World Baseball Classic would be tragic, and no one knows it more than WBC ambassador Tommy Lasorda.
COMMENTARY
Jan 9, 2006

Post-Kyoto wind picking up

The 11th Conference of Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change was held in Montreal from Nov. 28 to Dec. 9, more than a year after Russia ratified the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, thus enabling it to take effect last Feb. 16.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 5, 2006

TSE vows to fix systems as stocks resume climb

Tokyo stocks opened 2006 on a festive note Wednesday, the year's first day of trading, as Tokyo Stock Exchange officials vowed to restore public confidence in the world's second-largest bourse, which was shaken by computer problems last year.
JAPAN
Jan 4, 2006

Income disparities rising in Japan

During the period of high postwar economic growth, most people in Japan came to consider themselves part of a middle class.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2006

Four-way horse race to succeed Koizumi

The gate is open and the horses are off and running.
JAPAN
Dec 29, 2005

11 who lost health insurance weren't treated, died

At least 11 people have died over the past six years because they were apparently unable to receive prompt medical attention after having surrendered their national health insurance cards for nonpayment of fees, according to a Kyodo News survey compiled Wednesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 29, 2005

Tapes fast disappearing from movie rental shelves

Whether they're couch potatoes or not, people had better get DVD players if they want to check out the latest rental releases or even classic titles this holiday season.
JAPAN
Dec 28, 2005

Japan's population declines by 19,000

The total population of Japan, including everyone who has been a resident longer than three months, fell to 127.76 million as of Oct. 1 for the first drop in the postwar period, the government said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Dec 24, 2005

Prosecutors get papers on defense bid-rigging

The Defense Facilities Administration Agency has submitted documents tied to bid-rigging allegations over installation of electrical equipment, in response to a request from the Tokyo District Public Prosecutor's Office.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Dec 22, 2005

Completely useless objects

It's 6 p.m., it's the end of the work day at a busy Kanda office block. OLs have been furiously tapping away at their keyboards, and connections have been made in the meeting rooms. Power players in their suits have been clinching make-or-break, win-win deals. Suddenly, the doors of the elevator open...
COMMENTARY
Dec 19, 2005

Defeat presses Chen to ease up on China

HONG KONG -- Lord Acton's maxim that "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely" has just been proven true again in Taiwan, where the ruling Democratic Progressive Party -- which had won power five years ago on a campaign promise to stamp out corruption -- was swamped in recent local elections...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 6, 2005

Genki drinks riding high

People the world over are raising a toast to the growing mainstream acceptance of energy and functional drinks.
COMMENTARY
Nov 29, 2005

The pebble in Russia's shoe

At their meeting in Tokyo on Nov. 21, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to produce a joint statement on stalled peace treaty talks. The reason, of course, is that the two nations remain at odds over possession of the Northern Territories. It is unusual that...

Longform

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