Search - 2020

 
 
Hiroshi Mikitani, co-chief executive officer of Rakuten Medical, speaks at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's meeting in Yokohama on Thursday.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2023

Rakuten’s Mikitani spends a fifth of his time on biotech startup

Rakuten Medical, based in San Diego, employs about 200 people and specializes in a therapy that uses light and immunotherapy drugs to fight cancer.
Even as some countries have moved to legalize or decriminalize marijuana, Japan has maintained a zero tolerance policy on the drug, prohibiting its possession or sale.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
Aug 7, 2023

Navigating Japan's maze of cannabis-related laws

Japan has maintained a zero tolerance policy on cannabis, but the legality of other products on the market, including ones sold as CBD, is murkier.
Sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya defected to Poland during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after refusing to board a return flight to Belarus on Aug. 1, 2021.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Aug 8, 2023

Belarusian sprinter who defected at Olympics to race for Poland

Krystsina Tsimanouskaya refused to board a flight back home from Tokyo in August 2021 when she was removed from the Games against her will.
Softbank's Vision Fund unit swung to a profit of ¥61 billion in the quarter ended June, compared with a ¥2.33 trillion loss for the same period a year ago.
BUSINESS
Aug 8, 2023

Global tech stock rebound lifts SoftBank Vision Fund into profit

The fund logged a ¥61 billion profit in the quarter ended June — its first in over a year — compared with a ¥2.33 trillion loss a year ago.
Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada speaks during a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo in June.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2023

China hacked sensitive Japanese defense networks, report says

Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Tuesday that Tokyo has not confirmed that top secret information was leaked.
Containers stored at the Yangshan Deep-Water Port in Shanghai in 2020
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2023

Not decoupling, but West and China drift apart

Official data showed a 14.5% drop in July exports amid weak consumer demand in the world markets served by China — the fastest decline since the pandemic.
ESPN, the sports TV unit of Walt Disney, is licensing its brand to casino operator Penn Entertainment, further deepening the media giant’s ties to online gambling.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 9, 2023

ESPN inks long-term deal with casino operator Penn Entertainment

The move to license its brand for sports betting deepens the media giant’s ties to the growing online gambling business.
The Alibaba Group Holding offices in Beijing on Tuesday. Alibaba is scheduled to release earnings results on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 9, 2023

Alibaba and Tencent’s big gains may not signal inflection point

Chinese policymakers have stopped short of providing significant policy support, consumer spending is muted and profit margins remain thin.
Pyongyang Golf Course, which opened in 1987, could soon host foreign golfers as North Korea slowly reopens to tourism.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Aug 9, 2023

North Korea invites foreigners to Pyongyang golf tournament

Pyongyang's golf course was officially opened in 1987 to celebrate the 75th birthday of the country's founder, Kim Il Sung.
A popular dinosaur exhibit at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno, Tokyo
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 9, 2023

Crowdfunding success at Japan science museum sends mixed message

While such initiatives provide much-needed cash, they are also a sign of limited government funding for science.
Now in their fourth year, Hong Kong's security crackdowns have led to the exodus of hundreds of thousands of people, resulting in grave manpower shortages and a stain on the city's image as place to do business.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 9, 2023

Hong Kong needs to protect its image as a financial center

In Lee’s view, while reviving Hong Kong’s role as a global financial center, it is vital to continue the crackdown on perceived threats.
Visitors at the Todaiji temple in Nara in June
JAPAN / Society
Aug 10, 2023

China lifts pandemic-era ban on group tours to Japan

The decision marks the first time since January 2020 that groups of Chinese tourists will be allowed to visit Japan.
The "furoshiki" style of wrapping gifts takes advantage of a fabric that can be used more than once.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 10, 2023

Eco-friendly eating with a healthy helping of Japanese

Sustainability-related vocabulary isn't the only way to get your thoughts across on sustainable food practices in Japanese.
A WeWork co-working office space in San Francisco on Wednesday. WeWork has said there's 'substantial doubt' about its ability to continue operating, citing sustained losses and canceled memberships to its office spaces.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 10, 2023

WeWork’s ‘substantial doubt’ about its future marks a stunning fall

The New York-based company is bleeding cash, and customers of its office rentals are canceling their memberships in droves.
Heat haze permeates the skyline of Manama, Bahrain.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 10, 2023

How is climate change driving dangerous 'wet-bulb' temperatures?

Dubai, for example, is forecast to see air temperatures hover around 43 degrees Celsius. But climate experts say air temperature alone can be misleading.
A protester outside a meeting between then-Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Indigenous leaders in 2015. Discussions around a referendum on whether to recognize Indigenous people in the Australian constitution have been held for years, and the vote will be held soon.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 9, 2023

Tough road ahead for Australia’s landmark Indigenous referendum

The campaign to recognize Indigenous people in Australia's constitution in an upcoming referendum may be losing steam, polls say.
The summit of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, in Belem, Brazil, on Tuesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / ANALYSIS
Aug 11, 2023

Despite 'weak' accord, Amazon summit calls for rich to pay up

The final joint statement demanded that developed countries make good on a promise to deliver $100 billion annually in climate financing.
Colin Morikawa's family emigrated from Japan to Maui, where his paternal grandparents were born.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Aug 11, 2023

Colin Morikawa to donate $1,000 per birdie to Hawaii fire relief

The two-time major winner, who has strong family ties to the island of Maui, made the announcement on Instagram on Thursday.
Travellers walk through Beijing Daxing International Airport on April 24.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 11, 2023

China reopened its doors, but tourists are staying away

A rebound in domestic tourism hasn't been mirrored by inbound tourists, with several barriers harming the country's appeal.
Technical trainees from Vietnam work at a knitwear factory in the city of Mitsuke, Niigata Prefecture, in February 2019.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 6, 2023

Japan is bringing in more foreign nationals than you think

Japan isn’t an outlier when it comes to low fertility rates, merely a front-runner.
A Taiwan Air Force Mirage 2000 jet fighter landing at Hsinchu Air Base in Hsinchu, Taiwan, in April.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 12, 2023

China’s military, ‘chasing the dream,’ probes Taiwan’s defenses

Day by day, the People’s Liberation Army is turning up the pressure, deploying an ever-wider array of planes and ships.
Fans at Tokyo's Ariake Arena watch Yuto Horigome compete in Street League Skateboarding's debut Japan event on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Skateboarding
Aug 13, 2023

Yuto Horigome thrills in Street League Skateboarding's Japan debut

The raucous crowd at Ariake Arena starkly contrasted with the empty skate park nearby where the 24-year-old captured his Olympic gold medal two years ago.
Seiko Noda
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 13, 2023

Legislation on assisted reproductive technology delayed in Japan

Currently in Japan, the right of children born through fertility treatment to know their biological parents is not guaranteed
Prachi Gupta (left) after the birth of her first child in 2018
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Aug 14, 2023

For foreign expecting mothers in Japan, a struggle over maternity norms

Different expectations over things like natural births and weight gain can cause anxieties for non-Japanese.
M-Sys President Masao Takikawa stands in front of a Yakiton Daikoku izakaya pub that opened in Sendai's Kokubuncho entertainment district.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Aug 15, 2023

Sendai pub chain boosts performance with better work conditions

Sendai-based M-Sys has implemented a policy of offering monthly pay of ¥300,000 to new hires.
Junior high school students participate in a community-based club activity without any instructors in Kakegawa, Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional voices: Chubu
Aug 15, 2023

Facing long hours, teacher pushes for data-driven reforms

Given the long working hours for Japan's schoolteachers, one educator from Gifu Prefecture is leading initiatives for teachers’ work-style reforms.
Japan’s economy has expanded at a much faster pace than forecast, despite weak domestic consumption.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 15, 2023

Japan’s GDP grows at 6% on strong exports as consumption falters

Capital spending by businesses was flat, versus forecasts of a 0.4% increase, while private consumption unexpectedly declined by 0.5%.
Owen Farrell will now be available for England's World Cup warmup fixtures against Ireland on Saturday and Fiji on Aug. 26.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Aug 16, 2023

England captain Owen Farrell cleared for RWC after red card rescinded

The skipper was facing a potential six-week ban that would have ruled him out of the start of next month's tournament in France.
Moscow has begun testing its new digital ruble with consumers this week.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 16, 2023

Russia tests digital ruble for sanctions evasion and social control

Development of the digital ruble took off after Western sanctions blocked Russia from parts of the global banking system.
Al Hilal's new signing Neymar (left) holds the club's shirt as he poses with President Fahd bin Saad Al-Nafel during a signing event in Paris on Tuesday.
SOCCER
Aug 16, 2023

Neymar joins Saudi club Al Hilal from PSG in two-year deal

French newspaper L'Equipe said the deal could net the Brazil star almost $175 million.

Longform

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