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November 24, 2024
 

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An exit poll predicting that the Labour Party led by Keir Starmer will win 410 seats in Britain's general election is projected onto BBC Broadcasting House in London on July 4, 2024. Labour is set for a landslide win in U.K. election, exit polls showed.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 5, 2024

U.K.'s Labour set to sweep into power with huge majority, exit poll shows

The result would give Labour a majority of 170 and would bring the curtain down on 14 years of increasingly tumultuous Conservative-led government.
Despite her consistently low approval ratings, a recent poll showed Vice President Kamala Harris to be as formidable an opponent to Donald Trump as U.S. President Joe Biden. In a hypothetical matchup, Trump led Harris by a single percentage point, 43% to 42%.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 5, 2024

Trump allies intensify attacks on Kamala Harris as Biden replacement talk builds

They have little to lose by attacking the vice president now, so that if Harris does emerge as the nominee, she might do so in a weakened state.
Starting from September, foreign employees on a work visa must abide by a new points-based system to keep working in Singapore.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2024

Singapore is making life tougher for global talent

The city-state could lose its position as a global business hub if it keeps tightening the rules for overseas employees in a political bid to appease local residents.
Although air travel in Asia has picked up since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is still below 2019 levels, with many passengers preferring to travel shorter distances.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2024

Asian airlines face a cold summer

Despite seemingly positive results, air travel in Asia hasn't returned to pre-pandemic levels, with many of the continent's travelers preferring to stay closer to home.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers the first speech of his premiership outside No. 10 Downing St. in London on Friday, following his Labour Party's win in the general election.
WORLD
Jul 6, 2024

New U.K. PM Keir Starmer speaks to world leaders and names top team

Starmer named Rachel Reeves the U.K.'s first female finance minister and appointed David Lammy as foreign secretary, among other Cabinet choices.
A voter picks up ballot papers at a polling station in Noumea in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2024

Far right bids for power as France holds parliamentary election

Marine Le Pen's RN scored historic gains to win last Sunday's first-round vote, raising the specter of France's first far-right government since World War II.
Himeji Castle in Hyogo Prefecture. The mayor of Himeji has suggested that foreign tourists pay four times more to enter the castle than the current ¥1,000 entrance fee.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 8, 2024

Japan really should charge tourists four times more

The suggestion by a Kansai mayor that foreign visitors pay more for tourist attractions doesn't go far enough. The government should establish a nationwide policy.
President Emmanuel Macron has gone from king to kingmaker of French politics after his bloc came second in the parliamentary election.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 8, 2024

Gambler Macron wins chance to be kingmaker

Even as Macron breathes a sigh of relief after voters halted a far-right triumph, the left-leaning coalition the president will try to build faces a treacherous path.
A man watches a large screen showing news coverage of Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Beijing on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2024

Orban’s shuttle diplomacy angers EU and whiplashes allies

The Hungarian prime minister made trips to Moscow and Beijing after his country took over the EU's rotating presidency on July 1.
Protesters hold a giant French flag on the statue of Marianne as people gather at the Place de la Republique, after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, in Paris on Sunday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 9, 2024

Debt and political deadlock keep investors nervous after French election

At the center of the euro project and the bloc's second biggest economy, France, still faces a hung parliament and taxing negotiations to form a government.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris attends an event in New Orleans on Saturday. Democrats should do what they should have done long ago: Elevate Harris as the party's future, rather than sidelining her for her perceived unpopularity.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 9, 2024

Kamala Harris is Democrats’ future, no matter what

Whether with Harris as presidential nominee or No. 2 on Biden's tickets, Democrats should do what they should have done long ago: Elevate rather than sideline the VP.
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 14, 2024

Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'

These carefully choreographed images are often kept hidden in conservative Japan.
Olympic rings are displayed on Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris ahead of the city hosting the 2024 Olympic Games. One way of reducing the carbon emissions of mega sporting events is to limit the attendance of spectators traveling by air.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 10, 2024

Only locals should be allowed to attend the Olympics

The single best way of reducing the carbon emissions of an Olympics? Limiting ticket sales to locals. Evidence from the Tokyo Games shows how far-reaching the impact is.
George Clooney attends a premiere for the film "The Boys in the Boat" in Beverly Hills, California, on Dec. 11, 2023. Clooney, a lifelong Democrat who helped raised $30 million for U.S. President Joe Biden at an event last month, has now advocated for a new candidate.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 11, 2024

Hollywood turns against Biden as George Clooney warns ‘dam has broken’

Heavy hitters, including Netflix Chairman Reed Hastings and author Stephen King, have joined the chorus calling on Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 11, 2024

NATO allies gloomy on Biden’s prospects seek out Trump circle

Leaders at the alliances summit watched Biden's every move for another gaffe that would further undermine his electoral hopes.
An empty street in Fukiya, Okayama Prefecture. Japan may be both experiencing overtourism in some places and witnessing the opposite in others.
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2024

Japan doesn't have too many tourists, statistics suggest. It just feels that way.

The country received 0.2 tourists per capita in 2023, compared with France's 1.5, Greece's 3.4, Portugal's 2.5 and Spain's 1.8.
Public support for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet marked a new low of 15.5% in July, Jiji poll shows.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 11, 2024

Kishida Cabinet's approval rating sinks to 15.5%, poll shows

The results marked a new low for the Liberal Democratic Party since it returned to power in December 2012.
U.S. President Joe Biden reacts to the audience during a campaign stop in Detroit on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 13, 2024

'I'm not going anywhere,' Biden says as campaign struggles

The 81-year-old president is trying to shift the conversation from his mental sharpness to the impact of another Donald Trump presidency.
Storage tanks at the Northern Lights carbon capture and storage project controlled by oil companies Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies in Norway. The Norwegian government is funding 80% of the initial investment for the state-of-the-art facility.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 14, 2024

A giant carbon dump gives glimpse into net-zero future

As the cost of renewables declines at pace with fossil fuel use, the need for carbon, capture and storage tech will diminish, making cost reductions a challenge.
Secret Service agents cover former President Donald Trump immediately after an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. The incident highlights America's historical and ongoing political violence.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 16, 2024

Trump’s shooting is a legacy of America’s violent past

Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally. The incident highlights America's historical and ongoing political violence.
Sue Mi Terry, then director at Bower Group Asia, speaks on a panel at the Asia Society in New York in 2017.
WORLD
Jul 17, 2024

Former White House official accused of acting as South Korea agent

In exchange for gifts, a foreign policy specialist is accused of giving South Korea information on the United States government, among other things.
Protesters mark the eighth anniversary of the 2016 arbitration ruling over China's claims in the South China Sea, in Quezon City, Philippines, on Friday. Beijing still refuses to abide by the ruling.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 17, 2024

South China Sea ruling anniversary and the disregard for the rule of law

Last Friday marked the eighth anniversary of the Philippines-China South China Sea arbitral tribunal ruling. That decision was a win for Manila.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance (right), the Republican's vice-presidential nominee, attend the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 17, 2024

J.D. Vance is red meat for Trump’s MAGA base

It’s a shrewd pick — a nod to Trump’s base. More than any of the other contenders, Vance’s selection shows that Trump wants to lock down the MAGA faithful.
China's success in retrieving samples from the far side of the moon and its strategic advances in space exploration are prompting calls for international collaboration amid growing concerns over efforts to achieve space dominance.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 17, 2024

It's too early to be fighting a space race with China

Lunar exploration is dangerous enough without turning it into a contest between great powers.
U.S. President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he has contracted COVID-19, forcing him to cancel an appearance before a key Latino advocacy group.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 18, 2024

Biden’s COVID-19 case delivers latest blow to hard-luck campaign

While U.S. President Joe Biden's symptoms are mild, the COVID-19 diagnosis removes him from the campaign trail and thrusts his health back into the spotlight.
The background footage shows a Chinese Coast Guard ship using a water cannon against a Filipino resupply vessel, during a news conference at the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila in August 2023.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 18, 2024

The risky business of standing up to Beijing

Philippines faces balancing act between economic interests and territorial rights.
Japan's tradition of offering investors gifts is nice. But with the stock market at record highs, such perks are no longer needed.
COMMENTARY
Jul 18, 2024

It’s time Japan's shareholders buy their own wine

The practice by Japanese companies of giving gifts once served as a good way to encourage trading novices to dabble in the stock market.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris supports President Joe Biden as he speaks from the White House on Sunday about the shooting of his Republican challenger, Donald Trump.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 18, 2024

It’s no big deal that a woman may be the president. What a beautiful thing.

Despite some lingering biases, evidence suggests that female leaders often outperform male leaders, particularly in areas like public health.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 19, 2024

Trump describes assassination attempt and accepts Republican nomination

As he has done throughout his career, Trump argued he alone can save a dwindling nation, capping a four-day event marked by his party's adulation.
Recent events in U.S. politics, including an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, a favorable court ruling and his nomination at the Republican National Convention, have strengthened the perception he may be “untouchable,” yet nothing is set in stone.
EDITORIALS
Jul 19, 2024

Trump’s wild week and a changing U.S. presidential race

Recent events have reinforced the idea of the “Teflon Don,” an extraordinarily lucky man for whom the laws of politics do not apply.
U.S. aircraft carrier returns to Japan carrying navy’s ‘most capable fighter’
U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Fred Kacher speaks to reporters shortly after the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington at Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday.
After Shohei Ohtani bump, Iwate ironware maker sees brighter future
Kaito Kikuchi's decision to send superstar Shohei Ohtani one of his company's traditional ironware tea kettles has paid off with a surge of interest from general consumers.
Japan approves ¥21.9 trillion stimulus plan
The policy chiefs of the Democratic Party for the People, Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito — Makoto Hamaguchi (left), Itsunori Onodera (center) and Mitsunari Okamoto — shake hands after reaching an agreement on an economic stimulus package on Wednesday.
Woman dies after train collides with car in Tochigi
A Moka Railway train car
Japan will spend ¥325 million in government funds on Princess Yuriko's funeral
Princess Yuriko waves during the New Year's public greeting at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo in January 2019.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

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

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