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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2017

Trump's war on clean air won't add jobs

Market forces rather than environmental regulations are behind the decline of the U.S. coal industry.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 11, 2017

Abe Cabinet weathers school scandal as Democratic Party's chronic weaknesses provide little alternative

The high-profile scandal involving nationalist Osaka-based school operator Moritomo Gakuen has once again brought to the fore the ability of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is linked to the affair, to maintain high public approval ratings.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 11, 2017

Cabinet gives the greenlight to Osaka's 2025 World Expo bid proposal

Osaka's bid to host the 2025 World Exposition earned a stamp of approval from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government Tuesday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2017

Hard-core vinyl fans are fueling a revival in obscure Japanese music from the 1980s

Fans of Japanese vinyl have good reason to be happy. HMV recently opened a store in the Kichijoji area dedicated to selling records — the third such establishment in Tokyo — and April 22 is Record Store Day. What started in 2012 as four artists putting out special releases has evolved into a day...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 11, 2017

The beginnings of Mariah's sound

When U.S. label Palto Flats reissued Japanese band Mariah's album "Utakata no Hibi" ("Ephemeral Days") in 2015, it wasn't the first time an obscure record from the bubble era had been given new attention. However, the critical praise that followed the release triggered new interest in Japanese artists...
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Apr 10, 2017

1 in 4 Japanese remain unmarried until age 50

Nearly 1 in 4 men and 1 in 7 women had remained unmarried, in a sign that people in Japan are increasingly hesitant to tie the knot.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / YEN FOR LIVING
Apr 8, 2017

'Nekonomics' does its bit to keep Japan's economy purring

In our last column we talked about the economic effectiveness (keizai kōka) of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Keizai kōka is often used as an indication of how much money a given scheme or phenomenon adds to a particular economy. As we pointed out, the number only takes into consideration the positive effects...
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 8, 2017

Terrorism feared after truck incident leaves four dead, several injured in Swedish capital

A truck plowed into a crowd on a shopping street and then crashed into a department store in central Stockholm on Friday, killing four people and wounding 15 in what Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said appeared to be a terrorist attack.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 6, 2017

The enemy within: Russia faces changing Islamist threat with metro bombing

Akbarzhon Dzhalilov, the man suspected of blowing up a Russian metro train, represents a new wave of radical Islamists who blend into local society away from existing jihadi movements — making it harder for security forces to stop their attacks.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 4, 2017

Full clips of Akie Abe's Moritomo speeches posted to Akieleaks website

Full-length video clips from what appear to be speeches given by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's wife at a scandal-tainted kindergarten in Osaka have been anonymously posted online.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Apr 4, 2017

Critics of Japan's current account overlook overseas benefits

Thanks to its bilateral trade balance with the U.S., and its current-account surplus with the rest of the world, Japan finds itself on America's watch list for currency manipulators at a time when the Trump administration is turning up the heat on economic friends and foes alike.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 3, 2017

Judging Japan Inc.'s health through financial reporting

On March 14, Toshiba Corp. announced it will delay, for the second time, the release of its financial earnings for the third-quarter period until April 11, saying it needs more time for an audit of its accounting problems at U.S. nuclear unit Westinghouse, which filed for bankruptcy protection last week....
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 1, 2017

Subliminal ads fast-tracked for maglev trains in Japan

A team of researchers at Shizuoka University is hitching a ride on Japan's bullet train technology, aiming to transmit targeted advertising at high speeds.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 31, 2017

Flynn offers to testify in FBI, Congress probe of Russia meddling if he gets immunity

Former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn has told investigators that he's willing to be interviewed as part of inquiries into alleged contacts between the Trump administration and the Russian government in return for immunity from prosecution.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 29, 2017

Japanese and South Korean investors plow cash into structured products

Yield-starved Japanese investors are taking out the cash stashed under the futon and plowing it into potentially risky securities.
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 29, 2017

Iran steps up support for Shiite ally in Yemen proxy war

Iran is sending advanced weapons and military advisers to Yemen's rebel Houthi movement, stepping up support for its Shiite ally in a civil war whose outcome could sway the balance of power in the Middle East, regional and Western sources say.
COMMENTARY / World / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Mar 28, 2017

Troubling times for South Korean manufacturing

The end of the Samsung era may herald the downfall of a wide range of South Korean manufacturing sectors from shipbuilding to steel and automobiles.
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Mar 28, 2017

Pressure on Hanyu to reclaim title, display dominance

Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu enters this week's world championships in Helsinki needing to get a big monkey off his back.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2017

Moritomo Gakuen scandal another history Japan's nationalists may wish to rewrite

It began as a dream. Conservatives and nationalists, angry at what they saw as a public education system that taught a self-denigrating, incorrect view of Japan's 20th century history and upset at social changes they felt had led to a loss of respect among children for Japan's traditional values and...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society
Mar 25, 2017

Coming of age? Japan's shifting definition of adulthood

Graduating from high school represents a significant milestone in any young person's life, a landmark that certainly wasn't lost on the countless 18-year-olds milling around Shibuya Station on a recent March afternoon. Among them was 18-year-old Akane Endo, who was brimming with excitement at the prospect...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Mar 25, 2017

Tillerson tells 'frenemies' Japan and South Korea to heal 'comfort women' rift

With Seoul in political paralysis and amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Japan's ambassador to South Korea remains in Tokyo — all because of some statues.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 22, 2017

Government bans Brazilian meat producers over bribery scandal, says supplies won't be affected

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday the blocking of imports from 21 Brazilian processing plants involved in a high-profile bribery and tainted-meat scandal will not affect supplies in Japan.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.