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COMMENTARY / World
May 15, 2004

China's proliferation serves to rouse Japan

China's support for North Korea has backfired. What would China prefer to see -- a Japan armed with nuclear weapons, or Japan's alliance with the United States strengthened by its participation in missile defense? In Beijing, neither option has much appeal. But in relation to Japan, China has been hoisted...
JAPAN
May 15, 2004

Defense paper assumes China invasion of Japan

The Defense Agency would deploy 7,200 ground troops to protect Japan's southernmost islands from invading Chinese forces in the event of a conflict between China and Taiwan, according to confidential documents obtained by Kyodo News.
BUSINESS
May 15, 2004

MMC considers 10% workforce cut, shutting down two domestic plants

Struggling automaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp. is considering a bolder restructuring plan, including a 10 percent cut to its workforce and closure of two domestic plants, sources said Friday.
COMMENTARY
May 15, 2004

Has President Chen learned his lesson?

HONG KONG -- Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian, who narrowly won a disputed election in March, is without doubt the Bush administration's least favorite democratically elected leader.
COMMENTARY / World
May 15, 2004

New jailers, same prison?

The stage-managed toppling of ex-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's statue will not, after all, be the image defining the Iraq war. Like the famous photo of the young girl on fire running naked to escape the horror of napalm in the Vietnam War, the photographs emerging from Abu Ghraib prison will be the...
SUMO
May 14, 2004

Asashoryu wins 35th in a row

Grand champion Asashoryu showed no sign of letting up Thursday, while all three ozeki wrestlers were upset to fall further off the pace at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 14, 2004

Tigers end Giants' 33-game homer streak

Shinjiro Hiyama connected for a solo homer in the eighth inning Thursday, lifting the Hanshin Tigers to a 4-3 victory over the Giants in the Central League and ending Yomiuri's home run streak at 33.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Crown Prince's remarks stun wife's minders

The head of the Imperial Household Agency admitted Thursday he is unsure how to address the situation surrounding Crown Princess Masako following unusually candid comments about her condition by her husband, Crown Prince Naruhito.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
May 14, 2004

Arsenal one game away from setting new standard in England

LONDON -- Arsenal stands on the verge of what manager Arsene Wenger called "sporting immortality" with just Leicester blocking its path to the record books.
EDITORIALS
May 14, 2004

More than just making ends meet

There is something fuzzy about Tuesday's Lower House vote on the pension reform bills. The package was supported by the ruling parties, the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito. But the opposition Democratic Party of Japan approved only a proviso that calls for the integration of the complex pension...
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

COMJAN 'abduction' list grows -- despite lack of evidence

OSAKA -- On the afternoon of Feb. 1, 2003, 42-year-old Naruki Okita, operator of a small marine transport company in Taisho Ward here, showed up near the docks of Izumi Kita with his luggage in tow.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Crown Prince's remarks stun wife's minders

The head of the Imperial Household Agency admitted Thursday he is unsure how to address the situation surrounding Crown Princess Masako following unusually candid comments about her condition by her husband, Crown Prince Naruhito.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

ANA jet makes precautionary landing

An All Nippon Airways flight bound for Hiroshima made an emergency landing at Osaka's Itami airport Thursday after reporting a malfunctioning engine, officials said.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Ex-Duskin chief gets suspended term for misusing money

The Tokyo District Court handed a former chairman of Duskin Co. a suspended prison sentence Thursday for "masterminding" the misappropriation of the company's money.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / VINELAND
May 14, 2004

Obscure Otago is now New Zealand's 'Lord of the Reds'

Salvation is at hand for worshippers of Antipodean Pinot Noir. The "Pinot Noir grail" is to be found in Central Otago, writes British wine expert Jancis Robinson in the latest "World Atlas of Wine."
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

COMJAN 'abduction' list grows -- despite lack of evidence

OSAKA -- On the afternoon of Feb. 1, 2003, 42-year-old Naruki Okita, operator of a small marine transport company in Taisho Ward here, showed up near the docks of Izumi Kita with his luggage in tow.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

DPJ names 33 pension delinquents; LDP mum

The Democratic Party of Japan said Thursday that 33 of its 244 Diet lawmakers did not pay mandatory premiums for the nation's basic pension system, leaving the Liberal Democratic Party as the only major party still refusing to disclose the payment records of its members.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2004

Machinery orders down 3.2% in March

Core private-sector machinery orders dropped a seasonally adjusted 3.2 percent in March from February, the government said Thursday.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2004

Honda launches nonguzzler luxury eight-seater van

Honda Motor Co. launched an eight-seat minivan Thursday, following in the footsteps of industry rivals in the increasingly competitive market for large luxury minivans.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Hospitals tied to HCV fiasco to be mostly named before '05

The health ministry said Thursday it will disclose the names of all 7,004 hospitals believed to have stocked blood products contaminated with the hepatitis C virus -- but not until year's end.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2004

Bank lending balance down 4.5%

The average daily balance of Japanese bank lending fell 4.5 percent in April from a year earlier, the Bank of Japan said Thursday in a preliminary report.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Ozawa holds out for best DPJ offer

The Democratic Party of Japan discussed the length of the next party president's term Thursday as part of efforts to convince deputy chief Ichiro Ozawa to take the helm.
JAPAN
May 14, 2004

Experts doubt merits of Koizumi Pyongyang trip

Widespread suspicion over North Korea's agenda has failed to dampen speculation that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi may visit Pyongyang in the near future to secure the passage to Japan of the families of the five repatriated abductees.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 14, 2004

Fate of luxury sedan market reflects changing face of society

Popular cars may be a reflection of social values, and if so, the waning popularity of Japanese luxury sedans -- once a salaryman status symbol -- indicates values are shifting.

Longform

A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?