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BUSINESS
Apr 18, 2003

Steel firms form pail-making venture

Steel maker Nippon Steel Corp. and steel product traders Metal One Corp. and JFE Container Co. will integrate their pail-making operations under a joint venture to be established in January, the three firms said Thursday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 18, 2003

Cerberus eyes Aozora for keeps

The Cerberus Group may hold on to a controlling stake in Aozora Bank for keeps in an effort to cement its position in Japan, according to James Danforth Quayle, an adviser for the U.S. investment fund and a member of Aozora Bank's board of directors.
BUSINESS
Apr 18, 2003

Namco, Sega ponder game-sector merger

Game maker Namco Ltd. said Thursday it is in talks with Sega Corp. over a possible merger that would create the country's largest supplier of game software and arcade machines.
JAPAN
Apr 18, 2003

Hit-and-run accidents up 12.6%

The number of hit-and-run traffic accidents in 2002 rose 12.6 percent from the previous year despite the enactment of a tougher law to punish reckless drivers, the National Police Agency said Thursday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Apr 18, 2003

Hachinoki Honten: On a higher plane

Spring is here -- time to head for the hills. And if you take the train south from Tokyo, the first topography of any significance you're likely to encounter will be that swathe of green that rings the genteel burg of Kamakura. A century or so ago, these hillocks were referred to (with no hint of irony)...
EDITORIALS
Apr 17, 2003

Japan's role in rebuilding Iraq

With the collapse of the Iraqi regime of President Saddam Hussein, the focus of international attention has shifted to the issues of postwar governance and reconstruction. The question for Japan is specifically what it should and can do in the rebuilding process -- a question that depends crucially on...
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Ibaraki seeks help with contaminated well

Ibaraki Gov. Masaru Hashimoto asked the national government Wednesday to help deal with a contaminated well in the town of Kamisu.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Advice offered on social withdrawal

The health ministry has compiled a booklet offering advice on dealing with social withdrawal, ministry officials said Wednesday. The advice is aimed at individuals who are exhibiting behavior of this kind and to members of their families, the officials said.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2003

IRC official to ensure it's free of political meddling

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. will hire a compliance officer to ensure that it operates ethically and without political meddling, IRC President Atsushi Saito said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Medical group caught leaking patient info to drug-prescribers

A semigovernmental medical relief group has leaked personal data on patients who sought help in relation to the adverse side effects of medicines to medical institutions that prescribed the drugs, according to an official of the organization.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Tokyo welcomes proposed dialogue, hopes to be included in future talks

Japan on Wednesday welcomed proposed trilateral talks between North Korea, the United States and China over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons development but called for its own inclusion in the future.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2003

Daiei to decentralize as part of reconstruction program

Ailing retail giant Daiei Inc. is likely to undertake more decentralized merchandising and store operations as part of its restructuring efforts, a key manager in its group said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2003

Asia economic forum set for Tokyo

The head of the World Economic Forum said Wednesday that the organizer of the Davos Forum plans to hold East Asia's annual regional economic summit in Tokyo in 2005 or 2006, according to Japanese officials.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Two Nankai quakes could kill 27,000

Two magnitude 8.6 earthquakes occurring simultaneously off the Pacific coast would kill up to 27,000 people and leave 30,000 seriously injured, according to a draft report by a government panel obtained by Kyodo News.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Lawyers bid to curb sex harassment

OSAKA -- The Osaka Bar Association plans to adopt new internal rules designed to crack down on sexual harassment.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INDUSTRY TRENDS
Apr 17, 2003

Big screens on grand scale win back new generation of film fans

The magic of Harry Potter and "The Lord of the Rings" may not be the only reason that people are returning to movie theaters.
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Apr 17, 2003

Not now, maybe never

As far as self-publicity goes, the U.S.-based Raelian cult has done better than most. Based on the alleged experiences of a one-time motor-racing journalist, Claude Vorilhon, who claimed to have been inspired by an extraterrestrial power lunch with Mohammed, Christ and Buddha, the cult drew attention...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / ON THE BOOK TRAIL
Apr 17, 2003

"The Sands of Time," "Smile, Crocodile, Smile"

"The Sands of Time," Michael Hoeye, Penguin Putnam Books; 2002; 277 pp. Once in a rare while, there comes a book in which the characters outlive the story. It was certainly not easy to say goodbye to Hermux Tantamoq, the dignified little hero of Michael Hoeye's terrific debut novel, "Time Stops for...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / THEN AND NOW
Apr 17, 2003

Tokyo's own stairway to heaven

The 1830s woodcut print by Hasegawa Settan depicts the steep, densely wooded hillside of Atago-yama topped in the haze by the Shinto shrine of Atago-jinja, which visitors reach either by a stone stairway thrusting straight to the summit, or another zigzagging round the side. In the foreground, a torii...
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 17, 2003

Wada goes the distance as Hawks soar in Chiba

Lefty Tsuyoshi Wada shut out Lotte, fanning 11 over the distance for his second win as the Daiei Hawks beat the Marines 2-0 at Chiba Marine Stadium on Wednesday in a tight pitching duel between two rookie hurlers.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

Koizumi plans Europe trip to discuss Iraq situation

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will visit five European countries beginning April 26 to discuss such issues as the reconstruction of postwar Iraq, government officials said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2003

'Chicago' director cancels over SARS

The director of the Oscar-winning "Chicago" has canceled a promotional tour to Japan due to concerns over severe acute respiratory syndrome, film industry sources said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Apr 17, 2003

Kirin parts company with Ricard

Kirin Brewery Co. said Wednesday it has bought from French wine and spirits group Pernod Ricard Co. its 50 percent stake in Kirin Distillery Co., making it a wholly owned unit of the major Japanese brewer.

Longform

The volunteer lifesavers of Nishihama Surf Lifesaving Club never know what's in store at the start of their day.
It's no simple day at the beach for Japan's volunteer lifesavers