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BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 9, 2004

'Sugoi' Seguignol showing his stuff in rare second chance

Rarely does a foreign player get a second chance at Japanese baseball. If a gaikokujin does not do well and is let go by a Central or Pacific League team, it is not likely he will be picked up by another club in Japan.
EDITORIALS
Jun 9, 2004

Increasing signs of an oil crunch

Rising oil prices are casting a dark shadow over the world economy. Last week's decision to increase output by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries -- a largely nominal move to ratify the increase already in place -- has apparently failed to calm the jitters in world oil markets, where prices...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 9, 2004

I was a teenage thespian freak

Camp Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Todd Graff Running time: 111 minutes Language: English Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Being a teenager is difficult, but when you're a teenager aspiring to be a music star, that difficulty gets multiplied by 10. So goes...
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2004

MMC to receive 295 billion yen capital injection

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Tuesday it will receive a capital injection of 295 billion yen from Mitsubishi Group firms and China Motor Corp. later this month, 15 billion yen more than was initially planned.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 9, 2004

Washington is now free to give up on its East Asian allies

The United States recently announced that it will soon send to Iraq one of the two brigades of the Second Infantry Division (2ID) currently stationed in South Korea. There was virtually no consultation with Seoul, and the Pentagon is making no promises that these troops will ever go back. Now unconfirmed...
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2004

Cosmo reveals extent of data leak

Cosmo Oil Co. said Tuesday it is highly likely that personal data on 923,000 of its 2.2 million registered credit card users as of March have been leaked.
COMMENTARY
Jun 9, 2004

Much on the line this month for Europe

LONDON — June is proving to be a traumatic month for Europeans and a busy one for their leaders.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 9, 2004

Where still waters run deep

Hejar Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Handan Ipekci Running time: 120 minutes Language: Turkish, Kurdish Opens June 12 at Tokyo-to Shashin Bijitsukan in Ebisu [See Japan Times movie listings] Turkish director Handan Ipekci's "Hejar" is a small, quiet film, about a small, quiet...
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 9, 2004

Kawakami, Tatsunami scoop awards

Kenshin Kawakami and Kazuyoshi Tatsunami, who both play for the Chunichi Dragons, on Tuesday won the Central League monthly MVP awards as the top-performing pitcher and position player in the month of May.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 9, 2004

Honey, honey, ah, sugar, sugar

Cutie Honey Rating: * * * * (out of 5) Director: Hideaki Anno Running time: 93 minutes Language: Japanese Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Doesn't everybody need a break once in a while? The answer is evidently yes for Hideaki Anno, best known abroad for his meditative...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 9, 2004

An Ebizo XI is born

The Kabukiza in Ginza has been drawing crowds of Kabuki lovers to its special performances in May and June to celebrate the birth of Ichikawa Ebizo XI. The "newborn" is, in fact, 26 years old -- the tall, handsome tachiyaku (male lead) Ichikawa Shinnosuke, son of Ichikawa Danjuro XII (who last year starred...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jun 9, 2004

In the footsteps of a genius grandfather

The perks and pressures of being the child of someone famous can be enormous -- doubly so if following in the family footsteps. In Japan, with its grand artistic traditions, this is not an uncommon phenomenon. The results, though, range across a broad spectrum, from glory (not always deserved -- think...
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2004

Takenaka upbeat over interest rates

Economic and fiscal policy minister Heizo Takenaka said Tuesday that recent surges in long-term interest rates indicate stronger expectations for the economic recovery.
BUSINESS
Jun 9, 2004

Nippon Oil set to refine for PetroChina

Nippon Oil Corp. plans to start refining oil for PetroChina Co., company officials said Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Jun 8, 2004

Put pension reform above politics

The ruling parties early Saturday morning rammed much-maligned pension bills through the House of Councilors. However, their resorting to physical violence at a committee session and a tricky procedure at a plenary session badly tarnished the House of Councilors as the "chamber of common sense." The...
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 8, 2004

Power of LDP support groups waning

About 5,000 people gathered in Sapporo on May 23 to attend a convention of the national association of special post office chiefs, a longtime supporter of and the biggest vote-gathering machine for the Liberal Democratic Party.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / A GAIJIN'S TALE
Jun 8, 2004

I know rain

I know rain. I'm from Seattle. Japan knows rain, too. They cope with it well.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Ministry to offload 289,334 JT shares

The Finance Ministry said Monday it will sell 289,334 shares in Japan Tobacco Inc. held by the government for 843,000 yen per share this week.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Jun 8, 2004

What do you think of the government official's comment on women 'brimming with energy'?

Yoshi Ayugai
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Mitsui unit makes efficient gas engine

Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co. said Monday it has developed what it claims is the world's most efficient 1,000-kilowatt gas engine.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Toyota, Daihatsu team up on compact

Vying for a bigger share of the increasingly competitive market of compact cars and minivehicles, Toyota Motor Corp. and its subsidiary Daihatsu Motor Co. on Monday launched a jointly developed compact car.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Citizen, Seiko roll out thin radio-controlled watches

Watchmakers are turning to radio-controlled watches to beat out their Chinese and European counterparts, who tend to dominate the lower and higher ends of the market.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Nikkei makes year's biggest one-day gain

Tokyo stocks soared almost across the board Monday, prompted by rises last week in U.S. shares and propelling the benchmark Nikkei index to its largest single-day gain this year.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 8, 2004

Inflation targeting can hurt the econom

PARIS -- Many central bankers have been singing the praises of inflation targeting as a way to guarantee stable price levels and bring about sustained economic growth. For its part, the Bank of England helped pioneer inflation targeting and is credited with successfully holding deviations within 1 percentage...
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2004

Insurance to cover Iraqi project

A government-affiliated body said Monday it will underwrite trade insurance for the first time in 14 years for a Japanese firm's export project ordered by an Iraqi state-run company.

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.