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BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

Current account surplus rose 38.9% in October

Japan's current account surplus rose 38.9 percent in October from a year earlier to 1.259 trillion yen, logging its fourth straight monthly rise.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Ministry gets warmer in search for arsenic contamination source

Three locations around an arsenic-contaminated well in Kamisu, Ibaraki Prefecture, have the highest levels of the poison ever found in the area, the Environment Ministry said Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 11, 2003

South Korean slugger Lee agrees to play for Marines

The Chiba Lotte Marines have agreed to terms with South Korean baseball star Lee Seung Yeop, team officials said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

Ashikaga FG shares do brisk trade despite core unit's nationalization

It ain't over till the fat lady sings. Investors are buying up Ashikaga Financial Group Inc. shares, never mind that regulators nationalized the group's core unit, Ashikaga Bank, after declaring it insolvent.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

JAPEX draws firm demand on debut

Shares in Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. drew firm demand Wednesday on its debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Ueno parades Mexico's courting panda

Tokyo's Ueno Zoo put on public display Wednesday a female giant panda that has been loaned to Japan by Mexico for a love tryst with Ueno Zoo's only panda, Ling Ling.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Sanctions possible, abductees' kin told

The government promised to consider a request to impose economic sanctions and other tough measures on North Korea if the reclusive regime fails to properly address the past abductions of Japanese, relatives of abductees said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Mixed signals sent on SDF Iraq duties

The government is giving unclear explanations about when Self-Defense Forces troops will be sent to Iraq and whether they will transport arms and ammunition for other forces in the U.S.-led coalition.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

'Happoshu' to eclipse beer for first time

Shipments of "happoshu" for general household consumption are expected to surpass those of beer in 2003 for the first time since the low-malt beverage was launched in 1994, industry data showed Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

Civil servants' winter bonus falls

Most government employees received winter bonuses Wednesday that were 7.3 percent less than the previous year, falling for the fifth consecutive year.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
Dec 11, 2003

Internet levels fundraising field for Howard Dean

WASHINGTON -- You may never have heard of Zephyr Teachout, a 31-year-old teacher from up north, but she is close to being the Gutenberg of the Internet Age for politicians.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Dec 11, 2003

A step back for democracy

MOSCOW -- Last Sunday's parliamentary elections in Russia have resulted in a sweeping defeat of democracy and a new start for the Russian nationalists.
BUSINESS
Dec 11, 2003

Ajinomoto fires up seasonings factory

Ajinomoto Co. said Wednesday its new factory in Thailand has begun producing nucleotide seasonings, used to add flavor to monosodium glutamate.
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Dec 11, 2003

Mortality vs. morality

James Cash is the death row inmate and protagonist of "Manhunt" -- an ultra-violent new game for PlayStation2 from Rockstar Games -- and is given a new lease of life when his lethal injection turns out to be a sedative.
COMMENTARY
Dec 11, 2003

New Zealand seeks bigger splash in Asia

WELLINGTON -- It's clear that New Zealand's size is both a curse and a blessing. The curse is easy to see: New Zealand is so small that it's hard to get the attention of other governments. New Zealand is responsible for 0.22 percent of world trade. There are more Indonesian civil servants than New Zealanders....
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Panel eyes transplants for children

The Liberal Democratic Party plans to introduce a bill next year that would allow people under the age of 15 who have been diagnosed as brain-dead to be organ donors for transplants.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 11, 2003

Magazine sold by homeless spreads

An Osaka-based magazine that helps homeless people earn money by selling the publication on the street is spreading to other cities.
EDITORIALS
Dec 10, 2003

Continuing with nuclear energy

Half a century ago, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed the creation of an international organization to promote the peaceful use of atomic information and materials. That "atoms for peace" address, delivered to the U.N. General Assembly on Dec. 8, 1953, bore fruit in 1957 when the International...
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Cabinet approves plan to send SDF to Iraq

The government Tuesday approved a basic plan to dispatch Self-Defense Forces units to Iraq, paving the way for the deployment of up to 600 ground troops in southeastern Iraq early next year.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Killer's death sentence commuted

The Tokyo High Court on Tuesday acknowledged that a 56-year-old man who killed a woman and seriously injured three members of her family when he torched their house was insane at the time and thus commuted his death sentence to a life term.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Koizumi's credibility placed on the line

There is arguably no profession that places a greater premium on the credibility of a person's words than politics.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Vietnam says it will allow visa-free entry for Japanese

Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien said Tuesday his nation plans to allow visa-free entry for Japanese travelers and business officials.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Road panel seeks to limit state interference

A key panel tasked with overseeing the privatization of the nation's four expressway operators urged the government Tuesday to grant privatized entities autonomy with regard to the construction of new expressways.
JAPAN
Dec 10, 2003

Kawasaki seeks foreign advisers

The city of Kawasaki is looking for 26 foreigners who want to become members of its fifth Representative Assembly for Foreign Residents. The assembly discusses problems faced by foreigners in their everyday lives.
BUSINESS
Dec 10, 2003

Extra budget worth 1 trillion yen is in the works

The government will compile an extra budget for the current fiscal year featuring more than 1 trillion yen in spending on social security, disaster relief and Iraqi assistance, government officials said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Dec 10, 2003

Nation's blue chip firms said on firm recovery track

The current fiscal year has seen Japan's blue chip companies put themselves on a firm recovery track, absorbing the negative impact of the yen's strength, Nomura Securities Co. said Tuesday.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo