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BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

FSA to recheck banks' bad loans

The Financial Services Agency will conduct a followup audit of major banks' books by Sept. 30 to ensure they register loan-loss charges in accordance with FSA inspectors' earlier findings on the quality of their loan portfolios.
BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

Nomura to set up pension-plan firm

Nomura Securities Co. said Tuesday it will set up a new company today to provide management and operation services for defined-contribution pension plans modeled on U.S. 401(k) pension programs.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2001

Matsushita posts first group loss

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. posted its first quarterly group operating loss in 30 years, because of a global slump in demand for technology, the electronics giant said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2001

Three men held over Chinese worker scam

A Japanese man and two Chinese men were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of taking commissions from the salaries of Chinese nationals whose services they had illegally procured for Japanese hotels and inns, authorities said.
BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

Unemployment hovers at 4.9%

The nation's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.9 percent in June from the previous month, matching the record for the third time this year, the government said Tuesday in a preliminary report.
BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

June housing starts down 10.5%

Housing starts dropped 10.5 percent in June from a year earlier to 101,168 units, marking the sixth straight month of falls, the infrastructure ministry said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

Shiokawa eyes securities tax decision

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday he hopes to outline plans for a revision of the securities tax system before the extraordinary Diet session in September.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 1, 2001

Fear of enemies still guides CCP policy

"Who are our enemies? Who are our friends?" Mao Zedong asked in 1926. It is a useful question to keep in mind in the wake of the "friendship treaty" just signed between Russian President Putin and China's President Jiang Zemin.
BUSINESS
Aug 1, 2001

Tourism abroad expected to grow 3.3% this year

The number of Japanese tourists going overseas in 2001 will increase 3.3 percent from last year to hit a record 18.4 million, the nation's largest travel agency predicted in an annual report released Tuesday.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2001

Victims to get info on criminals

This fall, the Justice Ministry will begin notifying people victimized by crimes, in advance if necessary, of the prison release date of perpetrators and where they will live after their release, Justice Minister Mayumi Moriyama said Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 31, 2001

Now Mr. Koizumi must deliver

The tremendous popularity of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi led his Liberal Democratic Party to an overwhelming victory in Sunday's election for the House of Councilors. His dedication to "structural reforms without sacred cows" generated enthusiastic support among voters for Mr. Koizumi and his party,...
COMMENTARY
Jul 31, 2001

Making decentralization work

In a recent report, a state panel urged the central government to transfer more tax-collection power to local governments and help them secure their own tax revenues. I have no objections to the proposal, made by the Decentralization Promotion Committee in its final report to Prime Minister Junichiro...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 31, 2001

A realistic approach to missile defense talks

WASHINGTON — During the G8 meeting in Genoa, U.S. President George W. Bush and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreed to start discussions on how the 1972 Antiballistic Missile Treaty might be modified or replaced.
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 31, 2001

Dammed by the state: Displaced Chinese fight for their rights

JIANGSU, China -- Last August, the great Chang river (formerly known as the Yangtze) washed a modern day Noah's Ark from the heart of southwest China to the mouth of the Yellow Sea. Crowded aboard the ferry were 800 peasant farmers, nursing children, animals and seedlings on their three-day voyage to...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 30, 2001

Chen seeks a 'middle way' for Taiwan

TAIPEI -- March 2000 saw a sea change: the election by universal suffrage of Chen Shui-bian as president of the Republic of China. The Nationalist Party (KMT) no longer ruled Taiwan. This finally put to rest the trite old misconception that ethnic Chinese are not ready for democracy.
EDITORIALS
Jul 30, 2001

Mr. Kim goes to Moscow

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is on his way for two-day talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. A special train carrying him and his entourage arrived in the Russian Far East Thursday en route to Moscow. This is the first Moscow trip by a North Korean head of state since Mr. Kim's father, the...
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM NEW YORK
Jul 30, 2001

Is yellow journalism in vogue again?

Why do so many foreign commentators feel they can get away with anything they say about Japan?
COMMENTARY
Jul 30, 2001

Foreign policy falls short

LONDON -- Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi cannot afford to let Japanese foreign policy become a hostage to nationalist agitation and populist pressures. Japan needs friends in Asia as well as in the rest of the world. Its relationship with the United States remains crucial. Koizumi has worked hard to...
COMMENTARY
Jul 30, 2001

Leaders must fight for a cleaner planet

For the past century, the world's great powers have pursued better living conditions, fought against each other and worked frantically to develop technologies useful for fighting wars, all in total disregard of the environment.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 30, 2001

Luring investment to Japan

Japan is a risk for the world economy. Although Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's reform plans are vague and offer no guarantee of results, Japan, and the world as well, depend on the success of the reforms for their prosperity.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 29, 2001

Hardliners threaten Musharraf's quest

ISLAMABAD -- Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf argues that his quest for peace with India would receive a boost from the "peace-loving majority" in both countries.
COMMENTARY
Jul 29, 2001

U.S. Asian policy takes shape

HONOLULU -- Slowly but surely, the Bush administration's Asia policy is taking shape. And, some changes in emphasis and approach notwithstanding, it shows a great deal of continuity with Clinton administration policy objectives. The U.S.-Japan relationship remains the "linchpin" of U.S. security strategy...
EDITORIALS
Jul 29, 2001

A monument in the sand

Over the past quarter century, a dream has slowly been taking shape on the edge of the Mediterranean in the fabled but faded Egyptian city of Alexandria. This autumn, the world will finally get a chance to take the measure of that dream.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 29, 2001

The added cost of convenience

If you've got a rumbling in your tummy but little time or money, what could be better than a bento (boxed lunch) from the nearest convenience store?
COMMUNITY
Jul 29, 2001

Every breath you take

The children were considered lucky when they were admitted a place at the popular Sashigaya public nursery in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward. Little did their parents know what a high price their young ones might have to pay for the privilege.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Jul 29, 2001

Realpolitik outlook unites Putin and Bush

Why the honeymoon? This is a question an inquisitive person might ask when informed by the media that the second meeting between U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin had been a smashing success — like the first one a month ago. After a cold spring full of spy scandals,...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 29, 2001

Multilateralism triumphed for Kyoto

With the Kyoto deal finally in the bag after a marathon round of negotiations, delegates to the resumed session of the climate change talks congratulated themselves on a job well done. For many of the negotiators who have followed these grueling negotiations over the last 10 years it was a bitter sweet...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 29, 2001

Just when you thought it was safe . . .

If you live in an old apartment or condominium complex of fewer than 10 units, you might want to check the tap water. Pour some into a clear glass and take a whiff. Does it smell of chlorine? If it does, you don't have too much to worry about. It might not taste good, but at least the chemical smell...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 29, 2001

Nursing your house back to health

What can you do to protect yourself from sick-house syndrome?
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 29, 2001

Talking about the weather is no longer so boring

We tend to take weather forecasts with a grain of salt. Some people leave their umbrellas at home unless the probability of precipitation is over, say, 40 percent, while others keep a collapsible in their bag at all times because they don't know what to believe. We know it's raining because we are getting...

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even through immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’