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November 18, 2025
 

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ECONOMIC INDICATORS

U.S. tariffs are starting to take their toll in Japan, especially on companies manufacturing products for export.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 17, 2025
Japan's GDP drops as tariffs bite and domestic demand flags
The decline in the three quarters ending in September was less than forecast.
Labor productivity per worker in fiscal 2024, which ended in March, rose 0.2% in real terms from the previous year, marking a fourth consecutive annual increase, according to Japan Productivity Center data.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 16, 2025
Japan labor productivity up 0.2% in FY 2024
Despite the good news, progress is still required to ensure that real wages keep rising by 1% as envisioned in a government target, according to the Japan Productivity Center.
The Japanese government is mulling an extra budget for the current fiscal year which will be larger than last year’s, according to local media reports.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 15, 2025
Japan plans bigger extra budget this fiscal year, reports say
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is mulling an extra budget for the current fiscal year which will be larger than last year’s.
Producer prices in Japan rose 2.7% in October from a year earlier, driven by higher food and copper costs, the Bank of Japan has said.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 13, 2025
Producer prices rose 2.7% on year in October, with agricultural goods up 31.4%
The producer price index, which measures the cost of goods traded between businesses, rose for the 56th consecutive month, Bank of Japan data shows.
The travel services trade surplus rose to ¥3.31 trillion thanks to an increase in visitors to Japan.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 11, 2025
Japan's April-September current account surplus hits record high
The current account balance expanded mainly because the trade balance swung to a surplus following lower imports.
Outlays by households gained 1.8% in September from a year earlier, led by transportation and entertainment, but the rise was lower than expected, reflecting falling spending on housing and education.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 7, 2025
Japanese households boost spending despite inflation hit
Outlays by households adjusted for inflation gained 1.8% in September from a year earlier, led by transportation and entertainment.
While the cost of living isn’t going up nearly as fast as it did in 2022, consumer prices are still up 27% since the onset of the pandemic.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 7, 2025
‘Jenga tower’ U.S. economy teeters as middle class pulls back spending
The richest 10% of households are fueling nearly half of total U.S. spending, thanks to a stock market surge that has boosted wealth and propelled economic output this year.
Real cash earnings fell 1.4% in September, marking the ninth consecutive monthly decline in line with analyst forecasts.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 6, 2025
Japan’s wage growth stays firm, keeping rate hike bets alive
Nominal wages rose 1.9% from a year earlier, accelerating from August, the labor ministry reported Thursday, coming in line with economist expectations.
Job hunting and recruitment both may have become less active in September ahead of minimum wage hikes beginning in October.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 31, 2025
Japan's September job availability ratio stays unchanged
Job hunting and recruitment may have become less active in September ahead of minimum wage hikes in October, and some companies may have curbed hiring due to earnings drops.
Chinese leaders are signaling a sharper shift toward supporting consumption over the next five years.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Oct 31, 2025
China signals sharper pivot to consumption as imbalances worsen
As limited investment room and slowing exports have exposed vulnerabilities, Chinese leaders are signaling a sharper shift toward supporting consumption over the next five years.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food gained 2.8% in October from a year earlier in the Tokyo area, with subsidies for water having run their course.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 31, 2025
Faster Tokyo inflation supports BOJ rate hike case and boosts yen
Consumer prices excluding fresh food gained 2.8% in October from a year earlier in the capital.
A television station broadcasts Jerome Powell, chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve, speaking after a Federal Open Market Committee meeting on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 30, 2025
Fed cuts rates and Powell signals December move ‘far from’ certain
The Federal Reserve chair's remarks seemed aimed at reining in expectations in financial markets, where the probability of another cut in December was above 90% before he spoke.
Food inflation was highlighted as one of three factors to watch in deciding the timing of the central bank’s next rate hike.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 24, 2025
Japan’s faster inflation highlights need for Takaichi response
New Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has made confronting the cost of living crunch a priority.
Japan's exports gained 4.2% in September from a year earlier, with analysts noting the strong euro and China’s domestic demand-stimulating policies benefiting the country.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 22, 2025
Japan’s exports advance for first time since April on chips
Exports rose for the first time in five months as shipments of chips and electronic parts advanced, while goods destined for the U.S. continued to decline.
Students watch a video featuring Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Military Museum in Beijing on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 21, 2025
China’s lopsided growth puts spotlight on Xi’s five-year plan
Data about China's economy arrived as top officials gather in Beijing for what is known as the Communist Party’s fourth plenum to hash out development plans through 2030.
Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected leader of Japan's ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party, attends a news conference after the LDP presidential election in Tokyo on Oct. 4.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 18, 2025
Japan's fractured politics could ensnarl Takaichi's economic plans
Sanae Takaichi may have found the political support she needs to become Japan's next prime minister — but the new cross-party alliances come with risks.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announces his intention to resign on Sept. 7.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 15, 2025
Ishiba to leave office with a mixed record on the economy
The outgoing prime minister achieved a few successes and left some important business unfinished.
A cargo ship full of shipping containers is seen at the port of Oakland, California, in August. U.S. President Donald Trump predicted that foreign countries would pay the price of his protectionist policies, wagering that exporters would absorb the cost to keep a foothold in the U.S. market.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 13, 2025
U.S. firms and consumers paying most for Trump's tariffs, data suggests
Trump predicted that foreign countries would pay the price of his protectionist policies, wagering that exporters would absorb the cost to keep a foothold in the U.S. market.
U.S. gross domestic product grew in the second quarter at the fastest pace in nearly two years.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 13, 2025
World economy faces triple risk of tariffs, AI bubble and soaring debt
Such concerns will dominate the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington this week.
In September alone, the number of corporate bankruptcies in Japan rose 8.1% from a year earlier to 873.
BUSINESS
Oct 8, 2025
Japan's April-September business failures hit 12-year high
In the first half of fiscal 2025, business failures rose 1.5% from a year earlier to 5,172, up for the fourth consecutive year.
A beloved Tokyo penguin’s end presages Suica’s shift to payments giant
JR East is retiring the beloved Suica penguin as part of a rebrand to transform the contactless payment platform, used for both transit and retail, into a mobile fintech powerhouse.
Fears rise of rupture in Japan-China ties in wake of Taiwan remarks
Two Chinese tourists wearing kimonos take a selfie as they visit Sensoji temple in Tokyo's Asakusa district on Saturday.
From France to Mali, a deportee's struggle far from home
Moussa Sacko, a Malian deported from France — where he had lived since he was a young child — stands on a street in Bamako, Mali, in December. Compared with his home in France, Bamako feels like a different planet, Sacko said.
At Ginza’s newest hotel, luxury is a private treasure
At Fufu Tokyo, each guest room comes with its own private "onsen" (hot spring) — a luxury nearly unheard of in the heart of Tokyo's capital.
Ashfall warning issued in southern Japan as volcano erupts
View of Sakurajima from the mainland of Kagoshima Prefecture
Japan uses series against South Korea to prep for World Baseball Classic title defense
Japan's Ryuhei Sotani pitches against South Korea at Tokyo Dome on Saturday night.
Good fortune, wrapped in fried tofu
Golden "age-fukuburo," a culinary take on Japan's new year "lucky bags," can be served on their own.
Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan celebrates 80 years at the forefront of press freedom
Located near the Imperial Palace, the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan prides itself on the accessibility of its events and the support it offers to budding and established journalists. The club is currently headed by Dan Sloan, a former reporter for Reuters.
The challenges awaiting Japan’s new finance minister
Finance minister Satsuki Katayama answers questions from reporters in a group interview on Oct. 24.
At Ginza’s newest hotel, luxury is a private treasure
At Fufu Tokyo, each guest room comes with its own private "onsen" (hot spring) — a luxury nearly unheard of in the heart of Tokyo's capital.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

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
By Kathryn Wortley

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