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August 15, 2024
 

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INFLATION

Restaurant chains such as Yoshinoya rely on U.S. beef imports. The price surge has led to Yoshinoya's parent company looking into developing new dishes using ingredients other than beef.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 4, 2024
Soaring prices make U.S. beef procurement hard in Japan
The yen's recent sharp depreciation compounds the problems of reduced supply and strong demand for American beef in other countries.
The Finance Ministry and the National Tax Agency in Tokyo's Kasumigaseki district
BUSINESS
Jul 3, 2024
Japan's tax revenue sets another record amid a weak yen and inflation
Even with the tax revenue gains, however, Japan’s fiscal plight is severe.
Japan's most expensive plot of land lies in front of Kyukyodo stationery store in Tokyo's Ginza shopping district, according to National Tax Agency statistics.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 1, 2024
Japan's land prices rise at fastest pace since 2010, tax agency says
Average land prices climbed 2.3% last year, rising for the third straight year.
Business sentiment among large manufacturers in Japan in the April-June quarter improved for the first time in two quarters, but the mood among big service-sector firms worsened for the first time in four years, according to a Bank of Japan survey.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 1, 2024
Japan's shaky business mood and GDP downgrade cloud BOJ hike timing
A mixed economic outlook complicates the BOJ's decision on how soon to raise interest rates, analysts say.
The central government will provide subsidies to slash electricity and city gas bills of ¥4 per kilowatt-hour of electricity and ¥17.5 per cubic meter of city gas.
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2024
Japan to offer average of ¥2,125 per month in subsidies for utility bills
The move is designed to cushion the impact of rising prices on households in the summer, which is expected to be among the hottest on record.
Core inflation in Tokyo accelerated in June on rising fuel bills and the boost to import costs from a weak yen, keeping alive expectations for a near-term interest rate hike by the central bank.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 28, 2024
Tokyo inflation quickens, keeping BOJ on track for rate hike
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.1% in the capital, accelerating from 1.9% in May.
The share of stocks and investment trusts in Japanese household assets rose to a record high of 19.7% at the end of March.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 27, 2024
Japan inflation spurs record shift to household assets in stocks
Households have been coping with a surge in inflation over the past two years.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 26, 2024
A third of Bank of Japan watchers expect July interest rate hike
Whatever the outcome in July, the survey results show there will be intense interest with possible market volatility ahead of the policy board meeting.
The Bank of Japan debated the chance of a near-term interest rate hike during its policy meeting in June.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 24, 2024
BOJ debated need for timely rate hike at June meeting, summary shows
One Bank of Japan policymaker called for an increase without delay to address risks of inflation overshooting expectations.
While a weaker yen is seen pushing up fiscal 2024 profits by 1.9% at large companies with capital of ¥1 billion or more, it is expected to have a negative impact of 1.3% for small companies with capital of 10 million to ¥100 million.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 23, 2024
Impacts of weaker yen vary by company size: estimates
The profit disparity arises apparently from the inability of small companies to offset rising import costs with their limited-scale exports and direct investments abroad.
Japan's core inflation accelerated in May due to energy levies but an index that strips away the effect of fuel slowed for the ninth straight month, complicating the central bank's decision on how soon to raise interest rates.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 21, 2024
Energy costs drove up inflation in May, backing case for BOJ rate hike
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.5% in May from a year ago, quickening from 2.2% in April, the internal affairs ministry said Friday.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 19, 2024
BOJ’s minutes show debate on rate hikes with close eyes on yen
The minutes signal the potential for a BOJ rate hike as early as July even as market speculation for such a move has cooled somewhat.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said the central bank was not yet fully convinced that inflation will sustainably hit its 2% target, stressing the need to spend "a bit more time" to scrutinize data before raising rates again.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 18, 2024
BOJ chief signals chance of July rate hike
Such a move would depend on economic data available at the time, says Gov. Kazuo Ueda.
The corporate goods price index rose 2.4% in May from a year earlier, driven by higher prices for utilities, petroleum and chemical goods as well as nonferrous metals.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 12, 2024
Japan's wholesale inflation rose in May, complicating BOJ rate outlook
Price rises driven by cost pressures could cool consumption, and dampen the chances of achieving the demand-driven inflation the central bank is seeking to foster.
Bankruptcies rose especially among restaurant operators amid labor shortages and rising labor costs.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 11, 2024
Japan corporate bankruptcies surge above 1,000 in May
The latest result came as many companies struggle with rising prices, as well as labor shortages mainly in the service sector.
Japan's economy contracted less than initially reported in the January-March period on upward revisions to capital spending and inventory data.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2024
Japan’s sputtering economy yet to show clear signs of recovery
The data showed both consumers and companies cutting back on spending and unsold supplies building up on warehouse shelves.
Postage rates for sealed letters and other documents are expected to be raised by 30% as early as October, the first rise in 30 years aside from when prices increased along with consumption tax hikes.
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2024
Postage rate hikes seen denting New Year's card tradition in Japan
The tradition of sending New Year's greetings on postcards began in 1873 with the introduction of postcards.
Toyoaki Nakamura, a member of the policy board at the Bank of Japan, warns of recent weak signs in consumption and slowing global growth that have clouded the outlook for Japan's economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 6, 2024
BOJ's Toyoaki Nakamura warns of risks to 2% inflation goal from 2025
The central bank board's median forecast is for core consumer inflation to hit 1.9% in the fiscal year beginning in April 2025 and in fiscal 2026.
Ryu Kawane works at the Costco store in Meiwa, Gunma Prefecture. Costco's high pay has triggered wage hikes at other businesses in town.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 6, 2024
Costco's Japan wages provide pathway to firing up nation's low pay and economy
A sustainable rise in wages is a key goal for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and the Bank of Japan says it's a crucial factor for normalizing monetary policy.
The draft of this year's long-term economic policy road map says consumption is stalling even though Japan's economy is continuing to recover moderately.
BUSINESS
Jun 4, 2024
Draft economic policy road map warns of weak yen's impact on households
The reference to the weak yen's impact will likely keep the Bank of Japan under pressure to raise interest rates or slow its huge bond buying.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

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

Longform

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

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality
mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

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