Tag - japanese

 
 

JAPANESE

Almost 45% of Japanese nationals living abroad feel lonely, with a language barrier the leading cause of loneliness, a survey finds.
JAPAN
Jun 4, 2024
45% of Japanese nationals living abroad feel alone: survey
The survey found that a language barrier is the leading cause of loneliness, cited by 31.6%, followed by a cultural gap, by 27.9%.
Japanese companies' capital expenditures on goods excluding software fell 0.5% in the three months through March from the previous quarter.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 3, 2024
Japan’s firms trim spending, reflecting headwinds to growth
Capital expenditures on goods excluding software fell 0.5% in the three months through March from the previous quarter.
Toshimitsu Motegi
JAPAN
Jun 2, 2024
LDP's Motegi calls for fully opening up ride-hailing market
Starting in April, ride-hailing services are allowed in some parts of the country, but operators of such services are limited to taxi companies now.
The National Diet Building in Nagatacho, Tokyo. The guidelines, to be released as early as this month, are expected to include measures to ensure that higher costs are reflected in product and service prices.
JAPAN
Jun 1, 2024
Japan to highlight resolve to defeat deflation
According to a draft, the government will aim to build a sustainable economy and society while resolving social problems the country faces.
Pop project Kirinji was featured on the second episode of Tiny Desk Concerts Japan, an offshoot of NPR’s long-running web series that features artists performing stripped-down sets inside the cozy offices of the organization’s music department.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jun 1, 2024
The best-case scenario for Tiny Desk Concerts Japan
NHK's new project, an offshoot of NPR's web series that shows artists performing stripped-down sets, could become a place for the full spectrum of Japanese music to shine.
A monitor showing the Nikkei 225 index and the yen exchange rate in Tokyo. The yen is expected to remain under pressure given the yawning gap between interest rates in Japan and the U.S.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 1, 2024
Japan spent record ¥9.8 trillion to prop up yen in past month
The record spending on intervention shows the government’s resolve to push back against speculators betting against the yen.
The Supreme Court in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward. This case will mark the first time for the Supreme Court to rule on a parent-child relationship in a case in which the biological father has a child after transitioning to a woman.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 31, 2024
Top court to rule on recognizing post-transition woman as parent
The Tokyo Family Court rejected the woman's petition in 2022, stating that she did not fit the definitions of a father or a birth-giving mother under the Civil Code.
Yoshiichi Segawa, a 68-year-old resident of Kawaguchi, where the shooting took place, was apprehended at Omiya Station in the neighboring city of Saitama.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 31, 2024
Saitama police arrest suspect in cab driver shooting
Police identified Yoshiichi Segawa, 68, through security camera footage as the man suspected of shooting the driver in Wednesday's incident.
The Gunma Prefectural Police said an elderly couple was attacked by a bear at their home in Annaka, Gunma Prefecture, on Friday.
JAPAN
May 31, 2024
Bear enters Gunma home and attacks elderly couple
The couple were sleeping on the first floor of a two-story house when one of them heard a noise outside and opened a window to investigate.
Keidanren Chairman Masakazu Tokura speaks during an interview in Tokyo on May 23.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024
Keidanren to propose policy on foreign workers
The association will draw up a medium-term vision of the economy and society called "Future Design 2040."
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 1.9% in May in the capital, internal affairs ministry data showed Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 31, 2024
Tokyo inflation picked up in May, keeping BOJ on track for rate hike
The capital's inflation figures typically serve a indicator for national trends, suggesting a similar acceleration is likely for the rest of Japan.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government is implementing a tax cut of ¥40,000 per person from June to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024
Kishida government's much-touted tax cut to start in June
The prime minister has stressed that the tax cut is designed to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
Ever since the Bank of Japan ended its negative rate policy, calls for the government to strengthen its fiscal discipline have been growing, with the country being haunted by public debt that is about twice the size of its gross domestic product.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 30, 2024
Two cheers for the end of free money in Japan
Corporations are better prepared for more expensive money than they were in the past, with strong balance sheets and a better understanding of risk.
The National Police Agency aims to have the Road Traffic Act and other relevant regulations revised to halve the speed limit on narrow roads in residential areas to 30 kilometers per hour by September 2026.
JAPAN
May 30, 2024
Police plan to halve speed limits on Japan's residential roads
The proposed amendment will reduce the limit on roads without a centerline to 30 kph.
The mother of a student killed in a 2017 avalanche prays for her son at her home in Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture, earlier this month.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 30, 2024
Three sentenced to two years in prison over 2017 avalanche deaths
The defendants guilty of professional negligence resulting in death and injury.
Trade no longer generates a surplus in Japan, reflecting a surge in the cost of energy imports and an increase in offshore production.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 30, 2024
Yen's relentless slide revives Japan's interest in structural reforms
The currency's persistent weakness has alerted policymakers to more fundamental drivers behind it, such as the nation's dwindling global competitiveness.
A taxi in which the driver was shot and injured late Wednesday night in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 30, 2024
Police hunt for man who shot cab driver in Saitama
The suspect, in his 50s or 60s, was wearing a black cap, glasses, a white mask, a black short-sleeved shirt and long pants when he shot the driver.
An LDP panel's proposal on fiscal policy underscores how a weak yen and an exit from ultra-low interest rates are piling pressure on Japan to rein in its huge public debt.
BUSINESS
May 30, 2024
Japan must restore fiscal discipline to protect yen's value, LDP panel says
The views of the panel of Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers are shared by the powerful Finance Ministry, who oversees the state budget.
The documentary short “Now and Then" traces how the Beatles honored John Lennon after his death by crafting a tune he wrote into the “last Beatles song.”
CULTURE / Film
May 30, 2024
Eight standout films to catch at this year's Short Shorts Film Festival
The event will screen roughly 270 films that range from dramas about current social issues to animations that push the limits of the imagination.
With the recent focus on the yen and individual investing, the phrase "Mrs. Watanabe" — one of the most common pieces of jargon in Japanese financial circles — has seen a resurgence.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 29, 2024
My search for the original 'Mrs. Watanabe'
Yen retail traders are back in the spotlight. But where did the phrase for the archetypal Japanese housewife investor come from?

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'