Tag - japanese

 
 

JAPANESE

Business sentiment among major Japanese companies in the January to March period deteriorated to record its first negative reading in four quarters.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 12, 2024
Big Japanese firms' sentiment shows first negative reading in four quarters
The business sentiment index for large companies stood at minus 0.018, according to the joint Finance Ministry-Cabinet Office survey.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said consumption was weakening for food and daily necessities amid higher prices.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 12, 2024
BOJ chief Kazuo Ueda slightly tones down optimism on economy
Speaking in parliament on Tuesday, Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said consumption was weakening for food and daily necessities amid higher prices.
Zensho Holdings, the operator of Sukiya and other restaurant chains, will raise salaries of regular employees by 12.2% on average.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 12, 2024
Japan firms across sectors offer pay hikes of up to 12% in spring talks
Early wage deals with unions reflect a recovery in earnings from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as a sense of crisis over labor shortages.
Japan revised economic data higher, reversing a quarterly contraction in October-December 2023 into positive growth and avoiding a technical recession.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 11, 2024
Japan’s economy avoids recession one week before BOJ meeting
The government made an upward revision to capital investment figures to reflect 2% growth, which in turn sent the country's GDP into positive territory.
Yusuke Ishikawa, a 49-year-old coroner with  the Miyagi Prefectural Police, is working to identify six remains of victims of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2024
Police continue work to identify 3/11 disaster victims
Officials are alarmed by a decrease in opportunities for the police to obtain information that could lead to victims being identified.
Masaki Takahashi, Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya and Tatsuji Nojima celebrated winning the Oscar for best visual effects on the Dolby Theatre stage in Los Angeles, California, on Sunday.
CULTURE / Film
Mar 11, 2024
Oscars 2024: A night to remember for Japanese cinema
Filmmaking peers in Hollywood honor the excellence of two Japanese titans: Studio Ghibli and Godzilla
A hiker walks toward Asahidake in Hokkaido. The health and environmental issues around PFAS could be a particular problem for Japan, which boasts a number of globally renowned outdoor brands and related suppliers.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Mar 10, 2024
Japan’s revered outdoor brands face down PFAS challenge
Outdoor apparel consumers are generally more environmentally conscious, but are likely to be using products that have a big environmental footprint.
Kazuo Ueda, governor of the Bank of Japan, speaks at a fintech summit in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 8, 2024
Bank of Japan leaning toward exiting negative rates in March
Many BOJ policymakers are closely watching the outcome of big firms' annual wage negotiations with unions on March 13.
A man looks at electronic boards displaying stock prices of companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo on Monday. The benchmark 225-issue Nikkei average has surged at an unexpected pace of about 20% this year
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Mar 8, 2024
A stock rally but sluggish growth: What’s the deal with Japan’s economy?
The Nikkei is benefiting from companies' strong earnings, but wider economic indicators are much less positive.
Plaintiffs who have filed a lawsuit over Japan's separate surname rule head into the Tokyo District Court on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 8, 2024
Group files lawsuit over Japan law that mandates couples share a surname
Similar lawsuits have been filed before, but public opinion appears to be shifting in favor of allowing couples to have separate surnames.
Kathy Matsui in 2019
BUSINESS
Mar 8, 2024
Ex-Goldman executive Kathy Matsui says womenomics needs work
Matsui said the effort to increase women in leadership positions is "a matter of trial and error to find the best fit” for companies.
Japan's economy stumbled into a recession in the October-December quarter last year on weak domestic demand, preliminary estimates have shown.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 8, 2024
Japan household spending logs biggest drop in 35 months in January
Household spending in January decreased by 6.3% from a year earlier and was down for the 11th straight month.
A representative from Honda's labor union submits a demand for spring negotiations to management last month in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 8, 2024
Japan Inc. set to offer bumper pay hikes, paving way for stimulus end
Economists see negotiations resulting in an average increase of around 3.9% in pay for union workers at major firms.
Motoki Taniguchi (left) and one of his clients, Maurice Shelton, hope their lawsuit can change alleged police practices involving stop-and-search.
PODCAST / deep dive
Mar 8, 2024
A lawsuit puts alleged racial profiling by police on trial in Japan
Three residents with foreign roots have filed a lawsuit claiming Japanese police target visible minorities. We discuss what they hope to achieve.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks during a news conference in Sao Paulo in February.
BUSINESS
Mar 7, 2024
BOJ bets swing toward March rate hike
Bets on the March 18-19 meeting are gaining traction.
Junko Nakagawa, a member of the policy board at the Bank of Japan (BOJ), in Tokyo in January
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 7, 2024
BOJ policymaker upbeat on stimulus exit amid encouraging wage news
"We can say that prospects for the economy to achieve a positive cycle of (rising) inflation and wages are in sight," said board member Junko Nakagawa.
Located in Ehime Prefecture at the base of the Cape Sada Peninsula, the Ikata Nuclear Power Plant lies about 45 kilometers from the town of Saganoseki within the city of Oita.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024
Court rejects class action suit opposing nuclear plant in Ehime
Local residents in Oita, less than 50 kilometers from the facility, had called into question the safety of the plant during natural disasters.
In 2019, Japan tightened penalties for the use of smartphones and other mobile handsets while driving.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024
Record high number of distracted drivers causing death or serious injury
In 2023, 25 incidents were fatal and 97 caused serious injury, with about 10% of drivers using mobile phones to talk and 90% looking at screens.
The National Police Agency conducted its first survey on social media-linked investment frauds and romance scams as the amount of damage from such cases surged last year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 7, 2024
Damage from investment and romance scams in Japan hits ¥45.5 billion
The figure was higher than ¥44.12 billion stolen in remittance and other special fraud cases, according to police data.
Beyond factors such as the "motherhood penalty," Japanese women struggle to advance in their careers due to the structure of the workforce, including the two-tiered clerical versus managerial track.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 6, 2024
Why is it taking so long to break the glass ceiling?
Japan isn't unique in having a thick glass ceiling, but some factors don't apply to other countries, like the U.S., where many more managers are women.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?