The finance ministry will publish the trade data at 8:50 a.m. Tokyo time on Monday (2350 GMT Sunday). The poll also found that economists expect the Bank of Japan to keep its short-term policy interest rate at minus 0.1 percent and the 10-year government ... ( read original story ...)
Japan sends signal to North Korea by freezing company assets
Japan’s Foreign Ministry announced Friday that it is freezing ... Kono said that North Korea was the most urgent and important threat facing the international community, the news agency reported. The Associated Press contributed to this report. ( read original story ...)
BREAKING: Tokyo rocked as HUGE earthquake strikes Japan coast
The magnitude 4.5 quake struck at 11.43am JST (2.43am GMT) 36 miles south of Tokyo. Reports on social media suggest the impact of the earthquake was felt in the capital. One Twitter user said: “I just felt my first earthquake ever while in Tokyo.” ( read original story ...)
Japan’s business sentiment hits 11-year high: BOJ Tankan survey
TOKYO -- Business confidence among Japan's big manufacturers improved for the fifth straight quarter in the three months through December as global economic sentiment picked up, according to the Bank of Japan's quarterly Tankan survey, released on Friday. ( read original story ...)
Japan imposes new sanctions on North Korea
TOKYO – Japan has announced it is freezing the assets of 19 companies to step up pressure on North Korea to halt its nuclear weapons and missile development. The Foreign Ministry said Friday that the companies deal in finance, coal and minerals ... ( read original story ...)
Japan and UK to expand joint military exercises
LONDON -- Japan and the U.K. have agreed to expand the scope of their joint military drills amid rising tensions in Northeast Asia, with plans to conduct their first-ever army exercises together in Japan next year. Both countries' defense and foreign ... ( read original story ...)
Japan’s Central Bank Tweaks Message as Dissenter Calls for More Easing
Kuroda speech included new language on risks of more stimulus Changes are said to have been wrongly interpreted as exit hint A new dissenter on the Bank of Japan board calling for more stimulus has prompted the BOJ to adjust its communications to flag ... ( read original story ...)
American woman found with 7 kilograms of stimulant drugs at Osaka airport
An American woman, 48, was found to be in possession of 7 kilograms of stimulant drugs concealed inside mascara containers at Kansai International Airport in October (TBS News) OSAKA (TR) – Osaka Prefectural Police have arrested and sent to prosecutors a ... ( read original story ...)
Japanese business confidence hits 11-year high
Confidence among Japan's biggest manufacturers is at an 11-year high, a key central bank survey showed Friday, as the world's number-three economy picks up pace. The bullish survey underscored how Japan's prospects have been improving on the back of strong ... ( read original story ...)
Japan survey shows corporate sentiment at 11-year high
TOKYO — A quarterly business outlook survey by Japan's central bank shows corporate sentiment has improved to its highest level in 11 years in the latest upbeat signal for the economy. The Bank of Japan's "tankan" index for large manufacturers ... ( read original story ...)
Japan’s digital money exchanges heading abroad for growth
Japanese trading platforms are expanding overseas in an effort ... urging investors to pay close attention to price fluctuations and potential risks. Nikkei Inc. group company QUICK holds an equity stake in bitFlyer. ( read original story ...)
Japan central bank survey shows business sentiment brighter
TOKYO — A quarterly business outlook survey by Japan’s central bank shows sentiment improved to its highest level in 11 years in a further upbeat signal for the economy. The Bank of Japan’s “tankan” index for large manufacturers, released Friday ... ( read original story ...)
Tokyo-based businessman arrested for alleged illegal exports to North Korea
KYOTO – A business executive and two others were arrested Thursday for allegedly exporting food and other items to North Korea in violation of the government’s export ban, police said. Yuzuru Yachita, president of a Tokyo-based company, and two others ... ( read original story ...)
Deutsche Bank Says ‘Mrs. Watanabe’ Behind the Surge in Bitcoin
That term is often used to describe the individual Japanese investor, traditionally a housewife who runs her family’s finances. And that’s who behind the surge in bitcoin, according to a Deutsche Bank AG note Thursday. “We think that retail investors ... ( read original story ...)
Japan’s capsule toys are a big business
TOKYO •A tiny replica of an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus and a plastic cat squatting on sushi. Those are just two of the weird and wonderful capsule toys that have become a multi-million-dollar craze in cute-obsessed Japan. The industry is worth an ... ( read original story ...)
Tokyo may be too late to the financial hub party
Gov. Yuriko Koike may be taking Tokyo’s “London of the East” dream a bit too literally, inking a four-year partnership agreement with the British capital. Predecessors dating back to Shintaro Ishihara (1999-2012) long coveted London’s energy, heft ... ( read original story ...)