How the world would benefit by turning Japanese

HAVING just returned from my second visit to Japan, I’m struck by the vast differences between them and us. I’m experiencing a strange type of sadness and not just regular post-holiday blues. I was in Japan with my boyfriend to see Boston rock band ... ( read original story ...)

Rowing federation against 2020 Tokyo Games venue change

TVC NEWS The proposed rowing venue for the 2020 Tokyo Games should not be changed as part of cost-cutting measures as it is the only one that meets Olympic standards, the International Rowing Federation (FISA) said on Thursday. The International Olympic ... ( read original story ...)

Junko Tabei, first woman to climb Everest, dies at 77

TOKYO – Japanese media reports say the first woman to climb ... "I was the 36th person to climb Everest." Japan's Kyodo News agency said that Tabei scaled peaks in more than 60 countries. Japanese public broadcaster NHK said she continued climbing ... ( read original story ...)

Death from overwork in Japan shows lessons unlearned

TOKYO -- Matsuri Takahashi's dream career at Japan's top ad agency, Dentsu, ended with her suicide as her overtime pushed past 100 hours a month. "I'm emotionless and only wish to sleep," she wrote, exhausted and depressed, in a Twitter post in October ... ( read original story ...)

Strong Quake in Western Japan Knocks out Power, Injures 7

A powerful earthquake in western Japan knocked loose roof tiles, toppled store shelves and caused power outages Friday afternoon, but apparently caused no widespread damage. At least seven people were injured, one seriously. The Japan Meteorological Agency ... ( read original story ...)

X Japan's Yoshiki: Music saved my life

X Japan are one of Japan's most famous heavy metal rock bands. In the 1980s they helped pioneer the "visual kei" movement associated with brightly coloured hair and flamboyant costumes. But the band's history has been marked with tragedy, including the ... ( read original story ...)

Western Japan hit by magnitude 6.6 earthquake

A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.6 struck western Japan on Friday, but there was no risk of tsunami. The Japan Meteorological Agency said the earthquake occurred at 2:10 p.m. local time in the Tottori prefecture, about 700 kilometres ... ( read original story ...)

Mizuho Seeks to Challenge Nomura as Japan’s Top Equity Firm

Mizuho Financial Group Inc., the Japanese bank that added dozens of stock analysts and salesmen in the past year, is seeking to loosen Nomura Holdings Inc.’s grip on the nation’s potentially lucrative yet elusive retail brokerage business. Tokyo-based ... ( read original story ...)

Assessing the Recent Effectiveness of Japan’s Abenomics

Thus far, it has failed to dislodge the deflationary sentiment from the Japanese economic mind-set, although this has not been through a lack of trying. The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has sent interest rates into deep negative territory to encourage spending and ... ( read original story ...)