“We are closely monitoring the latest developments,” Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Tuesday before he departs to Washington for annual International Monetary Fund events and meetings of finance ...
South Korea foreign ministry summons Japan diplomat over disputed islands
South Korea's foreign ministry summoned a Japanese diplomat on Tuesday to protest a claim in Japan's annual diplomatic policy Bluebook over a group of islands between the countries at the centre of a ... ( read original story ...)
S. Korean champions Ulsan to duel Japanese club Yokohama for berth in AFC Champions League final
Two-time reigning South Korean champions Ulsan HD FC will battle Japanese side Yokohama F. Marinos this month for a spot in the final of the top Asian club football tournament. The two teams will ... ( read original story ...)
Japan’s finance minister says he’s closely watching FX
Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Tuesday he was closely watching currency moves and will provide a "thorough response as needed" after the dollar surged to a fresh 34-year high. ( read original story ...)
OpenAI opens Tokyo office and debuts custom GPT-4 version for Japan
OpenAI has made the model available to several early customers including the developer of Speak, one of the most popular language learning apps in Japan. Thanks to the customized version of GPT-4, Speak can now generate explanations for users up to 2.8 times faster than before. The app’s operator also reduced its inference costs. ( read ...
Double duty: Twin sisters in east Japan achieve dream of becoming police officers
A total of 332 new officers entered the Kanagawa Prefectural Police academy here on April 12, and among them were a pair of twins. Karen N･･･ ... ( read original story ...)
‘Little Red Dot’ dreams big at Singapore Pavilion for Osaka World Expo 2025
At the Pavilion, the STB will showcase the best that Singapore has to offer in food, culture, the arts and innovation. Read more at straitstimes.com. ( read original story ...)
Hidden Billions in Tokyo Real Estate Lure Activist Hedge Funds
Consider the large difference between book value and market value in Mitsui’s Tokyo Midtown building — a 54-story skyscraper in the heart of the city’s buzzy Roppongi area that includes offices, a Ritz-Carlton hotel, and retail and dining facilities. Mitsui developed and opened the property in 2007. ( read original story ...)
Lacking access to mainland Chinese investors, Hong Kong’s crypto ETFs will be ‘nickels and dimes’ compared with U.S. versions
H ong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission has granted approvals for three spot Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds. Following the conditional authorization, to become officially listed, the asset managers issuing the products will apply to Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, the SFC added.
Bitcoin Halving Has Crypto Miners Racing for ‘Epic Sat’ Potentially Worth Millions
Bitcoin's once-every-four-years "halving" this week may be very different from those of earlier epochs, typically ho-hum affairs. Now, an intense competition is underway to mine the first block after the halving,
Tokyo Electron expected to see profit rebound on AI demand
Tokyo Electron is on track to boost net profit 33% this fiscal year to 450.8 billion yen ($2.94 billion), according to the average analyst outlook from QUICK Consensus. ( read original story ...)
Marion County restaurant inspections: Night Deposit Whiskey Library, Nagoya Japanese
This is a snapshot of the inspections conducted by the Marion County health department. Twice annually, licensed restaurants receive unannounced inspections that focus on food temperatures, food ... ( read original story ...)
Tech Moves: OpenAI hires former Amazon Web Services leader to lead new Tokyo office
Tadao Nagasaki, a longtime tech exec who led Japan-related operations for Amazon Web Services and F5, is joining OpenAI ( read original story ...)
New colorful plastic films for versatile sensors and electronic displays
Innovative electronics is one of the many applications of modern plastics. Some recent research efforts have used plastic to improve the color realism of display technologies. ( read original story ...)
Microsoft’s Strategic Investment in Japan
Microsoft invests $2.9B in Japan to enhance AI and cybersecurity, fostering tech advancements and economic growth amid global challenges.
Bitcoin’s latest crash shows crypto is no haven during war times
Crypto markets rebounded slightly on reports Israel and its allies shot down over 99% of the incoming drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, but Bitcoin was still trading closer to $65,000 ...