Japan

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In Japan, Tough Times Send Women to the Altar

Women turn to marriage as route to financial stability

(Newser) - In Japan, when the economy tanks, marriage—and two paychecks—starts to look more attractive to working women, reports Bloomberg. “I want to get married soon, hopefully by the end of this year,” says one Tokyo woman. “I’d be more stable financially if I had double...

US Warns of Japanese Drink-Spiking Epidemic

(Newser) - The US embassy in Tokyo has warned Americans to steer clear of an entertainment district that has seen a spike in the spiking of drinks, the Japan Times reports. Victims often lose consciousness and awake hours later, their credit cards gone or used. “If you, nevertheless, choose to participate...

Col. Sanders Gives Hope to Baseball Fans

Recovery of statue from river may lift 'curse' on Japanese team

(Newser) - A statue of KFC founder Colonel Sanders tossed into a river in Osaka, Japan, over 2 decades ago has been recovered, possibly ending the "curse" that's widely believed to be shadowing the Hanshin Tigers baseball team, the Mainichi Daily News reports. Jubilant fans tore the mascot from its...

S. Korean Ship Missing After Collision

Slammed into Panamanian vessel; 16 sailors disappear

(Newser) - A South Korean freighter remains missing after it collided with a Panamanian cargo ship off Japan early this morning, AFP reports. Japanese rescuers are searching for the vessel, which was carrying 16 sailors. “We believe the ship probably sank,” said a coast guard official. “We found an...

Korean Hiroshima Survivors Want $$$—from Japan

(Newser) - Hapcheon residents think they live in the unluckiest town in earth. When Japan occupied the tiny South Korean farming community during World War II, it sent locals to work in munitions factories—in Hiroshima. Thousands of Hapcheon residents died instantly when the bomb dropped. The rest were shunned when they...

Honda Hops on Bailout Bandwagon

Japanese automaker to seek government loans to pay for customer loans

(Newser) - With American credit markets dried up, Honda is seeking money from the Japanese government to help finance auto loans in the US, reports the Wall Street Journal. The Japanese government is planning to offer $5 billion through a semi-governmental organization, and Toyota is planning to seek funds as well.

Toyota Asks Japan for a Bailout

(Newser) - Toyota is reportedly seeking $2 billion in loans from Japan’s government, after forecasting its first loss in 59 years, Bloomberg reports. A Toyota Financial Services spokesman confirmed that the automaker is in talks with a state-owned bank, but wouldn’t specify a figure. The carmaker expects to report a...

In Japan, Sun Sets on Yakuza Mob Scene

Japan's criminal gangs are losing their semi-legitimate status

(Newser) - The role of the yakuza in Japanese society has always been hard for Westerners to understand. Since the 1950s the mafia-like organization has been tolerated by government and the public, trusted to run gambling and prostitution rackets with a modicum of respect for social order. But as a tough economy...

Japan May Buy Stocks to Rescue Tanking Market

Government prepares to act as indexes hit 26-year low

(Newser) - The Japanese government said today that it might intervene to prop up the stock market, as the country's two main indexes approached their lowest levels in 26 years. The continued decline of the Nikkei and Topix—down 18% this year alone—has endangered Japan's banks, which hold a substantial amount...

Japan's Embattled Leader to Meet Obama

Unpopular Japanese PM will face calls to resign when he gets home

(Newser) - Taro Aso today becomes the first foreign leader to visit President Obama but it may be the Japanese leader's last summit, Bloomberg reports. The prime minister's popularity has dived amid public dislike of his handling of the economy and his finance minister's resignation over a drinking scandal. Polls show almost...

Nations Move to Breach Whaling Ban

Greenies say talks "wave the white flag" to whale killers

(Newser) - Secret government meetings could usher in a new era of legal commercial whaling for the first time in more than 20 years, the Independent reports. Twenty-eight whaling and anti-whaling nations have met twice to reach a compromise on the ban, which came after the near-extinction of many species. Environmentalists say...

Obama Speeches Help Japanese Learn English

Students use his speeches to learn language

(Newser) - Barack Obama is fast becoming a popular English teacher—in Japan. His speeches have become a hit for people learning the language there, the Wall Street Journal reports. Obama's slow and careful enunciation make him a particularly good model, teachers say. One book of speeches, complete with a dictionary for...

In Asia, Clinton's on a Mission to Listen
 In Asia, Clinton's 
 on a Mission to Listen 
analysis
Feb 20, 2009 3:06 PM CST

In Asia, Clinton's on a Mission to Listen

Secretary of State right at home on 'world stage'

(Newser) - On her trip to China, Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia, Hillary Clinton is making the most of long experience and enthusiastic crowds, the Washington Post reports. The secretary of state is on a listening tour, aiming to rehab the country's image. “There is a hunger for the United States...

Aso Will Be First Foreign Leader to Visit Obama

Clinton expresses solidarity on North Korea

(Newser) - Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will head to Washington next week to discuss the economy with President Obama, Hillary Clinton announced today. It will be the first time Obama welcomes a foreign leader to the White House. The meeting was billed as a “bilateral summit” that will show that...

Japan Finance Minister Denies Being Drunk, Quits Anyway

Official mocked over slurred conference

(Newser) - Japan's finance chief has announced his resignation amid public ridicule over a news conference where he slurred his words and appeared drunk, Reuters reports. Shoichi Nakagawa, who seemed to fall asleep during the Rome conference of G-7 ministers, denies he was intoxicated and insists the few sips of wine he...

Clinton Arrives in Japan, Warns North Korea

Secretary of state begins week of visits in Asia

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton, on her first trip as secretary of state, arrived today in Tokyo, where she warned North Korea to live up to its commitments to dismantle its nuclear programs, reports the AP. Clinton said the main issues on her agenda include climate change, clean energy, and nuclear proliferation, as...

Japan Economy Shrinks by Most in 35 Years

4th-quarter contraction of 3.3% was 3 times worse than US

(Newser) - Japan's economy contracted by a shocking 3.3% in the fourth quarter of 2008, three times worse than the US and the worst performance in 35 years. The Financial Times reports that a sharp drop in exports contributed to the slump—the third straight quarter of negative growth. The figures...

Japan's Square Enix to Buy 'Tomb Raider' Maker

'Final Fantasy' firm pays dearly for Lara Croft

(Newser) - Looks like Lara Croft has a new sugar daddy: Japan’s Square Enix will buy Eidos, maker of the “Tomb Raider” videogame franchise, for $119.9 million, Forbes reports. That's more than double the per-share price at yesterday's market close. With Square willing to pay such a premium, it...

Japan's PM Slams 'Buy American' Provision

World leaders roundly criticize stimulus provision

(Newser) - Japan’s prime minister today slammed the “Buy American” clause in the proposed economic-stimulus bill currently being considered by the US Senate, the Financial Times reports. Speaking in parliament, Taro Aso said that requiring stimulus projects to use US-made materials is “definitely wrong,” and contrary to the...

Clinton's First Official Stop: Japan

Secretary of state to discuss economy, North Korea

(Newser) - The first stop on Hillary Clinton’s first official trip as secretary of state will be in Japan, reports Asahi Shimbun, allying Japanese fears that Tokyo would take a back seat to the Obama administration's focus on China. The trip will also include stops in China and South Korea. Clinton...

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