Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–The Bank of Japan plans to raise its policy interest rate by 0.25 percentage point to 1.25 pct, the highest level in about 31 years, at its policy-setting meeting next week, informed sources said Friday. The last time

Osaka, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–North Korean soccer players entered Japan aboard an aircraft arriving at Kansai International Airport near Osaka on Friday for the Asian Games. Other members of the North Korean delegation for the sporting event mainly in Aichi Prefecture will

(Adnkronos) – The AfD soars in voting intentions just over a week before the regional elections in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, in eastern Germany. Alternative for Germany, which emerged victorious from the regional elections on September 6 in Saxony-Anhalt with 43.8% of the votes, could

(Adnkronos) – Iceland will present a bill in February 2027 that could permanently ban whaling in its waters, a decision that would leave Norway and Japan as the only two countries to allow commercial whaling. Whaling in Iceland has been the subject

(Adnkronos) – A Hong Kong court has sentenced three Tiananmen Square protest activists to prison terms of five to seven years and three months for national security crimes, following a trial condemned by the United Nations, human rights organizations, and several foreign

(Adnkronos) – According to preliminary ship tracking data published today, ship transits in the Strait of Hormuz fell to seven yesterday, compared to eleven the previous day, a figure well below the ten-year average of 15. According to the data, of the

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Digital Agency said Friday that about 246,000 sets of personal information, including the names and email addresses of government employees, may have been compromised through the unauthorized access of a network system operated by the agency. So

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Financial Services Agency plans to support the securities industry’s efforts to improve information systems for corporate bonds, Jiji Press learned Friday. The agency aims to revitalize the country’s market for corporate bonds by allowing institutional investors to

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Finance Ministry said Friday that it will issue a commemorative 1,000-yen coin for the International Horticultural Expo 2027 in Yokohama, south of Tokyo. Priced at 33,500 yen, the coin’s obverse design features the expo’s mascot, Tunku Tunku,

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–A group of Japanese lawmakers urged the government on Friday to continue supporting the International Criminal Court after the United States sanctioned its president, Tomoko Akane of Japan. Yoko Kamikawa, head of the group, which consists of lawmakers

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–The proportion of unmarried people in Japan who said they intend to marry eventually has fallen below 80 pct for the first time among both men and women, a survey by the National Institute of Population and Social

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Digital Agency said Friday that about 246,000 sets of personal information, including the names and addresses of government employees, may have been leaked due to unauthorized access to a network system operated by the agency. So far,

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average briefly surrendered over 2,000 points on Friday, as investors turned risk-averse on the back of higher oil prices. The index of 225 major issues listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime section closed

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese restaurant industry on Thursday called on the government to take steps to help it weather possible impacts of a planned consumption tax cut for food. Japan currently imposes the 10 pct consumption tax on meals served

Nagoya, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Chubu Electric Power Co. is planning to withdraw its application to restart the No. 3 and No. 4 reactors at its Hamaoka nuclear power plant in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, following a data cherry-picking scandal, it was learned

Kumamoto, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Kumamoto Prefecture will launch a travel discount campaign on Tuesday to stimulate tourism demand following a powerful earthquake that struck the southwestern Japan prefecture in July, Governor Takashi Kimura said Friday. The discounts will apply to overnight stays

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Friday approved a tax system reform package featuring a food consumption tax cut plan and an income-linked benefit program, with the package expected to receive cabinet approval on Tuesday. The package was

(The first sentence of the second paragraph should have read, “…producer price index…,” instead of as sent. A substitute story followed.) Japan Producer Prices Rise 7.6 Pct in Aug. Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s producer prices remained elevated in August as the

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Business sentiment among large Japanese companies turned positive in the July-September quarter thanks to stronger semiconductor-related demand and more customers at hotels and restaurants, government data showed Friday. The business survey index for large companies stood at plus

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–The father of a Japanese victim of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks in the United States reflects on his loss as 25 years have passed since the tragedy in which about 3,000 people were killed. “My sorrow

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–A research team from Hokkaido University and other institutions said Friday that the parent celestial body of the asteroid Ryugu formed within 2 million years of the birth of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. The

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Yasuchika Hasegawa, former president of Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. and former chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, or Keizai Doyukai, died at a Tokyo hospital July 3. He was 80. Born in Nagato, Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan,

London, Sept. 10 (Jiji Press)–The U.S. financial authorities carried out a foreign exchange intervention worth 500 million euros to prop up the yen on July 31, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said Thursday. “I’m not going to comment” on any foreign

Nagoya, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Toyota Motor Corp. has released an entry-level racing kart for users ranging from children to adults under its GR motorsports brand. The GR KART, which has a suggested retail price of 385,000 yen, is the world’s first racing

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average briefly gave up more than 2,000 points Friday morning due to selling across a wide range of issues after U.S. equities dropped overnight amid higher crude oil prices and rising long-term interest rates.

Tokyo, Sept. 11 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Crown Princess Kiko, the wife of Crown Prince Akishino, turned 60 on Friday. “I am grateful to have reached this day, and I hope that I can take on new activities,” Crown Princess Kiko said in written

Tokyo, Sept. 10 (Jiji Press)–Since its birth around 4.6 billion years ago, Mercury’s radius has shrunk by over 10 kilometers as the inside of the planet cooled down, a team from Japan’s Hokkaido University has found. The team’s findings were published in

Nagoya, Sept. 10 (Jiji Press)–Aichi Financial Group Inc. in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, and San ju San Financial Group Inc. in neighboring Mie Prefecture said Thursday that they have agreed to terminate a basic agreement on their merger. Though they had been

(Adnkronos) – The Bayeux Tapestry exhibition opened this morning at the British Museum in London; the public can now admire this medieval treasure which is generating exceptional enthusiasm in the United Kingdom, gripped by a real “tapestry-mania” for several weeks.  Visitors who

(Adnkronos) – The city of Denver, supported by a coalition of associations, has filed a lawsuit to prevent the Trump administration from deploying armed Ice agents at polling stations during the upcoming midterm elections. “The specter of armed agents at polling stations