Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s private-sector rice imports surged 95-fold in 2025 from the previous year to 96,834 tons as demand for foreign rice was strong despite high tariffs because of surging prices for domestically grown rice, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Box-office revenues in Japan soared 32.6 pct from the previous year to mark a record high of 274,452 million yen, led by megahit Japanese films in 2025, an industry group has said. The revenue surpassed the 261,180 million

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Japanese police conducted 13 undercover investigations into so-called dark part-time jobs through last month, National Police Agency sources said Thursday. The probes, involving the use of fake identification documents to apply for such illicit jobs, called “yami baito,”

Washington, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday denied that the United States is engaging in any dollar-selling, yen-buying intervention to guide the Japanese currency higher. Asked about the possibility of U.S. authorities conducting such intervention, Bessent said in

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–The dollar held firm above 153 yen in Tokyo trading Thursday morning, attracting buybacks because U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent denied rumors over a yen-buying intervention. At noon, the dollar stood at 153.11-12 yen, up from 152.63-64 yen

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Japan and Canada have signed an agreement to allow the two countries to export defense equipment to each other, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said Wednesday. Canada became the 17th country with which Japan has concluded such an agreement,

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Fair Trade Commission plans to issue cease-and-desist orders to four road maintenance companies over bid-rigging in contracts for road cleaning services commissioned by Metropolitan Expressway Co., it has been learned. The FTC is set to fine two

Tokyo, Jan. 29 (Jiji Press)–Fuji Television Network Inc. has regained about 80 pct of its sponsors who suspended commercials in the wake of a sexual abuse scandal involving former TV star Masahiro Nakai, which led to the resignation of its president about

(Adnkronos) – The Italian Regions Cup taking place from March to October shows how institutions, organisers and local areas can boost business and add value to cycling as a national sporting and cultural asset, foreign minister Antonio Tajani said Wednesday.  “The 2026

(Adnkronos) – Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and Rolls Royce, as if nothing had happened. Since the beginning of the war against Ukraine, almost four years ago, 214 luxury cars worth a total of approximately 75 million euros have been illegally imported into

(Adnkronos) – The authorities in the Gaza Strip, controlled by Hamas, have reported 492 deaths as a result of Israeli attacks conducted after October 10, the date the ceasefire came into effect. A statement from the Ministry of Health also mentions 1356

(Adnkronos) – Italy has “excellent”, ongoing dialogue with its “partners” in Latin America, foreign undersecretary Maria Tripodi wrote Wednesday on X after talks with Equador’s ambassador at the foreign ministry in Rome.  “I received at @ItalyMFA H.E. Esteban Moscoso, Ambassador of the

(Adnkronos) – An Italian government panel gave a green light to 13 projects on Wednesday that spanned immigration, economy and development, climate change and energy, the foreign ministry said in a statement.  The projects are in strategic sectors such as energy, vocational

(Adnkronos) – The mayor of Budapest, Hungarian opposition figure Gergely Karacsony, was indicted today for organizing last June’s Pride in the capital, which attracted a record number of participants, defying the ban imposed by Viktor Orban’s government. The Budapest prosecutor’s office announced

(Adnkronos) – The Saxony-Anhalt parliament has elected CDU politician and former Minister of Economic Affairs Sven Schulze as the new state premier. The forty-six-year-old secured the necessary majority in the first round of voting. Schulze succeeds Reiner Haseloff, also a Christian Democrat,

(Adnkronos) – Almost four years after the start of the war against Ukraine, a poll shows that most Russians feel surrounded by hostile foreign powers, primarily Poland and Lithuania, and consider their country a victim. Lev Gudkov, head of the Levada research

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Japanese electronic device maker Nidec Corp. submitted a report on its alleged accounting irregularities to the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Wednesday, admitting that its corporate culture prioritizing the intentions of its founder, Shigenobu Nagamori, had weakened its internal

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Japanese film director Yoichi Higashi, known for mega-hit 1992 movie “The River with No Bridge,” died of old age at a hospital in Tokyo on Jan. 21. He was 91. After graduating from university, Higashi, who is from

Hiroshima, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–An infielder of the Japanese professional baseball team Hiroshima Toyo Carp has been arrested for allegedly using etomidate, a designated drug also known as the “zombie cigarette.” Ryutaro Hatsuki, 25, denies the allegation and claims that he has

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Japanese office and household goods supplier Askul Corp. on Wednesday reported a consolidated net loss of 6.6 billion yen for the two quarters ended in November 2025. The red ink following a year-before profit of 3.7 billion yen

Kumamoto, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Kumamoto District Court on Wednesday dismissed the fourth appeal for a retrial of the case involving a special court within an isolated facility where a man deemed to have leprosy was sentenced to death in the 1950s. While

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s government is giving 900,000 euros to bolster cyber security and resilience in embattled Ukraine’s western Ternopil region and a further 100,000 euros to a Kiev-based international mechanism, initiatives which will strengthen overall national cybersecurity.  “When addressing the security of

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–With the Feb. 8 House of Representatives election drawing near, the short winter election battle following the abrupt dissolution of the lower chamber of Japan’s parliament has highlighted security challenges during stump speeches. The National Police Agency has

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling about 240,000 units of the Prius hybrid sedan to fix the rear door-opening system, according to a report the major automaker filed with the Japanese transport ministry Wednesday. The recall covers 239,504 units

Saitama, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–A sinkhole up to about 30 meters wide remains open in the city of Yashio in Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on Wednesday, which marked one year after the hole formed and a truck fell into it. Restoration

Hiroshima, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Hiroshima District Court on Wednesday ordered the Japanese government to pay 3.3 million yen in compensation to bereaved relatives of three hibakusha atomic bomb survivors who returned to South Korea after World War II. The three hibakusha were

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese prime minister’s office is warning that several fake websites pretending to be its own have been confirmed. Such fake websites, using video clips of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, urge people to enter their personal information, after

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Former Bank of Japan Policy Board member Sayuri Shirai has said that the central bank’s unprecedented quantitative and qualitative monetary easing regime, characterized by massive purchases of mainly Japanese government bonds, “reached its limit” around the second half

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–Eleven railway and subway operators in eastern Japan said Wednesday that they will accept tap-and-go credit card payments at 729 stations on 54 lines from March 25, about double the current numbers. The new payment option will be

Tokyo, Jan. 28 (Jiji Press)–The dollar was weak below 153 yen in Tokyo trading Wednesday, after remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump welcoming the greenback’s softness prompted the currency to plunge in New York overnight. At 5 p.m. in Tokyo, the dollar