Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. has reduced ethylene output to avoid a production halt due to a lack of supply of raw materials from the Middle East, company officials said on Monday. The Japanese company has been producing ethylene at

(2nd para should have read “… ensuing …,” instead of as sent) Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–A survey has found that nearly 60 pct of high school students in eastern and northeastern Japan do not know correctly which company operates the 2011

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–In a Jiji Press opinion poll conducted in February, 65.4 pct of respondents said their memories of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, which mainly struck northeastern Japan, were fading. Asked whether their memories of the disaster are

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that 208 Japanese nationals have been evacuated from Doha, the capital of Qatar, to Riyadh by land amid the growing conflict between U.S.-Israeli forces and Iran. The evacuees, along with Japanese nationals who

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo stocks plummeted Monday morning due to a surge in crude oil prices attributed to rising Middle East tensions, sending the key Nikkei 225 average tumbling more than 4,000 points temporarily. The Nikkei index finished the morning at

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force has brought launchers and other equipment of sophisticated long-range missiles into its Camp Kengun in the city of Kumamoto, southwestern Japan, in preparation for their deployment, informed sources said Monday. The Defense Ministry has

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Japan swung into 941.6 billion yen in current account surplus in January from a deficit of 344.6 billion yen a year before thanks to strong exports, preliminary data released by the Finance Ministry on Monday showed. The country

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo stocks plummeted Monday morning due to a surge in crude oil prices reflecting rising Middle East tensions, with the key Nikkei 225 average losing more than 4,000 points. At 10:53 a.m., the Nikkei stood at 51,526.70, down

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s inflation-adjusted real wage index rose 1.4 pct in January from a year earlier, the first increase in 13 months, helped by growth in regular pay and slower inflation, government data showed Monday. Monthly nominal wages, including base

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo stocks plummeted Monday morning due to a surge in crude oil prices reflecting growing Middle East tensions, with the key Nikkei 225 average losing more than 3,800 points. At 10:10 a.m., the Nikkei stood at 51,796.77, down

Kobe, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Koji Yamaguchi, a 38-year-old schoolteacher in Kobe, western Japan, has made it his mission to share his experiences of two catastrophes with younger generations. He grew up in Hyogo Prefecture and went on to attend university in Miyagi

(Corrects the dateline. A substitute story follows.) Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–Tokyo stocks plummeted in early trading Monday amid growing Middle East tensions, with the key Nikkei 225 average losing more than 3,600 points. At 9:25 a.m., the Nikkei stood at 51,983.84,

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)–The Tokyo metropolitan government and municipal governments throughout the Japanese capital are increasingly using generative artificial intelligence in their administrative operations. To support this trend, the metropolitan government, in cooperation with GovTech Tokyo, an affiliated organization that promotes

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Japanese companies are increasingly adopting so-called cross-mentoring programs to develop future female corporate leaders, in which potential female executives are mentored by senior officials from other companies and gain insights into career development. Firms that have introduced such

Kanazawa, Ishikawa Pref., March 8 (Jiji Press)–Yukiyoshi Yamano, an independent and a former mayor of the city of Kanazawa, the capital of Ishikawa Prefecture, won the central Japan prefecture’s gubernatorial election for the first time on Sunday, defeating incumbent Hiroshi Hase and

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter, Princess Aiko, watched the Japan-Australia game in the first round of the World Baseball Classic at Tokyo Dome on Sunday. The Emperor and Empress also watched WBC games at the

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–A charter flight from Oman arranged by the Japanese government in response to the deteriorating situation in the Middle East arrived at Narita International Airport in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, on Sunday night, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said

Beijing, March 8 (Jiji Press)–China has protested Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-tai’s latest visit to Japan, informed sources told Jiji Press Sunday. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong telephoned Japanese Ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi on Saturday night to lodge the protest. In

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–“Women’s March Tokyo,” a protest march against sexual violence and discrimination toward women, was held in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward on International Women’s Day on Sunday. Participants paraded around Shibuya Station with placards and banners opposing sex discrimination. Similar

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Some Japanese toy makers are redesigning their products to reflect diversity and reduce gender stereotypes, aiming to broaden the world children see through play as gender roles become less rigid. Toys, often encountered in early childhood and influential

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Sunday that Japan is in no position to intervene in the Taiwan issue, which he reiterated is an internal affair of China. During a press conference held on the sidelines of the

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi issued a message on International Women’s Day on Sunday, emphasizing the need for women’s active participation to foster growth in Japan. Expressing her intention to promote a gender-equal society and address women’s health

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Hiroko Akizuki, a member of the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, called on Japan to create dedicated parliamentary and government bodies to confront its entrenched gender inequality. “Japanese people should face reality,” Akizuki said

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Foreign Ministry said Sunday that 188 Japanese nationals and their family members with foreign nationality were evacuated from Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait due to the deteriorating situation in the Middle East. They traveled by

Tokyo, March 8 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese Air Self-Defense Force transport plane departed for the Maldives on Sunday to support the evacuation of Japanese nationals in the Middle East amid an escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran. The SDF plane

Ishinomaki, Miyagi Pref., March 8 (Jiji Press)–In April, 22-year-old Kirara Takahashi will begin work as an elementary school teacher in Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, honoring a promise she once made with a close friend who died in the massive tsunami 15 years

Tokyo, March 7 (Jiji Press)–Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-tai visited Japan on Saturday to watch the Taiwan-Czech Republic game of the World Baseball Classic held at Tokyo Dome the same day, Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported. This is believed to be the first

Tokyo, March 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s newly developed HTV-X resupply vehicle, which had been docked with the International Space Station, was detached from the station on Saturday, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said the same day. The unit will fly around Earth on

Tokyo, March 7 (Jiji Press)–The U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran have paralyzed maritime shipping between the Middle East and Japan, disrupting both imports to and exports from the Asian country. Ocean Network Express, a container shipping company jointly owned by Japan’s Nippon Yusen

Fukui, March 7 (Jiji Press)–Mio Washizu, deputy governor of Fukui Prefecture, is leading efforts to promote women’s participation in society as the central Japan prefecture seeks to reform itself in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal involving the former governor. Washizu,