Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–Three major Japanese department store operators have posted year-on-year growth in same-store sales for September. According to their reports released Wednesday, sales rose 7.9 pct at Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores Co., 4.4 pct at Takashimaya Co. and 3.5

Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–On-the-ground reporting is increasingly important amid heightened global uncertainties, Michael Mainville, Asia-Pacific regional director at Agence France-Presse, or AFP, said Wednesday. There is significance “of knowing that there are people who can see with their own eyes and

Piedmont, South Carolina, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Isuzu Motors Ltd. on Wednesday held a groundbreaking ceremony for a vehicle plant in South Carolina, which will become the Japanese commercial vehicle maker’s first independent factory in the United States. The new plant is expected

New York, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–U.S. new vehicle sales by six Japanese automakers rose 4 pct in the first nine months of this year from a year earlier to 4,551,879 units, led by hybrid models from Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor

By Nobutoshi Kobayashi Commentary Writer Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–Some children miss out on formative extracurricular experiences, such as sports, music lessons and travel, because access to these activities often depends on family finances, as do educational opportunities. Emphasizing the importance of

Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–Japanese food and beverage giant Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. has said that it decided to put off the launch of new products because of a cyberattack. Subject to the postponement are six items made by subsidiary Asahi Soft

Kagoshima, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–A Chinese survey ship was spotted once again within Japan’s exclusive economic zone off Amami Oshima, an island in the southwestern prefecture of Kagoshima, according to the Japan Coast Guard. The JCG’s 10th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, based

Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–Four Japanese companies have announced a partnership to develop a mass cultivation technology for stem cells to promote the practical use of regenerative medicine using 3D printers. Kuraray Co., Cyfuse Biomedical K.K., Chiyoda Corp. and Zacros Corp. will

Tokyo, Oct. 2 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA), which on Wednesday marked 10 years since its founding, is playing a greater role as the control tower for unified management of defense equipment research and development and exports amid the

(Adnkronos) – A makeshift scaffolding installed at a church in Ethiopia has collapsed, killing at least 36 people and injuring more than 200. State media reported this. The district police chief, Ahmed Gebeyehu, told Fana newspaper that “the death toll has reached

(Adnkronos) – In Iran, a law has been approved that provides for harsher sentences for those found guilty of espionage and collaboration with Israel or the United States. According to local media, the law was presented to Parliament on June 23 –

(Adnkronos) – An internal family dispute, concerning an inheritance matter, is believed to be at the center of what happened today in Munich, where a man allegedly set fire to his parents’ house in the northern part of the city, shot his

(Adnkronos) – Tomahawk missiles for a Japanese warship. The ship, CNN reports, has set sail for the US to be equipped with cruise missiles capable of hitting a target approximately 1,600 kilometers away, in what appears to be the latest move by

(Adnkronos) – A fire broke out at an oil refinery in the Russian city of Yaroslavl, about 300 kilometers northeast of Moscow. The regional governor ruled out the flames being the result of a drone attack. “No drone attack was detected today,”

(Adnkronos) – The unmanned aerial vehicles sighted repeatedly in Germany at the end of last week reportedly deliberately flew over important critical infrastructure to monitor it. German authorities are investigating this, according to what Der Spiegel reveals today. Among the targets were

(Adnkronos) – Fewer adhesions are expected compared to previous ‘block’ days, for the second day of mobilization in France in response to the inter-union appeal against austerity measures and for greater fiscal justice. Including the day of action under the slogan “Let’s

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–The finance ministers of the Group of Seven major democracies held an online meeting Wednesday to discuss further sanctions targeting Russian oil exports. “We discussed measures to reduce Russia’s revenues,” Japan’s Katsunobu Kato told reporters after the meeting.

(Adnkronos) – US president Donald Trump’s peace plan to end Israel’s two-year-old war on Hamas in Gaza, and an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to the devastated Palestinian enclave was the focus of “long” phone talks Wednesday between foreign minister Antonio

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) plans to submit an anti-espionage bill to an upcoming extraordinary session of the Diet, it was learned Wednesday. The bill will call for establishing a foreign intelligence agency based on existing

Kikuchi, Kumamoto Pref., Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Mitsubishi Electric Corp. on Wednesday held a ceremony marking the completion of a new facility for producing power semiconductors at a plant in the city of Kikuchi, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan. The new facility will start

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese government panel on Wednesday reviewed countermeasures for inflation that were included in the government’s fiscal 2024 supplementary budget and fiscal 2025 budget. Referring to progress on measures that were compiled under his administration, Prime Minister Shigeru

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–All Nippon Airways plans to raise its retirement age for employees to 65, effective from April 2027, it was learned Wednesday. The major Japanese airline has proposed the change to its labor union. The new retirement age will

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese government panel on Wednesday reviewed countermeasures for inflation that were included in the government’s fiscal 2024 supplementary budget and fiscal 2025 budget. Referring to progress on measures that were compiled under his administration, Prime Minister Shigeru

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s foreign office and its diplomats in Munich are “monitoring the situation” on Wednesday after the Oktoberfest fairgrounds were closed following a threat from the suspected perpetrator of an explosion at a property in which at least one person died. 

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Prolonged inflation in Japan is having a serious impact on many animal shelters, prompting them to seek support from online fans amid declining donations including food and higher costs for essential goods and medical care. Some groups have

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Japanese agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi remains the frontrunner in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s leadership race, followed by former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, a Jiji Press survey showed Wednesday. Koizumi is

(Adnkronos) – On the second day of an official visit to Azerbaijan, president Sergio Mattarella on Wednesday praised his countrymen’s “magnificent” relationship with Azeris, embodied by the local Italian community.  “Naturally, Italy is formally represented by its ambassador and by Italy’s institutions,”

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–New automobile sales in Japan in April-September rose 0.5 pct from a year before to 2,180,054 units, marking the first increase for the six-month period in two years, industry data showed Wednesday. The growth reflected a pickup in

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Major household appliance retailer Nojima Corp. has been floated as a potential buyer in Nissan Motor Co.’s possible sale of the Yokohama F. Marinos professional soccer club, it was learned Wednesday. Hiroshi Nojima, president of the retailer headquartered

Tokyo, Oct. 1 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi, a candidate in the Liberal Democratic Party’s upcoming leadership election, has said that expanding the ruling coalition, currently made up of the LDP and Komeito, is the “best option.” Koizumi and four other