Tokyo, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s current account surplus fell 4.8 pct from a year before to 3,775.8 billion yen in August, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday. The current account balance, the broadest indicator of a country’s international trade and investment flows, marked

Washington, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–A U.S. Defense Department nominee reiterated his call for Japan to significantly expand its defense budget in his confirmation testimony to the Senate Committee on Armed Services on Tuesday. John Noh, nominated by President Donald Trump to be

Tokyo, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has shown his intention to release a statement marking 80 years since the end of World War II around Friday, according to Taku Yamasaki, former vice president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

Tokyo, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Nissan Motor Co. said Wednesday that it will start accepting orders for the third-generation Leaf electric vehicle in Japan on Oct. 17. The new model can travel 702 kilometers on a single battery charge, about 50 pct more

Tokyo, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Nissan Motor Co. said Wednesday that it will start accepting orders for the third-generation Leaf electric vehicle in Japan on Oct. 17. The new model can travel 702 kilometers on a single battery charge, about 50 pct more

Tokyo, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s inflation-adjusted real wage index fell 1.4 pct year-on-year in August, down for the eighth straight month amid continuous inflation outpacing wage growth, a labor ministry report showed Tuesday. According to the preliminary report covering businesses with five

New York, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The dollar briefly climbed above 152 yen in New York trading Tuesday, its highest level in about eight months, as yen selling accelerated amid concerns that Japan’s fiscal situation may deteriorate. The yen also weakened against the

Nagoya, Oct. 8 (Jiji Press)–Faced with a long slump in their mainline petrochemical operations, major Japanese chemical makers are working with other companies over businesses related to semiconductor materials. While chemical makers are in the middle of a structural shift with hopes

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–East Japan Railway Co., or JR East, said Tuesday that it will introduce a successor to its East-i inspection train for Shinkansen bullet train lines in fiscal 2029. The next-generation model’s design will be finalized around next summer

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Sanae Takaichi, the new leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, is considering skipping a visit to war-related Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo during its autumn festival Oct. 17-19, informed sources said Tuesday. Takaichi has visited the Shinto shrine

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The Japan Football Association at a press conference Tuesday announced the termination of its contract with Masanaga Kageyama, technical director at the association, over child pornography. The decision was made at the day’s board meeting. According to the

(Adnkronos) – Greta Thunberg responds in kind to Donald Trump. “I heard that Donald Trump has once again expressed his flattering opinions on my character and I appreciate his concerns for my mental health,” she begins in the Instagram post. Then the

(Adnkronos) – Sébastien Lecornu initiated consultations this morning with French political parties, the last ones, “for the stability of the country,” as requested by President Emmanuel Macron. The acting and resigning prime minister himself announced this. “I proposed focusing on two priorities,”

(Adnkronos) – The Spanish government has approved the royal decree that provides for the use of therapeutic cannabis, but only in hospitals and if prescribed by specialists. The text drafted by the Ministry of Health in Madrid does not specify the pathologies

(Adnkronos) – The newly elected mayor of Herdecke, in the German region of North Rhine-Westphalia, was found at home with very serious stab wounds. Sources from local security forces reported this to Dpa. Iris Stalzer, a Social Democrat, won the runoff election

New York, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The yen weakened past 151 per dollar for the first time in about six months in New York trading on Tuesday, amid concerns that Japan’s fiscal deficit could expand if Sanae Takaichi, the new leader of the

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Sanae Takaichi, the new leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and Tetsuo Saito, chief of its Komeito ally, failed to reach an agreement Tuesday on maintaining the two parties’ coalition and decided to continue discussions on the

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s National Police Agency on Tuesday held the first meeting of an expert panel on measures against illegal drone flights, in light of the growing threat of drones being used for terrorism and other purposes. The panel plans

Osaka, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The 2025 World Exposition in the western Japan city of Osaka, slated to close next Monday, is expected to generate a profit of up to 28 billion yen, the organizer said Tuesday. The profit expectation was reported at

(Adnkronos) – Avs MEP Ilaria Salis retains immunity by one vote. The secret ballot vote concludes in Strasbourg with 306 votes in favor of the Kyuchyuk report, which recommends maintaining immunity. There were 305 against, 17 abstentions, out of 628 voters. The

(Adnkronos) – Pro-Palestinian slogans written with spray paint appeared on the regional parliament building in Kiel, in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein overnight. A police spokesperson told Dpa that about 15 slogans, including ‘From the river to the sea’, ‘Free Gaza’

(Adnkronos) – Ukrainian special forces recently struck a unit of the Russian Baltic Sea Fleet, the Grad, a new type of corvette armed with Buyan M missiles, while it was a thousand kilometers from the front line, on Lake Onega. The ship

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–A train collision on Tokyu Railways Co.’s Denentoshi Line in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, late Sunday was caused by a signal setting error, the railway operator said Tuesday. Due to the setting error, the automatic train

Rokkasho, Aomori Pref., Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. received natural uranium at its enrichment plant in the village of Rokkasho, Aomori Prefecture, northeastern Japan, for the first time in 11 years on Tuesday. The company resumed accepting natural uranium to

Tsu, Mie Pref., Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The Mie prefectural government plans to create what it says will be Japan’s first ordinance with a penalty aimed at deterring customers from behaving abusively to workers. The ordinance would define customer abuse as excessive nuisances

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Sanae Takaichi, new leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, and Tetsuo Saito, chief of its Komeito ally, failed to reach an agreement Tuesday on maintaining the two parties’ coalition and decided to continue discussions on the matter.

Sydney, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Australian resources minister Madeleine King has called for further Japanese investment in supply chains for critical minerals. At a Japan-Australia economic conference in Perth on Monday, King mentioned the increasing number of cases in which critical minerals and

Suita, Osaka Pref., Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Shimon Sakaguchi, 74, who has won this year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, shared joy with his wife in a press conference at the University of Osaka in western Japan on Tuesday. “I’m really glad

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s composite index of coincident economic indicators fell 0.7 point in August from the previous month, down for two months in a row, the Cabinet Office said in a preliminary report Tuesday. The coincident index, which reflects current

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese and U.S. governments are preparing to hold a summit between their leaders on Oct. 28, during President Donald Trump’s anticipated visit to Japan late this month, diplomatic sources said Tuesday. If Sanae Takaichi, who was elected