Osaka, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Osaka Gas Co. is boosting efforts to produce and procure synthetic methane, or e-methane, regarded as a key to promoting the decarbonization of city gas. The Japanese gas supplier is preparing to procure e-methane from the United States

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Police arrested three people including a member of the city assembly of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on Thursday on suspicion of accepting bribes from a contractor for the construction of a new city government building. A total

Gosen, Niigata Pref., May 7 (Jiji Press)–A 17-year-old male high school student was killed in a microbus crash that happened on the Ban-Etsu Expressway in the city of Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Wednesday. Hiroto Inagaki, from the city of Niigata,

Brussels, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan and the European Union held a ministerial economic dialogue in Brussels on Thursday to discuss enhancing cooperation on economic security and critical minerals. Trade minister Ryosei Akazawa and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Iwao Horii represented Tokyo,

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average posted a record single-day gain to hit an all-time closing high near 63,000 on Thursday, amid hopes for an early end to the U.S.-Iran conflict. The index of 225 selected issues on

Toyota, Aichi Pref., May 7 (Jiji Press)–Toyota Motor Corp. on Thursday unveiled the Lexus TZ, the first electric three-row SUV for the Japanese automaker’s luxury marque, slated for launch in the country in winter 2026. The TZ stretches over 5 meters in

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)-A Bank of Japan policymaker called for “particular attention” to the upside risks of prices at the monetary policy meeting in March, a summary of opinions at the meeting showed Thursday. According to the summary from the meeting

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Justice Ministry has drafted a bill to bar public prosecutors “in principle” from appealing court orders to start retrials, it was learned Thursday. The new draft was presented at a meeting of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government is taking on the challenge of mining critical minerals, including rare earths, from the seabed around Minamitorishima, a Japanese remote island in the Pacific, with an eye to realize domestic rare earth production in the

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average posted a record single-day gain of about 3,300 points to hit an all-time closing high near 63,000 on Thursday, amid hopes for an early end to the U.S.-Iran conflict. The index of

Paris, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Paavo Jarvi, a world-renowned conductor from Estonia set to receive a Japanese government honor, has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in a recent written interview with Jiji Press. Calling the Russian aggression “the destruction of cultural life,” Jarvi

Kyoto, May 7 (Jiji Press)–The arrested father of an 11-year-old boy who went missing in March and was found dead in Kyoto Prefecture in April may have abandoned the boy’s body near a mountain near his home soon after killing the boy,

Washington, May 6 (Jiji Press)–U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent plans to visit Japan from Monday through May 13 for talks with Japanese officials on foreign exchange rates and economic security, people familiar with the matter said Wednesday. He is likely to meet

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s top currency diplomat said Thursday that there is no need to comment on a suspected yen-buying market intervention by Japanese authorities during the Golden Week holiday period in the country through Wednesday. “We continue to closely monitor

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–The risk of hantavirus spreading in Japan through person-to-person transmission is low, even if infected passengers from a cruise ship linked to a recent outbreak enter the country, the health ministry said Wednesday. The ministry called on the

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Over 60 pct of people in Japan plan to do something for their mother or mother-in-law for Mother’s Day on Sunday, a survey by Tokyo-based research company Intage Inc. has shown. The survey, conducted online in late March,

Paris, May 6 (Jiji Press)–Trade ministers from the Group of Seven major industrialized countries indicated their readiness to take actions against economic coercion, in a joint communique adopted at their meeting in Paris on Wednesday. “We express our grave concerns regarding economic

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average soared past the 62,000 threshold for the first time ever on an intraday basis on Thursday morning, amid hopes for an early end to the U.S.-Iran conflict. The index of 225 selected

Tokyo, May 7 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average soared more than 2,500 points to exceed the 62,000 line for the first time ever in morning trading on Thursday. Tokyo stocks tracked gains in U.S. equities driven by hopes for a

(Adnkronos) – Ahead of a possible peace deal between the United States and Iran, Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani on Wednesday suggested boosting international coordination to safeguard the flow of oil, gas and fertilisers through the Strait of Hormuz chokepoint, the foreign

(Adnkronos) – Alessandra Schiavo has begun her role as Italy’s envoy to Algeria, and her numerous previous postings include ambassador to Myanmar, according to a foreign ministry statement on Wednesday.  During a diplomatic career that has spanned over three decades, Schiavo has

Tokyo, May 6 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s Honda Motor Co. is considering an indefinite freeze on the planned construction of an electric vehicle production plant in Canada, apparently in response to a slowdown in EV demand in the United States, informed sources said Wednesday.

(Adnkronos) – Aligment on foreign policy is a focus of talks in Rome on Wednesday between premier Giorgia Meloni and her two deputies, foreign minister Antonio Tajani and transport minister Matteo Salvini.   The talks come ahead of a key meeting in

Singapore, May 6 (Jiji Press)–The dollar tumbled below 155.50 yen to hit a two-month low against the Japanese currency in Asian trading Wednesday after moving above 157.50 yen, triggering speculation about an additional intervention by Japan. “It is highly likely that the

(Adnkronos) – Italy has underlined its unwavering support for the stability and unity of Libya – which currently has rival administrations in Tripoli and in the eastern city of Benghazi – after envoy Gianluca Alberini took part in a security working group

Kyoto, May 6 (Jiji Press)–Police on Wednesday served a fresh arrest warrant on a 37-year-old man for allegedly murdering his 11-year-old son, whose body was found in a forest area in Nantan in Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, in April. The father, who

(Adnkronos) – Italy’s foreign minister Antonio Tajani, will hold a bilateral meeting with United States secretary of state Marco Rubio at the foreign ministry in Rome on Friday, the foreign ministry said in statement.  Accredited press will be able to film the

(Adnkronos) – According to two US officials and two other sources informed on the matter, the White House believes it is close to an agreement with Iran on a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and establish a framework for

(Adnkronos) – Donald Trump gets his revenge in Indiana, where in the primaries at least five of the seven state senators who had dared last December to vote against the new electoral map loudly requested by the president lost their seats. Only

(Adnkronos) – At least eight people have died and 40 were injured in a fire at a shopping center in Andisheh, about thirty kilometers from Tehran. This was reported by Iranian state television, specifying that the shopping center houses about 250 commercial