TOKYO — Japan’s coronavirus response and economic activities as a whole have suffered because only a small fraction of government applications and forms have been migrated online, despite a decades-old push to turn the country into a digital pioneer. There are more than 55,000 administrative procedures Japan’s national government is […]
Japans
Japan’s tax revenue to slip below $560bn in fiscal 2019
TOKYO — Japan’s national tax revenue in the fiscal year ended March is expected to fall below 60 trillion yen ($560 billion) for the first time in two years as a result of the economic slowdown brought on by the novel coronavirus outbreak, Nikkei learned Wednesday. The latest cut in […]
Aegis Ashore suspension stretches Japan’s defenses dangerously thin
TOKYO — Japan’s decision to halt the deployment of the U.S.-made Aegis Ashore missile defense system will weaken the nation’s ability to counter the North Korean threat and could also strain the security partnership with Washington, its most important ally. The move upends Japan’s plan to add another layer to […]
Japan’s all-male boards face rejection by foreign investors
TOKYO — Starting this year, U.K.-based investment management firm Legal & General Investment Management will vote against all TOPIX 100 companies in Japan which do not have at least one woman representative on their board. Goldman Sachs Asset Management, meanwhile, will oppose candidates for a company’s nominating committee or top executives if its […]
Japan’s MUFG Bank obtains bond settlement agent license in China
TOKYO — Japan’s MUFG Bank has received a license from the People’s Bank of China to act as a settlement agent in the country’s interbank bond market, Nikkei has learned. Overseas investors are in principle required to use transaction agents to directly trade in the bond market in mainland China. […]
How burgers taught a vendor to sell to Japan’s budget fashionistas
TOKYO — The man overseeing 2nd Street, a Japanese vendor of trendy used apparel, learned the secret to success from 60-cent hamburgers. “Demand for secondhand goods grows in a slump,” said Yuzo Endo, CEO of parent company Geo Holdings. The apparel company specializes in reselling name-brand clothing at steep discounts. What […]
Uncovering Japan’s coronavirus X-factor matters to the world
KYOTO — Over the last six months in the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic, one recurring question that many outside Japan has been asking is how the country has managed to avoid a major outbreak. Japan is a country of crowded cities. Geographically, it is close to China, the epicenter […]
Japan’s NHK apologizes for offensive cartoon on US protests
TOKYO (Kyodo) — Japan’s public broadcaster NHK apologized Tuesday for a short animation it used on a weekly news program on the background to the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests in the U.S. following accusations it presented racist stereotypes. The clip, lasting 1 minute and 20 seconds, also made no reference […]
Block bargain hunters from acquiring Japan’s companies: top party
TOKYO — Japan’s ruling party will urge the government to limit foreign acquisitions of small and midsize businesses critical to national security, especially with many now hit financially by the coronavirus. A group of Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers led by former Economic Revitalization Minister Akira Amari will meet Tuesday to […]
Japan’s GDP contracted 2.2% in 1st quarter, revised data shows
TOKYO — Japan’s economy shrank 2.2% at an annualized pace in January-March, the government announced on Monday, a milder decline than the preliminary estimate of a 3.4% contraction. Capital expenditure grew 1.9% at a quarterly pace, a significant upward revision from the preliminary estimate of a 0.5% drop. Investment based […]