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August 11, 2026
 

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Kazuaki Nagata

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Kazuaki Nagata
A room at the Koko Hotel Residence Tokyo Oshiage, which opened last month in Tokyo¡¯s Sumida Ward
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 10, 2026
Apartment hotels find favor with investors bullish on tourism and wary of inflation
The properties are built for long-stay travelers who want more than a hotel but not an apartment.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he expects policy follow-up after the coordinated intervention to support the yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 7, 2026
U.S. support for yen increases expectations for September rate rise in Japan
Before the coordinated intervention, most analysts were looking to December for the next move higher.
Apple raised the price of iPhone models in Japan by between ?8,000 to ?25,000 on July 18, with even the lowest-priced model, the iPhone 17e, now costing over ?100,000.
BUSINESS
Aug 6, 2026
Weak yen and industry shifts drive greater demand for used smartphone handsets
Â鶹´«Ã½ secondhand smartphone market has expanded for seven consecutive years, hitting record highs of 3.6 million units and a 10% market share in fiscal 2025.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama speaks to members of the media in Tokyo on Monday about a joint intervention into currency markets that Japan conducted with the U.S.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 3, 2026
Japan and U.S. confirm joint yen intervention
Both Tokyo and Washington say they stand ready to intervene again to counter the yen¡¯s excessive weakness against the dollar.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda (center) attends a monetary policy meeting with members of the policy board at the central bank's headquarters in Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 31, 2026
Japan likely intervened to prop up yen, with possible help from U.S.
Analysts believe Japanese financial authorities moved to lift the yen on Thursday night after it suddenly spiked against the dollar.
The exchange rate of the yen against various currencies outside a securities firm in Tokyo last week. Although the Japanese government appears to have finally stepped in, analysts expect the effects of the intervention to be short-lived.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 31, 2026
Yen strengthens on possible intervention
Officials have been warning that efforts might be made to prop up the currency if it weakened too much or too fast.
A damaged bridge is seen in the city of Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture, on Wednesday after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the region a day earlier.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 29, 2026
Kumamoto Prefecture gripped by massive economic fallout after earthquake
A mall and a Nippon Paper Industries¡¯ plant have collapsed, causing fatalities, as factories shut down and communications and transportation remain disrupted in the region.
The Bank of Japan building in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 28, 2026
Market to look out for hints of next rate hike from BOJ
The central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates steady at its policy meeting this week, having just made a move in June.
A display shows currency rates in Tokyo's Shinjuku district on Friday. The yen hit a fresh four-decade low against the dollar on Thursday night.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 24, 2026
Despite weakening yen, intervention may have to wait for right timing, analysts say
Â鶹´«Ã½ government is probably seeking effective timing ¡ª a moment when yen-buying pressure increases ¡ª to amplify its effect, some say.
The government could prop up the yen at any moment, though its signaling is hard to read.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 22, 2026
Intervention is the word after yen moves beyond ?163 and sits there
Â鶹´«Ã½ currency is at its weakest point against the dollar in four decades and is down one-third over five years.
The Cabinet of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi approved the government's annual economic and fiscal policy blueprint on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 21, 2026
Cabinet approves Japan economic blueprint with BOJ independence stressed
A line in a draft of the blueprint that had suggested a weakening of central bank autonomy has been rewritten in the final version.
The administration has walked back a line in a draft document that suggested efforts might be made to influence monetary policy.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 13, 2026
Rush to reassure on BOJ independence after bonds and yen signal concern
A line from a draft policy document caused a shock and led to a quick edit and series of clarifying statements.
Some analysts have said that the Bank of Japan is not raising rates fast enough.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 9, 2026
Yields hit three-decade highs as BOJ behind-the-curve narrative debated
Some analysts argue that the central bank is not being overtaken by the market even as the 10-year yield crosses 2.9%.
Toru Miyanaga, Suntory chief strategy officer, notes that the demand for self-care products will likely grow.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 7, 2026
Suntory sees opportunity in the OTC medicine business
The drinks maker is acquiring Daiichi Sankyo Healthcare and already has a health foods subsidiary.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama has issued verbal warnings recently using the same language and the same tone, saying authorities ¡°will take appropriate action at any time, as necessary.¡±
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 6, 2026
Japan might be giving the currency market the silent treatment
Officials are saying less than they did before to defend the yen, and when they do speak, they opt for vague and relatively weak statements.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi might take a more pragmatic approach in pushing up the lowest wages in Japan.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 2, 2026
Government signals flexibility on ?1,500 minimum wage target
Its annual policy guidelines indicate the much-discussed goal could be reached early next decade rather than by the end of this decade.
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 1, 2026
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
The demographic challenges faced by the country could create demand for products that help older people and support treatment.
Japan's currency broke ?162 to the dollar on Tuesday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 30, 2026
Yen hits 40-year low against the dollar, breaking ?162 level
The market remains skeptical about the effectiveness of government efforts to prop up the yen, and pressure on the currency has been steady.
The yen has been trading well within intervention territory for about a week.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 26, 2026
Yen¡¯s decline makes perfect sense to some analysts
They have started to wonder whether there is really much at all holding the currency up.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama attends a budget committee session in April.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 23, 2026
Katayama-Bessent call pulls yen back as it approaches four-decade low
The currency strengthened so fast that some traders suspected that intervention was underway.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.
Speaking Japanese at the movies with ¡®Chiikawa¡¯
A "Chiikawa The Movie" poster is seen at Toho Cinemas in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo.
How Â鶹´«Ã½ racehorses find second careers away from the track
TCC Therapy Park is supported financially by racing organizations as well as donations from members of the public.
Will Takaichi¡¯s consumption tax cut break the LDP?
Despite months of debate, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi failed to gain consensus within the Liberal Democratic Party on a two-year reduction of the consumption tax.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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