Â鶹´«Ã½

author

 
Â鶹´«Ã½
Search
 
August 11, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Alice French
Seven & I Holdings fell as much as 2.3% on Monday after it ended talks over a potential investment in Poland's convenience store operator Zabka Group.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 27, 2026
Seven & i Shares drop after ending deal talks with Poland¡¯s Zabka
Europe is still seen as an attractive growth opportunity for the 7-Eleven owner, which will keep evaluating options in the region.
Young shoppers are becoming increasingly visible in Tokyo¡¯s upmarket shopping districts such as Omotesando.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 16, 2026
Young Japanese who rode AI boom flaunt wealth with luxury buys
The shopping spree also reveals a deepening societal divide, exposing the increasingly uneven nature of Â鶹´«Ã½ economic revival.
Apps like Miraima allow users to wager on real-world events and win points that can be converted into monetary rewards such as gift cards.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2026
Prediction markets emerge in Japan, with shopping vouchers
New homegrown startups are finding ways to skirt regulations.
Japan is home to 27 registered crypto exchange providers, including BitFlyer.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
Japan moves to regulate crypto like stocks in market growth push
The bill would classify crypto assets as financial instruments, making them subject to lower taxes and stricter trading rules and opening the door to new products like ETFs.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, the United States, on June 8.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½ retail investor army flocks to SpaceX after IPO drought
SpaceX¡¯s blockbuster IPO is drawing intense retail demand in Japan, where cash-rich households see a rare shot at a marquee global listing tied to Elon Musk and the space boom.
Fujikura¡¯s roller-coaster week reveals how quickly the tides can turn for artificial intelligence stock winners as investors realize hopes for explosive growth may have run far ahead of manufacturers¡¯ ability to deliver.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 26, 2026
Japan cable maker rout exposes cracks in AI infrastructure rally
Fujikura almost halved in value in the week through May 20 as investors rushed to dump its stock following a disappointing earnings forecast and lackluster medium-term plan.
Polymarket, the global prediction market platform based in New York, sees Japan as a large untapped business opportunity.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 22, 2026
Polymarket is said to seek Japan market approval in global push
Polymarket enables users to bet on the outcomes of real-world events, such as elections, using cryptocurrencies.
Nintendo shares climbed as much as 6.8% in Tokyo Tuesday to mark a third straight day of gains ¡ª their longest winning streak since mid-March.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2026
Nintendo shares rebound as AI fatigue fuels Japan stock rotation
Nintendo shares climbed as much as 6.8% in Tokyo to mark a third straight day of gains ¡ª their longest winning streak since mid-March.
Makino's machine tools are widely used in defense applications and a planned takeover by a South Korean fund could undermine Japan's national security, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama says.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 23, 2026
Japan moves to block South Korean buyout deal with rare use of security law
Makino¡¯s machine tools are widely used in defense applications and the takeover could undermine national security, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said in parliament.
The Toto Museum in Kitakyushu. Toto has suspended new orders for its prefabricated bathrooms due to a shortage of materials.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 13, 2026
Toto halts bathroom orders after Iran war upends supply chain
The firm joins a growing list of Japanese manufacturers who have cut production or hiked prices due to tightening supplies of naphtha.
The Ajinomoto headquarters building in Tokyo. Activist fund Palliser Capital has built a stake in Ajinomoto and is urging the firm to raise prices for its chip-insulation products.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2026
Activist fund Palliser presses Ajinomoto to raise prices for chip material
The U.K.-based fund is calling for a more than 30% increase in prices for Ajinomoto Build-Up Film, used to package high-performance semiconductors.
An electronic quotation board in Tokyo shows the Nikkei Stock Average dropping more than 2,500 points on Monday morning.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 23, 2026
Stocks slide in Japan as Strait of Hormuz fears amplify risk-off mood
The Topix index fell 3.4% to 3486.44, marking a slump of over 10% from its record high reached on Feb. 27. The Nikkei 225 fell 3.5% to 51,515.49.
A gasoline tanker truck at an Idemitsu Kosan gas station in Tokyo on Monday. Curbs on production of petrochemical products by multiple Japanese firms point to a brewing crisis that could stunt pressure sectors from food to technology.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 17, 2026
Limited supplies of naphtha an underrecognized supply chain risk in Japan
Curbs on production by multiple Japanese petrochemical firms point to a brewing crisis that could stunt pressure sectors from food to technology.
Activist fund Palliser Capital has taken a stake in Japanese washlet maker Toto, and is urging the company to boost promotion of its little-known chip parts business.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 17, 2026
Activist Palliser takes stake in toilet maker Toto in AI play
Toto¡¯s advanced ceramics segment produces electrostatic chucks used in the manufacturing of NAND memory chips.
Fuji Media announced it plans to repurchase up to ?235 billion of its own shares.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 4, 2026
Fuji Media shares drop as buyback plan heralds activist exit
Under the plan, Fuji Media will repurchase up to ?235 billion of its own shares.
A monitor showing the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, which hit a record closing high, in Tokyo's Chuo Ward on Tuesday
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 3, 2026
Nikkei reaches new high as earnings help fuel rebound
The Nikkei rebounded from Monday¡¯s drop to rise 3.9%, closing at a record 54,720.66, with tech-related firms like TDK and Kyocera among the top gainers.
If Elliott Investment Management succeeds in blocking Toyota's take-private deal, it would mark one of the biggest wins for shareholder activism in Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 29, 2026
Elliott seen having a shot at foiling controversial Toyota deal
Should Elliott prevail, it would go down as one of the biggest victories for shareholder activism in Japan.
Toto shares surged as much as 11% Thursday, its steepest rise since February 2021.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 22, 2026
Toilet maker Toto¡¯s shares get unlikely boost from AI rush
Known for its heated toilet seats, Toto?has for decades been part of the semiconductor and display supply chain via its advanced ceramic parts and films.
Japanese memory chipmaker Kioxia Holdings counts Apple and Microsoft among its clients and is now worth about $36 billion.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 30, 2025
AI memory demand propels Kioxia to world¡¯s best-performing stock
Kioxia¡¯s shares have risen around 540% year-to-date, outperforming all other members of the MSCI World Index and making it the top stock in Â鶹´«Ã½ Topix benchmark for 2025.
Bear bells are displayed for sale at a souvenir shop at Shirakawa-go, a popular tourist spot and one of Japan's UNESCO World Heritage sites, in the village of Shirakawa, Gifu Prefecture, on Nov. 15.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 6, 2025
Â鶹´«Ã½ bear-related casualties hit record on escalating attacks
A record 230 were killed or injured by bears in Japan since April, putting more pressure on the government to intervene.
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

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER