Page 22 - Japan

Bankruptcies, suicide rise as Japanese struggle with mounting debt

While Japan is by no means alone in confronting a debt problem, salaries are the lowest of Group-of-Seven countries, and the central bank is raising borrowing costs while its peers cut them

Newspaper boss Watanabe who influenced Japan's postwar politics dies at 98

Tsuneo Watanabe, the powerful head of Japan's largest newspaper who had close ties with the country's powerful conservative leaders, has died, his company said Thursday. He was 98. Watanabe, the editor-in-chief of the Yomiuri Shimbun for over 30 years, died of pneumonia at a Tokyo hospital on Thursday, the Yomiuri said. Watanabe joined the newspaper in 1950 and covered politics throughout his career, attending editorial meetings until last month. He was still checking copy in his hospital room days before his death, the newspaper said. Watanabe cultivated close ties with conservative leaders who governed the country across decades, like Yasuhiro Nakasone and Shinzo Abe, and to helped form Japan's conservative public opinion. Abe was also known as a loyal reader and once told reporters all his opinions could be found in the Yomiuri when he was asked a question about a proposed constitutional revision. Watanabe stirred controversy in 1994 when the Yomiuri published a draft revision t

Honda-Nissan merger negotiations likely to begin next week, says Nikkei

Representatives for Honda and Nissan in the US didn't immediately reply to a request for comment on the start-date for talks

Bain goes hostile as Fuji Soft battle with KKR intensifies: Report

The estimated $2 billion bid for just under half of the Japanese IT firm's shares likely portends a rare hostile tussle between the two global private equity giants

Japan's auto giants Honda, Nissan Motor to soon begin merger talks

The two companies are looking to operate under a single holding company and are expected to soon sign a memorandum of understanding for the new merged entity

Daikin partners with Taiwan's Rechi Precision for compressor JV in India

Daikin Industries, Osaka, a Japan-based global manufacturer of air conditioning and refrigeration systems, will set up a joint venture with Taiwan's Rechi Precision to manufacture compressors in India at Sri City, Andhra Pradesh. Daikin through its local subsidiary, Daikin Airconditioning India and Rechi Precision, announced setting up a JV to "manufacture, design and sale rotary compressors for inverter & non-inverter ACs in India and some overseas markets, according to a joint statement. Though the company has not announced the investment, it said Daikin will be the majority partner in the JV. According to industry insiders, around Rs 1,000 crore will be invested in the JV in the next 5-6 years. "The joint venture is expected to become operational by the 4th quarter of FY24-25. The manufacturing facility shall be established at Sri City, Andhra Pradesh," it said. Established in 1989 in Taiwan, Rechi Precision is a global leader in the manufacturing of rotary compressors, motors

Japan, India startups to study laser satellites to combat space debris

Tokyo-based Orbital Lasers and Indian robotics company InspeCity said they would study business opportunities for in-space services

US foreign investment panel split on Nippon-US Steel deal, say reports

CFIUS, a powerful committee charged with reviewing foreign investments in US firms for national security risks, has until Dec. 22 to make a decision on whether to approve, block or extend the timeline

Asian shares fall, long-dated Treasuries prepare for worst week in a year

It has been a week of rate cuts from Switzerland, Canada and the European Central Bank, which had rate differentials working in the favour of the US dollar

In Tokyo, government employees to work only 4 days a week: Here's why

The Tokyo Metropolitan government said that under this plan, government employees will have the option to take three days off per week

SBI adds to record samurai loan boom with $197 million debt facility

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. is the lead bank of the deal, which will be raised in the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City

Battle for Seven & i shows Japan Inc's resilience amid management buyout

Seven & i Holdings Vice President Junro Ito swooped in last month with an offer to take private the company founded by his late father

US defence chief Lloyd Austin observes joint drills with Japan, Australia

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin expressed confidence about enhanced military capabilities among the United States, Australia and Japan as he observed joint exercises Wednesday showcasing their closer cooperation as tensions grow in the region. Austin is in Japan to reaffirm the importance of their alliance and Washington's commitment to regional security. Austin noted as he observed the trilateral Yama Sakura 87 exercises held at the Japanese army's Camp Asaka on the outskirts of Tokyo that the necessary equipment, munitions and people are in place and these are the things that will guarantee success if we ever get challenged on the battlefield. Japan, under a security strategy introduced in 2022, is pursuing a rapid military buildup to increase its deterrence against growing threats from China, North Korea and Russia, and has bolstered defense cooperation, especially with the United States and Australia. On Tuesday, during talks with Japanese officials, Austin praised the ...

China deploys 90 naval vessels from Japan's Southern Islands to S China Sea

China is also forming two walls in the western Pacific, deploying large numbers of vessels to the eastern end of Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone

Nippon Life in talks to buy US' Resolution Life in deal worth $8.2 bn

Nippon Life will purchase the shares it does not already own in Resolution Life from Blackstone and others to make it a wholly owned subsidiary in the second half of 2025

Japan's megabanks flushed with cash; look at India, US for fresh deals

All of the companies have more cash on their balance sheets than their target common equity tier 1 ratios and have plans to reduce their strategic holdings over the next several years

US def secy in Japan to discuss safety of Osprey aircraft, security ties

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin is in Japan on Tuesday to meet with Japanese officials and reaffirm the importance of their alliance and the US commitment to regional security as threats rise from China and North Korea. Austin's visit also comes amid growing concerns over the safety of Osprey military aircraft, which have been grounded in the United States following a near-crash at Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico last month. The incident, caused by weakened metal components, was similar to a fatal crash off southwestern Japan last year. The US measure has not affected Ospreys operated by Japan's Ground Self-Defence Force. Japanese officials are discussing the issue with the US military and will respond appropriately," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters Tuesday. Austin is scheduled to hold separate talks with his Japanese counterpart Gen Nakatani and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba later Tuesday, according to Japanese officials. Nakatani told reporters t

Japanese AI-powered human washing machine: Wash, dry your body in 15 mins

The "Mirai Ningen Sentakuki," a "human washing machine of the future" made by Japanese engineers, analyzes your body uses artificial intelligence before applying a customized "wash-and-dry" procedure

Nobel for atomic bombing survivors shows need for peace: Japan's Empress

Japanese Empress Masako said the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, an organisation of survivors of the US atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, was a key event of this year that impressed and reminded her of the importance of global peace efforts. Masako, the wife of Emperor Naruhito, said she thought of the pain and suffering of the survivors and struggles of those who have long led the nuclear disarmament effort. She felt anew the importance for the people of the world to strive for mutual understanding and work together in order to build a peaceful world, Masako said in a statement released by the Imperial Household Agency for her 61st birthday Monday. Her comment comes one day before a group of 30 atomic bombing survivors will attend Tuesday's Nobel prize award ceremony in Oslo. Hidankyo was awarded for its decadeslong activism against nuclear weapons. The 30 survivors, known as hibakusha, see the prize and the international attention as a last chance to get the

Paytm arm to sell stock acquisition rights in Japan's PayPay for Rs 2.3K cr

Fintech firm and owner of Paytm brand One97 Communications' Singapore-based arm has approved the sale of its Stock Acquisition Rights in Japan's PayPay to Softbank Vision Fund 2 for Rs 2,364 crore, the company said in a regulatory filing on Saturday. Paytm and Paytm Singapore had signed an agreement with the Japanese digital wallet firm, Softbank Corp, Softbank Group Corp and Yahoo Japan Corporation to provide technology services to PayPay. In lieu of the services, Paytm Singapore had acquired Stock Acquisition Rights, convertible into 1,59,012 shares or a 7.2 per cent stake in PayPay on a fully diluted basis. "One97 Communications Singapore Private Limited has informed the company on December 06, 2024, at 12:49 pm (IST), that its Board of Directors at its meeting held on December 06, 2024, has approved the sale of all its Stock Acquisition Rights in PayPay Corporation, Japan, to SoftBank Vision Fund 2 entity for net proceeds of JPY 41.9 billion (equivalent to Rs 2,364 crore)," the