Page 44 - Japan

Drone flies into damaged Fukushima nuclear reactor to study melted fuel

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings also began releasing the fourth batch of the plant's treated and diluted radioactive wastewater into the sea on Wednesday

Toyota gives no answer to union demands at second round of wage talks

Toyota has not decided yet when it will respond to the union's wage rise request, Takanori Azuma, the automaker's chief human resources officer, said on Wednesday

Japan's drug firm Takeda, Biological E tie up to manufacture dengue vaccine

Japanese drug firm Takeda on Tuesday said it has tied up with Hyderabad-based firm Biological E Ltd to manufacture its dengue vaccine. The partnership marks a crucial step in the fight against the global public health threat of dengue fever, aligning with the disease-specific target set by the World Health Organisation to achieve zero case-fatality rate due to dengue by 2030, the company said in a statement. The partnership will substantially enhance manufacturing capabilities to ensure a sustainable global supply of the vaccine, it added. Biological E will scale up its production capacity to potentially reach 50 million doses annually, accelerating Takeda's efforts to manufacture 100 million doses annually within the decade, it said. "We are proud to announce a strategic manufacturing partnership with Biological E Ltd which has deep expertise in vaccine manufacturing and longstanding support of public health programmes around the world," Takeda President of the Global Vaccine ...

Apple and Tesla veterans plan to help Japan design advanced AI chips

Tenstorrent, led by Tesla Inc. and Apple Inc. veteran Jim Keller, will license its design for part of Japan's artificial intelligence accelerator and also co-design the overall chip, the two sides ann

Quad a statement that others cannot have 'veto' on our choices: Jaishankar

The Quad is a statement that others cannot have a "veto" on choices of like-minded nations and the coalition is here to stay, grow and contribute to global prosperity, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday, amid mounting global concerns over China's rising assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific. In an address at a think-tank forum, Jaishankar described the coalition of India, the US, Japan and Australia as an "overhead light" that is a "creative, flexible, nimble, responsive and open-minded" enterprise. The Quad has largely been focusing on bolstering cooperation to ensure a free and an open and inclusive Indo-Pacific in the face of Chinese belligerence. The external affairs minister said the Quad reflects the growth of a multipolar global order and its central approach is collaborative, and not unilateral. "All four governments have behaved differently from how they normally do. The Quad is an overhead light -- creative, flexible, nimble, responsive and open-minded ..

Taiwan's TSMC opens its first plant in Japan as part of global expansion

Chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. opened Saturday in an official ceremony its first semiconductor plant in Japan as part of its ongoing global expansion. We are deeply grateful for the seamless support provided by you at every step, TSMC Chairman Mark Liu said after thanking the Japanese government, local community and business partners, including electronic giant Sony and auto-parts maker Denso. The company's founder Morris Chang, was also present. This comes as Japan is trying to regain its presence in the chip production industry. The Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing, or JASM, is set to be up and running later this year. TSMC also announced plans for a second plant in Japan earlier this month, with production expected to start in about three years. Private sector investment totals USD 20 billion for both plants. Both plants are in the Kumamoto region, southwestern Japan. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sent a congratulatory video message, calling the plant

Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts now eligible to avail incentives under PLI

The product has also met the testing criteria of AAT, and is certified by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), the company stated

Japan's Nikkei stock index breaks its 1989 record, surges to all-time high

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index surged Thursday past the record it set in 1989 before its financial bubble burst, ushering in an era of faltering growth. The index closed Thursday at 39,098.68, up 2.2 per cent. It had been hovering for weeks near 34-year highs. Its previous record was 38,915.87, set on December 29, 1989. That was more than a generation ago at the height of Japan's post-war boom. After the peak, as banks wrote off some 100 trillion Yen in bad debts, shares meandered well below the record for many years dipping below 8,200 in 2011 after the triple disasters of a massive earthquake and tsunamis and meltdowns at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan. But the market has logged sharp gains in recent months, helped by strong interest from foreign investors who account for the majority of trading volume on the Tokyo exchange.

EAM Jaishankar to pay bilateral visits to S Korea, Japan from March 5-8

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will pay bilateral visits to the Republic of Korea and Japan from March 5-8 and will co-chair the 10th India-Republic of Korea Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) with his Korean counterpart Cho-Tae Yul, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.The EAM will first visit South Korea's Seoul from March 5-6 to co-chair the JCM meeting, and the two sides will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest, the MEA said in a statement."India - Republic of Korea Special Strategic Partnership has expanded to diverse areas of cooperation, which include trade, investments, defence, education, S & T, and culture. The JCM is expected to comprehensively review the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation and explore avenues for further strengthening it. It will also provide an opportunity for the two sides to exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest," the statement said.Later, EAM will visit Japan from March 6-8 for

Japan has a new 6-month digital nomad visa but Indians don't stand to gain

Japan has announced its plans to launch a digital nomad visa which would enable a person to legally live and work remotely from anywhere in the country for 6 months.

Japan's trade deficit falls, exports grow 12% as shipments jump in vehicles

Japan's exports grew nearly 12 per cent in January as shipments jumped in vehicles, auto parts and machinery, according to government data Wednesday. That helped the nation's trade deficit shrink to 1.76 trillion yen (USD 12 billion), or about half of what it was a year ago, as imports declined 9.6 per cent from the previous year. By region, exports grew to North America, the rest of Asia and the Middle East, while imports generally fell from all global regions. Imports, which have been declining on-month for nearly a year, totalled 9 trillion yen (USD 60 billion), with the biggest drops in oil, natural gas and iron ore. Exports totalled 7.3 trillion yen (USD 48 billion), marking the second straight month of growth, according to the Finance Ministry's preliminary report. The export rise was better than what analysts had expected at about a 10 per cent growth. Japan has slipped to become the world's fourth-largest economy, after the US, China and Germany, according to nominal gross

Japan to invest Rs 12,800 crore for 9 projects in various sectors in India

The finance ministry on Tuesday said that the Japanese government has committed a loan of 232.209 billion yen (about Rs 12,800 crore) for nine projects related to various sectors in India. The projects included North East Road Network Connectivity, Project for Promoting Start-up and Innovation in Telangana, Project for the Construction of Chennai Peripheral Ring Road, Project for Promoting Sustainable Horticulture in Haryana and Project for Climate Change Response and ecosystem Services Enhancement in Rajasthan. The road network connectivity projects aim to improve infrastructure development in India's north-east region, while the Chennai peripheral ring road project aims to alleviate traffic congestion and strengthen connections to the southern part of the state, the finance ministry said in a statement. The agreement to this effect was signed between Vikas Sheel, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, and Suzuki Hiroshi, Ambassador of Japan to India. "The project i

Japan hosts Ukraine reconstruction conference to showcase its support

Japan will host a reconstruction conference for Ukraine on Monday just ahead of the second anniversary of Russia's invasion as Tokyo seeks to showcase its commitment to supporting the war-torn country. In his keynote speech at the conference later Monday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is expected to stress Japan's commitment to supporting Ukraine, the importance of investment across industries for the future of that country's development, and ensuring that the support caters to Ukraine's needs. Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal heads his country's delegation of more than 100 government and corporate officials, while President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will send a video message from his homeland. About 300 people and 80 companies are to attend from the two countries, Japanese officials said. The Japan-Ukraine Conference for Promotion of Economic Growth and Reconstruction is co-organised by the Japanese and Ukrainian governments, Japan's powerful business organisation Keidanren, and Jap

Japan's H3 rocket reaches planned trajectory after failed debut last year

A new Japanese flagship H3 rocket lifted off from a space station in southwestern Japan on Saturday, successfully reaching a planned trajectory and releasing one of the two payloads in a key second test flight a year after its failed debut launch. The H3 rocket blasted off from a launch pad at the Tanegashima Space Center on time Saturday morning, two days after its originally scheduled lift-off which was delayed due to bad weather. The rocket's initial flight has been smooth as planned and it successfully released the first of two small payloads, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, said. JAXA will have a news conference later in the day to provide further details. Officials are confirming the status of a second satellite. The launch is closely watched as a test for Japan's space development after H3 failed in its debut flight last March. JAXA and its main contractor Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have been developing H3 as a successor to its current mainstay, H-2A, which

SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son seeks to build a $100 bn AI chip venture

Son has been unwavering in his enthusiasm for AGI. In October, he told a large group of Japanese enterprise clients to adopt AI or get left behind

US House passes Quad bill to facilitate closer cooperation between members

The US House of Representatives has passed the Quad bill which instructs the Biden administration to establish a Quad Intra-Parliamentary Working Group to facilitate closer cooperation between the US, Australia, India and Japan. Passed by a roll call vote of 379 to 39 votes, the Strengthen US-Australia-India-Japan Cooperation' or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) bill says that the joint cooperation between the US, Australia, India and Japan should be strengthened. It directs the State Department to submit to Congress, within 180 days of the bill's enactment, a strategy to increase engagement and cooperation with the Quad, and within 60 days of its enactment, to enter into negotiations with Japan, Australia and India to establish a Quad Intra-Parliamentary Working Group to facilitate closer cooperation. It also would establish a US group, which would have a maximum of 24 members of Congress, to represent the US in the working group. It also would establish guidelines for ..

UK economy slips into recession; Japan loses third-largest economy title

Rishi Sunak, who came into power in October 2022, had made five major promises after assuming office, including taming down inflation and growing the United Kingdom economy

19% of global fund managers bullish on India; Japan most preferred: BofA

Among markets, investors preferred India and Taiwan apart from Japan, while avoiding Thailand and China, the survey suggested.

Japan slips to world's 4th-largest economy, behind US, China, and Germany

Japan has slipped to the world's fourth-largest economy as government data released on Thursday showed it fell behind the size of Germany's in 2023. The numbers highlight how the Japanese economy has gradually lost its competitiveness and productivity while the population shrinks as Japanese people age and have fewer children, analysts say. Japan fell from the second-ranked economy behind the US to the third-largest in 2010 as China's economy grew. The International Monetary Fund had forecast Japan's fall to fourth. The comparisons among nations' economies look at nominal GDP, which doesn't reflect some different national conditions, and is in dollar terms. Japan's nominal GDP totalled USD 4.2 trillion last year, or about 591 trillion yen. Germany's, announced last month, was USD 4.4 trillion, or USD 4.5 trillion, depending on the currency conversion. For the latest October-December quarter, the Japanese economy shrank at an annual rate of 0.4 per cent, and minus 0.1 per cent from

Sony plans IPO for financial arm in Oct 2025 after PS5 sales falter

The company revealed plans for the partial sale after reporting earnings and revising its forecasts for the fiscal year through March