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No longer be a barrier in your business Professional translation services…Ex-waiters sue Manhattan sushi restaurant Masa over tips
22 November 2008 | 6:12 am
Former waiting staff of the Japanese sushi restaurant Masa have filed a lawsuit against the world-class Manhattan restaurant, claiming they were cheated out of tips, Daily News reported Friday. (Kyodo)
Land price falls demonstrate recession in Japan
21 November 2008 | 10:57 am
Land prices declined at 85 percent of 150 survey points in major Japanese cities and leveled off at the remainder in the three months to Oct. 1, demonstrating a recession, the land ministry said Friday. (Kyodo)
Famed J-pop music producer Komuro indicted over copyright fraud
21 November 2008 | 10:56 am
Prosecutors charged once high-flying pop music producer Tetsuya Komuro with fraud on Friday for concluding a contract to sell music copyrights that did not belong to him and swindling an investor out of 500 million yen, the prosecutors said. (AP)
Japan suspects stabbings linked to pension scandal
21 November 2008 | 10:49 am
Police said Friday they were investigating whether stabbings that targeted two former Health Ministry officials and their wives was connected to the ministry's mishandling of millions of pension records. (International Herald Tribune)
Keidanren tells Japan's salarymen to work less, have more kids
21 November 2008 | 10:46 am
Keidanren, Japan's biggest business organization, is worried the nation's workers aren't having enough sex. The group urged its 1,632 member companies to start so- called family weeks that give employees more time for playing with the kids and having more children to reverse a declining birth rate. (Bloomberg)
Bra for the boys an online bestseller in Japan
21 November 2008 | 10:45 am
Who said bras are only for women? A Japanese online lingerie retailer is selling bras for cross-dressing men and they've quickly become one of its most popular items. (Reuters)
Japan PM under fire after string of gaffes
21 November 2008 | 10:43 am
Prime Minister Taro Aso's top aide urged him on Friday to watch what he says, the second straight day that the Japanese leader was warned after a series of gaffes that have left some analysts wondering about his grip on power. (Reuters)
Sawa named AFC's women's player of the year
21 November 2008 | 10:38 am
Japan midfielder Homare Sawa was named women's Player of the Year by the Asian Football Confederation, winning the award for the second time in her career. (International Herald Tribune)
Older 'freeters' trapped in part-time employment status: white paper
21 November 2008 | 1:33 am
The number of so-called "freeters" -- non-student part-timers excluding housewives -- is on the decline but it becomes harder for them to find more stable work once they reach a certain age, a government white paper said Friday. (Kyodo)
Asian nations brace for economic crisis
20 November 2008 | 10:13 pm
Asian countries led by economic powerhouses China and Japan want an expanded regional emergency fund in place next year to better shield the region from the impact of the global financial crisis, officials said Thursday. (AP)
Japan far outstrips other industrial nations in mobile technology
20 November 2008 | 10:04 pm
Japan far outstrips other Group of Seven industrial economies in terms of mobile technology with a massive 83 percent of cellphone users in the country already having a third-generation connection, according to a survey report released Thursday. (Kyodo)
Japanese companies curb shareholder perks, gifts amid recession
20 November 2008 | 10:04 pm
Japanese companies are curbing gifts and other perks to shareholders as a global recession spurs them to cut costs, according to Daiwa Securities Co. (Bloomberg)
Japan's adopted talking heads
20 November 2008 | 9:54 pm
There are two groups of people that westerners who spend time in Japan can broadly be counted on to loathe. The first are the uyoku: rightwing propagandists in black loudspeaker trucks who block traffic to bellow their support for xenophobia and militarism, with nary a glance from the police.
The second are foreigners on television. (FT.com)
Japan's anime guru wants manga-loving PM to keep quiet
20 November 2008 | 10:11 am
Japanese animation guru Hayao Miyazaki wishes one of his industry's most famous fans -- the prime minister -- would just keep quiet about his avowed love of manga comic books. (AFP)
10,000 HIV carriers confirmed in Japan
20 November 2008 | 10:00 am
A total of over 10,000 HIV carriers have been confirmed throughout Japan, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has announced. (Mainichi)
Missile test by Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force fails
20 November 2008 | 4:44 am
Japanese defense officials said Thursday a Maritime Self- Defense Force destroyer failed to shoot down a mock ballistic missile in space with a U.S.-developed interceptor over Hawaii. (Kyodo)
Lightning shuts 2 reactors at Kansai nuclear plant
20 November 2008 | 3:44 am
Kansai Electric Power Co (9503.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Thursday that two reactors at its Mihama nuclear power plant shut down automatically earlier in the day after lightning hit the facility. (Reuters)
Bloody footprints found near homes of ex-vice ministers
19 November 2008 | 11:45 pm
Bloody footprints were found at and near the home of a former vice welfare minister in Saitama City, where he and his wife were found murdered Tuesday morning, Saitama prefectural police said Wednesday. (Kyodo)
Ministry murder mystery in Japan
19 November 2008 | 10:06 pm
Security has been stepped up at homes of Japanese officials after two people linked to the health ministry were killed and a third was knifed. (BBC)
Japanese pitcher provokes tension with the U.S.
19 November 2008 | 9:52 pm
Many Japanese baseball officials are outraged that U.S. teams are courting Junichi Tazawa, a hard-throwing right-handed pitcher, because they insist it is long-established practice for amateurs like him to be strictly off-limits to major league clubs. (International Herald Tribune)