Topic: Japan

All Content

Japanese stocks plunge, rattling world markets

Japan's Nikkei falls 6.4 percent Thursday in the wake of the Bank of Japan's decision to stand pat on monetary easing. Concerns also mount about Fed's commitment to easing in the US.
World Bank: Monetary tightening could crimp growth

When the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks tighten monetary policies, World Bank economists worry long-term interest rates will rise, increasing the cost of capital in emerging markets. This could be particularly challenging for developing countries with high debts.
Stocks drop on choppy day for Wall Street

Stocks fell Tuesday on concerns that central banks will pull back from support for the global economy. Stocks began sliding from the opening bell, trailing markets in Asia and Europe.
Will Prime Minister Abe save Japan's economy?

The rest of the economy-hit world is keeping an eye on Japan’s economic surge with a great deal of curiosity.
Global News Blog Good Reads: From teens and Facebook to the culinary tastes of ‘Dear Leader’ to a new 5G cellphone

This week's round-up of Good Reads includes Facebook losing favor among teens, the first menial jobs of the rich and famous, reminiscences by Kim Jong-il's sushi chef, new campuses for the headquarters of tech giants, and the world's fastest cellphone.
Japanese troops to converge on Calif. in unprecedented military exercise

Japanese troops in the US: American and Japanese military officials said the training will help Japan's Self-Defense Force better respond to crises such as natural disasters.
Energy Voices Asia pushes for free-market liquefied natural gas

Natural gas consumers in Asia are pushing to break the longstanding linkage between the price of oil and and the price of natural gas. Japan is pushing for a futures market for liquefied natural gas, Schaefer writes, and the potential Canadian supply could be the first to get priced this way.
Global News Blog Good Reads: From Google’s secret lab, to Japan’s economy, to the end of alimony

This week's round-up of Good Reads includes Google's lab, a reporter's tale of kidnapping, Japan's plan for revitalization, an undercover meat inspector, and a challenge to alimony.
The New Economy Manufacturing growth cools, but it won't disappear

US manufacturing index falls to lowest level since June 2009, according to the Institute for Supply Management, part of a slowdown in factory activity in key areas of the globe. While manufacturing growth is slowing, it's not going away, analysts say.
US energy in five maps (infographics)

America has a lot of energy. Saxum, an Oklahoma City-based advertising and communications firm, has developed a portrait of the country's vast oil, gas, coal, solar, wind, and other resources (click each image for a larger version):
Olive Press Ultra-Orthodox insider invites outsiders in through the big screen

Director Rama Burshtein's film is a rare insider's look at Israel's ultra-Orthodox, without criticism or obsessing about what sets them apart.
Modern Parenthood Diaper-free babies and co-sleeping: Global parents use techniques we shun

In 'Parenting Without Borders: Surprising Lessons Parents Around the World Can Teach Us,' author Christine Gross-Loh reminds us that our ideas of parenting are products of local culture. What's nixed in one locale trumps in another.
Chinese premier visits India, talks up trade and trust

Premier Li Keqiang arrived this weekend in New Delhi on his first foreign trip. India has become China's biggest market for infrastructure contracts, but the two countries remain wary neighbors.
Why did North Korea launch 6 missiles in 3 days?

The launches may be more an effort to get attention and test weaponry rather than actually provoke the region, following the end of the joint South Korea-US military exercises last month.
North Korea fires three short-range missiles. Why? (+video)

The firing of three short-range missiles Saturday by North Korea could be to improve their accuracy. Or it could be atmospherics as a period of tentative diplomacy begins.
Energy Voices US eases natural gas glut with second export terminal (+video)

The Energy Department authorizes a second US terminal to export liquefied natural gas (LNG), ending months of speculation. LNG exports boost the prospects for domestic natural gas drillers and should help key allies, but they're also likely to boost prices for US consumers and manufacturers and they raise environmental concerns.
Japan's 'secret' trip to North Korea disrupts united stance against Pyongyang

Japan's visit to North Korea comes after broad regional agreement that Pyongyang should not be offered talks unless it displays a genuine commitment to denuclearization.
The Monitor's View How Europe can find its feet again

Now in its longest recession since World War II, Europe is the world economy's weakest link. But as it achieves financial stability, it must now focus on structural overhaul to spur innovation and worker retraining.
Japan's economy outpaces predictions

Global markets showed improvement, as optimism grows that work by governments around the world will have the desired effect of boosting the economy. In particular, Japan's economy beat expectations for growth in the first quarter of the year; some credited Abenomics.
Energy Voices Arctic Council: China looks north for oil, gas, and fish

Arctic Council grants China observer status. The eight-member Arctic Council will be key to regulating the anticipated resource rush as warming temperatures further open the Arctic to oil and gas drilling and fishing.
Opinion What could finally topple Iran's regime? Earthquakes.

Poor government response to earthquakes in Iran exposes the regime's corruption and incompetence. As the EU's Catherine Ashton and Iran’s Saeed Jalili meet in Turkey today, Tehran should heed history’s warning: No nuclear program can save a regime from a toppling earthquake.
Japanese politicians scramble to distance themselves from 'comfort women' comments

The influential mayor of Osaka outraged China and South Korea by saying World War II sex slaves were necessary, prompting fresh doubts about Japan's willingness to acknowledge wartime aggression.
Opinion As North Korea heats up, South Korea and Japan should warm ties

Cooperation on missile defense between South Korea and Japan would help blunt threats from North Korea. But Japanese officials' recent insensitivity to Imperial Japan's painful role in World War II, including forcing South Koreans to become 'comfort women,' works against cooperation.
Why Taiwan refused Philippines' apology for slain fisherman as insincere

Taiwan recalled its top diplomat in Manila and announced that it was no longer accepting applications for Filipino workers, after the Philippine Coast Guard killed a fisherman last week.
Change Agent US Navy ship to sail the Pacific on a humanitarian mission

The US Navy has been sending its vessels on humanitarian missions since 2006, when it sent the hospital ship USNS Mercy to the Philippines, Indonesia, and other Asian countries.