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July 12, 2026
 

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Francis Tang
Bonds and the yen have been week since the Bank of Japan increased rates on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 22, 2025
Japan’s 10-year government bond yield hits 2.1% as rout continues
The yen is also weak after the BOJ’s rate increase and as the approval of a record-busting budget looms.
Tourists at Sensoji, Asakusa. Chinese visitor statistics are mixed after China warned against travel to Japan.
BUSINESS
Dec 17, 2025
Chinese visitor numbers up on year and down on month in November
The monthly statistics were the first to be released since China warned its citizens on Nov. 14 not to travel to Japan following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on Taiwan.
Trade minister Ryosei Akazawa (left) and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick speak in front of Kabukiza Theatre, Tokyo, in October, more than a month after the signing of an agreement for Japan to invest $550 billion in the U.S.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 16, 2025
Japan’s $550 billion investment pledge might fall short of Trump’s hopes
The deal of the century is starting to look a lot like business as usual.
A Daihatsu Tanto in Tokyo's Ginza district. Small cars like this could soon be made in America.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 4, 2025
Trump to clear the road for minicar production in the U.S.
Japanese kei cars and trucks could soon be made in America.
Yields on Japanese government bonds have been rising to decade-plus highs on fiscal concerns and as the central bank gets closer to increasing rates.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 2, 2025
Bank of Japan rattles markets globally with hint of a rate increase
Even the possibility of a December move hits bonds, stocks and crypto.
The Prime Minister's Office, in Tokyo. The administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is developing the fiscal year 2026 budget as inflation remains high and markets are on edge about fiscal spending.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 27, 2025
2026 budget should take inflation into account: private-sector advisers
Their recommendation comes as prices rise rapidly and markets remain skittish.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama speaking on Wednesday. On Friday, she said that intervention on the currency markets is a “possible option.”
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 21, 2025
‘Sell Japan’ trade takes a breather as verbal intervention dialed up slightly
The stimulus package that so worried the market came in within expectations
The yen has deepened recent lows against the dollar as the 'sell Japan' trade gains steam ahead of big fiscal stimulus.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 20, 2025
Yen and Japanese bonds continue to retreat as verbal intervention lacking
Ahead of superbig fiscal stimulus, officials choose not to talk up the currency.
The yen has been weak against the U.S. dollar in recent weeks, with some analysts expecting the retreat to continue.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 19, 2025
Yen rout brings talk of ¥160 to the dollar and possible intervention
New administration hit by triple whammy of falling stocks, bonds and currency
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met for 25 minutes on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 18, 2025
Bank of Japan independence holds as governor meets with super-dovish PM
Any discussion about the movement of interest rates was kept general and vague.
U.S. tariffs are starting to take their toll in Japan, especially on companies manufacturing products for export.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 17, 2025
Japan’s GDP drops as tariffs bite and domestic demand flags
The decline in the three quarters ending in September was less than forecast.
Representatives from the Japan Innovation Party hand over a proposal to designate Xue Jian, the Chinese consul-general in Osaka, as persona no grata, to a staff of the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 14, 2025
China warns of military response if Japan intervenes in Taiwan contingency
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong hauled in Japan’s top envoy to China, lodging an angry protest and issuing a direct threat.
The Nikkei 225 stock average broke 52,000 just days after breaking 51,000.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 31, 2025
Nikkei 225 breaks 52,000 as records continue to topple
The surprise rally remains strong despite significant economic uncertainty.
Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 29, 2025
U.S. treasury chief Bessent signals support for Bank of Japan independence
The U.S. treasury secretary’s comments come as Abenomics is back in fashion with Japan’s leaders.
Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's trade minister, and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick met on Sunday and Monday for lunch.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 29, 2025
No projects finalized under Japan’s $550 billion investment pledge
Fact sheets issued during the recent Japan-U.S. summit offered little insight into any progress made.
An electronic quotation board in Tokyo shows the Nikkei 225 stock average topping 51,000 on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 29, 2025
Nikkei 225 breaks 51,000 for the first time ever
The stock index achieved the 50,000 mark just two days ago.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi raises her fist as U.S. President Donald Trump delivers a speech in front of U.S. Navy personnel on board the U.S. Navy's USS George Washington aircraft carrier at the American naval base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 28, 2025
At first summit with Trump, Takaichi pledges ‘new golden age’ for alliance
The meeting was a crucial test of Takaichi’s diplomatic chops as she seeks to elevate the Japan-U.S. alliance while staving off pressure from the U.S. on defense spending.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama briefs reporters after her first in-person meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday night.
BUSINESS
Oct 27, 2025
U.S. and Japan finance chiefs hold first meet as Nikkei passes 50,000 mark
Bessent also exchanged views with Katayama on the $550 billion investment Japan pledged to the U.S.
An electronic signboard in Tokyo shows the benchmark Nikkei 225 index above 50,000.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 27, 2025
Nikkei 225 breaks 50,000 for first time ever on trade and rate optimism
The rally comes after China and the United States reached a framework trade agreement.
Industry minister Ryosei Akazawa visits the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture on Saturday.
JAPAN
Oct 26, 2025
Akazawa implores Tepco to pursue ‘coexistence’ with Fukushima community
Tepco announced in July that the full-scale removal of nuclear fuel debris will not start before fiscal year 2037.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

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