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June 30, 2026
 

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ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Japan's industrial production in May climbed 0.5% from the previous month as manufacturers were able to cope with the fallout from the war in Iran.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 30, 2026
Japan’s factory output rises as Iran fallout stays manageable
The government says it can secure enough crude oil through March 2028 by cultivating alternative procurements to the Strait of Hormuz.
Sales at department stores in Japan climbed strongly from a year earlier, likely helped by robust tourist spending.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 29, 2026
Japan’s retail sales rise for third month on wage gains and subsidies
The 1.9% month-on-month advance was led by sales of vehicles, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
The consumer price index excluding fresh food for the Tokyo area, considered a leading indicator for nationwide price trends, rose 1.6% in June from a year earlier.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 26, 2026
Tokyo inflation picks up, keeping BOJ on track for further hike
The consumer price index excluding fresh food rose 1.6% in June from a year earlier in Japan’s capital.
Japan's core consumer prices, excluding fresh food, in May rose 1.4% from a year earlier, matching the lowest level since 2022.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 19, 2026
Japan’s inflation holds steady as subsidies restrain energy
Core consumer prices, excluding fresh food, rose 1.4% year on year in May, in line with economists’ expectations and matching the lowest level since 2022.
Revelers take a photo with a tourist after carrying a portable shrine during a Shinto festival in Tokyo's Asakusa district on May 17.
JAPAN
Jun 17, 2026
Visitors to Japan fell 3.6% in May
Japan saw visitors from South Korea, Taiwan and the United States hitting their respective highest levels for May.
The trade balance flipped to a ¥378.6 billion ($2.36 billion) deficit in May on an unadjusted basis, according to the Finance Ministry.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 17, 2026
Japan’s trade balance swings to deficit as yen inflates imports
The deficit suggests trade may weigh on growth in the second quarter, when economists largely expect a slowdown due to the impact of the war in Iran.
A stock index board in the Lujiazui financial district of Shanghai. The oil shock and the AI boom have revived inflationary pressures among factories in the world’s second-biggest economy.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2026
China’s inflation split widens as AI and war stir up factory prices
Years of weak demand and excessive supply have contributed to bruising competition among Chinese industrial firms that’s keeping a lid on consumer prices.
Corporate goods prices rose again in May, signaling stronger inflationary pressure across Japan’s supply chains as the war in Iran keeps energy prices elevated, with input prices up 0.9% from a month earlier, the Bank of Japan said Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2026
Japan’s producer prices jump again on elevated energy costs
The measure of input prices for Japanese firms rose 0.9% in May from a month earlier, and April’s increase was revised higher, the Bank of Japan says.
More than 70% of small and midsize companies said they have raised or plan to raise wages in fiscal 2026.
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2026
Smaller firms in Japan raise pay by 4.29% in fiscal 2026
Wage growth expanded from 4.03% a year before, reflecting employers’ continued efforts to secure human resources amid rising inflation.
Real gross domestic product expanded at an annualized pace of 1.8% in the first quarter, down from an initial reading of 2.1%.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 8, 2026
Japan’s growth holds up despite drop in business investment
The economy grew at a still-solid pace at the start of the year even after the turbulence in Iran prompted businesses to cut spending.
Japan’s real wages have risen 1.9% from a year earlier, extending gains to a fourth month and reinforcing expectations for another Bank of Japan rate hike.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 5, 2026
Japan’s real wages rise for fourth month, backing BOJ hike
Inflation-adjusted wages rose 1.9% from a year earlier, accelerating from a revised 1.4% gain in the previous month, the labor ministry reported Friday.
The Bank of Japan's headquarters in Tokyo. Tokyo inflation cooled to its slowest pace in nearly two years in May, but BOJ policymakers are wary of prices picking up due to the war in Iran.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 29, 2026
Tokyo inflation slowdown unlikely to derail BOJ rate hike
The consumer price index excluding fresh food rose 1.3% in May from a year earlier in the capital.
A shepherd riding a scooter herds sheep in a village near the edge of the Gobi Desert on the outskirts of Yumen, Gansu province, China.
BUSINESS
May 28, 2026
Job ad for shepherds goes viral in China exposing labor market strains
More than 700 people applied for two shepherds positions, including urban white-collar employees, factory workers across China and even university graduates.
Japan’s net external assets rose to an all-time high at the end of 2025, but the total was surpassed by China, Finance Ministry data shows.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 26, 2026
Japan slips to world’s No. 3 creditor behind Germany and China
Japan’s net external assets rose to an all-time high at the end of 2025, but the total was surpassed by China’s, which climbed at a faster pace.
Peng Jin-lung, chairman of Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission
BUSINESS / Economy
May 25, 2026
Taiwan urges $630 billion asset management industry to scale up
Taiwan must scale up its largest asset managers if it hopes to compete as a regional financial hub against international rivals, according to the top financial regulator.
Many of the abandoned high-rises in the city center have been appropriated by armed gangs who extract rent from squatters.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 25, 2026
Africa’s business capital is on the brink of financial collapse
Water and power outages are frequent in Johannesburg, and many of the abandoned high-rises in the city center have been appropriated by armed gangs who extract rent from squatters.
Japan’s core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, rose 1.4% in April from a year earlier, according to the internal affairs ministry.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 22, 2026
Japan’s inflation eases to four-year low, complicating BOJ hike
Japan’s core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, rose 1.4% in April from a year earlier, the internal affairs ministry said Friday.
Seasonally adjusted core machinery orders fell 9.4% in March from the previous month to ¥1,01 trillion, the Cabinet Office said Thursday, reversing the previous month’s jump driven by large-scale orders.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 21, 2026
Japan’s core machinery orders fall 9.4% in March
Private-sector orders excluding those for ships and power equipment, closely watched as a leading indicator of corporate capital spending, dropped to ¥1.01 trillion.
Japan's trade balance in April was a ¥301.9 billion ($1.9 billion) surplus on an unadjusted basis, according to the Finance Ministry, remaining in the black unexpectedly on strong exports and a sharp drop in energy imports.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 21, 2026
Japan’s trade surplus remained in the black in April as energy imports plunged
Exports remained robust, with chip exports rising 44% amid strong demand for artificial intelligence-related products.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (left) speaks with Roland Lescure, France's economy, finances and industry minister, prior to a meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bank governors, in Paris on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 20, 2026
G7 finance ministers urge action on economic imbalances; some point to China
G7 finance ministers and central bank governors have met in Paris to discuss the fallout from the Iran war and volatility on ​global markets but were light on concrete measures.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay's Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team's loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Chinese and Russian bombers and fighter jets stage joint patrol near Japan
A Chinese Air Force H-6 bomber is seen during a joint patrol with Russian military aircraft on Saturday.
U.S. missile moves in Japan send China clear message: A new era has arrived
Soldiers conduct the first Typhon midrange capability live-fire exercise outside of the continental United States, firing an SM-6 missile in July last year in Australia's Northern Territory during Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.
‘The colors speak for themselves’: How Japan’s chroma bible went global
“A Dictionary of Color Combinations” is meant to function as a quick-reference guide for artists, designers and anyone with a passing interest in aesthetics as a quantifiable pursuit.

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