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June 30, 2026
 

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WAGES

The government is considering delaying its goal of raising Japan's average minimum hourly wage to ¥1,500 until the first half of the 2030s.
BUSINESS
Jun 26, 2026
Japan mulls delaying minimum wage hike
Japan’s average minimum hourly wages in fiscal 2025, which ended in March, stood at ¥1,121, up 6.3% from the preceding year.
Nomura Holdings CEO Kentaro Okuda’s compensation rose to ¥1.6 billion ($10 million) in the year that ended on March 31.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 22, 2026
Nomura raises CEO pay to $10 million after profit hits a record
Under Kentaro Okuda’s leadership, Japan’s biggest brokerage generated a second straight year of record net income.
The pharmaceutical industry is among the most strained sectors, with profits squeezed by drug price cuts and rising costs amid Middle East tensions, according to Shunji Horitani, president of the Japanese Federation of Energy and Chemistry Workers’ Unions.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 10, 2026
Wage gains at Japan’s smaller firms at risk as Iran war drags on
Many of such companies lack the pricing power to fully pass rising costs on to customers because of intense competition and entrenched business practices.
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.
South Korea's labor minister said companies like Samsung that outperform profit targets should consider sharing excess gains with suppliers, subcontractors and their workers.
BUSINESS
Jun 5, 2026
South Korea minister calls on tech firms to share excess AI profits with suppliers and staff
The government, businesses and unions should discuss how to share “excess profits” and narrow the gap between conglomerates and smaller suppliers, Kim Young-hoon said.
Samsung Electronics workers chant slogans during a rally ahead of a planned strike outside the company's semiconductor plant in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, on April 23.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 5, 2026
Do Japan’s chip workers need a Samsung-style strike?
Even as Tokyo firms prepare to award customary summer bonuses, there will be nothing on the scale that South Korean companies are offering.
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.
Inflation-adjusted wages increased 1% in March from a year earlier, slowing from a revised 2% gain in February, according to the labor ministry.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 8, 2026
Japan’s real wages rise for third month to keep BOJ on hike path
It remains unclear whether higher wages will lift consumption.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi addresses a May Day event in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Apr 29, 2026
Takaichi vows support for wage hikes at May Day event
The prime minister also called for cooperation to achieve “sustained wage hikes that outpace inflation.”
Members of the Samsung Electronics labor union hold signs reading "Change it to be transparent!" as they stage a mass rally demanding the removal of a cap on performance bonuses, outside the company's foundry and semiconductor factory in Pyeongtaek on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 23, 2026
Samsung workers protest over huge pay gap with SK Hynix amid AI chip boom
Protesters, which union organizers put at 40,000, plan to strike for 18 days from May 21 if their demands are not met.
Rengo's tally showed that the average wage gain secured by labor unions stayed above the group's 5% target for a third straight year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 17, 2026
Japan’s wage growth holds momentum after small firms reach deals
The development comes even after results from smaller firms were factored into the tally, an outcome that will keep the Bank of Japan on track for a near-term interest rate hike.
Japanese workers' base pay increased 3.3% in February, the largest gain in nearly 34 years.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 8, 2026
Japan’s real wages rise most since 2021 to keep BOJ on hike path
The increase was 1.9% from a year earlier in February, marking a second straight monthly gain, the labor ministry reported Wednesday.
Japan’s household spending fell for a third consecutive month in February, dropping 1.8% year-on-year despite real wages turning positive, highlighting weak domestic demand.
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 7, 2026
Japan’s households cut spending even after real wages advance
Outlays by households adjusted for inflation fell 1.8% in February from a year earlier, a faster decline compared with January’s 1% retreat.
New NEC employees attending a welcome ceremony stand in front of a large display panel equipped with the firm's facial recognition technology in Kawasaki on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 1, 2026
Japanese companies welcome new employees as fiscal year starts
The ceremonies were held against a backdrop of global turmoil stemming from the Middle East conflict and economic uncertainty at home.
Shigeru Aizawa, head of employee benefits in the empowerment division at Tokyo-based Freee
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 27, 2026
Shadow raises pitched as option for cash-strapped Japanese companies
Benefits, discounts and freebies can increase compensation without triggering a big tax hit for employees and employers.
The outline of a 2026 white paper on small and medium-size companies points out that "maintaining the status quo is the greatest risk" to corporate management at a time when the business environment is changing.
BUSINESS
Mar 25, 2026
Government wants small firms to enhance business literacy
The outline emphasizes that quality control and management planning capabilities should be enhanced.
Labor unions under Rengo have so far secured an average pay increase of 5.26% in wage negotiations with employers, according to an initial tally.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 23, 2026
Japan’s key labor union wins wage hike topping 5% for third year
The development will likely keep the central bank on track for another interest rate hike in the coming months.
BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 19, 2026
BOJ stands pat amid growing Middle East uncertainty
The decision to maintain its policy rate at 0.75% was widely expected by the market and central bank watchers.
An official of the Japan Council of Metalworkers’ Unions writes down companies’ response to labor unions’ demands in wage negotiations in Tokyo’s Chuo Ward on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 19, 2026
Many major Japanese companies agree to pay hike demands in full
Close attention is being paid to whether the wage hike momentum will spread to small companies, which employ about 70% of all workers in Japan.
The Japanese Trade Union Confederation, known as Rengo, holds a meeting late last month to call for robust wage hikes in this year's shuntō spring offensive.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 15, 2026
Japan electronics unions to accept pay scale hike of ¥12,000 or more
The hike is intended to help sustainably realize robust pay increases outpacing inflation.
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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