A must-see on almost every Tokyo tourist’s list is Tsukiji market, known globally as the largest fish market in the world and a mecca for sushi lovers. Yet the power of Tsukiji and other big fish markets in Japan is waning.
Roughly half of all seafood sold in Japan passed through wholesale markets such as Tsukiji in 2012, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, down from three-quarters more than two decades ago. Read More »
Researchers in Japan’s Nara prefecture said they have confirmed that the oldest basil pollen in the country originally came from China or the Korean peninsula, indicating that a trading society existed in the area then.
The pollen was found in 1991 in a ditch at the third-century Makimuku ruins, a national historic site thought to be one of the possible locations of the Yamataikoku kingdom, which was led by Queen Himiko. The kingdom’s exact location is still being debated. Read More »
Who’s the boss? In Japan, probably Hiroshi.
A study of 2.67 million companies by Tokyo Shoko Research Ltd. found that the most common first name among company presidents in Japan is Hiroshi, as in Rakuten Inc. Chief Executive Hiroshi Mikitani. Read More »
Your daily roundup of news from The Wall Street Journal related to Japan:
Honda Motor Co. on Thursday recalled another 4.89 million vehicles world-wide with potentially faulty air bags made by Takata Corp., joining Japanese rivals Nissan Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. in the latest round of action related to the problem. Read More »
China’s rapid expansion of artificial islands in the South China Sea has alarmed its neighbors and prompted the U.S. to consider using military planes and ships to contest Beijing’s territorial claims. But the building of facilities on rocks or low-lying reefs to strengthen claims to them isn’t a new tactic in East Asia. Japan also has some examples of its own.
Federal officials in the U.S. said excessive speed may have caused Wednesday’s derailment of an Amtrak train in Philadelphia, which killed at least seven people. The description recalls an accident near Kobe a decade ago, which Japanese regulators blamed on a train going too fast around a bend. That crash killed 107 people. Read More »
A year after ending a ban on defense equipment exports last year, Japan holds its first international defense trade show in Yokohama, attracting over 100 exhibitors.
Click on the headline to view the full slideshow. Read More »
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet is set to approve a package of bills Thursday designed to expand Japan’s military role overseas. The bills are to be submitted to the parliament for debate as early as Friday. Here are some questions and answers regarding the new legislation. Read More »
Forget passcodes or fingerprint scans. Now you can unlock a smartphone with the blink of an eye.
Japan’s largest mobile carrier, NTT Docomo Inc., on Wednesday unveiled a smartphone that uses an iris scan to authenticate the user and unlock the device. Docomo said the Arrows NX F-04G will be the world’s first commercially available smartphone with the feature when it goes on sale later this month. Read More »
Renault-Nissan Chief-Executive Carlos Ghosn sits down with The WSJ’s Eric Pfanner to talk about why he feels partnerships are the way forward in the auto industry and his concerns about the French government’s new influence at Renault. Read More »
The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011 sparked broad debate on radiation, health and safety. Fukushima Watch contributes to that debate, with sharp, easy-to-understand commentary on things nuclear and energy-related in Japan.
Japan Real Time is a newsy, concise guide to what works, what doesn’t and why in the one-time poster child for Asian development, as it struggles to keep pace with faster-growing neighbors while competing with Europe for Michelin-rated restaurants. Drawing on the expertise of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires, the site provides an inside track on business, politics and lifestyle in Japan as it comes to terms with being overtaken by China as the world’s second-biggest economy. You can contact the editors at japanrealtime@wsj.com
