Society
Japan's Golden Week holidays started Saturday, with train stations and airports across the country crowded with people heading to resorts or returning to hometowns. It is almost a year since the country downgraded the threat level of COVID-19 to the same category as seasonal influenza and significantly relaxed health measures that had discouraged people from going out. Over 2.6 million people were booked for domestic flights between Saturday and May 6, almost the same level as the holiday period last year, and 490,000 for international flights, up about 20 percent, airlines said April 19. As f...
Kyodo News
The Japanese unit of Germany's BMW AG and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. have launched a joint program in April aimed at training auto mechanics in Japan as part of efforts to address a "severe" labor shortage in the industry. The program, led by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan, seeks to provide a platform to train a new generation of mechanics in three years, shorter than the five years usually needed to acquire necessary skills. Under the program, which is based on Germany's dual vocational training system, trainees will sign a contract with the automakers to spend ...
Kyodo News
An International Atomic Energy Agency task force confirmed that the discharge of treated radioactive water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant is "progressing as planned," as it wrapped up Friday its latest review on the process. It was the second visit to Japan by an IAEA task force, comprised of IAEA officials and international experts, after the country began releasing the wastewater into the Pacific Ocean last August despite opposition from neighboring countries such as China. The discharge of water from the Fukushima Daiichi plant, crippled in the wake of a massive earthquake and tsu...
Kyodo News
More than 600 students and others got sick after drinking milk provided for school lunches in Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Thursday, a tally by Kyodo News showed Friday. Morinaga Milk Industry Co. said the milk was produced by a subsidiary and was supplied to 258 elementary and junior high schools located in 12 cities and towns in the prefecture. Shipments of the milk were stopped after the incident came to light. In Sendai, capital of Miyagi, 337 students reported stomachache, diarrhea and vomiting, but none are reported to be in a serious condition, according to the local school...
Kyodo News
Japan's Cabinet approved Friday a bill to regulate smartphone app stores to promote easier market access for third-party developers, in a move to challenge the duopoly exerted by industry giants Apple Inc. and Google LLC. The bill would require dominant smartphone operating system providers to allow the entry of third-party app stores and payment systems to increase competition. Under the new regulations, providers who fail to comply will be slapped with a penalty worth 20 percent of their domestic revenue related to the violation. The penalty can rise to 30 percent if the malpractice continue...
Kyodo News
Four people sued the Japanese arm of U.S. tech giant Meta Platforms Inc. on Thursday over false investment ads using fake celebrity endorsements on Facebook and Instagram. The plaintiffs, including those from Kobe and Tokyo, filed the lawsuit with the Kobe District Court in western Japan, claiming they had lost money because the company was negligent in verifying the legitimacy of such advertisements. They are seeking a total of 23 million yen ($147,000) in damages. Social media scams soliciting investments by using the names and images of prominent business figures without their consent have ...
Kyodo News
Duty-free sales at Japan's department stores in March surged nearly 2.5-fold from a year earlier to a record 49.5 billion yen ($320 million), as demand for luxury brands were boosted by the weak yen amid an influx of travelers during cherry blossom season, data by an industry body showed Thursday. The figure was the highest since comparable data became available in October 2014, surpassing pre-pandemic levels of 2019 for the ninth straight month, while the number of duty-free shoppers also set a fresh record for March at 454,000, the Japan Department Stores Association said. Overall same-store...
Kyodo News
Survivors and family members of the victims of a 2005 train derailment that killed 107 people in the western Japan city of Amagasaki held a memorial ceremony Thursday to mark 19 years since the accident. Attendees gathered at a monument erected by West Japan Railway Co. to remember the victims where they paused for a moment of silence at 9:18 a.m., the time when the accident occurred at the site in Hyogo Prefecture. "We will continue our tireless efforts into the future" to ensure the safety of our operations, JR West President Kazuaki Hasegawa said at the ceremony. A total of 106 passengers a...
Kyodo News
An All Nippon Airways aircraft carrying a total of 213 people landed safely at an airport in Hokkaido in northern Japan on Wednesday after a hydraulic system issue was detected. Upon landing at New Chitose Airport, the pilot of the plane, which took off from Tokyo's Haneda airport, turned off the engines, the authorities said. There were no reports of injuries. The pilot was reported to have said there was an oil leak, according to the airline. Local firefighters were notified of the incident by the airport at around 5:35 p.m.
Kyodo News
In the story headlined "Plane at Hokkaido airport emits smoke, no injuries reported," please note the following CORRECTION. At headline, please read...ANA plane lands at Hokkaido airport with hydraulic trouble...(not...Plane at Hokkaido airport emits smoke, no injuries reported...as sent). Please replace 1st to 2nd grafs with the paragraphs below. An All Nippon Airways aircraft carrying a total of 213 people landed safely at an airport in Hokkaido in northern Japan on Wednesday after a hydraulic system issue was detected. Upon landing at New Chitose Airport, the pilot of the plane, which took ...
Kyodo News
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