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TOKYO
March 04, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
March 04, 2026
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Sanae Takaichi
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The Nikkei 225 stock average fell for a third straight day as investors remained concerned about higher oil prices.
BUSINESS / Markets
Tokyo stocks drop for third day on war in Middle East and growing uncertainty
By Francis Tang
Concerns are growing that the conflict could drag on and oil prices could rise further.
The Nikkei 225 stock average fell for a third straight day as investors remained concerned about higher oil prices.
A window overlooks Shinjuku¡¯s skyscrapers, at a high-rise building in Tokyo, Japan, in 2016.
JAPAN / Politics
Government panel on foreign buyers of land to submit proposal this summer
By Himari Semans
The panel convened as the government aims to submit a bill to tighten restrictions on land purchases by foreign nationals in the current parliamentary session.
The Japan branch of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Tokyo High Court orders Unification Church to dissolve
By Yukana Inoue
The high court on Wednesday upheld a lower court¡¯s decision last year that stripped the group of its status as a religious organization.
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung speaks during an interview last week in Taipei. Lin has called on Japan and other partners to step up cooperation in areas such as intelligence-sharing, joint exercises, defense-industry tie-ups, data links and dealing with hybrid threats such as China¡¯s gray-zone activities.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Taiwan¡¯s FM calls for Taipei to be part of 'first island chain' security framework
By Gabriel Dominguez
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung said working with partners in the strategic string of islands that stretch from Japan to Borneo is crucial to deterring China.
Fans react after Japan won the World Baseball Classic final game against the United States, in Tokyo, in March 2023.
JAPAN
Netflix deal shuts out Japan¡¯s sports bars from freely showing WBC
By Kanako Takahara
For fans, the Netflix deal will mean a completely different experience from the past, when WBC games were aired for free, allowing sports bars to easily air them at their venues.
Fans react after Japan won the World Baseball Classic final game against the United States, in Tokyo, in March 2023.

JAPAN

The Chinese embassy in Tokyo in November
Chinese Embassy in Japan issues warning against ¡®bumpers¡¯ after viral video
By Kanako Takahara
The call for vigilance comes as Tokyo was pushing back against Beijing¡¯s claims that Japan¡¯s safety environment is deteriorating.
Tankers seen in the background in Fujairah, the United Arab Emirates, near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday
Japan to weigh collective self-defense use case by case amid Middle East conflict
The country could determine whether to exercise its right to collective self-defense in the event of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz with missiles from Iran or elsewhere.
Man held for splashing oil-like substance at shrine near Tokyo in 2015
Space One cancels rocket launch after safety system activates
40 years on, Japan steps up fight against workplace harassment
Hiroshima governor pushes for woman-empowered workplaces to boost rural areas

BUSINESS

Trade minister Ryosei Akazawa is making his 12th visit to Washington since tariff negotiations started last April, and the second this year.
Akazawa heading to U.S. to discuss more projects under $550 billion pledge
By Francis Tang
Three projects have already been agreed upon and others could be concluded soon.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda has pledged to closely monitor developments as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran reverberates across the region.
Middle East conflict could affect Japan¡¯s economy significantly, says BOJ's Ueda
By Toru Fujioka
Japan¡¯s reliance on Middle Eastern oil has hovered around 90%, the economy ministry has said, with much of that oil traveling through the Strait of Hormuz.
Nuclear power project could be added to investment package, sources say
By Tamiyuki Kihara and Makiko Yamazaki
¡®Mr. Lufthansa¡¯ taps crisis playbook to tackle costs, union battles
By Ilona Wissenbach and Joanna Plucinska
South Korea¡¯s AI-fueled stock euphoria unravels on Iran war risk
By Sangmi Cha
Japan Post Insurance to shift to high-yield bonds, CEO says
By Nao Sano

WORLD

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and President Donald Trump shake hands during a joint news conference at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, in December lat year.
Netanyahu's war alliance with Trump faces test as Iran crisis widens
By Maayan Lubell and Rami Ayyub
At the outset of the bombing campaign on Saturday, both sides said regime change was the goal. Days later, the U.S. said it had a different aim in mind.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to reporters amid closed-door briefings for members of Congress on the ongoing conflict with Iran, at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday.
Trump and Rubio offer conflicting reasons for U.S. entry into Iran war
By Nandita Bose, Steve Holland and Nathan Layne
The U.S. president said he believed Iran was about to strike first; his secretary of state spoke of fears that Iran would retaliate in response to planned Israeli action.
Taiwan indicts 62 people linked to suspected scam center operator Prince Group
Philippine lawmakers advance impeachment of Vice President Duterte
Poland will eventually seek its own nuclear weapons, Tusk says
By Zosia Wanat
Trump says U.K.¡¯s Starmer is no Winston Churchill after rift over Iran strikes
By Nandita Bose, Trevor Hunnicutt and Kate Holton

Sports

Samurai Japan players celebrate after Seiya Suzuki's home run against the Tigers at Kyocera Dome Osaka on Tuesday.
Samurai Japan¡¯s path to a WBC repeat starts with Pool C in Tokyo
By Jason Coskrey
The sixth edition of the World Baseball Classic is set to kick off on Thursday, with Japan facing Australia, the Czech Republic, South Korea and Taiwan in the first round.
Rennie appointed Robertson's successor as All Blacks coach
By Nick Mulvenney
WTA players divided on five-set matches proposal at Grand Slams
By Rory Carroll
Miho Takagi, 91²Ö¿â most decorated Winter Olympian, announces retirement
Former No. 1 MLB draft pick Travis Bazzana ready for first taste of WBC
By Jason Coskrey

Opinion

The U.S. attacks on Iran contradict Washington¡¯s stated strategic priorities, risk draining resources from the Indo-Pacific focus on China and expose the persistent dilemma of Middle East entanglements.
The Middle East ensnares another U.S. president
Brad Glosserman
Trump¡¯s attack on Iran undermines the credibility of objections to Chinese aggression.
SoftBank¡¯s Ohio power plant delivers an AI sticker shock
By Liam Denning
The high price of political paranoia
By Nina L. Khrushcheva
AI leaders may spend billions only to lose the market
By Gautam Mukunda
Lessons for Japan from Russia¡¯s war in Ukraine
By Yuichi Yoshida

ENVIRONMENT

A shed submerged by floodwaters. Insured losses from natural catastrophes globally reached $107 billion last year, according to reinsurer Swiss Re.
Insurers urge Australia to launch $21 billion flood defense fund
By David Stringer
The funding would be used on tasks including adding more flood-protection infrastructure like dams or levees, and also for a property buyback program.
What Trump¡¯s new tariffs mean for climate tech
By Coco Liu
India celebrates cheetah births to boost reintroduction bid
By Peter Martelli
Junk to high-tech: India bets on e-waste for critical minerals
By Arunabh SAIKIA and Uzmi ATHAR
Indonesia coal plant closure U-turn sows energy transition doubts
By Marchio Gorbiano

CULTURE

Katayama works with analog photography and handicraft practices such as embroidery and needlework, designing and handsewing objects she attaches to her body that she then captures in self-portraits.
Mari Katayama wins inaugural Mori Art Prize
By Jennifer Pastore
The biennial Mori Art Award, among the largest payouts for a single contemporary artist in Japan, was established in 2025.
¡®Kaneko Fumiko¡¯: Firebrand behind bars shows unyielding resolve
By Mark Schilling
¡®#Viral¡¯: A Faustian tale about internet fame and anti-vax anxiety
By James Hadfield
What is Zipangu? Inside J-pop¡¯s first-of-its-kind Los Angeles festival
By Patrick St. Michel
Kishida Prize crowns wordsmiths in the theater world
By Kris Kosaka

LIFE

Tokyo¡¯s Jimbocho neighborhood has all kinds of bookshops and cafes, but it is mainly known for its abundance of stores selling secondhand books.
Inside a Japanese bookshop: Words you need to browse in Jimbocho
By Eric Margolis
Decode shelving systems, publisher groupings and reader slang before making the most of Tokyo¡¯s famed literary district.
From Italy to Japan: Vannelli Coffee opens in Tokyo
By Weiwen Lin
In bilingual homes, raising hearing-impaired kids is a long road toward a ¡®normal life¡¯
By Yang Xiong
On westernmost Yonaguni, geopolitics can¡¯t spoil the island¡¯s aura
By Edward J. Taylor
Where Tokyoites go for Chinese hot pot
By Mike Fu

COMMUNITY

The Austrian team at this year¡¯s International Snow Sculpture Contest ¡ª (from left) Michelle Steinmetz, Karl Pont and Daniel Nachbaur ¡ª pose with their creation.
In Sapporo, snow becomes a shared language
By Karl Pont
Working in temperatures as low as minus 6 degrees Celsius, artists from around the world convened in Sapporo this February to continue a tradition 50 years running.
Don¡¯t keep patient Pine waiting any longer
Recentering Okinawa, one story at a time
By Kris Kosaka
Pomelo peps up a Kobe couple¡¯s life
After closures and breaks, Tokyo's 'Little India' regains its footing
By Shyam Bhardwa

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
¡®My hope has fear inside it¡¯: Iranians in Japan react to attacks back home
By Jessica Speed and Yukana Inoue
Somayyeh Mehri speaks in an interview on Monday in Tokyo. The psychological weight of watching events unfold from Japan is gut-wrenching for Mehri.
BASEBALL
Shohei Ohtani returns to Japan as the center of attention ahead of WBC
By Jason Coskrey
Shohei Ohtani is back with Samurai Japan for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Ohtani was the MVP of the 2023 tournament.
LIFE
Inside a Japanese bookshop: Words you need to browse in Jimbocho
By Eric Margolis
Tokyo¡¯s Jimbocho neighborhood has all kinds of bookshops and cafes, but it is mainly known for its abundance of stores selling secondhand books.
BASEBALL
The Japanese talent to watch out for during the 2026 WBC
By Jason Coskrey
The Tigers' Teruaki Sato (left) speaks with Japanese Baseball Hall of Famer Hideki Matsui during Samurai Japan's training camp in Miyazaki on Feb. 14.
CULTURE
From clicks to claps: Online comics seek the stage
By Laura Pollacco
Richard Tomic, better known as ¡°Ricchaado¡± to his Instagram followers, debuted his stand-up set at Tokyo Comedy Bar in Shibuya Ward in December.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

As Japan accelerates AI adoption, policymakers and corporations frame the technology as essential to offsetting a projected labor shortfall of 11 million workers by 2040.
Japan is betting big on AI. Few workers have used it.
By Eric Margolis

JT Directory Service

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WHAT¡¯S TRENDING

WORLD
Iran's missile math: $20,000 drones take on $4 million Patriots
By Golnar Motevalli and Gerry Doyle
A drone is shown during Iran¡¯s annual Army Day parade on April 18, 2025, in Tehran.
JAPAN
Trump¡¯s Iran attacks put Japan in tough spot as it emphasizes rules-based order
By Jesse Johnson and Himari Semans
Smoke rises after coordinated U.S. and Israeli airstrikes in Tehran on Sunday, as joint military operations hit targets in the capital.
ASIA PACIFIC
China showing few signs it will directly supply arms to Iran
Two Iran-made ballistic missiles are displayed during a rally commemorating the 47th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution's victory in Freedom Square in Tehran on Feb. 12.
BUSINESS
India¡¯s GDP revisions mean it will take longer to overtake Japan
Surpassing Japan would be more of a reflection of scale than prosperity for India. Per capita income in the country remains just above $3,000, a fraction of Japan¡¯s $36,390, according to IMF estimates for 2026.
JAPAN
Foreign driver's license conversion rates plunge after tighter rules brought in
By Yukana Inoue
The percentage of foreign drivers who passed the written test for a Japanese driver¡¯s license dropped to 42.8% between October and December last year, and the practical test, to 13.1%, police figures show.