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May 04, 2026
 

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Komaki Ito
A prototype of a Rapidus 300mm wafer displayed at the Semicon Japan exhibition. The industry ministry has earmarked ?150 billion for state-backed chip venture Rapidus, bringing the cumulative government investment in the venture to ?250 billion.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 26, 2025
Japan to quadruple spending support for chips and AI in budget
The jump in chips and AI spending comes at as Japan is trying to strengthen its capacities in frontier technology, and the U.S. and China race ahead.
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2023
Taiwan¡¯s PSMC to team up with SBI to build foundry in Japan
SBI will help raise funds for the venture, which plans to begin with 40-nanometer and 55nm automotive and industrial chips and produce more advanced 28nm chips in the medium to long term.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 5, 2023
Daiwa gives workers OK to 'freely use' ChatGPT as part of tech drive
The company has been strengthening the recruitment of science graduates to develop high-tech experts in house.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2023
91²Ö¿â top banks expect solid profits, MUFG sees record year
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group, 91²Ö¿â second- and third-largest lenders by assets, also expect their highest net profits since the mid 2010s.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 25, 2023
Bankers chase startups in Japan as funding dries up elsewhere
Lenders including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking and Mizuho Bank are planning to increase the staff they allocate to startup businesses.
BUSINESS
Apr 19, 2023
Japanese banks face ¡®gender washing¡¯ spotlight on its managers
The issue has broader implications for other industries in Japan, which has long lagged behind global counterparts for workplace diversity.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Apr 11, 2023
Regulator urges local banks to improve asset portfolio management
The FSA has been warning of risks posed by rising interest rates to regional lenders¡¯ bond holdings long before the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank last month.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 3, 2023
Sumitomo Mitsui wants Wall Street bankers for U.S. expansion
The newly appointed head of the firm¡¯s core banking unit says the downturn in the global economy will help it attract talent as it seeks to boost areas like sales and trading.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 26, 2023
MUFG markets chief says BOJ may ditch ultraeasy policy by September
Such a move would depend on stable price increases and wage growth, as well as the health of the U.S. and European economies, Hiroyuki Seki said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 23, 2022
MUFG weighs more share buybacks to boost returns as cash grows
The plan underscores the challenges facing 91²Ö¿â biggest banks as they weigh how to invest billions of dollars in profits amid ultralow interest rates and tepid loan demand at home.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 13, 2022
91²Ö¿â financial watchdog examines bond slump risk if BOJ shifts policy
At stake is around u00a5151.5 trillion ($1.1 trillion) in debt held by mega-banks and regional lenders.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 15, 2022
Japan¡¯s megabanks plan $2.5 billion buybacks
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group both said they will buy back shares while Mizuho Financial Group upped a dividend forecast.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 24, 2022
Japan¡¯s banks break with Wall Street by embracing hybrid work
The nation's three largest lenders said they are allowing more flexibility, eschewing a minimum number of office days per week, as experienced elsewhere.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 14, 2022
Wall Street push by Japan banks under scrutiny as rates rise
Faced with ultralow interest rates and tepid loan demand at home, banks in Japan have been ramping up corporate lending and bond underwriting overseas.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 25, 2022
Japan¡¯s biggest lender seeks bankers for the rich in wealth push
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group plans to expand a team of bankers serving rich clients as the lender seeks to draw more of its bank customers to higher-value services.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 8, 2022
Mizuho playing catch-up on transaction banking and plans more hires
The firm is seeking to grow its head count to add to the roughly 160 transaction bankers it already has in Asia, CEO Masahiko Kato said, without specifying a number.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 7, 2022
Amid deepening yen weakness, a mixed blessing sours for Japan
What had long been considered a boon for 91²Ö¿â economy is increasingly in question as the yen's recent plunge aggravates the impact of surging commodity prices.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Mar 8, 2022
Pay gap for working women keeps wages down for everyone in Japan
91²Ö¿â gender pay gap is the highest among the Group of Seven nations.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 27, 2022
Japan¡¯s ?10 trillion innovation fund ramps up alternative focus
Set to start by the end of March, the new fund will seek annual returns of 4.38% in order to pay out u00a5300 billion each year for high-level research across Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 13, 2022
Japan needs a major carbon tax hike, former vice minister says
Rintaro Tamaki, a former Finance Ministry official, says a 'price signal' would help the government change people's mindset on green issues.
Yen soars as Japan intervenes after issuing 'final' warning
Pedestrians walk past a stock quotation board showing the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen, outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Thursday.
Not even Japanese bathhouses are immune from shocks of Iran war
The interior of Ume-no-yu, a public bathhouse in the city of Nagano. Soaring oil prices driven by the war in the Middle East are threatening to deal a final blow to a storied Japanese institution: the sento, or traditional public bathhouse.
New Zealand officials reject statue remembering 91²Ö¿â comfort women
A statue symbolizing former South Korean comfort women in Seoul
Water shortages hit tourist spots in Japan during Golden Week
A hot spring facility in the city of Tomioka, Gunma Prefecture, has suspended the operation of its open-air baths since March.
Japan determined to prop up yen through intervention
An electronic board displays the foreign exchange rate of the yen against the dollar along a street in Tokyo on Thursday.
For tourists in Japan¡¯s outdoor sports scene, safety is not guaranteed
Each winter, countless tourists flock to Japan's famous snow-covered mountains, but a lack of top-down regulation on the country's outdoor sports industry can make certain activities unnecessarily risky.
¡®Sashiko¡¯ needlework artisan says craft is about 'the stories behind the stitching'
Traditional Japanese needlework has exploded in popularity, but a book from a third-generation artisan aims to bring more context to the craft's newfound popularity.
Tennis trailblazer Kei Nishikori announces his retirement
Kei Nishikori, who has won 12 titles on the ATP Tour and climbed as high as No. 4 in the world rankings, on Thursday announced his retirement.
Japanese fried chicken with a Southern twist
A buttermilk-inspired marinade gives a rich umami flavor to your fried chicken.
Documentary captures the long echo of Fukushima's nuclear disaster
Toru Yamada¡¯s documentary ¡°At the Triangle Intersection,¡± which delves into the lingering impact of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, follows Tetsu (center), the matriarch of the Watanabe family, her son, Takemasa (right) and her daughter-in-law, Shigeko.

Podcast

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

Longform

Projects like the BuddhaBot aim to re-create dialogue once lost to time, raising questions about whether AI can extend the teachings of Buddha or merely simulate them.
Can AI replace a priest? Japan¡¯s temples and shrines are testing the limits.
By Alex K.T. Martin

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