schools
Baseball: Giants draft 14-yr-old junior high student as development player
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Yomiuri Giants selected 14-year-old junior high school catcher Rentaro Seki with their fifth pick in Thursday's developmental dra
The Tokyo
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Local
Tokyo used condo prices fall in September for 4th straight month
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The average asking price for a used condominium in Tokyo's 23 wards in September fell 0.4 percent from August to 126.29 million yen (
safety
Power bank fires caused 36 train delays in Japan over decade
TOKYO -- At least 36 train delays have been caused by passengers' power banks catching fire across Japan over the past 10 years. Some incidents have h
safety
Japan idols face 'purity' pressure as romance reports spark online personal attacks
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Formal dating bans have become rare in Japan's idol industry, yet reports of relationships still trigger online firestorms that expos
News
Hokkaido population falls below 5 mil. in Japan's largest prefectural drop; Sapporo shrinks
SAPPORO -- The population of Japan's northernmost prefecture Hokkaido dropped 244,342, or 4.7%, to 4,980,272 from 2020 to 2025, the largest decline of
Local
Japan's largest labor union to seek around 6% pay hike next spring
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's largest labor union said Thursday it will demand a wage hike of around 6 percent, with a minimum of 5 percent, in next spring
government
Japan PM, Yokohama mayor agree to cooperate on 2027 horticultural expo
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Yokohama Mayor Atsumi Harasawa agreed Thursday to cooperate to ensure the success of an in
Local
Japan may allow cashless payments for minor traffic fines
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Drivers and cyclists in Japan may be able to pay fines for minor traffic violations by credit card or mobile payment app as early as
News
A New Look for Nippon.com on October 28
We’re refreshing the look and feel of our website with an all-new design. From 14:00 to 17:00 on Wednesday, October 28, Japan time, you may have trouble accessing our content, but we will be back online soon....
News
Former star slugger Hideki Matsui to become next manager of Giants in NPB
Matsui hit 332 home runs during his career in Japan with Yomiuri.
government
Japan eyes health checkup support for truant students
Some municipalities allow truant students to undergo health checkups on days and times when they would not meet other students at school.
schools
Education ministry to offer one-year teaching license course for working adults
The ministry is aiming to secure more teachers in Japan by making it easier for working adults to switch careers to teaching.
News
Koizumi to meet Finnish defense chief, with nuclear policy shift to top agenda
The talks come after Finland revised a law allowing nuclear weapons into the country — a decision that came as Japan weighs a similar shift in policy.
Local
Ex-University of Tokyo professor gets suspended sentence over bribes
According to the ruling, the 63-year-old former professor, Shinichi Sato, received a total of about ¥1.83 million worth of entertainment.
Local
Can Japan become a player in the Arctic?
Tokyo's stake in the region has only been amplified as receding sea ice creates new possibilities for maritime transport and resource development.
safety
AI cameras installed to detect bears, alert public in Japan's Aomori Pref.
AOMORI -- Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan on Oct. 21 installed sensor cameras equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) recognition technology at
Local
Tokyo stocks fall, Nikkei below 63,000 on profit-taking amid AI concerns
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Tokyo stocks retreated Thursday, with the benchmark Nikkei index ending below the 63,000 line for the first time since July, as gains
News
Stolen peace bell gifted by Japan city recovered in Turkish sister city
ISTANBUL (Kyodo) -- A peace bell gifted to a Turkish city by its Japanese sister city has been recovered after being stolen last month, according to T
safety
2 managers of Tokyo pharmacy arrested for drug sales without prescriptions
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Two managers of a pharmacy in Tokyo popular with Chinese customers, including visitors to Japan, have been arrested on suspicion of s
schools
Japan to set up curriculum to obtain teacher's license in 1 year
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Japanese government plans to establish a new postgraduate curriculum enabling people without prior teacher training to obtain a t
Local
Japan gov't sites partially suspended as patching of PHP flaws underway
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Some Japanese ministry webpages have been partially suspended as a preventive measure following the detection of vulnerabilities in t
Local
Japan weighs electricity, gas subsidies for January-March 2027
TOKYO -- Japan's government has begun considering subsidies for electricity and gas bills from January to March next year to ease household burdens as
Local
Japan bill would allow premarital surnames to stand alone on registrations, qualifications
TOKYO -- Premarital surnames would be allowed to stand alone on certain official records under a draft bill now being considered by the government, it
government
Editorial: Is Japan PM counting on voters to forget 'money in politics' scandals?
The problem of money in Japan's politics remains neglected. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has shown no sign of attempting to eradicate it.Fresh allega
safety
River in northeastern Japan overflows, emergency warning issued
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- A river in the northeastern Japan prefecture of Akita swelled and overflowed on Wednesday, prompting the country's weather agency to
Local
Megabank's services, JR websites affected as patching of PHP flaws underway
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Moves to address vulnerabilities found in the widely used PHP programming language continued Thursday, with MUFG Bank and JR West ann
safety
Vulnerabilities found in widely used PHP programming language
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Vulnerabilities were found in the widely used PHP programming language on Wednesday, making the developer race to release emergency p
Local
The Mainichi News Quiz: What was unusual about the "Matt Race" contest in Tokyo?
How closely have you been following events in Japan? Try The Mainichi News Quiz for Oct. 22 to test your news knowledge. Ready?What was unusual about
News
Japan’s Nursing Care Expenditure Reaches Record ¥12 Trillion
Japan’s total expenditure on nursing and preventive care for elderly residents rose by 2.3% to ¥12.2 trillion in fiscal 2025.
business
Visitors to Japan will soon have to wait for consumption tax refunds
The process will no longer be completed at store counters but handled at airports at the time of departure.