News On Japan

A powerful typhoon gained hit the northeastern tip of the Philippines on Sunday night and then veered north into the open sea toward southern Japan. (Japan Today)

Japan's government plans to enhance saury stock management partly by setting Japanese fishing boats' combined catch quota in coastal waters around the country at 264,000 tons for the year from July, the lowest level under the current regulatory framework that started in 1997, informed sources said Monday. (Jiji Press)

Japan's composite index of coincident economic indicators for March fell 1.2 points from the previous month, the Cabinet Office said Tuesday. (Jiji Press)

A task force of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party proposed Tuesday the introduction of national examinations for prospective teachers of elementary, junior high and high schools to enhance teachers' qualifications. (Jiji Press)

U.S. airlines are increasingly passing over Japan's largest international airport, as they have boosted their number of flights directly connecting the U.S. and Asian cities outside Japan. (Jiji Press)

NTT Docomo, Inc. plans to allow point exchanges between its point system and the Ponta loyalty program as early as in December, it was learned Tuesday. (The Japan News)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe instructed his macroeconomic policy panel Tuesday to seek ways to achieve both fiscal reconstruction and economic growth. (Jiji Press)

Japan's alcoholic beverage consumption measured in terms of pure alcohol stood at 7.2 liters per person in 2012, less than the world's average of 9.1 liters, a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development revealed Tuesday. (Jiji Press)

Tokyo has banned the use of drones in city-operated parks and gardens. (NHK)

Police on Tuesday arrested a 35-year-old woman for the murder of her 5-year-old son whom she allegedly threw to his death from a window in their 13th-floor apartment in Tokyo's Arakawa Ward last December. (Japan Today)

The Philippines' gambling regulator said Tuesday it would suspend Japanese tycoon Kazuo Okada's license to operate a $1 billion Manila casino if he fails to explain construction delays. (Japan Today)

Japan's current account surplus in March came to 2,795.3 billion yen, up sharply from 130.6 billion yen a year before and the highest since 2008 for the month, the Ministry of Finance said Wednesday. (Jiji Press)

Miss Japan Ariana Miyamoto has faced a backlash after winning the title for not being Japanese enough. But, Miyamoto is using the criticism to fuel her fight against racial prejudice. (smh.com.au)

Japanese stocks rose to over two-week highs on Wednesday, bouncing from earlier losses helped by investors buying Nikkei futures and on expectations the Bank Of Japan would buy equities, traders said. (Reuters)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police on Wednesday announced the arrest of a former president of a talent agency for sexually violating a 15-year-old aspiring female model last year, reports the Sankei Shimbun (May 13). (Tokyo Reporter)

Japanese electronics maker Sharp has decided to scale down its plan to greatly reduce its capital after government criticism of the attempt to ease the firm's tax burden. (NHK)

Police in Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture, on Wednesday arrested a 30-year-old woman on a charge of abandoning a body after the corpse of a newborn baby girl was discovered in the cemetery of a temple. (Japan Today)

An earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 6.8 on the open-ended Richter scale jolted northeastern Japan Wednesday morning. (Jiji Press)

Japanese car giants Toyota and Nissan are recalling a total of 6.5 million cars globally to replace potentially faulty airbag inflators made by Takata. (BBC)

About 500 people wearing splendid ancient costumes and traditional makeup parade through the main streets of Kyoto. The festival is called Aoi Matsuri because aoi (hollyhock) leaves are used as ornaments not only on the people's costumes, but even on cows and horses. (The Japan News)

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