Japan

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Japan's Oldest Giant Panda Dies
 Japan's Oldest Giant Panda Dies 
Apr 30, 2008 9:00 AM CDT

Japan's Oldest Giant Panda Dies

Tokyo Zoo star was 22

(Newser) - Ling Ling, the undisputed star of the Tokyo Zoo and a symbol of friendship between Japan and China, died today of heart failure, the AP reports. At 22—the equivalent of 70 human years—the giant panda was Japan’s oldest, and the fifth-oldest in the world. Ling Ling had...

Torch Relay Fires Up Thousands in Japan

Riot police block flame as protesters pepper pro-China crowd

(Newser) - A pro-China crowd peppered with protesters welcomed the Olympic torch relay in Japan today, BBC reports. Japan's national baseball manager kicked off the run in Nagano with 40 riot cops on each side, mostly blocking the view of thousands of onlookers. Cops nabbed one protester for trying to grab the...

US Charges Marine With Okinawa Rape

Military does own investigation after Japan drops charges

(Newser) - The US military has charged a Marine with rape of a child, adultery, and kidnapping after an assault on a 14-year-old girl in Okinawa, CNN reports. Japanese officials had released the Marine earlier this year after the girl, apparently not wanting to be in the public eye, dropped the allegations....

Health History Hidden in Urine
 Health History Hidden in Urine 
Apr 21, 2008 10:07 AM CDT

Health History Hidden in Urine

Metabolites differ across national, ethnic boundaries, could offer insight into disease

(Newser) - Urine does indeed hold metabolic clues, researchers have found, and could shed light on blood pressure and heart problems, the Times of London reports. "Metabolic profiling can tell us how specific aspects of a person’s diet and how much they drink are contributing to their risks for certain...

Dior Vogue Shoot Is Cats Pajamas for Hello Kitty

Cartoon figure to model with Galliano

(Newser) - The newest icon to model the latest Dior designs is short, pudgy, and has stubby legs and facial hair. But that doesn't seem to bother Dior designer John Galliano, Reuters reports. The ubiquitous Japanese cartoon character Hello Kitty will be featured in the upcoming issue of Japanese Vogue—sporting new...

Japan Warns of Croc Danger
 Japan Warns of Croc Danger 
Apr 18, 2008 5:46 PM CDT

Japan Warns of Croc Danger

Officials want changes to popular clogs, susceptible to escalator mishaps

(Newser) - After their research confirmed what many had complained about, Japanese officials today asked the makers of popular Crocs clogs to do something about a design that makes wearers susceptible to getting caught in escalators, the AP reports. The grip and flexibility of the plastic footwear led to several dozen incidents...

Opposition Finally Backs New Chief for Bank of Japan

Shirakawa to fill critical spot as stalemate ends

(Newser) - The Democratic Party of Japan has accepted a new central banker just in time for the crucial meeting of G7 finance leaders in Washington on Friday, reports the International Business Times. The top spot has been vacant since March 19, leaving the bank vulnerable during an unsteady economic time. Masaaki...

Japanese Women Turn to 'Geisha Guys'

Hot 'accessories' earn their pay with flattery, companionship

(Newser) - A new breed of companion is the rage in Japan, entertaining women with lavish compliments, conversation and undivided attention—the male geisha. Businesswomen pay upwards of $1,000 a night for these men, CNN reports—with, industry reps say, nothing physical being exchanged. Hundreds of such services have sprouted across...

Japan Busts US Sailor in Murder-Robbery

Navy man charged in cabbie's stabbing outside Tokyo

(Newser) - Japanese police arrested a US sailor today on suspicion of stabbing a taxi driver to death and then robbing him, Reuters reports. The 22-year-old Nigerian national serving in the American Navy was already in US custody on charges of desertion. The American ambassador to Japan was forced to apologize for...

World Attitudes Toward US Improving: Poll

Fewer believe US exerts negative influence

(Newser) - A worldwide wave of anti-Americanism appears to be abating a bit, though global views toward the US continue to be mainly negative, according to a BBC World Service poll. The average percentage of people saying the US is a negative global influence dropped to below 50% for the first time...

Japanese Swindle Could Cost Lehman $250M

Forged docs from Japanese firm secured big loans

(Newser) - Possible fraud involving forged documents from a Japanese trading firm may have cost Lehman Brothers $250 million, the Wall Street Journal reports. The investment bank loaned funds to a Japanese biotech firm last year; the transaction was secured by top trading company Marubeni Corp. But the biotech firm filed for...

Japan's Inflation Surges
 Japan's Inflation Surges 
Mar 28, 2008 8:58 AM CDT

Japan's Inflation Surges

Unemployment also rises in world's second-largest economy

(Newser) - A double whammy of rising inflation and unemployment has experts worried that Japan’s economy—the world’s second largest—is fast losing steam, reports the Wall Street Journal. Inflation in February rose 1%, its fastest spike in a decade, and household spending stalled in the face of rising food...

MLB Starts Season With Rising Sun

Red Sox, A's take the field in Tokyo

(Newser) - The sun was just rising in Boston today as the Red Sox began their World Series title defense by taking on the Oakland Athletics half a world away. Many American fans were still in bed, but Japanese aficionados were paying rapt attention, the Christian Science Monitor reports. The Sox have...

Okinawa Protesters Rip US Military Crimes

Rape case sparks calls for slashing bases

(Newser) - Thousands poured into the streets of Okinawa today to protest crimes by US servicemen and to demand a smaller American military presence on the Japanese island, Reuters reports. "Crimes and accidents have happened over and over," said the mayor of Okinawa City. "But each time, our voices...

Japan Faces Credit Crisis With No Central Bank Governor

Political standoff leaves BoJ top job vacant

(Newser) - When markets are in chaos and currencies are fluctuating wildly, central bankers jump in to try to provide stability, as Ben Bernanke has done at the Fed. But in Tokyo a political standoff has left the Bank of Japan without a leader at the worst possible moment, reports the AFP....

Red Sox Boycott Resolved Bloodlessly

Players threatened to stay home unless staff, too, get paid for Japan trip

(Newser) - The Boston Red Sox are headed to Japan as planned after Major League Baseball gave in to players' demands that team coaches be paid for the trip, the Boston Globe reports. Players threatened not to board this afternoon's flight to Tokyo for season-opening games Tuesday and Wednesday against Oakland; "...

How Yahoo Would Improve Microsoft

(Newser) - Yahoo today restated its opinion that Microsoft’s $44.6 billion buyout bid underestimates the online giant’s “combination of unique assets,” but for the first time stated publicly the strengths it would bring to the Microsoft merger, MarketWatch reports. In an investor presentation for the SEC, the...

Dextre Lives! Space Robot Gets Power

NASA solves glitch; astronauts continue assembly tonight

(Newser) - Dextre's finally getting some juice. Astronauts aboard the international space station solved a glitch last night and got power flowing to their partially built robot, the AP reports. Now they can go ahead with a spacewalk tonight to finish assembling it. “There was obviously some real concern over the...

Dollar Sinks Below 100 Yen
 Dollar Sinks Below 100 Yen 
Mar 13, 2008 5:10 AM CDT

Dollar Sinks Below 100 Yen

Stocks tumble as dollar hits 12-year low

(Newser) - The dollar's decline continued today, dropping below the symbolically dramatic threshhold of 100 yen for the first time in 12 years. The greenback held on just above ¥100 during the trading day in Tokyo before slumping to ¥99.80 in Europe this morning. The dollar took a pummeling...

Tourism Busts Pre-9/11 Record
Tourism Busts Pre-9/11 Record
Mar 11, 2008 3:00 AM CDT

Tourism Busts Pre-9/11 Record

57 million foreign visitors traveled to US

(Newser) - Nearly 57 million foreign tourists visited the US last year, pumping more than $123 billion into the economy, Reuters reports. It's the first time a tourism record has been broken since the 9/11 attacks staggered the industry. Some 17.7 million visitors traveled from Canada and 15 million from Mexico....

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