A powerful winter pressure pattern has prevailed throughout Japan and brought heavy snow to the mountainous regions along the Sea of Japan. The Meteorological Agency says that as of 11 AM on Monday, the snowfall reached a depth of 2.04 meters in Hinoemata village in Fukushima Prefecture and 1.71 meters in Tsunan town in Niigata […]
The government plans to let Emperor Akihito abdicate on Dec. 31, 2018, and switch to a new era with Crown Prince Naruhito’s ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne the following day, sources said. The start of the new era on Jan. 1, 2019, is intended to minimize confusion in people’s lives, the government sources said. The […]
The transport ministry says Japan had a record high 24.03 million foreign visitors last year. The figure rose by 21.8 percent, or over 4.3 million, from the previous high of 19.7 million set in 2015. Officials attribute the jump to the increase in the number of flights and cruise ships from Asian countries, as well […]
Japanese government officials say wages rose slightly in November compared to a year earlier. But when adjusted for inflation, individual earnings actually fell, going down for the first time in nearly a year. The Labor ministry surveyed about 33,000 businesses across the country. They found that workers earned on average about 275,000 yen a month, […]
The average temperature in Japan in 2016 was the highest since the start of such data in 1898, surpassing the previous record, set in 1990, the Japan Meteorological Agency said Wednesday. The 2016 average was 0.88 degree higher than the average for the 30 years through 2010, whereas the 1990 average was 0.78 degree higher, […]
French authorities are scrutinizing developments that may have resulted in the recent break-up between a Japanese woman missing in France and her Chilean former boyfriend, who is suspected of killing her. A month has passed since 21-year-old Narumi Kurosaki, who was studying in Besancon, France, went missing. She is a student at the University of […]
French prosecutors have put a Chilean man on an international wanted list for the suspected killing of a Japanese woman. 21-year-old Narumi Kurosaki has been missing since December 4th. She was an exchange student in the French city of Besancon. The prosecutors did not mention the suspect’s name or age and did not explain the […]
Eleven people were rushed to hospitals here after choking on mochi rice cakes on Sunday, two of the victims choking to death, authorities said. The Tokyo Fire Department said a total of 11 people, aged between 28 and 89, were rushed to hospitals after choking on mochi by 9 p.m., Nippon News Network reports (Jan. […]
Emperor Akihito expressed his wishes for peace in Japan and the world on Jan. 2 in an address to the many well-wishers who assembled at the Imperial Palace to share New Year’s greetings. “I pray that people will be able to spend a year in which they find themselves enriched and at peace,” Akihito, 83, […]
The Tokyo metropolitan government predicts the population of Japan’s capital will reach its peak in 2025. That’s 5 years later than the previous forecast. Officials made 5-year projections through 2060 based on the 2015 national census. They say 13.52 million people lived in Tokyo in 2015. The population is projected to hit 13.98 million in […]
