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November 09, 2026
The Independent Voice in Asia
November 09, 2026
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Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrives at the Prime Minister's office in Tokyo on Nov. 4.
JAPAN / Politics
Japan works to shield Takaichi from any Xi snub at China summit
Ties between Japan and China have over the past year hit one of their lowest ebbs since the countries normalized relations in 1972.

More coverage

Japan and China shifting toward selective economic dependence
Few signs of thaw in Japan-China relations one year after Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrives at the Prime Minister's office in Tokyo on Nov. 4.
Okinawa Gov. Genta Koja speaks at a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Okinawa’s Koja calls for central government to explain ‘minimum’ military buildup
By Maddie Baker
Okinawa Gov. Genta Koja emphasized the need to balance building up Japan’s defense capabilities in the southernmost prefecture with residents’ wishes.
LDP lawmaker Yoshihisa Furukawa (center) leaves the Lower House plenary session on Friday as the food tax bill is about to be voted on.
JAPAN / Politics
Takaichi and LDP weigh disciplinary action for party members who abstained from food tax vote
By Eric Johnston
Party leadership demanded that the lawmakers, including former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, write statements on why they walked out of the vote.
Japan plans to develop an AI-powered language-learning app that lets overseas anime and manga fans practice Japanese through conversations with popular characters.
JAPAN / Media
Government betting on language app powered by anime and AI
By Jessica Speed
The planned app would target young people overseas, allowing them to have AI-powered conversations in Japanese with popular anime characters.
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus Zero” marked the highest single-day box-office gross for a live-action film in Japan with ¥910 million on its opening day.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ makes monster debut at the box office
By Alyssa I. Smith
Opening-day takings marked the highest single-day box office revenue for a live-action film in Japanese history, according to the film’s X account.
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus Zero” marked the highest single-day box-office gross for a live-action film in Japan with ¥910 million on its opening day.

JAPAN

The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested Yu Hai, a 31-year-old Chinese national living in Tokyo's Kita Ward, on suspicion of operating an unlicensed base station from a vehicle in Tokyo's Ginza district on Saturday.
Man arrested over operation of rogue cellular base station in Tokyo
Chinese national Yu Hai, 31, is believed to have caused smartphones to connect to the base station through which fraudulent messages were transmitted.
A survey showed that many families with children attending private high schools are struggling to pay expenses other than tuition.
Private high schools remain out of reach for many despite tuition-free policy, survey finds
While tuition-free private high school education began in April, families still face a heavy financial burden from expenses other than tuition.
Japan and Vietnam agree to boost economic security and energy ties
By Nguyen Dieu Tu Uyen and Sakura Murakami
Gyan-tsuma: How one woman discovered her husband’s gambling addiction
Peer-support program for healthier aging gains ground in Sendai
Japan to launch online reporting system for nursing care accidents

BUSINESS

United Airlines planes at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey on Aug. 6
Airlines bet that more premium offerings will boost profits
By Elodie MAZEIN
The strategy is expected to accelerate the shrinking share of coach class on many flights.
Uniqlo's decision to row back on its sock price hike came as it sought to protect its status as a paragon of affordability portrayed in local media.
‘Feeling guilty’: price hikes a tough sell in Japan despite inflation
By Tomohiro Osaki
Firms are struggling as they battle rising costs in a country where decades of deflation have nurtured a consumer class averse to higher prices.
Philippine economic slump worsens on Iran war, bad weather
Nvidia CEO’s affair engulfs AI giant in Chinese spying probe
By Ian King
Mitsui Chemicals to take over chip linchpin JSR for $12 billion
Anthropic mega IPO helps Mizuho make a run at Nomura’s turf
By Yasutaka Tamura

WORLD

U.S. President Donald Trump holds a binder as he stands next to Chinese leader Xi Jinping before Xi delivers a speech during a state dinner at the White House in Washington on Sept. 24.
Trump-Xi-Putin trilateral summit moves closer to reality
By Jesse Johnson
U.S. President Donald Trump said talks with China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin were likely to be held at next week’s APEC summit.
Ukrainian forces use an American-made reconnaissance drone to hunt for Russian forces in Donetsk last year.
Hacked records show 400,000 Russians killed in war on Ukraine
The material, obtained by a Belarusian pro-opposition group and a Ukrainian hacker operation, gives rare insight into the war’s true cost for Russia.
Russia has seized dozens of Ukrainian hotels. One owner is fighting back.
G7 allies to assess impact of Trump’s midterm setback at Paris talks
By John Irish
New Zealand’s Luxon on course for second term, but weaker hand in coalition
Hasina seeks new passport in clearest sign of Bangladesh return
By Krishna N. Das

Sports

Manchester United head coach Michael Carrick reacts during the Premier League match against Aston Villa at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, on Sunday.
Pressure still on Man United boss Carrick despite dramatic Villa draw
By Philip O'Connor
Manchester United manager Michael Carrick is facing another international window filled with uncertainty after his side slipped into the Premier League relegation zone despite a sensational comeback to claim a 4-4 home draw with Aston Villa.
Bears overcome mistakes, beat Bucs on game-ending field goal
Alcaraz downs Shelton to win Paris Masters for first time
By Neil FULTON
Norris wins in wet Brazil as Mercedes takes constructors’ title
By Gabriel Araujo
Gauff outruns Pegula to win thriller at WTA Finals, Noskova beats Kostyuk
By Amy Tennery

Opinion

Employees prepare food for customers in China's first official Hello Kitty-themed restaurant in Shanghai in April 2016.
China’s hard power keeps undermining its soft power
Waka Ikeda
China undoubtedly has real soft power. Yet its behavior repeatedly undermines it.
South Korea’s military ambitions get a reality check
By Ruth Pollard
The rise of the global oligarchic world order
By David Lingelbach and Valentina Rodriguez Guerra
Voters reset the debate on data centers and billionaires
By Dave Lee
Trump’s midterm shellacking: an uncertain response

ENVIRONMENT

People exercise in a garden amid smog as air pollution levels spike in New Delhi on Monday.
‘Burning’: life under the world’s dirtiest skies
By Aishwarya KUMAR
Loni, one of five areas in the Delhi metropolitan region, features among the world’s most polluted in an annual list by Swiss monitoring firm IQAir.
Environmental groups embrace AI, even as they warn of data center impacts
By Valerie Volcovici
COP31 to open in Turkey, with climate goals under pressure from war and AI
Bustling market in Dhaka shows shift to solar triggered by Middle East war
What the Democratic U.S. midterm sweep means for climate and clean energy
By Zahra Hirji

CULTURE

Koji Yakusho plays Gen Takasegawa, a once-successful, now-forgotten actor, in the off-kilter comedy “Did Someone Happen to Mention Me?” on Netflix.
‘Did Someone Happen to Mention Me?’: The comedy and horror of being forgotten
By Gabriella Geisinger
“Did Someone Happen to Mention Me?” is a genuinely funny, uplifting and heartwarming watch — if you can get over its slightly problematic premise.
Azerbaijan welcoming ‘set-jetting’ fans of Japan TV drama ‘Vivant’
Eurovision brings pop and politics to Asia
By Alice Ritchie
Sci-fi anime anthology ‘Grotesqqque’ prizes style over substance
By Matt Schley
‘Two Cigarettes, Three Nights’: An artist takes solace in an undefinable intimacy
By Mark Schilling

LIFE

Guntu, a self-styled "floating 'ryokan'" (traditional Japanese inn) represents the smaller scale domestic cruises operate on compared to international vessels.
As Japan gets a Disney cruise, smaller vessels chart their own course
By Gendel Gento
Amid a boom in massive, international cruise ships, domestically operated voyages tend toward more intimate journeys.
A toast to Naohiko Noguchi, sake’s first living national treasure
By Cindy Bissig
A curry palette for all your ‘hidden flavors’
By Simon Daly
Nintendo producer Eiji Aonuma ‘all nervous’ as Zelda classic remake hits shelves
By Kilian Fichou
Gamers get nostalgic as Zelda remake hits shelves

COMMUNITY

Members of the Meguro River Lazy Runners group gather for a chat and some stretching prior to their run on a recent weekday morning, in Tokyo's Nakameguro district.
‘Lazy’ running becomes fresh way for Tokyo runners to build community
By Elizabeth Beattie
An increasing number of coffee-centric, sociable running clubs are starting up across Tokyo, drawing more casual runners in search of community.
A feline brother and sister pair who are simply out of this world
How this long-term resident avoids the annoying tourist label in Japan
By Daniel Traylor
In tourist-weary Kyoto, U.S. college targets deeper ties between students and residents
By Joel Tansey
The do’s and don’ts when applying for permanent residency in Japan
By Mai Yoshikawa

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
Few signs of thaw in Japan-China relations one year after Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks
By Jesse Johnson and Kenji Yoshida
Tensions between Japan and China flared after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Nov. 7, 2025, that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could threaten Japan’s survival and warrant the use of collective self-defense.
CULTURE
Mariko Mori predicted the future. She’ll do it again.
By Victoria Bennett
Artist Mariko Mori is currently working to bring the translucent human-sized “Peace Crystal” sculpture to a cave in Ethiopia. It is part of her foundation’s goal to place a permanent sculpture on each of the planet’s six habitable continents.
SUMO
Sumo set to end 2026 on high note as stars align ahead of Kyushu Basho
By John Gunning
Yokozuna Onosato, seen during training in Fukuoka on Oct. 27, won the previous basho in September.
LIFE
A legend reborn: ‘Ocarina of Time’ remake improves on the Zelda masterpiece
By Owen Ziegler
The new remake of 1998's "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" manages to somehow improve on one of the greatest games ever.
JAPAN
What keeps Takaichi defying political gravity?
By Kenji Yoshida
A woman walks past a screen showing Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaking at a Lower House session in Tokyo on Oct. 14.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Famima Park Azabudai is a concept store by FamilyMart that combines convenience store staples with branded apparel, merchandise and a landscaped outdoor space.
Convenience stores, toilets and the allure of everyday Japan
By Elizabeth Beattie

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

JCOM expands from cable to social infrastructure
JCOM expands from cable to social infrastructure

COMFACTS

Space Seed Holdings and Gifu University Identify Eight Seaweed Compounds for Follow-Up Testing Using Spaceflight Gene-Expression Data
Space Seed Holdings and Gifu University Identify Eight Seaweed Compounds for Follow-Up Testing Using Spaceflight Gene-Expression Data
SPACE SEED HOLDINGS INC.

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
Magnitude 6.1 quake hits off Tokyo, but no tsunami alert issued
A screenshot of the Japan Meteorological Agency website shows seismic intensity activity after a magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS
China blocks SoftBank’s $5.4 billion ABB robot unit takeover
By Mark Anderson and Mayumi Negishi
SoftBank Group founder Masayoshi Son has listed a plan to buy ABB's robotics unit as a key part of his ambition to play a larger role in the artificial intelligence buildout.
JAPAN
Magnitude 5.7 quake injures dozens in central Japan
A magnitude-5.7 earthquake with its epicenter in Shizuoka Prefecture struck central Japan early Sunday, injuring dozens, shattering windows and disrupting train services, with no tsunami warning issued.
JAPAN
Births in Japan edge up 0.4% in January-June, thanks to Tokyo
By Spencer Landers
The number of births increased in 24 prefectures — many of them in urban areas including Tokyo, Aichi and Fukuoka prefectures — while 23 prefectures saw decreases.