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Japan Times

Niigata cop aided illegal worker

NIIGATA (Kyodo) A policeman tried to help a female Chinese student who was working illegally at an adult entertainment shop in the city of Niigata last year avoid a crackdown, Niigata Prefectural Police sources said Wednesday. The officer, who is in his 30s, resigned voluntarily in March, even though an ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:57 PM

Toyota, Honda, Nissan set July global output records

Japan's top three automakers said global production in July rose to records for that month, highlighting solid growth riding on their reputation for fuel-efficient models amid soaring gasoline prices. Toyota Motor Corp. — close to passing General Motors Corp. to become the world's biggest automaker — said Wednesday that worldwide ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:56 PM

India cuts red tape to clear way for Japanese investment

It is not too late for Japanese businesses to enter the fast-growing Indian market in light of deregulation of foreign investment, according to a leading Indian lawyer and investment consultant. "Rather, now may be the opportune moment for Japanese enterprises to catch up with their American, European and Asian competitors ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:55 PM

LPGA to require all players speak English beginning in 2009 season

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) The LPGA Tour boasts players from all over the world, and it wants all of them to be able to speak English. The LPGA will require players to speak English starting in 2009, with players who have been LPGA members for two years facing suspension if they ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:54 PM

Nagata-cho makeover takes shape

Nagata-cho, the nation's political center, is going through some changes — at least on the outside. Diet office complexes and nearby hotels that were the setting for crucial behind-the-scenes meetings are being replaced. Read the full story

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:53 PM

Nakamura goes deep twice to back Ishii as Seibu beats Rakuten

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. (Kyodo) Takeya Nakamura homered twice and drove in five runs and Kazuhisa Ishii threw six effective innings, leading the Seibu Lions to a 7-2 win over the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles on Wednesday. Nakamura turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead with a two-run shot in ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:53 PM

Furuki gives late Giants last laugh

If nothing else, the Yomiuri Giants sure have a flair for the dramatic. Yoshiyuki Kamei doubled to tie the game and Shigeyuki Furuki won it with a sayonara single as the Yomiuri Giants erased a two-run deficit in the ninth inning to beat the Chunichi Dragons 6-5 in front of ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:52 PM

Abe allows Reds to draw but Nagoya regains top

Yuki Abe salvaged a point for Urawa Reds with a goal deep into injury time to give his side an unlikely 1-1 draw with Tokyo Verdy on Wednesday. Brazilian Diego gave Verdy the lead when he latched onto Masashi Oguro's through-ball in the 50th minute, and the home side went ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:52 PM

Haberdashers made in the shade as sunny summer stokes lid biz

As the nation languishes in sweltering heat, a rather unusual consumer item is selling briskly — men's hats. While many men often go hatless on hot summer days, holidaymakers are now being compelled to travel on foot or use public transit rather than drive because of sky-high gasoline prices. This ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:51 PM

Jones dismisses Boks' new-look game plan

JOHANNESBURG (AP) Eddie Jones, the former Australia coach who helped South Africa win last year's Rugby World Cup, ridiculed Peter de Villiers' attempt to transform the Springboks' game. The Springboks, trying to play de Villiers' expansive game, have lost four of five Tri-Nations matches, condemning them to a last-place finish ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:51 PM

Daihatsu unveils fuel-efficient Move Conte minicar

Daihatsu Motor Co., Japan's biggest minicar maker, unveiled on Monday its new Move Conte as rising gasoline prices boost demand for fuel-efficient cars. Daihatsu, 51 percent owned by Toyota Motor Corp., aims to sell 4,000 Move Conte models a month in Japan, the Osaka-based automaker said. The car is priced ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:50 PM

Sony hand-held sales top 10 million

Sales of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.'s PlayStation Portable video game console passed the 10 million mark as of Sunday, Enterbrain Inc. said Wednesday. The first model hit the market in December 2004. Nintendo DS, a portable game player made by Nintendo Co. and also released in December 2004, has sold ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:50 PM

Additional budget for stimulus in the works

The government will draft a supplementary budget for the current fiscal year to secure financial resources for an economic stimulus package to be drafted by month's end, economic and fiscal policy minister Kaoru Yosano said Friday. Before the Cabinet meeting Friday morning, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:49 PM

Thai experts ID body as missing Japanese trader

BANGKOK (Kyodo) Thai forensic experts confirmed Monday that a naked body found earlier this month in a national park in northeast Thailand is that of Takahide Tanahashi, 33, an online trader who disappeared from his Bangkok apartment Aug. 5. Police Maj. Gen. Somyod Dimak, spokesman at Police General Hospital, said ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:49 PM

Aid worker found slain in Afghanistan

A Japanese Embassy official in Afghanistan confirmed Wednesday that a body found earlier in the day was that of kidnapped Japanese aid worker Kazuya Ito, the Foreign Ministry said. Police found the body, reportedly riddled with bullets, in eastern Afghanistan's Nangarhar Province. Ito had been abducted near Jalalabad, the capital ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:49 PM

Wal-Mart gives credit-starved companies samurai bond with Japan

Corporate borrowers are turning to Japan for cash that is becoming increasingly hard to get anywhere else in the world. Debt sales in Japan by overseas issuers from Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, to Zurich-based bank UBS AG rose 37 percent to ¥2.03 trillion this year ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:48 PM

Kirin to buy Aussie dairy business

Kirin Holdings Co Ltd. said Monday it has agreed to buy Dairy Farmers for 910 million Australian dollars (¥88.5 billion) in cash and assumed debt to extend its position as Australia's largest seller of fresh milk. The deal, unanimously recommended by the Dairy Farmers board, is subject to 75 percent ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:48 PM

Stimulus package to target credit squeeze

The government will boost supervision of financial institutions reluctant to lend to small and midsize firms and support struggling farmers in its forthcoming emergency stimulus package, according to the latest draft of the plan. The package also stipulates that the government will help promote earthquake-proof construction of school buildings, the ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:48 PM

North Pacific whale hunt ends at 211

A fleet of six whaling vessels wrapped up this year's so-called research whaling in the Northwestern Pacific with a catch of 211 whales, the Fisheries Agency said Friday. The haul, mainly of sei, minke and Bryde's whales, fell short of the original goal of 260 whales, the agency said. Read ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:47 PM

Quake insurance policies increasingly popular

A record 44 percent of new fire insurance policyholders in fiscal 2007 also signed up for earthquake coverage in package deals, according to an industry body. This marked a 2.3 percentage point increase from the previous year and was the highest level since the Non-Life Insurance Rating Organization of Japan ...

Posted on August 22, 2008 at 9:47 PM