The Japanese yen is on a bumpy path towards strengthening after Friday's central bank policy change, threatening to upend the carry trade, one of this year's most popular strategies, as the currency inevitably becomes more expensive. (nasdaq.com)

The average life expectancies of Japanese men and women dropped in 2022 for the second year in a row. The health ministry suggests deaths from the coronavirus were a major factor. (NHK)

Betting and gambling in their various forms have always been popular entertainment in Japan, where the government has tried to navigate and mitigate control of the industry to prevent negative social consequences like addiction and financial hardship. (newsonjapan.com)

Japan returned to the victory trail when they clinched a hard-fought 21-16 triumph over Tonga in their Pacific Nations Cup encounter in Higashiosaka on Saturday. (planetrugby.com)

The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is gearing up to send the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon, or SLIM, mission to the moon on an H-2A rocket on Aug. 26 Japan time (0034 GMT, 9:34 a.m. JST, or 8:34 p.m. EDT on Aug. 25). (space.com)

A Japanese government panel recommended on Friday that the national average minimum wage be raised by 41 yen ($0.29) an hour to 1,002 yen, the biggest hike ever in value terms, as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida makes wages a key focus of his policies. (Reuters)

Popular Japanese Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke was indicted Friday for allegedly assisting in his parents' taking of their own lives, prosecutors said, in what is believed to have been a family suicide pact. (Kyodo)

Preparation of bread begins before 3:00 in the morning. Undeterred by power outages, which are a common occurrence in rural areas, "Talmary" continues to produce about 20 kinds of breads full of originality today. (REIYA Watanabe)

Japan's oldest nuclear power reactor went back online on Friday for the first time in 12 and half years. (NHK)

In the past few years, virtual reality (VR) technology has become a major breakthrough that has changed the way we play games and communicate with computers. (newsonjapan.com)

X JAPAN - one of Japan's biggest rock bands of all time - have returned with their first new song in eight years. Titled "Angel," the emotive power ballad was written by bandleader, composer, drummer and pianist Yoshiki, and marks the long-awaited follow-up to 2015's "Born to Be Free." (revolvermag.com)

Honestly, most of the time you don't experience things like this but there are some weird rules like these in Japan so yeah (Sora The Troll)

The Bank of Japan is set to keep ultra-low interest rates on Friday but may make minor tweaks to extend the lifespan of its yield control policy, which is facing scrutiny amid prospects of sustained inflation. (Reuters)

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) kept its short-term interest rate target unchanged at -0.1% on Friday but also took steps to make its yield curve control policy more flexible. (livemint.com)

Roadside trees in front of numerous outlets of scandal-hit used car dealership chain Bigmotor Co. were found to have withered unnaturally, local authorities across Japan said Thursday as they began looking into the cases. (Kyodo)

The Taiwanese ex-husband of retired Japanese table tennis star Ai Fukuhara called on her Thursday to promptly comply with a Tokyo court order to hand over their son, after she took him to Japan from Taiwan around a year ago. (Kyodo)

Fuuin Eizo is a collection of such abominable images that have never been shown to the public. (YABAI JAPAN HORROR)

A Japanese mayor has apologized after a public outcry over a flyer issued to pregnant women advising them on what most irritated husbands after their wives became mothers, an official said on Thursday. (manilatimes.net)

Japanese universities are being incentivized to build or expand their science-related departments, per an announcement made by the education ministry on Friday. (techhq.com)

Of course, Kim Kardashian has one of the most rare Birkin bags to ever exist. (yahoo.com)

Today, we are traveling on "Spacia X" which just debuted in July 15th, 2023 as a new express train between Asakusa(Tokyo) and Nikko(Tochigi). (travelgeek)

There has been talk on Tokyo’s raise of accommodation tax (leisure tax) on visitors which is ¥100 under ¥10,000 a night and ¥200 over that. (ONLY in JAPAN * GO)

The fastest food stall worker in Japan, Abe-san, is back with a brand new yatai stand he built himself! This is one of the most beautiful yatai anywhere in Japan. (Japanese food craftsman)

The Japanese subsidiary of German automaker BMW has said it will recall nearly 170,000 vehicles due to an engine defect that could cause a fire. (NHK)

An ambitious plan to build a 1740-meter zipline [flying fox] over the Kanmon Straits between Honshu and Kyushu islands took a step closer to reality this week with the mayors of two cities establishing a project team.