Fumio Kishida, reelected as Japan’s prime minister on Wednesday after his governing party scored a major victory in key parliamentary elections, said the coronavirus remains the country’s most urgent issue and pledged to take steps to mend the pandemic-battered economy. (marketwatch.com)

A Japanese health ministry panel approved Wednesday the administration of third booster shots of U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine to people aged 18 and over, starting with medical personnel from December. (Kyodo)

Japan's ruling party and its coalition partner agreed to offer a combined 100,000 yen ($882) worth of vouchers and cash payouts to children aged 18 or younger as part of the government's stimulus package, Jiji news agency said on Tuesday. (Reuters)

The earnings recovery from the COVID-19 fallout is still uneven, with a wide gap remaining between Japanese manufacturers and nonmanufacturers. (Kyodo)

A snow crab fetched 800,000 yen ($7,050) at a fishing port auction in Fukui Prefecture on Saturday, as the fishing season began the same day in the Sea of Japan for the winter delicacy. (Kyodo)

The Japanese government with the support of the ruling coalition plan to give 1,00,000 yen (USD 878) in cash to every citizen aged 18 and younger in a bid to mitigate the post-coronavirus effects, the Kyodo news agency reported on Friday, citing sources familiar with the matter. (devdiscourse.com)

New Nippon Ham Fighters manager Tsuyoshi Shinjo said Thursday he has returned to his former team "to change Nippon Ham and with a desire to change pro baseball." (Kyodok)

The Philippines is bound to lose another sporting gem as golfer Yuka Saso is set to become a Japanese citizen in less than two years. (rappler.com)

The number of young people in Japan newly diagnosed with the eating disorder anorexia rose about 60 percent in fiscal 2020 from the previous year, due possibly to increased stress and anxiety amid the coronavirus pandemic, a survey showed. (Kyodo)

A portion of a road in Kichijoji, a popular commercial area in the western Tokyo city of Musashino, suddenly collapsed early Tuesday with a garbage truck partly swallowed by the sinkhole, but no one was injured in the incident, authorities said. (Kyodo)

Japan's government on Monday eased its 10,000-spectator attendance limit for large-scale events, such as professional sports games and concerts, that was in place in 27 of the country's 47 prefectures, as part of its bid to restore social and economic activities amid a steady decline in coronavirus cases. (Kyodo)

A man who was dressed as Batman villain the Joker told police he wanted to be executed when they arrested him for attempted murder after he injured 17 people in a knife rampage onboard a Tokyo commuter train. (dailymail.co.uk)

Japan's transportation ministry said Friday it will approve taxi-sharing services nationwide from next week, allowing strangers to ride the same vehicle in a bid to offer users greater convenience while boosting the productivity of operators. (Kyodo)

The government plans to ease restrictions on attendance at large-scale events, such as sports games and concerts, from next week in response to a steady decline in coronavirus cases across Japan, sources familiar with the matter said Wednesday. (Kyodok)

U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. is in talks with Japan to apply for approval to administer its COVID-19 vaccine to children aged 5 to 11, sources close to the matter said Wednesday. (Kyodo)

Former Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso said Monday that rice on the northernmost main island of Hokkaido "has become tastier thanks to (global) warming," a remark likely to raise eyebrows of climate campaigners. (Japan Today)

Tokyo and three surrounding prefectures are set to lift COVID-19 restrictions on dining establishments from next week amid a steady decline in the number of infections, officials said Wednesday. (Kyodo)

Around 2,500 cases of nonconsensual sexualized images objectifying athletes being taken or shared have been reported to a website set up by the Japanese Olympic Committee last November, Kyodo News learned Saturday. (Kyodo)

Princess Mako's boyfriend Kei Komuro will meet her parents on Monday ahead of their marriage scheduled for later this month, the Imperial Household Agency said Friday, with an unresolved financial dispute involving his mother clouding the celebratory mood. (Kyodo)

A couple in their 20s were indicted Monday for murdering an 18-year-old Tokyo high school girl in the central Japan prefecture of Yamanashi in late August, Tokyo prosecutors said. (Kyodo)

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday the government is planning to start administering third doses of COVID-19 vaccine in Japan in December and that it will shoulder the costs. (Kyodo)

The Japan Association of Athletics Federations has entered a bid to host the 2025 world athletics championships, a source with knowledge of the matter said Saturday. (Kyodo)

A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck near Tokyo late on Thursday. It did not trigger a tsunami. (NHK)

Japan's Imperial Household Agency has announced that Princess Mako and her former college classmate Komuro Kei will get married this month. (NHK)

Former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, newly elected as the head of the ruling party and set to become the next prime minister, said Wednesday he aims to narrow income inequality in Japan through broad-based salary hikes. (Kyodo)