A 10-year-old Japanese girl is set to become the youngest professional player of the Asian board game "Go" next month. (NHK)

Famous for its dozens of Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, including Kotoku-in with its Great Buddha statue, as well as its cozy cafes and charming shopping district, the seaside resort town of Kamakura, in Kanagawa Prefecture, is one of the most popular day-trip destinations for tourists in the Tokyo area, with over 20 million tourists visiting every year. (Japan Today)

Kyoto Prefectural Police have sent a middle school girl in Kyoto City to prosecutors over the alleged possession of marijuana and Ecstasy, reports Fuji News Network (tokyoreporter.com)

Japan's government has investigated a university in Tokyo where hundreds of foreign students remain unaccounted for. (NHK)

A woman died after being stabbed in the back in her apartment in Tokyo's Suginami Ward on Tuesday, police said. (Japan Today)

On April 1st, 2019, major new immigration reform will take effect with a new “Middle Skilled Worker” (tokuteigino) visa status for foreign workers in Japan. (rethinktokyo.com)

Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei Average saw its biggest fall of 2019. The drop followed a plunge on Friday on Wall Street that came amid new worries of an economic slowdown. (NHK)

A South Korean court has approved the seizure of Mitsubishi's assets over the Japanese industrial giant's use of forced labor during World War II, an activist group said Monday. (Japan Today)

The organizers of the 2020 Tokyo Games have unveiled the torch that will carry the Paralympic flame. Its motif is a cherry blossom, the same as for the Olympic torch, but the color is more pinkish, which the organizers characterize as "cherry blossom pink." (NHK)

Official campaigning for the Osaka mayoral election began Sunday, with Osaka Prefecture’s former governor, Ichiro Matsui, facing off against a ruling Liberal Democratic Party-backed challenger opposed to the controversial idea of restructuring the city into a metropolis. (Japan Times)

Princess Kako, the 24-year-old granddaughter of Emperor Akihito, expressed her wish for her sister's happiness in a written answer to the media on the occasion of her graduation from International Christian University in Tokyo on Friday. (Kyodo)

A key part of the business model for convenience stores is their round-the-clock service. But a shortage of staffers is prompting some operators to consider shrinking their business hours. (NHK)

Japanese baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki of the US Major Leagues' Seattle Mariners has announced his retirement. (NHK)

The cherry blossom season officially arrived in Tokyo on Thursday after officials from the Meteorological Agency confirmed that more than five blossoms had opened on a Somei-Yoshino cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine in Chiyoda Ward. (Japan Times)

Police on Wednesday arrested an American man on suspicion of fatally stabbing his Japanese wife at a court where they were to settle a divorce. (Japan Today)

The head of the Japanese Olympic Committee has announced he will step down when his term expires in June. (NHK)

The average price of all types of land in urban areas rose last year for the first time since 1992 as the growing influx of foreign tourists rejuvenated real estate investment, the government said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

A rush went through the crowd as Ichiro Suzuki settled underneath the ball Shunta Tanaka hit high into air in the third inning. (Japan Times)

As part of an effort to streamline markets and attract more investors, the Tokyo Stock Exchange may demote about a third of its largest listed companies and cut down the bourses it operates to three from four, according to media reports. (Japan Times)

One of the most unusual stations in the whole country is now open and ready for business. (soranews24.com)

Japanese rock singer Yuya Uchida died of pneumonia on Sunday. He was 79 years old. (NHK)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested four male employees of a hostess club in Adachi Ward over the alleged assault of a fifth male employee, who later died, reports the Sankei Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

An amusement park themed on the world of Finland's Moomin fairytale characters opened Saturday in Saitama Prefecture near Tokyo, aiming to attract 1 million visitors a year. (Kyodo)

Chiba Prefectural Police on Friday announced the arrest of a 38-year-old man over the alleged theft of children’s slippers from schools across the country, reports the Asahi Shimbun (tokyoreporter.com)

The Tokyo District Court has sentenced the former head of a digital currency exchange to 30 months in prison suspended for four years for altering data in a Bitcoin account. (NHK)