A Bank of Japan survey shows that financial assets held by individuals in Japan have hit a record value as stock prices rise. (NHK)

Japan ratified on Friday the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a massive trade agreement also involving China, Australia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Foreign Ministry said. (Japan Times)

Japan’s population, including foreign nationals, fell by 868,177 over the past five years, results of the national census survey conducted last year showed. (Japan Times)

Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said that more stringent measures against COVID-19 are needed after the Ugandan Olympic team tested positive for the virus. (Reuters)

Japanese electronics giant Panasonic has sold its stake in Tesla, but will continue to make batteries for the US electric vehicle manufacturer. The shares were worth about 3.6 billion dollars. (NHK)

Toshiba CEO Satoshi Tsunakawa will serve as interim chairman of the company's board after the ousting of Osamu Nagayama at the annual general meeting, the Japanese industrial group said Friday night. (Nikkei)

Police in Fukuoka city have arrested a 20-year-old unemployed man on suspicion of attempted murder after he stabbed five family members at their home. (Japan Today)

Japan just became home to two tiny and adorable panda cubs. (yahoo.com)

NHK has learned that Japan's Emperor Naruhito and his family are expected to move into the residence at the Imperial Palace as early as mid-September. (NHK)

Activity for the private sector as a whole contracted for a second straight month due to the weaker reading for manufacturing and continued shrinking in the services sector, clouding the outlook for second-quarter economic growth in the country. (WION)

People in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa are looking back at one of the deadliest battles of World War Two, which occurred 76 years ago. (NHK)

Although vaccines are readily available, some still have concerns regarding the safety of all those attending or participating in the 2021 Summer Olympic Games (as well as the safety of Tokyo residents), which are currently set to begin late July. (newsonjapan.com)

Although vaccines are readily available, some still have concerns regarding the safety of all those attending or participating in the 2021 Summer Olympic Games (as well as the safety of Tokyo residents), which are currently set to begin late July. (newsonjapan.com)

Japan's Supreme Court has ruled that an article of the country's civil code that says married couples must have the same surname does not violate the Constitution. (NHK)

Japan is planning to approve the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Britain's AstraZeneca Plc for inoculations of those aged 60 and over, government sources said Tuesday. (Kyodok)

The transport ministry will require airlines to submit business improvement plans by late August in anticipation of a recovery in travel demand, which has been devastated by the coronavirus crisis, informed sources said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Thousands of fans will be allowed into venues to watch the Tokyo Olympic Games but they will be told not to cheer or even speak loudly. (BBC)

Veteran jazz saxophonist Nobuo Hara, whose band was at the forefront of Japanese jazz music for decades, died Monday due to pneumonia-induced respiratory failure, his family said Tuesday. He was 94. (Kyodo)

I’m at Higashiyama Onsen (Hot Spring) Kutsurogijuku Shintaki 新滝旅館 Ryokan (Inn) for the night and discovered they have a private bath (貸し切り) which is ideal for people with tattoos, couples, those shy to bathe with others. (ONLY in JAPAN)

Police in Sodegaura, Chiba Prefecture, have arrested a 23-year-old man on suspicion of killing a 19-year-old woman, whom he met on a social networking service, in May. (Japan Today)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government says Governor Koike Yuriko will take time off from her duties this week due to extreme fatigue. (NHK)

A volcanic eruption has occurred on an island in the southwestern Japanese prefecture of Kagoshima. (NHK)

Four people were found dead in a minivan in Kobe on Sunday in what police believe was a group suicide. (Japan Today)

In late May, a nurse in Miyagi Prefecture sent a letter to Kahoku Shimpo, complaining that she had to give up on helping administer coronavirus vaccines — despite a shortage of qualified medical workers — due to what is called the "Y1.3 million income hurdle." (Japan Times)

Japan's lifting of the coronavirus state of emergency in areas including Tokyo and Osaka has brought alcohol back to bars and restaurants, to the relief of both drinkers and businesses battered by lockdowns. (Nikkei)