The stone walls of the Takeda Castle ruins in Hyogo Prefecture emerged above the clouds as they were illuminated by the morning sun.

Japan’s tea culture has long been woven into everyday life, but an unprecedented global boom in matcha is forcing a shift that is putting sencha, the familiar green tea, under pressure.

The Supreme Court’s Second Petty Bench, presided over by Chief Justice Akira Ojima, ruled on September 26th that the current system for apportioning seats in the House of Representatives is constitutional, despite a maximum disparity of 2.06-to-1 in the value of votes cast in last October’s general election.

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership race entered its fifth day on September 26th, with Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi forced to apologize after his campaign team was found to have requested supportive online posts from backers.

An annual correctional exhibition was held at the Tokyo Detention House on September 27th, showcasing and selling products made by inmates as part of prison labor programs.

Japan's National Tax Agency announced on Friday that the average annual salary for private-sector employees in 2023 rose to 4.78 million yen, the highest level since the survey began, marking the fourth consecutive year of increases.

Japan’s Earthquake Research Committee has revised its assessment of the probability of a massive Nankai Trough earthquake occurring within the next 30 years, raising the range from the previous estimate of about 80 percent to between 60 and 90 percent or higher.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) announced on September 25th that it will withdraw its "Africa Hometown" project, with President Akihiko Tanaka explaining at a press conference that widespread misunderstanding had created excessive burdens for local governments.

The curtain rises on an epic battle royale between brave warriors who lived through an uncertain era. (Netflix Japan)

A fire broke out in an apartment building in Suginami, Tokyo, shortly before 2 a.m. on September 25th, after a mobile battery being used to charge a smartphone caught fire, leaving six people hospitalized for smoke inhalation and other injuries.

While corporate profits continue to reach record highs, employee wages remain stagnant, leaving a growing segment of Japan’s workforce struggling. Since the collapse of the bubble economy, non-regular employment has steadily increased, creating a widening gap between regular and non-regular workers. Today, 15.4% of the population earns less than half the median standard of living, the second-highest proportion among the G7 countries after the United States.

Panasonic Holdings will begin soliciting early retirement applications next month at one of its core operating companies as part of broader restructuring efforts.

Seven Bank has announced plans to replace all 16,000 ATMs currently installed in FamilyMart stores nationwide through agreements with E-Net and Japan Post Bank with its own machines.

The Cultural Affairs Agency has, for the first time, surveyed how the spread of social media is affecting the Japanese language in its annual survey on public opinion regarding the national language, revealing that nearly 90 percent of respondents believe there is some impact.

Tokyo consumer prices rose 2.5% in September compared with a year earlier, with the index excluding fresh food—often subject to sharp fluctuations—reaching 110.0 across the capital’s wards, while the pace of growth remained unchanged from the previous month.

The Tokyo District Court on September 24th approved the release on bail of actor Hiroya Shimizu, 26, who has been indicted for violating the Narcotics Control Act by possessing cannabis.

The Tokyo Game Show, one of the world’s largest gaming exhibitions, opened on September 25th with indie games drawing particular attention as analysts predict the market could double in size over the next five years.

Japan counts only eight unicorns -- unlisted startups valued at over 150 billion yen -- compared with 690 in the United States, and has yet to produce a single 'hectocorn,' the term for companies worth more than 100 billion dollars such as ByteDance’s TikTok, OpenAI, or SpaceX.

Ferrari Japan unveiled the new plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHV) ‘849 Testarossa’ in Tokyo on September 24th, carrying forward the name of the legendary Testarossa.

Three employees of a delivery-only restaurant in Tokyo’s Edogawa Ward were sprayed with what appeared to be pepper spray on Wednesday morning, leaving them with minor injuries. Police are searching for two masked suspects who fled the scene.

As the Tokyo Stock Exchange undergoes reforms with the introduction of new listing maintenance standards, attention is turning to how investors can identify promising growth stocks.

The practice of supporting one’s favorite idols or characters, known as 'oshikatsu,' has grown into a massive market in Japan, with private research estimating spending to have reached 3.5 trillion yen this year. As demand expands, a wide range of specialized goods is driving the trend, with transparent tote bags -- known as 'ita-bags' -- emerging as a standout product.

Although most people visiting cemeteries during the autumn equinox in Japan are accustomed to cremation as the standard form of burial, a growing number of sites are now offering traditional ground burials. The shift reflects rising demand, particularly from foreign residents, and increasingly from Japanese as well.

Is high quality a curse? Reports in South Korea that Hitachi is considering selling its white goods business have drawn attention, raising questions about the future of Japanese appliances.

A visit to GO Teppanyaki in Palace Hotel Tokyo to have Kobe Beef and Matsusaka Beef and a few sides (Aden Films)