The English edition of a Japanese manga series about a young girl aspiring to be a witch has received the Eisner award, considered to be the Oscars of the comic industry, a Japanese publisher said Saturday. (Kyodo)

The Japan Sumo Association had some harsh words on Saturday for 26-year-old wrestler Abi for eating out with backers in violation of guidelines meant to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. (Kyodo)

Hanasato, a high-end Japanese restaurant housed in a sprawling mansion surrounded by lush gardens, has been serving traditional multicourse kaiseki cuisine in the suburbs of Yokohama for decades. But on July 19, Hanasato welcomed diners for the last time, ending its 40-year history as a purveyor of traditional Japanese fine dining. (Nikkei)

A woman was arrested Friday in connection with the death of her 3-month-old girl, who was allegedly left unattended for about 16 hours at their home in the capital. (Japan Times)

Coronavirus infections are continuing to increase in Japan. There were more than 700 new cases on Friday, including 260 in Tokyo. (NHK)

Fireworks lit up the skies across Japan at 8 p.m. on Friday, which was to be the date of the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics before it was postponed. (NHK)

If you are a particularly busy person, you probably take advantage of spare time to rest. (newsonjapan.com)

Canada and Japan have expanded their organic equivalency arrangement. (producer.com)

Japan and the U.K. have agreed to advanced digital standards in their upcoming bilateral trade deal, banning them from forcing companies to disclose algorithms and set up local data servers. (Nikkei)

Hot springs, justifiably, are a major tourism resource for Japan. The 27,000 hot springs dotted around the country generated US$11.8 billion in revenue in 2013, representing more than one-fifth of the $50 billion global hot-springs market. (asiatimes.com)

With the number of COVID-19 cases once again rising, the debate among government officials, the media and health experts over how, or whether, to once again ask businesses to close down is gaining momentum, though Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says the situation isn’t dire enough to declare another state of emergency. (Japan Times)

A plane carrying a Chilean man accused of murdering a Japanese student in France nearly four years ago landed at a Paris airport Friday morning as part of his extradition process. (Japan Times)

When the COVID-19 pandemic is over, people will again be on the move, crisscrossing the planet in search of career opportunities, education, and better lifestyles. (foreignaffairs.com)

An online survey has revealed that one in four full-time homemakers in Japan don't want their husbands to continue to work from home amid the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)

Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea reopened after Japan State of Emergency lifted. This is a Japan Disneyland Tokyo tour of the new Tokyo amusement park and it's social distance, cleaning and sanitation methods. (Paolo fromTOKYO)

Once again the capital stands at a critical juncture this weekend, with Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike having urged residents to stay inside and avoid all nonessential travel following an unprecedented surge of the novel coronavirus. (Japan Times)

Two decades after Japan rolled out an ambitious plan to go digital, the COVID-19 crisis has exposed the government's deeply rooted technological shortcomings as ministries remain stuck in a paper-driven culture that experts say is hurting productivity. (thejakartapost.com)

Captain kuwahara satoru’s tanker is manoeuvring through Yokohama harbour. Dolphins leap in the distance; a cruise ship slides under a glittering bridge. (economist.com)

When Shinjiro Koizumi went to Madrid last December, the golden child of Japanese politics found himself cast as the world’s whipping boy for a collective failure to act on climate change. (yahoo.com)

Japanese contractor Obayashi has started to build a dam almost entirely with robots, addressing the industry's labor shortage and aging workforce. (Nikkei)

Against the backdrop of mounting tensions between Western nations and China, Japan is taking new steps to safeguard its own advanced research, including tightening the screening of foreign students and researchers to prevent leaks to foreign countries of advanced technologies, particularly those with possible military applications. Visas for foreign researchers will be more closely reviewed. (universityworldnews.com)

When the auto king fled house arrest, he captivated the world. Now, the guy who helped him is in jail—and never got paid a dime. (vanityfair.com)

Japan has announced plans to remove overseas travel bans imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Australia and New Zealand at the head of the queue. (Daily Mail)

Ammonia is a pungent, corrosive and highly toxic chemical but by the year 2030 it should provide more than 1 per cent of Japan’s total electricity supply, according to a consortium of leading players in the industry. (ft.com)

Reports say that Asia's second-biggest economy, Japan is set to declare a recession after 71 straight months of growth. Watch the WION report from Tokyo. (WION)