Honda Motor delivered Thursday its first HondaJet business plane in Japan to prominent investor Kotaro Chiba, co-founder of game company Colopl. (Nikkei)

The National Police Agency on Thursday unveiled a draft bill that would allow vehicles with a high level of autonomous features to run on public roads, with an eye toward implementing the legislation in the first half of 2020. (Japan Times)

It’s been the most radical cash injection in history — nearly ¥400 trillion pumped into Japan’s economy over more than five years to slay deflation and kick growth into higher gear. (Japan Times)

Japan will stop charging extra for hospital visits by expectant mothers from next month amid criticism that the fee amounts to a tax on pregnancy and is applied even in cases where women do not need special care related to their pregnancy. (Japan Times)

East Japan Railway Company (JR East) has begun a campaign to encourage commuters to stand still on escalators. The campaign began at Tokyo Station on Monday. (Japan Today)

A 19-year-old naked Thai woman died after she was found unconscious in a hotel room in Tokyo, police said Wednesday. A 20-year-old male acquaintance of the woman was found collapsed on the sidewalk below the hotel near JR Uguisudani Station. (Japan Today)

The benchmark Nikkei average closed below 21,000 for the first time in nearly nine months on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Wednesday amid concerns over a slowdown in the global economy. (Japan Times)

The CEO of SoftBank Group's Japanese mobile unit on Wednesday acknowledged the "challenging conditions" facing the company after its shares fell nearly 15% on their first day of trading, leaving retail investors nursing losses. (Nikkei)

Japan has approved new defense guidelines, including a plan to upgrade an existing destroyer into a de-facto aircraft carrier. (NHK)

A month since his arrest in Japan, former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn continues to deny allegations of understating his compensation as prosecutors grill him on evidence they say shows his pay was set and thus legally required to disclose. (Nikkei)

An explosion in Sapporo that injured 42 people over the weekend occurred after two employees of a real estate office located at the site emptied about 100 deodorizer spray cans at once, sources close to the matter said Tuesday. (Japan Times)

Police believe an explosion at a Sapporo building that left 42 people injured on Sunday was caused by gas leaking from more than 100 deodorizer spray cans, intended for disposal, at a real estate agency. (Japan Times)

Toyama Prefectural Police are investigating what is believed to have been a hit-and-run incident after the corpse of a man was found inside a smashed display window at a store in Toyama City, reports Sankei Sports (Dec. 15). (tokyoreporter.com)

Japanese water is clean and readily available, as evidenced by drinkable tap water and a nearly 100 percent penetration rate. (Japan Times)

A famous hot spa resort is offering an online map showing "onsen" spots available for tattooed tourists traveling to the region for next year's Rugby World Cup in Japan. (Kyodo)

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has revealed that the government plans to open about 100 support centers for foreign workers across Japan. (NHK)

More than 40 people were injured on Sunday when an explosion caused a fire at a commercial building housing a pub in Sapporo City on Japan's northern main island of Hokkaido. Police suspect a gas leak may be the cause. (NHK)

The education ministry plans to include ¥1.52 trillion in its budget for fiscal 2019 to cover personnel costs for teachers at public elementary and junior high schools, it has been learned. (Japan Times)

Rino Sashihara, a leading Japanese idol singer, will leave the all-girl musical group HKT48, an affiliate of the country's entertainment giant AKB48, next year, she said Saturday. (Kyodo)

The government will temporarily suspend an extra medical fee that pregnant women were required to pay out of pocket to see doctors, health minister Takumi Nemoto said Friday. (Japan Times)

Japan's central government is pushing ahead with a controversial plan to relocate an American military base within the southern prefecture of Okinawa. They've started full-scale land reclamation work despite strong local opposition. (NHK)

Japan Post Holdings Co. plans to acquire a 7 to 8 percent stake in U.S. insurer Aflac Inc. for about ¥300 billion as part of its strategy to expand operations overseas, sources familiar with the matter said Thursday. (Japan Times)

Japanese education companies are expanding their language offerings overseas, seeing business opportunities in meeting growing demand for Japanese-speaking foreign manpower as the nation opens its doors to workers from overseas. (Nikkei)

A court on Friday sentenced a 26-year-old man to 18 years in prison for a highway road rage incident last year in which a couple died and their two teenage daughters were injured. (Japan Times)

Sixteen-year-old shogi prodigy Sota Fujii has reached his 100th victory in official matches of the Japanese board game, becoming the youngest professional player to reach the milestone at the fastest pace in history. (Japan Today)