Tokyo experienced its coldest day in 48 years on Thursday when the temperature fell to minus 4 degrees in the morning. (Japan Today)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has held its first tourism promotion event in Moscow. (NHK)

On a chilly, wet Saturday in November, I made my way over to Senzoku Gakuen, a renowned private all-girls junior and senior high school located almost equal distance between Tokyo and Yokohama. I had been invited to assist at a college fair sponsored by the school together with a nonprofit that does these things — the U.S. College Alumni Network of Japan (USCANJ). (Japan Times)

Papers were sent to prosecutors on Monday on a 20-year-old man who used a flamethrower at a park in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture. (Japan Today)

Police in Numazu, Shizuoka Prefecture, have arrested an unemployed 44-year-old man on suspicion of kidnapping a 16-year-old high school girl who lives in Tochigi Prefecture. (Japan Today)

Japan's department store sales at existing locations grew for the first time in three years in 2017, edging up 0.1% to 5.95 trillion yen ($53.9 billion), the Japan Department Stores Association said Tuesday. (Nikkei)

Japanese general contractor Shimizu appears to have owned up by Monday's deadline to fixing bids on construction projects connected to a magnetic-levitation train line, seeking lighter fines after initially denying wrongdoing. (Nikkei)

A US military helicopter made an emergency landing on Tuesday on a small island in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa. (NHK)

Volcanic tremors have forced rescuers to suspend their search for victims of a deadly eruption and avalanche at a central Japanese ski resort. (abc.net.au)

The western Japan town of Taiji, known for its whaling and dolphin hunts, said Wednesday it has established a sister-city relationship with a town on the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic with similar hunting practices. (Kyodo)

The Bank of Japan maintained its massive monetary stimulus program and kept its price and economic forecasts unchanged. In a small sign of progress, it said inflation expectations had stopped falling. (Japan Times)

Japan will let young descendants of Japanese nationals who emigrated abroad work in the country if they meet certain language and other requirements, the Ministry of Justice said Monday. (Nikkei)

A Traditional Japanese Inn stay can be the highlight of any trip to Japan, and this comprehensive tour of 13 hot spring towns will give you a complete picture of what to expect during a stay. From the tatami room to the kitchen and dining room, this is the story of the Ryokan. (ONLY in JAPAN)

Weather officials say a volcano in Gunma Prefecture, north of Tokyo, erupted on Tuesday morning. At almost the same time, an avalanche nearby left one member of Japan's Self-Defense Forces dead. (NHK)

After months of turmoil over a snap election, opposition realignment and stalled legislative progress, this year’s regular Diet session was scheduled to kick off Monday. (Japan Times)

The Japanese government has submitted a record draft budget of 97.7 trillion yen, or more than 880-billion dollars, for the fiscal year starting in April. (NHK)

A male teen held for allegedly stabbing a female high school student in the city of Kagoshima earlier this month told police his target “could be anyone,” investigative sources said Sunday. (Japan Times)

Long periods of stress appear to raise the cancer risk in men by 20 percent compared with those who say they’re stress-free, according to a survey by a Japanese research team. (Japan Times)

Thousands of blooming tulips are giving people an early taste of spring at a park in eastern Japan. (NHK)

The body of a child which was found Friday at the edge of a river in Sakai, Fukui Prefecture, has been identified as that of a three-year-old boy who has been missing since Dec 9. (Japan Today)

Many bond market participants were caught off guard on Jan. 9 when the Bank of Japan unexpectedly reduced its purchases of government bonds, instantly pushing yields higher. In the nine days that followed, long-term rates -- yields on 10 year Japanese Government Bonds -- hit 0.090%, the highest since July 2017. (Nikkei)

Japan's Defense Ministry says the Air Self-Defense Force scrambled its jets against Chinese aircraft fewer times during the first 9 months of this fiscal year, compared to the previous year. (NHK)

The Tokyo metropolitan government will survey foreign tourists on what they enjoy about the city's nightlife, aiming to better cater to their interests while encouraging them to spend, a source said Saturday. (Japan Today)

The Tokyo High Court has ruled that Yahoo Japan Co. defamed a man and has ordered that it delete 11 search results that associate his name with criminal behavior, sources have confirmed. (Japan Times)

Japanese government officials have upgraded their monthly economic assessment for the first time in seven months. (NHK)