Japan received a record number of overseas visitors in 2017 for the fifth straight year, with the greatest growth coming from Asian countries, where low-cost air carriers are expanding service. (Nikkei)

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force, or ASDF, suspects that a metal panel may have fallen from a Japanese government aircraft during flight. (NHK)

Snow is falling heavily on the coast, along the Sea of Japan. Storms have also plastered parts of Shikoku and Kyushu in the southwest, where snow is rarely seen. (NHK)

Professional soccer player Kazuyoshi Miura has broken his own record for oldest player to sign a contract in the J-League. Miura will celebrate his 51st birthday on February 26th. (NHK)

The Kosho Hajime new year lecture event, in which leading experts from the academic community deliver lectures to Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, was held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Wednesday. (Japan Times)

The number of households in the nation receiving welfare increased by 634 in October last year from the previous month to hit a record high of 1,642,907, up for the sixth straight month, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said Wednesday. (the-japan-news.com)

Details emerged Wednesday about significant debts faced by a kimono rental firm that went bust just before Coming-of-Age Day ceremonies, leaving scores of women celebrating adulthood without their formal attire. (Japan Times)

Police arrested a 36-year-old man Wednesday on suspicion of trying to kill an acquaintance with heat-not-burn tobacco laced with mercury. (Japan Today)

Officials in Kagawa Prefecture, western Japan, say dead birds found at a local poultry farm have tested positive for bird flu in a preliminary check. (NHK)

The U.S. government has approved the sale of anti-ballistic missiles to Japan to defend itself against a growing nuclear and missile threat from North Korea, a State Department official said on Tuesday. (the-japan-news.com)

Police in Shimada, Shizuoka Prefecture, said Tuesday they have arrested a 15-year-old boy on suspicion of attempted murder after he stabbed his 12-year-old brother with a kitchen knife at their home. (Japan Today)

Japanese economist and TV commentator Takaaki Mitsuhashi, 48, has been released from custody following his arrest last week for allegedly physically assaulting his teenage wife. (Japan Today)

A Japanese kayak racer who drugged a rival at a national championship event has been banned from competing for 8 years. (NHK)

South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha says the country's government will not renegotiate its 2015 agreement with Japan on those referred to as comfort women. (NHK)

Dazzling in colourful kimonos and wafting clouds of hairspray in their wake, thousands of young Japanese women marked their entry into adulthood today - before hitting bars and clubs to celebrate. (dailymail.co.uk)

A U.S. amphibious assault ship capable of carrying advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets was soon to arrive at Sasebo naval base in Nagasaki Prefecture, the U.S. Navy said over the weekend. (Japan Times)

If you go out for drinks with your colleagues in Japan, chances are that you end up doing warikan at the end of the night. And the warikan, or the splitting of the bill evenly, is most likely done in cash despite almost everyone having plastic and electronic money in their wallets. Thanks to this die-hard affection for cash, Japan loses over 2 trillion yen ($17.6 billion) every year. (Nikkei)

Taiyo Middle School, located in the Kanagawa Prefecture city of Hiratsuka, is celebrating the 71st anniversary of its founding this year. To mark the occasion, the school is introducing new uniforms for students enrolling in April, when the 2018 school year begins. (rocketnews24.com)

As always, the second Monday of the year is Coming of Age Day in Japan. During the public holiday, all young folks who turned 20 in the previous year gather for a special ceremony in celebration of their adulthood. (rocketnews24.com)

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will start developing a new high-efficiency radar system in fiscal 2018 to monitor space debris as small as about 10 centimeters, as part of its efforts to avoid collisions between debris and artificial satellites, according to sources. (the-japan-news.com)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to start a subsidy program this year to accelerate the installation of charging stations for electric vehicles at condominiums in the capital, informed sources say. (Japan Times)

Consumer groups and farmers in Japan fear the repercussions of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, which is quickly moving forward on the heels of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s conference of the other 10 nations (including Australia, Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam) now involved in talks. (Japan Times)

Tatsuro Toyoda, the former Toyota Motor Corp president who led the company's climb to become one of the world's top automakers, has died. He was 88. (Japan Today)

Each year, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare tallies the number of marriages that took place in Japan between January and October. In 2017, approximately 607,000 couples tied the knot during that period, which was roughly 13,000 less than the same time frame in 2016. (Japan Today)

Japanese women who work for social change out of the public eye often go unrecognized, but a new award aims to change that by honoring unsung heroes who effect grassroots reform in their communities. (Kyodo)