A fire in a renowned entertainment district of Japan's ancient capital, Kyoto, has been contained. It burned five buildings in the area, but no one was injured. (NHK)

Elementary schoolgirl Sumire Nakamura, who in April became the youngest professional go player, has claimed her first career win. (Japan Times)

Lawmakers’ income averaged ¥26.57 million in 2018, the highest in 16 years and up ¥2.45 million from a year before, parliamentary data showed Monday. (Japan Times)

A major department store in Osaka on Monday started selling whale meat from the catch of Japan's commercial whaling fleet, which resumed its activities last week after a 31-year hiatus. (Kyodo)

Budget restaurant chains in Japan that are struggling with sluggish sales are wondering: Where are all the "wandering salarymen"? (Nikkei)

The once-obscure school of macroeconomic thought known as Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) has been attracting a lot of attention lately. (Japan Times)

A log boat set off from Taiwan on Sunday on a journey of more than 200 kilometers to Yonaguni Island in Okinawa Prefecture, southern Japan. (NHK)

The body of an 18-year-old college woman has been found in a refrigerator at a shop selling Japanese sweets in Tokyo. Her father was discovered hanging from a tree several hours later. (NHK)

The body of 45-year-old Chinese woman was found on Saturday afternoon in a minivan in a coin-operated parking lot in Manazuru, Kanagawa Prefecture, police said Sunday. (Japan Today)

UNESCO decided Saturday to add to the World Heritage list two tumulus clusters in western Japan, which represent an ancient burial system and the hierarchy of society at the time. (Japan Today)

A male junior high school student died Saturday after being stabbed the previous day by a fellow student in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, according to police. (Japan Today)

A 23-year-old police officer has been arrested for allegedly possessing marijuana at the home of family members in Osaka Prefecture, police said. (Japan Today)

Japan's weather agency continued to warn of mudslides and flooding Thursday as downpours in southwestern Japan left a second woman dead and a few hundred houses damaged in the region. (Japan Today)

Five tons of bonitos fell from a refrigerator truck and were scattered across an expressway in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on Thursday morning, police said. (Japan Times)

Overwhelmed by unprecedented demand, Tokyo Olympic organizers said Thursday they hope to run another ticket lottery next month for residents of Japan who got nothing the first time. (Japan Today)

The Japan Rugby Football Union on Thursday unveiled the national team's jersey for this year's Rugby World Cup, the shirt featuring a samurai helmet motif representing the tradition of Japan's warrior spirit. (Kyodo)

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said during a debate with opposition leaders on Wednesday that he will go ahead with the planned sales tax hike in October but vehemently denied there will be further increases while he remains in power. (Japan Times)

Japanese weather officials say extremely heavy rain is expected to continue in the southwestern region of Kyushu through Thursday. Parts of the region are facing a high risk of mudslides and flooding as they have had two months' of rain in just a week. (NHK)

More than one million people in the southwestern Japanese region of Kyushu have been ordered to evacuate as continuing heavy rain may trigger mudslides or other threats. (NHK)

Japan's new Olympic stadium opened its doors to the media on Wednesday, showing off its nature-inspired design and advanced environmental features as it enters the final phase of construction. (Nikkei)

Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested an ingrown toenail specialist in Machida City over the alleged molestation of a female patient earlier this year, reports the Sankei Shimbun (July 1). (tokyoreporter.com)

Japan's tax revenue hit a record 60.36 trillion yen ($557 billion) in fiscal 2018 on the back of higher wages and dividend payments, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday. (Japan Today)

The mayor of Kyoto has praised American reality TV star Kim Kardashian West for deciding to rename her new "Kimono" shapewear line. (NHK)

The Japanese operator of TOEIC said Tuesday it will not provide its English proficiency test as part of the country's standardized university entrance exam system due to start next April, because the process is too complicated. (Japan Today)

Musashimurayama Mayor Masaru Fujino informed health minister Takumi Nemoto on Monday of his approval of a plan to keep deadly viruses such as Ebola at a research facility in the city, which is located on the outskirts of Tokyo. (Japan Times)