A student-led movement is campaigning to raise Japan's minimum wage and improve the lives of low-paid workers, many of whom struggle to meet their basic needs despite toiling long hours. (Japan Today)

A passenger car collided with a sightseeing bus on an expressway in central Japan on Saturday morning, killing the car driver and injuring 45 people aboard the bus. (NHK)

The Japanese government has legalised gambling in Japan but it is still struggling to convince locals on the benefits. (newsonjapan.com)

It’s a slice of history that carries a sheen of glamour and a dusting of a fairy tale: The world’s oldest continuous monarchy, dating back to 660 B.C., boasts a royal seat known as the Chrysanthemum Throne and a princess set to marry a commoner. (nbcnews.com)

Schools in Japan that train certified care workers - who play a core role in nursing care - have seen a rapid increase in the number of foreign students. (lmtonline.com)

The US military says an emergency landing of the Osprey transport aircraft at an airport southwestern Japan was a precautionary measure to avoid any accident. (NHK)

Japan's pace got the better of Romania’s brawn on Saturday as the Brave Blossoms downed the Oaks 33-21 at a packed Egao Kenko Stadium. (Japan Times)

Sweden's Team Artemis completed its remarkable comeback to eliminate SoftBank Team Japan from the America's Cup Challenger semifinal series on Friday and set up a showdown with Emirates Team New Zealand. (Japan Times)

Money-losing Japanese nuclear and electronics company Toshiba Corp will pay $3.68 billion toward the construction of two reactors in Georgia by its U.S. unit Westinghouse, which has filed for bankruptcy protection. (Japan Today)

The enactment of the minpaku home-sharing law in the Diet's upper house Friday removes the regulatory uncertainties surrounding renting private dwellings as temporary accommodations, possibly opening the door for dramatic growth of a new industry in Japan. (Nikkei)

Japan's government has set out its policy goals for managing the economy. This year's blueprint focuses on boosting productivity by investing in human resources. (NHK)

Each of Japan's major cities has its own claims to fame. Tokyo is where mainstream entertainment and business trends emanate from. Yokohama is the breezy, multicultural city by the bay, while Kyoto, of course, is the heartland of traditional arts and culture. (Japan Today)

Seven-Eleven Japan Co's president said Friday that Japan's largest convenience store operator will start opening up outlets around fiscal 2019 in Okinawa, the only area in the country without Seven-Eleven stores. (Japan Today)

Japan is emerging as the latest front in the vacation rental/home-sharing battle, with HomeAway and Airbnb taking advantage of an improved regulatory environment. (tnooz.com)

A suspected murderer who went on the run for 45 years has been arrested in Japan. (independent.co.uk)

In their 83 years of existence, the Yomiuri Giants have never had a stretch quite this bad. (Japan Times)

The number of households on welfare in Japan in March increased by 2,588 from the previous month to hit a record high of 1,641,523, up for the first time in three months, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said Wednesday. (Japan Times)

A Japanese man was charged Tuesday in court with two counts of murder for the brutal slaying of two Japanese nationals last week in the western Philippine province of Palawan, official documents obtained Wednesday showed. (Japan Today)

A police sergeant was arrested Thursday on suspicion of killing his wife found dead Tuesday in Fukuoka Prefecture. (Japan Times)

Japan's current account surplus grew 7.5% on the year in April to 1.95 trillion yen ($17.7 billion), the highest for the month in 10 years, according to data released Thursday by the Ministry of Finance. (Nikkei)

The Universal Studios Japan theme park in Osaka plans to add a new area featuring Nintendo characters and worlds, which was unveiled at a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday. (Japan Times)

A 14-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after he dropped a 5-year-old girl from the second floor of a sports center in Mihara, Hiroshima Prefecture, on Monday night. (Japan Today)

Three giant pandas born and raised in Japan have returned to China under a standard agreement to improve the breeding success of the rare animals. (Japan Today)

The long arm of the law may be reaching out to Japan's largest criminal syndicate and its breakaway gangs. (tokyoreporter.com)

Japan's Ministry of Finance seeks to create a market enabling direct exchanges of the yen and other Asian currencies without using the dollar as an intermediary, an idea that could reduce funding costs for financial institutions and businesses. (Nikkei)