Roads around the Fushimi Otesuji Shopping Street in Kyoto's Fushimi Ward were flooded on the evening of September 13 after water began gushing from a nearby road, forcing authorities to close part of the street to traffic.
Tesla unveiled its Cybercab in Japan for the first time on September 11, showcasing an AI-powered autonomous taxi designed without a steering wheel or pedals.
Newly recovered video from a passenger's digital camera has revealed conditions aboard the Kazu I sightseeing boat before it sank off Hokkaido's Shiretoko Peninsula in April 2022, a disaster that left 20 passengers and crew members dead and six passengers still missing more than four years later.
Police have rearrested a 30-year-old senior member of an organization affiliated with the Sixth Yamaguchi-gumi on suspicion of directing a loosely organized criminal group that stole smartphones and other goods worth about 4.15 million yen from stores in Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures.
High-end bonsai are being stolen from gardens across Japan in a growing series of thefts, with some trees later appearing on social media overseas and industry officials saying more than 100 cases are now reported each year.
Three people have been arrested in Kyoto on suspicion of operating an unlicensed underground banking service for Chinese clients, with police believing the group handled transactions worth about 600 million yen in total.
Prolonged rain has dramatically transformed Fukuroda Falls in Ibaraki Prefecture, sending far more water than usual over the famous cascade and drawing growing numbers of tourists eager to see the unusually powerful spectacle.
China will sharply raise visa fees for Japanese nationals entering the country from September 14, with the cost of a single-entry visa increasing to 16,750 yen, about 7.4 times the current level.
Tokyo's Koto Ward will conduct on-site inspections of all roughly 400 lodging facilities from January 2027 as it moves to strengthen regulations following a sharp increase in complaints over issues including garbage disposal and nighttime noise.
Hyogo Prefecture is warning of an increased risk of Asiatic black bears entering residential areas this autumn as a poor crop of acorns and other nuts leaves the animals searching more widely for food before hibernation.
The Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly elected a new chairman after the resignation of longtime power broker Isao Kuranouchi, while a photograph showing an opposition lawmaker striking a pose reminiscent of the movie Titanic during an overseas inspection trip has triggered a fresh political controversy.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government faced a sharper market test on September 9 as the yen’s rapid rebound began pressuring global carry trades, turning expectations of a Bank of Japan rate hike into a political challenge for an administration still trying to balance household relief, fiscal discipline and economic security.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi entered the final stretch before the Bank of Japan’s September policy meeting facing a new version of the currency problem that has shaped her summer: the yen is no longer collapsing, but its sharp rebound is now forcing her government to explain how far it is prepared to tolerate higher interest rates to restore market confidence.
Tokyo's Fuchu Prison is adapting its meals and living arrangements to a growing foreign inmate population, with about one in four prisoners coming from overseas and staff balancing religious, cultural and dietary needs against tight budgets and the demands of running one of Japan's largest prisons.
Japan enjoyed one of its busiest sporting weekends of the year on September 12 and 13, highlighted by the men's national volleyball team winning the Asian championship and securing qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, while Nippon Professional Baseball's pennant races tightened, Miyu Yamashita captured the Japan Women's PGA Championship, Kosuke Sunagawa earned his first men's tour victory, and the Asian Games moved closer to their official opening.
Large volumes of floodwater poured into the Metropolitan Area Outer Underground Discharge Channel in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, following heavy rain on September 7, prompting the massive underground flood-control facility known as the "Underground Temple" to go into operation.
High school students in Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture, explored how humans and artificial intelligence might coexist in the future by interacting with an AI-powered humanoid robot during a class on September 11.
Japan is facing growing pressure over its treatment and recruitment of foreign workers, with serious allegations of abuse emerging even as companies compete for a shrinking pool of overseas labor and some industries approach government-set limits on the number of workers they can accept.
Tokyo stocks fell sharply on September 11, with the Nikkei 225 closing at 63,442, down 2.8%, as oil prices above $108, renewed Middle East tensions, U.S. rate-hike fears and expectations for another Bank of Japan increase triggered a broad selloff led by artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related shares.
Japan's corporate goods prices rose 7.6% in August from a year earlier, remaining above 7% for a third consecutive month as escalating tensions in the Middle East pushed up prices for petroleum, coal and chemical products.
Business sentiment among Japan's large companies returned to positive territory in the July-September quarter for the first time in two quarters, supported by growing demand for semiconductor manufacturing equipment and AI data centers as well as improving conditions in hospitality, restaurants and finance.