News On Japan

Japan to pay more for iPhone 14

Sep 09, 2022 (business-standard.com) - Buyers of the basic iPhone 14 in Japan - where the yen has slumped 24% since September - will pay 20% more than they did for the iPhone 13 when it was launched a year ago at 99,800 yen ($692.81).

Apple Inc on Wednesday kept prices for its latest iPhone stable in the United States, but raised prices in some Asian countries where currencies have dropped against the dollar in the past year.

Buyers of the basic iPhone 14 in Japan - where the yen has slumped 24% since September - will pay 20% more than they did for the iPhone 13 when it was launched a year ago at 99,800 yen ($692.81).

The iPhone 13 currently costs 107,800 yen in Japan. Earlier this year, Apple hiked the price of the model by nearly a fifth to 117,800 yen after the yen weakened.

The dollar's strength is the biggest risk to Apple's earnings, Credit Suisse analysts wrote in a note.

"Demand for Apple remains strong in the U.S. and Europe, while Japan is likely under pressure given recent price increases and limited subsidies," they said. ...continue reading

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Japan's Obon travel rush began on August 7 under severe disruption from Typhoon No. 13, with hundreds of flights canceled across Okinawa and Kagoshima as Shinkansen trains and expressways prepared for their main outbound peak on August 8, while a second typhoon raised concerns about further travel trouble next week.

A large and strong Typhoon No. 13 was making its closest approach to Okinawa's main island and the Amami region on August 7, bringing torrential rain, violent winds and waves exceeding 8 meters as the slow-moving storm threatened to prolong severe weather through August 8.

Requests for rapidly constructed "instant houses" are growing across areas of Kumamoto Prefecture devastated by the recent earthquake, providing air-conditioned temporary shelter for residents who have been sleeping in tents and vehicles beside their damaged homes.

Toyota Motor has begun recruiting residents of Shizuoka Prefecture to live in Woven City, its experimental community for developing future technologies, with about 25 households expected to move into the site for two years from March 2027.

Nine days after the Kumamoto earthquake, a supermarket in Hikawa, where the strongest seismic intensity of 7 was recorded, is moving toward reopening while providing free groundwater to residents as about 3,200 households remain without running water.

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Tokyo stocks ended slightly lower on August 7, with the Nikkei 225 closing at 65,606.71, down 76.55 points, or 0.12%, as selling in chip-related and artificial intelligence-linked shares outweighed solid buying in the broader market and a late recovery led by Fujikura.

Nippon Steel has completed a new production line at its Nagoya Works after investing about 300 billion yen, as Japan's largest steelmaker seeks to expand production of high-performance steel products primarily for automakers.

Hokkaido's minimum wage is expected to rise by 56 yen to a record 1,131 yen per hour in October, entering the 1,100-yen range for the first time, but workers and business owners are concerned that tax and social insurance thresholds could lead employees to limit their hours.

The average summer bonus paid by major Japanese companies rose above 1 million yen for the first time, reaching a record 1,042,537 yen as strong corporate earnings and substantial wage increases lifted employee compensation.

Tokyo stocks diverged on August 6, with the Nikkei 225 closing at 65,683.26, down 617.18 points, or 0.93%, as selling in artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related heavyweights outweighed broad gains across the wider market.

The Bank of Japan's latest economic outlook has strengthened expectations that another interest rate increase could come as early as September after the central bank kept its policy rate at around 1.0% at its July meeting following a June hike, while placing greater emphasis on the risk that inflation will rise above its 2% target.

Tokyo stocks rebounded strongly on August 5, with the Nikkei 225 rising to about 66,300 in late-session trading as investors bought back artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related shares, while lower oil prices and a steadier yen helped ease concern over imported inflation.

Japan's exports of agricultural, forestry and fishery products and food reached a record 897.7 billion yen in the first half of 2026, rising 10.9% from a year earlier as global demand for green tea surged, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said on August 4.