News On Japan

Surging Tokyo property prices squeeze out young professionals

TOKYO, Oct 05 (Japan Times) - After weathering decades of deflation and stagnant growth, Japan is seeing an investment boom that has made apartments in central Tokyo unaffordable for young Japanese professionals.

The flood of investment drove the average price for a new condominium in central Tokyo up 60% to a record ¥129.6 million ($865,000) in the first half of this year, according to the Real Estate Economic Institute.

For locals, the surge in prices has made Tokyo the second most unaffordable city worldwide, only behind Hong Kong, according to a UBS global real estate report.

A 60 square meter apartment in Tokyo now costs 15 times a skilled worker's salary, up from 10 times a decade ago and well above prices in London, Singapore and New York, the UBS report showed. ...continue reading

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A heavy rain emergency warning is in place for the cities of Wajima, Suzu and the town of Noto in Ishikawa Prefecture, central Japan. This is the highest alert level on the agency's scale of one to five. The area was severely hit by an earthquake on New Year's Day. (NHK)

Shohei Ohtani returned to Dodger Stadium in spectacular fashion, hitting a home run and stealing a base in his first game back, raising his season total to 52 home runs and 52 stolen bases.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio says Japan and China have reached an agreement that will lead to the resumption of China's imports of Japanese seafood. (NHK)

The Tohoku Shinkansen came to a halt for five hours on Thursday due to an unexpected mid-journey separation of the linked Hayabusa and Komachi trains, 30 minutes after passing Furukawa Station with a total of 320 passengers on board.

The Japan Meteorological Agency has issued an eruption alert for Sumisu Island in the Izu Islands, following the detection of discolored water in July.

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Daihatsu Motor announced on Friday that it has filed a recall with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism for 1.71 million vehicles, including 15 models such as the Tanto, due to improper tightening of seat bolts.

The average price of a newly built condominium in Tokyo’s 23 wards has exceeded 100 million yen for the fourth consecutive month.

The village of Onna in Okinawa has recorded the highest land price increase in Japan, with prices for some areas rising by 29%. The average nationwide land price has increased by 1.4% for the third consecutive year, but the sharpest growth is seen in residential areas like Onna Village.

Land prices across Japan have been rising for four consecutive years, with North Kanto emerging as a key area of interest due to its favorable living conditions.

Sharp, a major home appliance manufacturer, has unveiled its first electric vehicle (EV) as part of its move into the electric vehicle market, with a five-seater 'extended livingroom' EV Sharp van.

Gold is gaining increasing attention as a stable asset. Among the most eye-catching items at a gold exhibition held in a Sapporo department store are statues of the genius surgeon Black Jack and his assistant Pinoko, both made of gold.

There are approximately 2 million visually impaired individuals in Japan and 300 million worldwide. Due to their impaired vision, going out often comes with the risk of accidents. In response to this issue, Honda's first startup Asirase, led by CEO Chino, developed a navigation device called 'Ashirase' to assist visually impaired individuals in walking safely.

Japanese food businesses are intensifying their expansion efforts in China, where consumption has stagnated due to rising food prices. We investigate the factors driving these Japanese companies to accelerate their operations in the Chinese market.