News On Japan

Panasonic to Cut 10,000 Jobs Globally in Major Restructuring Drive

TOKYO - Panasonic Holdings announced on May 9th that it will cut around 10,000 jobs globally as part of a major restructuring effort aimed at strengthening its management foundation for long-term growth.

"It is with a deep sense of regret that we have to touch on employment. I sincerely apologize," said President Yuki Kusumi during an online press conference. "But unless we fundamentally reform the foundation of our business now, we will not be able to ensure sustainable growth 10 or 20 years from now."

The company stated that the layoffs will take place over the current and next fiscal years, amounting to about 4% of its total workforce. Panasonic aims to improve earnings by more than 150 billion yen by the end of March two years from now.

In February, the company announced plans to dissolve its core subsidiary, Panasonic Corporation, which handles consumer electronics and air conditioning, and reorganize it into three separate businesses. It also plans to withdraw from unprofitable operations and consolidate domestic and overseas sites as part of the ongoing reform.

Source: YOMIURI

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

A newly formed tropical depression near Taiwan on June 9th is expected to intensify the seasonal rain front lingering over southwestern Japan, raising the risk of warning-level rainfall across Okinawa and the Amami Islands through around June 11th.

Japan's national soccer team arrived in Nashville, Tennessee, on June 8th from Monterrey, Mexico, where it had been conducting a pre-World Cup training camp, and held its first practice session at its base camp for the FIFA World Cup in North America.

A prolonged eruption at Sakurajima on June 7th blanketed parts of Kagoshima City in volcanic ash, turning roads gray and prompting long lines of vehicles seeking car washes after a plume of smoke rose 1,300 meters above the crater.

A powerful earthquake struck off Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines at 8:38 a.m. (Japan time) on June 8th, generating tsunami waves across parts of the Pacific, causing building collapses and casualties near the epicenter, and prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue tsunami advisories along a wide stretch of Japan's Pacific coastline before lifting all of them at 4:50 p.m.

A clinic director and a former Peruvian staff member have been referred to prosecutors after the man allegedly performed medical procedures without a license, including an external cephalic version—a procedure used to manually turn a baby into the correct position before birth—at an obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Fukuoka City, raising concerns about patient safety and oversight in maternity care.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Business NEWS

The Bank of Japan is increasingly expected to raise its policy interest rate to 1.0% at next week's monetary policy meeting, responding to growing concerns that inflation could rise faster than previously anticipated due to soaring oil prices and other cost pressures.

The number of restaurant bankruptcies in Japan reached a record high for the January–May period, highlighting mounting pressures from rising costs, labor shortages, and increasingly cautious consumer spending.

Casio Computer, the company behind some of Japan’s most iconic consumer electronics including calculators, digital cameras, electronic musical instruments, and the G-SHOCK watch, is pursuing a new strategy aimed at reviving its tradition of product innovation.

Nippon Steel plans to invest up to $2.5 billion, or approximately 400 billion yen, over the next three years in the Mon Valley Works steel complex in Pennsylvania, one of the key facilities operated by U.S. Steel, the American steelmaker it acquired in 2025.

Japan's economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.8% in the January–March quarter of 2026, according to revised gross domestic product (GDP) data released by the Cabinet Office, with the figure marked down from the preliminary estimate due largely to weaker-than-expected capital investment.

Japanese stocks suffered a sharp sell-off on June 8th as weakness in U.S. technology shares and growing concerns over higher global interest rates triggered widespread selling, sending the Nikkei Stock Average down 2,563.52 points, or about 3.8%, to close at 64,024.60.

Japan's current account surplus expanded 64.9% from a year earlier to 3.9078 trillion yen in April, marking the 15th consecutive month of positive balance, according to balance of payments data released by the Finance Ministry on June 8th.

Rapid inflation and the weakening yen continue to squeeze household budgets across Japan, prompting renewed debate over the country's economic policies. Former Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who spearheaded the central bank's aggressive monetary easing campaign under Abenomics, argues that the overall economy remains on a positive trajectory and that wage growth is now exceeding inflation.