Business

Foreign luxury cars see brisk sales in Japan
Japan Today - Jul 19
Foreign luxury cars priced at more than 10 million yen in Japan are becoming popular among wealthy people who cannot travel abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic and who are willing to spend money on the back of higher global share prices.

Bunch of Japan grapes fetches 1.4 mil. yen, hits record for 3rd yr
Kyodo - Jul 17
A bunch of high-end red grapes sold Friday in central Japan for 1.4 million yen ($12,700) in the season's first auction, up 100,000 yen from the year before and setting a record for the third straight year.

Shimano pedals faster as COVID pandemic propels cycling boom
Nikkei - Jul 16
Shimano's showroom at its headquarters in Osaka is a shrine to the technology that has made the company a household name in global cycling.

Uniqlo says no forced Xinjiang labor used in making its products
Nikkei - Jul 16
TOKYO -- Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing on Thursday stressed that the company does not use any materials linked to human rights violations in the supply chain amid rising concerns over forced labor in China's Xinjiang region.

EU ban may speed up Japanese carmakers' EV push
NHK - Jul 15
Japan's auto manufacturers are closely watching a move by the European Union to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

How Ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn escaped Japan in a box
BBC - Jul 15
Former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn became an international fugitive after fleeing house arrest in Japan in 2019.

Energy providers suspected of forming cartel
NHK - Jul 13
Officials from the Japan Fair Trade Commission are investigating the actions of some of the country's biggest energy providers.

Talk of 'vaccination harassment' puts Japan Inc. in a tough spot
Japan Times - Jul 13
As Japan plows ahead with its COVID-19 inoculation program, more vaccine-hesitant employees are voicing concerns over workplace discrimination and maltreatment stemming from their refusal to get jabs.

Japanese firms may stop using Xinjiang cotton
NHK - Jul 12
Major Japanese companies may halt the use of cotton from China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The firms are reviewing their supply chains amid allegations that the material is produced with forced labor.

Price of used vehicles soars amid chip shortages
NHK - Jul 12
The price of used vehicles has soared in Japan, hitting the second-highest level in the past decade, last month.

Summer bonuses fall in Japan amid pandemic
Kyodo - Jul 12
Nearly 30 percent of respondents in a private-sector survey said their summer bonuses fell from last year, indicating that more Japanese people are feeling the pinch of the coronavirus pandemic hurting corporate earnings.

Vintage video game sells for record $870,000
NHK - Jul 12
An unopened copy of Japanese game company Nintendo's "The Legend of Zelda" sold for a record 870,000 dollars at an auction in the United States on Friday.

Google Pay could upend Japan's smartphone payment leaders
Nikkei - Jul 11
Google's foray into fintech services in Japan threatens to drastically change the smartphone payment market, challenging PayPay and other leading cashless payment companies that are already struggling to win customers after offering big refunds.

Seven-Eleven steps up work-life support for foreign workers
Kyodo - Jul 11
Seven-Eleven Japan Co. has said it will start programs to support both the private and work-life of foreign workers at its convenience stores as part of efforts to retain them amid a labor shortage due to Japan's graying population.

Google to roll out fintech services in Japan
Nikkei - Jul 08
Google is making a foray into financial services in Japan by acquiring a cashless payment company for between 20 billion and 30 billion yen ($180 million to $270 million), Nikkei has learned.

Lawson convenience stores try wooden spoons
NHK - Jul 07
Japanese major convenience store chain Lawson is planning to offer wooden spoons to customers instead of single-use plastic ones. It is part of an effort to cut down on plastic waste.