The Nikkei stock index ended at a record high above 58,000 on Wednesday, as speculation about further interest rate hikes by the Bank of Japan receded after the government's nomination of two new BOJ policymakers.

The U.S. dollar briefly rose above the 156 yen line in Tokyo after the government submitted to parliament its nominations of university professors Toichiro Asada and Ayano Sato as new members of the central bank's policy board.

The market sees the two as proponents of a reflationary policy that pursues monetary easing. The U.S. currency later retreated to the mid-155 yen range due to wariness about yen-buying intervention, dealers said.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average climbed 1,262.03 points, or 2.20 percent, from Tuesday to 58,583.12. The broader Topix index finished 27.18 points, or 0.71 percent, higher at 3,843.16.

On the top-tier Prime Market, the main gainers were nonferrous metal, electric appliance and real estate issues.

Stocks rose from the outset, buoyed by heavyweight technology shares after software-related issues climbed in the U.S. market, with the Nikkei renewing an intraday record for the first time in two weeks.

The market climbed further in the afternoon, as investors welcomed the nomination of the two BOJ policymakers, brokers said.

"The proposal fueled hopes that it would make it easier for the government of Prime Minister (Sanae) Takaichi to promote its economic policies," said Makoto Sengoku, senior equity market analyst at the Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory Co.

Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries fell 1.2 percent to 4,752 yen after the company's subsidiaries were listed as among 20 defense-related entities subject to China's export ban for dual-use items amid a diplomatic row.
 
 

McDonald's (Japan) said Tuesday it will raise the prices of about 60% of its menu items by ¥10 ($.06) to ¥50 starting on Wednesday.

The markups reflect higher material, energy and labor costs, according to the hamburger chain.

The Big Mac will see its tax-inclusive price rise from ¥480 to ¥500. Prices will also go up by ¥20 for all three sizes of McFry french fries.
The price of the cheeseburger will also increase by ¥20, following a price hike in March last year.

Meanwhile, the prices of items such as a hamburger and the Teriyaki McBurger will remain unchanged both on their own and for combo meals.

The size of the price hikes will differ at some stores, including those at airports and in urban areas, as well as for delivery services, the company said.
 

 

China's commerce ministry said that only a small number of Japanese entities are targeted and that "honest and law-abiding Japanese entities have nothing to worry about".

China imposed export restrictions on 40 Japanese companies on Tuesday (Feb 24), citing national security concerns, as Beijing escalated a months-long row that has seen Chinese tourism to Japan plummet.

The spat between Asia's top two economies was sparked by comments by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in November that Japan could intervene militarily in any attack on self-ruled Taiwan.

The measures announced on Tuesday cover exports of "dual-use" items - which can have civilian and military uses - to 20 Japanese entities, including five subsidiaries of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries as well as Japan's space agency.

The commerce ministry added a further 20 Japanese organisations, including automaker Subaru, to a "watch list" requiring stricter reviews of exported items that could be used for military purposes.

"The above measures are aimed at curbing Japan's 'remilitarisation' and nuclear ambitions and are completely legitimate, reasonable and lawful," a commerce ministry statement said.

"Honest and law-abiding Japanese entities have nothing to worry about," it added.

Japan said Tuesday that export restrictions imposed by China on 40 Japanese companies were "absolutely unacceptable and deeply regrettable".

"We have strongly protested these measures and demanded their withdrawal," government spokesman Kei Sato said.

A Japanese trade ministry official earlier told AFP that Tokyo would "take appropriate measures" after analysing the impact of the new curbs.
Takaichi's comments on Taiwan, which China views as its territory and has not ruled out taking by force, have enraged Beijing.

The most visible consequence is a sharp drop in Chinese visitors to Japan - 61 per cent in January - after Beijing warned its citizens against going there.

In December, J-15 jets from China's Liaoning aircraft carrier twice locked radar on Japanese aircraft in international waters near Okinawa, according to Japan.

China has reportedly suspended imports of Japanese seafood. Japan's last two pandas were also returned to China last month.

Last month, China announced tightened controls on exports to Japan for items with potential military uses.

This fuelled worries that Beijing may choke supplies of vital rare-earth minerals, some of which are included in China's list of "dual-use" goods.


SHARES TUMBLE

The latest move singles out dozens of Japanese industrial heavyweights, including shipbuilding and aerospace firms.

Shares in Kawasaki Heavy Industries sank almost 5 per cent in Tokyo, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shed close to 4 per cent and IHI tumbled nearly 7 per cent.

Several of the firms listed are indeed active in the defence industry, manufacturing kits including ships, fighter jets and missiles for the Japanese military.

Japan has been shedding its strict pacifist stance, moving to obtain "counterstrike" capabilities and to ease rules on exporting lethal defence equipment.

Takaichi's government in December approved a record defence budget worth nine trillion yen (US$58 billion) for the coming fiscal year to expand its military capabilities.

Takaichi told parliament on Friday that China was intensifying attempts to change the status quo "by force or coercion" in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

"Strengthening our defence capabilities is essential to protect the lives and peaceful livelihoods of our citizens as we face the most severe and complex security environment since the end of (World War II)," Takaichi said on Monday.

Japanese firms dealing with China were already struggling with delays in getting approvals, said Noriyuki Kawamura, professor emeritus of Japan-China relations at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies.

"With today's announcement, we can expect the process will be made even more stringent. I believe this will be a huge blow to companies involved," Kawamura told AFP.
 
 

Japan’s major real estate companies are expanding businesses overseas. With the ease of the COVID-19 pandemic and market conditions stabilizing, companies have continued making large-scale investments in the United States, Europe and Asia.

As growth potential in Japan is limited, the aim is for sustainable business growth by taking advantage of overseas demand.



Operating profit doubles

Mitsubishi Estate Co. plans to build a large office building complex in central London, the 72 Upper Ground.

Total construction cost is estimated to be around ¥160 billion, marking the company’s largest investment outside Japan to date.

The plan is to build 25-story and 14-story buildings on a site of the same size as the Marunouchi Building in Tokyo’s Marunouchi district.

The site is near the Thames River, with good transportation access. Commercial facilities will be set up in the lower floors.

Construction began in last September and is scheduled to be completed in 2029.

London has seen an increasing number of workers resuming working in-office, which had also seen a decline with the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, however, real estate development has remained stagnant. As a result, Mitsubishi hopes demand for attractive and brand-new office buildings will rise.

A senior official at Mitsubishi Estate London Ltd., expressed confidence about the demand, saying, “It has become a challenge for companies here to find good office spaces.”

Mitsubishi Estate has focused on developing real estate in the United States and other regions overseas, setting a goal of doubling its operating profit from overseas businesses from ¥45.8 billion in fiscal 2024 to ¥90 billion by later this decade.


Base equivalent to Tokyo

All five of Japan’s major real estate companies, including Mitsubishi Estate and Mitsui Fudosan Co., recorded their highest ever consolidated net profits as of the end of March 2025. This was driven mainly by the increase in the rents of office buildings and condominium prices in Japan.

However, “the foundation of the real estate business is population,” said an executive of a major real estate company. For this reason, reliance on domestic markets is seen to be approaching its limit as Japan’s population continues to decline. This has led real estate companies to seek new business ventures in other countries.

Mitsui Fudosan, which began overseas development in the 1970s, when Mitsubishi Estate also began, operates various office and housing buildings across the globe.

Since the start of 2025, the company has opened new LaLaport and Mitsui Outlet Park brand commercial facilities in Taiwan.

Going forward, the company plans to expand investments in the southern U.S. and Australia, where economic growth is expected.

There is also notable investment flow into Asian countries, where population growth rates and economic growth rates are high.

Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. announced two new development projects this year in addition to existing three sites, including office buildings, in Mumbai.

The total cost is estimated to be about ¥1 trillion.

“It will be a huge business base equivalent to Tokyo,” a company official said.

Daisuke Fukushima, senior analyst at Nomura Securities Co., said, “With surging materials costs due to the depreciating yen and rising wages, development costs in Japan have been rising.”

He pointed out the importance of operating businesses overseas, saying, “Diversifying business within Japan alone is impossible.”
 
 

There’s been a lot for Japanese Starbucks fans to be happy about over the last few days, as the chain rolled out its new sakura
beverages and drinkware. But while those additions to Starbucks’ menu and merch catalog are putting smiles on many people’s face, there are some less crowd-pleasing ones going into effect too.

Starting with the one that has a silver lining, as of February 18, Starbucks Japan branches no longer provides free bags to takeout customers.

Instead, customers who need a bag and haven’t brought one of their own will be charged 11 yen per order, and can receive a number of bags up to the number of items they’re purchasing.

It’s a very modest fee, and is part of Starbucks’ initiative to reduce the chain’s environmental impact by encouraging customers to bring their own reusable shopping bags.

▼ Since 2009, Starbucks Japan has been using FSC (Forest Stewardship Council)-approved sustainable-source paper for its takeout bags, but they want to be even more ecologically friendly.

 

The less popular change, though, will be that Starbucks is raising its prices, or, to use their press release’s terminology, “adjusting” them, in response to “rising materials and energy costs.”

The nature of the price increases is complex and vague. To start with, in 2025 Starbucks introduced a system of “location-specific pricing,” with Starbucks locations inside certain Japanese airports and expressway rest stops put into the category Location A, and branches in major metropolitan areas such as Tokyo’s 23 central wards and Osaka in the Location B classification.

Prices at Location A Starbucks are, on average, six percent higher than they are in a normal Starbucks, and at Location B branches they’re four percent higher than the norm. In total, about 30 percent of Starbucks Japan branches are in either the Location A or B group.

Under the new system, though, Starbucks will be transferring some of the Tokyo 23-wards branches to the more expansive Location A group.

In addition, while the beverage prices for Location A and B branches will not change, at Starbucks Japan’s remaining branches (i.e. those with the cheapest prices under the old system), prices for some permanent-menu beverages will be increased by 5 to 30 yen.

And at all participating Starbucks Japan branches, regardless of location classification, the price for the chain’s “One More Coffee” brewed coffee refill service will be increased by 20 yen, and some regular-menu food items will have their prices raised by between 5 and 30 yen.

None of these are massive changes, but with consumers in Japan growing exhausted at the constant string of prices for just about everything going up while most workers’ wages remain stagnant, being asked to pay more for what’s supposed to be discretionary, “fun” eating and drinking probably isn’t going to sit well with some people.

In addition, while it might be a common practice in the U.S., in Japan it’s somewhat unusual for a national chain to charge different prices based on branch location.

Starbucks Japan isn’t the first company to do so (McDonald’s Japan also charges different prices for certain items depending on location), but Starbucks does run the risk of being seen as trying to squeeze every last yen they can out of their customers by saying that people in certain parts of Tokyo have to pay more for the same cup of coffee than they would in another part of the country, or even another part of the same city.

All that said, with how consistently crowded Starbucks Japan branches in prime locations are, Starbucks probably isn’t too worried about losing a handful of customers if they can earn more per person who does buy something.
 

 

The Japanese government plans to expand the market for used goods to around 4.6 trillion yen ($29.7 bllion) in 2030, up 32 percent from 2024, to curb waste and reduce carbon dioxide emissions, a government source said.

The government will draw up guidelines by fiscal 2027 to outline requirements for business operators, following cases in which consumers have received poor-quality items via flea market apps. It will also urge local governments to utilize secondhand items, the source said.

The measures to promote used goods will be compiled in a road map to be drawn up by the Environment Ministry as early as March, the source said.

The market, calculated based on annual spending on 22 categories of used goods including books and home appliances purchased via online auctions and secondhand retailers, has seen annual growth of 1 percent in recent years, so a sharp expansion would be required to achieve the government target.

Specific measures will include setting up a system to evaluate secondhand retailers and operators of flea market apps in line with the guidelines to support the activities of highly rated businesses.

The government also plans to promote services to connect operators with elderly people wishing to sort their belongings to facilitate the collection of unnecessary items.

The government will examine factors hindering the purchase of used goods by municipalities and revise rules on procuring environmentally friendly products, the source said.

It is also considering holding campaigns to encourage purchases of used goods during the year-end, when many people clean up their homes, and the moving season in spring.
 
 

Japan and the United States have chosen three inaugural projects to kick off a $550 billion (about ¥84 trillion) investment package in the United States.

The two nations agreed on the investment package in July during talks over U.S. tariff measures. The $550 billion in investments are to be made by January 2029, when U.S. President Donald Trump ‘s term of office expires.

Just over 6% of the total amount, or $36 billion, will be used in the first three projects. Both countries are hastily making preparations for the second set of projects, ahead of the Japan-U.S. summit scheduled in March, but careful consideration is required regarding profitability and other factors.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa emphasized on Wednesday that the latest agreement would benefit both Japan and the United States.

“Japan and the United States will cooperate to build supply chains in sectors critical to economic security. Japanese companies can expect business expansion through equipment supply and other avenues,” Akazawa told reporters.

The three projects were agreed upon only after considerable difficulty.
Japan and the United States held discussions from December at a committee of senior government officials and others who worked through the year-end and New Year holidays.

According to people involved in the negotiations, the U.S. side was eager to move forward with the three projects it proposed. The United States is said to have intended to announce the projects by the end of January.

However, the negotiations ran into trouble over issues such as income and expenditure plans to minimize business risks and ensure profitability. Both sides were able to reach an agreement through talks between Akazawa and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Feb. 12.

 

Sources said they finally were able to do so because the U.S. side also made concessions, such as lowering interest rates and reducing business costs.

The three projects are all in areas important to economic security, such as strategic materials and energy. They involve the construction of a gas-fired power plant; the development of a facility necessary to export crude oil; and the building of a synthetic diamond manufacturing facility.

The construction of the gas-fired power plant in Ohio will be managed by SoftBank Group Corp., which is promoting the development of infrastructure such as data centers necessary for the development and operation of artificial intelligence in the United States.

Toshiba Corp. and Hitachi, Ltd. are expected to supply power generation and transmission and distribution equipment, in addition to other related equipment.

“We will work positively in the project within the scope of acceptable conditions,” Toshiba said after the latest announcement. Hitachi commented, “We are honored to be expected to contribute to the realization of the project.”

Operations at the infrastructure to be built in Texas to export crude oil will involve collecting crude onshore, transporting it offshore via pipeline and shipping it on large tankers. The project envisions exporting crude oil to Japan in emergencies.

Among the participating companies are Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., which will handle vessel operation management, and Nippon Steel Corp., which will supply materials.

“Large-scale projects generate demand for steel materials. We’ll consider supplying steel materials in a forward-looking manner,” a public relations official at Nippon Steel said.

The third project is the building of a synthetic diamond manufacturing facility in Georgia, essential for polishing and processing semiconductors and automotive parts. China dominates the global artificial diamond market.

Asahi Diamond Industrial Co., which handles tools for semiconductor components, imports 80% of its raw artificial diamond materials from China. “If we can stably procure raw materials from the United States, it would offer us significant benefits in terms of diversifying supply sources,” an Asahi Diamond official said.

To execute the three projects, Japan and the United States will establish a special purpose entity. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation will provide funding, while three major Japanese banks will extend loans with a loan guarantee from Nippon Export and Investment Insurance.

The U.S. side will contribute land and other tangible assets, while the U.S. federal government will help with construction permits and approvals.

Profits from the projects will be split 50-50 between Japan and the United States up to the amount covering Japanese loans and interest, and 90% of any profits beyond that will be received by the United States and 10% by Japan.

The Trump administration has also agreed with other parties, including the European Union and South Korea, to receive massive investments in exchange for tariff reductions.

The three projects, announced ahead of other countries and regions, are likely become a model case for relevant projects.

However, one participating company expressed caution, saying; “There are concerns about who will bear the risks if things go wrong. We need to assess the risks until the details are finalized.”
 

 

Major Japanese convenience store operator Lawson Inc will enter the Indian market, planning to open its first store in Mumbai in 2027 and launch a total of 100 stores in the country by 2030, a company official said.
 
Starting with five directly operated stores in Mumbai in 2027, the company aims to eventually expand its presence in the South Asian country to 10,000 stores in 2050, the official said.
 
Lawson -- which already has about 7,800 stores overseas, mainly in China -- views India, the world's most populous country, as the next potential pillar of profit-making outside Japan.
 
Seeing India continue to build infrastructure that enables the transport of food products at low temperatures, the company has determined it can enter the market, according to the official.
 
Among Lawson's Japanese rivals, Seven & i Holdings Co opened its first 7-Eleven store in India in 2021. It had about 60 stores as of September last year.
 

Japan's hydrogen car market is caught in a familiar spiral: fewer stations mean fewer buyers, which in turn makes fewer stations viable. By Stewart Burnett

Annual sales of fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) in Japan fell 83% between 2021 and 2025 to just 431 units, as a collapsing refuelling network leaves owners with diminishing options for topping up and deters new buyers entirely. Nikkei reports that the country now has just 149 hydrogen stations: around 10% fewer than five years ago and less than half the 320 the government had targeted.
 
Under a 15-kilometre access standard, roughly 90% of Japan qualifies as existing in a coverage gap, with more than 1,500 of the country’s municipalities having no charging station whatsoever. Roughly 70% of stations also close by 5PM—many do not even operate daily—limiting coverage to fewer than 10% of Japan’s population after 6PM even in Tokyo.

The economics driving the retreat are, unfortunately, self-reinforcing. Station operators told Nikkei that construction costs for a single station come in around JP¥500m (US$3.3m), while throughput remains far too low to cover ongoing staffing and maintenance costs.

One Tokyo operator, speaking off-the-record, said the daily use hovers around five fuel-cell buses per day, but the break-even threshold of ten buses or thirty passenger cars. 

From April, government purchase subsidies for fuel-cell vehicles will be trimmed down to a maximum JP¥1.05m, reduced from JP¥1.5m.

Meanwhile, subsidies for battery-electric vehicles will increase by up to JP¥1.3m—a clear indication of shifting confidence from the Japanese government.

The divergence widens an already substantial price gap: Toyota’s Mirai starts at JP¥7.41m (US$48,000) and Honda’s CR-V e:FCEV at JP¥8.33m, compared with battery EVs available from around JP¥2m. 

This squeeze is not confined to Japan: Austria’s OMV exited the hydrogen station business entirely in 2025, leaving the country without any publicly-operated infrastructure whatsoever.

The same year saw Germany’s H2 Mobility closing roughly 30% of its domestic network. The country’s largest truckmaker, Daimler Truck, also pushed series production of its next-generation fuel cell models into the 2030s from an originally-planned launch in 2027.

Similar developments have emerged among most global automakers previously interested in the segment. For example, Stellantis discontinued its fuel-cell light commercial vehicle programme citing no mid-term economic viability, while General Motors halted next-generation development and wound down its joint venture with Honda—ending shared production of the CR-V e:FCEV in 2026. Renault and Cummins have both made similar exits from passenger and electrolyser segments respectively.

Toyota and Hyundai remain the most committed major players in the passenger vehicle segment. Toyota President Koji Sato has argued that building a hydrogen value chain from production through to end-use is the precondition for any recovery, and the company plans to install hydrogen production equipment at its main Aichi factory in fiscal 2026.

The automaker has gone to lengths to reiterate its confidence in the flagging segment, despite a broader retreat.

Hyundai, on the other hand, remains committed to launching its next-generation Nexo FCEV, offering a range of over 826 km and a fill time of just five minutes—making it essentially comparable to gasoline refuelling.

The vehicle will launch in Japan during the first half of 2026. BMW is targeting series production of a hydrogen iX5 SUV by 2028. Both Hyundai and Toyota revealed next-generation fuel cell technology in 2025.

Whether the automakers’ planned vehicles arrive in time to reverse the infrastructure retreat is the central question facing the technology, although it does appear unlikely.

For now, the market that was supposed to lead the world in accelerating hydrogen mobility is contracting faster than any intervention appears capable of reversing.
 


 

The Japanese government plans to revise the economic security promotion law to support companies with economic security-linked projects overseas.
This will be the first revision of the law, established in 2022.

The move comes amid a rapidly changing international environment, as the Ukraine-Russia war drags on and China continues to flex its economic muscle. Competition is also intensifying in the development of artificial intelligence and other cutting-edge technologies.

The government will submit a bill to revise the law during the current session of parliament, which started Wednesday.

Under the revised law, Japan will support designated overseas projects, such as those dealing with the development of seaports crucial to logistics and data centers essential to AI development.

The government will also relax regulations under the Japan Bank for International Cooperation law to enable the state-backed lender to provide funds through a subordinated investment scheme in the event of losses in overseas projects. The scheme will mitigate loss risks to other investors.

Japan will launch a new think tank to examine supply chain-linked challenges in securing key economic security goods while enhancing the country’s research capabilities.

The think tank will be placed under the industry ministry-affiliated Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry and will gather experts in the fields of diplomacy, intelligence, defense, economy and technology to make agile policy proposals. It will also collaborate with foreign research institutes.

The law revision will include the medical field in a list of areas subject to a system that prevents foreign cyberattacks on core infrastructure operators.
Additionally, Japan will support work to lay optical cables under the sea.
 

 

Japan's exports to the United States fell for the second straight month in January, indicating the lingering impact of the Trump administration's tariff measures.

Finance Ministry figures released on Wednesday show shipments to the US were down 5 percent from a year earlier to 1.46 trillion yen, or more than 9.5 billion dollars.

Auto exports declined 9.9 percent, while those of pharmaceuticals plunged 70.6 percent.

But Japan's global exports last month rose 16.8 percent year-on-year to 9.18 trillion yen, marking the fifth straight month of increase.

Imports to Japan from the rest of the world slid 2.5 percent to 10.34 trillion yen. That was the first decrease since August last year.
 
 

Japan is turning up the heat on its “gastrodiplomacy” by making embassy chefs’ posts more attractive and better paid. 

After years of chronic shortages in the kitchens of its embassies and consulates, the Foreign Ministry has rolled out a sweeping overhaul to attract and retain the chefs who serve as the country’s “culinary diplomats.”

The reform raises pay, formalizes contracts, and is intended to keep Japanese cuisine firmly on the global diplomatic menu.

By offering annual compensation of at least 6 million yen ($39,000)—along with greater professional stability and autonomy—Tokyo hopes to ensure that the "washoku" Japanese cuisine served at key diplomatic banquets is prepared by well-qualified professionals.

The ministry launched the new system in January, significantly improving working conditions for chefs employed at official residences and other overseas missions. Low pay and uncertain work terms had long deterred applicants, leaving many posts understaffed.

By upgrading compensation and standardizing employment conditions, the ministry aims to secure the talent it needs to deploy Japanese cuisine more effectively as a diplomatic tool.

Until now, “official residence chefs” at Japan’s more than 200 overseas diplomatic missions—including embassies and consulates-general—typically worked under private contracts with ambassadors or consuls general.

They prepare Japanese and other cuisines for VIP dinners and receptions, promoting Japanese culture through food.

But as the global popularity of Japanese cuisine has lifted pay and conditions in the private sector, the relatively modest compensation at diplomatic posts—averaging about 4.5 million yen a year—became a liability.

The jobs grew less competitive, shortages persisted, and as of May last year, more than a dozen missions had no chef on staff.

Under the former arrangement, compensation was financed roughly one-third from heads of mission’s personal funds and about two-thirds from public subsidies.

Employment terms also tended to mirror the ambassador’s or consul general’s own assignment, with no predetermined tenure—making it difficult for chefs to plan a career.

The ministry has now revamped the program and will rename “official residence chefs” as “overseas mission chefs.” Contracts will shift from private agreements with ambassadors and other heads of mission to official contracts with the overseas missions themselves.

Annual compensation will be set at 6 million yen or more, and the term will be standardized at two years, with annual renewals possible. Previously, chefs were generally required to live in at the official residence; under the new rules, they will be allowed to live in privately rented housing.

In its budget request for the next fiscal year, which starts in April, the ministry earmarked 2.53 billion yen for the program—about 1 billion yen more than the previous year.

Ahead of the rollout, the ministry began recruitment in July last year and drew more than three times as many applications as the roughly 50 available slots.

A ministry official acknowledged “a sense of crisis” surrounding the diplomatic chef system, but said the reforms should “gradually ease the staffing shortfall.”
 
 

Japanese home electronics retailer Nojima is eager to boost its merger and acquisition activities, ready to spend up to ¥300 billion per deal, sources have said.

"There is a possibility of spending ¥200 billion to ¥300 billion" per deal, President Hiroshi Nojima, 75, said in a recent interview.

The company is known for its aggressive M&A activities. Its largest deal is the ¥85.4 billion purchase of mobile phone distributor Conexio in 2023. Other acquired companies include internet business Nifty and personal computer maker Vaio.

The president said potential acquisition targets are companies that can generate synergies with digital products, such as home appliances and mobile phones.

Still, after the case of Suruga Bank, in which Nojima acquired a stake but later sold it, he said: "Acquisition is not the goal. If we can't strengthen our business, we let go."

The company has a target of achieving consolidated sales of ¥1 trillion by around 2030, against ¥853.4 billion for the year that ended in March 2025.

The target "will be raised to ¥3 trillion in the near future," the president said. "I want to see the number reach ¥10 trillion while I'm alive."

Overseas, the company aims to increase sales from ¥81.3 billion to ¥100 billion early by expanding its operations mainly in Singapore and Malaysia.

In April this year, Nojima will raise its starting monthly salary for new graduates to a maximum of ¥400,000.

Describing human resource development as the company's "eternal theme," the president highlighted the importance of management decisions reflecting input from front-line operations, saying, "Bosses should be utilized by subordinates."

He also said the company has selected 30 outstanding employees who understand its management philosophy to participate in a special team as part of efforts to train successors.
 
 

Sony Group Corp. has continually been downsizing its once stellar consumer electronics business and clarifying its shift to the entertainment industry, which includes games and music.

Last month, the company announced that it would spin off its television business. Following that announcement, it decided to end shipments of Blu-ray disc recorders.

Sony’s business restructuring is proceeding at a rapid pace, with nothing off-limits.


Withdrawal from Blu-ray

The announcement of the end of the shipments came on Feb. 9 via the company’s official website.

“We will stop shipping all models,” it said. “There will be no successor models.”

Blu-ray discs used to be a successful media format. In the 2000s, the technology competed for dominance with HD- DVDs, which were led by Toshiba Corp. Thanks to the backing of major American film studios such as Warner Bros, Sony won that battle and went on to expand its market share of high definition DVDs.

However, changes in consumer viewing habits have dramatically changed the situation. The spread of video streaming services and the rise of large-capacity storage drives has led to a decline in demand for Blu-ray discs.

In February 2025, production of Blu-ray discs for recording was discontinued.


Nothing off-limits

Sony’s stance on business restructuring became clear when Hiroki Totoki, who became president in 2023, began serving as chief executive officer in April 2025.

At a briefing in February 2025, Totoki suggested that nothing would be off-limits when it came to rearranging the composition of the company’s portfolio.

“We see our portfolio as dynamic rather than static and will continually review it,” Totoki said.

The restructuring also extends to Sony’s former mainstay television business. In January, the company announced plans to separate its Bravia brand television business and transfer it to a joint venture established with Chinese electronics giant TCL Electronics Holdings Ltd. TCL will hold a majority stake of 51% in the joint venture.

In the fiscal year ending March 2025, Sony’s television business saw sales of ¥564.1 billion, down 40% from 20 years ago.

The rise of Chinese and Korean rivals, whose low prices give them an advantage, was a major reason for the move, with Sony positioning the television business as an area in need of “structural reform and transformation.”


Intellectual properties

On the other hand, Sony has been accelerating efforts to strengthen its entertainment-related business.

In 2025, the company announced tens of billions of yen worth of investments in major publishing companies Kadokawa Corp., which own many popular intellectual properties, and Bandai Namco Holdings Inc.

It will also bring Peanuts Worldwide LLC under its umbrella as a consolidated subsidiary. Peanuts Worldwide manages the intellectual property for the popular cartoon Peanuts, known for the character Snoopy.

Sony has been expanding its entertainment businesses, which cover games, movies and music. In the fiscal year ended March 2015, sales from these businesses made up about 30% of the company’s total sales. As of the fiscal year ending March 2025, however, that figure had reached about 60%.

The company hopes to further increase earnings in entertainment by leveraging the various intellectual properties it holds.

Nevertheless, Sony still appears to have plans to continue strengthening its technological development in some areas.

“Even if it’s no longer in the form of consumer products, Sony will retain the technology necessary for entertainment,” said Waseda University Prof. Atsushi Osanai, an expert on the electronics industry.

Sony is expected to continue developing technologies in areas such as video devices and image sensors, as the company remains competitive in these areas and the technologies synergize with the entertainment sector.
 
 

U.S. restaurant chain Anna Miller's will reopen in Japan for the first time in three years on Friday, with its distinctive staff uniforms unchanged from the previous run, according to its Japanese operator.

A media preview of the American cuisine and pie specialty restaurant was held Thursday ahead of its opening in Tokyo's Minami-Aoyama district.

It marks the brand's first physical store in Japan since its branch in Tokyo's Takanawa district closed in August 2022, operator Imuraya Food Service Co said.

With a total floor space of just over 166 square meters, the new store will occupy the first two floors of a building near Gaienmae Station on the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line.

The restaurant features an interior designed to evoke 1970s suburban America and offers 32 seats. A display case on the first floor caters to takeout orders.

"We hope to share information about American culture and food, earning the appreciation of our customers," Masanori Kanae, a senior advisor at Imuraya Food Service said.

The new store was originally scheduled to open in December but was postponed due to construction delays. The brand currently operates in Japan only through online sales.

Imuraya has long operated the restaurant chain in the Tokyo metropolitan area under a license from the U.S. operator, opening its first store in Aoyama in 1973.

The brand gained popularity for its miniskirt and apron uniforms and American-style pies, which were not widely available in Japan at the time.
 
 

 

Toyota is safeguarding its nearly $1 billion investment pledge to air taxi maker Joby Aviation by troubleshooting production processes and mulling a deeper manufacturing role.

The Japanese automaker, which last year became Joby’s largest shareholder, has a team of almost 200 employees working to supply critical parts, training tips and assembly line know-how.

That involves deploying a set of lean manufacturing precepts known as the Toyota Production System, or TPS, said Sandy Lobenstein, Toyota’s group vice president of flying mobility.

"We’re really trying to bring TPS and the philosophy of TPS into the operations here,” Lobenstein told reporters on a tour of Joby’s factory. "Those types of innovations are helping to improve the lead time to production and scaling.”

Joby is among a handful of startups developing eVTOL aircraft — electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles — to fly customers on short commuter journeys via battery-powered air taxis. The Santa Cruz, California-based firm is currently set up to make one aircraft a month, but plans to boost that to as many as four per month by 2027.

Shares of Joby, which will report fourth-quarter earnings on Feb. 25, are down about 23% this year. They fell sharply last month after the company announced a $1 billion equity and convertible bond offering to raise cash.

Full certification for commercial flight operations by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and regulators in other countries is still pending.

Joby previously said it aimed to start commercial passenger services in Dubai by early this year, but the exact timeline is unclear. It has pushed back earlier goals to begin service from 2024 and then 2025.

"We are targeting to be able to start carrying passengers this year,” Eric Allison, Joby’s chief product officer, told reporters.

As it awaits certification — and the final $250 million tranche in Toyota’s promised $894 million in funding — the company is assembling prototype aircraft and stress-testing parts and manufacturing processes.

Joby wouldn’t specify the defect rate for parts undergoing testing, but Allison said the number of nonconforming components is "trending in the right direction.”

The car giant is now considering a proposed strategic manufacturing alliance to strengthen its relationship further ahead of Joby’s planned production ramp-up. Joby has said it aims to make as many as 500 aircraft a year once it builds out facilities in California and Ohio.

Toyota began financing Joby in 2020, two years after its venture capital arm participated in a funding round. It has taken on a larger role as its investment has grown. Toyota’s Lobenstein was tasked with overseeing the partnership a year ago.

For now, Toyota’s main role is advisory, in addition to supplying key subcomponents for Joby’s aircraft motors. The automaker’s North American manufacturing chief, Kevin Voelkel, has visited Joby’s operations twice, most recently this month, to share tips on things like improving efficiency and safety.

Visible signs of Toyota are scant at Joby’s main production hub near Monterey, California. Unlike the carmaker’s own plants or even Honda Motor’s jet factory in North Carolina, there’s no central assembly line.

Parts are assembled at various separate workstations in a hangar and then transported by truck to a nearby Quonset hut for final assembly.

Also absent are Toyota’s trademark andon cords to flag problems, robots pushing parts bins and wall-hung banners exhorting workers that "Safety is No. 1!” Toyota currently has about 30 employees on site.
 
 

Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Corp reported deeper losses for the latest quarter through December compared to a year earlier, as restructuring costs cut into its profitability.

Nissan, based in the port city of Yokohama, said Thursday it posted a 28.3 billion yen ($185 million) loss for the October-December quarter, about twice the 14 billion yen loss it recorded a year earlier.

Quarterly sales slipped 6% to nearly 3 trillion yen ($19.6 billion) from 3.2 trillion yen the year before.

“Unfortunately, when you do restructuring, there are costs that are incurred,” Chief Executive Ivan Espinosa told reporters. “In a way, it is expected.”
He said Nissan was on the right track but acknowledged headwinds from President Donald Trump’s tariffs and other pressures on sales.

Nissan, which makes the Leaf electric car and Infiniti luxury models, is hoping to achieve an operating profit by the end of fiscal 2026. It expects an operating loss for the current fiscal year and is projecting a 650 billion yen ($4.2 billion) net loss for the year through March.

A Mexican with two decades of experience at Nissan, Espinosa has been trying to steer a turnaround at the money-losing automaker since he took the job last year.

Nissan has slashed jobs and sold its headquarters building. It is closing its flagship factory in Oppama, Japan, as part of its global production restructuring efforts.

Some analysts say the popularity of electric vehicles is subsiding, and that might hurt automakers like Nissan, which has been bullish on EVs.

Espinosa said Nissan needs to do more to win over consumers to EVs, including new kinds of batteries, but was optimistic about the new Leaf model.

Nissan stocks, which have slipped over the past year, gained 0.5% on Thursday.

Nissan has a partnership with French automaker Renault and smaller domestic automaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
 
 

Japan and the United States have yet to work out the first batch of U.S.-bound investment deals worth 550 billion dollars planned by Tokyo, visiting Japanese economic minister Ryosei Akazawa said Thursday.

After a 90-minute meeting with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, Akazawa told a press conference that "the gap remains wide open" over the initial deal.

Potential U.S. targets for the first-round Japanese investment are gas-fired thermal power generation for artificial intelligence data centers, synthetic diamond production for stable semiconductor supply and a new port construction.

Also under consideration is Japanese purchasing of synthetic diamonds from a plant to be built in the United States by global diamond leader De Beers Group, people familiar with the matter said.

But Akazawa declined to clarify what projects are being specifically discussed and when they will be announced.

"We still have issues to address," he said. But he also said that the Japanese and U.S. ministers "agreed to work closely with each other to come up with mutually beneficial projects."

"We are negotiating with a view to making (Japanese) Prime Minister (Sanae) Takaichi's U.S. visit fruitful," Akazawa added.
 
 

Honda Motor Co reported Tuesday a 42% drop in profit for the nine months through December, compared to a year earlier, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs hurt the Japanese automaker’s earnings.

Honda’s profit over the three quarters totaled 465.4 billion yen ($3 billion), down from 805.2 billion yen.

That marked the second straight year that profit declined during the period at Honda, the maker of the Accord sedan, Civic compact and Odyssey minivan.

Sales for the three quarters dipped 2.2% to 15.98 trillion yen ($102.6 billion) from the previous year. Honda stuck to its full fiscal year profit forecast at 300 billion yen ($1.9 billion).

The slowdown in electric vehicles in the U.S. market was one negative factor, according to Honda, while the relatively healthy performance in its motorcycle division worked as a plus.

Honda lowered its global EV sales ratio projection for 2030 to 20% from its previous target of 30%. It also said it canceled the development of some EV models, because the EV market was changing.

The Trump administration, which has favored the oil and gas industry, has backpedaled on prior programs supporting the proliferation of EVs, dismantling programs that kicked in during the Biden administration, which had encouraged environmentally cleaner cars and trucks.

Last year, Trump lowered the tariffs on automobiles and auto parts to 15% from an earlier 25% that he had initially announced. Japan promised to invest $550 billion in U.S. projects.

Tariffs are a major blow to Japan’s export-reliant economy, including the automakers. Last week, Japan’s top automaker Toyota Motor Corp. reported a decline in recent profit, and announced that its chief financial officer, Kenta Kon, will become its new chief executive and president.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office in October as Japan's first female leader, scored a landslide parliamentary election victory for the governing party over the weekend.

That’s expected to make it easier for her Liberal Democratic Party to push forward on its policies, including bolstering growth by boosting government spending, especially in technology and defense.

Honda stock jumped 2.1% in Tuesday’s trading. The Nikkei 225 benchmark finished 2.3% higher, renewing a record high for the second day straight, in a rally set off, in part, by Takaichi’s popularity.
 
 

The memorandum aims to rehabilitate Units 1 and 2 of the Jandar power plant in Homs province, ensuring the stable supply of approximately 540 megawatts to the Syrian electricity grid.

The Charge d'Affaires of the Japanese Embassy in Damascus, Akihiro Tsuji, and the Acting Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Syria, Mohammed Mudawi, signed a memorandum for a loan to Damascus worth 1,952 billion yen (approximately $12,4 million) for the implementation of a project entitled "Stabilizing Energy Supply in Conflict-Affected Areas."

According to a statement from the Syrian Ministry of Energy posted on Telegram, the memorandum aims to rehabilitate Units 1 and 2 of the Jandar Power Plant in Homs province, central Syria, ensuring the stable supply of approximately 540 megawatts to the national grid.

The project is expected to contribute to improving electricity supply in the provinces of Damascus, Homs, Hama, and Deir ez-Zor.

Under the agreement, the Japanese government will finance the project, while UNDP will oversee its implementation in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy for a period of 24 months.

Deputy Minister of Energy for Electricity Affairs, Omar ShaqrouqHe thanked the Japanese government for the funding, noting that it covers comprehensive maintenance work on the plant, detailed technical assessments to identify priorities, procurement and installation of original spare parts, supervision of overhaul operations, and training of engineers and technicians.

Shaqrouq emphasized that the project will improve the efficiency and reliability of the power grid while strengthening national management and preventive maintenance capabilities.

Since 2014, Japan has allocated over $35 million to support electricity supply in Syria, rehabilitating three major power plants, adding 235 megawatts of generation capacity, and reducing losses by approximately 1,000 megawatts.
 
 

The number of corporate bankruptcies in Japan in January involving liabilities of at least ¥10 million totaled 887, the highest level in 13 years, Tokyo Shoko Research said Monday.

The figure rose 5.5% from a year earlier, marking an increase for the second straight month, driven by growth in bankruptcies caused by sluggish sales.

Five of the 10 industries surveyed saw year-on-year rises in business failures, including the services, retail, wholesale and transportation sectors.

Bankruptcies stemming from weak sales climbed 6.3% to 649, accounting for the largest share of total failures. Failures linked to accumulated losses stood at 116, up 18.3%.

Bankruptcies due to high prices, where companies could not pass on rising costs and saw profits squeezed, jumped 24.5% to 76.

“This suggests the impact of sluggish real wage growth on consumer behavior,” a Tokyo Shoko Research official said.

Meanwhile, bankruptcies attributed to rising labor costs surged to 19 cases, nearly tripling from a year earlier, as a growing number of small and midsize firms were forced to raise wages to secure workers, worsening their cash positions.

Total liabilities left by failed companies fell 1.3% to ¥119,815 million. There was no failure with liabilities of ¥10 billion or more in the reporting month, while midsize companies accounted for a sizable share of total liabilities.
 


 

Japanese industry minister Ryosei Akazawa said Tuesday that he will visit the United States for four days from Wednesday to discuss Japanese investments in and loans to the United States as part of the two countries' tariff deal.

Akazawa will meet with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for in-depth talks on the possible first batch of projects.

Japan has agreed to make investments and loans worth up to 550 billion dollars in the United States in exchange for reductions in high U.S.
reciprocal and automobile tariffs imposed by the administration of President Donald Trump.

Gas-fired thermal power generation, synthetic diamonds and ports are major candidate projects. An announcement could be made if an agreement is reached between the two sides.

Akazawa, however, declined to comment on specific projects.
 
 
 
 

Japan's current account surplus in 2025 rose 11.1% from the previous year to a record ¥31.87 trillion ($203.5 billion), the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report Monday.

The country's combined balance of goods and services trade thus extended its historic surplus growth to two years.

According to the ministry, the annual goods trade deficit shrank sharply to ¥848.7 billion from a deficit of ¥3.66 trillion.

Exports increased 2.5% to ¥107.76 trillion led by electronic components such as semiconductors and foodstuffs.

Although exports to the United States dropped for the first time in five years due chiefly to U.S. President Donald Trump's high tariff policy, those to other parts of Asia and Europe were robust.

On the other hand, imports inched down 0.1% to ¥108.6 trillion amid weaker markets for coal, crude oil and other energy commodities.

The current account surplus was also pushed up by net primary income's 4.7% rise to an all-time high of ¥41.59 trillion reflecting an increase in dividend payments by overseas subsidiaries of Japanese firms.

Meanwhile, Japan saw its services trade deficit widen to ¥3.39 trillion from ¥2.77 trillion, as expenses for developing automobiles and drugs abroad grew.

In December alone, the country's current account balance showed a net fund inflow of ¥728.8 billion, remaining in surplus for the 11th consecutive month.
 
 

Japan reported a record current account surplus for the second straight year in 2025, partly thanks to a narrower trade deficit.

The Finance Ministry says the surplus reached almost 31.9 trillion yen, or about 203 billion dollars.

The current account is a key measure of the nation's earnings from trade and investment outside the country.

A drop in the cost of energy imports helped reduce the trade deficit.
At the same time, the primary income surplus expanded as Japanese companies' subsidiaries overseas reported higher stock dividends and interest payments from bonds.

The monthly current account balance posted a surplus of about 4.6 billion dollars in December.

It was the eleventh straight month of black ink, although the size of the surplus fell by 32 percent from a year earlier.
 
 

The yen strengthened in Asian trading on Monday after Japanese Prime ⁠Minister Sanae Takaichi swept to victory in Sunday's election, abruptly reversing a six-day ‌string of losses as traders ‍bet fiscal stimulus will boost the stock market.

The yen overturned a 0.3% decline which saw the currency reach its weakest level in two weeks to strengthen as much as 0.7% before paring gains. It was last trading 0.3% firmer at 156.76 yen against the dollar.

The yen also retraced losses against other currencies, which earlier saw it reach its weakest ‍level on record against the Swiss ​franc and trade near the weakest point since the creation of the euro.

"While the initial yen weakness may not have played out, the outlook for the yen is still one which is likely to struggle to strengthen," said Sim Moh Siong, currency strategist at OCBC in Singapore.

"At least in the near term, there's also concern about intervention risk, which may be capping the upside for dollar-yen."

Japan's top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said earlier on Monday that the government is "closely watching currency movements with a high sense of urgency" after Takaichi's coalition swept to a historic election win.

Takaichi is projected to deliver as many as 328 of the 465 seats in Parliament's lower house for her Liberal Democratic Party. Alongside her ​coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party - known ​as Ishin - Takaichi now has a supermajority ‍of two-thirds of seats, allowing her to override the upper chamber, which she does not control.

"The Liberal Democratic Party's landslide ⁠victory removes political uncertainty and strengthens policy execution, but shifts market focus squarely to how fiscal policy is designed and communicated," said Shoki Omori, chief desk strategist for rates and FX at Mizuho in Tokyo.

"Risks from fiscal expansion had already been largely priced in before the election," he added. "The key question now is whether those risks are reinforced or gradually unwind."

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was flat at 97.629, at the start of ‌a week that will see the release of several key data releases out of Washington, including retail sales, inflation and Wednesday's delayed jobs report.

Traders are increasing their bets on policy easing from the Federal Reserve later this year. Fed funds futures are now pricing an implied 19.9% probability of a 25-basis-point cut at the U.S. central bank's next two-day meeting on March 18, up from a 18.4% chance on Friday, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool.

The pound was last down 0.1% at $1.3599 as markets considered developments in a political crisis swirling around British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, resigned on Sunday.

McSweeney said he was taking responsibility for advising ​Starmer to name ⁠Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the U.S., despite his known links to Jeffrey Epstein.

Against the Chinese yuan trading offshore in Hong Kong , the U.S. dollar was last flat at 6.9317 yuan.

The ​Australian dollar was last up 0.1% at $0.7018, while the New ​Zealand dollar nudged ​0.1% higher to $0.6013 and the euro was flat at $1.1818.
Bitcoin was last down 0.3% at $70,454.92, while ether slumped 0.9% at $2,074.89.
 
 

Department stores are increasingly expanding their Valentine’s Day product lineup to include baked goods and alternative “chocolates” that contain no cacao.

As Feb. 14 approaches, stores are stepping up their sales campaigns while trying to avoid significant price hikes amid a sharp rise in the price of cocoa beans.

Sogo & Seibu Co. has doubled its non-chocolate offerings, which include cookies, gummies and castella cakes. Non-chocolate products account for about 20% of all its Valentine’s products.

As some chocolate products have risen in price by about 30% from last year, the company aims to maintain consumer spending by providing more non-chocolate, low-cost items.

The company is also offering Mokables (¥2,090 for 12 pieces), a new chocolate substitute that swaps cocoa beans for ground coffee beans and vegetable fat to recreate the appearance and melt-in-your-mouth feel of chocolate.

“We want to create more joy out of choosing from a variety of products,” a company official explained.

Takashimaya Co. is offering truffle and ganache products from four popular brands, including Toshi Yoroizuka, that use alternative chocolate.

These sweets are made with Anoza M, a new milk chocolate-flavored ingredient developed by Fuji Oil Co., a major oils and fats manufacturer.

Because Anoza M is created from peas and other ingredients, the products are reasonably priced, ranging from ¥1,188 to ¥2,800, and some products are about ¥600 cheaper than those made from cocoa beans.

Matsuya’s flagship store in Ginza is working to attract customers by showing how high-end chocolates are made, and from Sunday it will offer a course meal in which a pastry chef will prepare chocolate desserts and other dishes in front of customers.

The meal, which includes an alcoholic beverage, will set you back ¥18,700, but an official at the store said, “We’re catering to people who want to treat themselves to a Valentine’s Day gift.”

In 2024, cocoa beans soared in price on the international market, due in part to poor harvests by major producers such as Ghana.

The average price per kilogram on the New York cocoa futures market reached $10.70 (about ¥1,670) in January 2025, more than four times the price in January 2023, according to the International Cocoa Organization.

In January 2026, the price was back down to $4.97 (about ¥775), still about twice the price before the surge.

Major department stores are selling Valentine’s chocolates for an average of ¥436 per piece, 4.3% higher than last year and topping ¥400 for the second consecutive year, according to a survey by Teikoku Databank Ltd.
 
 

Gallo signaled Friday that it sees wine and whiskey as a good mix for business.

The wine giant said it plans to add a prominent Kentucky bourbon brand to its portfolio in a deal to purchase Four Roses Distillery from Japanese-based Kirin.

The deal, valued at up to $775 million, is expected to close in the second quarter of this year, Kirin said in a release.

California-based Gallo said no changes are planned in operations, production or distribution once it acquires the Four Roses brand — produced in Lawrenceburg in the heart of Kentucky bourbon country.

“As we move through the regulatory process and await a closing date, we’re incredibly excited about this acquisition and the opportunity to welcome Four Roses into our portfolio,” Gallo said in a statement.

Founded in 1933 by brothers Ernest and Julio Gallo, Gallo is a family-owned company with an extensive portfolio in wine, spirits, malt beverages and ready to drink products.

Kirin said Four Roses has achieved strong growth, primarily in the U.S., since it acquired the brand in 2002.

"Kirin regularly reviews its balance sheet and business portfolio from a medium to long term perspective," it said Friday. “After careful consideration as part of this review, Kirin decided to enter into an agreement to transfer the business to Gallo.

This transaction will allow Kirin to reallocate its resources toward businesses that could further grow by leveraging Kirin’s own organizational capabilities.”

Kirin didn't immediately signal how it will use proceeds from the Four Roses sale. The beverage giant also has holdings in health sciences and pharmaceuticals.

Four Roses Distillery completed a $55 million expansion several years ago that doubled production capacity at its Lawrenceburg plant. The iconic brand was a post-Prohibition powerhouse but disappeared from American shelves as a Kentucky straight bourbon for decades.

It’s only been since Kirin purchased Four Roses that the brand’s straight bourbons returned to American bars and liquor stores. A previous owner had turned Four Roses into a blended whiskey for U.S. consumption, while shipping the straight bourbons to foreign markets.

The Four Roses sale comes amid a period of uncertainty for American spirits producers as they navigate trade conflicts and nagging inflation that's pinched consumers' pocketbooks.

“While total U.S. spirits sales edged down 2.2% in 2025, the spirits industry remains resilient, driven by innovative products that continue to spark consumer interest,” Chris Swonger, president and CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, said Thursday during its annual industry report.

Domestic sales of American whiskey — a category that includes bourbon, Tennessee whiskey and rye whiskey — totaled $5.1 billion in 2025, down nearly 1% from the prior year, the council said.

Demand for high-end premium whiskey brands remains strong, Swonger said. Those whiskeys age longer and fetcher higher prices for producers. Bourbon gets its flavor and golden brown color during aging.

“There is still a great deal of consumer interest and passion for America’s native spirit,” he said.
 
 

Major power producer JERA Co. has announced that it signed a partnership agreement with U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc. to strengthen cooperation between the two.

Under the agreement, JERA will leverage Amazon’s artificial intelligence to improve efficiency in power plant maintenance, while providing a stable supply of eco-friendly energy to Amazon’s data centers to meet the growing energy demand fueled by AI, the company said Thursday.

Securing personnel and passing on technical expertise have become pressing issues at thermal power plants, JERA’s core business.

To address these challenges, the company intends to apply Amazon’s AI and cloud technologies to analyze operations and detect early signs of equipment failure.

For Amazon’s data centers, which require vast amounts of electricity, JERA is considering utilizing offshore wind power and thermal power generation using hydrogen and ammonia, as well as carbon capture and storage technology to collect carbon dioxide and store it underground.
 
 

 
Koji Sato is stepping down as president and chief executive officer of Toyota, the company said Friday.
 
Chief Financial Officer Kenta Kon will succeed him, effective April 1.
 
Kon said the appointment, which he was informed of in January, came as a surprise.
 
“At this point, it’s not that I have assessed everything and have a clear roadmap,” Kon said, adding he will communicate with Sato and other executives about how to lead the automaker.
 
Sato will become vice chairman and assume the newly created role of chief industry officer.
 
According to Toyota, Kon will focus on Toyota’s internal management, while Sato will handle tasks related to the auto industry in general, as he also serves as chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association and vice chairman of Keidanren.
 
“To maintain the international competitiveness of the auto industry, we must come together to find specific fields for cooperation and a winning strategy for Japan,” Sato said during a news conference on Friday.
 
“Since cross-industry collaboration will be critical, Toyota has to play a bigger role in the industry.”
 
Sato became Toyota president in April 2023, succeeding Akio Toyoda, in what was the first leadership change in about 14 years.
 
At that time Toyoda said he himself was from “the old school,” so a younger person should lead the automaker to face new challenges, such as producing EVs and software-defined vehicles.
 
Toyoda said that he chose Sato due to his eagerness to absorb Toyota’s philosophy and understand its technology.

Toyoda Gosei Co., a Toyota Motor group firm, plans to sell facilities for cultivating strawberries on a trial basis as early as fiscal 2026.

The facility will have solar-powered electric power generators to cool down and warm the facility so that no greenhouse gases will be emitted, and fruit can be cultivated year-round.

Since the volume of strawberry harvests generally declines in summer, the firm hopes that growers can gain a stable revenue through greenhouses that allow for year-round cultivation.

The company will sell an agricultural greenhouse and such things as solar panels, batteries, air-conditioning systems and LEDs in a set.

It will also provide strawberry seedlings and soil. To assist companies and others that want to begin production, the company will provide techniques to cultivate strawberries.

At its Inabe Plant in Mie Prefecture that is powered by renewable energy sources, Toyoda Gosei cultivates strawberries while manufacturing tanks to store hydrogen gas for fuel-cell vehicles.

The company has provided strawberries to a hotel in Nagoya as a new business outside of manufacturing auto parts.

Toyoda Gosei plans to gather opinions from companies and other entities in the trial sales and aims to begin the new business on a full-fledged basis based on the information gathered.
 
 

Japanese exports of agriculture, forestry and fishery products and foods rose to over 1.7 trillion yen ($10.9 billion) in 2025, renewing the record for the 13th straight year, amid expansions of worldwide popularity of washoku, or Japanese cuisine, the farm ministry said Tuesday.

Amid heightened health awareness, green tea exports doubled from the previous year, and exports of 20 major items, including beef and rice, reached record high, contributing to a 12.8 percent year-on-year increase, according to the ministry.

But the exports fell short of the government's target of 2 trillion yen in 2025, with continuous efforts to develop export markets deemed indispensable as the government aims for 5 trillion yen in exports in 2030.

By country and region, the United States was the top destination at 276.2 billion yen, up 13.7 percent, on the back of strong demand for green tea and seafood that are considered healthy food, despite higher tariffs imposed since April last year.

Hong Kong came in second at 222.8 billion yen followed by Taiwan at 181.2 billion yen, while China, which has reimposed suspension of Japanese seafood imports amid a diplomatic row, ranked fourth at 179.9 billion yen.

Exports to China rose for the first time in three years, up 7.0 percent, driven by notable increases of beer and timber logs.

By volume, rice exports rose 3.2 percent from the previous year to 46,573 tons. Those of packaged precooked rice soared 21.8 percent to 2,950 tons, due in part to consumption expansions at Japanese chain restaurants overseas.

The government aims to boost annual rice exports, including packaged rice and rice flour, to 353,000 tons in 2030.

"We need to expand our destinations to popular local restaurants" in addition to chain restaurants operated by Japanese firms, an official of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said.
 


 

The Japan Federation of Basic Industry Workers' Unions decided Wednesday to demand a monthly pay scale increase of 15,000 yen in this year's "shunto" spring wage negotiations.

The unified demand is at the same level as the previous year, which was a record high, to cope with price increases and labor shortages.

"This is the necessary level to sustain wage growth exceeding inflation," Masao Tsumura, head of the federation's central committee, said at the day's meeting.

Member unions will submit their pay demands to management on Friday.
Given the difference in business performance between heavy machinery makers and steelmakers facing sluggish markets, the federation said that member unions "should recognize differences in their situations and allow each other to set demands flexibly."
 
 

Japan’s real gross domestic product in October-December last year likely grew 0.4 pct from the previous quarter for an annualized rise of 1.6 pct, according to the average estimate by 10 private think tanks.

The Japanese economy is believed to have returned to positive growth for the first time in two quarters, partly thanks to a pickup in housing investment.

The Cabinet Office is scheduled to release preliminary GDP data on Feb. 16.
In October-December, private consumption, the main pillar of domestic demand, is estimated to have increased only 0.1 pct.

“Consumption continues to lack strong momentum as inflation persists,” said Yoshiki Shinke, a senior economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute Inc.

Meanwhile, capital expenditure is expected to post an increase of 0.7 pct, supported by software investment for labor-saving purposes.
 
 

With Valentine's Day approaching, Japan's major department stores are turning to alternative methods and ingredients to curb the prices of chocolates, the country's most popular gift of the season, as cacao and logistics costs continue to climb.

Matsuya Co's department store in Tokyo's Ginza shopping district, for instance, has begun selling a new lineup of 10 chocolates through its online store that feature domestically produced fruit and ingredients, responding to rising prices by reducing the amount of cacao used per piece while highlighting the appeal of those foods.

In addition, Patisserie Couleur, a pastry shop from Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture, will set up a booth at a special venue in Matsuya Ginza from Wednesday to sell products made with Shinshu buckwheat kernels and Shine Muscat grapes for 3,981 yen per box of eight.

"We used off-grade fruit and changed our packaging materials to keep costs down," said Takuya Sasaki, 35, the shop's representative.

Stores under Takashimaya Co have prepared sweets made with cacao-free chocolate substitutes, including items created by famous chefs, that can be bought for about 650 yen less than regular products, as the average price of items handled at its stores has risen by about 10 percent compared with last year.

Sogo & Seibu Co has also doubled its selection of non-chocolate items, such as baked goods and gummies, which are less affected by rising raw-material costs.

In Japan, many women give chocolates to the men in their lives, including husbands, boyfriends and fathers, around the time of Feb 14, Valentine's Day. The sweets also serve as seasonal gifts to friends, coworkers and business partners.

However, a Matsuya survey released in January showed a trend of people planning to spend more on chocolates for themselves, with the average budget for personal treats exceeding 10,000 yen for the first time.

Matsuya is offering reservation-only courses where pastry chefs prepare desserts in front of guests for as much as 18,700 yen, while Takashimaya will host its annual Amour du Chocolat! Valentine's chocolate event, featuring a lineup of limited-edition chocolates.
 
 

As Japan depends greatly on imported food and energy, the prices of many goods tend to rise if the yen’s lower value boosts the cost of imported items.

All the major parties are vowing to lower the consumption tax rate in their campaigns for the House of Representatives election.

Partly due to surging prices for materials, prices in general have been rising for a prolonged time and household finances are being squeezed as a result.

About 50 people — parents and their children — gathered at a volunteer-run cafeteria for children in need at a corner of the Takashima Danchi housing complex in Itabashi Ward, Tokyo, on a cold evening on Jan. 21.

Many residents of the complex are elderly, and many of the buildings are aged.

The day’s menu comprised a plate of taco rice — minced meat, tomato and other ingredients topped on rice — a cup of soup and one mikan mandarin orange per person.

Named Okaeri Gohan, the cafeteria is run by the nonprofit organization Dream Town. It operates the cafeteria twice a week to assist households in which both parents have jobs and to prevent elderly people from becoming isolated.

The cafeteria provides meals for a fee of ¥100 for high school students or younger and ¥500 for adults. If parents and children eat together, the fee is ¥500 per parent regardless of the number of children.

According to Dream Town, the daily number of users of the meal service has tripled from three years ago. Representative director Atsuko Inoue, 41, said, “I see the impact of rising prices.”

A 41-year-old female company employee who came to the cafeteria with her 5-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son said that because her salary has not increased, they usually eat noodles and packaged frozen vegetables for everyday meals.

“It’s helpful to get meals with a good nutritional balance at low prices,” she said, expressing her gratitude.

A 60-year-old unemployed woman said: “The more necessary food items are, the higher their price. I wonder how long this will go on, and I can’t imagine when my hardships will end.”

The woman has used the cafeteria two to three times a month. She lives on a monthly disability pension of about ¥65,000 and sometimes forgoes an evening meal to save money.


Up 4 years in a row

Average figures for 2025 in the nationwide Consumer Price Index, publicized by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, put the index for “All items, excluding food” at 111.2 against 100 in 2020.

The figure rose 3.1% from the previous year and marked the fourth consecutive yearly increase.

Among 522 categories of goods, the prices rose for 440, or more than 80%. The price for rice, which is a staple of daily living, rose 67.2% and for eggs 10.3%.

As Japan depends greatly on imported food and energy, the prices of many goods tend to rise if the yen’s lower value boosts the cost of imported items.

As the prices of necessities that consumers often buy have been on the rise, many people are likely feeling the impact keenly.



Rent rises ¥50,000

Housing expenses have also risen. A 39-year-old housewife who lives with her husband and four children of kindergarten to elementary school age in a condominium in Taisho Ward, Osaka, could not believe her eyes when she saw an email from their real estate company in October last year.

The family lives in a 5LDK unit and their monthly rent had been ¥150,000. The email notified them that the rent would rise by ¥50,000 from April because of rising prices of goods and services in general.

She liked the location of the condo, which is close to a school that her children attend and a train station, but the family decided to move. The couple now aims to buy a previously owned house with a bank loan.

According to research by At Home Co., a major real estate service company, the average proposed rent of condominium units soared in major cities in December last year.

A 50- to 70-square-meter unit for a family in Tokyo’s 23 wards exceeded ¥250,000 on average, up ¥63,000 from five years ago. In Osaka, the average rose by ¥45,000 and in Fukuoka by ¥41,000.


Falling real wages

The growth of wages has not caught up with price increases.
According to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry’s Monthly Labor Survey, the real wage per worker in 2024, after adjusting for the effects of price fluctuations, fell 0.3% from a year ago, marking the third consecutive year of decline.

Late last year, the government abolished a temporary additional gasoline tax as a measure to cope with rising prices. In addition, the government plans to provide financial assistance for household expenditures on electricity and gas in this winter.

For consumption from January to March this year, the total burden per household will be lowered by about ¥7,300.

Takahide Kiuchi, executive economist of Nomura Research Institute, said: “Even if the consumption tax rate is lowered, the effect will be offset if prices rise further.

It’s necessary to build a system in which middle class people and low-income earners will not become needy regardless of price fluctuations.”

He also proposed that political parties should make progress in debates about the introduction of a refundable tax credit system.

Under such a system, low-income earners whose income tax payments are too low to receive the benefits of tax cuts will receive cash provisions to cover the unrealized benefits.
 

 

Within Kanagawa Prefecture, several food-related companies are focusing their efforts on exporting food products overseas. To support the international expansion of these local companies, Kanagawa Prefecture provides opportunities for business negotiations with overseas buyers and organizes food fairs abroad.

In Thailand, the “Kanagawa Fair in Thailand” was held in December at the Max Valu SRIRACHA J-Park store (AEON Group) in Chonburi Province. At a special booth, 20 products from eight food-related companies in Kanagawa Prefecture were sold.

 

When exporting food products to Thailand, notification and registration with the local authority, the Thai FDA (Food and Drug Administration), are required. This Kanagawa Fair has been held three times in Thailand.

For these events, Kanagawa Prefecture has provided logistical support for such that licensing procedures by connecting overseas buyers with local manufacturers beforehand. Through this series of activities, over 60 products have been exported to Thailand.

Some food-related companies in Kanagawa that export to Thailand:

-- TIVOLI Holdings, headquartered in Yugawara town, focuses on expanding its products overseas, with exports reaching over 25 countries.

Its “Akai Bohshi(Red Hat)” brand cookies have gained popularity among Thais and are regularly stocked as staple items in multiple Japanese retail stores.

-- Nature Co Ltd, headquartered in Odawara, manufactures and sells specialty jellies primarily using locally sourced Kanagawa fruits.

 

They export to multiple markets including Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United States, Malaysia and Switzerland. Their products are also highly popular in Thailand, valued for using Japanese fruits and offering the authentic taste of the fruit itself.

Many food-related companies in Kanagawa participating in this event had already established trade channels in Thailand.

 

However, they faced challenges such as difficulties in registering new products with the FDA, establishing regular distribution within Thailand, and expanding sales channels. This fair provided an opportunity to address these challenges.

Feedback from participating companies included: “We were able to advance FDA registration for new products in preparation for the fair,” and “Our products were adopted by AEON in Thailand for the first time. This was a valuable opportunity for expanding our sales channels.”

 

Sales have continued at MaxValu stores throughout Thailand after the fair. These items are expected to be distributed regularly due to increasing sales.
 
 

 

ANA Holdings Inc. said Friday its net profit in the nine months ended in December rose 3.9 percent from a year earlier to 139.24 billion yen, driven by the solid international flight business on the back of Japan's inbound tourism boom.

Revenue in the April-December period climbed 10.3 percent to a record 1.88 trillion yen and operating profit grew 5.6 percent to 180.71 billion yen.

ANA saw growth in the number of passengers on routes connecting cities between Japan and China in the October-December quarter, even as China urged its citizens in November to avoid traveling to Japan amid the Beijing-Tokyo row.

For the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays, "We've seen steady demand in reservations" from China, President Koji Shibata said at a press conference.
Some customers may have chosen ANA as Chinese airlines reduced the number of flights to and from cities in Japan, Shibata said.

The parent of All Nippon Airways Co. said passengers of international flights saw a 11.7 percent increase in the nine-month period, supported by three newly added routes connecting Japan with Europe. Passengers of domestic flights were up 3.7 percent.

For the current fiscal year ending March, the company said, it will keep its full-year projection of 145 billion yen in net profit and 200 billion yen in operating profit. It will also maintain its revenue forecast of 2.48 trillion yen.
 

 

Narita International Airport Corporation (NAA) and SJOY Co., an apparel startup, jointly conducted a test of a machine to compress clothes to small sizes in the airport from Jan. 13 to 15.

There have been many cases recently in which foreign tourists have left behind old baggage in airports around Japan, and the number of abandoned suitcases has increased by about 8.5 times in the past four years.

“We hope that the introduction of the compressing machine will solve the [abandoned] suitcase problem,” an NAA official said.

The automatic compressing machine set up in the airport is called Pocket Tips, which was developed by the startup based in Koto Ward, Tokyo. SJOY was established in 2019.

Conventional compressing machines remove air from clothes in vacuum-packed storage bags. Pocket Tips, however, compresses the clothes themselves into a very small size.

“[Clothes] can become one-seventh of the maximum size and get quite small,” said Sanmi Kawaguchi, 30, the president of SJOY. “Because it doesn’t use vacuum storage bags, the sizes are not affected by changes in air pressure even during flights.”

Washing the compressed clothes can return them to the original sizes, she said.

According to NAA, the number of old suitcases being abandoned at Narita Airport has rapidly increased along with the rise in the number of inbound foreign tourists after the COVID-19 pandemic subsided.

Airport officials collected 124 abandoned suitcases in fiscal 2020. The number has steadily risen since then to 338 in fiscal 2021, 552 in fiscal 2022 and 811 in fiscal 2023. In fiscal 2024, the number climbed to 1,034.

Some of the abandoned suitcases were locked and, therefore, airport officials were unable to immediately check the contents of the baggage.

Thus, it was difficult to secure personnel for checking the inside of the suitcases and there was shortage in space where they should be stored until they were handed to police as lost-and-found items.

Airport officials believe that most of the suitcases were intentionally left behind.

This may be partially due to tourists buying new suitcases in airports and abandoning the old ones, as people bought many souvenirs and there was not enough space in the old baggage before they departed for their home countries.

The machine can compress clothes into small sizes within only about one minute. Tests of the machine were already conducted in other airports, including Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Naha Airport in Okinawa Prefecture and Kumamoto Airport in Kumamoto Prefecture.

“We have heard people say that [the machine] helped create more space inside their suitcase to hold souvenirs that were additionally bought,” said Kawaguchi.

The test at Narita Airport was conducted for the three days in its second passenger terminal mainly for international flights and the departure lobby of the third passenger terminal mainly for low-cost carriers’ flights.
The machine could be used free of charge and a survey on the users was also conducted.

Akari Saito, an official of NAA’s innovation promotion group, said: “There are passengers who gave up on buying souvenirs which they wanted because there was not enough space in their suitcase.

After examining reactions in the test, we will conduct another test with a fee to use the machine. If it proves to be effective, we will consider full-fledged introduction of it.”
 
 

 

Toyota Motor Corp group remained the world's top-selling automaker in 2025 for a sixth straight year on the back of robust demand for hybrid vehicles in North America, outperforming German rival Volkswagen AG, data showed Thursday.

Toyota's annual global sales, including minivehicle maker Daihatsu Motor Co and truck manufacturer Hino Motors Ltd., rose 4.6 percent from a year earlier to 11.32 million units, setting a group sales record for the first time in two years.

The sales volume of the Japanese automaker far surpassed the 8.98 million vehicles reported by Volkswagen, as Toyota's overseas sales expanded 3.1 percent to a record 9.25 million units despite higher tariffs imposed by the United States.

Toyota alone sold a record 10.54 million vehicles globally, up 3.7 percent, boosted by a 7.3 percent jump in sales in North America to 2.93 million units.

Sales in China edged up 0.2 percent to 1.78 million units amid intensifying competition with domestic automakers, while those in Japan grew 4.1 percent to 1.50 million units thanks to solid demand for its new luxury Crown model.

The group's worldwide production climbed 5.7 percent to 11.22 million units, with that of Toyota alone increasing 4.5 percent to 9.95 million units.

The company's global sales of hybrid vehicles rose 7.0 percent to record 4.43 million units, including those in North America jumping 19.9 percent to 1.27 million vehicles. The automaker's EV sales saw a 10.2 percent increase to record 4.99 million vehicles.

Toyota group's global sales for December 2025 were up 3.1 percent to 993,356 units, while total domestic and overseas output rose 1.2 percent to 881,654 vehicles.
 
 

Consumer prices in Tokyo rose at a slower pace in January compared to the previous month. The abolition of a provisional gasoline tax helped bring down costs.

Preliminary figures from the internal affairs ministry show the Consumer Price Index for the capital's 23 wards rose 2 percent from a year ago.

The reading is down 0.3 percentage points from December. It excludes volatile figures for fresh foods.

Prices for non-perishable food items climbed 5.6 percent year-on-year, pushing the CPI higher.

The cost of rice rose more slowly than a year ago, but it was still up 26 percent.

The price of coffee beans surged 66.6 percent, while chocolate increased 24.4 percent.

Consumer prices in Tokyo are seen as a leading indicator of the nation's overall trend. Japan's CPI will be released on February 20.
 
 

Reporters who follow Toyota Motor Corp. Chairman Akio Toyoda may notice that he frequently uses phrases related to Ise Jingu, a Shinto shrine complex located in Mie Prefecture, central Japan.

The automaker and Ise Jingu are both located in the Tokai region, but their relationship seems to go beyond a geographical connection.

In January 2019, reporters asked Toyoda, who was president of the automaker at the time, what would be the theme of the new year.

“Tokowaka,” Toyoda replied, citing a Shinto word that means to be eternally fresh.

Ise Jingu carries out an important ritual based on tokowaka called Shikinen Sengu in which the buildings, sacred treasures and other items are remade every 20 years.

The ritual started during the reign of Empress Jito (from 690-697), meaning that it has lasted for about 1,300 years. The buildings are still in a usable state, but by intentionally rebuilding them, it has enabled the style of the buildings of Ise Jingu to be passed on to the present day in a fresh state.

“(The automotive industry) is undergoing a once-in-a-century transformation, but there are things that we must not change,” Toyoda said in January 2019. “Artificial intelligence has emerged, but there are certain things it is worth being done by humans.”

“We need to think about what are the things we need to care about. I have chosen the word ‘tokowaka’ so we won’t lose sight of what’s important.”


Passing on skills

Toyoda, 69, enjoys being behind the wheel, calling himself “Morizo” when driving. He also still appears on the front lines of development and works with engineers on car development.

The car enthusiast has likened the automaker’s development of sports cars to the Shikinen Sengu ritual.

Besides maintaining freshness, the ritual has another purpose, which is to pass on skills to the next generation. By repeating the ritual every 20 years, Ise Jingu can transfer traditional practices, procedures, construction methods and more to future generations.

The next Shikinen Sengu ritual is scheduled in 2033, but the reconstruction process has already begun.

The development of sports cars resembles the ritual, according to Toyoda.
For Toyoda, it doesn’t matter whether the launch of a new model takes time.

What is important is that sports cars are continuously being developed, which is technically challenging and incurs huge costs, so that skills and technologies can be handed over to future generations.

This approach enables the automaker to maintain and enhance their manufacturing capabilities.

 

Improving the core

Toyota unveiled a prototype of its new sports car, the GR GT, in Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Dec. 5, 2025. The automaker said it aims to release the vehicle by the end of 2027.

The GR GT is not an ordinary sports car. With a top speed of over 320 kph, it belongs to a line of prestigious Toyota sports cars that includes the 2000GT, a model released in 1967 and featured in the James Bond film “You Only Live Twice,” and the Lexus LFA, which was released in 2010 and honed at the Nurburgring circuit in western Germany.

“Developing a car like this is similar to conducting Shikinen Sengu — it takes place once every 20 years,” Toyoda told reporters during the interval of the unveiling of the GR GT prototype in December.

“New technologies emerge as times change, so the cars won’t be the same. However, we should pass on the attitude of improving the fundamental parts, the core (of sports cars) to future generations, just like Ise Jingu.”

“We want to release cars that make people feel the essence of Toyota. If we don’t stay committed to that, automobiles as industrial products will become mere commodities,” Toyoda added.

 

 

‘I’ll keep on running’

Toyoda’s frequent reference to Ise Jingu is due to the influence of his father and role model, Shoichiro.

Shoichiro Toyoda (1925-2023) served as president, chairman and later honorary chairman of Toyota.

He led Sukeikai, a group that supports Ise Jingu, for about 11 years from 2006. Shoichiro referred to the tokowaka spirit in a book published in 2015.

“Shinto has a spirit of tokowaka, which is to live each day with hope for the future,” Shoichiro wrote.

“What is required of us is to look to the world, believe in the future and work diligently with our hearts filled with hope in order to contribute to the international community. We must realize a vibrant Japan that earns respect from the world, and pass it to the next generation.”

Shoichiro was a leader who always thought about the meaning of Toyota’s existence in society. Having observed his father closely, Akio Toyoda, since becoming president in 2009, has led the automaker with a personal mission of passing on the company’s legacy to the next generation.

Toyoda often encourages young people to pursue new endeavors, saying, “The future is created by the people who will live in it. Supporting them is my role.”

In order for the Japanese automaker to stay evergreen like Ise Jingu, it’s essential for the company to establish an environment in which new generations can continue to emerge.

Toyoda’s closing remarks at the unveiling of the GR GT prototype left a strong impression:

“It’s not the time for Morizo to stop. I’ll keep on running until I fall down.”
 

 

From the foot of Mt. Fuji to a new cafe in Tokyo by way of the Philippines, matcha brand Chotto Matcha has taken an unconventional route to reaching customers in Japan. 

Chotto Matcha founders, sisters Sakura and Misaki Motohashi, opened a branch of their brand’s matcha cafe in Tokyo in November, serving matcha sourced from farms near the foot of Mt. Fuji in Shizuoka Prefecture to customers in the capital’s Asakusa district.

 

Despite being born and raised in Tokyo, the Chotto Matcha Asakusa cafe represents the sisters’ first cafe in Japan with their brand.

Sakura, 23, and Misaki, 21, launched Chotto Matcha in the Philippines, where they had lived and studied as teenagers. The pair opened their first matcha cafe -- a small operation inside a Japanese restaurant -- in Makati, Manila in 2023. 

Chotto Matcha now has three locations in Manila, the latest cafe opening in the Park Triangle area of the capital’s upscale Bonifacio Global City in December.

 

Back in Tokyo at Chotto Matcha Asakusa, as well as authentic matcha, customers can get a taste of how the powdered green tea is enjoyed in the Philippines, particularly among the young, female Gen Z customers that the pair says frequent their cafes in Manila.

Popular menu items from the Manila cafes include the ube matcha einspanner -- blending matcha with the sweet-tasting ube, a purple yam popular in the Philippines.

The strawberry matcha latte is also a hit. Food includes matcha bars and matcha chiffon cake, made in-house. 

 

“People usually love drinking matcha sweeter because in the Philippines they just love sweet things,” Sakura told Japan Wire in January. “I think that's really the difference between Japan and the Philippines.”

The cafe in Asakusa, a short walk from the famous Sensoji temple, appears casual and modern. A large dressing mirror set against one of the walls stands out from traditional touches like noren curtains and paintings.

The sisters say it is for customers to take mirror or fit check selfies -- the social media term for the trend of showcasing the day’s outfit.

The mirror also reflects a part of modern matcha’s appeal -- its image, particularly among younger consumers in the Philippines, according to the sisters.

“People appreciate matcha not just as a drink but as a concept or a lifestyle. A lot of young people want to grab a matcha because it looks pretty or because it offers a chance to hang out with friends,” Misaki said.
 
 

In June of 2020, Ikea opened a new branch in the fashion-focused Harajuku neighborhood of Tokyo. Launching a new venture at this time was a gamble, since the COVID pandemic was in full force and the economy’s status was murky, but on the other hand, the pivot to remote work and stay-at-home leisure activities also had a lot of people looking to make their living spaces more comfortable and convenient.

And as you can see in the above photos from opening day, things got off to a great start at Ikea Harajuku, and the shop has so much early success that less than a year later, in May of 2021, Ikea opened another branch in downtown Tokyo, this one in the Shinjuku neighborhood.

Unfortunately, while both branches made it through the pandemic, they’re not going to be around much longer, as Ikea Japan has announced that both the Harajuku and Shinjuku branches will be closing next month.

The company hasn’t publicly commented on why the two high-profile branches are shutting down. This being business, insufficient earnings are no doubt at least a major part of the reason, and a plausible cause for that would be a mismatch between the perceived appeal of Ikea among Japanese shoppers and the closing stores’ locations.

 

When the Ikea chain arrived in Japan, it attracted attention not just for the quality and reasonable prices of its products, but also for the sheer size of its stores.

Features like numerous large model rooms and huge cafeterias helped the chain stand out from its domestic Japanese competitors, and couples and families often made a whole day out of a trip to Ikea. 

Ikea’s early stores were generally located in the suburbs of major cities, outside their urban core where land is more plentiful and it’s easier to offer parking so that customers with their own cars can take advantage of Ikea’s easy-to-transport flat-packed furniture.

The Harajuku and Shinjuku stores, though, have a slightly different concept. Being in two of the most densely developed urban areas of Japan, they’re smaller in scale, with more of a focus on compact items for people living in the cozy dimensions of downtown apartments rather than spacious suburban homes. The Harajuku Ikea even has a convenience store instead of a cafeteria.

 

With Ikea having risen to fame in Japan because its stores are so huge that they feel like a sightseeing destination, smaller Ikea branches lose a lot of what makes the chain feel special to Japanese shoppers.

Rent in the close-to-the-station parts of Harajuku and Shinjuku where the Ikea branches are located isn’t cheap, either, and with Ikea’s comparatively low prices they need to making a lot of sales to turn an acceptable profit, something that’s tough to do when the branch is missing much of Ikea’s core appeal.

The closing of the Harajuku and Shinjuku branches doesn’t mean that Ikea’s experiment with smaller stores in the Tokyo city center has been deemed a complete failure, as the company has said that it will be keeping the Shibuya Ikea branch open.

Actually, it’s possible that the existence of the Shibuya Ikea also played a role in the troubles of the Harajuku and Shinjuku branches. It’s only a two-minute train ride from Shibuya Station to Harajuku Station, and only another five minutes from there to Shinjuku Station.

That’s three different Ikea branches within seven train-riding minutes of each other, which may have also eroded their feeling of destination-specialness even more than their smaller sizes alone would have.

The Harajuku and Shinjuku Ikea branches will both be closing on February 8, with February 1 the last day for in-store pickup for preordered items.
 

 

Up to $6 million (¥900 million) will be offered to Japanese companies to assist in developing AI for robots, the Japanese subsidiary of the cloud division of Amazon.com, Inc. announced on Tuesday.

Selected companies will receive a reduction of up to 50% in Amazon Web Services (AWS), Inc.’s cloud usage fees, along with support from specialized staff.

The support is aimed at startups and other companies based in Japan, with plans to assist several dozen companies in total. The application period will be open until Feb. 13, with intensive support scheduled from March this year to June.

It is said that Japanese companies have advanced technological capabilities in the field of industrial robotics, however, they lag behind the United Stated and China in developing “physical AI” — AI that operates robots and similar devices.
 


 

Japan's annual wage negotiations effectively kicked off on Tuesday, with the focus on whether the momentum for pay hikes will continue, reaching the rate of 5 percent or higher for the third straight year in the inflation-hit economy.

Yoshinobu Tsutsui, chairman of the country's most powerful business lobby, said in talks with Tomoko Yoshino, head of the largest labor union, "To further solidify the strong momentum of wage increases, we will exert leadership as our social duty."

Yoshino of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo, said, "We want to position the realization of a society where wage increases of 5 percent or more continue as a common foundation for negotiations."

The Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, is urging its member companies to offer base pay increases for this year's annual "shunto" labor-management negotiations ahead of April, when the new business year begins for many major corporations in the country.

Rengo has set an overall target of 5 percent or more for the third year, including for small and medium-sized companies.

In the 2025 negotiations, major Japanese firms raised wages by an average of 5.39 percent and 5.58 percent in 2024, according to the survey by Keidanren, up from 3.99 percent in 2023.

But for small and medium-sized companies, the increase remained at 4.73 percent on average, including 4.47 percent for those with 300 or more employees and 4.02 percent for those with 20 or fewer, according to the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Wage negotiations at most large companies are expected to conclude by mid-March, with smaller firms completing theirs later.

The Bank of Japan, which raised its benchmark interest rate to the highest level since 1995 in December, is closely monitoring the outcome, as rises in both wages and prices are key factors affecting its policy decisions.

In its basic policy for the 2026 "shunto" wage talks, Rengo also encouraged unions representing small and medium-sized enterprises, -- which employ about 70 percent of the country's workforce -- to set higher goals of 6 percent or more, which would help to narrow the gap with larger companies.

Rengo has also said it aims for a real wage increase of 1 percent. Real, or inflation-adjusted, wages are a barometer of consumer purchasing power.

For November, government data showed Japan's real wages fell 2.8 percent from a year earlier, marking the 11th consecutive month of decline.
 
 

Online piracy and counterfeit products related to Japanese anime, games and other content caused estimated damage of 10.4 trillion yen in and outside the country in 2025, an industry ministry survey showed Monday.

The government aims to increase overseas sales at the Japanese content industry to 20 trillion yen by 2033 from 5.8 trillion yen in 2023. Cracking down on illegal activities would help the government achieve this goal.

According to the latest survey, digital content-related damage hit 5.7 trillion yen, almost triple the 2022 level. Of the 2025 figure, 2.6 trillion yen was related to printed publications, 2.3 trillion yen to video content, 500 billion yen to games, and 300 billion yen to music.

Copyright protection has become a big task for the country, reflecting an onslaught of illegal uploads overseas of popular content, such as the "Demon Slayer" franchise.

In the latest survey, the ministry assessed damage linked to merchandise for the first time, estimating the amount at 4.7 trillion yen. Major problems were counterfeit dolls and trading cards.
 
 

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock index rose for the first time in six trading days on Thursday. Investors turned bullish after US President Donald Trump backed away from imposing tariffs on countries that oppose his plan to acquire Greenland.

The Tokyo benchmark ended the day up 1.7 percent at 53,688. Before Trump's move, investors had been anxious about a possible escalation of trade tensions between the United States and European nations.

The Nikkei index had fallen for five straight sessions through Wednesday after setting a record closing high above the 54,000 mark last week.
 
 

Japan posted a trade deficit for the fifth straight year in 2025, according to government data released Thursday, as concerns continued to grow over U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs and Japan’s political rift with neighboring China.

For the full year, Japan logged a 2.65 trillion yen ($17 billion) trade deficit, the Finance Ministry reported in its preliminary data.

That was nearly 53% smaller than the deficit Japan marked the previous year. Exports for the year rose 3.1%, while imports remained about the same on-year, gaining less than 1%.

For the month of December, Japan recorded a 105.7 billion yen ($669 million) trade surplus.

The monthly surplus was 12% smaller than what was racked up a year ago. Imports grew 5.3% from the same month a year ago, while exports grew 5.1%.

By nation, exports in December declined 11% to the U.S., while growing to Britain, Africa and to some Asian points like Hong Kong and India. Imports remained strong from Europe but declined from Brazil and the Middle East.

The United States has imposed a 15% tariff on most imports from Japan, a reduction from the 25% that Trump initially proposed but an increase from before.

Another looming concern is the impact on Japanese manufacturing, including automakers, from China’s curbs on exports of rare earths.

The controls were announced by Beijing after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested a Chinese move on Taiwan could prompt a Japanese military response.

Takaichi may call elections for next month in hopes her party can gain strength in Parliament while she is popular with the public.

Overall, Japan’s economy has held up, despite grumbling from the public about rising prices and stagnant wages. The benchmark Nikkei on the Tokyo Stock Exchange keeps hitting new records.
 
 

Sales from seven major Japanese convenience store chains hit a record 12.06 trillion yen ($76.34 billion) in 2025, bolstered by the development of high-value-added products, increased inbound tourism and sales tied to the World Exposition in Osaka, an industry body said Tuesday.

The sales rose 2.2 percent from the previous year, marking the fourth consecutive record-breaking year, according to a report by the Japan Franchise Association.

The average spending per customer for the year was 737.9 yen, up 2.5 percent from the previous year, as promotional campaigns such as collaborations with popular anime and well-known restaurants proved effective, the report said.

Over-the-counter foods such as onigiri rice balls and fried snacks also saw strong sales.

The number of stores nationwide stood at 56,054 as of December, up 0.6 percent from a year earlier.

However, the number of store visitors in 2025 decreased by 0.2 percent to 16.34 billion, marking the first decline in four years.

Monthly sales for December were up 1.1 percent from a year earlier to around 1.01 trillion yen, marking the 10th straight monthly increase.
 
 

Indonesia’s Trade Ministry has linked 30 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with major Japanese retailers to expand export access for Indonesian fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), targeting one of Asia’s most demanding consumer markets.

The ministry partnered with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) to organize business matching sessions between Indonesian SMEs and four major Japanese retail companies. The sessions focused on market access and compliance with strict Japanese standards.

Director General of National Export Development Fajarini Puntodewi said the initiative aims to align Indonesian products with Japanese quality, safety, and consumer requirements, to enable local suppliers to compete in a high-barrier, high-value market.

"We are bringing together Indonesian suppliers and Japanese retailers to align market standards so our products can meet Japan’s stringent requirements and consumer needs,” Puntodewi said in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Participating SMEs operate across furniture, homeware, cosmetics and skincare, pet care, and food and beverages, underscoring Indonesia’s push to diversify exports beyond commodities and the automotive sector.

The business matching was conducted through one-on-one meetings, allowing each SME to present flagship products, display samples, and negotiate prices directly with Japanese retail representatives.

Puntodewi said Indonesia and Japan have strong potential to deepen cooperation in furniture, home and living, wellness, personal care, and beauty products, which she described as emerging growth drivers in global supply chains.

"Beyond automotive, we see significant opportunities in home living, wellness, personal care, and beauty. We are optimistic Indonesian FMCG and creative products can help drive a rebound in 2026,” she said.

Indonesia’s non-oil and gas exports to Japan totaled US$14.08 billion in January-November 2025, down 17.91 percent from a year earlier amid global economic pressures, according to official data.

Despite the decline, longer-term trade trends remain positive. Total Indonesia-Japan trade grew 9.47 percent over the past five years, while non-oil and gas exports rose 8.82 percent.

Statistics Indonesia said total bilateral trade reached US$29.29 billion in January to November 2025, down 10.45 percent year on year, with Indonesia still posting a US$2.64 billion trade surplus.

Puntodewi said the government expects the business matching to produce concrete deals that can evolve into long-term partnerships, strengthening Indonesia’s position in Japan’s competitive retail market.