JeffLee comments

as it racked up red ink from its Vision Fund investments.

That's pretty funny. Racking up losses amid a tech boom. Great work, Masa, the "man with the golden touch"!

ChatGPT tells me that Vision Fund 1 has generated $21.6 billion in gains since 2017, while Vision Fund 2 has incurred losses of $22.2 billion since 2019. Close to net zero! The plain old NASDAQ, meanwhile, has quadropoled in that time. Woe is the Softbank investor.

The monthly pay was raised by up to 28,440 yen.

That doesn't mean much to us who are not Toyota workers. What is that in terms of a percent increase of take-home pay? And does it match, beat or fall short of consumer inflation?

Why don't Japanese journalists do a bit of work and thinking instead of just parroting what big corporations and other organizations tell them?

“Two Tier Keir” is a real thing, folks.

Racist thugs.

@Wallace

Jordan already has 3 million Palestinian refugees

More like 2.3 million. The vast majority of whom came as a direct result of two major wars that Jordan and its allies fought against Israel in an attempt to destroy it.

This is a story that needs a photo or two. Too bad these rooms are for groups. Japan remains solo-traveler unfriendly. I've stayed in too many drab smoking-allowed rooms in business hotels. Ugh.

Japan, South Korea, China, and other countries have tariffs on steel. Am I the only one who thinks that many US trading partners who are complaining now are hypocrits?

It's a good thing the two countries' new years holidays are staggered. Imagine what it would be like if them came during the Shogatsu. LOL.

If Germany can take in a million Syrians in one year, certainly Palestine's neighbors can accept all of its refugees. Come on, folks, let's work for regional peace.

Abe234

that only works if and only if you earn enough.

Japan's households' financial assets have been at record highs during the last few years, with most of the money in cash, Japanese govt bonds (that pay close to nothing) and life insurance. Those households chose to use their ample savings that way. And, by the way, that has nothing to do with Japan's fiscal debt.

the money in their postal savings accounts and bank accounts is tied up in the debt.

That's their choice. It's got nothing to do with Japan's macro situation. Individuals in Japan can easily invest in the S&P500, Nasdaq or anything else if they want in tax-advantaged accounts promoted by the government.

Their tax-free returns on such assets puts them in an even better place than people in the US, as the cost of living is much lower here and they gain from the stronger dollar. In my case, my unrealized gains from investments in NISA, IDeco and non-registered accounts this year exceeded my Japanese salary. A great situation to be in.

Hospitals shouldn’t be for-profit. Their job is to take care of people’s health, not making money. If they can’t make money, they should be socialized, like in Europe.

@Wallace 

I said there were no extreme leftwing parties, 

You actually said "far left." I listed three of them running in the election. So you were wrong and now you're lying about it.

...that would affect the election outcome.

You didn't say ones that "would affect the election outsome." You said "Name an extreme-left party in the elections."

But, hey, you got upvoted again. The people who agree with your clearly don't like facts or reason.

@Wallace

There is no far-left party in the German elections.

More of your horse-puckey. The following parties have submitted state lists and are contesting various regions across Germany:

-Die Linke (The Left) has been represented in the Bundestag (Germany's federal parliament) since 2005

-Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW): Founded in 2023 by former Die Linke politician Sahra Wagenknecht, this party combines left-wing populism with cultural conservatism.

-Marxist-Leninist Party of Germany (MLPD): A small party with a Marxist-Leninist orientation.

Congrats, though, your post was heavily upvoted. Which just goes to show...

When the mainstream political parties push unpopular and\or harmful policies for many long years in a democracy, this is often the result.

Not surprising. Both are on the same economic page, ie, "new capitalism."

Both want to dismantle the old globalization-loving, neo-liberal free-trade system. In Japan's case, it was espoused by Kisida, prompted mostly by the fear of widening inequality and a desire to redistribute the nation's wealth. In Trump's case, it's mostly fear of China, including the illict fentanyl percursor imports. Interesting times.

Until we have huge tariffs on China,

The US still has huge tariffs on China dating, of course, from the first Trump administration:

-Section 301 on $360 billion of goods, such as steel, aluminum, machinery, electronics, and consumer goods.

-imported solar panels and washing machines under Section 201

The US economy has boomed ever since despite the neolib globalists' predictions of doom. AKA. "the e-wrongimists" LOL.

 driven by higher interest payments

Have any of these Einsteins stopped and thought about who receives those payments and what they do with all that money? If they did, their assessments would be a lot milder. They might even learn about how Japan can run such high fiscal debt for many, many years while maintaining the lowest interest rates and inflation of any of its peers.

A clear consolidation plan is needed... 

What does that mean?

The IMF expects Japan's economic growth to accelerate this year 

The writer forgot to add: "But if it were to follow the IMF's prescriptions, it would fall into a needless death spiral, as other countries have done after going ahead with the IMF's austerity recommendations."

It's difficult for Japanese companies to merge, and in most cases they shouldnt make the effort. As anyone who has worked for one will tell you, they are extremely rigid with decision-making and organizational structures. The best solution for Nissan is a buyout offer to a foreign company and put the brand to rest. Nissan did a lot better under Renault than it is now!

With check-in beginning at 3 p.m. and check-out at 10 a.m., this is a very convenient place to stay.

Is the writer being ironic? I’ve just come back from Vietnam, where check in was 2 and check out noon. In Thailand, I’ve stayed in hotels where both check in and out were noon.

Otherwise, these places seem convenient, although lacking in warmth or atmosphere.

Ghosn was charged with underreporting his compensation

How do you "underreport" something that doesn't even exist?

the issue should have been sorted out in a board room, not a courtroom.

That's how things ARE done -- except when a troublesome foreigner is involved. When are we going to see the people who systemataically cheated on safety and emission testing for many long years at Japan's major automakers on trial? Answer: never. They're all Japanese.

allegedly forcing women into prostitution, 

Uh, no. Other media report they recruited the women whle they were already selling themselves at Okubo Park at night.

The latest case uncovered in the heart of Shinjuku

"uncovered"? LOL. If the cops were astute, they wouldn't have to "uncover" anything in "the heart of Shinjuku." It's pretty much in the open in that part of town. You see it every night at Okubo Park, nearly all of it catering to Japanese men. Why did the cops target this niche aspect of it instead of a full fledged crackdown -- if prostitution is so bad?

the sought after lifestyle of Japan that millions of SE Asians seek.

I've known several Vietnamese in my time in Japan. None of them envy the Japanese lifestyle. All aimed to save as much money as possible and return to Vietnam to buy property, etc., and enjoy the lifestyle there.

@Peter Neil

It was a singular, not systemic failure.

The decision to construct a concrete embankment right at the end of the runway instead of a collapsable one came from within the system and was approved by it.

ah, Masayoshi Son, the guy whose firm once had a 5% stake of NVidea -- until he decided to dump all its shares back in 2019. LOL. Yep, someone with so much insight into the AI business.

aren't those on non-tourist visas able to join the Japanese resident/citizen queue on re-entry?

No. you go to a "re-entry" queue if you have a working, study visa or permanent residency. There's usually only 2 immigration booths open yet when flights from certain Asian countries arrive, there's tons of visa holders who need to go there and it takes a long time to get thru. .

They need to desparetly expand their immigration screening capacity. Last time I was there, it was about 30 minutes for the re-entry line. There were hundreds of foreign tourists overflowing the concourse, and were barely moving, most waiting in line for over an hour. Meanwhile, the Japanese just breezed through with no waiting.

My suitcase also didn't get on the carosel until well after an hour of the flight landing. So, here's praying that the authorities do a proper job of expanding the capacity.

How do these morally upstanding folks get their hands on "obscene books," DVDs, etc in the first place?

If any good comes out of this is maybe Canada will respond by gettig a lot tougher in tackling its horrendous illicit drug crisis, which has be allow to fester. The biggest case, involving fentanyl profits being laundered through casinos and real estate, is described as representing a level of criminality unprecedented in Canadian history -- yet there wasn't a single conviction due to a technicality involving one informant.

Hopefully, Canada will start throwing drug dealers, complicit bankers and drug users in jail (like Japan does).

edible but no longer sellable

Seems a like a collusal waste for a combini to offer edible food and not sell it. Why don't they introduce knocked-down clearance prices instead of throwing it away? I expect that would do a lot more help the poor as well as fix the food waste problem, given that this project is only a trial.