Japan logs trade deficit of $3.7B for March & $83.4B for FY2012
Government data released on Thursday revealed that Japan’s trade deficit for the month of March amounted to US$3.7 billion, more than four times the year before, primarily caused by rising import costs...
View ArticleJapanese trade deficit sees 70% expansion to $8.6 billion in April
The Japanese government released data on Wednesday that revealed the country’s trade deficit had risen substantially more than expected in the month April. Now standing at 879.9 billion yen (approx....
View ArticleJapan’s trade deficit rises to $10.4B for month of May
Government data released on Wednesday morning revealed that Japan’s trade deficit increased to 993.9 billion yen (approx. 10.4 billion US dollars) in the month of May, rising just under 10% from the...
View ArticleFinance minister says Japan must raise taxes soon to fix economy
Finance Minister Taro Aso admits that the country needs to raise its taxes by next year if they want to show they are determined to fix up Japan’s finances, even as the government has already upgraded...
View ArticleJapan’s deepest welfare cuts opposed by citizens and legal professionals
Japanese citizens and legal professionals are making protests against the cuts initiated by the Japanese government on social assistance. Advocate groups led by lawyers are also filing a petition to...
View ArticleJapan’s Finance Minister Aso sees little benefit in cutting corporate tax
As industry experts speculate if the administration may cut the effective corporate tax rate to cushion the brunt of the consumption tax hike impact, Finance Minister Taro Aso has expressed on Thursday...
View ArticleOnline companies asking government to tax overseas competition
A group of thirteen online-based companies in Japan are asking the government to impose sales taxes on ebooks and music download overseas websites to remove their advantage over the local companies....
View ArticleJapan’s budget request for next fiscal year amounts to $995 billion
The request for next fiscal year’s budget was announced by the Ministry of Finance on Wednesday. The unprecedented 99.3 trillion yen ($995 billion) budget request of the government offices will be...
View ArticleJapan ruling party’s Fukushima panel proposal to include massive TEPCO...
A task force organized by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to look into the Fukushima Daiichi clean-up situation has included a recommendation to reorganize utility operator Tokyo Electric Power Co...
View ArticleFinance Ministry advisory panel suggests cutting number of nation’s teachers...
Another possible casualty of Japan’s declining birthrate is the job security of elementary and high school teachers. An advisory panel to the Ministry of Finance is proposing to cut down the number of...
View ArticleAnother Japanese bank admits transactions with organized crime figures
Days after Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) said it will be looking closely into transactions of the country’s three largest banks, another bank has admitted they have conducted transactions...
View ArticleCustomer passes off ‘million yen bill’ as real money at grocery store
Lest you think that you missed the announcement that Japan has issued a new currency, a “million yen bill” was allegedly passed off as a 10,000 yen bill at a grocery shop in Aeon Mall Morioka-Minami....
View ArticleJapanese authorities to begin inquiry on sudden closure of Mt Gox bitcoin...
Japanese authorities are now investigating the sudden closure of Mt. Gox, the exchange company for the virtual currency unit bitcoin. While Japan’s Financial Services Agency have no authority over Mt....
View ArticleJapan thinks bitcoin regulation should be international
With the turmoil caused by the closing of the Tokyo-based Mt. Gox bitcoin currency exchange, Japanese authorities are now investigating the matter to know exactly what happened. Vice Finance Minister...
View ArticleJapan mulling Bitcoin tax after Mt Gox scandal
In the wake of the spectacular fall of Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, Japan is now looking for ways to tax bitcoin transactions, this according to media reports on Tuesday. Mt. Gox had recently...
View ArticleJapan says bitcoin not real currency, but should still be taxed
The Japanese government has released a statement saying that bitcoin “does not fall under the category of a currency and is subject to taxation.” This comes in the midst of the rest of the world trying...
View ArticleBitcoin ATM heading to Japan amidst credibility concerns
Las Vegas-based firm Robocoin said that they are shipping a bitcoin ATM to Tokyo and considering setting it up for operations by May of this year. This latest move comes in the midst of the virtual...
View ArticleJapan records highest ever trade deficit in 2013 due to surging fuel costs
At the end of fiscal 2013, it was revealed by the Finance Ministry that Japan’s trade deficit had increased nearly 70 percent from the last year, amounting to a record 13.75 trillion yen (around US$134...
View ArticleKnock-off brand-name items now burgeoning in Japan
Due to the lax regulations when it comes to imported, branded items and the capability of the market to buy luxury goods, Japan is now fast becoming a haven for counterfeit items like bags, garments...
View ArticleJapan to change yen notes for visually-impaired people
While an ageing society clearly affects a nation’s workforce and economic output, one concern the Japanese did not anticipate is the increase in people with poor eyesight that are using tender to pay...
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