JIJI English News-時事通信英語ニュース-

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her French counterpart, Stephane Sejourne, have agreed to strengthen their countries' cooperation in the security area.

The estimated population of children under 15 in Japan as of April 1 stood at 14.01 million, marking a decline for the 43rd straight year, the internal affairs ministry said Saturday.

Japan fell by two places from last year to 70th in the 2024 world freedom of press rankings, according to international journalist organization Reporters Without Borders, or RSF.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Friday ended a two-day ministerial council meeting chaired by Japan, revising its guidelines on artificial intelligence drawn up in 2019.

Tokyo has made a protest to Washington over U.S. President Joe Biden's recent comment that Japan is "xenophobic" just like China and Russia, according to the Japanese Embassy in the United States.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Paraguayan President Santiago Pena shared on Friday their resolve not to allow any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force in East Asia.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday agreed that the two countries will cooperate in conserving the Amazon rainforest as a way to fight global warming.

The defense ministers of Japan, the United States, Australia and the Philippines agreed to deepen their security cooperation at a meeting in Hawaii on Thursday, an apparent effort to counter China's advances in the East China Sea and South China Sea.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reiterated his commitment to revising the country's Constitution at a rally in Tokyo on Friday to mark Constitution Memorial Day.

Japanese electricity industry leader Kingo Hayashi said Thursday that coal-fired thermal power plants will play a major role in the country until the end amid international calls for abolishing them to cut carbon emissions.

Nippon Steel Corp. said Friday that it has postponed its acquisition of United States Steel Corp. until December from an initially planned September due to a U.S. review of the deal.

Sony Pictures Entertainment and U.S. private equity firm Apollo Global Management on Wednesday submitted an all-cash 26-billion-dollar offer for U.S. media giant Paramount Global, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

Japanese railway companies are reinforcing their financial operations, including internet banking services, as part of efforts to expand their revenue sources.

Lodging services using a retired "blue train," or sleeper train, preserved at a railway-themed sightseeing facility in a northeastern Japan town are set to restart Saturday after five years of suspension due to the novel coronavirus crisis.

Japan and the European Union agreed to work together to strengthen economic security at a minister-level economic dialogue in Paris on Thursday.

Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party is considering expanding the scope of fundraising party ticket buyers whose names must be disclosed through a revision to the political funds control law, it was learned Thursday.

Japanese authorities are believed to have spent some 3 trillion yen on what is viewed as a stealth yen-buying, dollar-selling foreign exchange market intervention early Thursday, according to market sources.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday agreed to begin talks to ink a proposed reciprocal access agreement to facilitate mutual visits by Japanese Self-Defense Forces and French military members.

The recent crash of two Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopters during night training off a remote Tokyo island is highly likely to have been caused by human factors, the Defense Ministry said Thursday.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development kicked off a two-day ministerial council meeting at its headquarters in Paris on Thursday, under the chairmanship of Japan, which is marking the 60th anniversary of its accession to the OECD in 1964.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday unveiled a plan to launch a program to pump a total of 8 million euros over the next three years to facilitate economic growth in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings Inc. have reported growth in revenue and earnings for the year that ended in March, marking a full recovery from their slumps caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced the creation of an international framework to develop rules on the use of artificial intelligence at a Paris meeting of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Thursday.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Thursday revised up its global economic growth forecast for 2024 to 3.1 pct, a rise of 0.2 percentage point from its previous projection in February.

Satomi Sakashita, 62, renewed her determination to protect dolphins living around Notojima Island, where she runs a cafe with a dolphin-watching terrace, in the aftermath of the Noto Peninsula earthquake on Jan. 1.

The construction of a giant "shisa" lion-shaped traditional ornament is being planned in the southernmost Japan prefecture of Okinawa, using damaged roof tiles from Shuri Castle, which was devastated by a fire in 2019.

A former Singaporean diplomat has been questioned on a voluntary basis by Tokyo police over allegations that he secretly photographed a naked boy in his 10s at a public bath in February, it was learned Thursday.

The Japanese government's plan to tackle the problem of widespread pollen allergies by cutting down artificial cedar forests has met skepticism from the forestry industry, which is struggling with labor shortages and low lumber demand.

A Bank of Japan policymaker called on the central bank to consider raising interest rates further at a meeting in March, when it raised rates for the first time in 17 years, according to the minutes of the meeting released Thursday.

Japan's Aozora Bank has widened its consolidated net loss forecast to 49.8 billion yen from 28 billion yen for fiscal 2023, which ended in March.

Japan, 48 other countries and the European Union issued a joint statement Wednesday calling on North Korea to comply with international sanctions and abandon its weapons of mass destruction.

Renowned pianist Fuzjko Hemming, known for her human touch in her performances, died of pancreatic cancer on April 21. She was 92.

A quarterly magazine that had informed readers about the unknown attractions of the Noto Peninsula in central Japan for over 13 years is set for revival this month, after being halted following a powerful earthquake that struck four months ago.

Japanese economy minister Ken Saito and his French counterpart, Bruno Le Maire, on Wednesday agreed that the two countries will strengthen cooperation over supply of critical minerals including rare earths.

Three major Japanese department store operators on Wednesday logged sharply higher same-store sales for April, driven by increased purchases of luxury brand goods by foreign visitors amid a weak yen.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his French counterpart, Gabriel Attal, on Wednesday agreed to expand bilateral ties in various fields including the economy, security and culture.

Japan will begin a model project in fiscal 2024 to help regional communities accept more foreign visitors with diverse dietary and cultural habits, such as vegetarians and Muslims.

Japanese apparel group Onward Holdings Co. will sharply increase physical outlets with features of online shops, President and CEO Michinobu Yasumoto has said.

Mitsui Fudosan Co. and other companies on Wednesday unveiled an outline of their redevelopment project for the site of the former Tsukiji wholesale market in Tokyo's Chuo Ward.

Electronics retailer Bic Camera Inc. said Wednesday that it has introduced an alert system in all of its stores to prevent the controversial resale of duty-free products.

A total of 2,750 residents moved out of six municipalities in Ishikawa Prefecture, central Japan, in the three months after the municipalities were hit hard by the Noto Peninsula earthquake on New Year's Day, it was learned Wednesday.

U.S. foreign policy figures have not opposed the idea of Japan lifting its own sanctions against North Korea if the reclusive state returns all Japanese nationals it abducted decades ago, the head of the abductee family group said Tuesday.

A ceremony to mark the 68th anniversary of the official recognition of Minamata disease, a neurological disorder caused by polluted industrial wastewater, was held on Wednesday in Minamata, Kumamoto Prefecture, southwestern Japan.

Used car dealers in Japan are highlighting transparency in their vehicle sales, following a string of fraudulent business practices, including false auto insurance claims, discovered at Bigmotor Co.

Japanese companies are increasingly engaging in upcycling efforts, or adding new value to used products and waste materials, as part of their environmental and social contributions and to generate profits.

The Japanese Natural Resources and Energy Agency asked the town of Genkai in Saga Prefecture on Wednesday to accept a "literature survey" for a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste from nuclear plants.

An increasing number of Tokyo's special wards have started offering attractive return gifts under Japan's "furusato nozei" hometown tax donation system, in a bid to stop outflows of tax revenue.

A new company called Wecars Co. was formed Wednesday to take over operations at Bigmotor Co., a scandal-tainted Japanese used car dealer, trading house Itochu Corp., one of the new firm's shareholders, said.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her Nigerian counterpart, Yusuf Tuggar, agreed to enhance their countries' economic relationship, when they met in Nigeria on Tuesday, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.