Asians vs the next Asian energy crisis
Asia's common energy problem - oil dependence - stems from a chronic lack of stockpiles, uncertain oil and energy supplies and volatile prices, made worse without a regional energy commodities market. Japan wants China, ASEAN and South Korea to join it in fending off the next energy crisis.(Apr 15, '04)

Japan's hostage ordeal - and soul searching
The abduction of three Japanese civilians in Iraq has presented Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi with his biggest political crisis since taking office in 2001. At stake are three lives, the presence of Tokyo's troops in Iraq, Koizumi's future, and ties with the US. (Apr 9, '04)

US-Japan: Back to the beef
Love was in the air last week as cherry blossom petals fell amid celebrations of the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the US and Japan. But after Japan rejected a proposal to end its ban on imports of US beef, not much else is blossoming between the two. (Apr 5, '04)

Japan bashing, passing, now surpassing
This week marks 150 years of official relations between the US and Japan, and ties have never been closer. Observers say the US went through a phase of Japan "bashing", followed by Japan "passing". Now Japan is "surpassing" US expectations of an ally. (Mar 31, '04)

Credit upgrade, post-Madrid jitters
Standard & Poor's has upped Japan's rating to "stable", thanks to signs of economic recovery. Still Japan laments: it deserves better because of its world standing. External events have forced Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to assess just where Japan does stand in a world shaken by violence and shifts in political and economic orders.  (Mar 26, '04)

Foreign exchanges fair and unfair
The US is pressuring Japan and China to change their foreign exchange rates vis a vis the dollar. Tokyo says pressure for a stronger yen is out of line with its economic conditions. China has no desire to break with its fixed exchange rate, but is the yuan on a premature collision course with itself?  (Mar 19, '04)

Whew! N Korea talks end. On to re-election!
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi survived the North Korea talks: Pyongyang didn't take a harder line and the issue of Japan's abductees was raised fruitlessly but quietly. Now, onward to the real business: getting re-elected. - (Mar 3, '04)

Japan: Death penalty for a fallen guru
The head of Japan's Aum Shinrikyo - "Supreme Truth" - cult was sentenced to death for ordering gas attacks that killed 27 people, including 12 who died of sarin poisoning on the Tokyo subway in 1995. Another 5,500 were injured, but something died in almost everyone that day. - (Feb 27, '04)

The mad mad cow mess - and Mexico
Japan-US talks to lift the mad cow ban on US exports have stalled. Japan, to its horror, has discovered its own Mad Cow No 10. Meanwhile, the US is pushing Mexico to accept US beef - in hopes Japan will follow. But Tokyo could also ban Mexican beef. (Feb 24, '04)

Light at the end of 13-year economic tunnel?
Japan's just-out quarterly GDP figures show the fastest annual growth since 1991 - when it entered a long dark tunnel after its economic bubble burst. China's bright light helped a lot, but is there real light at the end of Tokyo's tunnel - or just a flicker? (Feb 20, '04)

Japan, Iran ink oil deal, US dismayed
Japan has signed a US$2 billion deal to develop one of the world's biggest new oilfields - in Iran, on the Iraq border - with estimated reserves of 35 billion barrels. Tokyo expects to pump 300,000 barrels a day by 2006, despite a US rebuke and efforts to block the deal. (Feb 19, '04)

Japan, North Korea stumble over abductions
Japan and North Korea held their first bilateral talks in a year - and made scant progress. The major stumbling block is Pyongyang's abduction of Japanese nationals. North Korea won't allow Japan to join forthcoming six-party nuclear talks if the kidnapping issue is raised. Japan is adamant. (Feb 15, '04) 

Japan-US talks: Kill the T-bone to save the beef
The mad cow standoff between Japan and the United States may be about to end, as both sides apparently have agreed to concessions and compromise in order to lift the ban on US beef exports. (Feb 11, '04)

'Unsinkable aircraft carrier' steams to Iraq
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is the most hawkish, pro-US-Japan alliance politician since the 1980s, when bilateral security ties were termed an "unsinkable aircraft carrier". Now, under his command, Japan is moving inexorably to become a global military power, a "deputy superpower" if you will. (Feb 6, '04) 

Koizumi's aversion to reform pays dividends
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi promised to enact a large grab-bag of fundamental economic reforms. He has done very little - too much reform could actually hurt the economy. Maybe the best thing he has done is to avoid damage - and let China's demand for imports fuel the economy. (Jan 30, '04) 

Japan-US impasse over lifting mad cow ban
For a month Japan has banned all US beef and beef products because of mad cow disease, and it demands rigorous US testing of animals, possibly all cattle for export. The US says no way. Meanwhile the US has banned Japanese beef since 2001 because of mad cows. Talks early next month seem unlikely to end the impasse.  (Jan 27, '04)

Bull's Eye for Koizumi
A year ago, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's support was shaky because he backed Iraq-bound US President George W Bush. Since then he has defied all odds in engineering the most important political coup in almost 50 years. Now he's Koizumi Rex - but there could be a bull's eye painted on his future.  (Jan 22, '04)

Japanese chicken ban: Does it matter?
First it was mad cows from the US, now it's sick chickens from Japan. International bans are shaking up the food industry everywhere as people lose confidence in what they are eating. But the news is not all bad, once the marketers get into the act.  (Jan 14, '04)

US to beef up the mad cow fight
When a cow suffering from BSE was found in Washington state, the world's largest producer of beef immediately faced devastating import bans, including in its most important markets, Japan and South Korea. Bad news, sure - in the short term. But now that the US is in the mad cow club, this problem can finally be tackled on a global scale. (Jan 5, '04)

Ho, ho, ho ... Budget 2004 here we go
Japan's Liberal Democratic Party has released its draft budget for 2004, and one thing is certain: Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi - confident in Japan's ability to manage the national debt - is keeping the voters in the back of his mind as next summer's Upper House election looms. (Dec 22, '03)

Japan, ASEAN celebrate 30-year friendship
Decades ago, with an up-and-coming lawmaker named Junichiro Koizumi in tow, a Japanese prime minister forged new ties with the then-young Association of Southeast Asian Nations. On Friday, Japan and ASEAN affirmed their relationship with "deep satisfaction" - while keeping a wary eye on the US and China.  (Dec 12, '03)

Japanese troops to be in harm's way
After numerous delays, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has finally decided on a basic plan to dispatch troops to Iraq as early as next week. The delays were largely caused by the difficulty of finding a safe location for the soldiers, as most polls show the public will react badly to casualties. (Dec 9, '03)

Takefuji Corp: A wiretap too far
Japan's biggest domestic moneylender, whose place at the top may be slipping, is in hot water for allegedly seeking to intimidate journalists. (Nov 24, '03)

JAPAN AT THE POLLS
The political tournament starts again
The upstart Democratic Party of Japan managed to give Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and the long-ruling Liberal Democrats a few chills - and there might have been even more chills if people hadn't stayed home to watch the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament instead of voting on Sunday. But in politics as in sumo, an impressive start does not guarantee victory in the end. (Nov 10, '03)

JAPAN AT THE POLLS
Japan prepares to pick the winners
The number crunchers are hard at work figuring out the dynamics of this weekend's general election in Japan. They can crunch all they like, but the real numbers are up to the voters - with a little help from the weather and a certain religious group.  (Nov 7, '03)

KOIZUMI ON THE HUSTINGS Politics in the paddies With a crucial general election coming up, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is not taking any chances with the farm vote - a significant voting bloc - even it that means supporting protectionist policies that don't sit with the international "free trade" community. (Sep 30, '03) Mad cows and LDP politics As the general election approaches in Japan, the discovery of mad cow disease could infect support for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who has long pandered to the farm vote. Yet instead of letting the public view the issue in black and white, Koizumi may choose to keep this mad cow in the bag - at least until the elections are over.  (Oct 16, '03) The ghosts of elections past Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party has come a long way since the June 2000 election, when it failed to gain a majority in parliament. Although next month's general election poses little threat to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, some caution that June 2000 was not so long ago. (Oct 29, '03) Kan he or can't he? Naoto Kan of the main political opposition, the Democratic Party of Japan, is thumping the election drum to the tune of advice given to him by the very man he is challenging to govern Japan - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. (Oct 31, '03)

Japan is back, and Koizumi rules
The economy is growing at the highest rate in the Group of Seven. The yen is up, as is investor confidence. And Junichiro Koizumi has bested his enemies within his own party and has been reconfirmed as a strong leader, taking a revamped cabinet into the next general election.  (Sep 22, '03)

Koizumi ready to storm ahead
Japan's self-made prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, goes into this weekend's Liberal Democratic Party presidential election without serious opposition. Meanwhile, an errant lightning bolt has damaged the parliament building, and Osaka's baseball team has finally won the Central League pennant. Portents, surely - but of different things to different people. (Sep 19, '03)

Koizumi and the challenge of conformity
When Junichiro Koizumi came on the scene, words such as "maverick" and "lone wolf" were used to describe a man bent on reform. But now, as the Japanese prime minister seeks another term, some wonder whether he is slipping into the mainstream.  (Sep 8, '03)

Dynamic duo set sights on Koizumi
The merger of the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Party has infused intrigue into the Japanese political scene. The combination of Naoto Kan and Ichiro Ozawa may prove enough to pose a serious challenge to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in the next election.  (Jul 28, '03)

Koizumi's three-year pitch
Junichiro Koizumi has ridden the roller coaster of Japanese politics for 26 months, weathering a moribund economy and factions within his own party to come out on top. The prime minister's probable reward: three more years in office. (Jul 17, '03)

Koizumi takes policy out of politics
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has excelled in putting forward policies that require time-consuming deliberation. Not a bad tactic as he bides time before his re-election as party president. (Jun 25, '03)

Resona move resonates through Japan
As the Japanese government continues its struggle to get its banking system in order and revitalize its moribund economy, the nation's fifth-largest banking group, Resona, underwent a bailout on the weekend that amounts to nationalization. It thereby became the guinea pig in Japan's latest grand scheme to tackle the banking crisis. (May 21, '03) 

Japan: Deputy superpower
While Japan's most important ally, the United States, leads an invasion of Iraq, its close neighbor North Korea is busy striking threatening poses toward Tokyo. Not for Japan to worry, for it has quietly built a world-class military, secured its position as the world's No 2 power and has ensured Washington's assistance in any crisis. (Mar 28, '03) 

FOLLOW THE YEN
The overseas financial press was unimpressed when supposedly reform-minded Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi appointed as the central Bank of Japan's new governor Toshihiko Fukui, who has had a long association with BOJ's often unenviable history. In a two-part series, Richard Hanson examines that move and how power among Japan's financial institutions could be shifting. (Mar '03)

    Part 1: BOJ's five-year itch 
   Part 2: Koizumi's policy squad  

Wanted: An anti-deflation man (or woman)
Japanese officials were slow to recognize the danger of deflation in the 1990s but are finally taking it seriously, going so far as to warn other members of the G7 rich countries' club that the disease may be contagious. With that backdrop, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi continues his stoic search for a new central bank governor. (Feb 21, '03)

New year, new chances for Koizumi
Among those ringing in the year 2003, none was more relieved to say goodbye to the old one than Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. Although the economic problems of last year remain, Richard Hanson suggests that the Year of the Goat may be the time that Koizumi shines. (Jan 23, '03) 

BOJ: Losing independence?
With Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and members of his economic team wanting a greater say in the Bank of Japan's policy-making, some fear that the central bank may lose its independence. (Jan 2, '03) 

The hunt for the next BOJ governor
As speculation abounds about who will take over the reins of the Bank of Japan, Richard Hanson suggests that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi may be looking no further than the central bank's back yard. (Dec 20, '02)

Japanese politics: Even wimps have mothers
The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan had a great idea: a grand alliance of parties in opposition to the ruling Liberal Democrats. On Tuesday it all blew up in his face, and he announced his resignation as DPJ president. Do we count him out? Maybe not ... it could all be a question of parentage.  (Dec 3, '02)

A fine, dull budget job
A shrinking tax base exacerbated by deflation, a persistent bank crisis, a headache-inducing budget debate - well, what's a politician to do but watch the sumo wrestling tournament? Meanwhile, Japan's formerly maligned Ministry of Finance is making a tentative comeback by managing the budget and protecting taxes. (Nov 28, '02)

Ho, ho, ho and a merry GDP to all
As Santa Koizumi was handing out wishes of good cheer after this week's figures on (slightly) positive gross domestic product growth, the Japanese private sector was taking positive steps to revitalize the "real" economy. The solution: start the Christmas season early.  (Nov 14, '02) 

The banking crisis: Post-mortem
A package of measures hammered out to deal with Japan's bad-loan crisis is a puzzling glop that could only be loved by its creators, and has been declared "watered-down" by the pundits. Yet it leaves top bankers fighting a futile rear-guard battle to postpone a purge of their ranks as the reform-minded prime minister uses his personal property to ride out the crisis. (Nov 4, '02)  

The banking crisis: Compromise
In an eleventh-hour drama, the Japanese government withdrew a threat to castrate financially the wantonly profligate management of most of the nation's biggest capital-short banks. The banks had argued that the tough reforms sought by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi would force many businesses and banks out of business. What have they accomplished? A slower death. (Oct 30, '02) 

The banking crisis: Follow the leader
It has been a long and sometimes lonely road for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who has steadfastly pressed for economic reforms in the face of brutal opposition, even from within his own party. Yet he has not only survived, he has gathered powerful supporters who see that reform, and a leader strong enough to carry them out, must prevail.  (Oct 18, '02)

The banking crisis: Capital crimes
Japan is no stranger to banking crises; one in the 1870s, when the country's banking system was still in its infancy, threatened to cause an armed samurai rebellion. Maybe those were simpler times, but capital is still capital, and Japan's 21st-century banks are desperately short of it, while the citizens are in no more mood for tough sacrifices than the samurai were.  (Oct 16, '02)

It's macho time in bad loan land
The Japanese people will soon see how much testosterone is left in the country's banking system, as the government comes up with ways to deal with the crippling problem of non-performing loans. Ironically, the greatest resistance to any government plans will come from the bankers themselves. They have good reason to be afraid. (Oct 7, '02)

Opposition party struggles for relevance
The Democratic Party of Japan is viewed with indifference by most Japanese, and its just-concluded leadership election has reaffirmed its image as a party of the status quo. Indeed, a rare voice encouraging the main opposition party to form a "constructive" platform is the man the DPJ wishes to topple from government: Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.  (Sep 24, '02)

Not much punch in the BOJ bowl
The bold stock-buying scheme put forward by the governor of the Bank of Japan to deal with the country's bad-loan problem had bankers partying and the stock market soaring. But the party turned a bit dour when it became obvious that the governor's idea had more shock value than real substance. (Sep 20, '02)

The truth about meeting Kim Jong-il
Things will never be the same. The enigmatic leader-for-life of poverty-stricken but well-armed North Korea has finally told the truth about things the world already knew. And for Japan, the bitter truth about abductees has emotionally overshadowed whatever else Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi accomplished in Pyongyang. (Sep 18, '02)

The hero of God's Mountain
The conservative prefecture of Nagano has overwhelmingly re-elected its flamboyant governor Yasuo Tanaka, kicked out of office in July by legislators offended by his ban on expensive and unnecessary public works projects. The lesson is clear and relevant all over Japan: power is shifting to local reform-minded groups. (Sep 5, '02)

Unit 731: The case against evil
Chinese victims of Japan's secret germ warfare campaign during World War II have lost a lawsuit seeking compensation and an apology for the horrific suffering they or their kin endured. Yet a Tokyo court for the first time accepted that crimes were in fact committed, leaving the door open for the forces of good to outwit "rationality" on appeal.  (Aug 27, '02)

KOIZUMI'S HOT SUMMER
Summer in Japan, a time to escape the hot, crowded cities and head to the hot, crowded resorts. A time to relax, play, meditate. Unless, that is, you are a politician. And especially if you are reformist Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. (Jul-Aug '02)

   If it's my party, I do as I want to 
   It's August, do you know where your party is? 
   Stone soup

Part 1: Learning by doing
Japan's wildly speculative hyper-inflated economy of the late 1980s started collapsing in 1990. This first of a series of articles describes how that collapse evolved into a destructive case of deflation, and how elusive are man-made fixes for this man-made problem. (Jul 8, '02)

      Part 2: Uncharted territory: Bubble to bust
      Part 3: Stalking the beast, tilting at windmills


Suzuki arrest offers welcome sideshow    (Jun 19, '02)
A World Cup tax event  (Jun 18, '02)
Japan polishes rusting power triangle   (May 31, '02) 
See you at the bottom in September (May 20, '02)
New star rises from the (crow's) ashes   (May 13, '02)
The ghosts of football past (May 24, '02)
Defectors put China and Japan on the spot   (May 10, '02)
Rating wars: Whose default is it? (May 8, '02)
Koizumi's vision in the crosshairs of faith (Apr 26, '02)Koizumi's political spirits rise  (Apr 22, '02)
For Koizumi, bad ratings still have silver linings (Apr 17, '02)
Koizumi's woes bloom as cherry blossoms wither (Apr 4, '02)
The show goes on for Koizumi (Mar 20, '02)
Suzuki's exit gives Koizumi temporary relief (Mar 16, '02)
Suzuki down, Koizumi calm (Mar 14, '02)
Japan draws economic battle lines (Feb 28, '02)

A SUMMIT OF SORTS
Part 1: What goes down may not come up (Feb 14, '02)
Part 2: The big stick (Feb 15, '02)
Part 3: Welcome to Japan (Feb 16, '02)