Jobless rate up to 4.6% in November
December 26, 2005Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 4.6% in November, up from 4.5% in October, the government said Tuesday. The number of jobless people totaled 2.92 million in the reporting month, up 20,000 from a year earlier for the first ri...
Toyota launches redesigned bB
December 26, 2005Toyota Motor Corp announced Monday that it has begun nationwide sales of the completely redesigned bB passenger vehicle through Netz dealers. The first-generation bB, launched in 2000, was developed as an individualistic, compact hatchback. The new b...
House Foods to buy Takeda Pharmaceutical's food business
December 26, 2005Takeda Pharmaceutical Co has reached a basic agreement to sell its food business to House Foods Corp in October 2007, the two companies said Monday. The deal is estimated to be worth 30 billion yen....
Plan to restrict retailers in suburbs causes concern
December 26, 2005Private-sector members of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's key economic policy advisory panel expressed concerns Monday about a ruling bloc plan to stop the hollowing-out of downtown areas by restricting the establishment of large-scale retail stor...
Nippon Steel settles political discrimination wage dispute
December 26, 2005Nippon Steel Corp reached Monday a negotiated settlement with a group of five former workers who filed a damages suit against the major steelmaker, saying they were discriminated against in wages because they were communists, the plaintiffs said. ...
Firms' expense account outlays drop
December 26, 2005Expense account outlays at Japanese firms in the year to January 2005 are estimated to have dropped 0.7% from a year earlier to 3,439.3 billion yen, marking the eighth consecutive year of decline, the National Tax Agency said Monday. The agency es...
Department store sales up in November
December 26, 2005Japan's department store sales rose in November for the third consecutive month, marking the biggest percentage increase since April 1998, due to strong sales of winter clothing and year-end gifts, the Japan Department Stores Association said Monday....
2 supermarket chains resume selling U.S. beef
December 26, 2005Two supermarket chains, one based in Shikoku and the other in Hokkaido, have apparently become the first ones in Japan to begin selling U.S. beef on Monday after the government eased an import ban on American and Canadian beef earlier this month. ...