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Japan news from Japan Times

• Keizai Doyukai picks IBM’s Akio Yamaguchi as chief

  Yamaguchi, 61, will assume the post, which has been vacant since former Suntory Chairman and CEO Takeshi Niinami resigned in September, at the start of 2026.

• Health ministry panel agrees to raise medical fee caps, but with refined approach

  Income threshold categories determining patient burdens for high-cost medical care will be fine-tuned to ensure that those who earn more pay more.

• ‘Badly in Love’: Netflix Japan’s most chaotic dating show may be its most honest

  Netflix Japan’s “Badly in Love” turns delinquent bravado into surprisingly earnest, character-driven reality television.

• Long-suffering JEF United Chiba celebrates return to J. League's top division

  JEF United Chiba beat Tokushima Vortis in the promotion playoff final on Saturday.

• Japan's first bank-backed yen-based stablecoin could be available by June 2026

  The hope is that it will be used for the settlement of payments locally and globally

• Man and two women in polygamous ties nabbed over sex videos

  The man, Yohei Ono, his wife Haruka, 28, and common-law wife Rin, 23, who is also his adopted daughter, are believed to have been living together like a polygamous family.

• 'Islamic State ideology' drove Bondi Beach gunmen, Australian PM says

  A father and son opened fire on Jewish crowds on Sunday evening, killing 15 people and wounding dozens more.

• BOJ may begin decadeslong sale of ¥83 trillion ETF hoard from January

  The bank will offload the assets little by little to avoid roiling markets, as was decided at a September policy board meeting, people familiar with the matter said.

Asia/Pacific news from Japan Times

• 'Islamic State ideology' drove Bondi Beach gunmen, Australian PM says

  A father and son opened fire on Jewish crowds on Sunday evening, killing 15 people and wounding dozens more.

• 'It was dead people everywhere': Eyewitnesses recount Bondi Beach attack

  More than a dozen people were killed and at least 40 wounded, some critically, as two gunmen opened fire on attendees at a Hanukkah event.

• Taiwan says its military can respond rapidly to any sudden Chinese attack

  The military has a standard operating practice on how to raise its combat alert level in case Chinese exercises move “from drill to war,” the ministry added.

• ‘The city was gone’: Survivors recount flood chaos during rare Indonesian cyclone

  Decades of industrial land clearing may have turned an unusual storm into a catastrophe.

• Australia eyes tougher gun laws after Hanukkah attack in Sydney

  Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the need for stronger gun ownership laws would be on the agenda for a Cabinet meeting.

• Yoon tried to provoke Pyongyang into armed aggression, prosecutor says

  The ex-president's move was meant to create justification for the December 2024 martial law, special prosecutor Cho Eun-seok says.

• Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai found guilty in landmark security case

  The city’s High Court convicted Lai on two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces — a crime punishable by life in prison.

• Australia plans tougher gun laws after father and son kill 15 at Bondi Beach

  The shooting at a Hanukkah event has raised questions about whether the country’s gun laws, already among the toughest in the world, remain fit for purpose.

Culture news from Japan Times

• ‘Badly in Love’: Netflix Japan’s most chaotic dating show may be its most honest

  Netflix Japan’s “Badly in Love” turns delinquent bravado into surprisingly earnest, character-driven reality television.

• Japanese film director Masato Harada dies, aged 76

  Masato Harada gained international attention with "Kamikaze Taxi," released in 1995, which drew strong reviews overseas.

• In 2025, Japanese literature took a turn for the weird

  As expected, women writers raked in successes and cozy cat fiction kept its popularity, with two big surprises from male authors — Uketsu and Osamu Dazai.

• NHK envisions a multicultural Mars in its newest sci-fi series

  The new sci-fi show was created with involvement of scientists and space experts to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the NHK.

• J-pop found new ways to diversify in 2025

  Anime, social media and ad campaigns help, but can they take you global?

• ‘Good Luck’: A gently absurd road movie about filmmaker’s anxiety

  Shin Adachi turns self-doubt and awkward encounters into a warm, feather-light comedy that sneaks up on the viewer.

• A movie buff in Jimbocho bets on independent cinema in a big way

  In the book-filled Tokyo neighborhood, a new mini-theater hopes to introduce you to films you never knew you’d love.

• ‘Peleliu: Guernica of Paradise’: Cute designs, harrowing truths about the horrors of war

  As Japan marks 80 years since WWII’s end, “Peleliu” stands out among recent war films for using animation to portray the brutal realities faced by soldiers abroad.

Sports news from Japan Times

• Long-suffering JEF United Chiba celebrates return to J. League's top division

  JEF United Chiba beat Tokushima Vortis in the promotion playoff final on Saturday.

• United blows lead three times in 4-4 Bournemouth thriller

  Despite the disappointment, United head coach Ruben Amorim will be heartened by the sight of his expensively assembled forward line beginning to perform.

• Short rinks cut no ice with NHL players, including standout McDavid

  Players will face sheets of ice that are more than three feet shorter than the NHL's standard layout and slightly wider.

• Scottie Scheffler wins fourth consecutive Player of the Year award

  The World No. 1's six-win year included major victories at the PGA Championship and Open Championship.

• Sabalenka named WTA Player of the Year for second straight season

  The Belarusian won four trophies overall and recorded 63 victories over the season.

• Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer denies having interest in other jobs

  Rumors have abounded about DeBoer's candidacy to take over at Michigan in the wake of Sherrone Moore's firing.

• Jason Myers hits six field goals as Seahawks spoil 44-year-old Philip Rivers' return

  Rivers, a 44-year-old high school coach and grandfather, was signed earlier this week.

• Alice Robinson becomes first New Zealander to win World Cup super-G

  The giant slalom World Cup leader celebrated her seventh career victory after starting sixth on the Swiss resort's Corviglia piste.

Life news from Japan Times

• Why Japan’s internet looks weird — unless you live here

  A closer look at Japan’s maximalist web design shows how cultural values and practical needs create an online world richer than it appears.

• The ‘bear’ defined kanji in 2025. The internet defined almost everything else.

  Japan’s kanji and buzzwords of 2025 reveal a split: old-media traditions colliding with the chaotic, meme-driven language of new media.

• Why is 'Harry Potter' so big in Japan? ‘Oshikatsu’ fandom.

  The "Harry Potter" franchise has no direct ties to Japan or Japanese culture, but fans say its stories are universal.

• Osaka Expo and ‘Kokuho’ top 2025’s sumo-style consumer interest rankings

  The expo’s ¥3 trillion economic impact and the three-hour kabuki film captivated shoppers in Japan this year.

• Beppu Hirokado puts the spotlight on Kyushu's rich seafood

  In a town better known for hot springs than haute cuisine, chef Taizo Hirokado is making waves with his bold cuisine that brilliantly showcases the bounty from the region's waters.

• A deep dive into Japanese comfort food

  Emiko Davies’ latest cookbook, “The Japanese Pantry: From Sake to Soy, Essential Ingredients for Japanese Home Cooking,” answers everything you want to know about the basics.

• Frank O. Gehry, titan of architecture, is dead at 96

  Visionary architect of Bilbao’s Guggenheim and a host of landmark works, Gehry closes a career that reshaped cities with sculptural boldness.

• ‘Messy, blingy, over the top’: Heisei Era charms Japan’s youth

  With 2025 drawing to a close, many in Japan are looking back on not only the year that was — but also a new period of the past overshadowed by its trendier predecessor.

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