Japan
Cerberus to sell Aozora Bank stake in $2.3 billion offering: sources
TOKYO - U.S. buyout firm Cerberus Capital Management LP is planning to sell most of its stake in Japanese lender Aozora Bank Ltd in a global offering that could be worth more than 200 billion yen ($2.3 billion), sources with direct knowledge of the sale said.
Recent Japan News
Japan likely to increase defense spending due to isles row: media
TOKYO - Japan's government is likely to increase defense spending for the first time in 11 years, Japanese media reported on Saturday, as newly elected Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledges a sterner response to a territorial dispute with China.
Japan sees opportunity in Myanmar's emerging economy
YANGON - Japan's deputy prime minister confirmed fresh financial aid for Myanmar on Friday during a visit to an industrial zone that underlined the long-isolated nation's growing importance as an economic partner.
Automakers in China brace for year of tepid growth as Japanese struggle
BEIJING/SHANGHAI - Automakers in China are bracing for another year of tepid single-digit growth in 2013, weighed down by sluggish demand for Japanese cars amid a diplomatic row between the two regional neighbors and government measures intended to restrict traffic in bigger cities. | Video
South Korea says Japan must heal wounds of wartime excesses
SEOUL - South Korea's president-elect said on Friday that Japan needed to come to terms with its colonial history as tension between two Asian allies of the United States simmered over Japan's rule of Korea and an island dispute.
Japan's finance minister in Myanmar with development pledges
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar - Japan's new government confirmed its support for the emerging democracy in Myanmar on Thursday when Finance Minister Taro Aso visited the country to reaffirm Japan's intention to cancel debt and help develop a big industrial zone.
Special reports
The nuclear industry's trillion dollar question
Before Fukushima, more than 300 nuclear reactors were planned worldwide, mostly in developing economies. While parts of the developed world may reduce their use of nuclear, China, India, the Middle East and Eastern Europe look set continue their nuclear drive. Full Article
Quake reveals cracks in insurance system
The sophisticated modeling systems the insurance industry uses to predict where disasters will happen and how much they will cost never factored in an earthquake the size of the one that hit northeast Japan. Full Article
Japan engineers knew tsunami could overrun plant
A review of Tokyo Electric Power and regulatory records shows that Japan and its largest utility repeatedly downplayed dangers and ignored warnings -- including a 2007 tsunami study from TEPCO's senior safety engineer. Full Article
Fuel storage, safety issues vexed Japan plant
Tokyo Electric and regulators are certain to face scrutiny on the decision to store most of the Fukushima plant's spent fuel rods inside the reactor buildings rather than invest in other potentially safer storage options. Full Article
Disasters show flaws in just-in-time production
In a globalized economy where manufacturers have moved ever more toward lean inventories, the weakest link in the supply chain is what Japan is best known for: high-end, highly technical parts. Full Article
Radiation fears may be greatly exaggerated
As workers struggle to contain the fallout from a crippled Japanese nuclear plant, people as far away as Illinois are calling public health officials in a state of panic. But the truth is anxiety is largely disproportionate to the actual danger. Full Article
Mistakes, misfortune, meltdown: Japan's quake
An examination of Japan's effort to contain its escalating nuclear disaster reveals a series of missteps, bad luck and desperate improvisation. What also emerges is a country that has begun to question some of its oldest values. Full Article
Why Japan will avert a fiscal meltdown
In these dark hours, Japan would do well to heed former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's memorable maxim that you never want a serious crisis to go to waste. Full Article
Can Japan find "New Deal" after triple whammy?
The nuclear crisis was a triple whammy for Japan, coming on top of the earthquake -- the fifth strongest ever recorded -- and one of the most powerful tsunami in history, which caused scenes of unimaginable destruction in northeast Japan. Full Article | Related Story
In Chernobyl, a disaster persists
As Japan battles to prevent a meltdown at its earthquake-hit Fukushima Daini nuclear plant, the people of Ukraine are preparing to mark the 25th anniversary of the world's worst nuclear accident. Full Article | Related Story
An interactive guide to how the disaster unfolded. Timeline