A Japanese research team said Friday that it has developed a general-purpose optical quantum computer that is accessible externally via the internet.Von 時事通信社

Sony Group Corp. said Friday its consolidated sales in April-September grew 2.2pctfrom a year earlier to a record 5,917.2 billion yen.Von 時事通信社

Yoshida Minosuke III, a performer of "bunraku" traditional Japanese puppet plays and a living national treasure, died at a hospital in the western city of Osaka on Thursday. He was 91.Von 時事通信社

The influenza season has started across Japan, the health ministry said Friday.Von 時事通信社

The operator of Tsutenkaku Tower, a major tourist attraction in the western Japan city of Osaka, is considering forming a capital and business tie-up with Nankai Electric Railway Co., it was learned Friday.Von 時事通信社

Yukio Edano, former leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, is set to become chairman of the Commission on the Constitution of the House of Representatives, the all-important lower chamber of parliament.Von 時事通信社

Japan's composite index of coincident economic indicators in September rose 1.7 points from the previous month, reflecting a recovery in production at automobile plants disrupted by a typhoon in August, the Cabinet Office said Friday.Von 時事通信社

Japanese comedian Hitoshi Matsumoto has agreed to withdraw his lawsuit against publisher Bungeishunju Ltd., whose magazine published an article alleging sexual assault by Matsumoto, informed sources said Friday.Von 時事通信社

Japanese Princess Hisako of Takamado will make a private visit to Poland for a week from Nov. 29, the Imperial Household Agency said Friday.Von 時事通信社

The opposition Democratic Party for the People on Friday asked the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to take action within fiscal 2024, which ends in March next year, to review the annual income threshold that separates payers of income tax and nonpayers from the current 1.03 million yen.Von 時事通信社

Kioxia Holdings Corp. aims to go public between December and June, people familiar with the matter said Friday.Von 時事通信社

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Friday that his government plans to set the fundamental direction of regional revitalization policies by the end of the year.Von 時事通信社

Japan's ruling and opposition parties agreed Friday to reappoint Fukushiro Nukaga of the Liberal Democratic Party as speaker of the House of Representatives, the all-important lower chamber of parliament.Von 時事通信社

U.S. Sen. William Hagerty, known as an aide to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, on Thursday called on Japan's Nippon Steel Corp. to elaborate on the anticipated benefits of its planned acquisition of United States Steel Corp.Von 時事通信社

Japan's education ministry said Friday that it has formally approved Tohoku University as the first recipient of subsidies under a state program aimed at strengthening academic research capabilities in the country.Von 時事通信社

Spending by Japanese households with two or more members fell 1.1pctfrom a year earlier to 287,963 yen on average in September after adjustment for inflation, marking two consecutive months of decline, the internal affairs ministry said Friday.Von 時事通信社

Japanese authorities intervened into the foreign exchange market on July 11 and 12, spending 3,167.8 billion yen and 2,367 billion yen, respectively, to prop up the Japanese currency against the dollar, the Finance Ministry said Friday.Von 時事通信社

Suntory Spirits Ltd. said Thursday that it will raise shipment prices for 208 beverage items by 4-11pcton April 1 next year due to soaring materials and transportation costs.Von 時事通信社

The majority of Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers who attended a party meeting Thursday called for unity at a time when the ruling party and the LDP-led administration are having a tough time.Von 時事通信社

Japan's Financial Services Agency on Thursday proposed creating a bill to revise the payment services law to prevent outflows of crypto assets of Japanese investors to other countries.Von 時事通信社

Japanese disaster management minister Manabu Sakai has pledged to boost measures to alleviate damage from natural disasters that are taken in advance.Von 時事通信社

Japan's Nissan Motor Co. on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of 19.2 billion yen for April-September, down 93.5pctfrom a year before.Von 時事通信社

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba instructed Thursday cybersecurity minister Masaaki Taira to introduce a bill for active cyber defense at an early date.Von 時事通信社

The Tachikawa branch of Tokyo District Court on Thursday handed down an indefinite prison term to a 23-year-old man for his involvement in a total of six robberies in four Japanese prefectures in recent years, including one in which a 90-year-old woman was fatally assaulted.Von 時事通信社

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Yaris topped the new car sales ranking in Japan in October, forcing Honda Motor Co.'s N-Box minivehicle to slip from the top position for the first time in five months, industry data showed Thursday.Von 時事通信社

Tokyo Metro Co. logged on Thursday a year-on-year group net profit rise of 26.6pctfor April-September, in its first earnings report since its initial public offering last month.Von 時事通信社

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan agreed at a meeting Thursday that the post of Budget Committee chair in the House of Representatives will go to the opposition camp.Von 時事通信社

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. said Thursday that it has completed the trial removal of nuclear fuel debris from a crippled reactor at its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan.Von 時事通信社

Mizuho Bank said on Thursday that it will raise its long-term prime lending rate by 0.1 percentage point to 1.85 pct, the highest level in 15 years, effective Friday.Von 時事通信社

A snowcap was observed on Mount Fuji, the tallest peak in Japan, for the first time this season Thursday morning, the latest date since surveys began in 1894.Von 時事通信社

Executives of Komeito, the junior party in Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's ruling coalition, Thursday agreed to name land minister Tetsuo Saito as its new leader.Von 時事通信社

Japan's Finance Ministry on Thursday upgraded its economic assessments for five of the country's 11 regions, noting that private consumption has remained firm despite inflation.Von 時事通信社

Hibakusha atomic bomb survivors in Japan have stressed their intentions to continue calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons following former U.S. President Donald Trump's victory in Tuesday's presidential election in the United States.Von 時事通信社

A 45-year-old inmate serving an indefinite prison sentence for the 2004 murder of a girl in Okayama Prefecture, western Japan, was arrested Thursday in a case in which another girl was stabbed and seriously injured in the neighboring prefecture of Hyogo in 2006.Von 時事通信社

Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani visited a South Korean naval ship and interacted with its crew on Thursday at the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's Yokosuka base in the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo.Von 時事通信社

The Bank of Japan may face pressure from a weaker yen and higher import prices and be forced to raise interest rates at an early date following Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election, economists said.Von 時事通信社

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump agreed to hold a face-to-face meeting at an early date, during their phone talks on Thursday.Von 時事通信社

The Japanese government said Thursday that it will nominate Masahiko Metoki, director general of the Universal Postal Union, for re-election in September next year.Von 時事通信社

Japan's future payment obligations based on existing defense equipment procurement contracts doubled to 9.45 trillion yen over the four years through fiscal 2023, the Board of Audit of Japan said Wednesday.Von 時事通信社

Operations of Japan's first interim spent nuclear fuel storage facility in Aomori Prefecture started Wednesday as the Nuclear Regulation Authority certified the facility's safety.Von 時事通信社

Nippon Ishin no Kai ()削除 decided Wednesday to hold a leadership election Dec. 1, in the wake of its poor result in the Oct. 27 general election.Von 時事通信社

After Republican candidate Donald Trump declared his victory in Tuesday's U.S. presidential election, the Japanese government is rushing to build a relationship of trust between him and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.Von 時事通信社

Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, also president of the Liberal Democratic Party, plans to appoint Seiji Kihara as new chairman of the ruling party's Election Strategy Committee, several party sources said Wednesday.Von 時事通信社

U.S. investment fund KKR said Wednesday that it has successfully completed the first stage of its tender offer for Japan's Fuji Soft Inc. by taking an equity stake of 35 pct.Von 時事通信社

The Japanese government wasted 64,862 million yen in taxpayer money on 345 projects in fiscal 2023, according to a report the Board of Audit of Japan submitted to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Wednesday.Von 時事通信社

A former worker of a nursery school in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to allegations that she assaulted and killed a 1-year-old girl in 2017.Von 時事通信社

A team of researchers from Waseda University and others said Wednesday that it will begin a clinical trial using bovine tendons to reconstruct torn knee ligaments in humans.Von 時事通信社

House of Councillors lawmakers of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Wednesday elected former welfare minister Keizo Takemi as the party's next leader in the Upper House.Von 時事通信社

Japanese textile maker Toray Industries Inc. said Wednesday that it will end the use of promotional models known as Toray campaign girls after 43 years.Von 時事通信社

Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp. and entertainment company Yoshimoto Kogyo Holdings Co. said Wednesday that they will cooperate on health issue solutions and content linked to laughter, targeting overseas markets.Von 時事通信社