Tokyo, June 8 (Jiji Press)–Publicly traded Japanese companies have been increasingly under pressure from institutional investors and the government to appoint women to their boards of directors.   Many listed companies, including Toray Industries Inc., Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. and Workman Co., will seek approval to appoint female board members for the first time at shareholders’ meetings this month.   Precision….Read more

TOKYO – The government said Tuesday it will aim to close wage gaps between Japan and other countries and attract more foreign talent while designating generative artificial intelligence and semiconductors as key policy areas for development.   A revised action plan released in the same day to achieve Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s push to ensure growth and wealth redistribution highlighted his….Read more

All national dailies reported that the GOJ revised its basic hydrogen strategy on Tuesday. The new strategy includes the goal of making public-private investments of around 15 trillion yen over the next 15 years in building supply chains for hydrogen energy. According to the papers, the GOJ plans to expand the country’s hydrogen supply sixfold from the current level to….Read more

Tokyo, June 3 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government is expected to say in a key economic policy platform that the country aims to be at the core of global supply chains for strategically important goods such as next-generation semiconductors by ramping up investment in the areas, it was learned Saturday.   The goal is included in a draft of the government’s….Read more

The government has decided on an action plan for increased consumption by foreign visitors to Japan.   The action plan, which was approved at a ministerial meeting on Tuesday, aims to attract visitors for business, research and other non-sightseeing purposes, and sets a goal of increasing their consumption amount to ¥860 billion by 2025, a 20% increase from the 2019….Read more

The Japanese government is planning to urge companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s top-tier Prime market to have at least one woman executive by 2025 as the country lags behind other advanced economies in corporate gender equality.

BY KOICHI HAMADA   NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT – Haruhiko Kuroda’s 10-year tenure at the helm of the Bank of Japan was the most consequential in the central bank’s history. Following his departure last month, it is worth reflecting on his record.   When former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo (who was assassinated last year) appointed Kuroda to lead the BOJ in….Read more

Tokyo, April 24 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government on Monday added businesses related to nine strategically important items, including semiconductors, to the list of domestic industries subject to intensive screening for foreign investment.   The move is aimed at strengthening supply chains and preventing outflows of key technologies as part of an effort to ensure economic security.   The new designations,….Read more

Nikkei reported that the METI has decided to offer an additional 260 billion yen ($1.94 billion) for the construction of a Rapidus semiconductor assembly plant in Hokkaido, saying that the government’s total financial support for the firm will top 300 billion yen ($2.24 billion). With the hefty subsidies, the GOJ plans to assist the firm with manufacturing cutting-edge computer chips in order to….Read more

The Saturday editions of all national papers highlighted the official GOJ endorsement of Osaka’s application to open an integrated resort featuring a casino in late 2029, with Asahi speculating that the Kishida administration approved the bid in light of the recent local elections in which the Japan Innovation Party (Ishin) took the helm of the prefectural and municipal governments and captured….Read more