Economy — 231 insights
Japan moves toward exporting surplus destroyers to Philippines
Economy

Japan moves toward exporting surplus destroyers to Philippines

With wary eye on China, the two sides agree to start working-level talks Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, left, with Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro in Manilla on May 5. (Photo by Yuki Fujita) TOKYO/MANILA -- Defense chiefs from Japan and the Philippines agreed Tuesday to formally begin discussions toward exporting surplus Japanese naval vessels to the Southeast Asian country.

Honda to shelve $11bn Canada EV plant as demand sputters
Economy

Honda to shelve $11bn Canada EV plant as demand sputters

Automaker to discontinue joint electric model with GM, shift to US hybrids Electric vehicles are disappearing from Honda Motor's North American model lineup with production of the Prologue ending as early as this year. (Photo by Yuki Nakao) TOKYO -- Honda Motor is set to freeze plans to build an electric vehicle factory in Canada, Nikkei has learned, as sluggish U.S. demand pushes it to put hybrids at the center of its North American strategy.

Trump administration looks to ease memory chip crunch with supply chain bloc
Economy

Trump administration looks to ease memory chip crunch with supply chain bloc

US officials to visit Philippines for Pax Silica project after Trump-Xi meeting Jacob Helberg, U.S. undersecretary of state for economic affairs, speaks at the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles on May 5. (Photo by Yifan Yu) LOS ANGELES -- The U.S. is working to address the global memory chip shortage through a supply chain coalition with allies in Asia, Europe and the Middle East, a State Department official told Nikkei Asia Monday.

ASEAN leaders under pressure to address economic fallout of Iran conflict
Economy

ASEAN leaders under pressure to address economic fallout of Iran conflict

Summit in the Philippines also set to discuss Myanmar and South China Sea A vendor selling vegetables tends to customers at a public market in Manila, the Philippines. Rising prices of basic goods will be in the spotlight at the ASEAN summit in the Philippine city of Cebu this week. © Reuters MANILA/JAKARTA -- The escalating impact of the Iran war on Southeast Asia is expected to dominate this week's ASEAN Summit in the Philippines, as leaders seek to mitigate the effects of the conflict on their economies. The heads of government will also discuss the ongoing crisis in Myanmar and the conclusion of negotiations for a South China Sea code of conduct, according to officials.

Thai cabinet approves plans to borrow $12bn to ease Iran war fallout
Economy

Thai cabinet approves plans to borrow $12bn to ease Iran war fallout

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, center, has said the emergency borrowing is needed to stave off stagflation. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi) BANGKOK -- The Thai government's cabinet approved Tuesday an emergency decree to borrow up to 400 billion baht ($12.2 billion) to alleviate cost-of-living pressures stemming from war in the Middle East.

Japan denies plans for extra budget as yen, bond markets remain volatile
Economy

Japan denies plans for extra budget as yen, bond markets remain volatile

Talks underway behind the doors to help households amid Hormuz energy crisis Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government has so far publicly dismissed talk of a supplementary budget. © Kyodo TOKYO -- The turmoil in the Middle East is complicating Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's plans to pursue "responsibly proactive" fiscal spending as higher oil prices keep the yen and interest rates volatile.

People are a ‘bottleneck’ to AI-led efficiency gains: LY chair
Economy

People are a ‘bottleneck’ to AI-led efficiency gains: LY chair

Kentaro Kawabe says AI automakers with just 1 human employee are even possible LY Corp. Chairman Kentaro Kawabe said being an AI solopreneur requires analytical skills about existing businesses and knowledge of AI. (Photo by Satoko Kawasaki) TOKYO -- If humans get involved in artificial intelligence-driven businesses, efficiency will always go down because their presence is a "bottleneck," said Kentaro Kawabe, outgoing chairman of LY Corp., the operator of the Line chat app and web portal Yahoo Japan.

Japan’s moonshot nuclear fusion tech finds earthbound applications
Economy

Japan’s moonshot nuclear fusion tech finds earthbound applications

Shinichi Moriyama, head of Kyoto Fusioneering's plasma heating division, checks on its gyrotron, which is used in nuclear fusion. (Photo by David Cortez) Startups explore industrial spin-offs to sustain long quest for boundless energy IBARAKI -- An aging building in Ibaraki prefecture, two hours' drive from Tokyo, gives little hint of the future taking shape inside. Within its worn walls, Kyoto Fusioneering, a Japanese startup, is building and testing what is, in essence, a microwave oven -- only vastly larger and more powerful.

Grab to accelerate EV rollout as fuel prices rise
Economy

Grab to accelerate EV rollout as fuel prices rise

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Kabuki makes a comeback in Europe after hit film ‘Kokuho’
Economy

Kabuki makes a comeback in Europe after hit film ‘Kokuho’

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Japan’s AGC freezes construction of green hydrogen material plant
Economy

Japan’s AGC freezes construction of green hydrogen material plant

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Konica Minolta taps AI to find high-yield microbes in weeks, not months
Economy

Konica Minolta taps AI to find high-yield microbes in weeks, not months

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