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July 02, 2026
 

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ECONOMIC SECURITY

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi greets his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 28, 2026
Australia and Japan tighten regional energy security coordination amid Mideast crisis
Foreign Minister Penny Wong highlighted the need for boosted cooperation following talks in Tokyo with Japan’s ministers for trade, economic security and foreign affairs.
A container ship is seen at the port in Lianyungang, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 27, 2026
Under cover of trade truce with Trump, China expands economic pressure toolkit
Beijing is punishing those who shift supply chains from China, tightening rare ​earth licensing, banning foreign AI and cybersecurity tech and weighing curbs on its solar gear.
European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio shake hands after signing a memorandum of understanding for a strategic partnership on critical minerals at the State Department in Washington on Friday.
BUSINESS
Apr 25, 2026
U.S. and EU deepen cooperation on critical minerals with eye to broader agreement
The two signed a memorandum of understanding for a partnership on producing and securing critical minerals, with a specific ‌action plan ‌for trade announced separately.
Ethane is a natural gas liquid primarily used to produce ethylene, a building block for plastics.
BUSINESS
Apr 20, 2026
Iran war deepens China’s dependence on the U.S. for niche gas
Shipments of U.S. ethane are expected to rise to an all-time high of 800,000 tons in April, around 60% higher than the monthly average.
An oil refinery in Yokohama. The government has stressed that the total volume of oil needed for Japan as a whole can be sourced from reserves and alternate locations that do not require transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 17, 2026
Japanese government urges suppliers not to hold back critical materials from the market
It insists that shortages are in part the result of companies limiting sales due to fear of future scarcity.
Blocks with symbols and atomic numbers of rare earth elements
BUSINESS
Apr 11, 2026
EU and U.S. near critical minerals deal to combat Chinese control
The potential deal would create incentives, such as minimum prices, that could advantage non-Chinese suppliers, according to a draft of an “action plan.”
A DHL container is loaded from a truck onto trains at a terminal in Hamburg, Germany, in December 2022.
BUSINESS / Markets / FOCUS
Apr 5, 2026
Pharmaceutical logistics in demand as war rattles supply chains
As fears of medicine shortages grow amid the war in the Middle East, pharmaceutical logistics help ensure steady shipments to hospitals, pharmacies, and other customers worldwide.
Health deputy minister Hirobumi Niki (center left) receives a petition from patient groups in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health / FOCUS
Apr 2, 2026
Patients in Japan seek stable supply of medical goods as war concerns loom
Shortages of naphtha — used in plastic — has patients worried about access to life-saving equipment as the Iran war continues to disrupt supply chains.
Industry minister Ryosei Akazawa speaks during an online gathering of officials of Group of Seven leading industrialized nations on Monday. Akazawa has been named Japan’s critical-materials czar by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
BUSINESS
Mar 31, 2026
Akazawa appointed critical-materials czar in response to conflict in the Middle East
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the industry minister is tasked with reviewing the supply situation and developing policy responses.
At 10:59 a.m. on Thursday, the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security commenced the release of about 400,000 kiloliters of oil from the Kikuma National Petroleum Stockpiling Base in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 26, 2026
Oil starts flowing from Japan’s national reserves
The release is part of the country’s 80-million-barrel contribution to a coordinated global intervention.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (center) and other ministers prior to a Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2026
Japan approves bill to support overseas projects that can boost economic security
A bill approved Thursday to revise the economic security promotion law is intended to attract private-sector funds to invest in such projects.
The administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi adopted a bill Tuesday to set up the Japanese version of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), aiming to prevent information and technologies crucial to national security being leaked outside Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 17, 2026
Government adopts bill to establish CFIUS-like body in Japan
It is hoped the committee will prevent information and technologies crucial to national security being leaked outside Japan.
A gasoline tanker truck at an Idemitsu Kosan gas station in Tokyo on Monday. Curbs on production of petrochemical products by multiple Japanese firms point to a brewing crisis that could stunt pressure sectors from food to technology.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 17, 2026
Limited supplies of naphtha an underrecognized supply chain risk in Japan
Curbs on production by multiple Japanese petrochemical firms point to a brewing crisis that could stunt pressure sectors from food to technology.
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ryosei Akazawa speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Sunday after a two-day forum on energy security in the Indo-Pacific region.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 16, 2026
Japan and U.S. to work together to prevent critical mineral disruptions
The two countries will work to prevent supply disruptions for critical minerals resulting from possible export restrictions by resource-producing countries.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi responds to questions during a budget committee session of the House of Representatives at Parliament in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 14, 2026
Japan and U.S. to confirm cooperation on key minerals
The Japanese and U.S. governments are working to issue a joint document on the matter, informed sources said.
The U.S., Japan and the EU are preparing to announce plans to lay the groundwork for a critical minerals trade deal that could include a price floor and tariffs to counter market distortions by China.
BUSINESS
Mar 13, 2026
U.S. critical minerals talks advance with EU and Japan on price floor
Global efforts to diversify critical minerals supply chains intensified after Beijing last year imposed sweeping export controls, including on rare earths.
The Lynas Rare Earths processing plant in Kalgoorlie, Australia
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 11, 2026
Lynas surges 15% after revamp of rare earths deal with Japan
The commitment of Japan to pay guaranteed long-term prices for the critical materials is the latest sign of the enduring impact of China’s supply squeeze.
Oil storage containers and pipelines at an oil terminal in Hardisty, Canada
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 11, 2026
China’s energy security push pays off as war roils Asia refiners
China’s position is a stark contrast to Asian countries from Japan to Thailand that have been hit hard by wartime energy disruptions.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a Lower House Budget Committee session on Friday where Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi urged officials to consider creating a "China-free" supply chain for defense equipment.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 27, 2026
Koizumi urges pivot away from China for defense equipment supply chain
The defense minister underlined the importance of boosting self-reliance following Beijing’s ban on exporting dual-use items to Japan.
The government plans to submit a bill to revise the economic security promotion law during the current session of parliament that began on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 19, 2026
Japan to revise economic security law to support projects abroad
The government will submit a bill to revise the law during the current session of parliament, which started Wednesday.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Reform panel calls for easing data center building standards
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi emphasized that the government will promote reforms of regulations and systems that fit the artificial intelligence era.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

New Logistics Consortium baton to accelerate trucking efficiency
New Logistics Consortium baton to accelerate trucking efficiency

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