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July 05, 2026
 

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TRADE

Storage tanks and trucks loaded with gas cylinders in Mumbai.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 4, 2026
Energy-hungry Asia is already drawing lessons from Iran crisis
The region is realizing that it needs bigger buffers, a greater diversity of fossil-fuel suppliers, and a better mix of power sources overall.
Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on June 18
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 4, 2026
European nations now believe some Hormuz fees are inevitable
Privately, some Gulf Arab officials hold the same view, sources said, though this is not necessarily the formal position of their governments.
China's trade surplus used to be absorbed largely by the central bank and channeled into official reserves. It is now being redeployed by private actors in search of yield.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 3, 2026
Where is China’s trillion-dollar trade surplus going?
This growing role of private actors in deploying China’s trade surplus reflects financial deepening and underscores the expanding role of markets in the economy.
Jaecoo SUVs of Chinese automaker Chery are seen at the Dongfang port branch of Lianyungang Port in Jiangsu province, China, on Wednesday, ready to be loaded onto ships for export.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 2, 2026
Officials skeptical of EU push to reset China trade amid retaliation fears
China retains a stranglehold on minerals and chips critical to key European industries such as defense and automobiles.
Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan also agreed during two day unofficial talks to maintain the cap on young glass eels released into aquaculture ponds at the level set in 2014.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2026
Japan and three neighbors agree to cooperate against eel export curbs
The move follows a proposal last year to strengthen such restrictions at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Tractor trailers at the Ysleta-Zaragoza International Bridge port of entry, on the US-Mexico border in Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 2, 2026
U.S. decides against renewing USMCA, shifting to rolling talks
Opting against renewal opens the door to contentious negotiations over the rules governing supply chains vital for automakers, farmers, retailers and energy companies.
China's Commerce Ministry building in Beijing. The ministry on Monday added 20 Japanese companies and organizations to its export control list.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 29, 2026
China blacklists more Japanese entities as row deepens
The move is the latest by Beijing to tighten restrictions on firms and entities it claims are tied to Tokyo’s “remilitarization.”
U.S. President Donald Trump appears on a screen, during an event organized by the U.S. Mission to Belgium to mark the 250th anniversary of American independence, in Brussels on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 29, 2026
Trump’s U-turn on Iran sanctions would unravel decades of curbs
Iran is one of the most sanctioned nations on Earth but Washington is attempting a stunning reversal to open the Strait of Hormuz, lower energy prices and end its unpopular war.
Canadian International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu speaks in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 28, 2026
Canada sends trade mission to Japan in diversification effort
Canada is looking to increase trade with Japan by leveraging its abundant natural resources, as well as its strengths in artificial intelligence and agricultural products.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to reporters in Bahrain on Thursday as he finished a whirlwind tour of the Persian Gulf.
WORLD
Jun 26, 2026
Hormuz tolls ‘unacceptable,’ top U.S. envoy says after touring Gulf nations
Marco Rubio’s comments came after Iran and Oman said earlier in the week that they were working toward an agreement to jointly administer the Strait of Hormuz.
An oil tanker sails at sea near the Omani coast, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on Thursday.
WORLD
Jun 26, 2026
Ship struck in Strait of Hormuz as oil supertankers turn back again
The unidentified cargo ship was hit on its side and sustained damage to the bridge while it was sailing to the southeast of Oman, U.K. Maritime Trade Operations said.
Li Qiang, China's premier, speaks at the opening plenary of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian, China, on Wednesday, June 24.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 24, 2026
China unfazed by world’s ire on trade as premier touts openness
China’s widening trade surplus with major partners has come under increased scrutiny as policymakers around the world weigh fresh measures to counter a flood of exports.
Hitoshi Nagasawa, president of the Japanese Shipowners' Association, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS
Jun 23, 2026
Japan shipping industry sees safety as key to Hormuz navigation
All ships will likely resume navigation once hostilities have fully ended and details of mine removal operations are confirmed, Nippon Yusen chair Hitoshi Nagasawa added.
The Iranian capital Tehran on Monday, when the United States temporarily suspended sanctions on Iranian oil after Vice President JD Vance said Iran would allow UN nuclear inspectors to return to the country following talks in Switzerland.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 23, 2026
Unraveling U.S. sanctions on Iran unlikely to be quick or easy
At issue is whether an interim U.S. deal with Iran can translate into lasting economic relief.
A new round of tariffs is taking shape after the Supreme Court blocked U.S. President Donald Trump's earlier measures, with countries from the Philippines to Singapore facing very different outcomes.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2026
Trump builds a new U.S. tariff wall in shakeup of winners and losers
A new round of Trump tariffs is taking shape after the Supreme Court blocked his earlier measures, with countries from the Philippines to Singapore facing very different outcomes.
China’s designation prohibits these U.S. companies from access to items that can be used for both commercial and military purposes.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2026
China targets U.S. rare earths firms in response to Pentagon list
China’s designation prohibits these U.S. companies from access to items that can be used for both commercial and military purposes.
Stacks of aluminum ingots at a stockyard in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, China
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 22, 2026
Aluminum’s war shock blunted by dark transits and Chinese supply
Indonesia has also been instrumental in keeping the global market in check as buyers wait for exports to rebound.
A man harvests sugarcane in a field in the Kolhapur district in the western state of Maharashtra, India, on Feb. 17.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2026
India likely won’t export sugar for years as El Nino and ethanol squeeze supply
The two challenges could keep millions of tons of sugar off the world market, tightening supplies for importers across Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Japanese agriculture minister Norikazu Suzuki promotes Japanese rice at a supermarket near Paris on Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2026
Japan’s farm minister promotes Japanese rice in France
Agriculture minister Norikazu Suzuki handed out rice balls made from Japanese rice to shoppers during a Japanese food fair.
A sample of dysprosium oxide.
BUSINESS
Jun 20, 2026
China’s key minerals exports to Japan stay at low levels in May
Exports of some key types of tungsten, as well as rare-earths dysprosium and terbium, stayed at zero in May, according to Chinese customs data.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
Japan plans to sharply raise fees for residence permits from October
Foreign tourists walk on the path leading to the Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in May.
Japan’s princesses face life-altering legal revisions
Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito, said in a 2022 news conference upon coming of age that she hopes to “spend a long time together” with her parents.
Japanese police arrest nine over Sierra Leone-based special fraud
Japanese police have arrested nine individuals for their alleged involvement in a special fraud case using Sierra Leone as a base.
Japanese-language education is at a turning point
The country is gradually transforming Japanese-language education from a volunteer-driven system into a professional, government-supported network to better serve its growing foreign population. 
Iran war exposed, but hasn’t changed, Japan’s reliance on imported oil
Wind turbines generate energy from strong easterly winds on the Shonai Plain in Yamagata Prefecture. Despite the oil crisis caused by conflict near the Strait of Hormuz, and concerns instability in the region could continue to impact supply and the price of imports, the administration of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi does not seem to be drawing on the war as a pretext to hasten progress toward Japan's renewable goals.
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
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.

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

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