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Japanese tableware draws rich shoppers in Colombo

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Shoppers look around at a flagship store of Noritake Co., a Japanese maker known for its fine porcelain tableware, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in this file photo taken on Dec. 24, 2014. The shop's luxury chinaware is popular especially among rich visitors from India and Pakistan.

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Low-rent share house for aspiring women comic artists

NIIGATA, Japan - A two-story share house in Niigata, central Japan, opens on Dec. 24, 2014, after being refurbished by the city government for lease to aspiring female comic artists at a low rent. The city hopes the approach will help encourage local talents, who tend to leave for better opportunities in Tokyo, to stay in Niigata.

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Low-rent share house for aspiring female comic artists

NIIGATA, Japan - The kitchen in a two-story share house in Niigata, central Japan, is shown on Dec. 24, 2014, after it was refurbished by the city government for lease to aspiring female comic artists at a low rent. The city hopes the approach will help encourage local talents, who tend to leave for better opportunities in Tokyo, to stay in Niigata.

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Japan to promote CLT-based wooden buildings

TOKYO, Japan - Construction of an experimental wooden building based on cross-laminated timber (CLT) is under way in Yukawa, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Dec. 24, 2014, to test the use of CLT. The Forestry Agency expects the application of CLT to four- or five-story wooden condominiums and other buildings as strong as ferroconcrete structures to increase the use of homegrown timber.

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Japan to promote wooden buildings based on CLT

TOKYO, Japan - An experimental wooden building based on cross-laminated timber (CLT) in Yukawa, Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan, is seen in this file photo taken on Dec. 24, 2014. The Forestry Agency is testing the application of CLT to four- to five-story wooden condominiums and other buildings as strong as ferroconcrete structures to increase the use of homegrown timber.

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Japanese figure skater Machida announces his retirement

NAGANO, Japan - Sochi Olympian and world silver medalist Tatsuki Machida performs in the men's free program at the Japan national championship at Nagano Big Hat in the central Japanese city of Nagano on Dec. 27, 2014. Machida, 24, who finished fourth in the men's singles, announced his retirement the next day, saying he will pursue an academic career.

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Japanese figure skater Machida announces his retirement

NAGANO, Japan - Sochi Olympian and world silver medalist Tatsuki Machida touches the ice as he leaves the rink after announcing his retirement from competitive figure skating following the Japan national championships at Nagano Big Hat in the central Japanese city of Nagano on Dec. 28, 2014. Machida, 24, who finished fourth in the men's single at the competition, said he will pursue an academic career.

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Japanese figure skater Machida announces his retirement

NAGANO, Japan - Sochi Olympian and world silver medalist Tatsuki Machida announces his retirement from competitive figure skating following the Japan national championships at Nagano Big Hat in the central Japanese city of Nagano on Dec. 28, 2014. Machida, 24, who finished fourth in the men's singles at the competition, said he will pursue an academic career.

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Syrian children pray for peace on Christmas eve

DAMASCUS, Syria - Children sing a Christmas carol at a church in the Syrian capital of Damascus on Dec. 24, 2014, to pray for peace amid the Arab country's protracted civil war.

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Japan committed to path of peace, Kishida tells Sweden

TOKYO, Japan - Visiting Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom (R) and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida shake hands at the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, prior to their talks.

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Secom eyes unmanned security-monitoring airship in 2016

TOKYO, Japan - Secom Co. unveils in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, a scale model of an unmanned surveillance airship on patrol over a sports venue with hi-tech cameras and other sophisticated gear. The security service company aims to put the airship to practical use in 2016.

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Fixed main hall of World Heritage shrine in Kyoto

KYOTO, Japan - The renovated main hall of Ujigami Shrine in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, western Japan, is shown on Dec. 24, 2014. The shrine, said to be the oldest existing Shinto shrine in Japan, is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Summer Christmas in Sydney

SYDNEY, Australia - Surfers wearing Santa Claus hats pose for photos at Sydney's Bondi Beach in Australia on Dec. 24, 2014, as people in the Southern Hemisphere celebrate Christmas in summer.

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Abe launches new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, as he launches his new Cabinet. He said the biggest challenge is to successfully promote his "Abenomics" policies.

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Summer Christmas in Sydney

SYDNEY, Australia - Women wearing Santa Claus hats pose for photos at Sydney's Bondi Beach in Australia on Dec. 24, 2014, as people in the Southern Hemisphere celebrate Christmas in summer.

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Tokyo Station lit up to mark 100th anniversary

TOKYO, Japan - Tokyo Station is lit up on Dec. 24, 2014, to mark the 100th anniversary of its opening. The lighting up will run through Dec. 28 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

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Pro-democracy demonstration in H.K. on Christmas Eve

HONG KONG, China - A man holds a yellow umbrella, a symbol of the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong that ended on Dec. 15, 2014, and a placard which reads, "I want true universal suffrage," in the Mongkok shopping district of the territory on the evening of Dec. 24.

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Abe launches new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C in front row) and his new Cabinet ministers pose for commemorative photos at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, following their first Cabinet meeting.

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Abe launches new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, as he launches his new Cabinet. He said the biggest challenge is to successfully promote his "Abenomics" policies.

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Abe launches new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C in front row) and his new Cabinet ministers pose for commemorative photos at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, following their first Cabinet meeting.

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Nuclear panel head favors continued reactor operations

TOKYO, Japan - President Itaru Yasui (C) of the National Institute of Technology and Evaluation speaks in favor of maintaining nuclear power generation in a mid-term review of nuclear policy at a meeting of a panel he heads under the Advisory Committee for Natural Resources at the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Abe launches new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C in front row) and his new Cabinet ministers pose for commemorative photos following the attestation ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Tsunami-destroyed railway station to be restored

SENDAI, Japan - East Japan Railway Co.'s Rikuchu-Yamada Station on the Yamada Line in Yamada, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, is seen in tatters in this file photo taken on March 23, 2011, a dozen days after it was hit by the devastating earthquake and tsunami. The company and the local community agreed on Dec. 24, 2014, to restore the station, burned down by a tsunami-caused fire, as part of a project to revive the line wrecked by the disaster.

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Tokyo HS team scores in friendly baseball game in Myanmar

TOKYO, Japan - A member of Tokyo's selected high school baseball team crosses the home plate during a friendly match with Myanmar's national team in Yangon on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Tsunami-hit railway line to be restored

MORIOKA, Japan - East Japan Railway Co.'s Namiitakaigan Station on the suspended Yamada Line is shown with its rails cut off in the distance in Otsuchi, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, in this file photo taken in November 2014. The company and the local community agreed on Dec. 24, 2014, to restore the line wrecked by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

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Tokyo Station lit up to mark 100th anniversary

TOKYO, Japan - Tokyo Station is lit up on Dec. 24, 2014, to mark the 100th anniversary of its opening. The lighting up will run through Dec. 28 from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

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Cyberdyne, Omron partner in robotics field

TOKYO, Japan - Yoshiyuki Sankai (R), president of powered exoskeleton maker Cyberdyne Inc., and Yoshihito Yamada, president of Omron Corp., announce the two firms' alliance in the field of robotics in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Municipal heads discuss resumption of quake-hit railway

MORIOKA, Japan - Municipal government heads and other officials pose in Morioka, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, on Dec. 24, 2014, after discussing plans to restore East Japan Railway Co.'s Yamada Line suspended since the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

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Wearable, transport robots demonstrated in Tokyo

TOKYO, Japan - Cyberdyne Inc., a venture company producing powered exoskeletons, demonstrates a wearable one and a transport robot in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Tokyo HS team plays friendly baseball game in Myanmar

TOKYO, Japan - A team of selected baseball players from high schools in Tokyo plays a friendly match with Myanmar's national team in Yangon on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Young sumo wrestler Ichinojo poses with fried chicken

KAWAGUCHI, Japan - Up-and-coming Mongolian sumo wrestler Ichinojo poses with a pack of fried chicken presented by a fast food chain at his stable in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, north of Tokyo, on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Temple offers reward for clues to stolen Buddha image

FUKUOKA, Japan - A statue of Yakushi Nyorai or medicine Buddha is shown in this file photo taken in December 2009. Supporters of Myoryuzan Yakushido, a Buddhist temple in Nakama, Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, announced a decision on Dec. 24, 2014, to pay a cash reward of 2 million yen for key information leading to the discovery of the statue stolen in 2010.

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Hundreds of Santa Clauses gather for poor kids

SEOUL, South Korea - Hundreds of Santa Clauses gather in Seoul, South Korea, to deliver presents to children in financially troubled households on Dec. 24, 2014. The volunteer Santa Clauses will visit children in around 800 households.

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Yokozuna Hakuho shows ranking list for New Year tourney

TOKYO, Japan - Yokozuna Hakuho holds a ranking list for the New Year Grand Sumo Tournament in January in front of his Miyagino stable in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014. The Mongolian powerhouse is aiming to surpass sumo legend Taiho at the tournament to become the most successful grand champion in sumo history with a record 33rd career title.

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Ex-defense chief Nakatani tapped as defense minister

TOKYO, Japan - Gen Nakatani, former Defense Agency chief, enters the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014. Nakatani was appointed defense minister in the new Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, replacing scandal-hit Akinori Eto. His appointment was the only change in the Cabinet lineup.

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Diver in Santa Claus costume greets visitors at aquarium

MATSUYAMA, Japan - A diver in a Santa Claus costume waves to children at the Osakana-kan aquarium on Dec. 24, 2014, in Matsuno, Ehime Prefecture, western Japan.

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Abe re-elected as Japan PM at post-election Diet session

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C back) stands up after being re-elected as Japan's prime minister during a plenary session of the House of Representatives in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, the first day of a special three-day Diet session convened after his Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in the Dec. 14 lower house general election.

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Abe re-elected as Japan PM at post-election Diet session

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) stands up after being re-elected as Japan's prime minister during a plenary session of the House of Representatives in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, the first day of a special three-day Diet session convened after his Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in the Dec. 14 lower house general election.

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Abe re-elected as Japan PM at post-election Diet session

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) stands up after being re-elected as Japan's prime minister during a plenary session of the House of Representatives in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, the first day of a special three-day Diet session convened after his Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in the Dec. 14 lower house general election.

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Fishing ship sinks in Sea of Japan

HAMADA, Japan - A patrol boat of the Japan Coast Guard searches for missing fishermen after the No. 1 Gempuku Maru, a fishing vessel, with a crew of 20 men, sank in the morning on Dec. 24, 2014, in a Sea of Japan area off the city of Hamada, Shimane Prefecture, in western Japan. Two fishermen died and three others remain missing, the Japan Coast Guard said. The photo was taken from a Kyodo News helicopter.

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Kansai Electric applies for fresh utilities rate hike

TOKYO, Japan - Kansai Electric Power Co. President Makoto Yagi meets with reporters at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014, after the company applied for a fresh electricity rate hike, seeking to increase bills for households by 10.23 percent on average from April amid higher fossil fuel costs after its nuclear reactors were idled.

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Fishing ship sinks in Sea of Japan

HAMADA, Japan - Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter shows an area in the Sea of Japan off the city of Hamada, Shimane Prefecture, in western Japan, where the No. 1 Gempuku Maru, a fishing vessel, with a crew of 20 men, sank in the morning on Dec. 24, 2014, with oil coating the sea area. Two fishermen died and three others remain missing, the Japan Coast Guard said.

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Yokozuna Hakuho retains east slot for New Year tournament

TOKYO, Japan - Mongolian yokozuna Hakuho attends a press conference at his sumo stable in Tokyo's Sumida Ward on Dec. 24, 2014, after the rankings for the upcoming New Year Grand Sumo Tournament were released by the Japan Sumo Association. Hakuho retained the prestigious east yokozuna slot for the sixth meet in a row.

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Kansai Electric Power seeks hikes in home charges

TOKYO, Japan - Kansai Electric Power Co. President Makoto Yagi (R) presents a formal application to Takayuki Ueda, commissioner of the Natural Resources and Energy Agency, for an additional increase in electricity bills for households on Dec. 24, 2014.

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Abe to be re-elected as Japan PM

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe enters his office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014. Abe, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, will be re-elected as prime minister in a special Diet session the same day after a landslide victory in the Dec. 14 lower house election gave him a fresh mandate.

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S. Korean protesters stop car carrying Japanese reporter

SEOUL, South Korea - Members of a South Korean conservative group block a car carrying Tatsuya Kato, former Seoul bureau chief of Japan's Sankei Shimbun newspaper, in front of the Seoul Central District Court in this file photo taken on Nov. 27. 2014. Kato has been indicted on charges of defaming South Korean President Park Geun Hye. Local police sent papers on three of the protesters to prosecutors for damaging the vehicle on Dec. 24.

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'Bunraku' puppet masters to give special show in Osaka

OSAKA, Japan - "Bunraku" (puppet theater) chant master Toyotake Nozomidayu (L) poses with puppet masters and a "shamisen" (three-stringed guitar) player during a press conference held in Osaka on Dec. 24, 2014, to announce a special Bunraku performance to be staged in the western Japan city in February 2015.

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Prosecutors file arrest warrant for ex-Korean Air exec

TOKYO, Japan - Photo shows former Korean Air Vice President Cho Hyun Ah, who allegedly attacked a cabin crew member physically and verbally on an Incheon-bound plane from New York's JFK International Airport on Dec. 5, 2014. South Korean state prosecutors filed an arrest warrant for Cho, 40, on Dec. 24, over charges of violating aviation security and other laws.

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Yokozuna Hakuho retains east slot for New Year tournament

TOKYO, Japan - Mongolian yokozuna Hakuho holds gift items for Christmas at his sumo stable in Tokyo's Sumida Ward on Dec. 24, 2014. Hakuho retained the prestigious east yokozuna slot for the sixth meet in a row as the Japan Sumo Association released the rankings earlier in the day for the upcoming New Year Grand Sumo Tournament.

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Defense Minister Eto to decline post in new Cabinet

TOKYO, Japan - Defense Minister Akinori Eto is surrounded by reporters at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Dec. 24, 2014. Eto has decided to decline an offer to keep his post in a new Cabinet to be launched later in the day, sources at the ruling Liberal Democratic Party said Dec. 23.