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Halloween season at Universal Studio Japan

OSAKA, Japan - Children pack a handful of treats into bags at a Halloween campaign event unveiled to the press in advance at Universal Studio Japan (USJ) in Osaka, western Japan, on Sept. 11, 2014. USJ aims to break the current record annual visitor turnout of 11 million achieved in fiscal 2001 taking advantage of the event, officially launched on Sept. 12, and other attractions.

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Life insurers fail to pay 86.2 bil. yen in insurance benefits

TOKYO, Japan - Nippon Life Insurance Co. President Kunie Okamoto (2nd R) and other senior executives of the life insurer bow in apology at a news conference in Tokyo on Oct. 5 after it was revealed that Nippon Life and other life insurance companies in Japan have failed to pay 86.2 billion yen in insurance benefits and other due payments to their customers in the five years from fiscal 2001.

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Life insurers fail to pay 26.8 bil. yen insurance over 5 years

TOKYO, Japan - Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. President Shinichi Yokoyama (C) and other Nippon Life executives bow in apology over nonpayment of insurance money at a news conference in Tokyo on April 13. Sumitomo is among 12 leading life insurance companies in Japan that admitted they had skipped 26.8 billion yen in insurance money payment in 230,000 cases over the five years from fiscal 2001.

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Life insurers fail to pay 26.8 bil. yen insurance over 5 years

TOKYO, Japan - Dai-ichi Mutual Life Insurance Co. President Katsutoshi Saito (C) and other Dai-ichi executives bow in apology over nonpayment of insurance money at a news conference in Tokyo on April 13. Dai-ichi is among 12 leading life insurance companies in Japan that admitted they had skipped 26.8 billion yen in insurance money payment in 230,000 cases over the five years from fiscal 2001.

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Life insurers fail to pay 26.8 bil. yen insurance over 5 years

TOKYO, Japan - Nippon Life Insurance Co. President Kunie Okamoto (C) and other Nippon Life executives bow in apology over nonpayment of insurance money at a news conference in Tokyo on April 13. Nippon Life is among 12 leading life insurance companies in Japan that admitted they had skipped 26.8 billion yen in insurance money payment in 230,000 cases over the five years from fiscal 2001.

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SMBC midyear net profit jumps 61.3%

TOKYO, Japan - Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC) President Yoshifumi Nishikawa announces in Tokyo on Nov. 25 that the bank's group net profit in the first half of fiscal 2002 rose 61.3% from a year earlier, improving sharply from a 68.1% drop the previous midyear and a 463.89 billion yen full-year loss posted in fiscal 2001.

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USJ gains 110 bil. yen, 11 mil. visitors in initial year

OSAKA, Japan - Akira Sakata, president of USJ Co., speaks in Osaka on May 31. He said Universal Studios Japan (USJ) brought his company some 110 billion yen in revenues in the initial year of fiscal 2001, having attracted 11 million visitors. The Hollywood movie theme park, which opened in Osaka on March 31, 2001, is now expected to turn profitable well ahead of the planned fourth year, Sakata said.

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Mitsubishi Motors back in black for 1st time in 3 yrs

TOKYO, Japan - Rolf Eckrodt (C), vice president of Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (MMC), and Takashi Sonobe (R), MMC's president and chief executive officer, speak at a news conference in Tokyo on May 13 about the company's financial results for fiscal 2001. Eckrodt will replace Sonobe as the automaker's president and chief executive officer.

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Japan's jobless rate hits record high 5.2% in FY 2001

TOKYO, Japan - Labor minister Chikara Sakaguchi holds a news conference at the Diet on April 26 after the government reported the same day that Japan's average unemployment rate hit a record-high 5.2% in fiscal 2001, up 0.5 percentage point from the previous year.

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Daiwa Bank Holdings to book 955 bil. yen loan-loss charge

OSAKA, Japan - Daiwa Bank Holdings Inc. President Yasuhisa Katsuta speaks at a news conference April 12 at the Osaka branch of the Bank of Japan in Osaka's Kita Ward. He talked about the holding company's group earnings estimate for fiscal 2001.

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Tokyo stocks close FY 2001 sharply lower in thin trading

TOKYO, Japan - The price board outside a Tokyo brokerage house indicates the closing of the Nikkei Stock Average on March 29, the last business day of fiscal 2001.

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Ruling parties ram 2nd extra budget through lower house

TOKYO, Japan - Ruling coalition lawmakers stand to indicate their approval of a 2.5 trillion yen extra budget for fiscal 2001 in the House of Representatives on the night of Jan. 29. Opposition members boycotted the session over a dispute involving the Foreign Ministry's decision to bar two Japanese nongovernmental organizations from a recent aid conference.

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Takenaka defends extra budget's 4.1 tril. yen public works

TOKYO, Japan - Economic and fiscal policy minister Heizo Takenaka answers opposition questions at a House of Representatives Budget Committee session Jan. 25. Takenaka defended the government's second fiscal 2001 extra budget and its effective 4.1 trillion yen public works outlays as necessary to keep Japan's economy from shrinking sharply.

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Gov't expects zero growth in FY 2002: Shiokawa

TOKYO, Japan - Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa speaks at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan in Tokyo on Jan. 18. He said he expects the pace of Japan's economic growth to stand at zero as targeted by the government in fiscal 2002, a slight improvement from the estimated 0.1% contraction for fiscal 2001.

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Koizumi vows to avoid financial crisis

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi gives a lecture in Tokyo on Jan. 17, pledging to do everything to prevent a financial crisis from occurring toward the March 31 end of fiscal 2001.

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Japan to have another belt-tightening budget

TOKYO, Japan - Finance Ministry Masajuro Shiokawa speaks at a news conference Dec. 19 after his ministry drafted an 81.23 trillion yen general-account budget for fiscal 2002, 1.7% less than the initial fiscal 2001 budget and the smallest in four years. The draft budget is to be endorsed at a cabinet meeting Dec. 20.

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Cabinet endorses FY 2002 budget framework

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi speaks to members of the media after his cabinet endorsed a budget framework for fiscal 2002 adopted by a government panel on economic and fiscal policy Dec. 4, 2001. ''The fiscal 2002 budget is aimed at thoroughly reviewing the spending structure and boldly improving the quality under the goal of limiting the new bond issuance to 30 trillion yen,'' Koizumi said.

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(1)Demolition starts on Japan's 1st commercial nuke reactor

MITO, Japan - A worker locks the valves of the pipes between the nuclear reactor and heat exchangers at Japan Atomic Power Co.'s Tokai Power Station in the village of Tokaimura in Ibaraki Prefecture, on Dec. 4, 2001 in preparation for the demolition of Japan's first commercial nuclear reactor built in 1966. The 92.7 billion yen plan for dismantling and decommissioning the reactor is slated for completion in fiscal 2017.

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NTT plunges into red

TOKYO, Japan - Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT) President Junichiro Miyazu (C) speaks at a news conference Nov. 22, 2001 on the telecom carrier's financial statement for the fiscal first half ended Sept. 30. NTT suffered a group net loss of 261.33 billion yen as it posted huge valuation losses on its acquisitions of overseas telecommunications companies.

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Sumitomo Mitsui Banking to fall into red

TOKYO, Nov. 21 Kyodo - Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC) President Yoshifumi Nishikawa (R) speaks at a media briefing Nov. 21, 2001. He said SMBC will likely plunge into the red for the fiscal year to next March 31 as it will sharply raise the amount of loan-loss charges to accelerate its efforts to dispose of bad loans.

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Asahi Bank forecasts full-year net loss of 530 bil. yen

TOKYO, Japan - Asahi Bank President Yukio Yanase tells reporters in Tokyo on Nov. 20 his bad loan-swamped bank has revised its group net income forecast for the whole of fiscal 2001 sharply downward to a loss of 530 billion yen, a dramatic reversal from its May forecast of a 36 billion yen profit.

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Extra budget clears upper house panel

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Junihiro Koizumi (R) shakes hands with House of Councillors Budget Committee Chairman Kenji Manabe, watched by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda (C), after the panel approved a nearly 3 trillion yen supplementary budget for the current fiscal year Nov. 15, 2001.

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3 tril. yen extra budget clears lower house

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi (R) and Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa bow in appreciation after the House of Representatives passed a 2.99 trillion yen supplementary budget for the current fiscal year Nov. 13, 2001.

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Tanaka gives up N.Y. trip, will focus on budget debate

TOKYO, Japan - Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka (L) and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda listens to debates during a House of Representatives plenary session Nov. 9, 2001. Tanaka said she will ''give her all'' to next week's Diet deliberations on a supplementary budget for the current fiscal year, leaving Japan's participation in international conferences on in New York to others.

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Marubeni likely to fall into red in fiscal 1st half

TOKYO, Japan - Toru Tsuji (R), president of the major Japanese trading house Marubeni Corp., meets the press in Tokyo on Nov. 8. He said Marubeni's group earnings in the fiscal first half to Sept. 30 will likely fall into the red, leading it to forgo dividend payments in fiscal 2001 for the third year in a row mainly due to restructuring costs and appraisal losses on its stockholdings.

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NTT DoCoMo posts unconsolidated net loss in 1st half

TOKYO, Japan - Keiji Tachikawa, president of NTT DoCoMo Inc., speaks at a news conference Nov. 7 in Tokyo. He said the company incurred an unconsolidated net loss of 27.81 billion yen in the April-September first half of fiscal 2001 in stark contrast to a net profit of 101.45 billion yen a year earlier.

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Fujitsu falls into red for 1st half

TOKYO, Japan - Fujitsu Ltd. Vice President Takashi Takaya meets the press Oct. 24 in Tokyo as the leading Japanese computer maker plunged into the red for the first half of fiscal 2001. The company said it will slash 4,600 more jobs by the March 31 end of fiscal 2001 as well as 16,400 jobs already slated to be cut.

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Nissan to post 3rd straight half-year of record profits

TOKYO, Japan - Carlos Ghosn, Nissan Motor Co. president and chief executive officer, holds a news conference Oct. 18 at the company's headquarters in Tokyo. The second-largest Japanese automaker expects to post a record group operating profit of 187 billion yen for the 2001 fiscal first half, which ended Sept. 30, up 39.1% from a year earlier, marking the third consecutive half-year of record profits.

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Mitsubishi Tokyo to post interim net loss of 70 bil. yen

TOKYO, Japan - Tadahiko Fujino (L), managing director of Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc., one of Japan's largest banking groups, speaks at a news conference Sept. 28. Fujino said his group expects to book a consolidated net loss of 70 billion yen in the first half of fiscal 2001 which ends Sept. 30.

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Rengo calls on Koizumi to draft law, budget for employment

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi (R) receives a document Aug. 27 from Etsuya Washio, head of the eight-million-member Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo), which called on the premier to compile a special law and supplementary budget for fiscal 2001 in the fall to stave off joblessness.

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Bridgestone to close plant in wake of tire scandal

TOKYO, Japan - Shigeo Watanabe, president of Bridgestone Corp., Japan's biggest tire maker, speaks at a press conference in Tokyo on June 27 about the company's plan to shut down its Firestone plant in Decatur, Illinois, to help it recover from the tire recall scandal. He also said that the company will fall into the red on a parent-only basis in fiscal 2001 for the first time since 1961.

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FY 2001 budget passes Diet with upper house approval

TOKYO, Japan - Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa (L) and Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori bow to members of the House of Councillors in the Diet in Tokyo on March 26 after the upper house plenary session approved the 82.65 trillion yen fiscal 2001 state budget. The budget cleared the Diet with its passage through the upper chamber.

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Upper house budget committee approves FY 2001 budget

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori bows to members of the House of Councillors Budget Committee in the Diet in Tokyo on March 26 in appreciation of the panel approving the 82.65 trillion yen fiscal 2001 state budget. The budget is expected to pass through the chamber's plenary session later in the day.

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Mori to step down after passage of FY 2001 budget

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori responds to questions at a House of Councillors Budget Committee session in Tokyo on March 7. In the session, Mori denied a newspaper report that he had conveyed to top executives of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) his intention to resign after the passage of the fiscal 2001 budget through the Diet. A senior member of Mori's party faction, however, said the same day that the prime minister has decided to step down soon, possibly in April.

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China ups defense spending 17% in fiscal 2001

BEIJING, China - Chinese Finance Minister Xiang Huaicheng outlines the fiscal 2001 budget plan to the National People's Congress on March 6. The budget sets aside 141 billion yuan ($17 billion) in the fiscal 2001 budget for military spending, up 17% from the previous year, signaling China will continue to build up its defense capabilities.

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Lower house approves FY 2001 budget

TOKYO, Japan - Member of the House of Representatives cast their votes March 2 on the 82.65 trillion yen state budget for fiscal 2001, including a record-high 48.66 trillion yen outlay to fund policy steps to bolster Japan's stagnant economy. The budget was approved with the backing of the ruling coalition's Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito party and New Conservative Party.

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FY 2001 budget clears lower house panel

TOKYO, Japan - The House of Representatives Budget Committee on March 2 passes the 82.65 trillion yen state budget for fiscal 2001, including a record-high 48.66 trillion yen outlay to fund policy steps to bolster Japan's stagnant economy.

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Opposition bloc to submit motion March 2

TOKYO, Japan - Leaders of four main opposition parties agree March 2 to submit a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's cabinet soon after the fiscal 2001 budget passes the House of Representatives later in the day. Attending the meeting are (from L to R) Takako Doi, chairman of the Social Democratic party, Ichiro Ozawa, leader of the Liberal Party, Yukio Hatoyama, leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, and Kazuo Shii, chairman of the Japanese Communist Party Presidium.

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Opposition leaders to call for Mori's resignation

TOKYO, Japan - The leaders of four main opposition parties sign documents Feb. 21 on their agreement to seek a 510 billion yen reduction in the government-sponsored budget for fiscal 2001. (From L to R) Social Democratic Party leader Takako Doi, Liberal Party leader Ichiro Ozawa, Democratic Party of Japan leader Yukio Hatoyama and Japanese Communist Party leader Kazuo Shii. The leaders also agreed to call for embattled Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's resignation.

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Opposition bloc boycotts budget committee session

TOKYO, Japan - Some of the seats remain vacant as opposition parties boycott a House of Representatives Budget Committee session Feb. 20 to protest the ruling bloc's setting of the schedule for deliberations on the fiscal 2001 budget without their consent.

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Mori refuses to step down

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori is pictured during a House of Representatives Budget Committee session Feb. 19 at which he rejected calls to step down. Mori, facing plunging public support levels and growing calls from his own ruling coalition to resign, said he wanted to ensure the fiscal 2001 budget gets through the Diet.

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Hiroshima inspects crumbling state of peace monument

HIROSHIMA, Japan - Workers on Jan. 22 begin inspecting the deteriorating condition of the Atomic Bomb Dome, which marks the 1945 atomic bombing of the city by the United States. New cracks were found in the dome's structure during the previous inspection, and the Hiroshima municipal government will assess the results of inspections and draw up repair plans during fiscal 2001 and begin repairs the following year.

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Budget to achieve sustainable economic recovery: Miyazawa

TOKYO, Japan - Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa meets the press after the cabinet on Dec. 24 approved an 82,652.4 billion yen fiscal 2001 budget that includes a record-high 48,658.9 billion yen in spending on discretionary policy steps to revive Japan's economy. ''I am confident the economy will be on track to a sustainable recovery'' with the help of the budget, Miyazawa said.

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Cabinet adopts 82.65 tril. yen FY 2001 budget

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori (C) chats with Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa (R) at an extraordinary cabinet meeting Dec. 24. The meeting, which took place at the premier's official residence, approved an 82.65 trillion yen fiscal 2001 draft budget that includes a record-high 48,658.9 billion yen in spending on discretionary policy steps to get Japan's economy back on track amid prevailing uncertainties over its future. On the left is former prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto, who is currently minister in charge of administrative reform.

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Murder victim featured in school guidebook

URAWA, Japan - A female university student, the victim of a fatal stalking case in Saitama Prefecture in October last year, is featured in a photo (bottom left) in her school's new guidebook as a student hard at work in a classroom. The photo of Shiori Ino, a 21-year-old student at Atomi College, appears in the women's college's Guidebook 2001 for the next fiscal year starting in April.

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Gov't eyes recovery with FY 2001 draft budget

TOKYO, Japan - Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa speaks at a news conference on the 48,658.9 billion fiscal 2001 draft budget proposed Dec. 20 by the Finance Ministry.

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Miyazawa talks with Ogi on new budget

TOKYO, Japan - Japan's Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa (R) talks with transport minister Chikage Ogi about a draft budget for fiscal 2001 in Tokyo on Dec. 18. The government is to adopt its final budget plan at a cabinet meeting Dec. 24.

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Tax panel chief Ishi hands report on tax proposals to Mori

TOKYO, Japan - Hiromitsu Ishi, chairman of the government's Tax Commission, presents Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori a package of tax reform proposals at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo on Dec. 13. In the package, the panel said that given the signs of improvement in the Japanese economy and the grave situation of state finances, tax reform for fiscal 2001 ''should avoid a further decrease in tax revenues as much as possible.''

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Prime Minister Mori speaks to Keidanren meeting

TOKYO, Japan - Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori speaks at a meeting of the Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) in Tokyo on Dec. 13. Mori pledged to exert his leadership in utilizing a 700 bil. yen stimulus package for his ''Japan Birth'' plan, to be included in the budget for fiscal 2001, which starts in April.

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Gov't, ruling bloc agree to emphasize recovery in budget

TOKYO, Japan - Top officials of the government and the ruling bloc meet at the prime minister's official residence Dec. 12. They confirmed a plan to put emphasis on economic recovery in the fiscal 2001 budget. Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori is seen on the right side.