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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leaders celebrate after the vote the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson gavels down the vote on Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson gavels down the vote on Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leaders celebrate after the vote the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leaders celebrate after the vote the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leaders celebrate after the vote the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

House Republicans applaud as the House or Representatives meet to vote on H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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House voted for One, Big, Beautiful Bill - Washington

House Speaker Mike Johnson with Republican leaders signs the Trump's One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 3, 2025. he House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

Crowd reacts while an electronic display board displays the result of the vote count during a vote in the House Chamber of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, USA, on July 3, 2025. The US House of Representatives passed Donald Trump's tax and spending bill this Thursday, allowing lawmakers to meet the president's self-imposed July 4 deadline after negotiating all night long. The House or Representatives met to vote on H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Ac. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

House Republicans applaud as the House or Representatives meet to vote on H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

House Republicans applaud as the House or Representatives meet to vote on H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

Crowd reacts while an electronic display board displays the current vote count during a vote in the House Chamber of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, USA, on July 3, 2025. The US House of Representatives is on track to pass Donald Trump's tax and spending bill Thursday, allowing lawmakers to meet the president's self-imposed July 4 deadline after negotiating all night long. The House or Representatives met to vote on H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Congress Passes Trump's One Big Beautiful Tax Bill - Washington

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) presides over the vote for H.R. 1, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act in the House of Representatives House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol on July 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. The House passed the sweeping tax and spending bill after winning over fiscal hawks and moderate Republicans. The bill makes permanent President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, increase spending on defense and immigration enforcement and temporarily cut taxes on tips, while at the same time cutting funding for Medicaid, food assistance for the poor, clean energy and raises the nation’s debit limit by $5 trillion. Photo by Yuri Gripas/ABACAPRESS.COM

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Dismantlement of nuclear reactor in Japan

A fresh fuel storage rack inside the No. 1 reactor at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Mihama nuclear power plant is being removed by a crane as part of the reactor's dismantlement work on June 8, 2023, in Mihama in Fukui Prefecture, central Japan. The demolition work, shown to the media, started in 2017 and is planned to be completed in fiscal 2045. (Pool photo)

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Dismantlement of nuclear reactor in Japan

A fresh fuel storage rack inside the No. 1 reactor at Kansai Electric Power Co.'s Mihama nuclear power plant is being removed by a crane as part of the reactor's dismantlement work on June 8, 2023, in Mihama in Fukui Prefecture, central Japan. The demolition work, shown to the media, started in 2017 and is planned to be completed in fiscal 2045. (Pool photo)

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11 TPP states on verge of accord on implementing deal without U.S.

DANANG, Vietnam, Nov. 9 Kyodo - Japan's Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, who is in charge of negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact, speaks to the media in Danang, Vietnam, on Nov. 9, 2017, before a ministerial meeting between the 11 remaining signatories in the pact.

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Japan, U.S. agree to return portion of Futenma base in FY 2017

ITOMAN, Japan, Dec. 4 Kyodo - File photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter in October 2015 shows the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan in Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa. Japan and the United States announced on Dec. 4 an agreement on returning part of the area circled ahead of schedule in fiscal 2017, as part of efforts to ease Okinawa's burden of hosting U.S. military installations.

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Kyocera to launch fuel cells in FY 2016

OSAKA, Japan - Kyocera Corp. President Goro Yamaguchi takes part in an interview with Kyodo News in Osaka on Jan. 9, 2015. He said the electronic device maker plans to launch fuel cells in Japan for housing complexes and factories in fiscal 2016 ending in March 2017, with overseas sales also eyed.

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Sharp develops Free-Form Display enabling variety of shapes

OSAKA, Japan - A woman holds up Sharp Corp.'s Free-Form Display during a press conference in Osaka, Japan, on June 18, 2014. Sharp said the new display can be shaped into a variety of forms and plans to commercialize it for automobile speedometers and other products in fiscal 2017.

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JR West president

OSAKA, Japan - West Japan Railway Co. President Seiji Manabe speaks during an interview with Kyodo News in Osaka, western Japan, on July 5, 2013. He said the company known as JR West is considering running luxury sleeper carriages for trips of a few days covering Kyoto, Hiroshima and elsewhere in the region in fiscal 2017.

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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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Demonstration experiment of remote medical treatment using NTT DOCOMO's 5G-compatible mobile medical vehicles

Based on the results of the demonstration, the team aims to put the vehicle to practical use at an early date. A 5G-compatible mobile medical vehicle (photo) was dispatched to the Hidakagawa Town Health and Welfare Center (Hidakagawa Town, Wakayama Prefecture) to temporarily establish a communication environment. Yukihiko Okumura, director of the 5G Innovation Promotion Office, expressed his expectation, saying, "We will be able to rush to the patients' side (even in depopulated areas). NTT DOCOMO and Wakayama Prefectural University of Medical Science have been conducting a verification experiment since fiscal 2017, and this is the third time they have conducted the experiment. Hidakagawa-cho Health and Welfare Center in Hidakagawa-cho, Wakayama Prefecture on January 8, 2020. Credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images

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Nakanihon Furnace Works, where PSTC's IoT system is installed.

Panasonic Solution Technology (PSTC, Minato-ku, Tokyo, President Toshiyuki Kada, 0570-087-870) will commercialize embedded artificial intelligence (AI) for industrial equipment such as inspection machines by the end of fiscal 2019. The company will provide AI specialized for frequently used applications such as appearance inspection and machine condition analysis. This will simplify the process of users manually collecting data to train the AI. It will be widely proposed as AI that can be easily introduced by small and medium-sized companies. In this photo taken on December 7, 2017, at the Nakanihon Furnace Plant in Ama City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, credit: Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun / Kyodo News Images

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M'bishi Motors expects 145 bil. yen net loss amid fuel economy scandal

Yoshihiro Kuroi, a senior official of Mitsubishi Motors Corp., attends a press conference in Tokyo on June 22, 2016. The automaker expects to incur a group net loss of 145 billion yen (around $1.4 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 2017, falling into the red for the first time in eight years due to a fuel economy data scandal. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Toyota forecasts sharp profit falls amid stronger yen

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda announces the company's earnings results for fiscal 2015 in Tokyo on May 11, 2016. The auto giant said its group operating and net profits in the year through March 2017 are expected to fall sharply, citing the recent appreciation of the yen. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Toyota forecasts sharp profit falls amid stronger yen

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda announces the company's earnings results for fiscal 2015 in Tokyo on May 11, 2016. The auto giant said its group operating and net profits in the year through March 2017 are expected to fall sharply, citing the recent appreciation of the yen. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Toyota forecasts sharp profit falls amid stronger yen

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda announces the company's earnings results for fiscal 2015 in Tokyo on May 11, 2016. The auto giant said its group operating and net profits in the year through March 2017 are expected to fall sharply, citing the recent appreciation of the yen. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Takata posts loss again amid global air bag recall

Yoichiro Nomura, chief financial officer of Takata Corp., attends a press conference in Tokyo on May 11, 2016, on its fiscal 2015 earnings results. The troubled air bag maker posted a group net loss of 13.08 billion yen ($120.5 million), its second straight year of red ink, but expects to return to profitability in the year to March 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Toyota forecasts sharp profit falls amid stronger yen

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda announces the company's earnings results for fiscal 2015 in Tokyo on May 11, 2016. The auto giant said its group operating and net profits in the year through March 2017 are expected to fall sharply, citing the recent appreciation of the yen. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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BOJ maintains easing policy, delays inflation goal timing

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda holds a press conference at the central bank's headquarters in Tokyo on April 28, 2016, after a two-day BOJ policy meeting. The bank again pushed back the time frame for achieving its 2 percent inflation target, this time by six months, and now expects to meet the goal in fiscal 2017, while it refrained from further easing monetary policy despite falling consumer prices. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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BOJ maintains easing policy, delays inflation goal timing

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda holds a press conference in Tokyo on April 28, 2016, after a two-day BOJ policy meeting. The central bank again pushed back the time frame for its 2 percent inflation target, this time by six months, and now expects to meet the goal in fiscal 2017, while it refrained from further easing monetary policy despite falling consumer prices. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japan to speed up housing land development under rebuilding plan

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C), Nobuteru Ishihara (L), minister in charge of economic revitalization, and Finance Minister Taro Aso attend a Cabinet meeting in Tokyo on March 11, 2016. The Cabinet approved a five-year rebuilding plan for reconstruction work following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, setting a target of finishing 90 percent of scheduled housing construction and land development by fiscal 2017 in hard-hit areas. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Finance Minister Aso gives speech in Diet

Finance Minister Taro Aso gives a speech during a House of Representatives plenary session in Tokyo on Jan. 22, 2016. Aso pledged to "certainly" implement a consumption tax hike to 10 percent in April 2017 to secure international trust over the nation's efforts to restore fiscal health. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Japan's ruling bloc adopts sales tax hike exemption

Liberal Democratic Party tax panel chief Yoichi Miyazawa and his Komeito party counterpart Tetsuo Saito attend a press conference in Tokyo on Dec. 16, 2015. The two ruling parties formally adopted tax reform policies for fiscal 2016 including the exemption of all food items except those served at restaurants from the planned consumption tax hike in April 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Ruling bloc adopts sales tax hike exemption, other tax reform plans

Liberal Democratic Party tax panel chief Yoichi Miyazawa and his Komeito party counterpart Tetsuo Saito attend a press conference in Tokyo on Dec. 16, 2015. The two ruling parties formally adopted tax reform policies for fiscal 2016, including the exemption of all food items except those served at restaurants from the planned consumption tax hike in April 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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PM Abe hails tax agreement

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) meets with reporters at his office in Tokyo on Dec. 14, 2015. Abe hailed an agreement of the ruling parties to designate all food products except at restaurants as subject to a lower consumption tax rate than the 10 percent rate to be implemented in fiscal 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Food items except at restaurants to be exempt from sales tax hike

Sadakazu Tanigaki (L) and Yoshihisa Inoue, secretaries general of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito party, respectively, meet the press at a hotel in Tokyo on Dec. 12, 2015. The two parties making up the ruling coalition reached a final agreement that day to designate all food products except at restaurants as subject to a lower consumption tax rate when the government raises the rate to 10 percent in fiscal 2017. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo