Asia Japan A record 21,5 million foreign visitors entered Japan in the first half of 2025 and travel demand appears to remain strong, if not constant, outside peak seasons
Asia Japan For the first time since 2016, a typhoon made landfall on Hokkaido coast; Typhoon Nari crossed near Cape Erimo before weakening to a storm according to the Japan Meteorological Agency
Asia Japan Researchers from major universities, including Tokyo's Waseda, have used prompts in their papers to get positive AI-based reviews, raising concerns about integrity, amid a surge in peer-to-peer review exploitation in academic publishing
Asia Japan Japan ranked 118th out of 148 countries in the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Report, the same position as last year - the lowest among G7; political empowerment is the weakest area, while education and health register near gender parity
Asia Japan With rice at record-high prices, Japan authorities warn of scams in fraudulent websites claiming to sell rice at low prices, while new farm minister plans to abandon auctioning stockpiled rice and set prices through negotiation to better control them