Japan's largest banks have buoyed earnings with high-interest cash advances over the last few years, but these loans are starting to take a toll as irrecoverable debt piles up. (Nikkei)

With Japan now planning to open its doors to more foreign workers, academics and other observers are beginning to wonder exactly what kind of turn the country is in for -- one that lifts the economy or one that delivers discord. (Nikkei)

The Bank of Japan decided to leave its ultraeasy monetary policy unchanged at its two-day Policy Board meeting that ended on Friday, further lagging behind its U.S. and European counterparts in policy normalization. (Jiji)

Japan's Cabinet has approved basic economic and fiscal policies that include measures to reconstruct state finances and address labor shortages. (NHK)

Japan's producer price index for May rose 2.7 pct from a year before, up for the 17th straight month, the Bank of Japan said Tuesday. (Jiji)

Think back to when you were a child. Do you remember how your mother would always say that back in her time she never took so much lunch money? And then your grandmother chimed in to say that back in her time, S$1 would last her a month. In fact, if you ask your friends and relatives, they would all have similar stories to share. (newsonjapan.com)

Workers in Japan are continuing to take home bigger paychecks. A government survey says monthly wages rose year-on-year for the 9th-straight month in April. (NHK)

Tokyo, June 1 (Jiji Press)--Land prices in Japan's major cities as of April 1 had risen moderately on solid demand for offices and condominiums, a quarterly survey by the land ministry showed Friday. (Jiji)

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Wednesday that it projects Japan's real economic growth at 1.2 pct for 2018, down 0.3 percentage point from the previous estimate in March. (Jiji)

The balance of foreign assets held by Japan as of the end of 2017 surpassed 1,000 trillion yen for the first time ever, a government report showed Friday. (Jiji)

Chinese money is pouring into Hokkaido at a much greater scale than imagined. In his recent visit to the island prefecture, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang attended a forum of Japanese prefectural and Chinese provincial governors in Sapporo on May 11, but a Chinese diplomatic source said he was just using the meeting as an excuse for touring the island. (Japan Times)

Social security costs in Japan are estimated to reach up to 190 trillion yen in fiscal 2040, when the number of people aged 65 or over is projected to peak, the government said Monday. (Jiji)

The Japanese government has notified the World Trade Organization that it is prepared to take countermeasures against US tariffs on steel and aluminum. (NHK)

Japan's lower house on Friday passed a bill to ratify the 11-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact, paving the way for its enactment before the current Diet session ends in June. (Japan Today)

The Japanese government cannot set a numerical goal for curbing annual growth in its social security spending from fiscal 2019 to 2021, informed sources said Friday. (Jiji)

The Japanese government is considering setting a new target to reduce its fiscal deficit to 3 pct of nominal gross domestic product by fiscal 2021, informed sources said Friday. (Jiji)

Japan's Finance Ministry says central government debt hit another record high at the end of the last fiscal year. (NHK)

Japan's overall average wages in March increased 2.1 pct from a year before to 284,464 yen, up for the eighth consecutive month and posting the biggest growth since June 2003, the labor ministry said in a preliminary report on Wednesday. (Jiji)

Private-sector analysts in Japan predict the country's GDP growth for this year's January to March period will be flat or lower than the previous quarter. (NHK)

The Japanese government is considering setting a goal of turning the primary budget balance to a surplus around fiscal 2025, informed sources said on Wednesday. (Jiji)