Working from home is no longer an exception for a select group of professionals. Flexible schedules, coffee anytime, and online meetings in pajamas don't disrupt the workflow. On the contrary, they positively impact productivity. (News On Japan)

Osaka Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama announced that the city will expand its policy of making childcare fees free for children aged zero to two, with the measure to be extended to firstborn children starting in September this year. (News On Japan)

Plum blossoms are now at their best viewing season at the plum groves of Minabe Town in Wakayama Prefecture, widely known as Japan’s leading plum-producing region. (News On Japan)

Japan’s outstanding government debt totaled 1,342.172 trillion yen as of December 2025, marking a record high, the Finance Ministry announced. (News On Japan)

An Inazawa city councilor in Aichi Prefecture known for his trademark pink mohawk has been arrested on suspicion of extortion and assault after allegedly beating a man and demanding money at a restaurant in November 2025. (News On Japan)

February 10, marked in Japan as Left-Handed Goods Day through a play on the numbers “0,” “2,” and “10,” has drawn renewed attention to the daily inconveniences faced by left-handed people (News On Japan)

A 41-year-old Chinese man arrested on suspicion of crashing a Lamborghini into a police patrol car and fleeing the scene is believed to have been driving at a speed far exceeding the legal limit, investigators said. (News On Japan)

Workers dressed as ninjas are carrying out weed removal on a castle stone wall in Koka, Shiga Prefecture, a city known as the home of ninja. (News On Japan)

A large discount retailer Don Quijote has opened its first inbound-focused specialty store in the Kansai region in Kyoto City, aiming to better serve the growing number of overseas visitors. (News On Japan)

The average asking price for newly built small detached homes in January rose 4.7 percent from the previous month to 61.54 million yen across the Tokyo metropolitan region’s four prefectures, according to a real estate research firm, marking a new high since surveys began in April 2014 and pushing prices above 60 million yen for the first time. (News On Japan)

Tokyo Electric Power announced that it has restarted the reactor at Unit 6 of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture, which had been halted shortly after its initial restart due to equipment problems. (News On Japan)

The death penalty and life imprisonment, often described as shrouded in secrecy when it comes to the details of executions, continue to provoke debate in Japan, where roughly 1,700 inmates are serving life sentences and many live with the knowledge that they were once candidates for execution. (News On Japan)

There is already a clear Asia relocation trend in 2026. Thousands of Brits and Americans are making the decision to live in some of the world’s fastest-growing economies, including China, or picking a cultural hub like Japan. (News On Japan)

Japan's 51st House of Representatives election was held on February 8 with ballots counted the same day, delivering a sweeping victory for the Liberal Democratic Party, which significantly increased its strength from before the official campaign and secured more than two-thirds of the 465 seats in the chamber on its own, surpassing 310 seats and achieving a landslide win. (News On Japan)

KDDI has delayed the release of its financial results as it investigates suspected improper transactions at its subsidiaries, announcing that BIGLOBE and G-Plan may have recorded fictitious sales totaling up to approximately 246 billion yen and that about 33 billion yen may have been diverted outside the companies. (News On Japan)

JR East and Japan Airlines have signed a partnership agreement aimed at regional revitalization and revealed they will consider integrating tickets in the future. (News On Japan)

A man suspected of a hit-and-run drove a high-end sports car into a police patrol car, leaving five people injured. (News On Japan)

Rosina Buckland, curator of the Japanese collections at the British Museum, has offered a Japanese-language tour of the museum’s Samurai exhibition in London, highlighting the diverse history and cultural legacy of Japan’s warrior class beyond its popular image as fighters alone. (News On Japan)

A traditional fire festival in which men dressed in white race down steep stone steps carrying blazing torches was held at the World Heritage-listed Kamikura Shrine in Shingu, Wakayama Prefecture, on February 6th. (News On Japan)

Kirin Holdings announced it will sell its U.S.-based group company that produces the bourbon whiskey Four Roses to a major American wine company for up to about 120 billion yen, as the Japanese brewer reviews its business structure and accelerates expansion into health science and related sectors amid a growing shift among younger consumers away from alcohol. (News On Japan)