The arrest of the head of Japan’s largest sex industry scout group just five days after a public warrant was issued has cast fresh light on the shadowy business of so-called “sex industry scouts,” a system believed to have generated more than 44 billion yen and allegedly involved ties to organized crime. (News On Japan)

Even as they continue working, a growing number of people in non-regular employment are unable to escape poverty, widening inequality across Japan and raising questions over whether politics has truly confronted the problem head-on. (News On Japan)

Three major banks, including Mitsubishi UFJ Bank, announced that they will raise fixed mortgage rates applied from next month. The preferential rate for the standard 10-year fixed mortgage will be increased to 2.75% at Mitsubishi UFJ Bank and Mizuho Bank, while Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. will raise the rate to 2.85%. (News On Japan)

A yellow, diamond-shaped sign depicting a cane-carrying elderly woman has drawn attention online as a rare and mysterious road sign, only for it to emerge that even local authorities have no record of who installed it and say it is not an official traffic sign. (News On Japan)

On January 28th and 29th, JR suspended overnight trains departing from and arriving at Sapporo Station to focus on large-scale snow removal work along the tracks after heavy snowfall, affecting around 500,000 passengers and exposing a series of operational challenges. (News On Japan)

A century-old manufacturer of pressure gauges in Taisho Ward, Osaka, is struggling under what it describes as a historic surge in raw material costs, highlighting the growing strain on small and midsize enterprises that underpin Japan’s economy. (News On Japan)

A prolonged stretch of unusually dry weather, described as a “once-in-30-years” event, has led to worsening water shortages across parts of eastern Japan, prompting local governments to urge residents to conserve water as reservoir levels fall to historic lows. (News On Japan)

Street prostitution in areas such as Tokyo’s Kabukicho district has increasingly become a social issue, prompting the Justice Ministry to consider revising the Anti-Prostitution Law to introduce penalties for those who purchase sex, according to officials familiar with the matter. (News On Japan)

Kyoto City has announced plans to tighten regulations on private lodging facilities, citing a steady rise in complaints related to noise and garbage. (News On Japan)

Foreign workers are now indispensable across Japan, from convenience stores and agriculture to nursing care, and with the House of Representatives election approaching, political parties are sharpening their positions on how the country should manage its rapidly growing foreign population. (News On Japan)

Arashiyama, one of Kyoto’s most popular tourist destinations, is seeing parts of its surrounding residential areas increasingly bought up by foreign buyers, with land near the Togetsukyo Bridge changing hands for sums far beyond what local residents can afford. (News On Japan)

Canon announced a change in its top management, with President Fujio Mitarai set to relinquish the presidency for the third time. Mitarai, currently 90, will move into the role of chairman and chief executive officer while handing day-to-day management to Vice President Ogawa, who will assume the post of president and chief operating officer. (News On Japan)

Gold prices have hit a historic milestone, topping 30,000 yen per gram for the first time, with the surge spilling over into silver and other precious metals and creating unexpected strains across a wide range of industries. (News On Japan)

China’s tightening grip on rare earth exports is emerging as a fresh pressure point for Japan, with manufacturers warning that shipments have slowed to a trickle and analysts estimating that a yearlong disruption could erase years of the country’s already thin growth. (News On Japan)

Toyota Motor Corp. said on January 29th that its global vehicle sales in 2025 reached a record high, marking the sixth consecutive year the automaker has ranked first worldwide, supported by strong demand for hybrid vehicles in North America. (News On Japan)

Small tracking tags that allow users to locate lost items such as wallets or keys via smartphones have become widely popular for their convenience, but the technology is now being exploited in disturbing ways, emerging as a new social problem. (News On Japan)

Mitsui Fudosan has announced that it will begin regular operations of electric passenger boats in April, marking what the company says will be the first scheduled service of its kind in Japan and positioning water transport as a new pillar of urban mobility tied to its real estate developments. (News On Japan)

Reports of measles infections have been emerging one after another across the Kanto region, prompting health authorities to urge the public to remain vigilant. (News On Japan)

Japan’s oldest coin is often said to be Wado Kaichin, a name many people remember from school textbooks, but an even older form of coinage was discovered in Asuka Village in 1999, triggering widespread attention and forcing historians to rethink the origins of Japanese currency. (News On Japan)

A professor at the University of Tokyo’s graduate school has been arrested on suspicion of receiving entertainment in connection with a joint research project, with investigators revealing that spending on some days reached as much as 850,000 yen. (News On Japan)