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Today is August 6, 2024. December 7, 1941: August 6, 1945 Lest we forget.

Around three-quarters of the global carry trade has been removed, JPMorgan strategists said in a Wednesday note. In their recent report, JPMorgan noted that the risk-reward for global carry is low due to the upcoming US elections and the potential repricing of funders on lower US rates. Also, they pointed out that rates momentum is expected to turn more significantly against G10 carry, which favors a rotation to value. "Our view remains unchanged for both, but carry baskets already suffered a significant drawdown following the tech sell-off," strategists said in the Wednesday note. For G10, EM, and global portfolios, the...

TOKYO — Japan issued a tsunami advisory Thursday after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck off the southern island of Kyushu. The temblor occurred off the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture at 4:42 p.m. local time (3:42 a.m. ET), at a depth of about 18 miles, according to Japan’s meteorological agency. Japanese officials issued a tsunami advisory and warned residents to immediately leave coastal areas of Kochi and Miyazaki prefectures until it had been lifted. Advisories are issued when the waves are not expected to exceed 1 meter (3.3 feet).

The Nikkei just had its worst day since 1987, and the U.S. stock market, which already took a dramatic dive Friday, is tumbling further this week. While it was America's poor jobs report that spurred the global sell-off, there is much we can learn from other countries' experiences—particularly Japan's. There was a time when leading economists predicted Japan would overtake the United States as the world's leading economy. Instead, the Japanese central bank's loose monetary policy produced a real estate bubble, which eventually burst. The government responded with "stimulus" and easy credit, which dramatically increased the nation's debt and extended...

Japan down 12.4%. No Japan trades for the last 10 minutes. South Korea halted trading. Now trading resumed, at down 9.6%.

Asia-Pacific markets continued Friday’s sell-off as investors awaited key trade data from China and Taiwan this week, as well as central bank decisions from Australia and India. At these levels, both the Nikkei and Topix are nearing bear market territory, having fallen almost 20% from their all-time highs on July 11. Monday’s decline follows Friday’s rout when Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Topix fell more than 5% and 6%, respectively. The broader Topix marked its worst day in eight years, while the Nikkei marked its worst day since March 2020. In early Monday trading, the yen also strengthened to its highest...

Nguyen Muchan, who runs a current affairs-related account on the Chinese social media Weibo, is considered a figure representing the patriotism of Chinese youth. Just looking at the cat photo she posted on her social media home screen, she looks no different from any other young Chinese woman her age. However, the 6.4 million subscribers who visit here are enthusiastic about her ‘spicy mouth’ armed with patriotism, not her cute profile picture. Last year, when Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix provided information related to the semiconductor supply chain to the United States at the request of the U.S. government, Nguyen...

Three groups of Russian nuclear-capable bombers and fighter escorts buzzed the airspace in Japan's northern waters on Tuesday one week after similar long-range sorties near the U.S. coast off Alaska.

Greenland police said they apprehended veteran environmental activist and anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson on an international arrest warrant issued by Japan. Watson, a 73-year-old Canadian-American citizen, is a former head of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society whose direct action tactics, including high-seas confrontations with whaling vessels, have drawn support from A-list celebrities and featured in the reality television series “Whale Wars.” He was arrested Sunday when his ship docked in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, a police statement said. He later appeared before a district court to look into a request to detain him pending a decision on his possible extradition to...

Japan's biggest steelmaker, Nippon Steel Corp... has hired former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to help with its effort to acquire U.S. Steel ... "We look forward to working alongside him to further emphasize the ways in which Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel bolsters the country's economic and national security," Nippon Steel said ... Pompeo had not been given a specific job title within the company. ... Although both steelmakers have received all regulatory approvals outside of the United States for their proposed $14.9 billion merger, they face political opposition and regulatory scrutiny from within the United States....

The...wave is thought to form as the lower atmosphere flows over mountains on Venus' surface. ... Just after entering orbit around Venus in 2015, the Akatsuki orbiter observed a bow-shaped feature in the upper atmosphere over several days. Curiously, the bright structure - which stretched for 10,000km - remained stationary at the altitude of Venus' cloud tops. This is difficult to reconcile with what we know about Venus' thick upper atmosphere, in which clouds streak by at 100 metres per second (m/s). The clouds travel much faster than the slowly rotating planet below, where a Venusian day lasts longer than...

Interviewing people on the street.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida reacted with outrage to the attempt on the life of Donald Trump in the United States where the former president was holding a rally. “We must stand firm against any form of violence that challenges democracy,” Kishida wrote in English and Japanese on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “I pray for former President Trump’s speedy recovery.” Trump was injured in the right ear after being shot while speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania on July 13. The suspected perpetrator was killed. One audience member was killed in the gunfire, and two others...

No matter its stated reasons, no matter how misguided its policy, the United States administration, advised by its historically anti-Israel Department of State, is putting severe pressure on Israel to stop fighting Hamas in Gaza, without permitting it first to achieve its war aim of complete destruction of this threat to its existence. They are doing it without regard for the consequences to Israel, its population, and to the Western world. Given the arrogance of the Biden administration’s dictating a suicidal wartime policy to an allied government which must answer to its own people, it is instructive to consider the...

In efforts to bolster foreign trade relations between Texas and East Asian countries, Governor Greg Abbott delivered remarks at the U.S. Embassy in the Republic of Korea on Wednesday. His trip to South Korea marks the second day of his three-nation economic development mission to Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. Abbott met with Cho Tae-Yul, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Korea, to discuss strengthening economic and trade ties between Texas and South Korea. Abbott and Tae-Yul spoke on innovation in emerging industries such as artificial intelligence and semiconductor manufacturing. South Korea is a global leader in semiconductor...

The Chinese grab dredge that desecrated the wrecks of two famous WWII warships off Malaysia has run into trouble with the law once more. The notorious Chuan Hong 68 has been detained by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) again, this time over paperwork violations. Last year, Malaysian authorities detained Chuan Hong 68 off Johor for allegedly crushing and removing the wreckage of the Royal Navy battleship HMS Prince of Wales and battlecruiser HMS Repulse, which were sunk by Japanese forces during the invasion of the Malay .Peninsula in December 1941. Both are protected war graves. In May 2023, local...

On the occasion of his 100th birthday, United States Marine Corps and World War 2 veteran Carl Dekle reflected on his long life and the blessings he’s enjoyed in an interview with Tampa’s Fox 13. The Silver Star recipient recalled the Battle of Guadalcanal and his gratitude that the Lord brought him home and says that he would do it again if he had to — and if he were the right age. In full uniform for the interview, Dekle said: “Most important thing in my life was serving my country. I don’t think I could take away from that…It...

Zen, important school of East Asian Buddhism that constitutes the mainstream monastic form of Mahayana Buddhism in China, Korea, and Vietnam and accounts for approximately 20 percent of the Buddhist temples in Japan. The word derives from the Sanskrit dhyana, meaning “meditation.” Central to Zen teaching is the belief that awakening can be achieved by anyone but requires instruction in the proper forms of spiritual cultivation by a master. In modern times, Zen has been identified especially with the secular arts of medieval Japan (such as the tea ceremony, ink painting, and gardening) and with any spontaneous expression of artistic...

Tokyo — Japanese health supplement maker Kobayashi Pharmaceutical said Friday it was probing 76 more deaths possibly linked to its tablets containing red yeast rice, meant to lower cholesterol. It deepens a scandal that erupted earlier this year when the company said it was looking into five deaths potentially linked to the over-the-counter products after dozens of customers reported kidney problems... Fermented with a mould culture, red yeast rice, or "benikoji," has been used in food, alcoholic drinks and folk medicines for centuries around East Asia. "Even if the direct cause of hospitalisation or death was not kidney-related disease,...

Japan has become another piece of fodder for the West’s culture wars. After a recent visit with his family, talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel praised the country for its clean toilets and lack of litter, only to be lambasted by right-wing pundits such as Ben Shapiro, who accused the comedian of having leftist beliefs that are completely at odds with what makes Japanese society so safe and orderly. Namely, Shapiro argued, Japan is a closed-off nation, unpersuaded by arguments to allow mass migration, and its homogeneity and “unique culture,” along with a strict legal system, help…Japan has become another piece of...