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July 12, 2026
 

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William R. Rhodes
The U.S. economy has shifted from strong growth to heightened recession risk and uncertainty due to President Trump’s aggressive trade tariffs and budget cuts, leaving Congress to reclaim control over policy to avoid worsening economic disruption and global instability.
COMMENTARY / World
May 6, 2025
Only the U.S. Congress can end Trump’s economic uncertainty
There is no chance of reining in the disruption and destruction unless the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress reclaims its constitutional authority over trade policy.
Anti-World Bank protestors gather outside where the International Monetary and Financial Committee’s plenary session was being held in Washington in mid-April. 
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 28, 2023
The global order’s triple policy challenge and the tasks ahead
With public and private debt at record levels, political leaders face the monumental task of allocating resources to address critical global challenges.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2023
Just who is to blame for this new banking crisis?
In 2018, U.S. lawmakers loosened banking regulations on the spurious grounds that smaller banks do not pose systemic risks to the stability of the financial system.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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