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Photo taken in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 17, 2024, shows an art installation depicting a beached whale on the shore of the Caspian Sea, created by the Belgium-based group Captain Boomer Collective to raise awareness of climate change, as the COP29 climate summit takes place in the Azerbaijan capital. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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China to allow 30-day visa exemption for Japan visitors from Nov. 30
BEIJING – China said Friday it will restart its unilateral visa-free arrangement for short-term Japanese visitors on Nov. 30, allowing stays of up to 30 days.
The preferential treatment, which had been suspended since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is believed to be aimed at promoting tourism and trade amid a downturn in the world’s second-largest economy. The measure will be effective through the end of next year, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
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Japan gov’t OKs 39 tril. yen economic package to ease inflation pain
TOKYO – The Japanese government on Friday approved an economic package worth 39 trillion yen ($250 billion), featuring subsidies to curb rising energy costs and cash handouts to low-income households, as inflation triggered by a weaker yen continues to weigh on consumer spending.
In the package, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s administration pledged to boost disposable incomes by raising the tax-free salary threshold, after it conceded to demands from an opposition party to secure the passage of a supplementary budget to finance it.
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Baseball: Ohtani unanimously wins 3rd MVP, 1st as DH
LOS ANGELES – Shohei Ohtani, the only player to unanimously win two MVP awards in Major League Baseball, made it three on Thursday, when each of the 30 voters made him their first choice for the National League’s top honor.
Ohtani, the American League’s unanimous MVP in 2021 and 2023 as a two-way player with the Los Angeles Angels, did not pitch this year, his first with the Los Angeles Dodgers, after shoulder surgery in September 2023. He becomes the first primary designated hitter to win the award.
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Sumo: Hoshoryu, Kotozakura win big to continue 2-way title race
FUKUOKA – Ozeki Hoshoryu and Kotozakura will head into the final weekend of the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament tied for the lead at 12-1 after both earned momentous victories on Friday.
Hoshoryu won his blockbuster battle with new ozeki Onosato before Kotozakura overpowered former joint leader Takanosho in the final bout of Day 13 at Fukuoka Kokusai Center.
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Japan to obligate up to 400 major firms to join CO2 emissions trading
TOKYO – The Japanese government said Friday it expects to obligate 300 to 400 major firms to participate in a full-fledged carbon emissions trading system to be introduced in the fiscal year starting April 2026.
The tally has come up as the government plans to set a threshold for companies subject to joining the emissions trading scheme at those releasing 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide or more a year, around the same level as the European Union and South Korea with similar systems, the government said.
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1,000 Nissan employees in Thailand to be let go or relocated
TOKYO – Around 1,000 employees of Nissan Motor Co. in Thailand are expected to be let go or relocated by fall 2025, with the Japanese automaker grappling with a downturn in profits, an industrial source said Friday.
The move is in line with a pledge that Japan’s third-largest car company has made to cut its global workforce by about 7 percent, or 9,000 employees, by fiscal 2026 ending in March 2027, the source said.
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Boxing: Acquitted death row prisoner, ex-pro Hakamata to attend match
TOKYO – Former professional boxer Iwao Hakamata, recently acquitted over a 1966 quadruple murder after becoming the world’s longest-serving death-row prisoner, will attend a bout at Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall, the Japan Pro Boxing Association said Friday.
The 88-year-old will greet fans at the venue next Friday when he steps into the ring alongside unbeaten WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani, who is 29-0 in his career with 22 knockouts.
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Japan’s weekly COVID-19 cases rise for 1st time in 3 months
TOKYO – The weekly average of new coronavirus cases at designated hospitals across Japan rose for the first time in three months in the seven days through last Sunday, health ministry data showed Friday.
The average among some 5,000 medical institutions stood at 1.90 in the week, with newly infected patients totaling 9,406, up 29 percent from the previous week, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
Video: Undersea Christmas tree off Japan’s Wakayama
