Toukyo - Toshiba said Wednesday it would sell its memory chip business to a group led by US investor Bain Capital, in a deal worth around $18 billion and seen as crucial to keeping the Japanese conglomerate afloat.

Toukyo - The North Korea crisis has been like "divine aid" for hawkish Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, experts say, burnishing his nationalist credentials and possibly tempting him into a snap election.

Toukyo - Take cover in a sturdy building or get underground.That's the emergency advice given to the Japanese people in the event of a North Korean missile strike.But there are two big problems: most Japanese homes are made of wood and lack a basement.

Toukyo - Japan's defence minister said Friday he believed North Korea "has Guam in mind" after its most recent missile launch, noting it had sufficient range to hit the US territory.

Toukyo - "Missile launch! Missile launch! A missile appears to have been launched from North Korea. Take cover in a building or underground.

Toukyo - A Japanese funeral parlour is set to offer relatives the chance to pay their final respects to deceased loved ones without leaving the comfort of their cars.

Toukyo - What do a flamboyant wrestler-turned-senator from Japan, a former NBA star with a penchant for tattoos and a French comedian with a string of convictions to his name have in common?

Toukyo - Japanese said Monday it would sell off another chunk of the country's massive postal service in a share sale that could raise up to $12 billion.

Toukyo - Nuclear-armed North Korea's testing of long-range missiles that could possibly reach US soil has kindled debate in Japan and South Korea about developing their own nuclear deterrent, prompting fears of a North East Asian arms race.

Chiba - Japanese giant Nissan on Wednesday unveiled a new electric car with an extended range and semi-autonomous driving functions, as it seeks to battle off competitors in a sector it once pioneered.

Toukyo - Japan Wednesday again upgraded its estimated size of North Korea's latest nuclear test to a yield of around 160 kilotons -- more than ten times the size of the Hiroshima bomb.

Inashiki - Cough-medicine-flavoured KitKat anyone?It may not be to everyone's taste, but this is just one of 300 weird and wonderful flavours flying off the shelves in Japan, which has become the world's biggest market for the four-fingered snack.

Toukyo - Japan's defence minister on Tuesday said North Korea's latest nuclear test was more powerful than initially estimated, with a yield that was around eight times the size of the bomb detonated over Hiroshima.

Toukyo - Japan's prime minister slammed North Korea's nuclear test on Sunday as "absolutely unacceptable" and said its nuclear and missile programmes now pose a more "grave and urgent" threat to his country.

Toukyo - Japan's Princess Mako and her fiancé -- a commoner -- announced their engagement Sunday, a match which will cost the princess her royal status according to a law that highlights the male-dominated nature of Japan's monarchy.

Toukyo - As Japan's schools reopened Friday after summer holidays, a day when suicides among young people spike, celebrities reached out to at-risk children and one Tokyo zoo offered refuge to nervous pupils in a bid to tackle the mental health crisis.

Toukyo - Japan's gaffe-prone deputy prime minister Taro Aso on Wednesday retracted comments in which he cited Adolf Hitler, but insisted he did not mean to praise the Nazi leader.

Toukyo - Prominent nuclear disarmament campaigner Sumiteru Taniguchi, who was delivering mail in Nagasaki when the United States dropped an atomic bomb in 1945, died Wednesday at the age of 88.

Toukyo - Millions of Japanese awoke to ominous text messages Tuesday warning them to take cover as a North Korean missile flew overhead, with one train operator bluntly explaining its halted service as "Reason: Ballistic missile launch.

Toukyo - Japan said Friday it will impose fresh sanctions on North Korea by freezing the assets of Chinese and Namibian firms doing business with the nuclear-armed state.