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Japan’s Financial Services Agency has decided to issue business improvement orders to car dealer Toyota Mobility Tokyo and used-car dealer Goodspeed, it was learned Tuesday. The Toyota Motor subsidiary and Nagoya-based Goodspeed are believed to have committed illegal practices, such as discounting vehicles in exchange for buying specific insurance products. The FSA began fact-finding investigations into vehicle sales companies also operating as insurance agencies after the revelation of a fraudulent claim scandal at the used-car dealer previously known as Bigmotor. The financial industry watchdog visited Toyota Mobility Tokyo and Goodspeed in autumn 2024 for on-site inspections. At Toyota Mobility Tokyo, a practice of padding bills with car body painting costs was found in 2020. An audit by the transport ministry in 2021 detected fraudulent statutory vehicle inspections by the company. Goodspeed announced in 2023 that it had made excessive vehicle insurance claims and engaged in inappropriate accounting practices. Source link

President Donald Trump launched a sweeping overhaul of U.S. energy policy hours after taking office Monday, putting the weight of the federal government behind fossil-fuel production and pulling back from the fight against climate change. Trump initiated the shift in a series of orders and memoranda directing action by the federal government, with implications that reach across the entire energy landscape, from oil fields and wind farms to light bulbs and pickup trucks. The Republican cast the changes as integral to his vision for achieving domestic prosperity and fighting inflation, since energy prices touch every part of the economy. And, with the U.S. on the cusp of an unprecedented surge in electricity demand tied to the growth of artificial intelligence and domestic manufacturing, Trump called the nation’s oil and gas bounty an unparalleled advantage. Source link

The Osaka High Court on Monday increased the amount of compensation owed to the family of an 11-year-old hearing-impaired girl who was killed by heavy machinery in 2018, overturning a lower court ruling that granted reduced compensation for future lost earnings compared to people without disabilities. It is the first ruling to calculate the potential future income of a disabled child in the same way as able-bodied people, according to lawyers for the family of Ayuka Ide. The court ordered the payment of about ¥43 million (around $227,000), equivalent to that of a nondisabled person, stating that there was “no reason to reduce the amount from the average of all workers” on lost earnings that the victim would have been able to earn in the future. The family had sought ¥61 million. Source link

The Bank of Japan will likely raise rates this week if markets remain calm following the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th president of the United States. “The BOJ has sent out a clear message that a rate hike will be on the table, so I think the possibility of raising rates is quite high,” said Masahiro Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management. According to a Bloomberg survey earlier this month, more than 70% of economists polled expect the central bank to raise its short-term policy rate — currently at 0.25% — at the policy meeting scheduled for Thursday and Friday, while about 20% said the bank would make a move in March. Source link

Melbourne – Alexander Zverev played his best tennis when it mattered most to down Tommy Paul 7-6(1) 7-6(0) 2-6 6-1 on Tuesday and reach his third Australian Open semifinal in five years, keeping alive his dream of finally landing a Grand Slam title. The 27-year-old German was unable to find his peak level for much of a match played in the stifling afternoon heat on Rod Laver Arena but dominated his American opponent in tiebreaks to lock up the first two sets. Paul bagged the third set but second seed Zverev upped his intensity to whip through the fourth and set up a meeting with the winner of the later blockbuster clash between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. Source link

Consumers are being urged to exercise caution when using portable gas stoves, as a recent safety report from the National Institute of Technology and Evaluation (NITE) has highlighted the risks associated with mishandling the devices. Portable gas stoves see increased use in winter for hot pot and barbecue dishes and serve as vital tools in the aftermath of natural disasters, when many lifelines such as gas and electricity are unavailable. However, they contain flammable gas, and improper use can lead to serious accidents. Between the fiscal year beginning April 2014 and fiscal 2023, NITE recorded 91 cassette stove-related incidents. In 86 incidents where investigations were fully completed, it was revealed that 38% — or 33 cases — were caused by user error or negligence. Source link

Naha, Okinawa Pref. – A U.S. Marine Corps Osprey transport aircraft has accidentally dropped a cargo pallet weighing 400-450 kilograms into waters near Ie Island in Okinawa Prefecture, prefectural officials said Tuesday. The Defense Ministry’s Okinawa Defense Bureau informed the Okinawa government that the cargo pallet fell into the sea due to an unexpected change in wind direction during training on Thursday, according to the officials. No damage to ships or other entities has been confirmed. The 1.3-square-meter cargo pallet, loaded with meals, was to be lowered to the U.S. military’s auxiliary airfield on the island. At a news conference on Tuesday, Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki said that the prefectural government will demand that the U.S. military investigate the cause and prevent a recurrence. “One wrong move could lead to a serious accident,” he noted. Source link

The Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, on Tuesday released guidelines for its member companies on this year’s shuntō spring wage negotiations, urging them to consider pay scale hikes. In the guidelines, Keidanren stressed that the business group and its member companies have a social responsibility to contribute to the formation of a robust middle class and the realization of structural wage increases by ensuring that the momentum for wage increases, which was seen in the past two years, takes root broadly in society. Keidanren vowed to make every effort for the continuation of wage increases to cope with rising prices. Member companies were urged to raise wages in a manner appropriate to each company through sincere discussions with the labor side. The business group emphasized that it is increasingly important to implement structural wage increases at small and midsize companies, which account for about 70% of employment in the country, and to raise wages and improve working conditions for fixed-term workers, who account for nearly 40% of all workers in the country. It also pointed out that reasonable price hikes are essential for small and midsize businesses to raise wages. Source link

A large fire broke out in a commercial building near Tsutenkaku Tower, a famous tourist landmark in Osaka’s Naniwa Ward, that left one man injured, local media said Tuesday. A resident who lives nearby reported the fire at a shopping street near the tower in Ebisu-higashi, Naniwa Ward, just before 5 p.m. The blaze broke out in a game center on the first floor of a five-story building, and part of a two-story wooden building nearby was destroyed, covering a total of about 500 square meters. Forty-two firetrucks and a helicopter were dispatched to the site. The fire was nearly extinguished about two hours later, NHK reported, citing local police and fire departments. An aerial view shows smoke rising from a fire near Tsutenkaku Tower in Osaka on Tuesday. | Kyodo / via REUTERS One employee of the arcade, a man in his 30s, was taken to the hospital with injuries. The man’s injuries are thought to be minor, and he said there were no customers at the game center when the fire broke out. Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing. Source link

Liverpool – Liverpool boss Arne Slot has challenged Darwin Nunez to prove he is an elite striker as the much-maligned Uruguayan looks to take advantage of Diogo Jota’s latest injury. Slot revealed on Monday that Jota will be sidelined for a few weeks after suffering a muscle injury in Liverpool’s draw at Nottingham Forest on January 14. The Portugal forward’s absence has provided another opportunity for Nunez to finally prove his worth, starting with Tuesday’s Champions League tie against French team Lille at Anfield. Source link