The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Kishida to name Suzuki finance chief, retain foreign minister Motegi
TOKYO - Fumio Kishida, the new president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, plans to appoint senior LDP lawmaker Shunichi Suzuki as finance minister and retain Toshimitsu Motegi as foreign minister when he is elected prime minister next week, party sources said Friday.
Kishida also plans to tap Daishiro Yamagiwa, 53, acting chairman of the LDP Policy Research Council, as minister of economy, trade and industry, the sources said.
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Japan's Princess Mako to marry boyfriend on Oct. 26, suffers PTSD
TOKYO - Japan's Princess Mako will marry her boyfriend Kei Komuro on Oct. 26, the Imperial Household Agency said Friday, despite a public controversy lasting over three years following media reports about a financial dispute involving his mother.
The agency also revealed Princess Mako, a niece of Emperor Naruhito, has been diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder caused by what is claimed to be mental abuse.
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Japan's COVID-19 state of emergency lifted as infections decline
TOKYO - Japan's COVID-19 state of emergency was fully lifted on Friday, making it the first time since April that the entire country is not under the measure to curb infections.
The state of emergency, which covered Tokyo and 18 other prefectures, and a quasi-state of emergency ended Thursday following a steady decline in new cases of the coronavirus nationwide and the easing of the strain on the country's medical system.
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North Korea says it test-fired anti-aircraft missile on Sept. 30
BEIJING - North Korea test-fired a newly developed anti-aircraft missile Thursday to confirm the practicality of operation of the launcher and other components of the system, the official Korean Central News Agency said Friday.
The missile test, the fourth by Pyongyang in September, was of "very practical significance in studying and developing various prospective anti-aircraft missile systems," the Academy of Defense Science said, according to the KCNA's report.
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M'bishi Electric chairman quits, closed culture behind test cheating
TOKYO - Mitsubishi Electric Corp. Chairman Masaki Sakuyama resigned Friday after a panel of outside experts said an "inward-looking and closed" corporate culture was to blame for decades of cheating by the company in inspections for train-use equipment.
The panel also said Mitsubishi Electric employees involved in the scandal lacked awareness of the need to ensure quality through proper procedures, urging the major electronics maker to improve its culture.
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Large manufacturer sentiment improves as Japan economy emerges from COVID
TOKYO - Business confidence among major Japanese manufacturers improved in September for a fifth straight quarter as the economy emerges from the COVID-19 downturn but component shortages weighed, the Bank of Japan said Friday.
The key index measuring confidence among companies such as automobile and electronics makers rose to 18 in September from 14 three months earlier, the highest level since December 2018, and higher than the average market forecast of 13 in a recent Kyodo News survey.
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Record-setting yokozuna Hakuho expresses relief at ending sumo career
TOKYO - Retired yokozuna Hakuho on Friday spoke of his relief after drawing his unrivaled career of 45 championships to a close, a decision he said he made in July.
The Mongolian-born 36-year-old, who earned rebukes from sumo authorities for not always bowing to the sport's strict protocols, is moving on to a coaching role at his Miyagino stable as sumo elder Magaki.
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Japan's Nikkei tumbles to 1-month low on U.S. debt limit woes
TOKYO - Tokyo stocks plummeted Friday, with the Nikkei index declining over 2 percent to its lowest level in a month and falling for the fifth straight day, following overnight losses on Wall Street amid concern over the U.S. debt ceiling.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 681.59 points, or 2.31 percent, from Thursday at 28,771.07, its lowest close since Sept. 3. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 43.85 points, or 2.16 percent, lower at 1,986.31.
