The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Residential land prices in regional Japan up for 1st time in 31 years
TOKYO - The average price of residential land in regional parts of Japan as of July 1 rose 0.1 percent from a year earlier, marking the first increase in 31 years, as low interest rates continue to spur housing demand outside urban areas, government data showed Tuesday.
The average price of commercial land in regional areas also climbed 0.5 percent amid a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, rebounding for the first time in four years. Regional commercial land prices, excluding Japan's four major regional cities -- Sapporo, Sendai, Hiroshima and Fukuoka -- rose for the first time in 32 years.
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G-7 top diplomats vow support to Ukraine, plan talks in Tokyo in Nov.
NEW YORK - Japan's new foreign minister, Yoko Kamikawa, said the Group of Seven nations affirmed their support for Ukraine in its war against Russia during a meeting of top diplomats she chaired on Monday in New York, while arranging further talks in Tokyo in November.
Making her diplomatic debut at an annual session of the U.N. General Assembly, Kamikawa, who replaced Yoshimasa Hayashi in a Cabinet reshuffle last week to become the first woman appointed to the role in about two decades, was chairing her first G-7 gathering.
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Financial watchdog searches Bigmotor, Sompo Japan over fraud case
TOKYO - Japan's financial watchdog on Tuesday began searches at offices of major used car dealer network Bigmotor Co. and casualty insurer Sompo Japan Insurance Inc. as part of a high-profile insurance fraud investigation.
The Financial Services Agency aims to scrutinize ties between the companies after Bigmotor was found to have charged excessive repair fees by intentionally damaging cars and making fraudulent insurance claims.
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2 dead, 3 injured after steel beams fall at Tokyo construction site
TOKYO - Two workers died and three others were injured Tuesday while installing steel beams on the seventh floor of a building being constructed near JR Tokyo Station, police and other sources said.
The five male workers, believed to have been working on a 15-ton beam being carried by crane, fell about 20 meters to the structure's third floor after the beam came loose as they were installing it, the police said. The 33- and 43-year-old workers died under the beam.
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OECD expects slower global growth in 2024 amid China slowdown
TOKYO - The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Tuesday cut its global growth outlook by 0.2 percentage point to 2.7 percent in 2024, reflecting a slowdown in China amid real estate woes.
The downward revision comes as the OECD expects global growth to be "subpar" and "moderate" in 2023 and 2024, citing uncertainty over the negative impacts of aggressive interest rate hikes in major economies like the United States, among other factors.
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Ex-lawmaker, YouTuber GaaSyy admits to threatening celebrities
TOKYO - Former Japanese lawmaker and YouTuber GaaSyy admitted to online intimidation against celebrities during his first trial hearing on Tuesday, while his defense team denied he was a "chronic" offender.
In the first public statement since his arrest in June, the 51-year-old defendant, whose real name is Yoshikazu Higashitani, apologized at the Tokyo District Court, saying, "I am sorry that my acts have caused huge psychological pain and economic damage (to the victims)."
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Japan, China, South Korea to hold high-level talks in Seoul on Sept. 26
TOKYO - Japan, China and South Korea are set to hold a meeting of senior officials next week in Seoul, the Japanese and South Korean governments said Tuesday, in a move that could lead to a first trilateral summit between the nations in four years.
Japanese Senior Deputy Foreign Minister Takehiro Funakoshi, Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Nong Rong and South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Chung Byung Won will attend the talks on Sept. 26, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
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SoftBank Group to gain $5.12 billion proceeds from blockbuster Arm IPO
TOKYO - SoftBank Group Corp. said Tuesday that it will receive $5.12 billion in proceeds from the initial public offering of Arm Holdings Plc., a British chip designer under the Japanese conglomerate, by the end of September.
Arm, whose chips power most of the world's smartphones, debuted on the U.S. Nasdaq stock exchange last Thursday in the largest U.S. IPO this year, shooting its market capitalization to over $65 billion.
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Football: Urawa banned from next Emperor's Cup over fan violence
TOKYO - The Japan Football Association on Tuesday banned Urawa Reds from next season's Emperor's Cup and admonished the J-League club for violent fan conduct following a round-of-16 match of the tournament last month.
A number of Urawa supporters rioted after their team's 3-0 loss away to Nagoya Grampus at CS Asset Minato Soccer Stadium on Aug. 2.
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Video: Shibuya parade calls for 100% renewable energy
