The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan PM vows to lead setting up int'l AI rules through new framework
PARIS - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged Thursday to take the lead in formulating global regulations on the appropriate use of generative artificial intelligence technology through a new framework involving like-minded nations.
In a speech at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Ministerial Council Meeting, Kishida expressed his appreciation to other countries for the launch earlier in the day of the Hiroshima AI Process Friends Group.
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Yen falls to lower 155 zone vs. dollar after suspected intervention
TOKYO - The yen slipped to the lower 155 range against the U.S. dollar on Thursday in Tokyo after another suspected yen-buying intervention by Japanese authorities sent the currency to as high as 153 overnight.
At 5 p.m., the dollar fetched 155.48-51 yen compared with 154.55-65 yen in New York and 157.88-90 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
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Renowned pianist Fujiko Hemming dies at 92
TOKYO - Ingrid Fujiko Hemming, known for her rendition of Liszt's "La Campanella" and respectfully referred to as a "late-blooming pianist" who overcame a temporary loss of hearing, died on April 21, her foundation said Thursday. She was 92.
Fujiko Hemming, also written as Fuzjko, had arranged a return appearance at Carnegie Hall in New York this spring, but her plans were interrupted by a fall in November while at home in Tokyo, the foundation said. She was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March.
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Another suspected market intervention likely cost Japan 3 trillion yen
TOKYO - Japan likely spent an additional 3 trillion yen ($19 billion) to shore up the yen in its second suspected currency market intervention this week, data by the Bank of Japan and market sources showed Thursday.
Japanese government officials have remained silent on whether the country stepped into the market again late Wednesday in New York, when the dollar tumbled about four yen in about an hour, hitting a low of 153 yen.
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Fed hints U.S. rates to stay high longer as inflation remains sticky
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday held its benchmark interest rate steady at a 23-year high of 5.25-5.50 percent due to recent stubborn inflation, hinting that borrowing costs will remain at about the same level for a longer period.
The rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee said in a unanimously approved statement following a two-day policy meeting, "In recent months, there has been a lack of further progress" on containing price increases.
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Sperm bank to be set up in Tokyo for donors ready to disclose identity
TOKYO - A sperm bank only for donors who agree to disclose their identity will be set up at a Tokyo clinic, its organizer said Thursday, in a first for Japan.
Hiromi Ito, who counsels on infertility, said she hopes "to create a society where parents can openly tell their children the facts about their births" through the sperm bank at Private Care Clinic Tokyo.
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Japan concludes SDF choppers collided before fatal crash in April
TOKYO - Japan has concluded that two Maritime Self-Defense Force helicopters collided before they crashed in the Pacific last month, leaving one crew member dead and the other seven onboard missing, Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said Thursday.
Kihara told reporters that the flight recorders of the two SH-60K helicopters, each carrying four MSDF members, registered "rapid and huge impacts simultaneously at the same places," and that the collision was the cause of the incident on April 20.
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JAL's net profit grows 2.8-fold to 95 bil. yen in FY 2023
TOKYO - Japan Airlines Co. said Thursday its net profit increased 2.8-fold to 95.53 billion yen ($614 million) in the business year ended March, lifted by the recovery of strong travel demand after the coronavirus pandemic ended.
Sales for the year grew 20.1 percent to 1.65 trillion yen, the airline said.
Video: Famous whirlpools at Naruto Strait
