Kyodo News Digest: June 24, 2025

Kyodo News

4 hours ago

KYODO NEWS - 21 minutes ago - 09:25 | All, Japan, World
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan PM aims to retain upper house majority after July poll
TOKYO - Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Monday that his goal for next month's national election is for the ruling coalition to retain its majority in the House of Councillors.
The Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, the Komeito party, currently control the 248-member upper house. With 125 seats contested this time -- half of the 248 seats in the chamber and one to fill a vacancy, the ruling camp must win 50 seats to clear the majority threshold.
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Trump says Israel, Iran have agreed to total cease-fire
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that Israel and Iran have agreed to a "total" cease-fire, which will commence in about six hours.
"CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE! It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a Complete and Total CEASEFIRE...for 12 hours, at which point the War will be considered, ENDED!," Trump said on social media.
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U.S. starts imposing more tariffs on home appliance imports
WASHINGTON - The United States on Monday started imposing new tariffs on refrigerators, washing machines and other common home appliance imports on the grounds that they are made with steel and aluminum parts.
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has expanded the scope of its 50 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, which were doubled in early June, to "steel derivative products," also including tumble dryers, dishwashers, food waste disposal units, and cooking stoves, ranges and ovens.
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Japan rice price falls below 4,000 yen for 1st time since March
TOKYO - The average price of rice in Japan fell below 4,000 yen ($27) per 5 kilograms for the first time in around three and a half months to 3,920 yen, the government said Monday, with increased distribution of stockpiles likely helping to drive down prices.
During the seven days through June 15, the average price of rice sold at supermarkets across the nation fell by 256 yen per 5 kg from the previous week, dropping to the 3,000 yen range for the first time since the week ended March 2, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
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Japan appears to show some support for U.S. strikes on Iran
TOKYO - The Japanese government on Monday appeared to show some support for U.S. strikes on Iran's key nuclear sites over the weekend, saying that they signaled Washington's resolve to block Tehran from racing toward possession of nuclear weapons.
Noting that the "the most important thing" is to de-escalate the situation over Iran's nuclear activities, Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya said in a statement, "Japan understands that the U.S. action demonstrates its determination to de-escalate the situation while preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons."
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Court nixes bid by LDP lawmaker Noda's husband to clear yakuza link
TOKYO - A Tokyo court rejected on Monday a damages claim by the husband of Seiko Noda, a ruling party lawmaker who aspired to be Japan's first female prime minister, over the leak of information regarding his links to the yakuza.
Fuminobu Noda, 57, was seeking 11 million yen ($74,600) in state compensation at the Tokyo District Court, claiming that a senior National Police Agency official leaked false information to a weekly magazine that he belonged to an organized crime group.
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Travel firm Agoda urged to improve business after booking troubles
TOKYO - The Japan Tourism Agency has urged the Japanese arm of online travel agency Agoda Company Pte. to improve its business practices due to booking problems, a source familiar with the matter said Monday.
In March, the agency asked Agoda International Japan to address problems including repeated cases of travelers arriving at hotels to find no record of their paid bookings. In some instances, the reservation details provided to hotels were incorrect.
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2026 Tokyo Marathon date set with increase of 1,000 participants
TOKYO - The 2026 Tokyo Marathon will be held on March 1 with the participant cap set at 39,000, up 1,000 from the 2025 edition, its organizing body said Monday.
Of the total entries, 38,500 will be for the full marathon. A further 500 will be accepted for the 10.7-kilometer race, unchanged from 2025, according to the Tokyo Marathon Foundation.
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