Latest news with #BusinessNewsDepartment
The Mainichi
27-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
News in Easy English: Many new workers in Japan want to stay in one company until retirement
TOKYO -- A new survey says many young people who started new jobs this spring in Japan want to stay working in the same company until retirement. The company NCB Research & Consulting Co. asked 878 new workers in the Kyushu and Chugoku regions about jobs from March to April. About 62% of young people said they got the job they wanted most. Around 35% more said they are mostly happy with the jobs they got. Together, this means almost 97% are happy about their new jobs. Today in Japan it is easier to find a job, so many workers can choose a company they like. The survey asked new workers to say why they chose their jobs. Many workers chose their jobs because they liked the "atmosphere" or "image" of the company. About 37% of young workers said they want to stay in their company until retirement. This number is 8.6 percentage points higher than last year. But some said they might change jobs later. Around 23% answered they might leave if the company was not right for them. 11.6% said they plan to change jobs someday anyway. A smaller number (7.6%) answered they want to start their own business someday. Together, these answers show about 42% think about changing jobs, but this is 11.5 points lower than last year. The survey company said, "This shows young people today in Japan feel happy with their jobs and want stable lives." (Japanese original by Yuko Shimada, Business News Department) Vocabulary - survey: questions asked to many people to learn their ideas or feelings. - company: a business where people work. - retirement: the time when a person stops working, usually around age 60 or 65. - satisfied: happy or feeling good about something. - atmosphere: the general feeling or mood of a place or group. - stable: not changing much, being safe and staying the same for a long time. - job market: situation that shows how easy or hard it is for people to find jobs.
The Mainichi
26-05-2025
- General
- The Mainichi
News in Easy English: More young people in Japan think about end-of-life plans and funerals
TOKYO -- In Japan, many people now plan early for the end of their lives. This includes things like funerals. Even young people in their 20s are choosing to think about this early. A funeral company called Tear Co. asked 1,500 people between the ages of 20 and 70 questions about funerals and end-of-life plans. They asked 250 people in each age group. About 37% of people said they want to have a funeral when they die. Around 63% said they do not want one. Among people in their 70s, almost 57% said yes to having a funeral -- the highest number. People in their 60s were next, at about 41%. Then came people in their 20s, with around 40% saying they wanted a funeral. People in their 40s were the least interested. Around 75% of people in their 40s said they do not want a funeral. The company also asked people about end-of-life planning. This means doing things like writing messages for loved ones or deciding how and where they want to be buried. About 25% of people said they were already making these plans. Almost half (48%) of people in their 70s have started planning. But the second highest group was in their 20s, at almost 27%. These younger people sometimes wrote "a will" (a letter that says clearly what someone wants after they die), "letters or messages to family and friends," and even "taking special photos for their funerals." Why are young people interested in these things? The funeral company said, "Young people today often attend funerals of their family members. This may make them think earlier about their own funerals and planning for the end of life." (Japanese original by Yuko Shimada, Business News Department) Vocabulary - funeral: an event to remember someone after they die. - end-of-life plan: choosing things to do before you die, like writing letters or deciding about a funeral and grave. - survey: asking many people questions to find out their opinions. - age group: people put into groups by their age. - will: a letter or paper written by someone, saying clearly what should happen with their things when they die. - funeral portrait: a nice photo taken to remember someone at their funeral.
The Mainichi
23-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
Japan farm minister aims to make rice available in 2,000-yen range per 5 kg by early June
TOKYO -- Japan's newly appointed agriculture minister is aiming to make rice available in the "2,000-yen range" (around $14 to $21) per 5 kilograms at retail outlets like supermarkets by early June by having the government set prices for stockpiled rice and selling it to a wide range of businesses. At a press conference after a May 23 Cabinet meeting, agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi announced plans to change the sale of government reserve rice from public auctions to negotiated contracts and start the process as early as the beginning of next week. Additionally, Koizumi revealed a projection that production of the staple food rice crop in 2025 will reach 7.19 million metric tons, 400,000 tons more than the 2024 harvest. This is expected to be the largest production volume in the past five years and the largest increase since surveys began in 2004. The minister expressed expectations that the perceived rice shortage will ease, stating, "Please understand that a lot of rice will also be available from the fall onward." (Japanese original by Hajime Nakatsugawa, Business News Department)
The Mainichi
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
News in Easy English: Government to show rice prices for different parts of Japan
TOKYO -- The Japanese government will soon tell people the prices of rice in supermarkets in different parts of Japan. Now the government shares only one rice price for the whole country every week. Rice prices in supermarkets became high. Many people worry about this. In March, the government started selling stored rice to supermarkets. This rice was cheaper. They wanted rice prices to become lower. But after more than a month, rice prices did not become lower. The government wants to know if some parts of Japan got enough of the stored rice. They will soon show rice prices for each area. Then they can see which area did not get enough rice. They want to fix this problem. Now the government checks prices from around 1,000 supermarkets all over Japan. Then they show the average rice price every week. From April 21 to April 27, the average supermarket price was 4,233 yen for 5 kilograms of rice. (That's about $29.) This price is two times higher than one year ago. Japan has a lot of this stored rice. Most of it is kept in the eastern part of Japan. So it is hard to quickly bring it to supermarkets in western Japan or small towns. Some supermarkets in small towns say they do not get enough of the stored rice. The government heard this, so in April, they made new rules. Now it is easier for stores to share stored rice with other stores. The government hopes this will help make rice prices lower everywhere in Japan. (Japanese original by Hajime Nakatsugawa, Business News Department) Vocabulary government: the group of people who lead a country and make rules. supermarket: a big store that sells food. stored rice: rice that the government keeps to use at a later time. price: how much money you must pay to buy something. average: the middle number, after adding numbers together and dividing them by how many numbers there are. area: a place or part of a country.
