Latest news with #Japan-EU
New Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- New Straits Times
Japan, EU to form competitveness alliance to strenghthen trade ties
BRUSSELS: Japan and the European Union are set to launch a "Competitiveness Alliance" aimed at boosting corporate resilience and deepening trade and economic security cooperation, Kyodo news agency quoted diplomatic sources on Saturday. The initiative is expected to be announced at a summit in July, which will likely see Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba host European Council President, Antonio Costa and European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen. The new framework aims to reinforce efforts by both parties to uphold a rules-based economic order. It will build on the existing Japan-EU free trade agreement, which eliminates tariffs and other trade barriers between the two economies that together represent 20 per cent of global gross domestic product. Under the alliance, Japan and the EU will work together to diversify supply chains for rare earth minerals, amid growing concern over China's export restrictions on these critical resources used in smartphones and high-tech manufacturing. The framework also includes plans to align subsidy policies for green technologies, including electric vehicles and hydrogen production, to reduce development costs and ensure fair competition for manufacturers on both sides. On the global trade front, the alliance will support reforms at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which many view as weakened in addressing Chinese trade practices and broader systemic issues. Japan and the EU will also seek stronger engagement with emerging economies of the Global South, promoting shared values such as free and fair trade, and adherence to the rule of law. The EU, meanwhile, is exploring closer cooperation with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which includes Japan, the United Kingdom, and 10 other countries. Some EU members have called for deeper collaboration in setting rules on digital trade and climate-related business practices.
The Star
3 days ago
- Automotive
- The Star
Japan, EU to form Competitiveness Alliance to strengthen trade ties
A 2025 Volkswagen ID.4 electric vehicle (EV) during a Great American Road Trip Expo hosted by the Department of Transportation (DOT) in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, May 29, 2025. Japan and the EU plan to align subsidy policies for green technologies, including electric vehicles and hydrogen production. -Bloomberg BRUSSELS: Japan and the European Union are set to launch a "Competitiveness Alliance" aimed at boosting corporate resilience and deepening trade and economic security cooperation, Kyodo news agency quoted diplomatic sources on Saturday (June 7). The initiative is expected to be announced at a summit in July, which will likely see Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba host European Council President, Antonio Costa and European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen. The new framework aims to reinforce efforts by both parties to uphold a rules-based economic order. It will build on the existing Japan-EU free trade agreement, which eliminates tariffs and other trade barriers between the two economies that together represent 20 per cent of global gross domestic product. Under the alliance, Japan and the EU will work together to diversify supply chains for rare earth minerals, amid growing concern over China's export restrictions on these critical resources used in smartphones and high-tech manufacturing. The framework also includes plans to align subsidy policies for green technologies, including electric vehicles and hydrogen production, to reduce development costs and ensure fair competition for manufacturers on both sides. On the global trade front, the alliance will support reforms at the World Trade Organisation, which many view as weakened in addressing Chinese trade practices and broader systemic issues. Japan and the EU will also seek stronger engagement with emerging economies of the Global South, promoting shared values such as free and fair trade, and adherence to the rule of law. The EU, meanwhile, is exploring closer cooperation with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which includes Japan, the United Kingdom, and 10 other countries. Some EU members have called for deeper collaboration in setting rules on digital trade and climate-related business practices. - Bernama-Kyodo
Japan Today
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Today
Japan, EU to begin negotiations for security info-sharing pact
Japan and the European Union plan to begin negotiations to conclude an accord to facilitate exchanges of classified security information, an EU source said Thursday, amid China's military buildup in the Indo-Pacific region and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The move, along with a plan to launch a dialogue framework to promote defense industry cooperation, is expected to be announced at a regular Japan-EU summit being arranged for July in the Asian country, the source said. At the envisioned meeting, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will host European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The two European leaders aim to hold a summit with China in late July to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the EU and Beijing, with their trip to Japan expected to be scheduled around the same time, the source said. Viewing the security of the Indo-Pacific region and Europe as inseparable, Japan and the 27-member bloc have been deepening their collaboration amid heightened Chinese military activity and Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine with support from North Korea. Unveiling their security and defense partnership, after a foreign ministerial meeting in Tokyo in November, Japan and the EU said they would "explore the possibility of a Japan-EU agreement on the security of information." In a policy document, they said they also agreed to "conduct consultations on the development of respective defense initiatives, including exchange of information on defense industry-related matters." © KYODO
Kyodo News
5 days ago
- Business
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: June 5, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 4 hours ago - 23:00 | Japan, World, All The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- Japan convenience store chains start selling gov't stockpiled rice TOKYO - Two major convenience store chains in Japan began selling government-released stockpiled rice at select stores in Tokyo and Osaka on Thursday, joining major supermarkets and e-commerce platforms in a move to increase availability of the staple food for consumers struggling with soaring rice prices. The outlets of Family Mart Co. and Lawson Inc. will sell the rice from the 2021 harvest in small portions to make it affordable for people, including those living alone. ---------- Japan, EU to begin negotiations for security info-sharing pact BRUSSELS/PARIS - Japan and the European Union plan to begin negotiations to conclude an accord to facilitate exchanges of classified security information, an EU source said Thursday, amid China's military buildup in the Indo-Pacific region and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The move, along with a plan to launch a dialogue framework to promote defense industry cooperation, is expected to be announced at a regular Japan-EU summit being arranged for July in the Asian country, the source said. ---------- Imperial family marks WWII evacuation ship tragedy in Okinawa NAHA, Japan - Japan's Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko paid their respects Thursday in Okinawa to victims of a Japanese evacuation ship that was torpedoed by a U.S. submarine during World War II. On the final day of their two-day trip to the prefecture on the 80th year of the end of the war, the imperial family offered flowers and bowed deeply at a memorial in Naha for the Tsushima Maru incident, in which around 1,500 people, including hundreds of schoolchildren, were killed. ---------- Chinese suspect had money trouble with 2 Japanese slain in Dalian DALIAN, China - A Chinese man detained in late May on suspicion of murdering two Japanese nationals in Dalian, northeastern China, was involved in a financial dispute with the victims, who were his business partners, a source familiar with Sino-Japanese relations said Thursday. Hong Kong's Sing Tao daily reported the suspect Yuan Chenggong believed he had been deceived by the two Japanese men over the purchase of a hot spring hotel near Mt. Fuji, citing information posted on China's WeChat platform by a mainland Chinese journalist. ---------- Japan crime group leader in Philippines arrested over theft MANILA - The leader of a Japanese crime syndicate who is based in the Philippines and wanted in Japan for theft has been arrested, immigration authorities said Thursday. The "JP Dragon" gangster syndicate, led by Ryuji Yoshioka, 55, and operating from bases in Asia, is believed to have been involved in a string of fraud cases and thefts in Japan. ---------- Fuji Media to take legal action against 2 ex-execs over scandal TOKYO - Fuji Media Holdings Inc. said Thursday it will pursue legal action against two former top officials of its television network subsidiary over a sexual misconduct scandal involving popular TV host Masahiro Nakai and a former female employee. The decision to pursue litigation against former Fuji Television Network Inc. President Koichi Minato and former Managing Director Toru Ota follows a third-party panel report that found the female announcer was subjected to sexual violence by Nakai in June 2023 "as an extension of her job." ---------- Gov't to revoke Japan Post license for lax driver alcohol tests TOKYO - The government on Thursday notified Japan Post Co. of its plan to revoke the company's license to operate some 2,500 of its freight delivery vans and trucks after many post offices failed to properly check if drivers had consumed alcohol. License revocation is the most serious administrative penalty available to authorities under the motor truck transportation business law. It is rare for a major operator to face such a severe punishment and it means Japan Post will not be able to reacquire the license for five years. ---------- World Expo water shows halted after detection of legionella bacteria OSAKA - Water shows at the World Exposition in Osaka have been suspended through Friday after high levels of legionella bacteria were detected in seawater at the venue. Expo organizers said at a press conference on Thursday that the level of legionella detected in water from the Water Plaza in a test on Wednesday was 20 times higher than the allowable limit under their guideline, prompting them to cancel shows from Wednesday. Video: Yosakoi Soran Festival in Sapporo
Euronews
31-03-2025
- Business
- Euronews
Help us develop non-English/Chinese AI models, Japan asks EU
ADVERTISEMENT Japan is looking to cooperate with the EU on AI in an attempt to develop models that are not based on English and Chinese since these languages dominate generative models, a senior government official has told Euronews. AI development was flagged as an area for Japan-EU cooperation by Motoki Kurita, the deputy director of Japan's Ministry of the Economy Trade and Industry's (METI) IT industries division. 'We think that the models for generative AI are skewed towards English and Chinese language models. So we believe we can work together on non-English and non-Chinese AI and we can share insights with the EU on data and spread that, expanding it to other regions that are non-English and non-Chinese speaking countries,' he told Euronews during a briefing in Tokyo. 'Many AI models currently represented by ChatGPT for example are not based on open algorithms, which means that we may be dependent on a model for which the prompt for which we receive an answer is unknown, so language barriers play a part,' Kurita added. Generative AI models are language neutral in the way they interact with data, but most are developed by English and Chinese language developers, which may instil language-essential bias. Unlike the EU, with its AI Act, Japan currently has no legal framework dedicated to AI but METI and MIC are working on an AI Guideline for Business. 'We are cooperating with the US, looking at each other's guidelines for overlaps, and we'll publicise the results,' Kurita said, adding that AI regulations need to be interoperable because they need to work across borders. He said that it would also be an option 'to spread that initiative to other countries including the EU since we believe there is a lot we can learn from the EU.'
