[Biography of the Day] from [Britannica]
Hirohito
（日本昭和天皇の誕生日）
Japanese Emperor Hirohito, who was born this day in 1901 in Tokyo, ruled his country from 1926 to 1989, a reign that included both Japan's military defeat in World War II and its postwar economic triumphs.
[On This Day] from [Britannica]
1913: Zipper patented
（１９１３： ジッパー特許取得）
Swedish Canadian Gideon Sundback received a U.S. patent this day in 1913 for the modern “hookless” zipper, which improved on the clasp locker exhibited by Whitcomb Judson at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
[TODAY'S TOP STORIES] from [The Japan Times]
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Japan takes measures to head off contagion
（日本：新型インフルエンザ対策本部を設置）
By JUN HONGO
Staff writer
The government on Tuesday heightened scrutiny of incoming tourists, warned Japanese living in Mexico to leave, and told those planning to go there to think twice after the World Health Organization raised the alert level for a new type of influenza.
The WHO elevated its alert level on the deadly swine-avian-human virus to Phase 4, indicating a significant human-to-human pandemic risk.
In a hastily arranged news conference after the WHO's alert, health minister Yoichi Masuzoe acknowledged the latest swine-avian-human flu is a new virus and said the government will monitor the nation's ports of entry to prevent a domestic outbreak.
While urging the public to remain calm, Masuzoe said preventive measures, including washing hands and gargling, should be taken to avoid infection.
Prime Minister Taro Aso and his Cabinet held the first meeting of a special task force Tuesday afternoon to discuss how to respond to the rapidly spreading epidemic.
"We recommend those capable of departing from Mexico to do so" due to the lack of available medical support in the country and the possibility of restrictions being placed on future departures, Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone told reporters.
Nakasone said no Japanese has been infected by the deadly virus. Media have reported that 152 deaths in Mexico have been confirmed or are suspected to have been caused by the virus.
Cases of swine flu infection have also been reported in the United States, Canada, the U.K. and Spain.
Nakasone said the Foreign Ministry issued the equivalent of its second-highest travel alert, urging all travelers to postpone unnecessary trips to Mexico.
The ministry also advised Japanese living in Mexico to leave if possible, and if not, urged them to "refrain from leaving their home if unnecessary, stock enough food and water, remain at a safe location and conduct thorough measures to prevent infection."
While Japan decided Tuesday to carry out onboard inspections of passengers and crew arriving from the U.S., Mexico and Canada at Narita International Airport, the Foreign Ministry said it will tighten visa rules for Mexican citizens.
The Japanese Embassy in Mexico was to suspend its visa waiver program Tuesday and force Mexicans to apply for a visa in advance, rather than upon arrival in Japan, the ministry said.
Japan will also ask Mexican travelers to Japan to submit a medical certificate from doctors upon arrival and answer a questionnaire to confirm their health status, Nakasone said.
The Foreign Ministry also said extra masks and flu drugs will arrive at the Japanese Embassy in Mexico City to be used for Japanese residents and travelers if necessary.
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Towns, hospitals brace for epidemic
（国内の関係機関、病院：新型インフル発生に万全の備え）
(Kyodo News) Municipalities and hospitals intensified efforts nationwide Tuesday to prevent or minimize the impact of a possible outbreak of the deadly new flu from Mexico.
Local government officials said they are ready to ask for school closures, reduced corporate hours and stay-at-home curfews if a person infected with the new swine-avian-human flu virus shows up.
Yokohama set up a special task force Tuesday to deal with a potential outbreak and is looking to stockpile protective masks for distribution.
"As we expect to draw visitors to events commemorating the 150th anniversary of Yokohama port's opening to the outside world, we must prioritize the safety of people who will gather here," said Shuji Kobayashi, head of the task force.
At Yokohama port, quarantine officers said they are poised to board ships for inspections if crew members or passengers show such symptoms as coughing or fevers, although no ships from infected areas are scheduled to arrive at present.
Major transportation facilities are also gearing up for an outbreak. At Narita International Airport in Chiba Prefecture, many travelers were seen wearing masks.
"I'm worried. I'm taking a 1-year-old with me" to Florida to meet relatives, said Etsuko Matsushita, 59, from Fukuoka Prefecture, before departure.
Another traveler, a 67-year-old woman from Fukushima Prefecture who declined to give her name, said she brought about 10 masks for her and her husband's trip to the Czech Republic, saying, "I think airports are most dangerous in terms of infection."
Narita's quarantine office decided the same day to conduct onboard inspections of not only direct flights from Mexico, but also flights from the United States and Canada. Its officers appeared very busy, with one complaining of a lack of staff.
[BUSINESS NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Honda fears 95% plunge in '09 operating profit
（ホンダ：’０９年度営業利益は９４・７％減の１００億円の見込み）
(Kyodo News) Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it expects group operating profit to dive 94.7 percent from fiscal 2008 to a mere 10 billion for the current business year unless auto sales recover from the damage caused by the global economic crisis.
For fiscal 2008, which ended in March, Honda said group net profit sank 77.2 percent from a year earlier to 137.01 billion, but fared better than its earlier projected net profit of 80 billion.
Operating profit also plunged, dropping 80.1 percent to 189.64 billion on sales of 10.01 trillion, down 16.6 percent for its first year-on-year drop in nine years.
But among Japan's top three automakers, Honda is likely to stand alone in staying in the black, as Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. expect to report huge losses next month for fiscal 2008.
In addition to the stronger yen, which dented overseas profits, Honda was hit hard as vehicle sales across all its overseas markets dropped 10.5 percent from the previous year to 2,961,000 units.
Domestic vehicle sales slid 9.6 percent to 556,000 units.
In total, sales in Japan and abroad shrank 10.4 percent to 3,517,000 units.
Looking ahead, Honda is likely to fall into the red with a group operating loss of 110 billion for the April-September half.
For the full year through next March, the automaker projects group net profit will fall 70.8 percent to 40 billion on sales of 8.37 trillion, down 16.4 percent.
Japan's second-largest automaker also projected car sales would slip 8.7 percent from a year earlier to 3,210,000 units for fiscal 2009. Its sales outlook for motorcycles stood at 8,595,000 units, down 15.0 percent.
Hirohito
（日本昭和天皇の誕生日）
Japanese Emperor Hirohito, who was born this day in 1901 in Tokyo, ruled his country from 1926 to 1989, a reign that included both Japan's military defeat in World War II and its postwar economic triumphs.
[On This Day] from [Britannica]
1913: Zipper patented
（１９１３： ジッパー特許取得）
Swedish Canadian Gideon Sundback received a U.S. patent this day in 1913 for the modern “hookless” zipper, which improved on the clasp locker exhibited by Whitcomb Judson at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
[TODAY'S TOP STORIES] from [The Japan Times]
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Japan takes measures to head off contagion
（日本：新型インフルエンザ対策本部を設置）
By JUN HONGO
Staff writer
The government on Tuesday heightened scrutiny of incoming tourists, warned Japanese living in Mexico to leave, and told those planning to go there to think twice after the World Health Organization raised the alert level for a new type of influenza.
The WHO elevated its alert level on the deadly swine-avian-human virus to Phase 4, indicating a significant human-to-human pandemic risk.
In a hastily arranged news conference after the WHO's alert, health minister Yoichi Masuzoe acknowledged the latest swine-avian-human flu is a new virus and said the government will monitor the nation's ports of entry to prevent a domestic outbreak.
While urging the public to remain calm, Masuzoe said preventive measures, including washing hands and gargling, should be taken to avoid infection.
Prime Minister Taro Aso and his Cabinet held the first meeting of a special task force Tuesday afternoon to discuss how to respond to the rapidly spreading epidemic.
"We recommend those capable of departing from Mexico to do so" due to the lack of available medical support in the country and the possibility of restrictions being placed on future departures, Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone told reporters.
Nakasone said no Japanese has been infected by the deadly virus. Media have reported that 152 deaths in Mexico have been confirmed or are suspected to have been caused by the virus.
Cases of swine flu infection have also been reported in the United States, Canada, the U.K. and Spain.
Nakasone said the Foreign Ministry issued the equivalent of its second-highest travel alert, urging all travelers to postpone unnecessary trips to Mexico.
The ministry also advised Japanese living in Mexico to leave if possible, and if not, urged them to "refrain from leaving their home if unnecessary, stock enough food and water, remain at a safe location and conduct thorough measures to prevent infection."
While Japan decided Tuesday to carry out onboard inspections of passengers and crew arriving from the U.S., Mexico and Canada at Narita International Airport, the Foreign Ministry said it will tighten visa rules for Mexican citizens.
The Japanese Embassy in Mexico was to suspend its visa waiver program Tuesday and force Mexicans to apply for a visa in advance, rather than upon arrival in Japan, the ministry said.
Japan will also ask Mexican travelers to Japan to submit a medical certificate from doctors upon arrival and answer a questionnaire to confirm their health status, Nakasone said.
The Foreign Ministry also said extra masks and flu drugs will arrive at the Japanese Embassy in Mexico City to be used for Japanese residents and travelers if necessary.
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Towns, hospitals brace for epidemic
（国内の関係機関、病院：新型インフル発生に万全の備え）
(Kyodo News) Municipalities and hospitals intensified efforts nationwide Tuesday to prevent or minimize the impact of a possible outbreak of the deadly new flu from Mexico.
Local government officials said they are ready to ask for school closures, reduced corporate hours and stay-at-home curfews if a person infected with the new swine-avian-human flu virus shows up.
Yokohama set up a special task force Tuesday to deal with a potential outbreak and is looking to stockpile protective masks for distribution.
"As we expect to draw visitors to events commemorating the 150th anniversary of Yokohama port's opening to the outside world, we must prioritize the safety of people who will gather here," said Shuji Kobayashi, head of the task force.
At Yokohama port, quarantine officers said they are poised to board ships for inspections if crew members or passengers show such symptoms as coughing or fevers, although no ships from infected areas are scheduled to arrive at present.
Major transportation facilities are also gearing up for an outbreak. At Narita International Airport in Chiba Prefecture, many travelers were seen wearing masks.
"I'm worried. I'm taking a 1-year-old with me" to Florida to meet relatives, said Etsuko Matsushita, 59, from Fukuoka Prefecture, before departure.
Another traveler, a 67-year-old woman from Fukushima Prefecture who declined to give her name, said she brought about 10 masks for her and her husband's trip to the Czech Republic, saying, "I think airports are most dangerous in terms of infection."
Narita's quarantine office decided the same day to conduct onboard inspections of not only direct flights from Mexico, but also flights from the United States and Canada. Its officers appeared very busy, with one complaining of a lack of staff.
[BUSINESS NEWS]
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Honda fears 95% plunge in '09 operating profit
（ホンダ：’０９年度営業利益は９４・７％減の１００億円の見込み）
(Kyodo News) Honda Motor Co. said Tuesday it expects group operating profit to dive 94.7 percent from fiscal 2008 to a mere 10 billion for the current business year unless auto sales recover from the damage caused by the global economic crisis.
For fiscal 2008, which ended in March, Honda said group net profit sank 77.2 percent from a year earlier to 137.01 billion, but fared better than its earlier projected net profit of 80 billion.
Operating profit also plunged, dropping 80.1 percent to 189.64 billion on sales of 10.01 trillion, down 16.6 percent for its first year-on-year drop in nine years.
But among Japan's top three automakers, Honda is likely to stand alone in staying in the black, as Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. expect to report huge losses next month for fiscal 2008.
In addition to the stronger yen, which dented overseas profits, Honda was hit hard as vehicle sales across all its overseas markets dropped 10.5 percent from the previous year to 2,961,000 units.
Domestic vehicle sales slid 9.6 percent to 556,000 units.
In total, sales in Japan and abroad shrank 10.4 percent to 3,517,000 units.
Looking ahead, Honda is likely to fall into the red with a group operating loss of 110 billion for the April-September half.
For the full year through next March, the automaker projects group net profit will fall 70.8 percent to 40 billion on sales of 8.37 trillion, down 16.4 percent.
Japan's second-largest automaker also projected car sales would slip 8.7 percent from a year earlier to 3,210,000 units for fiscal 2009. Its sales outlook for motorcycles stood at 8,595,000 units, down 15.0 percent.
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