Latest Japan Headlines

All the headlines from our Japan Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Japan Assesses Damage from Earthquake in Olympics Site Region

Nov 26 2014 // The damage from an overnight earthquake in a mountainous area of central Japan that hosted the 1998 winter Olympics proved more extensive than initially thought. A daylight assessment Sunday found at least 50 homes...

Honda Admits Not Reporting U.S. Claims; Could Face Record Fine

Nov 25 2014 // Honda Motor Co. said it failed to report more than 1,700 claims of injury or death involving its cars to U.S. regulators, a violation that would be one of the biggest in history and could lead to a fine of $35 million. In...

Noguchi Appointed Managing Director – Willis Re Japan KK

Nov 18 2014 // Willis Re, the reinsurance division of Willis Group Holdings, plc, announced the appointment of Tsuyoshi Noguchi as Managing Director for Willis Re Japan KK, effective December 1, 2014. He is based in Willis Re’s...

Honda Widens Recall of Takata Air Bags by Another 170,000 Vehicles

Nov 13 2014 // Honda Motor Co said on Thursday that a driver in Malaysia died in July after being hit by shrapnel from an air bag supplied by Takata Corp – the fifth such fatality and the first outside the United States. The...

Global Insurers to Bid for Insurance, Pension Units of Halkbank in Turkey

Nov 12 2014 // Insurers from Europe, Asia and the United States are among some 20 potential bidders in the sale by Turkey’s state-run Halkbank of its pension and insurance arms, three sources close to the process said on...

Judge: Sailors Can Sue California Company Over Fukushima Exposure

Oct 30 2014 // U.S. Navy personnel who were exposed to radiation from Japan’s wrecked Fukushima plant during earthquake and tsunami relief efforts in 2011 can sue the power station’s operator in California, a court...

Air Bag Recalls Renew Doubts About Carmakers’ Responses to Defects

Oct 21 2014 // A deepening crisis involving deadly air bags is shaking confidence in the ability of automakers including Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. to ensure the safety of millions of U.S. drivers. Toyota is advising U.S....

Toyota Recalls 1.75 Million Vehicles Worldwide for Fuel, Brake Flaws

Oct 15 2014 // Toyota Motor Corp., the automaker under supervision in the U.S. by an independent safety monitor, recalled 1.75 million vehicles worldwide to fix flaws in the braking and fuel systems. The Lexus IS, GS and LS luxury sedans...

AIR Worldwide Discusses Expected Damages From Typhoon Phanfone

Oct 6 2014 // An ominous storm from the outset, Typhoon Phanfone is now on track to impact large areas of Japan with damaging winds and substantial rainfall, from Osumi and the southeastern coast of Kyushu to Shikoku and Honsh,...

China’s Fosun to Invest in European, Japanese Insurers

Sep 30 2014 // Fosun International Ltd., the investment arm of China’s biggest closely held conglomerate, is considering making more bets on insurers outside its home country, Chief Executive Officer Liang Xinjun said. “We...

Reinsurance Alternative Capital Now 20% of Cat Market: Aon Benfield ILS Report

Sep 11 2014 // Alternative capital has captured approximately a 20 percent market share of property catastrophe reinsurance volume. That news came our of Aon Benfield Securities, which issued its annual report on the insurance-linked...

Japanese Specialty Reinsurer Canopius Expands U.S. Footprint

Sep 10 2014 // Canopius Group Limited, the global specialty (re)insurance platform of Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Holdings Inc., said it is expanding its U.S. presence with the launch of Canopius Underwriting Agency Inc. (CUAI). Based in New...

U.S. Economic Losses Due to Napa Quake, August Floods Top $4 Billion: Aon

Sep 8 2014 // As far as natural perils go, August was mostly about earthquakes, along with a few tropical storms and typhoons around the world to add to the trouble, according to Aon Benfield’s Impact Forecasting in its latest...

Typhoon Halong Inundates Japan: AIR Analysis

Aug 12 2014 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide’s report on former Typhoon Halong notes that it was downgraded to a tropical storm before making its first landfall in Japan on Shikoku Island at approximately 6 a.m. Japan...

Weakened Typhoon Halong Lashes Japan; 1 Dead, Dozens Hurt

Aug 11 2014 // A tropical storm was moving out into the Sea of Japan on Sunday after lashing the country with rain and winds, leaving one person dead, more than 50 injured and prompting evacuation alerts for about 1.2 million residents...

Hawaii Spared Hurricane As Iselle Weakens to Tropical Storm

Aug 8 2014 // Hawaii escaped its first hurricane strike in 22 years as Iselle was downgraded to a tropical storm just before making landfall at the Big Island. Iselle, bearing winds of 60 miles (96 kilometers) per hour, was 80 miles...

Typhoon Halong Nears Japan; Saturday Landfall Expected: AIR Analysis

Aug 8 2014 // According the catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, strong winds and heavy rainfall from Typhoon Halong have already arrived on Japan’s Daito Islands (about 320 km [200 miles] east of Okinawa), with reports of...

No Fukushima Radiation Found in Oregon, Says Group

Jul 30 2014 // A group testing West Coast waters for radiation from a damaged Japanese nuclear power plant says no evidence of contamination has been found in Oregon. Massive amounts of contaminated water were released from the Fukushima...

Automakers Race to Be First With Driverless Cars

Jul 17 2014 // Nissan Motor Co. will introduce cars that park themselves by 2016, Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn said, as the Japanese carmaker rushes to be among the first to offer automated driving. The feature, along with...

TS Neoguri Makes Landfall in Kyushu; Continues to Weaken: AIR Analysis

Jul 11 2014 // According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Typhoon Neoguri weakened to a tropical storm before it made landfall on Japan’s southernmost island, Kyushu, at 6 a.m. Thursday, July 10, local time (5 p.m....