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July 12, 2026
 

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ENERGY

Smoke rises from the Thai bulk carrier 'Mayuree Naree' near the Strait of Hormuz after an attack on Wednesday.
WORLD
Mar 12, 2026
Iran tells world to get ready for oil at $200 a barrel as it fires on merchant ships
The war unleashed with joint U.S. and Israeli air strikes nearly two weeks ago has so far killed around 2,000 people, mostly Iranians and Lebanese.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Feb. 24. The prime minister announced on Wednesday that Japan will tap its oil reserves for the first time since 2022.
BUSINESS
Mar 11, 2026
Takaichi says oil reserves to be tapped as Iran conflict hits crude flows
Japan holds stockpiled oil equivalent to about 254 days of domestic demand. The release of some of that could begin as soon as Monday.
The Callisto tanker sits anchored as traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Mar 11, 2026
U.S. destroys mine-laying vessels as Trump warns Iran over Strait of Hormuz
U.S. President Donald Trump warned that any mines laid in the Strait of Hormuz by Iran must be removed immediately.
Tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. More than 70% of Japan-bound oil shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz between the UAE and Iran.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 11, 2026
Japan ready to join coordinated intervention in oil markets
Concerns have intensified as crude oil tankers bound for Japan ceased navigating the Strait of Hormuz 10 days ago because the war made the passage too dangerous.
Oil storage containers and pipelines at an oil terminal in Hardisty, Canada
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 11, 2026
China’s energy security push pays off as war roils Asia refiners
China’s position is a stark contrast to Asian countries from Japan to Thailand that have been hit hard by wartime energy disruptions.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama attends an online meeting with her Group of Seven counterparts on Monday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 10, 2026
G7 nations prepared for joint release of oil reserves amid Middle East strife
If carried out, such a move would be the first in about four years since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
A man shops in a supermarket in Chanverrie, France, on Oct. 16, 2024. When prices of food and other essentials rise, the first thing people cut spending on is fashion, says consultancy Simon-Kucher.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 10, 2026
Europe’s struggling retail sector looks ill-prepared for new energy price shock
The sector has barely recovered from the inflation cycle triggered by spiking gas prices after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Oil storage tanks in the Keihin industrial area in Yokohama
JAPAN
Mar 8, 2026
Tokyo told national oil reserve site to prepare for release amid Iran crisis, Japan lawmaker says
Japan relies on the Middle East for around 95% of its crude supplies, with roughly 70% shipped through the Strait of Hormuz.
Sanae Takaichi and Donald Trump meet in Tokyo for a summit in October. Japan’s fossil fuel investments tied to deals with the United States show Takaichi’s government favoring legacy energy over renewables.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 8, 2026
Takaichi and Trump are natural fossil fuel buddies — or are they?
More than a third of Southeast Asia’s coal power finance between 2016 and 2024 came from Japanese banks, and more than a fifth of gas.
Oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz in 2018. Japan relies on the Middle East for around 95% of its oil supplies with around 70% coming via the Strait of Hormuz, which is effectively closed due to the Iran war.
JAPAN
Mar 6, 2026
Japan may use part of national oil stockpile amid Iran war supply crisis: report
Japan relies on the Middle East for around 95% of its oil supplies with around 70% coming via the Strait of Hormuz, which is effectively closed due to the Iran war.
Tankers off the coast of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on Tuesday.
WORLD
Mar 6, 2026
Qatar energy minister warns war will force Gulf to halt energy exports within weeks, report says
Qatar halted its production of liquefied natural gas on Monday, as Iran continued to strike Gulf countries in retaliation for Israeli and U.S. attacks.
Electricite de France, Europe’s flagship builder, has struggled to deliver nuclear power projects on time and on budget.
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 6, 2026
A global nuclear power renaissance isn’t living up to the hype
In much of the world, lofty nuclear ambitions are at odds with the reality of an industry hollowed out by decades of stagnation.
An oil refinery in Texas. The war in the Middle East has roiled oil and gas markets, however, falling prices of solar and batteries offer another option.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Mar 6, 2026
How fossil fuel disruptions lead to booms in solar and batteries
The war in the Middle East has roiled oil and gas markets. Under a severe scenario, one estimate says that crude could reach $108 a barrel.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an event at the White House on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 6, 2026
Trump on rising gas prices during Iran operation: ‘If they rise, they rise’
The U.S. president says the U.S. military operation in Iran is “far more important than having gasoline prices go up a little bit.”
Abu Dhabi National Oil Chief Executive Officer Sultan Al Jaber at Adnoc headquarters in Abu Dhabi on Jan. 9
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2026
Adnoc boss and UAE minister Al Jaber meets Sanae Takaichi
“While your energy security continues to be our priority, we will not be able to do much if there is any distortion in the Strait of Hormuz,” Al Jaber said.
Oil storage tanks in Kawasaki. As of the end of last year, Japan had enough oil in its reserves to last 254 days, according to data from the trade ministry.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 5, 2026
Oil refiners in Japan ask government to tap strategic reserves
Japan gets more than 90% of its oil from the Middle East, leaving it vulnerable to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz that’s preventing energy exports.
Tankers are seen off the coast of the Fujairah, as Iran vows to close the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Mar 4, 2026
Trump says U.S. will escort and insure oil tankers amid the Iran war
U.S. and Israel’s attacks on Iran have effectively brought oil flows through the critical Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s energy supplies transit, to a halt.
This former GM and Foxconn factory in Lordstown, Ohio, seen here in October, is set to be converted by SoftBank for data center equipment manufacturing.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 3, 2026
SoftBank’s Ohio power plant delivers an AI sticker shock
The underlying message is that the old model of just building giant power plants to meet whatever new peak demand forecast we dream up is unsustainable.
Iran’s neighbors, like Qatar, are some of the world’s most important gas suppliers, and the region is also a vital supply route, with 20% of LNG exports traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial choke point for global energy.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Mar 1, 2026
Iran crisis threatens worst disruption in gas markets since 2022
Asian buyers have been calling suppliers to check if alternative cargoes are available, according to traders.
A family sits against the backdrop of a dockyard off United Arab Emirates' coastal city of Fujairah, in the Strait of Hormuz, on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 1, 2026
Ships avoid Strait of Hormuz as Iranian media essentially shuts it down
There’s been no formal announcement from Tehran about the status of the strait, which is crucial for the flow of oil and gas, but some tankers are turning around.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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