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U.S.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi meets with Vietnamese President To Lam in Hanoi on May 2. Japan needs to recognize its role in strengthening ASEAN's autonomy as part of its own economic strategy.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 19, 2026
ASEAN unity and Japan’s role amid U.S.-China tensions
Japan needs to recognize its role in strengthening ASEAN’s autonomy as part of its own economic strategy.
A child holds his parents' hands as they leave the mosque at the scene of a shooting at the Islamic Center in San Diego, California, on Monday.
WORLD
May 19, 2026
‘I saw bad stuff,’ says 9-year-old who hid in closet during California mosque attack
The child said his classmates and he were ushered into a closet at the mosque where they attend school, trembling in fear as shots rang out.
Shipping containers at Port Miami. Under the trade deal — which was signed in July — the EU agreed to erase levies on U.S. industrial goods in exchange for a 15% tariff ceiling on most EU products.
BUSINESS
May 19, 2026
EU races to finalize U.S. trade deal to avoid more Trump tariffs
Trump previously threatened to hike tariffs on European auto imports to 25% from 15% because the EU hadn’t moved quickly enough to implement the deal.
Boeing’s new jet deal with China ends a nine-year sales drought, but the smaller-than-expected order underscores how geopolitical tensions and rising competition have weakened its position in the important aviation market.
COMMENTARY / World
May 19, 2026
Boeing deal won’t end its China troubles
It was a surprise when the confirmed deal was less than half of the 500 that was reportedly in discussion.
Takeda Pharmaceutical headquarters in Tokyo. The company said it will "vigorously pursue" an appeal after a U.S. jury on Monday found the company liable for causing about $885 million in damages by delaying a generic version of its constipation drug through an anticompetitive scheme.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2026
Takeda engaged in antitrust scheme to delay generic constipation drug: U.S. jury
The verdict is the ​first time ‌a jury has found a pharmaceutical company liable in class-action litigation over what is called a “pay-for-delay” agreement with generic rivals.
Only 29.2% of respondents in a recent survey said they liked the United States, apparently reflecting negative views of the Trump administration following U.S. strikes on Iran and the ensuing energy crisis.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
May 19, 2026
Japanese favorability toward U.S. falls below 30%, survey finds
Negative views of the Trump administration might have contributed to the decline, particularly following its military strikes on Iran and the resulting energy crisis.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies toward Iran, science, education, diplomacy and democratic institutions are accelerating a self-inflicted decline of U.S. global power.
COMMENTARY / World
May 19, 2026
America’s superpower suicide in the Trump era
At a minimum, a superpower must be a modern state that includes, through the rule of law and other institutions, a substantial body of citizens committed to a common endeavor.
A man brings an empty liquefied petroleum gas canister to a depot in New Delhi on Monday. India is the second-largest importer of LPG in the world and is suffering acute shortages of the fuel, used in cooking gas and industrial processes.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 19, 2026
How India’s cooking fuel shortage is driving up California’s gas prices
Both symptoms of the worst-ever energy supply disruption, they are directly connected and evidence of the effects across the global economy of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.
People gather in front of the U.S. consulate in Nuuk to protest against U.S. President Donald Trump's demand that Greenland be ceded to the United States.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2026
U.S. designs on Greenland unchanged, PM says after meeting Trump envoy
Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said he used the meeting to reiterate that “the Greenlandic people are not for sale.”
A street in Tehran on Monday. "Surrender is fundamentally incompatible with Iran's identity," one senior Iranian official said.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2026
Growing risk of fresh conflict in Middle East as deadlock and pain deepen
The concern among policymakers is not whether a deal is near, but how long tensions can persist before a miscalculation triggers renewed hostilities.
Indian billionaire Gautam Adani attends the 51st Gems and Jewellery Awards in Jaipur, India, in 2024.
BUSINESS
May 19, 2026
U.S. drops charges against Gautam Adani after settlements and investment pledge
The move is a boon for Asia’s richest person and his companies, and a reversal by U.S. officials on cases brought at the end of the Biden administration.
A tourist watches the MT Desert Kite oil tanker carrying Russian oil in the Arabian Sea, Gujarat, India, on March 11.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2026
U.S. extends sanctions waiver on Russian oil to aid vulnerable countries
The action marks the second time the Treasury has allowed the sanctions waiver to lapse and subsequently extended it.
A woman walks past an anti-U.S. billboard depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and the Strait of Hormuz, in Tehran on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
May 19, 2026
Trump says he paused attack on Iran as negotiations continue
An Iranian source said the U.S. may agree to release some of Tehran’s frozen funds and show more flexibility toward peaceful nuclear activity under supervision of the IAEA.
Visitors gather in the rain to catch a glimpse of Punch the monkey at Ichikawa City Zoo in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, in April.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 18, 2026
Japan arrests Americans over stunt at baby monkey Punch’s zoo
Images on social media showed a person scaling the fence in a costume that included a smiley face head with sunglasses, prompting the monkeys to scatter.
U.S. President Donald Trump bought shares of Kura Sushi USA in February.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2026
Trump filing reveals stake in sushi chain alongside Big Tech
Trump bought shares of Kura Sushi USA on Feb. 2 with the transaction size in a range of around $1 million to $5 million, according to his latest financial disclosure.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s planned withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany could undermine NATO cohesion and diminish U.S. influence in Europe and Asia.
COMMENTARY / World
May 18, 2026
Trump’s troop drawdown in Germany is a warning shot
The withdrawal of U.S. forces from Germany sparks strategic questions for Europe and Asia.
The war in Iran is fueling currency crises in energy-importing countries, underscoring the need to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy to shield economies from fossil-fuel shocks.
COMMENTARY / World
May 18, 2026
The energy crisis is becoming a currency crisis
The biggest losers include the Egyptian pound, the Philippine peso, the South Korean won and the Thai baht.
Cargo ships in the Persian Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, on March 11
BUSINESS / Economy
May 18, 2026
Iran war saddles global companies with $25 billion bill — and counting
Businesses are grappling with soaring energy prices, fractured supply chains and trade routes severed by Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.
A farm in Ruleville, Mississippi, on March 31. While the fresh disclosure of China agreeing to purchase agricultural products from the U.S. will likely be welcomed by farmers, the amount may not be large enough to satisfy growers looking to turn around tough economic conditions.
WORLD / Politics
May 18, 2026
U.S. says China agrees to spend billions on agricultural goods
Previous efforts by U.S. President Donald Trump to get China to purchase more U.S. goods have fallen short, raising questions about whether the latest pledges will be fulfilled.
The U.S.-China rivalry is increasingly centered on semiconductor and rare-earth chokepoints as Japan tries to revive its chip industry and secure a strategically vital role in global supply chains.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
May 18, 2026
Semiconductor chokepoints define U.S.-China rivalry
Two chokepoints now stand out: advanced semiconductors for China and rare-earth minerals for the United States.

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