TOKYO -
The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Rescue operations end at quake-hit Kumamoto mall after explosion kills 7
KUMAMOTO, Japan - The Kumamoto prefectural government said Saturday it has ended rescue operations at an Aeon shopping mall where seven workers died in an explosion shortly after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the southwestern Japan prefecture four days earlier.
Officials said there should be no more people unaccounted for after local police and firefighters, joined by the Self-Defense Forces and others, searched the shopping mall in Kashima. Its second floor collapsed in a possible gas explosion after about 200 people had been evacuated following Tuesday afternoon's earthquake.
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Vietnamese intern killed in Kumamoto quake had yet to meet newborn son
KUMAMOTO, Japan - Tran Van Son, a Vietnamese technical intern working at a factory in Kumamoto Prefecture, had recently become a father before he was killed at his workplace during a magnitude 7.1 quake that struck the southwestern Japan prefecture on Tuesday.
Son, who had arrived in Japan only a few months earlier, dreamed of building a house for his family back in Vietnam. His elder brother, Tien, who rushed to Kumamoto after hearing the news, described him as hardworking and devoted to his family, lamenting that he "had yet to even meet his son."
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76% in Japan support upholding 3 nonnuclear principles: poll
TOKYO - Seventy-six percent of people in Japan support upholding the country's three nonnuclear principles of not producing, possessing or allowing nuclear weapons on its territory, a poll reported by a major daily showed Sunday.
The survey also found that 77 percent believe Japan should not pursue nuclear sharing, an arrangement under which the United States would station nuclear weapons in Japan for joint operation. With Japan the only country to have suffered atomic bombings in war, the results highlight strong anti-nuclear sentiment as debate grows over revising the principles.
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Japan team develops "eco-fireworks" with water-soluble shells to cut debris
OTSU, Japan - A Japanese fireworks manufacturer and a university professor have jointly developed more environmentally friendly fireworks with water-soluble shell casings that naturally dissolve after use, in hopes of reducing the impact of fallen debris after displays.
A fireworks ball consists of gunpowder layers inside the outer shell, which shatters upon explosion and falls to the ground. While debris from conventional casings, typically made of kraft paper, takes half a year to decompose, the new shells incorporating water-soluble resin can dissolve in as little as one day.
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2 injured in apartment blast near Tokyo
CHIBA, Japan - Two men were injured Saturday in an explosion at an apartment building in Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, with one suffering burns over his entire body, according to the local fire department.
The blast, which occurred around 6:35 a.m. in Ichikawa, damaged the three-story building's windows and walls. The fire department said the other man sustained minor injuries from broken glass.
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Lessons of major earthquakes decade ago help British man in Kumamoto
KUMAMOTO, Japan - Lessons from powerful earthquakes a decade ago helped a British man overcome his initial panic when a magnitude 7.1 quake struck Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday.
Andrew Mitchell, a 41-year-old assistant professor of sociology at Kumamoto University, said he was in his apartment when dishes and other items scattered as the quake struck at 4:27 p.m.
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Japan ruling party lawmakers form group to promote trading card industry
TOKYO - Lawmakers from Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party have launched a group aimed at promoting the rapidly growing trading card industry, seeing its potential as a globally competitive content sector.
The group, consisting of some 20 lawmakers, is seeking to improve the trading card environment by setting up rules to address issues such as counterfeit cards and bulk purchases for resale. The group is also keen to enhance market transparency to support the industry's overseas expansion.
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Cooling toilets, shorter working hours introduced amid Japan heat
TOKYO - Japanese companies have been implementing measures to protect workers amid the extreme summer heat, such as introducing prefabricated toilets with cooling functions at construction sites and cutting working hours.
The government in June last year began requiring business operators to implement effective measures against heat-related illnesses, with the country experiencing sweltering summers in recent years. Firms that do not fulfill their obligations will be penalized.
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Yen surges to lower 157 versus dollar, Japan authorities step in
NEW YORK - The Japanese yen briefly surged to the lower 157 level against the U.S. dollar in New York on Friday, with Japanese government sources confirming a yen-buying, dollar-selling intervention by currency authorities.
Trading at 157.24 per dollar for a brief span, the yen hit its strongest level since mid-May.
