News On Japan

Toyota trawls for big spenders with $4m Lexus yacht

Sep 21, 2019 (Nikkei) - Toyota Motor has unveiled the first yacht under its Lexus luxury brand, with a 450 million yen ($4.17 million) price tag in Japan that aims it squarely at the super-rich.

The LY 650 will launch in Japan, the U.S. and Canada on Oct. 30. The 20-meter vessel combines Toyota's shipbuilding expertise with the design sensibilities of Lexus, featuring a curvy motif and a luxurious interior. It contains three sleeping quarters, with space for six people.

The boat was designed in collaboration with the Italian yacht designer Nuvolari Lenard and is built in the U.S.

Toyota has sold about 900 boats in Japan since establishing its shipbuilding business in 1997. This is the first foray outside autos for Lexus, which unveiled the yacht concept in January 2017.

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Torrential rain caused widespread flooding across central Japan on September 8, inundating roads in central Nagoya and other cities as linear rainbands formed over Aichi and Gifu prefectures and authorities warned that similar conditions could develop in the Kanto region through September 9.

Japanese 15-year-olds spend an average of 2.3 hours browsing social media during their weekday free time, the shortest amount among 24 countries surveyed, according to data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

A 58-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of setting fire to a home in Tokyo's Adachi Ward on September 4, injuring an 81-year-old woman, as police investigate whether he was involved in six suspicious fires reported in the area over about two weeks.

Hirokazu Koreeda's "Look Back" received more than 12 minutes of applause following its official screening at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival in Italy.

The first hearing in a lawsuit seeking the return of 279 sets of Ainu ancestral remains from the Japanese government was held on September 4, marking the first time an Ainu group has taken the state to court over the return of human remains.

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Emperor Naruhito carried out the annual rice harvest at a paddy field within the Imperial Palace on September 8, cutting two varieties of rice that will be used in ceremonies including the Niinamesai harvest festival.

Tokyo police detained 39 minors during a two-day nighttime operation around the "Toyoko" area of Kabukicho in Shinjuku, with 17 of them, or roughly 40%, found to have previously overdosed on medication.

A woman in her 60s died after her car was submerged in a flooded underpass in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, as record rainfall caused widespread flooding, landslides and transport disruption across Kanto and surrounding areas on September 7, with authorities warning that further rain was expected during the evening commute.

The first hearing in a lawsuit seeking the return of 279 sets of Ainu ancestral remains from the Japanese government was held on September 4, marking the first time an Ainu group has taken the state to court over the return of human remains.

Three people died and two others were injured in a suspected arson and stabbing at a cake shop in Motosu, Gifu Prefecture, where the 66-year-old female owner had gathered with nine former junior high school classmates on September 5, with police investigating whether a 70-year-old company executive who was apparently not invited to the gathering was involved.

Prince Hisahito, the only son of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, turned 20 on September 6, as he continues to take part in a growing range of official duties as an adult member of Japan's Imperial Family.

Young people recruited into illegal "dark part-time jobs" through social media and friends are increasingly becoming involved in fraud and violent robberies across Japan, with interviews at a juvenile training school revealing how the promise of easy money, a desire for recognition and fear of criminal groups can gradually leave them feeling unable to escape.

Tokyo police are investigating the possibility of a serial arson spree after six suspicious fires were reported within about two weeks in the same neighborhood of Adachi Ward, leaving an 81-year-old woman with burns and damaging homes, political party posters, a vending machine and a bicycle.