News On Japan
June 30, 2026
SHIGA - A section of stone wall at Hikone Castle, one of Japan’s few surviving original Edo-period castles and a National Treasure whose main keep remains intact more than 400 years after its construction, collapsed after heavy rain caused by Typhoons No. 7 and No. 8, Hikone city officials said.
Image of Hikone Castle Stone Wall Collapses After Typhoon Deluge

Japan’s weather agency carried out field inspections in Yamanashi Prefecture on June 28 after a powerful earthquake struck the Fuji Five Lakes area late on June 26, registering a lower 6 on Japan’s seismic intensity scale in Fujikawaguchiko and injuring six people.

According to updates on June 28, the double-typhoon system that brought record rain, flooding, landslides and fallen trees to parts of Japan has moved away, but Kanto remains under cloudy rainy-season skies, with intermittent rain still possible and saturated ground keeping the risk of landslides high in areas hit by heavy rain.


SOCIETY | June 30, 2026
Shinjuku Ward, the Tokyo metropolitan government and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department have jointly established a Kabukicho measures council to strengthen efforts to prevent young people known as "Toyoko Kids" from being drawn into crime in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district.
Image of Police Set Up Kabukicho Council To Protect Toyoko Kids

A 23-year-old Chinese man has been arrested and sent to prosecutors on suspicion of dangerous driving resulting in injury after allegedly crashing a Porsche into two vehicles at an intersection in Tokyo’s Bunkyo Ward on June 9, leaving three people with minor injuries.

The number of people with dementia or suspected dementia who were reported missing to police totaled 17,345 in 2025, down by nearly 800 from the previous year but still at a high level, according to a National Police Agency summary.

Removal work has finally begun on a massive hose that washed ashore on the coast of Shika, Ishikawa Prefecture, six months ago, but crews are already facing difficulties because the structure is filled with a large volume of water.

A 50-year-old woman has been arrested in Kobe on suspicion of abandoning the dismembered body of her former husband in a large freezer at a condominium unit, where she allegedly continued paying rent for more than 14 years while hiding his death.


TOKYO - The Kanto region is experiencing an unusual June, with three typhoons approaching the area during the month and rainfall totals already reaching record levels in some locations.
Image of Kanto Region Experiences Stormy June With Three Typhoons

Damage was reported across the Kansai region after a stationary seasonal rain front and an approaching typhoon brought torrential rain on June 26, triggering landslides in Seika, Kyoto Prefecture, flooding homes in Nara, and disrupting roads and railway services in Osaka and surrounding areas.

A powerful earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of upper 6 struck off Iwate Prefecture at around 7:30 a.m. on June 25, shaking parts of Aomori Prefecture and leaving Hachinohe, which was hit by a similarly strong quake last December, facing fresh damage.

Rice field art depicting Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his dog Decoy is nearing its best viewing period in Oshu, Iwate Prefecture, Ohtani’s hometown.

FamilyMart began testing a new bear deterrent on June 24 at a store in a mountainous area of Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture, installing a wolf-shaped device known as Monster Wolf next to the outlet in the first such trial at a convenience store.


TOKYO - Japan remains among the world’s leading nations in seabed resource development and should accelerate work to sharpen its technology, Democratic Party for the People upper house lawmaker Yoshihiko Yamada said, calling for broader ocean policy investment, stronger protection of sea lanes and a more active Japanese role in mine-clearing operations near the Strait of Hormuz.
Image of Seabed Resources Put Japan’s Ocean Strategy in Focus

Chinese and Russian bombers and other military aircraft flew around Japan on June 27, prompting Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi to describe the joint activity as a show of force directed at Japan.

Defense Minister Koizumi met with South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back in Seoul on the morning of June 28, with the two ministers agreeing to continue cooperation between Japan and South Korea, as well as among Japan, the United States and South Korea.


Sushiro, Japan’s leading conveyor-belt sushi chain, drew heavy crowds to a new outlet near Ayase Station in Tokyo on June 11, with the first day of business revealing both the brand’s strength and the pressure behind running a high-volume sushi restaurant.

A major job fair in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, drew more than 3,700 high school students as local businesses, government and schools joined forces to stem the outflow of young people and encourage future U-turn employment.

Japan will face Brazil in the Round of 32 at Houston Stadium at 2:00 a.m. Japan time on June 30, with Hajime Moriyasu’s side seeking the first knockout-stage victory in the country’s World Cup history against the five-time champions and one of the tournament’s most dangerous attacking teams.

Akihiro Miwa, the singer and actor whose career spanned chanson, theater, film, television and voice acting, died of old age on June 20 at the age of 91, her management office said.


OIL CRISIS | June 30, 2026
TOKYO - Crude oil prices have plunged to the low $70 range per barrel following the signing of a memorandum aimed at ending fighting between the United States and Iran, but while the immediate risk of an energy crisis appears to have eased, economists warn that price increases for electricity, food and everyday goods may still be about to intensify.
Image of Crude Falls Toward Earlier Levels As Household Costs Keep Climbing

Japan will begin a new system on June 23 to sell paint and thinner directly from manufacturers to construction firms and other businesses, aiming to ease supply bottlenecks and curb price increases as worsening conditions in the Middle East make such materials harder to obtain.

Japan's reliance on Middle Eastern crude oil has left manufacturers exposed to rising costs for plastic containers, ink and other products that use naphtha, but JEPLAN President Masaki Takao is pushing a recycling technology that could reduce the need for petroleum-derived raw materials by turning used plastic back into material close to new.

A rice ball chain based in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, is feeling the effects of turmoil in the Middle East through higher costs and supply shortages for packaging film and other materials essential to selling onigiri.

The global oil market could face a major supply surplus in 2027 if the United States and Iran maintain an agreement aimed at ending hostilities, the International Energy Agency said in its monthly report released on June 17.


BUSINESS | June 30, 2026
TOKYO - Tokyo stocks fell sharply on June 26 as investors locked in profits from Japan’s record-setting AI-driven rally, with SoftBank Group and chip-related shares leading a broad retreat after reports that OpenAI may delay its initial public offering.
Image of Nikkei Tumbles As AI Rally Reverses

Japanese households held 2,386 trillion yen in financial assets at the end of March, up 7.1% from a year earlier, as rising share prices, wider use of the new NISA investment program and the weaker yen lifted the value of assets held by individuals.

The sale of religious corporations that operate temples and shrines across Japan is drawing growing scrutiny from authorities, who fear the transactions could be used for tax evasion and money laundering, as brokers openly advertise properties and corporate status for tens or even hundreds of millions of yen.

The Nikkei Stock Average fell for a second straight session in Tokyo as investors locked in profits from a rapid rally in artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related shares, briefly sending the benchmark down more than 1,300 yen before bargain hunting helped it recover part of the loss.

Imabari Shipbuilding, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, and Namura Shipbuilding are aiming to resume construction of liquefied natural gas carriers around 2035, as Japan’s shipbuilding industry looks for a path to recovery after losing much of the global market to lower-cost rivals in South Korea and China.