Japan's Infrastructure Ministry has announced that the country's elevators may soon have a surprising new feature: Toilets.

Japan wants its workers to work fewer hours to cut down the number of people pushing themselves into an early grave.

Hundreds of scientists have rallied against a new Japanese proposal to kill whales in the name of research — a plan one New Zealand marine biologist calls whaling in disguise.

How have things fared since then for Asia's "Axis of Reform"? Not very well, unfortunately, says William Pesek.

Four years on from the Fukushima nuclear disaster - brought about by a devastating earthquake and tsunami - Tomioka remains a desolate place.

A 23-year-old Canadian woman was given the shock of her life after unexpectedly giving birth on a flight from Canada to Japan on Sunday.

In Northern Japan, Kelly Lynch sips crisp chilled sake from tiny tin cups in an izakaya.

Mentor fully understands how difficult it is to raise today's young girls to full-fledged maiko.

If perfect ski snow is your passion this is the Japanese destination for you, but don't count on admiring the scenery, writes David Lewis.

A university museum in Japan has broken a seven-decade taboo on discussing the dissection of live American prisoners of war by medical personnel.

On the fourth anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan, Isaac Davison finds a community that's battered but unbowed.

Twentieth-century tragedy provides a moving lesson in post-war recovery during a visit to Japan's Hiroshima, writes Josh Martin.

Government ministers, foreign press and ambassadors including New Zealand's Mark Sinclair are sitting in a glitzy conference room in downtown Tokyo, looking at stunning photographs on powerpoint of a....

It is spring in Tokyo, but Toshiko Takagi cannot bear to see office workers sitting beneath cherry blossom in the parks that dot the Sumida district where she lives.

Japan's push to keep power flowing after it shuttered its nuclear program may best be illustrated by 73 million light bulbs.

Thirty years after he fell in love with Japan, author Edmund de Waal returns to take his family on an intense tour of its urban and rural charms.

The softness of Japan's rebound shows PM Abe's challenge to revive the economy from two decades of stagnation.

Japan says the death of journalist Kenji Goto is an 'atrocious act' as Isis threatens to kill a Jordanian pilot if a female prisoner isn't returned by Friday.

Japan's deputy foreign minister has said negotiations with Isis have become "deadlocked".

In the midst of one of the world's greatest metropolises, Sarah MacDonald goes on a quest for the ultimate urban sanctuary - Tokyo's natural hot spring.

The liquidators of a New Zealand bitcoin trading platform will soon be able to make a claim for $23 million worth of the digital currency that was being held with a now-bankrupt Japanese exchange.

Japan is vowing to "never give up" its struggle to save two hostages held captive by Islamic State (Isis) militants.

A New Zealander holidaying at a Japanese ski resort witnessed an avalanche engulf and kill two friends at the weekend.

United States markets head into the last week of the year with a "Santa Claus rally" having lifted them to record highs, picking up momentum from outstanding GDP numbers in the world's biggest economy.

Follow the locals' instructions and this Unesco World Heritage-listed walking trail in the Kii Mountains could make your dreams come true, writes Kate Hodal.

HSBC has warned that Japan's barely disguised attempt to drive down the yen is becoming dangerous and may spin out of control, leading to an exchange rate crisis next year and a worldwide currency....

Jiro Ono fears for the future of his country's traditional food

The confidence of Japan's large manufacturers declined in the fourth quarter as a recession offset a boost from a weaker yen, underlining the challenges facing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after his....

For several years, Michael Hendry made himself at home on the golf courses of Australia. The burly New Zealander was a regular at the pointy end of leaderboards across the Australasian tour.