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Tag: Japan

  • Permanent Pokemon Center opens at Nihonbashi Takashimaya Tokyo

    Permanent Pokemon Center opens at Nihonbashi Takashimaya Tokyo

    Japanese fans can step into a whole world of Pokemon in a new experiential store in Tokyo.

    The Pokemon Center brings the game franchise to life with a range of Pokemon merchandise on sale. This is the Japanese franchise’s third Pokemon Center, and by far its largest with 1300sqm of floor space. It is also the first to include a cafe, which offers a range of foods including themed curries and pancakes in the shape of the Pokemon character Pikachu.

    Located inside the Nihonbashi Takashimaya Department store, it serves as another example of how traditional department stores are embracing new experiential concepts to make up for declining sales in traditional categories.

    The store opened yesterday and a special promotion will run until April 22 offering shoppers giveaways, including assets to use in the smartphone-based Pokemon game.

    Merchandise on sale at the Pokemon Center include soft toys and accessories.

    Earlier stores are in Sapporo, which was recently upgraded, and at the Tokyo Skytree complex, which opened in July 2016.

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  • It’s Hanbul to open It’s Skin pop-up stores in Japan

    It’s Hanbul to open It’s Skin pop-up stores in Japan

    Korea’s It’s Hanbul Cosmetics plans to expand into Japan by partnering with a local retailer.

    The company has brought its flagship brand It’s Skin to Japan via two pop-up stores inside ‘Niko and…’ stores in Tokyo and Funabashi, and plans to open eight more this year.

    About 500 items from the It’s Skin range will be sold via Niko and… stores including some developed exclusively for the Japanese market.

    Via the pop-ups, It’s Hanbul expects to boost its brand awareness in Japan before expanding into the local market through the partnership with a local lifestyle company.

    It’s Hanbul manages 53 stores in Canada, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Thailand, Russia, the US and online in China.

  • Furla Asia sales boosts its global growth

    Furla Asia sales boosts its global growth

    Furla Asia sales soared a stunning 50 per cent last year, powering the brand’s global sales to €499 million (US$618 million).

    Revenue from Asia-Pacific now accounts for 24 per cent of global sales and that share is steadily rising.

    Sales in Japan, a separate reporting division, increased by 15.4 per cent, while sales in its largest region, Europe, Middle East and Africa, were up 12.9 per cent, now representing 46 per cent of global sales.

    In Australia, where Furla purchased back the distribution rights to its brand from Luxury Retail Group (LRG) last year, sales rose 60 per cent. Earlier this year the company revealed plans to double its store presence Down Under from its 15 initial locations on the east coast.

    Globally Furla’s earnings increased by 34.1 per cent last year on sales up 20 per cent.

    “The 500 million euros goal is something to be very proud of and motivation to keep evolving,” said CEO Alberto Camerlengo. “The organic sales growth data is the most relevant, as it confirms that the company is on solid financial ground, thanks to the excellence of the brand and the quality of the product and Italian design we offer our customers. The company’s widespread growth across all markets reflects our efforts in further strengthening our distribution network and investing in research and product innovation.”

    Meanwhile, Furla continues to buy back distributorships around the world, the latest market being Singapore. Camerlengo said the brand will increase its store count in the city state, hoping to attract Chinese tourists as well as local shoppers.

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  • Tumi acquisition lead Samsonite to good numbers

    Tumi acquisition lead Samsonite to good numbers

    Samsonite Asia sales lept 16 per cent last year, a rate slower than the Hong Kong-listed company’s global growth, and predominantly driven by the acquisition of Tumi.

    The world’s largest travel luggage company achieved global sales of US$3.49 billion, up 23.3 per cent, with Asia accounting for $1.19 billion of that. Samsonite Asia sales excluding the Tumi effect grew by a much more modest 4.8 per cent, while sales in Japan grew by 32 per cent, or 12 per cent excluding the Tumi business, driven by the Gregory, American Tourister and Samsonite brands.

    In the first half of last year, Samsonite assumed direct control of the wholesale and retail distribution of Tumi products in South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, China, Indonesia and Thailand.  Net sales in China increased by 11.9 per cent year-on-year, (7.2 per cent excluding Tumi), due to increased sales of the Samsonite and American Tourister brands. Net sales in South Korea increased by 15.7 per cent, but fell 2.5 per cent excluding Tumi, due to fewer shoppers visiting from China and weak consumer sentiment.

    Net sales in Hong Kong increased by 34 per cent year-on-year, driven by the addition of Tumi, but by just 1.5 per cent excluding Tumi.

    Net sales in India increased by 4.6 per cent, despite a temporary disruption during the year due to the Indian government’s introduction of a goods and services tax that took effect in the third quarter of last year.

    Strong direct-to-consumer growth

    Samsonite showed solid progress on its move towards increasing its direct-to-consumer sales, aided by the acquisition of online luggage retailer eBags last May.

    Net sales rose 57.4 per cent overall, by 32.1 per cent excluding Tumi and by 12.2 per cent after 1 further excluding eBags.

    Dollar reported profit attributable to the equity holders increased by US$24.1 million, or 12.1 per cent.

    “We saw very satisfying growth last year, further driven by a strong performance from the Tumi and eBags businesses following their integration into the group,” said chairman Tim Parker.

    “In particular, we made solid strides in improving Tumi’s performance and as a result it was accretive to earnings in its first full year post acquisition. Now that we have strategically expanded into the highly attractive premium segment, and established a firm foothold in e-commerce, we look forward to more aggressively expanding our presence in the direct-to-consumer channel worldwide, especially direct-to-consumer e-commerce, where we see strong growth opportunities.”

    CEO Ramesh Tainwala said that while the company continued to benefit from the buoyant growth in travel and tourism worldwide, its strong performance was also driven by continued investment in brands, especially in the form of increased marketing support, as well as the expansion of direct-to-consumer e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retail operations.

    “Looking ahead, we will continue to implement our multi-brand, multi-category and multi-channel strategy, while leveraging our decentralised management structure and investment in marketing, in order to capitalise on the many exciting opportunities ahead of the group,” he said.

  • Japan bank mulls PetroVietnam plan

    Japan bank mulls PetroVietnam plan

    The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) is considering funding the Block B&52/97 project of the Việt Nam Oil and Gas Group (PetrolVietnam) with loans without a government guarantee.

    General Director of PetroVietnam Nguyễn Vũ Trường Sơn recently worked with JBIC representatives on the financial arrangements for the project.

    According to PetroVietnam, the project, worth nearly US$10 billion, is one of the two largest gas projects in Việt Nam. The capital arrangement for the project is one of the main concerns of foreign partners involved in the project.

    The Block B&52/97 project’s oilfield development report was approved by contractors and the State appraisal council, while its environmental impact assessment report was ratified by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The quantitative risk assessment report was also submitted to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

    As scheduled, the contract will be awarded in June 2018, and the signing of Engineering Procurement Construction and Installation (EPCI) contracts for the project will be done in July.

    The Block B&52/97 project includes two sub-projects. The first aims to develop the Block B oilfield, with PetroVietnam owning maximum capital in the project (42.896 per cent). Other investors are PetroVietnam Exploration and Production Corporation (26.788 per cent), Mitsui Oil Exploration Company (MOECO) of Japan (22.575 per cent), and Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited (PTTEP) (7.741 per cent).

    The second is to build the Block B-Ô Môn gas pipeline having a total length of 430km. PetroVietnam, PetroVietnam Gas Corporation (PV Gas), MOECO and PTTEP have invested in this project.

    The Block B&52/97 project is expected to bring ashore 5.06 billion cu.m of gas per year within 20 years, meeting the gas demand of power plants in the south.

    It is expected to contribute some $18 billion to the State budget.

     

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  • Fast Retailing to open first Uniqlo shop on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island

    Fast Retailing to open first Uniqlo shop on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island

    Japanese casualwear manufacturer Fast Retailing will open a Uniqlo shop on Sumatra Island, its first outlet outside Indonesia’s most populous main island of Java.

    The shop will open at the Sun Plaza shopping mall in Medan this week, in the northern part of the island. It covers about 2000sqm.

    Fast Retailing Indonesia president Michiaki Tanaka says the Sumatra opening will be followed by another outlet outside Java, in Makassar on Sulawesi Island, in May.

    Two more shops are planned for Jakarta and Yogyakarta before August, taking the number of outlets in the country to 18. Tanaka says brand recognition has been boosted through the store expansions.

    Uniqlo first opened in Indonesia in 2013.

  • Resurgent McDonald’s plans 200 openings in Japan’s burger battle

    Resurgent McDonald’s plans 200 openings in Japan’s burger battle

    Fast-food chains in Japan are launching the biggest expansion wave in decades and adopting strategies that would have been unthinkable in the early 2000s, when hamburgers were a prime symbol of deflation.

    McDonald’s Holdings (Japan), the biggest player, is emerging from a prolonged slump and on Tuesday announced it is planning the first net store increase in a decade this year. Burger King, the world’s second-largest hamburger chain, aims to triple its Japanese locations to 300 by 2022, spending 5 billion yen ($45.5 million) in the process.

    McDonald’s saw a 4.5-fold increase in group net profit for the fiscal year through December, logging a record 24 billion yen. It aims to open 150 to 200 new locations in the next three years. Factoring in closings, it expects a net increase of around 100.

    “Over the last several years, we were focusing on optimizing our existing store portfolio,” President Sarah Casanova told reporters. “Now, it’s time to look to opportunities to grow with new restaurants.”

    The number of McDonald’s locations in Japan peaked in 2002 and has been decreasing since. The chain now has 2,900 restaurants after a net decrease of about 1,000.

    Opening new restaurants might seem like an odd move in a country where the birthrate is falling and consumers are holding back on dining out. The hamburger business, however, is one of the few bright spots in an otherwise bleak restaurant industry.

    It helps that chains like Burger King and McDonald’s are globally recognized. Japan is welcoming record numbers of tourists — 28.6 million last year — giving the restaurants a steady stream of fresh customers looking for familiar flavors in an unfamiliar land.

    Burger King Japan, the U.S. chain’s local operation, will open most of its 200 new restaurants in large cities like Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya. Target locations include shopping center food courts and suburban spots with room for drive-thrus. Open-kitchen interiors will allow customers to see their Whoppers being cooked.

    Burger King also intends to offer a home delivery service, countering McDonald’s Japan’s move to expand deliveries in partnership with Uber Eats last year.

    This is Burger King’s second crack at the Japanese market. The chain left the country in 2001, after a slump. It returned in 2007 with support from such companies as Lotte, but its store count remains far behind McDonald’s Japan’s 2,900.

  • Floodgates could open as Honda imports cars

    Floodgates could open as Honda imports cars

    After stopping car exports to Việt Nam for more than a month, Japanese auto giant Honda Motor suddenly decided to import around 2,000 vehicles from Thailand in early March.

    This is the first batch of automobiles exempt from import tax under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) to be imported into Việt Nam.

    ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Việt Nam.

    Lý Thanh Bình, head of customs at HCM City’s Hiệp Phước Port, confirmed that Honda cars including Jazz, Accord, CR-V and Civic were unloaded at the port on March 1. The vehicles will be sold in one or two months after they undergo several mandatory tests as part of the customs clearance process.

    In January, Toyota Motor and Honda decided to suspend exports to Việt Nam saying they are unable to meet Việt Nam’s stringent checks of imported vehicles under the new Decree 116.

    The decree on the production, assembly, import and warranty of automobiles was issued just as Việt Nam eliminated tariffs on automobiles imported from ASEAN members.

    It requires all models of imported vehicles to obtain a Vehicle Type Approval certificate from authorities in the exporting countries.

    The new rule also requires emission and safety tests to be done on every batch of automobiles imported. In the past, only the first shipment of a model was tested.

    Many auto giants from Japan and the US have expressed concern, saying it would be difficult to meet the requirements.

    Some also said the new requirements would cause a huge waste of time and money for importers since one emission test could take two months and cost up to US$10,000.

    The decree is aimed at strengthening quality checks and protecting the local industry.

    The fact that Honda resumed exports to Việt Nam proves that car importers can remove the biggest obstacles like the above-said things that they were facing as they want to import the vehicles under the new regulations.

    Honda had Vehicle Type Approval certificates granted by Thailand where the cars were produced.

    Analysts said Honda’s decision to resume exports to Việt Nam should be considered a big factor for the Vietnamese auto market. This was because after Honda, other companies would also be able to receive similar certificates like Honda to bring their cars back to Việt Nam.

    Because of this, car imports from other countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia are also expected to soon come to Việt Nam.

    The return of Honda and other companies including Ford and Toyota in the near future is expected to drag prices significantly lower, thus fulfilling Vietnamese consumers’ dream of buying cars at lower prices.

    According to an official announcement from Honda Vietnam, its compact SUV Honda CR-V is now listed at VNĐ958 million ($42,076) to VNĐ1.068 billion ($46,907), depending on the model and specifications.

    Compared to their earlier prices, when a 30 per cent tax was in place, the 1.5E and 1.5G models are cheaper by VNĐ178 million ($7,818) and VNĐ188 million ($8,257).

    However, market observers said though tariffs on automobiles imported from ASEAN were eliminated over two months ago, car prices have shown no signs of coming down.

    Some have even seen their prices rise.

    They blamed this on not only a shortage of vehicles on the market but also the increasing cost of importing cars under the new rules.

    The shortage is understandable since only Honda of those that do not assemble in the country have gone through the new import rigmarole. Meanwhile, the number of assembled cars has also decreased because of lack of components imported from abroad, meaning supply has been unable to meet demand.

    Trường Hải Auto Joint Stock Company has hiked the prices of many models after making some cuts before Tết (Vietnam Lunar New Year) in mid-February.

    Consequently, the prices of its Mazda cars are up by VNĐ30-50 million. The Nissan Navara saw its prices cut by VNĐ10-20 million before Tết, but is now back to its earlier rates.

    Housing allure remains for overseas Vietnamese

    According to statistics from the World Bank, overseas remittances to the country last year were worth at $13.8 billion, up 20 per cent from 2016.

    This year, they are expected to go up by 5-7 per cent.

    Analysts said overseas remittances would continue to provide a vital impetus to the economy, especially to the property sector.

    The State Bank of Việt Nam said around 71 per cent of remittances went into business, and 21-22 per cent into the real estate sector.

    This means that on average every year, the sector gets an infusion of around $2.5 billion.

    Experts said the remittances are a reliable and steady source of foreign currency, and help keep foreign reserves buoyant.

    An executive at Savills Vietnam’s international residential sales department pointed out that by nature remittances are a “one-way” source of funding and could match or exceed foreign direct investment and foreign portfolio investment.

    Now they play an important role in economic growth. There are millions of Vietnamese living in the US, Europe and Asia, and a growing number of them are finding their way home to work, invest or retire.

    A thriving economy, constantly improving business environment and laws that allow overseas Vietnamese to own houses in Việt Nam are the reasons why they are investing in the housing sector.

    Experts said the housing market now offers favourable conditions for overseas Vietnamese to make profits.

    It has a wide range of products of high quality and reasonable prices, meeting overseas Vietnamese investors’ every demand, whether investment, settling down in the country or working.

    According to Savills Vietnam, safety, security and after-sales services are also factors that overseas Vietnamese and other foreign customers consider when buying a house in addition to location, price, convenience, architecture and design.

    It is undeniable that the attractiveness of the housing market has contributed to increasing remittances to Việt Nam in the last few years.

    According to the State Bank of Việt Nam’s HCM City branch, around 50 per cent of remittances to Việt Nam are to the southern metropolis.

    Around 22 per cent of the remittances to the city of $5.2 billion went into the housing market.

    Experts said to stabilise the flow of remittances into the country and into the real estate sector, the Government should offer incentives like low fees.

    They also stressed the need to make the housing market more transparent and efficiently provide market information to overseas Vietnamese.

    They wanted the Government to have tough measures to prevent the frequent occurrence of price “fever” in the housing market.

    They also called on real estate developers to carefully study overseas Vietnamese and foreigners’ housing needs and improve the quality of their products and services.

     

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  • Japan invests big in Vietnamese real estate

    Japan invests big in Vietnamese real estate

    Việt Nam’s real estate sector has witnessed significant participation from Japanese investors through cooperation with Vietnamese businesses recently, promising to bring benefits to the real estate market.

    According to real estate company Savills Việt Nam, over the past years, Asian investors, including Japanese ones, were only involved in commercial real estate like commercial centres, serviced apartments or office buildings. However, at present, these investors are increasing their activity in the residential segment due to the country’s young population and an increasing middle class, presenting an extremely attractive opportunity.

    Presence of big investors

    Shinichi Sakaki, deputy general director of the City Bureau, at Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, said the Japanese Government now has policies to support real estate developers promoting investment abroad. In addition, Japan has the experience of developing large-scale satellite towns, so it is trying to ‘export’ that technology abroad.

    One of the projects attracting not only investors but also the governments of Việt Nam and Japan is the cooperation agreement for the development of Nhật Tân – Nội Bài, aiming to build a smart city north of the Red River.

    The project was signed between Việt Nam’s BRG Group Joint Stock Company, Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation Asia and Oceania Group and the People’s Committee of Hà Nội.

    With total investment of nearly US$4.2 billion, this project is considered Japan’s largest foreign investment.

    Prior to that, another large Japanese investor, Mitsubishi Corporation, had co-operated with Vietnamese property developer Bitexco, to develop 240 low-rise housing units and two high-rise condominiums among a total of more than 1,000 low-rise and 17 high-rise condominiums at Hà Nội’s The Manor Central Park project.

    Bitexco and Mitsubishi established a joint venture company, of which Bitexco holds a 55 per cent stake and Mitsubishi holds the remaining 45 per cent.

    Recently, Nidec Group, one of the world’s leading hi-tech corporations and the second largest Japanese corporation on the Tokyo stock exchange (2017), joined forces with escalator firm Alpec to conquer the Vietnamese elevator market.

    With many years of experience in the field of high technology as well as research and development of lifts, Nidec will send foreign experts to support Alpec in quality management, labour safety, as well as the research and development of elevator equipment. The cooperation between the two sides promises to launch modern and environmentally-friendly elevator products, in accordance with the aesthetics and economic conditions of the Vietnamese people.

    Regarding potential cooperation between the two countries, Lê Hoàng Châu, president of the HCM City Real Estate Association (HoREA), said, in 2017, Japan replaced the Republic of Korea as the largest foreign investor in Việt Nam in general, and in the real estate market in particular. Many Japanese enterprises have participated in the implementation of major urban infrastructure projects funded by the Japanese Government, such as Obayashi, Shimizu, Hitachi, Sumimoto Construction, Mitsui and Maeda.

    In addition, there are enterprises that have invested in developing big projects such as Nomura Hải Phòng Industrial Zone, or Idemitsu Kosan Company Limited’s investment in Nghi Sơn Refinery and Petrochemical. Especially, in the past five years, some Japanese investment funds and enterprises have cooperated with real estate companies in Việt Nam in the form of buying shares, contributing to investment or lending for developing real estate projects in accordance with Japanese standards and suitable to consumers’ needs.

    The potential for investment and business cooperation among real estate companies in Japan and Việt Nam is very large, with 1,200 real estate development projects of Vietnamese enterprises in need of cooperation, joint ventures or teaming up with domestic and foreign businesses, especially Japanese ones.

    Potential cooperation

    The cooperation between Việt Nam and Japan will bring benefits to both sides, especially in creating opportunities for Vietnamese consumers to access high quality Japanese housing products, according to Châu.

    Meanwhile, regarding cooperation with Japanese units in the field of building management, Nguyễn Quang Huy, deputy general director of Property and Management Company (PMC), said cooperation with Japanese businesses brought benefits such as giving motivation to develop service standards and customer service strategies in a Japanese style, improving the prestige and company’s brand name, and being able to improve the foundations of implementing management, training or improving the quality of human resources.

    “However, we also face many challenges; the most fundamental difficulty is the different approaches between the two sides. Vietnamese people tend to focus on a short-term approach, expecting to see results quickly. Japanese people, on the other hand, appreciate the importance of long-term planning, so they start with the smallest things,” Huy said.

    “For example, in the field of building management, they teach staff how to cut nails, wash toilets, walk and serve customers. Therefore, Vietnamese businesses intending to cooperate with Japan should also pay attention to differences in the approach and find ways to create a workforce that loves the job, accepting career development on a long-term basis rather than short-term,” he said.

    According to the HoREA chairman, there is enormous opportunity for co-operation between HCM City and Japanese property developers and construction companies since the city now has some 1,200 projects, including infrastructure upgrades and beautifying works,

    Speaking at a meeting with a delegation of executives from 40 Japanese companies, Châu said the projects had been undertaken by local firms who want to tie up with foreign partners.

    Additionally, from 2018, the city was set to implement the National Assembly’s resolution No54 on special mechanisms and policies, which would give it almost complete autonomy in deciding and awarding projects.

    The city had already planned 21 programmes including removing houses along canals and giving itself a facelift.

    He cited the examples of Tokyu investing in Hưng Thịnh Corporation and Becamex’s projects and Hankyu and Nishi Nippon Railways tying up with Nam Long, Misubishi Corporation with Phúc Khang Corporation, and ACA with Sơn Kim Land.

    Concurring, Lê Trần Kiên, deputy director of the city’s Department of Construction, said the city aimed to relocate 20,000 people living along canals and in old apartments by 2020.

    “Some 21,850 houses are located along canals and need to be moved, mostly in Districts 8, 4 and Bình Thạnh,” he said.

    The city was considering ways to attract more foreign investment in public-private partnership projects (PPP), he said, adding that six PPP projects were underway to upgrade the city.

    HCM City is now soliciting Japanese investment in a project to upgrade the Cầu Dừa Canal in District 4.

    Speaking about the potential of co-operating with city-based companies, Keiji Kimura, chairman of J-CODE, said Việt Nam was set for rapid modernisation like Japan achieved 50 years ago.

    So Japanese companies would like to share their experience with HCM City partners in handling problems like traffic jams and pollution, he said.

    They were committed to apply modern technologies to develop HCM City’s infrastructure, he assured.

     

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  • Longreach to acquire Japanese coffee shop Kohikan

    Longreach to acquire Japanese coffee shop Kohikan

    Asian private equity firm The Longreach Group has agreed to totally acquire Japanese coffee shop chain Kohikan Corporation from UCC Foodservice Systems (UFS) for an undisclosed amount.

    In a statement on its website, Longreach says it has reached an agreement with UFS to buy 100 per cent of its subsidiary Kohikan. The deal is expected to close on May 1.

    Longreach says the investment would be an opportunity with a clear business growth path in the premium coffee business in Japan “with a potential to expand into high-growth Asian markets”.

    Established in 1970, the chain has 277 stores throughout Japan under the brand names Cafe di Espresso Kohikan, Karakuan, Kakura and Kohikan.

    “Longreach will accelerate Kohikan’s growth through enhancing the stores’ format and via expansion,” says the firm. Set up in 2003 by former UBS Securities Japan CEO Mark Chiba and former Morgan Stanley executive Masamichi Yoshizawa, Longreach has experience in restaurant chains and owns Wendy’s First Kitchen.

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  • Japan regulator to punish several cryptocurrency exchanges, suspend some others

    Japan regulator to punish several cryptocurrency exchanges, suspend some others

    Japan’s financial regulator will this week slap several cryptocurrency exchanges with administrative punishment notices and is considering forcing some to suspend their business.

    The Financial Services Agency may also tell Coincheck Inc – the exchange targeted by hackers in a US$530 million (RM1.96 billion) theft of digital money in January – to raise its standards, in what would be the second such order to the exchange.

    The FSA will mete out the punishments after uncovering flaws in customer protection and anti-money laundering measures during on-site checks at the exchanges.

    It did not specify which exchanges would be targeted.

    The FSA was not available for comment outside business hours. Coincheck did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

    The Coincheck heist, one of the largest of digital money ever, underscored the risks of trading an asset with which policymakers across the globe are grappling, and drew focus on Japan’s system of regulating the exchanges.

    Last year, Japan became the world’s first country to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges at the national level. Some 16 exchanges are registered with the authorities, while a further 16 – including Coincheck – were allowed to continue operating while regulators assessed their applications.

    The regulator will order some of the unregistered exchanges to suspend their business, and is looking closely at the sustainability of their operations.

    The FSA said after the Coincheck heist it would investigate all Japan’s cryptocurrency exchanges for security gaps, ordering them to submit reports on their system risk management and storage of cryptocurrencies. After the cyber heist the FSA ordered Coincheck to bolster its security systems.

    The second improvement order will focus on customer protection, with the FSA monitoring progress of compensating investors affected by the hack.

    The exchange has promised to repay about ¥46.3 billion (RM1.71 billion) of the cryptocurrency it lost in the theft. Last month it said it has sufficient funds to make the repayments, but declined to specify when it would repay investors affected. It has also declined to comment on whether the FSA had verified that Coincheck has enough funds for the repayments.

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  • Kobe Steel, Toyota hit with U.S. lawsuit over vehicle metal quality

    Kobe Steel, Toyota hit with U.S. lawsuit over vehicle metal quality

    U.S. consumers have filed a lawsuit against Kobe Steel Ltd (5406.T) and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) accusing the companies of violating consumer protection laws and engaging in fraud by concealing the use of substandard metal components in vehicles.

    The proposed class-action lawsuit represents the first U.S. consumer complaint filed against Kobe Steel over data fraud, and highlights the legal risks the company faces even after Chief Executive Officer Hiroya Kawasaki announced on Tuesday he would quit to draw a line under the scandal.

    The 112-year-old company, which supplies steel and aluminum parts to manufacturers of cars, planes and trains around the world, admitted last year to supplying products with falsified specifications to around 500 customers, throwing global supply chains into turmoil.

    Kobe, Japan’s third-largest steelmaker, said on Tuesday that the data fraud had gone on for nearly five decades, and that it found new cases of impropriety, widening the number of affected clients to 605, including 222 overseas. The company said Kawasaki would quit on April 1.

    The U.S. lawsuit, filed on Monday in federal court in San Francisco, was brought by two California residents who seek to represent a nationwide class of consumers who bought allegedly defective Toyota vehicles.

    According to the complaint, Toyota’s Prius, Camry, Land Cruiser and Lexus vehicles have all been manufactured with “sub-standard” steel, aluminum and copper.

    The plaintiffs allege that Toyota and Kobe Steel both violated federal and state consumer protection laws by claiming that the vehicles complied with U.S. quality standards.

    “We have not grasped the whole content of the case and we are now looking into the matter,” a Kobe Steel spokesman said on Wednesday.

    Toyota declined to comment on the lawsuit.

    In a special order in November, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked 29 automakers, including Toyota, to disclose any safety issues for any of their vehicles or engines containing products supplied by Kobe Steel.

    The regulator did not immediately respond to a request for comment on what data it had received in response and whether there was any evidence of faulty materials in Toyota cars.

    Monday’s 40-page lawsuit outlines the ways in which the companies allegedly concealed poor metal quality. It demands compensatory and punitive damages of an unspecified amount.

    According to the complaint, at least six Toyota car models sold or leased to U.S. consumers were manufactured with substandard metal from Kobe Steel. Plaintiffs said the metal could impact vehicle safety and performance.

    Toyota had the duty to disclose any defective vehicle components because it has consistently marketed its automobiles as safe, functional and reliable, the lawsuit says.

    Kobe and Toyota had superior knowledge and access to the facts, the lawsuit alleged, giving rise to fraud by concealment claims.

    Four individuals in Canada who bought cars that use Kobe’s products have already brought class-action lawsuits seeking unspecified damages against Kobe and it subsidiaries.

    Kobe is also undergoing a separate U.S. Justice Department probe.

    A company executive said on Tuesday that it is fully cooperating with the U.S. probe, but it was hard to predict how it would develop.

  • Denso to invest $190 million in Tennessee plant, creating 320 jobs

    Denso to invest $190 million in Tennessee plant, creating 320 jobs

    Japanese auto parts supplier Denso Corp (6902.T) said on Wednesday it will invest $190 million in an existing Athens, Tennessee, plant to produce components for fuel delivery, ignition and exhaust gas systems for automakers in North America.

    The investment will add four production lines and create 320 jobs, the company said in a statement.

    Denso said the plant will have one new production line devoted to gasoline direct injectors and the other three for fuel pumps.

    In October Denso, Toyota Motor Corp’s (7203.T) largest supplier, said it would invest $1 billion in its Maryville, Tennessee, plant to develop vehicle electrification and safety systems, creating around 1,000 jobs.

    Last month, Toyota and Mazda Motor Corp (7261.T) announced a $1.6 billion joint venture assembly plant in Alabama that will employ up to 4,000 workers and produce 300,000 vehicles a year.

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  • Japanese confectionery brand Morozoff enters Dubai

    Japanese confectionery brand Morozoff enters Dubai

    Japanese confectionery and chocolatier chain Morozoff has opened its first Dubai store, at Wafi Mall.

    Launched by the Emerald Star Group, Morozoff Dubai offers not only cookies and cakes but also a gift collection to suit a range of celebrations and events.

    Morozoff president Shinji Yamaguchi says the Dubai launch is a significant development for the group, with plans already in place for expansion.

    Emerald Star, which specialises in distributing Japanese products, plans to take Morozoff to other territories in the region as well as India.

    The chain returned to Singapore in November after an absence of 14 years.

  • Vietnam’s fruits getting popular in Japan

    Vietnam’s fruits getting popular in Japan

    Vietnamese fruit is making its presence felt in the Japanese market, with the country registering a turnover of US$170 million in 2017 through the export of fruits and vegetables, a year-on-year increase of 70 per cent.

    This was revealed by Tạ Đức Minh, Vietnamese trade counsellor to Japan, during Japan’s largest international food and beverage exhibition, Foodex Japan 2018, which opened on Tuesday in Chiba city.

    Up to 20 Vietnamese enterprises from various cities and provinces, such as HCM City, Hà Nội, Nghệ An, Bắc Giang, Ninh Bình, Đồng Tháp, Bến Tre, Cần Thơ, Kiên Giang, Lâm Đồng and Cà Mau, which are active in the field of agro-fisheries and food export, took part in the event.

    The event offers Vietnamese businesses opportunities to promote their exports in the Japanese and other Asian markets. Besides this, it is an opportunity for Việt Nam’s firms to develop new export items, sign valuable export contracts, and promote a wide range of Vietnamese food and agricultural products.

    At the expo, Vietnamese firms displayed products such as fruits and vegetables, seafood, cod-liver oil, organic pepper, seedless lemons, rice products, Phú Quốc sauce, various biscuits and juices.

    Earlier, Vietnamese products were exported to Japan in the form of semi-finished products; however, recently, Vietnamese enterprises have focused on investment and technology cooperation with Japanese enterprises, helping Vietnamese products meet the quality standards of the Japanese market, Minh added.

    The four-day exhibition attracts 3,350 firms from 80 countries and territories worldwide, and is expected to welcome some 85,000 visitors.

     

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