TOKYO - The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.
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Japan, U.S. finance chiefs hold talks amid yen's stubborn weakness
ASHEVILLE, North Carolina - Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama held talks Monday with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent amid the yen's stubborn weakness, an official with knowledge of the matter said.
The official, who provided the information on condition of anonymity, said Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda also met with Bessent in Asheville, North Carolina, where a two-day Group of 20 finance meeting will run through Tuesday.
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G20 finance chiefs begin 2-day meeting amid Iran war strains
ASHEVILLE, North Carolina - Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank governors began a two-day meeting on Monday in a mountain city in North Carolina, with the economic fallout from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran expected to take center stage.
With the war having reached its six-month mark a few days earlier, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is set to call on other finance chiefs from the world's 20 largest economies to stand with Washington in economically isolating Iran.
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Visitors to Kumamoto Castle after quake reopening half level of year before
KUMAMOTO, Japan - Kumamoto Castle in southwestern Japan is struggling to lure back visitors despite its reopening around two weeks after a recent powerful earthquake.
Between Aug. 13, the day the castle reopened after the magnitude-7.1 quake, and Aug. 27, it saw 32,400 visitors, only about half the level seen in the same period in 2025, according to the Kumamoto city government.
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Putin proposes permanent Russia-China visa-free program in talks with Xi
BEIJING - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday expressed readiness to make a visa-free travel program with China permanent if Beijing considers it useful, as he held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kyrgyzstan, Tass news agency reported.
The two countries have introduced an arrangement allowing each other's nationals to stay for up to 30 days without a visa, with the measure effective until the end of 2027.
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Japan main opposition party in lower house signals breakup
TOKYO - Japan's largest opposition party in the powerful House of Representatives will likely split just seven months after its formation, following the collapse of talks on a full merger, its leader all but confirmed Monday.
Established in the run-up to the February general election, the Centrist Reform Alliance brought together lower house lawmakers from the left-leaning Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Komeito party, which was the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner for 26 years.
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Japan urges Nepal to step up search for 5 nationals missing after floods
TOKYO - Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on Monday urged Nepal to do everything possible to locate five Japanese nationals missing after massive flooding and landslides near the country's border with China.
In a roughly 15-minute phone call with his Nepalese counterpart Shisir Khanal, Motegi offered condolences over the deaths in last Wednesday's disaster, saying Japan stands ready to provide all possible assistance.
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Large fire spreads in central Japan shopping district near Ise Jingu shrine
TSU, Japan - A large fire broke out Monday afternoon and spread to multiple buildings in a shopping district near Ise Jingu shrine in Ise, central Japan, local police said.
The affected district is in central Ise, Mie Prefecture, near the outer shrine of Ise Jingu. The complex is one of Japan's most sacred Shinto sites, with its inner shrine dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu.
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S. Korea's SK weighs Japan chip plant, decision hinges on partner
SENDAI - SK Group Chairman Chey Tae Won said Monday that the South Korean conglomerate is considering building a semiconductor-related plant in Japan.
Chey made the remarks to reporters in Sendai, northeastern Japan.
