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Regional IOSCO meeting in Abu Dhabi highlights deeper capital market cooperation

TEHRAN – Regulators from more than 20 countries gathered in the United Arab Emirates for the annual meeting of the Africa and Middle East (West Asia) Regional Committee (AMERC) of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), where participants emphasized the need to expand cross-border collaboration and strengthen market oversight. Iran took part in all main sessions and underscored its commitment to regional engagement and alignment with international capital-market standards.

We zapped up some tasty hot sandwiches in the microwave with 3COINS’ new gadget from Japan

This is some hot sand that you’ll love to put in your mouth.Some people, like my mother, like to accumulate a variety of cooking appliances in order to cover any and every possible cooking situation that might arise, from pressure cookers to blenders and air fryers to automatic egg cookers. While this is all well and good, as you’ll never look at a recipe and think, “these takoyaki look so delicious, but I can’t make them because I don’t have a takoyaki grill,” it does come at the expense

Shocking discovery: Japan’s expensive Shine Muscat grapes can pair amazingly with cheap Pringles

Weird, delicious, and beautiful, this is everything we could ask for in the SoraKitchen.Japan’s Shine Muscat grapes have been skyrocketing in popularity in foodie circles around the globe. First cultivated in Japan in 2006, Shine Muscat grapes are prized for their size, firmness, and sweetness, so prized that they cost several times more than ordinary green grapes.So when our Japanese-language reporter Go Hatori got his hands on some Shine Muscats, what did he pair them with? Potato chips. Not s

Politics Insider: Carney set for Friday meeting with Xi

One of the last meetings on Mark Carney’s whirlwind tour of Asia may be his most important: a Friday sit-down with Chinese ...

Mediterranean partners bolster ties on shipping, energy, and infrastructure

Greece’s Minister of Shipping and Insular Policy Vasilis Kikilias visited Cairo this week for the TransMEA 2025 international transport conference. The event brought together ministers, regulators and ...

Totoro Tummy Blanket gives you the belly warmth of Ghibli’s cuddliest character【Photos】

”The dream of taking a nap wrapped in Totoro’s tummy has come true.”The idea of a Totoro blanket might sound equal parts cute and impractical. Sure, the cuddly Studio Ghibli star makes a fine muse for something soft to snuggle up under, but he’s also a pretty irregular shape to try to cover yourself with, isn’t he?Ah, but Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku has taken this into consideration, which is why their latest offering isn’t a Totoro-shaped blanket, it’s a Totoro Tummy Blanket.That me

Bear attack shelters going on sale in Japan as country experiences record-high number of incidents

Kumacon provides everything you need to deal with up to a three-day bear siege, manufacturer says.An unprecedented number of bear attacks have been taking place this year in Japan, with the situation having gotten so bad that mail deliveries are potentially going to be disrupted and even the Ground Self-Defense Force has been enlisted to help deal with ursine incidents. “I think the bears really have the upper hand here” one of my colleagues said the other day as we discussed the situation (havi

Secret tourist stop in Japan has a lift car that whisks you away to a mystery mountain destination

If you haven’t visited a Michi no Eki roadside station in Japan yet, you’re missing out. A lot has been written about the wonders of Japanese convenience stores, but for many residents there’s another way to shop that’s arguably even more unique and charming, and it’s called Michi no Eki.Literally translating as “Road Station“, these government-designated roadside rest stops are often found along highways and local roads in rural areas, and they serve mu

Why is Starbucks Japan’s Christmas stollen so good?

There’s more to this festive cake than just pretty packaging.It’s been a whirlwind of a year for Starbucks releases, and the run of limited-edition surprises is now culminating in the long-awaited Holiday collection. In amongst the colourful festive goods and tasty drinks, however, is a food offering that tends to be overlooked — thestollen.While the traditional German Christmas bread might not be everyone’s first choice at Starbucks, it has a lot going for it, starting w

Boulder Meeting of the Western Branch of the American Society for Premodern Asia 2025

From October 16–18, 2025, the Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations was delighted to host the conference of the American Society for Premodern Asia Western Branch (ASPA-WB)—the single most ...

Tokyo National Museum seeking donations to pave over pond, create space for beer and music events

Public reactions to redevelopment plan for Japan’s largest collection of historically significant artwork has been less than positive.Located at the edge of Ueno Park, the Tokyo National Museum houses one of the most important collections of historically significant artistic and cultural artifacts in Japan, containing an estimated 10 percent of all the works officially designated as National Treasures in the country. Adult tickets are priced at 1,500 yen (US$10) by pre-sale or 1,700 yen at the d

Totoro, Catbus sleeping bags are perfect place to stay cozy all winter…if you fit inside【Pics】

Sometimes it’s good to be a petite Ghibli fan.Studio Ghibli’s My Neighbor Totoro contains what’s arguably the coziest looking nap in the history of animation. In the scene in which we get our very first look at the cuddly forest spirit, he’s snoozing away inside his burrow until he gets an unexpected visitor as Mei comes rolling in, then proceeds to take a nap on top of his ample tummy.With winter on the way, though, it’s going to be too chilly to sleep on top of Totoro. Luckily, there’s a warme

Japanese government considering tripling departure taxes to combat overtourism

As foreign visitor numbers and overtourism concerns both reach historic highs, policymakers think they may have found a way to use one to address the other.When planning a trip to Japan, there are a lot of expenses to take into consideration. First, of course, is airfare, the cost of getting here, and then there’s the money you’ll need to spend while in Japan for hotels, local transportation, food, and entertainment. But while it sometimes gets lost in the fine print, you’ll also need to pay in

Entry to Tokyo’s Pokémon theme park zone has physical fitness requirement, will cost a lot

Path through the forest of wild Pokémon could strain some visitors’ legs, ticket cost might be hard on their hearts.Pokémon fans have been buzzing with excitement following the surprise announcement earlier this week that Poképark Kanto, the brand-new Pokémon area coming to Tokyo theme park Yomiuriland, has moved up its grand opening from the originally slated “spring 2026” to February 5. Before you toss an entry into the lottery for the first batch of ticket purchase rights, though, you might w

Meet the eerie police statues of Miyakojima in Okinawa Prefecture

Goth cops!If there’s one benefit to this excruciatingly long summer weather in Japan, it’s that people have a wider window to take summer vacations in. That’s just what our writer Saya Togashi did and headed down to the tropical shores of Miyakojima, a city consisting of a group of islands to the south of Okinawa Island.The weather was constantly drizzly, but still warmer than the rest of Japan, with the autumn leaves just starting to kick in. The way the browning leaves looked

Giant digital sumo wrestler now stopping trains at Tokyo station【Video】

Playful PlayStation team celebrates local Ryogoku culture and takes a PS5 to Kanda Shrine for a traditional autumn event.There are certain parts of Tokyo that, upon hearing their names, bring up an instant mental image of something the surrounding neighborhood is known for. You can’t hear “Akihabara” without thinking of anime and video games, or “Tsukiji” without thinking of sushi.Though it might not be quite as internationally famous as the two above examples, for the local population in Japan

Tokyo Station’s ultra-rare cakes look, and taste, like a cup of coffee

Cleverly beautiful tiramisu sweets are only available three days a week.Coffee is the key ingredient in tiramisu. Even the dessert’s name, meaning “pick me up” in Italian, is a reference to the energizing caffeine kick that comes from some strong java.So if tiramisu is going to have the flavor of a cup of coffee, why not the appearance too? The obvious answer to that is “Because it would be really hard to make a cake look like a coffee cup,” but apparently it’s not beyond the talents of Tokyo sw

Studio Ghibli unveils new fluffy purses from films like My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away

Anime characters you’ll want to snuggle up to. As the weather gets colder, accessories get fluffier, and the cutest ones around right now are a range of purses from Studio Ghibli specialty chain Donguri Kyowakoku.Starting with the “Fluffy Purse“, there are three to choose from, featuring characters from the 1988 classic My Neighbour Totoro.The first character in the lineup is the “Large Totoro“, as the gentle grey giant is officially known.Distinguished by its trian

Does the maxixe live up to its promise of being a whole new flavor for our Japanese reporter?

We can never resist the temptation of buying produce that’s hard to come by in Japan.Our Japanese-language reporter Ikuna Kamezawa recently took a trip to Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture. One of the first things she did upon arrival was to stop at a local farmer’s market since Ibaraki is a leading center of agricultural production in Japan and she thought she might score some good deals.While she was there, she spotted a vegetable that she had never seen before: maxixe (mashishi in Japan

Japan’s plus-sized idol singer group releases new video about the joys of eating【Video】

Big Angel has grown even bigger since the last time we saw them.Even by Japanese standards, idol singers tend to be on the slim and petite size. It is, after all, a music genre that’s largely built around projecting an aura of youthful energy, and a group of slender teens or twentysomethings dancing around the stage works as a quickly understandable visual shorthand for that.However, Big Angel is one idol group that unabashedly exists at the complete opposite end of the scale, in both a figurati