According to The Nikkei Asian Review, the Japanese government will cooperate with the U.S. and Australia on investing in processing facilities for rare-earth metals, looking to ease reliance on imports from China.
Rare earths are essential to such high-tech machinery as motors for electric vehicles. But Japan imports 58% of its supply from China, leaving it vulnerable to manipulation by Beijing. Tokyo plans to bring the Chinese share down to 50% or less by 2025. Tokyo is discussing a cooperation deal with the U.S. and Australia. Smelting facilities under construction in the U.S. state of Texas that will be operated by Australian rare-earths miner Lynas are a probable investment target. That site is scheduled to come online in the middle of the decade. Other investment targets will be considered, primarily in the U.S. and Australia. Japan will conduct the financing through a government-owned resource investment company: the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp., or Jogmec. Legislation will be revised to allow it to take stakes in rare-earths smelting projects. Processing facilities, which have a large environmental impact, are now primarily concentrated in China. And Beijing has employed its dominance in rare earths to exert pressure before. In 2010, it quietly cut exports to Japan amid a dust-up over a territorial issue. Jogmec will also take steps to ensure Japan's stable access to cobalt, a mineral used in lithium-ion batteries, to counter Chinese enterprises securing rights in Congo. The resource company could spend up to around 20 billion yen (US$ 182 million) in all on both efforts. The U.S. relies on China for 80% of its imports of rare earths. Since they are essential for such military equipment as missiles, President Donald Trump's administration has announced plans to support domestic rare-earths mines and processing facilities. Under an agreement announced in November, the U.S. and Australia will improve capabilities in developing such "critical mineral assets" as rare earths. Canberra will support mines and processing facilities owned by domestic companies through an export-financing scheme. Chinese President Xi Jinping took a high-profile inspection tour of a magnet maker in Jiangxi Province last year as the trade war raged on. The area is rich in rare-earth deposits, so the U.S. saw this as a signal that Beijing was willing to use the resource as a bargaining chip. The new coronavirus has emerged as a threat to the industry, since the outbreak could force Chinese rare-earth facilities to shut down. Such an event would impact the global supply chain for electric vehicles and smartphones. https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Japan-to-pour-investment-into-non-China-rare-earth-projects If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/3745822.html
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According to The Australian Financial Review, home values in the cheaper, outer ring suburbs are closing in on the inner city prestige markets, growing by as much as 14 per cent in value since June on the back of rampant demand from first home buyers.
While the higher end of the market still broadly leads the growth spurt in Sydney and Melbourne, many suburbs at the lower end of the price spectrum have recovered strongly since the market bottomed out nationally last June. CoreLogic data exclusively compiled for The Australian Financial Review showed the outer west and Blacktown regions in Sydney dominated the high performers, led by Warragamba with 14.3 per cent house price growth. Even with the strong growth, however, values were still well below the Sydney median house price of $994,300. https://www.afr.com/property/residential/housing-boom-spreads-to-outer-ring-suburbs-20200217-p541lo If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/1942955.html 
According to The Nikkei Asian Review, Japan's Sanyo Chemical Industries aims to begin mass production next year of a new, fire-resistant type of rechargeable battery made almost entirely of plastic.
A 15 billion yen (US$ 136 million) factory for the new batteries is slated to begin operation in the spring of 2021. The factory, which Sanyo Chemical describes as the first of its scale in the world, will produce plastic lithium-ion batteries that will not catch fire even if punctured by a nail or drill. Tokyo startup APB, which Sanyo Chemical took control of last year, will outfit the factory for production. APB was founded in 2018 by Hideaki Horie, a researcher at Tokyo's Keio University who helped develop Nissan Motor's Leaf electric vehicle. Replacing metal with plastic in such key components as cathodes and anodes has been hailed as the next generation of lithium-ion battery technology. A number of companies have reported progress in this field. Production costs are said to be to up to 60% less than for conventional lithium-ion batteries. Sanyo Chemical plans to market the plastic batteries for such applications as backup power systems for plants. The factory's output capacity will be 1 gigawatt-hour in 2025 -- the equivalent of 25,000 electric-vehicle batteries a year. The plant is located in Fukui Prefecture, north of Kyoto. APB will raise roughly 9 billion yen for the effort through a private offer of shares. JFE Chemical and five other Japanese companies are expected to purchase the stock. Sanyo Chemical's stake in APB is seen shrinking from 66% to less than a majority once the private placement wraps up. https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Electronics/Plastic-batteries-that-won-t-catch-fire-set-for-mass-production If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/6163260.html 
According to The Nikkei Asian Review, Japanese materials maker Toray Industries looks to start mass production of polyester made entirely from plants, a breakthrough poised to cut reliance on petroleum and slash carbon emissions, Nikkei has learned.
Toray developed what is being described as the world's first 100% plant-based polyester jointly with Virent, a U.S. biofuels startup. Production is set to begin in the early part of this decade, people familiar with the matter said. Textiles have come under global scrutiny for their large carbon footprint. Polyesters in particular account for 80% of chemical fibers produced worldwide. Ethical concerns are pushing apparel companies to shift away from petroleum-based fibers. H&M said last year that it will switch completely to sustainable materials by 2030. "In the U.S. and Europe, you are increasingly unable to do business unless you use environmentally friendly material," said the head of a Japanese textiles trading firm. Fast Retailing, the Japanese operator of casualwear chain Uniqlo, already uses biofibers in some of its products. In January, the group joined the United Nations Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action, which targets a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from the sector by 2030. More than 90 companies have signed on to the charter. Both the terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol that form polyester are derived from petroleum. Technology already exists to extract ethylene glycol from sugarcane, and Toray uses the plant-based alternative in some of the fibers it sells. Virent is able to create a biologically derived version of terephthalic acid, which constitutes 70% of polyester content. Inedible portions of sugarcane and corn apparently will be processed to make the chemical. The plant-based fiber is said to have the same durability and ease of processing as conventional polyesters. Toray and Virent envision the material being used in sportswear, automotive interiors and other products. Toray, Japan's biggest textile company by sales, plans to quadruple supplies of environmentally friendly material by fiscal 2030 compared with fiscal 2013 as demand for such products grows. In the U.K. alone, purchases of ethical clothing rose 16% in 2018 to 50 million pounds (US$ 65 million) -- 12 and a half times as much as in 1999, according to Ethical Consumer, a magazine. https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Materials/Exclusive-Toray-develops-first-100-plant-based-polyester If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/1009601387.html 
According to The Australian Financial Review, Melbourne-based biotech company Firebrick Pharma has developed a "disinfectant for your nose" that could be capable of reducing the amount of detectable coronavirus by almost 100 per cent.
In a report seen by The Australian Financial Review, laboratory tests in a test tube showed its nasal spray, Nasodine, reduced the amount of detectable coronavirus by 99.97 per cent and eliminated the infectious properties of any remaining virus. The company, founded in 2012 by Betadine throat gargle creator Dr Peter Molloy, tested its nasal spray on the coronavirus on the basis that it kills viruses indiscriminately, so logically could be effective on the coronavirus – as well as SARS, MERS or influenza. The catch is that the patented nasal spray, developed to-date as a combative measure against the common cold, is in the final stages of its phase three clinical trial and yet to be approved for use by any global regulators. Dr Molloy is hoping to receive permission from the health department and the Therapeutic Goods Administration to make the nasal spray available in special conditions to healthcare workers at risk of exposure to the coronavirus. https://www.afr.com/companies/healthcare-and-fitness/melbourne-company-creates-nasal-spray-for-coronavirus-20200220-p542ly If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/3027511.html 
According to The Australian Financial Review, Australia's three largest cities will suffer a shortage of new housing by 2022 as the pullback by investors and tighter credit conditions that all but stopped new apartment projects send rents soaring, new figures from Charter Keck Cramer show.
While prices in Sydney and Melbourne picked up strongly mid-year last year, that has had little effect in promoting new development. The number of new units marketed last year in both cities – a crucial indicator of the supply pipeline – fell sharply from 2018, the consultancy's State of the Market residential apartment reports showed. "All of the east coast capitals are facing a significant shortage by the end of 2021," said Charter Keck Cramer national director of research and strategy Rob Burgess. https://www.afr.com/property/residential/east-coast-capitals-face-significant-housing-shortage-20200212-p54037 If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/1314511.html 
According to The Nikkei Asian Review, Nissan Motor and Japanese telecom provider NTT Group will kick off a service as early as this year that allows corporations to cut utility bills by tapping power generated by electric vehicles and solar panels during peak demand.
The service can also be used as an emergency power source in the event of a disaster. Osaka-based NTT Smile Energy, which handles the telecom provider's power business, will work with Nissan to expand the service across the country. Nissan will lease its flagship electric vehicle, the Leaf, to companies and NTT will install solar panels on such places as rooftops. In addition to using solar energy during the daytime business hours when power consumption is high, cheaper overnight power is stored in the batteries of the electric vehicles to be tapped during the daytime. Details are yet to be hammered out, but NTT, as Nippon Telegraph and Telephone is known, will become the service provider and take a cut of the cost savings as compensation. Nissan will sell such data as the operating status of the Leaf and its power levels to NTT for a fee. NTT will then analyze the most efficient way of using power and managing the balance between the solar energy systems and electric vehicle batteries over the cloud. The parties expect demand from companies not only seeking to cut costs but also looking to increase use of renewable energy and to have electric vehicles as a backup power sources during a disaster. Nissan and NTT West demonstrated the technology last summer at a company site in Yamaguchi. Electricity costs were cut by a tenth by using 16.5 kilowatts from solar power and the batteries of three Leaf vehicles during peak hours. The branch, which employs about 300 people, was able to reduce electricity costs by about 1 million yen (US$ 9,110), or 10% of its total bill. https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Venture-pairs-Nissan-s-Leaf-with-solar-energy-to-cut-utility-costs If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/ev-ntt.html 
According to The Nikkei Asian Review, Japanese exports of wagyu in 2019 hit all-time highs on the back of Asia's growing appetite for the premium beef, especially among the region's rising middle-class.
Compared with about a decade earlier, exports jumped nearly ninefold in value and eightfold in volume. According to the Ministry of Finance, exports totaled 29.7 billion yen (US$ 268.8 million) in 2019, up 20% from the previous year to exceed the government target of 25 billion yen by about 20%. And while exports remain strong at present, concerns over the coronavirus outbreak have producers and distributors worried about the future. The biggest importer was Cambodia, which bought 8.67 billion yen worth of wagyu, up 54% from 2018. This was followed by Hong Kong at 5.07 billion yen, up 23%. Taiwan and the U.S. ranked third and fourth, respectively. Much of Cambodia's imports are believed to be re-exported to China, which still bans Japanese beef. In terms of volume, exports in 2019 increased 22% to 4,339 tons, topping the government target of 4,000 tons. Meanwhile, the price per kilogram dipped 1.6% to 6,836 yen on the year, and was down 4% from 7,098 yen three years ago. The price drop for the third consecutive year reflects changing tastes and a growing market for both prime cuts and relatively inexpensive parts. Sirloin, tenderloin and other premium cuts used for steak are popular in the U.S., Europe, Hong Kong and Taiwan, where marbled beef is rare. Export prices for these cuts has remained high as most of the beef is rated A5, the highest quality. But in other parts of Asia, relatively inexpensive parts, such as chuck and rib, are becoming popular as people adopt Japanese eating habits. Rather than thick-cut steaks, wagyu is served thinly sliced or in small chunks, often in Japanese-style restaurants. Chuck and rib go for 4,841 yen and 4,769 yen per kilogram, respectively -- about 40% lower than the 8,169 yen for sirloin. Increased competition in the crowded Japanese restaurant market has also helped drive down prices. "Demand for A4- and A3-grade beef has increased over the past year," said an official at meat purveyor Starzen. The falling export prices are tracking similar drops in Japan. Benchmark wholesale prices per kilo of A4 beef averaged 2,411 yen in 2019 -- a 2.5% decrease from the previous year as domestic consumers shunned the luxury-priced meat. The ceiling on low-tariff beef exports to the U.S. was dramatically raised from the previous 200 tons in January, while China is expected to lift a ban on Japanese beef this year for the first time in about twenty years. This has the beef industry excited. "Expectations of an increase in exports are high," said a beef distributor, as exports account for only 2% to 3% of wagyu production in Japan. But one exporter was not as optimistic, noting that the popularity of wagyu in Hong Kong and the U.S. may be plateauing. In addition to promoting tasty cuts and affordable prices, "we should change our approach to make [wagyu] stand out more, perhaps by using story-based marketing," said Akihide Kitamoto, deputy chief of overseas operations at Starzen. https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Markets/Commodities/Japan-s-wagyu-exports-sizzle-as-more-Asians-dig-in If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/4015392.html 
According to The Asahi Shimbun, Japanese researchers have developed an environmentally friendly method of recycling concrete waste by mixing in wood and other materials.
The new method makes it possible to “recycle concrete waste without using cement,” Yuya Sakai, a lecturer at the University of Tokyo’s Institute of Industrial Science, who led the research team, said at a news conference. “It will help reduce carbon dioxide and reuse wood building materials and plants that would otherwise be scrapped,” Sakai said. Every year, 33 million tons of concrete waste, such as debris from demolished buildings and bridges, are generated in Japan. In many cases, such concrete waste is pulverized and reused as sub-base gravel for road surfaces. Some of the waste will be recycled into concrete by adding cement. However, since cement is produced by burning limestone at 1,500 degrees, the cost is high. In the new method, researchers crushed concrete waste to a powder. Then they added wood powder and water into the mixture and applied pressure equivalent to five atmospheres at a temperature of 160 degrees. The mixture became concrete again, without the use of cement. The flexural strength of the recycled concrete exceeded regular concrete, researchers said. Lignin, a chemical compound richly contained in plants, played a role as an adhesive bond and helped connect particles of the pounded concrete, according to the researchers. The durability of the recycled concrete seemed inferior to regular concrete. However, researchers are confident that the recycled concrete can be sufficiently utilized for parking blocks and temporary facilities. http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13121296 If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-co25361710.html 
According to The Australian Financial Review, shares in ASX minnow Micro-X Ltd surged 29 per cent after the Adelaide-based manufacturer said it secured two orders from south east Asian governments seeking to use its X-ray technology to help diagnose the coronavirus.
The company’s first product, the Carestream DRX Revolution Nano, is an ultra-lightweight digital medical X-ray system for the expanding mobile X-ray market in hospitals. Micro-X said production has moved to full capacity to fulfil all these orders within four weeks. CEO Peter Rowland said chest X-rays are a key tool in monitoring the progression of the pneumonia-like symptoms of severe coronavirus infection. While the normal early-stage diagnosis of coronavirus is by a blood test, like with pneumonia, a chest X-ray is used to detect fluid in the lungs, particularly with patients presenting with severe acute respiratory distress. https://www.afr.com/companies/healthcare-and-fitness/micro-x-surges-on-coronavirus-contract-wins-20200213-p540ln If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link: https://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/8231665.html |
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AuthorHaru Kinase 
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