According to The Nikkei Asian Review today, Japan's travel agency JTB and credit card issuer JCB will track the shopping activities of foreign visitors and analyse the results to help local municipalities come up with ideas to attract tourists.
The service will launch on a trial basis next month, with the developers aiming to commercialize it in fiscal 2017.
The duo have teamed with Nippon Telegraph and Telephone and the Japan Shopping Tourism Organization. To study the behaviour of foreign visitors to Japan, the group will combine a smartphone app for sightseeing developed by JTB and NTT with gift cards issued by JCB. Visitors using the app need to register information such as their gender and nationality. If they agree, the app will also collect GPS information on their whereabouts.
The idea is for users of this app to make purchases using the gift cards so that data can be collected about their spending, including the location. Analysing the data can reveal the preferences of different nationalities and which amenities are most effective at attracting foreign tourists.

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Consumers/New-service-will-let-towns-grasp-visitor-spending

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-jtb
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According to the Nikkei Asian Review today, Toyota Motor and Suzuki Motor have begun talks on a tie-up, looking to take advantage of each other's know-how and capitalize on demand for compact cars in India and other emerging economies.
Suzuki, which sells 2.79 million vehicles a year globally, drives Japan's minicar market alongside Toyota group company Daihatsu Motor. Its strengths include low-cost vehicle production. It boasts a 40% share of the Indian passenger-vehicle market, a major profit source. Suzuki's robust sales network, built up over three decades, would likely be a major asset to Toyota as it expands its Indian operations.
While Toyota set up a production arm in India in 1997, the results have been lackluster, with its market share at just 5% or so. The automaker aims to use the partnership with Suzuki to gain a firmer foothold in areas of greater Asia outside its existing stronghold, which includes Thailand and Indonesia.
Toyota tops the global automobile market with annual group sales of some 10 million vehicles. It is a leader in safety technology, including self-driving cars, as well as eco-friendly vehicles such as the Prius hybrid and Mirai fuel cell car. Environmental and safety regulations are expected to tighten worldwide. With integration of information technology becoming essential to the industry, Suzuki likely aims to take advantage of Toyota's next-generation technology.
Suzuki and the Toyota group will discuss the potential partnership from a variety of angles, with cross-shareholdings a possibility.
Suzuki formed a capital alliance with Volkswagen in December 2009 after ending its long-standing partnership with General Motors. But differences of opinion over management control and technology sharing led to international arbitration, which brought an end to the tie-up last September. Toshihiro Suzuki succeeded his father Osamu Suzuki, the Japanese automaker's charismatic chairman, as president last June. Talks had been underway behind the scenes about the company's "post-Osamu" direction.
The company bought back nearly 20% of its outstanding shares from Volkswagen for roughly 460 billion yen (US$3.88 billion). It plans to retire a portion of this stock as well as use some of it for new partnerships and other initiatives.
The Toyota group, Volkswagen and GM lead the global auto industry. Peers often cooperate as well as compete, as shown by such arrangements as GM and Honda Motor working together to develop fuel cell cars. An alliance between market leader Toyota and Japanese No. 4 Suzuki would likely have a significant impact on the industry's balance of power.

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Japan-Update/Toyota-Suzuki-discuss-broad-alliance-on-tech-emerging-markets
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/122
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According to The Australian Financial Review today, Vodafone Hutchison Australia chief executive Inaki Berroeta says improving customer satisfaction, launching tailored mobile plans and gearing up for the next generation of 5G mobile services will be top priorities for the year ahead.
Mr Berroeta nominated 2018 as a turning point for Vodafone Australia as the national broadband network gains scale across the country.
The company was playing a major role in changing the price and profile of mobile customers. It is expected to continue rebounding with subscriber and revenue growth over the next 12 months, raising pressure on and potentially reducing profit margins for rivals Telstra and Singtel-Optus.
"We've spent a couple of years upgrading and improving our infrastructure," Mr Berroeta said. "We haven't stopped and … the pace at which we continue to improve our network remains and the reason for that is because we're already looking into 5G.
"I think that by 2020 we will have 5G in Australia. We're aiming for that."
5G is designed to deliver download speeds of up to 10 gigabit a per second with almost no signal delay to allow driverless cars. Mr Berroeta predicted that Australia's telecommunications market would benefit from the $56 billion NBN finally reaching sufficient scale and said his telco would most likely play a part.
"The reality is by 2018 the NBN will be reaching about 10 million households and that is something that represents a significant shift in this market," he said. "2018 … is going to be a milestone. That is a year when we will see quite a bit of change in the fixed broadband market.
Mr Berroeta signed a partnership with TPG Telecom last year to connect its fibre-optic cable network with his mobile phone cell towers. He also said it was possible to partner with TPG's brands to launch a landline broadband service but would not provide any timelines.
The telco will also continue targeting the small to medium business market with dedicated mobile plans and sales teams – a strategy it launched in June 2015.
"The results we have seen in the past six months for small to medium businesses have also been impressive and it opens the way for us to continue even further [this] year," he said. "We also need to become a much more segmented company in terms of looking at different Australians."
This would result in highly personalised plans that were relevant for groups like students, farmers or families, he said.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/business/telecommunications/vodafones-inaki-berroeta-gears-up-for-next-gen-mobiles-20160112-gm47u2

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/121
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According to The Australian Financial Review, the Gold Coast's residential real estate market is stubbornly inching its way back with a 60 per cent clearance rate at Ray White's annual The Event auction on Sunday.
Of the 105 properties in the order of sale, 45 sold under the hammer on the day, with an additional 18 sold prior.
Ray White Surfers Paradise chief executive Andrew Bell, who oversaw the 22nd annual auction event, said he expects the clearance rate will be up to 80 per cent by mid-week. He said the gap between between buyers' and sellers' expectations.
"This is not too unusual for the Gold Coast market to get some sellers who think we are probably a little ahead of where we actually are," Mr Bell said. "And I think some of the buyers are still conservative on prices."
At 4.40 Sydney time, 30 properties worth $27.6 million had sold, with 57 properties having been auctioned.
Sam and Queenie Ge snapped up a mortgagee-in-possession apartment for $488,000 at 5 Lawson Street, Southport Central.
"We don't really know where values are going," Mr Ge said, "I just bought it because my wife liked it."
Mr Ge, who owns travel agency FIT Travel, said his price expectation were getting close to the top.
"We would have gone to $500,000 if we needed too," he said, "We will probably just buy it without borrowing."
"The top end of our market has been very light in sales volumes," Mr Bell said. "But I think we are going to see four or five $5 million sales and one over $10 million in the next few months and that will give people confidence that the market is moving again."
Ray White Group joint chairman Brian White attended the auction and said there was a clear indication that interstate buyers were checking the Gold Coast for property.
"If you had to pick a market for 2016 I would say it's the Gold Coast," he said. "The recovery didn't happen fast; it's still going and Sydney buyers have started buying there."
Prices for houses and apartments are set to rise this year at the Gold Coast. The man who repeatedly predicted the boom in Sydney's house prices, SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher, has forecast growth of up to 11 per cent in Gold Coast prices.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/real-estate/gold-coast-property-market-the-pick-for-2016-20160121-gmatkd
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-20161
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According to The Nikkei Asian Review, smartphones and PCs may have become an essential part of most people's jobs nowadays, but being glued to a screen for most of your waking life is far from what you would call healthy. However, some eyewear manufacturers have seen the increasing number of people suffering chronic eyestrain as an opportunity.
Paris Miki, a Tokyo-based chain of upmarket eyewear stores has released a product called "Sanso Megane" (oxygen glasses) to break into the so-called "functional eyewear" segment, which until now has been dominated by its rival JIN.
Launched on 27 Nov last year, the glasses supposedly attract oxygen and water vapor to the eyes to prevent dryness and other types of eyestrain. The frame of the new glasses is coated with the company's proprietary technology, a unique light-induced transparent film to create a moistened environment around the eyes.
The film is mainly comprised of titanium oxide which, according to the company, generates electrons and holes left by electron excitation when it reacts with ultraviolet light. These holes in turn react with hydroxide ions, generating oxygen and water vapor around the eyes.
In order to back up its claims, Paris Miki conducted a 24-hour performance test at a public facility. The results did indeed show that oxygen glasses generated higher levels of both oxygen and water vapor surrounding the eyes than regular glasses.
Light-induced transparent films exhibit a paramagnetic property when exposed to light. Since pollen is diamagnetic, the new glasses can also help keep pollen away from the wearer, the company claims.
Moreover, the glasses' oxidative power can supposedly help break down harmful substances, which contributes to an antibacterial effect.
The nose pads are coated with diamondlike carbon, which helps diffuse the heat around the area in direct contact with the skin, which the company says stops makeup from rubbing off so easily.
Oxygen glasses come with the price tag of 5,500 yen (US$46.31) a pair, and the company targets sales of 100,000 pieces in total. Paris Miki will also offer to apply their special coatings to customers' existing glasses.
Paris Miki has cut into the functional eyewear segment with a completely different approach to JIN, another manufacturer that has pioneered the field with JINs PC and JINs Screen, its PC-use glasses. JIN has been a leader in creating demand for functional glasses, which go beyond simply vision correction.
Where Paris Miki highlights the frame coating technology for relieving eyestrain, JIN appeals to consumers with lenses that filter out blue light from PC and smartphone screens. JIN has so far sold a total of more than 6 million units, dominating the market for PC-use glasses, making Paris Miki's different strategy seem like a wise move.
Paris Miki's claims over the health benefits of oxygen glasses may sound impressive, but without firm scientific evidence consumers may well be hesitant.
The company's test results show certain performance improvements when the new product was compared with conventional glasses, but the differences are marginal at best. In the 24-hour performance test, on average, oxygen glasses showed 55.1% humidity while conventional ones 52.4%. The new glasses had saturated water vapor of 11.9 grams per cubic meter while conventional ones had 11.3 grams. The new glasses registered dissolved oxygen of 0.4997 grams per cubic meter, conventional had 0.4746 grams.
With such inconclusive results, consumers are likely to feel the jury is still out on how effective oxygen glasses are. If they are to prove a success, Paris Miki may well need to provide some more convincing data. The company has had the product endorsed by one doctor, but as the head of his own small private eye clinic, that may not be entirely sufficient.
In contrast, JIN has involved several university researchers in the development of its product and has continued to engage with the academic community to carry out further research. The company underscores the effects of its products based on this research. In this regard, Paris Miki lags well behind its rival.
"It is interesting that oxygen glasses offer a completely different solution to ease eyestrain from JINs PC. Although light-induced hydrophilia of titanium oxide has long been known, applying them to glass frames to prevent eyestrain and dry eyes is something quite new," said one scientist.
"The company's data shows that the amounts of oxygen and water vapor increase near the frame area, but we can't tell if that will actually add more oxygen and water vapor to the eyes and help recover from eyestrain."

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Oxygen-glasses-offer-relief-from-eyestrain
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/120
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According to The Nikkei Asian Review today, the Bank of Japan is taking a serious look at expanding its monetary easing measures as sliding oil prices weigh heavily on the central bank's 2% inflation target.
The strengthening yen and tumbling stock prices will also figure into the central bank's two-day policy board meeting scheduled to begin on 28 Jan.
Governor, Haruhiko Kuroda, told the upper house audit committee Thursday that the bank will "continue to carefully monitor" the impact the market turmoil is having on the economy and consumer prices. The bank will also make "policy adjustments without hesitation" if deemed necessary for reaching the 2% goal, he said.
With the stock rally fuelled by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Abenomics economic program now in peril, expectations are growing within the government and the ruling party for additional easing steps.
Formulating specific monetary policy measures "should be left to the BOJ," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference Thursday, before adding: "I believe the BOJ is keeping a close eye" on current conditions.
The central bank will downgrade its fiscal 2016 consumer price growth forecast from 1.4% to around 1% or lower when it releases its Outlook for Economic Activity and Prices report on 29 Jan. It is also likely that the BOJ will extend the time frame for hitting the 2% inflation target beyond "around the second half of fiscal 2016" as currently estimated.
Many at the BOJ argued until recently that the bank should monitor the consumer price situation up until around spring before making a decision on additional easing. However, financial markets have been gyrating since the beginning of the year and the effects are threatening to spill over into the real economy.
The oil rout has changed the BOJ's thinking. "If falling consumer prices resulting from crude's plunge are making more people feel that prices are less likely to rise, then we should consider additional easing," said a senior BOJ official.
The Japanese currency also presents another threat. It briefly strengthened beyond 116 to the dollar for the first time in a year on Wednesday. That spells bad news for earnings at such companies as Ricoh and Mazda Motor -- both assume an exchange rate of 120 for the latter half of fiscal 2015. Toyota Motor, with an assumed rate of 115, also stands to lose.
The BOJ is increasingly worried that earnings deterioration may discourage wage increases and capital expenditures, both considered key to escaping deflation.
The most likely additional easing step would be to bump up the BOJ's purchases of government bonds -- now 80 trillion yen (US$676 billion) a year -- by 10 trillion yen to 20 trillion yen. There is also a proposal to boost purchases of exchange-traded funds, currently at 3 trillion yen annually.
Some say the bank needs to explore new easing measures since the number of Japanese government bonds circulating in the market has diminished due to the BOJ's buying spree. The central bank could consider purchasing municipal bonds and other assets.

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/Economy/BOJ-mulls-additional-easing-amid-economic-uncertainty
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-28
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According to The Australian Financial Review today, an Australian company, Cox Architecture, which came second in the global race to design the Tokyo 2020 Olympic stadium, will consult on the aquatic centre for Obayashi Corporation, after the Japanese contractor won the three-way race for the ¥43.5 billion ($535 million) facility.
It's a win that follows three years of work courting Tokyo-listed Obayashi - one of Japan's five largest builders - and paves the way for Cox to win more work with the contractor in Japan and abroad. Exports of Australian professional services lag commodities.
"It's very important in terms of building a relationship with Obayashi for opportunities in Japan - so many contracts are led by contractors – and being seen as innovative, creative and able to think outside the box is a commodity they really appreciate," Cox director Alastair Richardson said.
Mr Richardson, who heads sports stadium design for Cox, will travel to Japan in March to formalise the firm's role in the consortium. The completed facility has to be ready by mid-2019, a year before the tournament. Detailed design was likely to be completed this year and construction should start by year-end or early next year, he said.
Obayashi's bid was the cheapest of the three - others were led by rivals Shimizu Corp and Taisei Corp - but all three were under the ¥53.8 billion budget.
A key opportunity, post-Olympics, would be work on the redevelopment of downtown Tokyo's Tsukiji Fish Market, a 23-hectare site that will end its current role in November when it moves to a larger site on reclaimed land 4km away in Tokyo Bay.
"It's going to be one of the biggest city building projects of Tokyo outside of the Olympics," Mr Richardson said.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/business/construction/cox-architecture-qualifies-for-tokyo-olympics-in-winning-swimming-pool-bid-20160120-gma5w0
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/119
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According to The Australian Financial Review today, Tokyo, Sydney and Melbourne are the top three destinations for global investment in the Asia Pacific region this year, as overseas investors, cautious about China's economic slowdown look to more stable markets.
With Japan (59 per cent) and Australia (53 per cent) listed as the preferred target countries for more than half of investors surveyed, their largest cities also topped the table in real estate agency Colliers International's 2016 Global Investor Outlook.
In the city ranking Tokyo (33 per cent), Sydney (29 per cent) and Melbourne (23 per cent) were followed by Hong Kong (16 per cent), Shanghai (16 per cent) and Singapore (16 per cent) as the preferred Asia-Pacific cities for investment this year, the report says.
CBD offices remain the favoured investment for both Asian and Australia-New Zealand investors, with nearly two-thirds of respondents singling the category out.
At a time of growing caution among investors globally, the appetite to take on new risk is diminishing, however, the report also says.
The number of Asian investors willing to take more risks in the next 12 months has declined to 33 per cent from last year's 58 per cent.
Australian investors and their Kiwi counterparts have an even weaker appetite to increase their risk to boost higher returns, with just 35 per cent saying they were willing to do so.
The attraction of the Asia Pacific region to outside investors has weakened slightly from last year. The share of overseas investors looking at the region in the next 12 months is 15 per cent, compared with 18 per cent last year.

Ref: http://www.afr.com/real-estate/tokyo-sydney-melbourne-top-regional-investment-wishlist-colliers-report-says-20160118-gm8qys

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-33
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According to The Nikkei Asian Review today, Panasonic and auto parts maker Denso are separately developing systems to make cars safer by replacing mirrors with cameras and monitors, part of a digitization trend likely to reshape the automotive components industry.
They will compete with major car mirror manufacturers Ichikoh Industries and Murakami. The Japanese government is set to allow mirrorless cars on public roads as early as June.
Denso does not make mirrors but aims to capture market share by taking advantage of its information technology refined for such applications as engine control systems. It has developed cameras that install where the side mirrors would normally go, among other places. The driver sees the rear view, including blind spots, on monitors placed on both sides of the steering wheel.
The company has partnered with image-processing start-up Morpho to improve the picture quality of the cameras.
Panasonic has bought a stake in Ficosa International. The mirrorless system under development will combine Panasonic's IT with Spanish side mirror manufacturer's mirror expertise.
French auto parts supplier Valeo is also getting into the game, developing mirrorless technology it plans to sell to Japanese carmakers. The system is said to process images rapidly and includes functionality to reduce afterimages.
Automakers including Toyota Motor are laying the groundwork for adopting the new technology, taking such steps as announcing concept cars without side mirrors.
The computerization of vehicles is shaking up the components industry. Electric cars are poised to cut demand for engines and transmissions, while touch panels are ready to take over for switches. If driverless technology continues its march, parts for steering wheels and brakes will undergo a significant transformation. As electronics companies and other new faces take advantage of the new opportunities, auto parts producers that have maintained close ties with major Japanese automakers will have to cultivate new technologies and clients.

Ref: http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Trends/New-players-get-into-gear-with-mirrorless-systems
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If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/118
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According to The Asahi Shimbun, a research team in Japan has developed a carbon-fibre manufacturing method that uses half the energy consumed in the current process and could increase maximum output of the strong but lightweight material tenfold.
The new process was announced on 14th Jan by New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), which worked with the University of Tokyo, Toray Industries Inc., Teijin Ltd. and others in the development.
The production process of carbon fibre has remained nearly unchanged since 1959, when the current method was conceived by Japanese researchers.
Carbon fibre is now considered indispensable for reducing the weight of aircraft and automobiles.
Typical carbon fibre has about 10 times the tensile strength of iron but with only one-fourth of the weight.
However, the current carbon-fibre manufacturing method requires huge expenses and a large amount of energy to heat acrylic fibres at a high temperature for an extended period.
The new formula dispenses with the prolonged heating process by using specially processed chemical fibres.
Annual maximum output of carbon fibre is estimated at 2,000 tons per production line. The new process could bump up the amount to more than 20,000 tons a year, NEDO said.
Some industry experts expect the global carbon fibre market to grow 15 percent annually by 2020 as demand rises for production of aircraft and automobiles. The new process could further expand the market.
Three Japanese companies, Toray, Teijin and Mitsubishi Rayon Co., produce around 65 percent of the world’s carbon fibre.

Ref: http://ajw.asahi.com/article/business/AJ201601150060

If you want to read this article in Japanese, please see the following link:
http://www.j-abc.com/jp-blog/-10-nedo
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