Rest of the World

Evelyn Taocheng Wang spent two years preparing her exhibition "Sweet Landscape," which examines life between cultures. (Photo by Luca Guadagnini)
A woman carries groceries in plastic bags in Tehran in March. Since the launch of a government-backed "No to Plastic" campaign in mid-May, scenes like this have become less common.
Tea Leaves

War spurs a greener turn in Iran

Government's 'No to Plastic' campaign gives reusable bags a patriotic spin

Tulsi Gabbard has submitted her resignation to support her husband after his cancer diagnosis. 
Politics

Gabbard resigns as Trump's top US intelligence official

Director of national intelligence cites her husband's illness as reason for departure

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas swears in new Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh next to his wife Jane Lauder, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on May 22.
Trump administration

Warsh takes the Fed's helm as inflation climbs, consumer sentiment dives

US central banker faces pressure from markets and colleagues over rate decisions

Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid and a source of widespread addiction-related problems in the U.S.
Fentanyl’s Hidden Routes

Japan part of fentanyl-smuggling route, US official says

Nikkei investigative series had pointed to suspected base of operations

Guzman y Gomez had 224 locations in its home market of Australia as of June 2025.
Food & Beverage

Australian fast-food chain Guzman y Gomez says 'adios' to tough US market

Poor profits spur shift in focus to higher-performing Singapore, Japan operations

23 May 2026
Hitachi Rail, a subsidiary of Hitachi, has been expanding its railway business beyond rolling stock and into operation systems and other IT fields. (Photo by Hideaki Ryugen)
Transportation

Hitachi lands deal for Mexican railway signaling system

Japanese company inks $195mn contract for installation on 396-km line

23 May 2026
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, left, and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. are expected to agree to start negotiations on an intelligence-sharing pact next week. (Source photos by Ken Suzuki and Ken Kobayashi) 
International relations

Japan and Philippines to start talks on intelligence-sharing pact

With China in mind, two U.S. allies aim for 3-way cooperation with Washington

22 May 2026
Li Chenggang, China’s vice minister of commerce, delivers opening remarks during the APEC China 2026 meeting of trade ministers in Suzhou on May 22.
Trade war

US-China trade talks back in focus at APEC meeting

Regional ministers gather in eastern China's Suzhou a week after Trump-Xi summit

22 May 2026
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang joined U.S. President Donald Trump's delegation for a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
22 May 2026
Former U.S. President John F. Kennedy signs a proclamation for the interdiction of the delivery of offensive weapons to Cuba during the Cuban missile crisis, at the White House in Washington in this handout photograph taken on Oct. 23, 1962. 
Opinion

Iran, Israel and Arab nations are bound by a new 'balance of terror'

Fear of attacks on energy, electricity and desalination systems may prove a deterrent against a wider war

22 May 2026
Some vape manufacturers target women with colorful vapes, some of which are made to look like lipsticks. (Photo by Jens Kastner)
Business trends

Chinese vape makers monopolize German market but face regulatory wrath

EU plan to ban disposables set to hit sales of manufacturers already hounded out of China

22 May 2026
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Dutch counterpart Rob Jetten walk in a garden in The Hague. Dutch chip equipment giant ASML agreed to a deal with India's Tata Electronics during Modi's trip. 
22 May 2026
Uncertainty about the situation in the Middle East saw copper prices fall in late March, but they have since rebounded.
Commodities

Speculators rush into copper as sulfur supply risk, AI drive up prices

Concerns about shortage of acid used in smelting push metal closer to record highs

22 May 2026
The two giant pandas that will come to the zoo in Atlanta. The timing of the transfer has not been announced. (Photo via Zoo Atlanta)
International relations

China to lend 2 more pandas to US in possible sign of warmer ties

New loan brings American total to 6, while Japan is left with none

22 May 2026
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar speaks in front of the U.S., Japanese and Australian foreign ministers before a Quad meeting at the State Department in Washington in July 2025.
Opinion

What's the purpose of the Quad?

Group's main challenge comes from America's strategic drift, rather than from China

22 May 2026
All shares of Nippon Information Industry now belong to the joint private equity fund. (Photo by Miyu Fukawa)
Business deals

Orix-Qatar private equity fund buys Japanese systems developer

Nippon Information Industry acquisition marks 1st deal by joint fund targeting IT, healthcare

22 May 2026
OpenAI's new GPT-5.5-Cyber model is said to have capabilities similar to Anthropic's Claude Mythos.
Artificial intelligence

OpenAI weighs letting Japan access new Mythos-class cybersecurity AI

Board member Paul Nakasone calls China 'most significant' cyberthreat

22 May 2026
Kawasaki Heavy Industries will integrate Nvidia's AI technology with its robotics applications. (Source photos by Nikkei)
Artificial intelligence

Kawasaki Heavy to partner with Nvidia on physical AI, open US robot center

Japan industrial group's joint development initiative includes Microsoft, Fujitsu

22 May 2026
Solar panels being installed at a residential home in San Diego, California: Major Chinese solar panel manufacturer JinkoSolar Holding has agreed to sell a 75.1% stake in subsidiary Jinko Solar (U.S.) Industries to American private equity firm FH Capital.
Business deals

How Chinese renewable JVs are carving new investment route into US

Trump crackdown on China-linked clean energy plants could provide basis for funding

22 May 2026
U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested that he will speak with Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te as he weighs a potential arms sale to Taipei. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters and Sae Kamae)
Taiwan tensions

China chides US after Trump says he will talk to Taiwan's Lai

Beijing urges Washington to abide by 'understanding' reached only a week ago

21 May 2026
Mazda unveiled the newest version of its CX-5 SUV in Tokyo on May 21. (Photo by Yuki Nakao)
Automobiles

Mazda bets on flagship CX-5 SUV, boosting sales amid rise of Chinese rivals

Japanese automaker strengthens hybrid lineup while scaling back EV investments

21 May 2026
A Stellantis automobile plant in Poissy, near Paris, on May 4: The automaker has tightened ties with Chinese partners Leapmotor and Dongfeng, in part to address underused European capacity.
Automobiles

Chinese EV makers awaken Western rivals' zombie production lines

Tactic for dodging tariffs and easing trade tensions could raise costs, compliance risks

21 May 2026
Demonstrators push through police barricades while storming Nepal's Parliament during youth-led protests in Kathmandu on Sept. 8, 2025. Analysts say Washington and Beijing are stepping up engagement with young people in Nepal to build ties in case they assume positions of power. (Nikkei montage/Source photo by Reuters)
International relations

US and China woo Nepali youth with skill programs after Gen Z movement

Analysts see long-term play for 'influence' with future political leaders

21 May 2026
Zhou Qunfei, the chair of Lens Technology, is one the world's top four self-made female billionaires, according to Forbes. 
Trump-Xi Summit

Who was the Chinese 'glass queen' sitting between Musk and Cook?

Factory-worker-turned billionaire Zhou Qunfei got noticed at the Xi-Trump state dinner

21 May 2026
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is seeking to raise up to $80 billion in an IPO that would value the company at a $2 trillion.
IPO

Elon Musk's SpaceX IPO omits China as a market but warns it is a threat

Company aims to deploy orbital AI compute satellites as soon as 2028

21 May 2026
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang joined U.S. President Donald Trump's delegation for a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Semiconductors

Nvidia reports 85% revenue jump but still excludes China in outlook

AI chip giant aims to be world-leading CPU supplier with $200bn new market

21 May 2026
Iran has warned against renewed attacks and announced a new attempt to control traffic in the critical Strait of Hormuz. (Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency via Reuters)
Iran war

Trump says willing to wait a few days for 'right answer' on Iran deal

Oil price slides on renewed hopes for peace agreement

21 May 2026
Preparations are underway for a test flight of SpaceX's Starship spacecraft in Starbase, Texas, on Monday.
IPO

Bound for Mars, Elon Musk's SpaceX unveils blockbuster IPO filing

Listing poised to become first trillion-dollar debut in US

21 May 2026
Cuba's former President Raul Castro claps during a ceremony marking the 69th anniversary of the 1953 rebel assault which late Cuban leader Fidel Castro led on the Moncada army barracks, in Cienfuegos, Cuba, on July 26, 2022.
Crime

Former Cuban President Raul Castro indicted in US on murder charges

Move comes as Trump pushes for regime change on communist-ruled island

21 May 2026