TOKYO -- In fields in Kenya, rice sown in February is steadily growing by using methods different from conventional farming. The crop lies not in flooded paddies but dry fields.

TOKYO -- Mirumi may be on the verge of becoming a surprise global hit, with the googly-eyed, Japanese-made robotic companion landing on shelves in Hong Kong and London.

BOSTON, Massachusetts -- Toyota Motor will use 40 fuel cell trucks for transporting cars and car parts in the U.S. under a partnership with Texas-based Hyroad Energy.

LOS ANGELES -- The U.S. is working to address the global memory chip shortage through a supply chain coalition with allies in Asia, Europe and the Middle East, a State Department official told Nikkei Asia Monday.

TOKYO -- Soaring fertilizer prices are looming over rice farmers in South and Southeast Asia as they prepare for the growing season, posing a risk to the food supply.

TOKYO -- Honda Motor is set to freeze plans to build an electric vehicle factory in Canada, Nikkei has learned, as sluggish U.S. demand pushes it to put hybrids at the center of its North American strategy.

TOKYO/MANILA -- Defense chiefs from Japan and the Philippines agreed Tuesday to formally begin discussions toward exporting surplus Japanese naval vessels to the Southeast Asian country.

TOKYO -- The prolonged conflict in the Middle East is boosting prices of materials used in automobiles like aluminum and plastics, with concerns growing that the trend will trickle downstream and eventually raise vehicle prices as well.

TOKYO -- Japanese shipping company Nippon Yusen will establish a transport network in East Africa, eyeing demand in high-growth economies along the Indian Ocean Rim.

TOKYO -- Japan is making a new push to bolster economic ties with African nations rich in crude oil and industrial minerals, as the Middle East conflict highlights risks to the country's energy supply.