TOKYO -- KDDI, Japan's second-largest mobile provider, has emerged as one of SpaceX's partners in rolling out high-speed wireless coverage via satellites, Nikkei has learned, part of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk's goal of connecting the entire world to the internet.

SpaceX has launched hundreds of Starlink telecommunications satellites with the goal of fully starting services in Japan by the end of the year. KDDI and SpaceX will begin a network proving test in Japan this month, and coverage is expected to be

TOKYO -- A public and private group in Tokyo will trial a smartphone app that allows foreign blue-collar workers to file complaints and report problems.

The app will recognize any issues, including those related to visas, working conditions, housing and taxation. The group wants to raise the profile of the app among foreign workers so that they can report any issues that can then be recorded and eventually harnessed to develop a chatbot service using artificial intelligence.

The project is initiated by JP-Mirai, a multibody platform that oversees

KUALA LUMPUR -- The U.S. is lifting a ban on imports of medical gloves made by Top Glove, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Malaysian company.

The agency, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, said in an unpublished public inspection document filed Thursday on the website of the Federal Register that it found the gloves "are no longer being mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part with the use of convict, forced, or indentured labor by Top

NANNING, China -- Chinese officials have vowed to increase imports from Southeast Asian countries ahead of the opening of a new rail link to the bloc.

Addressing the 18th China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit in the southern Chinese city of Nanning, Vice President Wang Qishan said that both partners need to foster new development drivers to accelerate economic recovery.

"We will treat ASEAN as a priority in China's neighborhood diplomacy," Wang told the gathering of diplomats, businesspersons and officials who tuned in via video link

TOKYO -- Taro Kono, Japan's administrative reform minister, on Friday announced his bid to lead the Liberal Democratic Party but concealed views perceived to be radical for the country's conservative ruling party.

Emphasizing that he has belonged to the LDP for his entire political career, Kono told reporters that "conservatism is something which is generous, moderate and warm."

In announcing that he is joining the leadership race, Kono also said Japanese culture is built on the imperial family and the Japanese language. "I think

Dexter Roberts is a senior fellow with the Asia Security Initiative of the Atlantic Council and the author of "The Myth of Chinese Capitalism: The Worker, The Factory and The Future of the World."

Alibaba Group Holding, Meituan, Didi Global and Tencent Holdings have seen billions of dollars in share value erased in recent months as Beijing has reined in the internet sector as part of a wider crackdown on private business. Under the pressure of President Xi Jinping's slogan of common prosperity, the tech companies have also publicly

TOKYO -- A public and private group in Tokyo will trial a smartphone app that allows foreign blue-collar workers to file complaints and report problems.

The app will recognize any issues, including those related to visas, working conditions, housing and taxation. The group wants to raise the profile of the app among foreign workers so that they can report any issues that can then be recorded and eventually harnessed to develop a chatbot service using artificial intelligence.

The project is initiated by JP-Mirai, a multibody platform that oversees

SEONGNAM, South Korea -- The coronavirus pandemic is reshaping the $36.6 billion global biometric authentication industry and one South Korean company is seeking to build on existing strengths to innovate and boost sales.

CEO Kim Han-chul of Suprema said the Kosdaq-listed company is keen to adapt to COVID-driven changes in consumer perceptions and behaviors.

"The pandemic has shortened the path for the facial identification market, which had accounted for less than 10% [of the entire bio authentication market],"

TOKYO -- Shares in gaming companies are gaining traction as investors snap up the beaten down sector, in spite of growing pressure in China, the world's biggest gaming market, to limit the amount of playtime for underage kids.

Game stocks in the Tokyo market have picked up steam with software developers like Koei Tecmo Holdings, the company behind hit franchise "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," soaring 23% in the last month and "eFootball" creator Konami Holdings up 13% in the same period.