JIJI English News-時事通信英語ニュース‪-‬ 時事通信社

Four Japanese nationals left New Caledonia and arrived in Brisbane by air Tuesday with support from the Australian government amid riots in the French Pacific territory, Japanese Foreign Ministry officials said Wednesday.

Japan has lodged a strong protest against a remark by the Chinese ambassador to the country over Tokyo's possible involvement in the situation in Taiwan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said Wednesday.

Japan's seasonally adjusted core machinery orders rose 2.9pctin March from a month earlier, marking two consecutive months of increase, the Cabinet Office said Wednesday.

The Paris Paralympics, set to kick off in under 100 days on Aug. 28, provide an important opportunity to pass on the legacy of the Tokyo Games, Japanese Paralympic Committee Chairman Junichi Kawai has said.

Japan swung to a customs-cleared trade deficit of 462.5 billion yen in April due to higher crude oil prices and a weak yen, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report Wednesday.

Nearly 40pctof companies in Japan are concerned about higher interest rates following the Bank of Japan's decision earlier this year to end its negative interest rate policy, a survey by Teikoku Databank Ltd. showed Tuesday.