Business & Economy
01 Daiei Kankyo backs restructuring of two PET recyclers
Daiei Kankyo has signed a preliminary agreement to sponsor the rehabilitation of Toshin and Reco, which entered civil rehabilitation proceedings in May. The proposed transfer would bring PET recycling and sheet production into its operations. A final agreement remains pending.
Source: 大栄環境 / Daiei Kankyo
02 Infomart plans restaurant software acquisition
Infomart plans to make K&C Factory a consolidated subsidiary. Its Pikaichi Navi system serves about 7,000 restaurant outlets, according to Infomart. Bringing store operations together with procurement software would broaden the company’s offering across sales, attendance and food and labor cost management.
Source: インフォマート / Infomart
03 Japan’s business growth cools as price pressures persist
S&P Global’s flash composite output index fell to 52.5 in September from 53.5 in August, remaining above the 50 threshold indicating expansion. Supplier delays and rising selling prices continued, showing that slower growth has not removed businesses’ cost pressures.
Source: S&P Global
Science & Technology
04 Osaka team develops laboratory model of antibody-refining cells
Osaka University researchers produced germinal-center-like B cells from human blood cells using three carefully sequenced signals. The method offers a more accessible tool for studying antibody development and investigating vaccine and autoimmune-disease mechanisms. Clinical applications remain prospective.
Source: 大阪大学 / Osaka University
Communities
05 Virtual zoo visits connect young hospital patients
More than 30 hospitals are participating in virtual outings for children and young patients undergoing lengthy treatment, according to Kyodo reporting published by Science Japan on September 18. Around 100 patients joined a July zoo tour, broadening access to shared activities for people unable to leave hospital.
Source: Science Japan / 共同通信・Kyodo
Sports
06 Kojima takes Asian Games medley gold in meet-record time
Seventeen-year-old Yumeki Kojima won the men’s 400-metre individual medley on September 22 in 4 minutes 7.02 seconds, an Asian Games record, AFP reported. Tomoyuki Matsushita finished second, highlighting Japan’s depth in the event as its swimmers look toward the 2028 Olympics.
Source: AFP
07 Japan Open qualifying starts September 28 at Ariake
Tokyo’s ATP 500 tournament begins qualifying on September 28, with the main draw scheduled for September 30–October 6. Ariake will host a 32-player singles draw and 16 doubles teams. The schedule gives spectators separate windows for qualifying and the main competition.
Source: 大会公式 / Official tournament
Culture
08 Tokyo exhibition explores embroidery across 40 countries
Bunka Gakuen Costume Museum’s exhibition opened September 24 and runs through November 21. Embroidery from roughly 40 countries shows how techniques and patterns reflect regional traditions, social position, household work and specialist craftsmanship, connecting clothing with the societies that produced it.
09 Kyoto exhibition links Ryōkan’s calligraphy with Zen practice
Hosomi Museum’s exhibition, running through November 8, examines Ryōkan through calligraphy, poetry and his relationships with others. Works long absent from public display, including Tenjō Taifū, offer a reason to revisit the monk’s artistic legacy alongside the religious practice that shaped his life.
Source: 細見美術館 / Hosomi Museum
10 Shizuoka traces Japan’s embrace of Renoir
An exhibition running September 22–November 15 presents 39 Renoir works held in Japan alongside Japanese and French paintings, within a display of approximately 80 artworks. Magazines, advertising and calendars also trace how museums and mass media made the French painter familiar to Japanese audiences.
Source: 静岡市 / Shizuoka City
