Japan births fall under 330,000 in Jan-June, down 6.3% from 2023 The number of births in Japan in 2024 is likely to fall under 700,000 for the first time after government data showed Tuesday that the figure in the first half fell 6.3 percent from a year earlier to 329,998. The figure for the first six months of this year, which does not include foreigners, reflects the birth rate remaining at record lows in the past years, as more people choose not to marry or delay marriage and having children until later in life. The number of deaths in the first half increased 1.8 percent from the same period last year to 800,274, and the natural decrease, subtracted from the number of births, stood at 470,276, according to the data from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. ©SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

Japan voted Best Country in world for 2nd year in a row in Conde Nast Traveler poll Conde Nast Traveler has released the results of its Readers’ Choice Awards, and for the second year in a row, Japan has been voted Best Country. Japan finished with a score of 95.32 in the annual user survey, followed by Switzerland at 94.62 and Thailand at 92.29. A detailed breakdown of the scoring system isn’t provided, but in announcing the results Conde Nast references pent-up demand for travel to Japan, which was one of the very last countries to re-open to international leisure travel following the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with restrictions in place even as the eyes of the world turned to Japan during the Tokyo Olympics. ©SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

Japan births fall under 330,000 in Jan-June, down 6.3% from 2023 The number of births in Japan in 2024 is likely to fall under 700,000 for the first time after government data showed Tuesday that the figure in the first half fell 6.3 percent from a year earlier to 329,998. The figure for the first six months of this year, which does not include foreigners, reflects the birth rate remaining at record lows in the past years, as more people choose not to marry or delay marriage and having children until later in life. The number of deaths in the first half increased 1.8 percent from the same period last year to 800,274, and the natural decrease, subtracted from the number of births, stood at 470,276, according to the data from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. ©SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

Japan voted Best Country in world for 2nd year in a row in Conde Nast Traveler poll Conde Nast Traveler has released the results of its Readers’ Choice Awards, and for the second year in a row, Japan has been voted Best Country. Japan finished with a score of 95.32 in the annual user survey, followed by Switzerland at 94.62 and Thailand at 92.29. A detailed breakdown of the scoring system isn’t provided, but in announcing the results Conde Nast references pent-up demand for travel to Japan, which was one of the very last countries to re-open to international leisure travel following the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with restrictions in place even as the eyes of the world turned to Japan during the Tokyo Olympics. ©SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR

SHIRSENDU KARMAKAR