News archive
Past daily articles for learners.
- daily life
Typhoon No. 18 May Hit Okinawa on Aug 25–26 — Right in the Middle of the Islands' Old Bon
Typhoon No. 18, called Soudel (ソウデル) in Japan, was near the Mariana Islands on August 22 and is moving north-northwest at about 20 km/h. The Japan Meteorological Agency expects it to intensify to a "very strong" typhoon around August 24, with central pressure near 925 hPa. Current forecasts take it past the Daito Islands on the 25th and bring it very close to — possibly directly over — the main Okinawa island on the 26th, with Miyako and Yaeyama at risk on the 27th. For the afternoon of the 26th the forecast is central pressure of 960 hPa, sustained winds of 40 m/s and gusts to 55 m/s, so violent wind, high waves and heavy rain are all possible at once. The Okinawa Meteorological Office expects to issue a storm warning for the Daito Islands around the 25th, and possibly for the main island the same day if the track shifts south. Okinawa's Old Bon (kyu-bon, the lunar-calendar Bon) falls on August 25–27 this year, so grave visits, family gatherings and heavily booked flights and ferries all overlap with the storm. Check the latest forecast, change or cancel travel early while fees are still avoidable, clear your balcony, and keep drinking water, food and a charged power bank ready in case of outages or water cuts. The track can still change.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
August is the summer's biggest electricity and gas discount — and nobody has to apply
Japan's government is discounting household electricity and city gas for July through September 2026 usage, and August is the most generous month of the three: 4.5 yen off per kWh of low-voltage electricity and 18 yen off per cubic metre of city gas, compared with 3.5 yen and 14 yen in July and September. No application is required — your electricity and gas companies apply the discount automatically, so August usage shows up as a reduction on the bill or meter-reading slip that arrives in September. Only city gas is covered; households on propane (LP gas) are not. A typical household is expected to save roughly 5,000 yen across the three months, and the support is currently set to end with September usage, so it is worth budgeting for higher utility bills from October.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
Water shortage in western Japan: Shikoku's Sameura Dam enters a third-stage intake cut, Kagawa's supply halved
Very little rain has fallen across western Japan since early July, and the drought is now biting. Sameura Dam in Kochi Prefecture — the reservoir that supplies much of Shikoku — moved to a third-stage intake restriction at 9 a.m. on August 19, the first time in about four years. The water sent to Kagawa Prefecture is cut by 50 percent and the water sent to Tokushima by roughly 18 percent; the cuts were tightened in stages from 20 percent on August 3 and 35 percent on August 10. The dam's storage rate was in the 37 percent range on August 17, far below the seasonal norm of around 80 percent, and Kagawa has started drawing emergency water from Lake Hozan in Mitoyo City. Rainfall from early July to mid-August was only around 10 percent of normal at places such as Tokushima and Miyazaki, and the storage rate at Sugesawa Dam in Tottori fell below 15 percent. The land ministry set up a drought information desk on August 6 and is urging people to save water. No wide-area shutoff is planned for now, but water pressure may drop and tap water may briefly run cloudy. If you live in the affected areas, check your local water bureau's notices and cut back where you easily can: shorter showers, reusing leftover bath water for laundry, and filling the sink instead of running the tap.
N5N4N3N2N1 - travel
A record July: about 3.44 million overseas visitors came to Japan
The Japan National Tourism Organization said on August 19 that an estimated 3,442,100 people visited Japan in July 2026 — almost flat against the same month last year, but the highest figure ever recorded for a July. South Korea sent the most travellers, about 894,700, while Taiwan set an all-time monthly record of about 763,800, passing 700,000 in a single month for the first time. Sixteen of the 23 markets JNTO tracks set July records, though some markets fell sharply. JNTO points to strong summer-holiday demand from East Asia, Western countries, Australia and the Middle East. For anyone living in or travelling around Japan, the practical takeaway is simple: airports, popular sightseeing areas and hotels are likely to stay busy, so book transport and accommodation early.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
Japan's Disaster Prevention Week is Aug 30–Sep 5: stock a week of water, check your hazard map
September 1 is Japan's Disaster Prevention Day, and the Cabinet Office has set this year's Disaster Prevention Week for August 30 to September 5, when drills and awareness events are held nationwide. Households are asked to do three things: stockpile drinking water, food and toilet supplies for at least three days, and a week if possible; use the local hazard map to check the risks around home and workplace and the route to the nearest evacuation site; and agree in advance on how family members will confirm each other's safety if they are apart. The government also warns against the "I'll be fine" mindset, which delays evacuation. August 26 is Volcano Disaster Prevention Day, and municipalities are asked to practise delivering information in multiple languages and formats so that foreign residents and visitors, and people with visual or hearing disabilities, are not left out. Foreign residents and travellers can get multilingual alerts free through the Japan Tourism Agency's Safety tips app.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
Japan's autumn saury forecast is the lowest on record — fewer fish, smaller fish
Sanma (Pacific saury) is Japan's signature autumn fish, but this year's season looks difficult. In late July the Fisheries Agency and the Fisheries Research and Education Agency published their long-term forecast for the August-to-December season: about 430,000 tons of saury are expected to come near Japan, roughly 40% of last year's figure and the lowest since this survey began in 2003. The fish are also expected to be smaller, around 100 grams each, because the share of one-year-old fish that the fleet normally targets has dropped sharply. The schools are travelling through waters far from Japan, so boats must go further to find them. Stick-held dip net fishing opened in Hokkaido on August 10, and the first saury landed at Nemuro were noticeably small. Changes in the ocean environment are seen as the background. For shoppers, that means grilled saury may again be expensive and thin this autumn — frozen or imported saury, or other autumn fish such as mackerel and salmon, are cheaper alternatives, and prices usually settle a little once the larger boats are fishing at full strength.
N5N4N3N2N1 - society
Chiba's record rain: over half the flood damage was outside the hazard map
Record rain hit Chiba Prefecture from the night of August 13 into the early hours of August 14. Chiba City measured 348 mm in 12 hours — its heaviest on record, and roughly three times the normal rainfall for the whole month of August — while about 110 mm fell in a single hour near Kashiwa. Weather company Weathernews then analysed around 20,000 reports sent in by users and found that more than half of the flood damage occurred outside the flood zones coloured on official hazard maps. Urban drainage is generally designed for about 50 mm of rain per hour, so when far more than that falls in a short time the water has nowhere to go and pools on roads, in underpasses and in basements even when no river overflows — what Japan calls naisui hanran, inland or urban flooding. The practical takeaway for anyone living in Japan: do check your local hazard map (city offices publish them online and on paper), but treat an uncoloured area as unmapped, not as safe. If you are in a low-lying spot, near an underpass or below ground level, move to an upper floor early and follow your municipality's evacuation information instead of waiting to see how bad it gets.
N5N4N3N2N1 - society
Kyoto's Gozan no Okuribi: five mountain fires close Obon tonight at 8 p.m.
Kyoto's Gozan no Okuribi, the fires that send ancestral spirits back after Obon, takes place on the night of August 16. The first fire, Daimonji on Mount Nyoigatake in the eastern hills, is lit at 8:00 p.m., followed at five-minute intervals by Myoho (8:05), Funagata (8:10), Hidari Daimonji (8:15) and Toriigata (8:20). Each fire burns for about 30 minutes. The event is a registered intangible folk cultural property of Kyoto City and is kept alive by local preservation groups. Watching is free and the fires can be seen from open spots and riversides around the city, but ignition times can shift with the weather, and roads and trains near the viewing areas get very crowded from early evening — public transport and setting out early are recommended.
N5N4N3N2N1 - society
81 years since the war ended: the noon silence and Japan's national memorial ceremony
August 15 is the day Japan marks the end of World War II — 81 years in 2026. The government's annual Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead was held at the Nippon Budokan in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, attended by the Emperor and Empress and by families of the war dead, remembering roughly 3.1 million people who died in the war. The ceremony opens at 11:51 a.m. and everyone observes one minute of silence at noon; it is broadcast live, and many people around the country pause at the same moment. According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, 3,270 bereaved family members were due to attend this year, of whom 1,840 were born after the war — more than half for the second year running, and the highest number on record. Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae delivered the address for the first time since taking office. Practical note for residents: August 15 is not a public holiday, so banks, city halls and offices follow their normal Saturday schedule, but it falls inside the Obon travel period, when many people are visiting family graves. If you are out at noon, you may notice television and radio go quiet for a minute.
N5N4N3N2N1 - economy
Pork and chicken hit record prices in Japan as a weak yen lifts feed costs
Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries released its monthly food price survey on August 12, and meat prices set new records. Pork loin averaged 290 yen per 100 grams, up 3 yen from the previous month and a record for the second month in a row, while chicken thigh reached 156 yen per 100 grams, the highest since the survey began in 2003. The figures come from 470 stores nationwide surveyed between August 3 and 5. A weak yen has pushed up the cost of imported animal feed, and fuel and labour costs have added to production expenses. Beef eased slightly, with imported loin at 442 yen and domestic loin at 836 yen per 100 grams, but both remain above their five-year averages. If you shop in Japan, comparing the price per 100 grams, watching for supermarket sale days, and switching to cheaper cuts or to eggs and tofu are practical ways to soften the impact.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
Obon starts today: welcoming fires and grave visits, but banks stay open
August 13 is the first day of Obon in most of Japan. During Obon (August 13-16) families welcome the spirits of their ancestors home: many people return to their hometowns, visit the family grave in the morning, and light a small welcoming fire called mukaebi in front of the house around dusk. A send-off fire, okuribi, follows on the 16th, most famously Kyoto's Gozan no Okuribi. One point that surprises many residents from abroad: Obon is not a national holiday. Banks, post offices and city halls run their normal weekday schedule on the 13th and 14th, while many private companies take summer leave and small shops and clinics may close for several days. If you need an office, a clinic or a favourite restaurant this week, check its opening days first, and reserve seats early because trains and expressways are at their busiest.
N5N4N3N2N1 - daily life
Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks: New Moon Makes the Night of August 12 the Best Chance
The Perseids, one of Japan's three big annual meteor showers, reach their peak at about 11 a.m. on August 13 — daytime in Japan, so the peak moment itself cannot be seen. The National Astronomical Observatory of Japan says the best viewing is the night of August 12 into the pre-dawn hours of August 13, with a second good night on August 13–14. Around 3 a.m. in Tokyo, a dark site away from city lights could show roughly 35 meteors an hour, and about 30 an hour at dawn on the 14th. This year the peak falls on a new moon, so there is no moonlight to wash out the sky — unusually good conditions. No equipment is needed: spend at least 15 minutes letting your eyes adapt to the dark, and scan a wide area of sky rather than staring at the radiant. Clouds tied to the typhoon may cover some regions, so check the latest forecast before heading out.
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