A cash benefit linked to income is in the news in Japan. Reports say the government is considering an annual income of 530,000 yen as the lower limit for the benefit, reflecting opposition demands. Meanwhile, the upper house has started debating a tax cut bill.
School lunch fees are in the news in Japan. Reports say principals at elementary schools in Kyoto Prefecture paid for unpaid school lunch fees and other costs out of their own pockets. Some say the way schools collect and check these fees needs to change.
The JR Shinetsu Line in Niigata Prefecture is in the news. A signal problem between Niigata and Naoetsu stopped trains, and several other lines were also suspended. For a while, there was no clear time for service to restart.
Vacant houses are in the news in Japan. In Echizen, Fukui Prefecture, a vacant house with a collapsed roof had 80 heirs, but the city found a way for them to agree to take it down. Other reports look at empty homes in Tokyo and a project in Okayama to prevent houses from becoming vacant.
Nintendo Switch 2 の『ゼルダの伝説 時のオカリナ』リメイク版が話題です。1998年に発売された作品のリメイクで、発売後4日間で520万本を超えたと報じられました。週間販売ランキングでも首位でスタートし、任天堂の株価も反発しました。
In English
A remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Nintendo Switch 2 is in the news. The original game came out in 1998. Reports say the remake sold more than 5.2 million copies in its first four days, and Nintendo's share price rose again.
Air pollution in India is in the news. Reports say fireworks and firecrackers during a big Hindu festival made the air in New Delhi and other areas very bad. Pakistan has also criticized India over air pollution from the festival fireworks.
El Niño is trending in the U.S. News reports say an official Super El Niño announcement is very close. Other stories explain what this record El Niño could mean for local weather and even for people's wallets.
The polar vortex is trending in the UK. Reports say the cold swirl of air high above the Arctic has started to weaken or split earlier than ever recorded. News stories ask whether this could bring snow, or dry weather, to the UK.
Social Security, the U.S. public pension, is trending. One report says it could pay full benefits until 2059 if taxable payroll had grown as fast as GDP. Another story says retirees in 15 states could lose more than $515 a month if major cuts happen.