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The remarks came amid simmering market speculation that creeping inflation and robust wage growth will prod the Bank of Japan (BOJ) to tweak its yield control policy at a two-day rate review ending on Friday. Under the joint agreement with the government signed in 2013 and re-confirmed by the current administration, the BOJ pledges to achieve 2% inflation at the earliest date possible. The remarks differ in tone from those made earlier on Monday by top currency diplomat Masato Kanda, who said recent inflation and wage rises were overshooting expectations. On Friday, Kanda told Reuters that "various expectations and speculations are spreading about the possibility of some kind of tweak to monetary policy." Sources have told Reuters the BOJ is leaning toward keeping its yield control policy steady this week, though there is no consensus within the bank.

Persons: BOJ, Kanda, Yoshihiko Isozaki, Isozaki, Isozaki's, Masato Kanda, It's, Kazuo Ueda, Leika Kihara, Kantaro Komiya, Kim Coghill, Lincoln Organizations: Bank of Japan, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

☆ Japan 'strongly' asks Hong Kong not to ban food imports on Fukushima water release
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, July 12 (Reuters) - Japan has made a strong request to Hong Kong officials not to tighten restrictions on food imports from Japan because of its plan to discharge treated radioactive water from its Fukushima nuclear plant, Tokyo's foreign ministry said on Wednesday. Japan, in a Wednesday meeting with Hong Kong government officials, explained its plans to discharge the treated water from the tsunami-wrecked plant and assured the safety of Japanese food, the ministry said. The meeting was held a day after Hong Kong leader John Lee said the city, Japan's second-largest market for agricultural and fisheries exports, would ban seafood products from a large number of Japanese prefectures if Tokyo goes ahead with its water release plan. read moreReporting by Kantaro Komiya; Editing by Jacqueline WongOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Hong, John Lee, Kantaro Komiya, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Hong, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, Hong Kong, Japan's, Tokyo

[1/3] Passengers wait for their train in front of a TV broadcasting a news report on North Korea firing a ballistic missile off its east coast, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Hong-JiSEOUL/TOKYO, July 12 (Reuters) - North Korea fired a long-range missile off its east coast on Wednesday, as leaders of South Korea and Japan were set to meet on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Lithuania to discuss rising threats including the nuclear-armed North. Japan's Coast Guard said what was believed to be a ballistic missile appeared to have landed as of mid-morning. United Nations Security Council resolutions ban North Korea's use of ballistic missile technology, including for satellite launches. The Security Council, as well as a number of nations, have imposed sanction on North Korea for its missile and nuclear weapons programmes.

Persons: Kim Hong, Fumio Kishida, Kishida, Yoon Suk, Hirokazu Matsuno, Matsuno, Yoon, Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong, Kim, Leif, Eric Easley, Elaine Lies, Tom Hogue Organizations: REUTERS, Ji, NATO, Japan's Coast Guard, Asahi, Japanese, South Korean, United Nations, Security, Ewha Womans University, Thomson Locations: North Korea, Seoul, South Korea, Ji SEOUL, TOKYO, Japan, Lithuania, American, Japan's, Korean, Australia, New Zealand, Beijing, Korea, United States, Pyongyang, Tokyo, Lincoln

SEOUL/TOKYO, July 12 (Reuters) - North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) off its east coast on Wednesday, prompting U.S. condemnation, as well as from the leaders of South Korea and Japan who met on the sidelines of a NATO summit. The White House condemned the launch and said it would take all necessary measures to ensure its security and that of South Korea and Japan. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, in Lithuania for the NATO summit, convened an emergency national security council meeting and vowed to use the summit to call for strong international solidarity to confront such threats. [1/3]Passengers wait for their train in front of a TV broadcasting a news report on North Korea firing a ballistic missile off its east coast, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Hong-JiThe top military generals of the United States, Japan and South Korea gathered for a rare trilateral meeting in Hawaii just before the missile launch.

Persons: Hirokazu Matsuno, Adam Hodge, Yoon Suk Yeol, Yoon, Fumio Kishida, Kishida, Kim Hong, Ji, Kim Dong, Yang, Leif, Eric Easley, Josh Smith, Soo, hyang Choi, Hyunsu Yim, Hyonhee, Rami Ayyub, David Brunnstrom, Elaine Lies, Tom Hogue, Lincoln, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: NATO, House, National Security, REUTERS, University of North Korean Studies, Analysts, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Asan Institute, Policy Studies, Ewha Womans University, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, TOKYO, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Korean, American, Pyongyang, Lithuania, Japanese, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Seoul, Hawaii, Japan's, U.S, Washington, Tokyo

☆ Hong Kong plans widespread ban of Japanese sea products
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, July 11 (Reuters) - Hong Kong leader John Lee on Tuesday said the city will ban seafood products from a large number of Japanese prefectures if Tokyo goes ahead with a plan to discharge treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima plant into the ocean. Hong Kong is Japan's second-largest market for agricultural and fisheries exports. Hong Kong's current ban on shipments from one prefecture would "definitely" be expanded, said Lee, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, at a media briefing. In 2022, Japan exported 75.5 billion yen ($536 million) in fishery products to Hong Kong, according to Japanese government statistics. ($1 = 140.8500 yen)Reporting by Farah Master, Jessie Pang and Twinnie Siu in Hong Kong, and Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Editing by Tom HogueOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: John Lee, Lee, we'll, Hong, Farah Master, Jessie Pang, Twinnie Siu, Kantaro, Tom Hogue Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Hong, Administrative, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Kong, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Mainland China, China, Japan, South Korea, Fukushima

Global financial markets have been closely watching Japan's wage data, as Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda regards pay growth as a key gauge to consider in deliberations about a shift in policy. Regular wages rose 1.8% in May from a year before, labour ministry data showed, the biggest gain since February 1995. The strong base pay growth boosted worker's total cash earnings, or nominal wages, by 2.5% in May, after a revised 0.8% increase logged in April. Still, real wages contracted 1.2% in May, the 14th consecutive month of year-on-year declines, as relentless consumer inflation outstrips nominal pay growth and squeezes households' buying power. On a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, household spending was down 1.1%, versus an estimated 0.5% gain to mark a fourth month of decline.

Persons: Kazuo Ueda, Kuroda, Hisashi Yamada, Rengo, Takumi Tsunoda, Shinichi Uchida, Taro Saito, Satoshi Sugiyama, Kantaro, Tetsushi Kajimoto, Sam Holmes Organizations: Global, Bank of Japan, Hosei University, Shinkin Central Bank Research, Nikkei, BOJ's, NLI Research, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

TOKYO, July 7 (Reuters) - Ukraine has submitted a formal request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to New Zealand, Japanese and New Zealand authorities said on Friday. New Zealand, which performs the legal depositary functions for the partnership, had received a formal accession request from Ukraine on May 5, a New Zealand foreign ministry spokesperson said. The CPTPP includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam, with Britain becoming the 12th member state. China, Taiwan, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Uruguay all also have requests pending to join. Japan's economy minister, Shigeyuki Goto, told a regular press conference that Japan, as a CPTPP member, "must carefully assess whether Ukraine fully meets the high level of the agreement" in terms of market access and rules.

Persons: Shigeyuki Goto, Kantaro Komiya, Jacqueline Wong, Robert Birsel Organizations: Trans, Pacific, ., Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Ukraine, New Zealand, Zealand, Auckland, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, Britain, China, Taiwan, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Uruguay

☆ Japan factory activity slips back into contraction in June on soft orders
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, July 3 (Reuters) - Japan's factory activity contracted in June after expanding for the first time in 7 months in May, a private survey showed on Monday, dragged down by weak orders for cyclical goods amid a global economic slowdown. Output and new orders, the subindexes that constitute the majority of the headline index, fell back to contraction, ending a brief rebound buoyed by improved business confidence. New orders from overseas customers decreased at the fastest rate in four months, notably reflecting feeble demand from China, Japan's biggest trade partner. The soft PMI reading came after Friday's government data showed Japanese manufacturing output falling more than expected in May, dented by automakers' parts shortage and production cuts. The rise in input and output prices were the slowest in 28 months and 21 months, respectively.

Persons: Usamah Bhatti, Kantaro, Shri Navaratnam Organizations: Jibun Bank, P Global Market Intelligence, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Jibun Bank Japan, China, dented, Japan

☆ Japan says Russian warships spotted near Taiwan, Okinawa islands
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, July 1 (Reuters) - Japan's defence ministry said late on Friday it had spotted two Russian Navy ships in the waters near Taiwan and Japan's Okinawa islands in the previous four days, following a similar announcement this week from Taiwan. Taiwan's defence ministry said on Tuesday it had spotted two Russian frigates off its eastern coast and send aircraft and ships to keep watch. Japan's government said last month that repeated Russian military activity near Japanese territory, including joint drills with Chinese forces, posed "serious concern" for Japan's national security. The Japanese ministry said two Steregushchy-class frigates were first spotted 70 km (40 miles) southwest of Japan's westernmost island of Yonaguni, in Okinawa prefecture neat Taiwan, on Tuesday morning. The vessels sailed back and forth through the waters between Yonaguni and Taiwan, moved eastward and were last spotted on Friday in the waters between Miyako and Okinawa islands, it said, adding Japan dispatched two vessels to monitor the Russian ships.

Persons: Kantaro Komiya, William Mallard Organizations: Russian Navy, United, Russian Pacific Fleet, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Taiwan, Okinawa, Japan, United States, Russia, Ukraine, Japan's, Yonaguni, Miyako, Russian, Philippine

However, there is uncertainty about how long households can weather price hikes and generate inflation driven more by demand, which holds the key to whether BOJ's 2% target can be achieved in a sustainable manner, analysts say. The Tokyo core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes volatile fresh food but includes fuel costs, rose 3.2% in June from a year earlier, accelerating from a 3.1% gain in May. While companies offered wage hikes unseen in three decades this year, inflation-adjusted real pay continues to fall in a sign of pain consumers are feeling from the wave of price hikes. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has repeatedly said the BOJ will maintain ultra-loose policy until stronger wage growth keeps inflation sustainably around its 2% target. "The BOJ may revise up its inflation forecast but probably keep policy steady in July," said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.

Persons: Yoshiki Shinke, Teikoku Databank, Kazuo Ueda, Ryozo Himino, Takeshi Minami, Takahiko Wada, Leika, Satoshi Sugiyama, Kantaro, Sam Holmes Organizations: Bank of Japan, Dai, Research, Reuters, BOJ, Norinchukin Research, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, TOKYO

☆ Japan's jobless rate flat at 2.6% in May
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, June 30 (Reuters) - Japan's jobless rate was flat at 2.6% in May from the previous month, government data showed on Friday. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate also matched economists' median forecast of 2.6% in a Reuters poll. The jobs-to-applicants ratio slipped to 1.31 from 1.32 in April, separate labour ministry data showed. For a table on the jobless data, go to the internal affairs ministry's website: http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/roudou/index.html(Note: The jobs-to-applicants ratio and new job offers can be seen in Japanese on the labour ministry's website)Reporting by Kentaro Sugiyama and Kaori Kaneko; Writing by Kantaro Komiya; Editing by Jacqueline WongOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kentaro Sugiyama, Kaori Kaneko, Kantaro Komiya, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Thomson Locations: TOKYO

☆ Panasonic, Mazda eye for long-term EV battery supply partnership
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Japan's Panasonic Energy and Mazda Motor (7261.T) on Wednesday announced they will discuss a lithium-ion battery supply partnership for electric vehicles. Under the partnership, Panasonic Energy, a Panasonic Holdings Corp (6752.T) unit, would supply Mazda with automotive cylindrical lithium-ion batteries manufactured in Japan and North America for Mazda's battery EVs scheduled to be launched in the latter half of the 2020s, the companies said in a statement. Reporting by Kantaro Komiya, Editing by Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kantaro Komiya, Louise Heavens Organizations: Panasonic Energy, Mazda, Wednesday, Panasonic Holdings Corp, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, North America

But there's very high uncertainty on next year's wage negotiations and the sustainability of wage growth," Governor Kazuo Ueda told a briefing. The BOJ's decision contrasts sharply with that of the European Central Bank, which raised borrowing costs to a 22-year high on Thursday. NOT ENTIRELY DOVISHBank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda speaks at a group interview with media in Tokyo, Japan, May 25, 2023. The yen's recent decline could also heighten calls from politicians for the BOJ to tweak YCC, as it squeezes households and retailers by pushing up raw material import costs. "But it may be forced to act if the yen weakens further and drives up import costs, angering the public.

Persons: Ueda, Kazuo Ueda, Kim Kyung, We've, Izuru Kato, Leika Kihara, Kantaro Komiya, Sam Holmes, Kim Coghill Organizations: Bank of Japan, European Central Bank, U.S . Federal Reserve, REUTERS, Companies, Totan, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Bank, Tokyo, Japan

The BOJ's decision contrasts sharply with that of the European Central Bank, which raised borrowing costs to a 22-year high on Thursday and signalled the likelihood of further hikes. Also this week, the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday signalled it was not yet done with its fight against inflation. As widely expected, the BOJ maintained its -0.1% short-term interest rate target and a 0% cap on the 10-year bond yield set under its yield curve control (YCC) policy. An upgrade to the BOJ's inflation forecast in a quarterly review in July is seen as a done-deal, though central bank officials have said a rise in inflation alone won't automatically trigger a policy shift. Ueda has said solid, sustained wage growth must accompany rising inflation for the BOJ to contemplate a policy tweak.

Persons: Kazuo Ueda's, Ueda's, Shigeto Nagai, Izuru Kato, Shunichi Suzuki, Ueda, Leika Kihara, Kantaro Komiya, Sam Holmes Organizations: Bank of Japan, European Central Bank, U.S . Federal Reserve, Oxford Economics, Totan, Graphics, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan

Ministry of Finance data showed on Thursday that exports rose 0.6% year-on-year in May, for the 27th straight month of rises, led by 66% growth in car shipments. Reuters GraphicsThis year, domestic demand may temporarily outpace slumping exports as a key driver of growth, said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute. Separate government machinery orders data, also released Thursday, underlined the struggles faced by manufacturers though the overall numbers suggested the services sector is providing some cushion to the economy. U.S.-bound exports, another key market for Japanese exports, grew 9.4% in the year to May on double-digit gain in car shipment. "For the outlook of Japanese exports, the U.S. Fed's rate-hike pause is a positive news that will further vitalise American private consumption", said Kazuma Kishikawa, economist at Daiwa Institute of Research.

Persons: Darren Tay, Takeshi Minami, Kazuma Kishikawa, Tetsushi Kajimoto, Riddhima Talwani, Shri Navaratnam Organizations: Ministry of Finance, Capital Economics, Reuters, Norinchukin Research, Bank of Japan, Daiwa Institute of Research, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, China, U.S

☆ Japan will stop yen decline beyond USD/JPY 145, most economists say: Reuters poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Satoshi Sugiyama | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

TOKYO, June 15 (Reuters) - Japan's government and central bank will act to stop the yen's decline if it depreciates to the 145 per U.S. dollar level, more than half of economists polled by Reuters said. Fifteen of 28 economists (54%) said the government and the BOJ will take steps such as issuing a warning or intervening into the currency market once the yen weakens beyond 145 per greenback, the June 8-13 poll found. In a separate question on the weak yen's impact on BOJ policy, nine economists (31%) said the central bank's decisions could be swayed by a yen depreciation beyond 145 per dollar. In the poll, all but one - JP Morgan - out of 28 economists corroborated the view, citing an improved bond market functionality and Governor Kazuo Ueda's accommodative remarks so far. BOJ's Ueda has said an end to easy policy would depend on the economy achieving 2% inflation coupled with pay growth.

Persons: Harumi Taguchi, Morgan, Kazuo Ueda's accommodative, Hiroshi Watanabe, BOJ's Ueda, Satoshi Sugiyama, Kantaro Komiya, Veronica Khongwir, Anant Chandak, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Reuters, Bank of Japan, P, Financial Services Agency, Sony Financial Group, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

☆ Japan upgrades Q1 GDP as business spending picks up
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Kantaro Komiya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Japan Q1 GDP growth upgradedHowever, with much of the revised January-March growth driven by inventories, rather than final demand, Tsunoda warned the recovery so far may not be as robust as headline figures suggest. The revised data showed GDP rose 0.4% in October-December, following a 1.5% contraction in July-September. Capital spending rose 1.4%, upgraded from 0.9% and roughly in line with Ministry of Finance data last week that showed manufacturers' business spending grew at the fastest rate since 2015. While consumption growth was downgraded on fresh services-sector statistics, "the broader picture is unchanged that spending on services such as restaurants and hotels contributed positively" to the January-March GDP expansion, the official added. Domestic demand as a whole contributed 1.0 percentage point to the revised first-quarter GDP growth, more than initially estimated.

Persons: restocking, Takumi Tsunoda, Tsunoda, Shinkin's Tsunoda, Kantaro, Pasit Kongkunakornkul, Sam Holmes Organizations: TOKYO, Bank of Japan, Shinkin Central Bank Research Institute, Japan, of Finance, Thomson

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - Japan's privacy watchdog said on Friday it has warned OpenAI, the Microsoft-backed (MSFT.O) startup behind the ChatGPT chatbot, not to collect sensitive data without people's permission. OpenAI should minimise the sensitive data it collects for machine learning, the Personal Information Protection Commission said in a statement, adding it may take further action if it has more concerns. The watchdog noted the need to balance privacy concerns with the potential benefits of generative AI including in accelerating innovation and dealing with problems such as climate change. The EU, a global trendsetter on tech regulation, is working on what could be the first set of rules to govern AI. Reporting by Kantaro Komiya and Sam Nussey; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: OpenAI, Sam Altman, Fumio, Kishida, Altman, Kantaro Komiya, Sam Nussey, Jacqueline Wong, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Microsoft, EU, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan

☆ Japan's Q1 GDP growth seen revised up on strong capex
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Kantaro Komiya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - Japan's economy likely grew more than initially estimated in the first three months of this year, thanks to solid investments by manufacturers, a Reuters poll showed. Economists also projected Japan's current account balance stayed in black in April thanks to a smaller services deficit as tourists flocked back to the country. The median estimate for April current account stands at a surplus of 1.6638 trillion yen ($12 billion). The government will release the revised first-quarter GDP figures and the current account balance data at 8:50 a.m. on June 8 (2350 GMT, June 7). Household spending data is due at 8:30 a.m. on June 6 (2330 GMT, June 5).

Persons: Kantaro Komiya, Kim Coghill Organizations: Ministry of Finance, Manufacturers, Nikko Securities, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan

☆ Japan privacy watchdog warns ChatGPT-maker OpenAI on data collection
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - Japan's privacy watchdog on Friday said it has warned OpenAI, the Microsoft-backed (MSFT.O) startup behind the ChatGPT chatbot, to not collect sensitive data without individuals' permission. The Personal Information Protection Commission in a statement said OpenAI should minimise the sensitive data it collects for machine learning and added it may take further action if it has more concerns. The warning comes as regulators around the world are scrambling to draw up rules governing the use of generative artificial intelligence, which can create text and images and whose impact has been compared by proponents to the arrival of the internet. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in April met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and announced a plan to expand services in Japan, ahead of the Group of Seven (G7) leaders summit where Kishida led the discussion on regulating AI. Reporting by Kantaro Komiya and Sam Nussey; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: OpenAI, Sam Altman, Fumio Kishida, Kishida, Kantaro Komiya, Sam Nussey, Jacqueline Wong, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Microsoft, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan

☆ Japan slammed by torrential rain as tropical storm nears
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Elaine Lies | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, June 2 (Reuters) - Parts of Japan were slammed by torrential rain on Friday as Tropical Storm Mawar neared, with authorities advising more than a million people to evacuate, many flights and other transport cancelled and power outages in thousands of homes. Mawar, which wreaked havoc on Guam earlier this week, has weakened to a tropical storm from its earlier super typhoon status. Shinkansen bullet train service was halted from Tokyo to Osaka, western Japan, as well as some other parts of the nation, NHK public broadcaster reported. Similar weather patterns have caused flooding and landslides in the past, most notably in the summer of 2018, when more than 200 people were killed in western Japan. Though heavy summer rains are not uncommon in Japan, June is unusually early for a typhoon-type storm to near the islands.

Persons: Mawar, Hirokazu Matsuno, Elaine Lies, Mayu Sakoda, Kaori Kaneko, Shri Navaratnam, Lincoln, Frances Kerry Organizations: Disaster Management Agency, Transport Ministry, NHK, Toyota, JMA, Japan Meteorological Agency, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, Okinawa, Guam, Honshu, Wakayama prefecture, Tokyo, Osaka, Aichi prefecture, Shizuoka prefecture, Shikoku

☆ G7 officials to hold first meeting on AI regulation next week
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Kantaro Komiya | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, May 26 (Reuters) - Group of Seven (G7) nation officials will meet next week to consider problems posed by generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT, Japan said on Friday. Leaders of the G7, which includes the United States, European Union and Japan, last week agreed to create an intergovernmental forum called the "Hiroshima AI process" to debate issues around fast-growing AI tools. G7 government officials will hold the first working-level AI meeting on May 30 and consider issues such as intellectual property protection, disinformation and how the technology should be governed, Japan's communications minister, Takeaki Matsumoto, said. The meeting comes as tech regulators worldwide gauge the impact of popular AI services like ChatGPT by Microsoft-backed (MSFT.O) OpenAI. The G7 AI working group will seek input from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Matsumoto told a regular press conference.

The European Union is at the forefront of drafting new AI rules that could set the global benchmark to address privacy and safety concerns that have arisen with the rapid advances in the generative AI technology behind OpenAI's ChatGPT. "If it's about protecting personal data, they apply data protection laws, if it's a threat to safety of people, there are regulations that have not been specifically defined for AI, but they are still applicable." Data protection authorities in France and Spain also launched in April probes into OpenAI's compliance with privacy laws. 'THINKING CREATIVELY'French data regulator CNIL has started "thinking creatively" about how existing laws might apply to AI, according to Bertrand Pailhes, its technology lead. "We are looking at the full range of effects, although our focus remains on data protection and privacy," he told Reuters.

☆ UK's Sunak says China poses world's biggest security challenge
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Katya Golubkova | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"China poses the biggest challenge of our age to global security and prosperity. They are increasingly authoritarian at home and assertive abroad," Sunak told reporters after the G7 summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Sunak said Britain and other G7 countries would pursue a common approach to reduce the challenges posed by China. Sunak also said Britain would start training Ukrainian pilots this summer to support its air force in its war with Russia. At the three-day summit the G7 signalled to Russia their readiness to stand by Ukraine for the long term.

☆ Biden invited Kishida, Yoon to meet in Washington -U.S. official
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] U.S. President Joe Biden, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol attend a photo op on the day of trilateral engagement during the G7 Summit at the Grand... Read moreHIROSHIMA, Japan, May 21 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden invited his Japanese and South Korean counterparts for another meeting in Washington at their trilateral meeting in Hiroshima on sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit on Sunday, a senior U.S. official said. Specifically, a scheme to share information on North Korea's missile launches among the three countries was discussed, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met bilaterally earlier in the day, their third meeting this year, as the East Asian neighbours improve ties to counter regional security threats. read moreBiden commended Kishida and Yoon on their "courageous work to improve their bilateral ties", saying the trilateral partnership is stronger because of their efforts, the White House said. Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in Hiroshima, Japan; Writing by Kantaro Komiya Editing by Chang-Ran KimOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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