November 13, Monday, 2023

1. Japan’s government has approved the resignation of State Minister of Finance Kanda Kenji, who repeatedly failed to pay taxes for his company. The Cabinet gave the approval on Monday after Kanda handed in his resignation. Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has decided to replace him on the grounds that the issue should not stall Diet deliberations. 2. Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange are releasing their midterm earnings for fiscal 2023. More than half the firms that posted their results for the April-September period say they saw net profit growth.
3. NHK has learned that Japan’s government is considering providing defense equipment to Vietnam and Djibouti under a new security assistance framework. Government officials say the two countries are candidates to receive Official Security Assistance, or OSA, during the fiscal year that begins next April.