Famous Japanese noodle restaurant chain sanuki udon has arrived in London, according to a 27 July article in The Japan Times. Marugame Seimen Inc., operator of sanuki udon and subsidiary of restaurant chain operator Toridoll Holdings Corp., opened the eatery on 26 July at the City financial centre.

Toridoll executive Takashi Sugiyama said: “Now is a good time to open a restaurant [in Britain] as Covid-19 restrictions in the country have been eased substantially. We expect to see a recovery in demand for dining out”.

Nissan Motor Company, Ltd., is boosting its electric vehicle operations in Britain, as was revealed in an article posted on 2 July on NHK WORLD-JAPAN. The company is teaming up with partners to spend more than £1 billion to boost output, as well as begin construction on a huge battery plant. Nissan’s new EV model will be produced in its Sunderland, England, factory. 

The Japanese Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 20 July that London and Tokyo will speed up talks regarding the joint development of aero-engine technologies, in a bid to support future aircraft programmes in the two countries, after a meeting between UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace and Japanese Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi. 

According to the 21 July article on defence news website Janes, the MoD said: “Both ministers agreed to intensify efforts toward a bilateral arrangement between both ministries that is necessary for implementing that collabo­ra­tion of power and propulsion systems if it is agreed to be conducted”. 

According to a 20 July article posted to online Hollywood news site Deadline, Japanese entertainment company Nippon TV has partnered with London-based media outfit Envision Entertainment. The first collabora­tion will be a series inspired by the show Double Booking—a hit in Japan. 

 Future programmes will share Eastern and Western sensibilities, and be filmed primarily in English, making the works watchable for a global audience.

Ishiguro listed for booker prize

Japan-born British author Kazuo Ishiguro has been longlisted for this year’s Booker Prize for his eighth novel, Klara and the Sun. The author previously won the award in 1989. (28 July, BBC) 

Samurai gift for Olympics

A group of Japanese artists are creating samurai for all of the competing countries in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, including a UK samurai, and a Welsh samurai called Gigs.
(23 July, Nation Cymru)

British Museum shows Hokusai

The British Museum, London, will begin showing 100 picture postcard-sized Hokusai drawings from 30 September to 30 January 2022. It is the first time the works will be on display in two centuries.
(20 July, The Guardian)

Rugby star moves to Japan

Northampton Saints rugby star, 25-year-old Harry Mallinder, will be leaving his current club with immediate effect, to begin playing in Japan ahead of the 2021/22 season. (22 July, Ruck)

The British government is set to remove the 15-year limit on voting abroad, giving expatriates lifetime rights in general elections. In a 27 May article published by The Telegraph, it was revealed that UK ministers believe expatriates should still have a say in elections, regardless of where they live. Members of Parliament believe election results still affect those living overseas, especially in regards to areas such as foreign policy, defence, immigration, pensions and trade deals. 

It was also recognised that ministers debated whether these rights for expats should extend to referenda. 

Cabinet Office minister Lord Nicholas True said: “In an increasingly global and connected world, most British citizens living overseas retain deep ties to the United Kingdom. Many still have family here, have a history of hard work in the UK behind them, and some have even fought for our country. 

“These measures support our vision for a truly global Britain, opening up our democracy to British citizens living overseas who deserve to have their voices heard in our Parliament, no matter where they choose to live”. 

Trading firm Sumitomo Corporation has teamed up with Vodaphone Group Plc to offer mobile services in Ethiopia. 

In a 24 May article published by Nikkei Asia, it was revealed that the collaboration includes the CDC Group, a UK government-owned development finance institution. 

This will make Sumitomo the first Japanese firm to enter the African mobile phone market, and it is said that they will hold a stake of just under 30 percent. 

Huma provides solutions for monitoring patients’ health

According to a 12 May press release, British healthcare technology firm Huma has raised more than £92 million in investments from a number of firms. Initial Japanese invest­ment was strong, with funding coming from firms, such as Hitachi. The present round of funding has attracted contributions from Samsung and Japanese companies including Sony, as well as an individual investment from former SoftBank President and CEO Nikesh Arora. Invest­ments in Huma have also come from British firms, such as Unilever PLC. The funds will be used to expand the firm’s digital platform to the US, as well as Asian and Middle Eastern countries. 

Secretary of State for International Trade, Liz Truss (left), chairs a CPTPP event in London last year. Picture by Pippa Fowles / No 10 Downing Street

According to a 2 June article by Nikkei Asia, Yasutoshi Nishimura, Japan’s minister in charge of Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, revealed that the members of the TPP have agreed to start negotiations for the UK’s entry into the partnership during a virtual meeting of the TPP Commission. The final decision is set to be made next year or later. The UK had filed to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) earlier this year following its with­drawal from the European Union. 

At the start of the process, a joint statement said it “provides an opportunity to advance the CPTPP’s high-standard rules for the 21st century and further promote free trade, open and competitive markets and economic inte­gra­tion in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond”.

In a news article posted on the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board 2021 website on 27 May, it was revealed that a world-famous cheddar from Devon, England, will begin exports to Japan. The cheddar is made by Quicke’s, an artisan cheese producer. 

“Japan is a hugely important market for our cheese exports as it’s a wealthy economy, with an understanding in their culture of excellence in food and the value of artisan production”, said Mary Quicke MBE, the 14th generation of the Quicke family. 

It was said that this new deal will increase Quicke’s export figures, which saw 41 tonnes of cheese shipped overseas last year, worth a reported £400,000 to the family business. 

The non-profit Investors in People commu­nity interest firm have awarded Japan Tobacco International (JTI) the first “We
invest in well­being” platinum accredi­tation. According to The HR Director, JTI is the leading tobacco company in the UK, and has been recognised for their high standards regarding employee wellbeing. 

The award is based on an assess­ment of the social, physical and psychological well­being of a firm’s employees. It was found that JTI UK meets the award’s frame­work requirements. 

Ospreay heads home
The New Japan Pro Wrestling promotion firm has confirmed that British wrestler Will Ospreay returned to the UK for treatment after sustaining a neck injury. This has forced him to vacate the IWGP World Heavyweight Title. (Metro, 20 May)

JX Nippon looks to sell oil assets

JX Nippon is looking to sell its British North Sea assets—which include stakes in some of the basin’s biggest fields—that it acquired on entering the basin in 2002. The deal is expected to bring in more than ¥163 billion. (Reuters, 25 May)

Faith in jab differs
Based on a survey conducted of 15 countries, Britons have the most faith in the Covid-19 vaccination with 87 percent saying they trust the jab. This is in stark contrast with Japan who reported the lowest levels of trust at just 47 percent. (BBC, 4 June)

Sakura in Cheadle
Ninety-nine cherry trees have been planted in Bruntwood Park, Cheadle to celebrate bilateral relations. The trees are some of the 6,500 ones given as part of the Japan–UK Season of Culture 2019-2021. (Marketing Stockport, 28 April)

Sky Brown qualifies for Tokyo Olympics
Less than one year after fracturing her skull, the 12-year old British–Japanese skateboarder, Sky Brown, is set to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. This would make her Britain’s youngest summer Olympian ever. (Sky News, 24 May) 

Photo: Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street

The Express reported on 3 April that the new UK–Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is showing impressive results. The agreement—signed by Secretary of State for International Trade Liz Truss in October 2020—was predicted to boost the value of business between the two countries by £15.7 billion. The Department for International Trade (DIT) began a new virtual series of business-focused UK­–Japan Trade Missions called Partnering with Japan: Spring ’21 Free Trade Agreement series, to mark the new chapter in relations. It was said that 600 companies attended the virtual launch on 2 March, and more than 1,600 have taken part so far. As a result, it has been revealed that the agreement is already paying dividends. 

In her keynote speech at the UK–­Japan Free Trade Summit in January, Truss said, “Japan was instrumental in making this high standards agree­ment happen through its vision of a group of like-minded nations wanting to shape global trade in the right way”.

Photo: Tepco

The UK and Japan have agreed to a research collaboration to help with nuclear decom­missioning. According to a 20 January press release issued by the UK government, the £12m robotics project will assist in the safe decommissioning in Japan of Tokyo Electric Power Company’s (TEPCO’s) Fukushima Dai-ichi reactors, as well at Sellafield, the multi-function nuclear site in the UK north-west. The project has been named LongOps, reflecting the plan to develop robotics-related technologies—such as long-reach arms—to carry out safe and efficient decommissioning of nuclear plants. 

Adrian Simper, group strategy and technology director at the UK’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) said: “Robotics offers us new ways to tackle our complex work safely, securely and cost-effectively. This unique international collaboration allows us to pool expertise and experience from Japan, working together and investing in cutting-edge ways to find solutions to our shared problems and benefit our clean-up mission”. The collabora­tion, to be funded by UK Research and Innovation, the NDA and TEPCO, is expected to last four years. 

St Fergus gas terminal in Aberdeenshire Photo: Callan Chesser

According to a Reuters article posted on 3 March, Mitsui & Co., Ltd has announced its investment in a British carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, and has taken a 15.4 percent share in Storegga Geotechnologies Ltd. The latter firm is developing projects to store carbon dioxide emissions in empty oil and gas reservoirs. A wholly owned subsidiary of Storegga Geotechnologies—Pale Blue Dot Energy—will lead the project, which is expected to be up and running by the mid-2020s. The project is expected to capture about 340,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions at the St Fergus gas terminal in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. 

Photo: Tokyo Nights

Tokyo Nights, a yakitori restaurant based on Barry Island, Wales, is planning to expand by opening a street food stall in Cardiff. According to an article on 22 March by Barry & District News, chef Oliver Bryant was inspired by his trip to Japan for the Rugby World Cup in 2019. “I saw an opportunity in Wales, as yakitori was pretty much unknown. I spent most nights during lock­down practising my Japanese chicken butchery skills acquired by watching YouTube videos and cooking up the skewers on a rubbish electric grill I bought on eBay”, Bryant revealed. 

A 9 March article, posted by the political news organisation Politico, reveals that, between 2014 and 2019, the number of Japanese firms in the UK fell 12 percent: from 1,084 to 951. This is in contrast with the growing number of Japanese firms moving to EU countries, such as the Netherlands, Germany, France and Italy. The figures are derived from Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) data analysed by Rudlin Consulting. Managing Director Pernille Rudlin said, “Given that this is against the trend elsewhere in Europe, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that it is a reaction to Brexit”.

Photo: Nardisoero via Wikimedia Commons

Badminton champion Kento Momota was knocked out of the All England Open quarter finals in Birmingham by Malaysian Lee Zii Jia, according to a 20 March story in The Asahi Shimbun. It was Momota’s first competition after a year-long absence, following a January 2020 car crash when he fractured his nose and right eye socket. “I did not play well and I was rushing through the points and that’s why I couldn’t play my game”, he said. 

Udon chain to debut in London

Famous Japanese restaurant Marugame Udon—which has more than 1,000 eateries in Japan—will be making its way to the UK this summer. The Japanese restaurant chain will be opening a 372-square-metre establish­ment on Liverpool Street, London. (Eater London, 22 March)

Gilts: buy, buy, buy!

In January, Japanese investors bought UK govern­ment bonds at the quickest pace on record. The investors bought £5bn worth of gilts, the biggest
monthly figure recorded since 2005 by the business, market news, data and analysis provider Bloomberg. This followed the Brexit deal. (Financial Times, 12 March)

Hitachi starts work on North-East trains

Hitachi Rail has begun welding passenger trains in the town of Sedgefield, after investment in the north-eastern UK factory climbed to £110m. The trains, to be used for intercity transport by East Midlands Railway and Avanti West Coast, will have high-tech aluminium carriage shells. (Press release, 5 March)

Global release for Ishiguro book

Now available in book stores across the world is the first novel since 2015 by the award-winning, Japanese-born British writer Kazuo Ishiguro. Titled Klara and the Sun, it is a dystopian science fiction novel that centres on Klara, an artificial intelligence-powered robot. (NHK WORLD-JAPAN, 2 March)

Haneda Airport (left) / Heathrow Airport (right)

Everchanging restrictions designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus have impacted travel between Japan and the UK yet again, media in both countries reported. Beginning 18 January, the British government requires anyone returning from a foreign country to provide journey and contact details through GOV.UK before departure. They must also self-isolate for two weeks on arrival.

Japan has implanted new restrictions as well. On 24 December, all new entries by foreign nationals who had been in the UK for 14 days prior were barred from entering due to a new Covid-19 strain that had been found in the UK on 8 December. Then Japan closed its borders to all new foreign entries on 28 December. No end date has been specified.

On 13 January, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga implemented further entry rules for business travellers, students and all other non-resident foreign nationals from multiple countries, saying they will no longer be allowed into the country. Japanese nationals and long-term residents may still enter provided they have had a negative PCR test 72 hours before departure.

Vaccine progress

According to a 10 January article in Nikkei Asia, the British government believes the Japanese arthritis drug Actemra, also known as tocilizumab and atlizumab, is effective in treating Covid-19. It has been found to lower the mortality risk by 24% and shorten hospital stays by seven to 10 days. 

The Japan Times reported on 9 January that the drug was developed jointly by Osaka University and the Japanese firm Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock has described the clinical trial results as another landmark development in finding a way out of the pandemic.

Now available on all music platforms is the festive remix of the folk-inspired song “Hummingbird” by British band The Watanabes. Radio broadcaster and frequent ACUMEN contributor Guy Perryman MBE has noted the song’s Christmas feel since its release and approached The Watanabes in early 2020 with the idea of remixing it. 

As well as recruiting the help of their regular studio collaborator and producer, David Naughton, Perryman also brought in composer Nicholas Buc to write the string arrangement. With Naughton’s three young children featuring as the choir, the arrangement is by Matt Hogan and the final mix was mastered at Abbey Road Studios.

Teruki Kamiya, founder of the Dry Stone Walling Association of Japan, dreams of returning to England and Wales to maintain their drystone walls. Just 13% of the 193,000km of such walls in the UK are reported to be in good condition. 

In a 28 November story in The Japan Times, it was shared that the Aichi-based artisan learned under masters in the UK more than 10 years ago, making him the first person to travel from Asia specifically to learn this skill. Kamiya is dedicated to teaching what he learned from the Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain to Japanese people—in Japanese—to ensure there is no language barrier when it comes to learning.

Nissan has chosen to produce its newest electric car, the Ariya, in Japan rather than the UK. According to a 17 December Nikkei Asia report, the Ariya will be made at Nissan’s Tochigi Prefecture plant. Due to post-Brexit trade deal concerns over higher tariffs, Nissan will ship the vehicle from Japan to the European Union when it becomes available for purchase next year.

Aston Villa has signed Nadeshiko captain Mana Iwabuchi, BBC Sport reported on 21 December. The 27-year-old has 72 international caps and was part of the Japan team that took home the World Cup in 2011. Villa boss Gemma Davies said, “Not only will she bring a wealth of expe­rience, but she will also add a different dimension to our attacking play”.

Envoy visits Wales

Japanese Ambassador to the UK Yasumasa Nagamine visited Wales on 3 December after his first attempt in March was postponed due to the coronavirus. One thousand cherry trees were planted at schools in Wales to mark the Japan–UK Season of Culture and to exhibit economic, cultural, artistic and technological successes. (Business News Wales, 6 January)

AbbVie drops Sosei

Sosei Group Corp is the latest to be dumped following AbbVie Inc.’s post-Allergan-merger clear-out. The biopharmaceutical firm will now seek a new partner amid a full internal review following the split from the original deal, which goes back five years. (Fierce Biotech, 5 January)

England star in Sapporo credits adopted culture

Jay Bothroyd, a forward with the Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo, of the J1 football league,  has noted how Japanese culture has impacted his personal and professional growth. “Coming here has taught me to bite my tongue and accept people have different opinions … things are not always going to go my way. It’s been a fantastic experience”. (The Japan Times, 9 January)

The UK–Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) was signed on 23 October in Tokyo, media reported, ensuring smooth bilateral trade beyond 1 January, 2021, when the UK’s departure from the European Union (EU) means Britain will no longer be covered by Japan’s trade deal with the EU.

Media said that CEPA is very similar to the EU–Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, but is more finely tuned to the concerns and collaboration potential of Japan and the UK. It also includes a chapter on digital trade.

The signing was the culmination of a major negotiation effort—and an efficient one, considering the challenges of the pandemic—by both sides.  Emblematic of the obstacles overcome was the gift that Liz Truss, Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade, presented to Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi at the signing: a jar of Stilton cheese.

With much to gain on both sides, ACUMEN rounded up some key benefits of CEPA across a range of industries.

5G boost

Building out the UK’s next-generation communications network will get a boost from Japan’s NEC Corporation, according to Capacity magazine. The Department for International Trade tweeted on 23 October that Truss and NEC Chairman Nobuhiro Endo “talked about NEC’s 5G deployment and collaboration in the UK, including the establishment of the 5G Open RAN Centre of Excellence. The UK–Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is expected to further develop digital partnerships with Japanese firms”.

Better fit for rag trade

Rules of origin outlined in CEPA should be a better fit for British clothiers, the UK Fashion and Textile Association (UKFT) said on 9 November.

“A clothing producer could sew together imported fabrics into a coat, and then export the final product to Japan under tariff preference, as long as 50% of the inputs are sourced domestically,” UKFT explained. “This change may allow high-value producers of goods including knitwear, suits, gloves and coats to increase their exports to Japan”.

To make trade easier, the UK and Japan have agreed to allow self-certification of origin, so that importers from either country do not need a certificate from their customs authority. This will give firms more options.

Bring on the digestives

The trade deal is also being well received in the East Midlands where Ashbourne, Derbyshire’s Artisan Biscuits sees easier exports and higher sales in the announcement. Last year the firm signed a £57,000 agreement with a Japanese importer.

“Japan is a sophisticated market that values quintessential British products such as our biscuits, which Japanese consumers like to have with certain types of teas,” Director John Siddall told the newspaper Derbyshire Live on 1 November. “A free trade agreement could make it easier to export our biscuits as we continue to grow in the country over the coming years”.

Two-way trade

Snacks benefit the other way as well, with the import tax on Japan’s popular chocolate-covered biscuit sticks being cut by 31% once CEPA comes into force, according to The Japan Times. That’s a sweet deal for Osaka-based Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd., which produces the snack.

Pocky is not alone. British import tariffs are also set to drop on bluefin tuna (22%), Kobe beef (60%), soy sauce (6%) and udon noodles (13%).

Selling sand to Arabs

Tuna isn’t the only fish that can benefit from CEPA. Japan is already one of the UK’s key destinations for seafood, with 2,006t—worth £16.6mn—exported to the country in 2019. Among the most popular species are mackerel, herring, sardines, crabs, lobsters and, of course, Scottish salmon (page 39), according to Fish Farmer. With tariffs on seafood being liberalised over a 15-year period and becoming duty free in 2036, a stream of opportunities should lie ahead for the industry.

Bilateral benefits

Over the next 15 years, as a result of CEPA, British exports to Japan are expected to rise by 17.2% (£2.6bn or ¥356bn) while Japanese exports to the UK should get a 79.9% (£13bn or ¥1.8tn) boost.

Media noted that Prime Minister Boris Johnson set the future in motion on Twitter, saying it was “a historic moment as we formally sign the UK–Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, marking a new era of friendship between our nations”.

The relationship between Wales and Kumamoto Prefecture has remained strong following last year’s Rugby World Cup. NHK reported that, on 10 November, Ursula Bartlett-Imadegawa (second left), president of the St David’s Society Japan, and Yoko Kobori (left) from the Welsh Government, visited the prefectural office to present Vice Governor Takeshi Kimura with a donation of ¥200,000. The money—collected with help from Gareth Lewis of the Welsh social media platform St David’s World—is meant to assist with recovery efforts following this year’s heavy rainfall, which killed at least 77 people and destroyed more than 15,000 buildings.

Bartlett-Imadegawa thanked the many people and groups who donated, including Brits at Lunch and the St David’s Society committee and members. Messages of support for Kumamoto also came from former Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language Eluned Morgan, members of the Welsh Parliament, rugby players, three former presi­dents of the St David’s Society and the Friends of Wales congressional caucus in the United States.

The Great British Bake Show, a competition programme that challenges home bakers to create dishes according to themes, has been burned by its Japanese Week episode, which aired on Netflix on 30 October. The Independent reported on 28 October that the contestants’ creations were criticised for having little or no connection to Japan, instead making use of ingredients and flavours from Chinese and Indian cuisine. Many viewers voiced their feelings that the show was supporting the tendency to dump all Asia cultures into one pot. Japanese pastry chef Tomoko Kato, however, told Insider that she believes “there is room for both traditional and non-traditional in baking”.

As part of measures introduced following the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 11 March, 2011—and the subsequent disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant—Japan asked Britain to reprocess spent nuclear fuel.

According to a 9 November NHK World report, plans are for utility firms to begin accepting in April the reprocessed waste stored in Aomori Prefecture. Plutonium extracted from this material will be turned into special fuel to be used in Japan’s nuclear power plants. Shipments from the UK have stopped since 2016 while the Aomori facility undergoes screening and preparations.

From Soho to Toranomon

Ian Schrager, the mind behind The London Edition hotel in Soho, has brought his vision to the newly opened Tokyo Edition, Toranomon, saying: “I just had to do a hotel in Tokyo. I’ve been very influenced by Japan from the start. Their aesthetic, their spirituality, their cleanliness, their refinement”. (The Telegraph, 31 October)

Bilateral Ties blossom on South-East coast

A great white cherry tree, donated by Japanese businesses, was planted in Eastbourne’s Hampden Park on 4 November. The addition is part of the Sakura Cherry Tree Planting project, which aims to place more than 1,000 cherry blossom trees across the UK as a symbol of friendships between the nations. (Eastbourne Herald, 9 November)

Regent street store to sell premium tent

Japanese outdoor gear producer Snow Peak has launched a new premium tent in the UK. The firm’s central London store on Regent Street is offering the Minute Dome Pro.Air 1 solo camping tent that weighs less than 4kg—ideal for carrying on a bike and perfect for a socially distanced getaway to nature. (Out & About Live, 7 November)