Ibiden and Shinko ramp high-layer FC-BGA lines as AI server package sizes expand
Japanese substrate leaders accelerate volume production at new domestic facilities to meet multi-chip packaging demand from global AI accelerator designers.
Japan
All coverageMaterials, equipment, robotics and the economic-security agenda reshaping Japanese industry.
Japan tenders economic security subsidies for synthetic graphite anode substitutes
METI opens dedicated funding rounds for silicon-dominant and hard-carbon anode projects to insulate domestic battery lines from…
Keyence deploys edge vision sensors for battery inline inspection
The Osaka automation supplier integrates on-chip classification engines into machine vision hardware to eliminate processing…
Tokyo Electron Deploys Cryogenic Etch Systems to Challenge US Grip on 3D NAND
The Japanese toolmaker is qualifying high-selectivity dielectric etch platforms across South Korean and Japanese memory lines as…
Harmonic Drive expands Japanese reducer capacity for humanoid robotics demand
Capital expenditure at the Hotaka plant targets high-torque strain wave gears to clear joint actuator bottlenecks across…
Japan shipyards agree long-term thick plate supply terms with Nippon Steel
Japanese shipbuilders and domestic steelmakers set new heavy plate pricing frameworks to hedge input costs while protecting…
JERA secures long-term North American LNG offtake to hedge spot volatility
The Japanese utility giant signed binding multi-year contracts featuring destination flexibility to stabilize fuel procurement…
Panasonic Optimizes 4680 Battery Cell Yields at Wakayama Plant in Japan
The Japanese cell manufacturer improves dry electrode coating lines and tabless winding processes to stabilize commercial…
Fanuc and Yaskawa Expand China Motion Control Plants to Meet Local Content Rules
Japanese automation leaders localize servo motor and drive assembly in Jiangsu and Shanghai while retaining proprietary encoder…
Rapidus begins trial runs on 2nm pilot line in Hokkaido ahead of 2027 target
Japan's state-backed foundry venture powers up cleanroom tools in Chitose, testing gate-all-around transistor yields with…
Semiconductors
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Shinko Electric to Convert Former iPhone Display Plant Into AI Chip Substrate Site
The Nagano-based packaging substrate maker said Oct. 13, 2026 it will repurpose a shuttered display line for AI accelerator…
Shinko buys Japan Display plant to build advanced packaging hub
The 373,483-square-meter Mobara factory will yield a 51.4 billion yen gain for JDI while giving Shinko flip-chip substrate…
Murata completes Vietnam inductor plant for power components
The 3-billion-yen facility in Dong Nai expands passive component manufacturing outside China as electric vehicles and server…
Batteries & EV
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Suzuki selects BYD LFP battery cells for inaugural Japanese mini EV
The procurement decision equips Suzuki's e SKY kei car with a 26 kilowatt-hour pack, intensifying cost competition against…
Suzuki launches Japan's cheapest mini EV using BYD batteries
The 2.12 million yen e SKY undercuts domestic rivals and presses Japanese cell makers as lithium iron phosphate chemistry…
Panasonic Energy opens Osaka battery hub for advanced cells
The 24,500-square-meter Kadoma facility consolidates 500 engineers to cut development lead times by 15% as the supplier prepares…
Robotics
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Omron agrees to acquire US industrial computer maker OnLogic for $675M
The all-cash buyout of the Vermont PC maker gives the Japanese automation group edge computing hardware to run physical…
Hitachi and Fanuc unite on physical AI to automate factories
The Japanese manufacturers will combine edge chips and robot arms at Ibaraki test sites ahead of an external commercial rollout…
Harmonic Drive pitches integrated actuators for robot joints in 2026
The motion specialist focuses on modular strain wave units as parent firm Harmonic Drive Systems projects ¥68.0 billion in annual…
Shipbuilding
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Mitsubishi Heavy buys shipyard land in Shimonoseki buildout
The 100 billion yen investment will construct a hull-block factory backed by 40 billion yen in Japanese economic security…
Imabari Shipbuilding wins two Aframax tankers from Carlova by 2030
The Greek shipowner reserved delivery slots in late 2029 and 2030, turning to Japanese yard capacity as South Korean builders…
Mitsubishi Heavy buys Shimonoseki site in $638M yard plan
The group signed a contract on Oct. 2 to acquire 14.5 hectares for a new hull block plant, backed by up to 40 billion yen in…
Energy & Minerals
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Mitsubishi Materials taps Vietnam tungsten to counter China curbs
The Japanese refiner began commercial shipments from Masan High-Tech Materials on Oct.
Idemitsu Kosan Produces Recycled Naphtha at Chiba Refinery
The Japanese refiner integrated a 20,000-ton chemical recycling unit to crack plastic waste into crude oil substitute, closing…
Iwatani and Cosmo approve 50 billion yen Chiba hydrogen hub
The joint venture will restore an idled 80-ton daily generator and build a liquefaction unit at Cosmo Oil's refinery, creating an…
Trade & Policy
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Japan leads India FDI with $5.7 billion as factories expand
Ministry data shows Tokyo supplied 28.8% of New Delhi's $19.81 billion first-quarter equity inflows as automakers and component…
Japan urges China to expedite rare earth export approvals
Japanese delegates in Beijing raised administrative export delays as Chinese magnet shipments to Japan fell 17.1% in August…
Japan offers U.S. chip investment to win semiconductor tariff relief
Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa met Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to protect Japanese chip suppliers using Tokyo's $550…