The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News.

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Japan looking to accept foreign tourists again in June: source

TOKYO - Japan is looking to resume accepting some foreign tourists in June at the earliest as the country has begun to ease the strict border controls it introduced in response to the coronavirus pandemic, a government source said Friday.

The government may accept a limited number of group tours on a trial basis by the end of May, the source said.

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Japan foreign minister to attend inauguration of S. Korean president

TOKYO - Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi will attend South Korean President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol's inauguration ceremony next week, the government said Friday amid expectations of a thaw in relations soured over wartime history.

Hayashi will visit South Korea for a two-day trip from Monday as a special envoy of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and hold talks with key members of the South Korean government during his stay, the government said. Yoon is set to be sworn in on Tuesday.

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Asian Games in China postponed due to pandemic

GENEVA - The Asian Games originally scheduled for September in Hangzhou, China, will be pushed back due to coronavirus outbreaks around the host country, organizers said Friday.

Around 10,000 athletes were expected to compete across 40 sports and 61 disciplines in the Sept. 10-25 quadrennial event, but concerns about health and safety were raised in light of Shanghai's weeks-long COVID lockdown dragging on.

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Japan continues search for missing from sunken boat off disputed isle

SAPPORO - The Japan Coast Guard continued its search Friday of the sea around a Russia-controlled, Japan-claimed island off Hokkaido, two weeks after a tour boat accident that left 14 people dead and 12 missing.

A patrol boat searched the area near Kunashiri Island, one of four islands claimed by both countries, after Moscow permitted the boat to operate based on a bilateral accord on maritime accidents.

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JAL forecasts return to profit in FY 2022 on travel recovery hopes

TOKYO - Japan Airlines Co. said Friday it sees a return to the black in the business year ending next March on expectations that travel demand will recover as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have begun to ease.

JAL reported a net profit forecast of 45 billion yen ($345 million) in the current fiscal year, noting that its expectations outweigh uncertainties stemming from the Ukraine crisis and elevated fuel prices.

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Tokyo's core CPI climbs 1.9% in April, fastest pace in 7 years

TOKYO - Core consumer prices in Tokyo increased 1.9 percent in April from a year earlier, the fastest pace in over seven years, accelerated by rises in crude oil and material prices amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, government data showed Friday.

The core consumer price index excluding volatile fresh food items, seen as an indicator of Japan's CPI, marked the eighth straight month of year-on-year gain and its largest increase since March 2015, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said in a preliminary report.

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Baseball: Ohtani throws 11-strikeout gem vs Red Sox at Fenway Park

BOSTON - Shohei Ohtani made the most of his pitching debut at Fenway Park on Thursday, striking out 11 in seven scoreless innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels to an 8-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Ohtani (3-2) became the first player to both start on the mound and bat high in a lineup at Fenway Park, the iconic 110-year-old home of the Boston Red Sox, since Babe Ruth did it in 1919. Ohtani hit third in the lineup and went 2-for-4 with one RBI and a run scored.

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Japan PM Kishida to welcome EU chiefs for summit amid Ukraine war

BRUSSELS - Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet in Tokyo with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel next Thursday, with Russia's war against Ukraine and China's assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region expected to be discussed.

The EU said Thursday the summit will provide "an opportunity to display the increasingly deep and dynamic alliance" between the regional bloc and Japan, which have similar values including a commitment to defending the rules-based international order.

==Kyodo

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