2006 in Japan
Events in the year 2006 in Japan.
Incumbents
Events
January
- January 16 - Tokyo prosecutors raid Livedoor for suspected violations of securities laws.
- January 18 - Following the Livedoor raid, the Tokyo Stock Exchange is overloaded with sell orders and is forced to stop trading.
- January 23 - Livedoor CEO Takafumi Horie and three other company officials are arrested and placed in detention.
February
- February 1 - Transit operators in the Kansai region introduce the PiTaPa contactless fare card system.
- February 6 - Construction Ministry officials cite Toyoko Inn for multiple violations of building codes and disability access laws.
- February 23 - Figure skater Shizuka Arakawa wins a Gold medal in the Ladies' Singles at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.
March
April
May
- May 1 - The new Corporations Act goes into effect, abolishing yugen kaisha and altering kabushiki kaisha.
June
- June - Minato Ward 2006 elevator accident, a 16 year old student killed in Minato, Tokyo
- June 5 - Yoshiaki Murakami, manager of the Murakami Fund, is arrested for insider trading.
- June 15 - A cross-party organization of 135 Diet members led by Taku Yamasaki proposes a secular replacement for Yasukuni Shrine.
July
- July 14 - Bank of Japan abolishes the zero interest rate policy.
- July 20 - A memorandum from an Imperial Household Agency official is published in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun showing that Emperor Hirohito refused to visit Yasukuni Shrine after Class A war criminals were added to its rolls.
August
- August 9 - Beef imported from the United States goes on sale in Japan for the first time in months following a lengthy ban.
- August 14 - A blackout occurs throughout Tokyo, Chiba and Saitama during the morning rush hour after a barge-mounted crane disrupts a high-voltage line.
- August 15 - On the anniversary of the end of World War II, Koizumi makes his final visit to Yasukuni Shrine.
- August 16 - A fishing boat is fired upon after crossing into Russian-claimed waters off the east coast of Hokkaidō.
September
December
Births
Deaths
- January 3: Shiro Azuma, soldier
- April 29: Yoichi Numata, actor
- May 1: Kikuo Takano, poet and mathematician
- May 10: Raizo Matsuno, politician
- May 16: Takahiro Tamura, actor
- May 29: Masumi Okada, actor
- June 1: Shokichi Iyanaga, mathematician
- June 13: Hiroyuki Iwaki, conductor and percussionist
- June 17: Hiroaki Shukuzawa, rugby coach
- July 1: Ryutaro Hashimoto, former prime minister
- July 7: Reizō Nomoto, voice actor
- August 6: Hirotaka Suzuoki, voice actor and actor
- August 9: Chinatsu Mori, shot putter
- September 13: Shokichi Natsui, judoka
- September 17: Kazuyuki Sogabe, voice actor
- September 25: Tetsurō Tamba, actor
- October 1: Yoshihiro Yonezawa, manga critic and author
- October 29: Reiko Mutō, voice actress
- November 10: Taira Hara, manga artist and torento
- December 17: Kyōko Kishida, actress
- December 20: Yukio Aoshima, politician
- December 25: Hiroaki Hidaka
Statistics
- Wealthiest person in Japan: Masayoshi Son (net worth 7 billion USD)