- Omikenshi Co., Ltd. has developed a rayon textile with charcoal woven into it. The charcoal gives it a negative ionizing effect, blocks infrared rays, and helps eliminate bad odors. Initially expected to be used for knitted goods, terry-cloth underwear (in gray only for the time being) made from the same material is also planned.
- In the beer market, low-malt beer's share has grown to 22.1%, while ordinary beer's share has dropped 7.3 percentage points to 77.9%. Asahi Breweries, Ltd. entered the low-malt beer market in February 2001, and low-malt beer's share of the market is expected to climb further. Sales are growing because of the lower rate of taxation on low-malt beer compared with ordinary beer, which brings down the unit price.
- Teijin Ltd. has launched a range of pants called "SafeHip" pants. These feature a protector covering both femoral necks designed to prevent fractures. Light, elastic and comfortable, the range is currently aimed mainly at women, though models for men are also in the works.
- The number of cellular phone subscribers in Japan passed the 60 million mark in spring 2001, while the number of cellular phone agents nationwide has reached 80,000. With the market thus saturated, unit sales per store are declining. Growth in new customers is also slowing, causing agents to focus more on securing their customer bases through services and encouraging existing customers to buy new handsets. Potential peak ownership of cellular phones is though to be about 80 million units.
- Toray Industries, Inc. has developed a new polyester lining material called "Toracion" that dramatically cuts the rustling noise made when worn, and has begun marketing the material targeting high-end ladieswear. In addition to increasing thread tortuosity when the polyester fiber is dyed, Toray has succeeded in increasing the freedom of curvature of the material by increasing the space between fibers through a special finishing process that lowers the friction coefficient of the surface of the fiber and gives it greater flexibility. Toracion is priced at around \230-240 per meter with 122cm width.
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