North Korea launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan before dawn, while a magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck southwestern Japan, triggering brief tsunami warnings.
The arrest of a 46-year-old former MUFJ Bank employee dominated coverage from mid-morning, revealing systematic theft from safety deposit boxes affecting 60 customers. Initial reports of ¥260 million in stolen gold bars evolved into estimates exceeding ¥1 billion, with afternoon coverage exposing the suspect's ¥1 billion losses in prohibited FX trading.
Morning markets fell sharply (-716 points) on NVIDIA export control concerns and Bank of Japan rate hike speculation. Cleveland-Cliffs CEO's controversial comparison of Japan to its 1945 practices in the U.S. Steel acquisition battle drew diplomatic silence from Tokyo, marking continued tension over the blocked Nippon Steel deal.