hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." on this saturday, august 13th i'm ron madison in tokyo. our top story this hour, share prices rising on the new york stock exchange friday with the benchmark index, at one time gaining more than 200 points. market rallied right after the opening bell with the announcement that u.s. retail sales for july increased from the previous month. well, that news somewhat eased concerns about the u.s. economic outlook. the market also getting a boost after european markets rose sharply and this was thanks to a ban on the short selling of stocks in france as well as

three other countries. taking a look at the figures, the dow jones industrial average closing the day at 11,269. you see a gain of about 126 points on the session. to the new york foreign exchange market, the u.s. dollar traded at the upper 67 yen level on friday. and meanwhile, looking at gold futures now, those were down for a second consecutive day after reaching a record high of $1,800 an ounce on friday. gold fell after they announced they were raising the amount of cash the speculative investors must deposit by 22%. a market analyst says that despite the drop in gold futures, moves to buy gold will continue as markets do remain a bit unsettled. china and the association of southeast asean nations agreed to increase the use of the chinese yuan for trade between the countries. the move is intended to reduce risks at a time when the value of the dollar has become unstable.

the agreement came at a meeting of economic ministers from china and asean member nations on friday. in manado on the indonesian island of sulawesi. the ministers discussed how to expand trade and keep their economies growing by minimizing the impact of global stock declines and a weaker dollar. china proposed increased use of the yuan because of growing concerns about the dollar and the future of the u.s. economy. asean welcomed the proposal. the two sides agreed to begin discussions on specific measures to expand the use of the yuan while taking the option of business leaders into consideration. china also proposed building industrial parks. in asean nations for chinese companies. it said if the value of the yuan rises, more chinese firms will shift their production outside the country. japan and china expressed interest in speeding up economic partnerships in asia and oceana. the two countries will announce a proposal to facilitate the

early conclusion of an economic partnership agreement at a meeting of asean member nations and their trading partners on saturday. china hopes to establish an epa involving the ten asean members plus japan, china and south korea. japan is calling for a broader framework that would also include india, australia and new zealand. china and japan have agreed to delay making a final decision on the number of countries to be included in the framework. that's so that discussions on the epa can proceed smoothly. the 16 ministers are expected to issue a statement after the talks. china says an offshore oil spill in bohai bay spread now to more than 5500 square kilometers. the state oceanic administration said on friday that leaking oil had been confirmed in two more locations in the country's largest oil field. the spill was first confirmed back in early june. it is being jointly developed by the china national offshore oil

corporation and u.s. energy company conocophillips. state run central chinese television says the oil slick has reached swimming beaches. it took about one month before the chinese government officially acknowledged the spill. the delay sparked criticism of a possible coverup among chinese bloggers and other internet users. china is putting the brakes on opening of a new high speed railway. the government hasn't made a formal announcement about the delay. it faced criticism over the safety of its bullet train service since a collision last month killed 40 people and injured more than 190 others. the new service has reportedly been tested since july 26th. it runs about 100 kilometers in the southern province. passengers were expected to start traveling on the line on friday when an international sports event opens but the new

north station remains off limits to the public and no tickets were being sold there on friday. the railway ministry has yet to make an announcement about the delay and station officials say the line has not started commercial operations. >> translator: i hope the authority can act on the principle of safety first. there have been too many rail accidents recently. the united states and north korea are making progress on a humanitarian issue. the north says it is considering now a u.s. request to hold a reunion of korean-americans and their relatives in north korea. the u.s. state department confirmed on thursday that efforts are now under way to hold the reunion. it said in a statement that the u.s. does welcome the efforts. an estimated 100,000 ethnic koreans living in the united states left relatives behind when they immigrated during and after the korean war in the 1950s. earlier in the day, north korea's foreign ministry said it received a request from the u.s. that the reunion be arranged

through the red cross and other channels. north korea added that it is positively examining the issue, indicating that it may allow the reunion to go forward. in talks with the u.s. last month, north korea refused to take concrete steps toward denuclearization. this time, though, the u.s. seems to be taking advantage of the north's cooperative stance on humanitarian issues with the hope of also winning a flexible response on the north's nuclear program. residents of fukushima prefecture who voluntarily evacuated due to the crisis at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant have demanded compensation from the plant's operator. people from 411 households visited the headquarters of the tokyo electric power company on friday to present their claims for $15 million in damages. >> translator: we feel it is necessary to evacuate from fukushima and it will be costly. >> the claimants include residents who live outside the mandatory evacuation zone but have chosen to evacuate as well

as current residents who are considering evacuating in the near future. last friday a government panel released interim guidelines stating that residents who voluntarily evacuated from areas outside the government designated zones are not eligible for compensation. a tepco official said the company will deal with the matter in line with the government panel's recommendations. japan is being asked to help out the world's newest country. the military adviser for u.n. peacekeeping operations has expressed hope it will send troops to south sudan. the lieutenant general spoke to nhk on thursday and stressed the need to send 8,000 peacekeeping personnel to south sudan which became independent in july. >> we know what is going on, unfortunately, in japan. we know everybody is busy with the reconstruction. it is this will, this attitude of the japanese people that we want you to bring into this new country. >> lieutenant general gaye says

south sudan has only managed to pave roads in the capital juba so peacekeeping troops are needed to help build infrastructure. he also says armed groups that fought in the civil war are being demobilized but the country still faces threats and needs a strong security force. hot and sticky here in tokyo. let's see how weather is shaping up closer to where you are.

that is going

>> but it's not only the appearance that puzzles us. >> translator: now, look how the compass needle moves. >> the needle, which is supposed to indicate north, continues to point to the center of the stone. but at the lower part of the stone, the wide part of the needle that's supposed to point south is always facing the center. how can such a thing happen? >> translator: well, anything can happen in a wonderful place like this. i don't know why it's here, but ancient people had a wisdom that made this possible.

>> he works for the public works center of kumamoto city. he became interested in rocks while handling construction projects. >> translator: i often hear construction workers say they don't feel like touching certain rocks or moving the small shrine. so i've been wondering if there's some force at work that we can't see. >> as he pondered this unseen force, he became drawn to mysterious giant rocks. burning with curiosity, he began spending all of his holidays visiting megaliths. in the past ten years he visited

more than 200 stones all across japan. amazing. but there's one thing that's bothering him -- his family has never shared his enthusiasm. >> translator: i don't care to ask because he'll never stop. >> translator: i wouldn't say i'm not interested. but he devotes all his free time to rocks instead of us. until last year, he's gone out to see the rocks all by himself even on october 22nd. >> translator: she means our anniversary. >> translator: he was never home that day. he goes all over the country you to visit the stones. really, he's gone a lot of places.

it's like where i've never been. >> despite his family's displeasure, he can't give up his pilgrimages of the stones of ogigamaishi. it's because he discovered something extraordinary there. the rock arrangement is made up of some of the largest stones in ogagimaishi. the complicated formation makes you think that ancient people must have wanted to express something. what was it that they wanted to

depict? he long had been searching for the answer. it it was the summer solstice years ago. immediately after the noon siren went off, a thin ray of light shone through an opening and formed an isosceles triangle. >> translator: i think it's a piece of art created by our ancestors. i can't describe how beautiful it was. in fact, many arc area logical sites around the world made good

use of the sunlight, the mayan civilization created a pyramid where a shadow in the shape of a serpent emerges on the spring equinox. elsewhere, in ancient egypt a temple was built in such a way that the morning sun illuminates a sculpture of a king inside on his birthday. ancient people use sunlight in every way imaginable. >> translator: there are many famous archaeology cal sites in the world, but not one creates a clearcut triangle like this place. >> wouldn't your family like to see it?

>> translator: oh, i wouldn't ask someone not interested enough to come on their own to join me. >> after he saw the shining triangle, it occurred to him that it might be even more fantastic if moonlight creates the shape. that would require a special situation. the triangle emerges around the summer solstice when sun rises to its highest position in the year. if if the moon goes up to the same point, the moonlight might project a triangle. but one problem remains. even at its brightest, the moon is just a fraction as powerful as the sun. he looked up all upcoming moon dates and found one that could

provide the perfect setting. on the winter solstice in 2010 a full moon will come up to the perfect location, a once in 19 years occurrence. >> translator: if i let this chance slip, i have to wait for 19 years. how old will i be there? i might not be around anymore. three days before the winter solstice, he started preparing with friends from the area. uchida understands his idea and offers to help. to allow as much moonlight as possible to reach the rocks, they're cutting off some branches. there had been no trees in ogimagaishi until about 30 years

ago. uchida remembered what it looked like back then and agreed to do the cutting without a second thought. >> an open area of sky about ten meters across emerged. everything is ready now. december 21st, the longed-for day has finally arrived. >> translator: see ya! >> take care!

>> the moon will reach its highest position at half past midnight, but the weather doesn't look so promising. at nightfall, clouds started to gather. uchida's friends came to join him. >> translator: the weather isn't in our favor. >> translator: not a breath of wind. >> translator: it's so still. >> who's this arriving?

>> it's his daughter. and his wife! >> translator: would you like to come? come with me? bring your bag with you. >> translator: if you say so. >> translator: the wind has started to blow. >> translator: hey, look!

the moon's out. >> translator: i've never been so eager for the moon to come out. >> translator: the clouds are moving fast now. >> translator: let's go! >> translator: yes, the moon is out! >> unfortunately, though, the winds subsided before long. the moon remained behind the clouds. >> translator: it's not so easy. we can't control nature. >> translator: but if it was an everyday occurrence, we wouldn't have been so excited.

>> translator: i'm not complaining mind you. well, maybe i am. >> translator: too bad. >> the following evening. >> translator: i have a favor to ask. could you make a fair weather doll. you can use whatever you find. >> sure enough, he has not given up. >> translator: beautiful. this is perfect.

>> translator: i'm sure it will be clear tonight. >> translator: hello! >> the whole family has come. >> translator: i'm tired. i've got wobbly legs. >> compared to the full moon last night, the moon is less bright and lower in the sky, but still there's a chance.

>> translator: i was very disappointed last night. yesterday i was so tired that i thought i'd never want to come here again. but this morning i wanted to see it it again. >> translator: that's the spell this stuff casts on you. >> at half past 1:00, their wish has been granted. >> translator: oh, there it is! look, in front of you. >> translator: it's really a triangle! whoa! whoa! >> translator: yeah, it looks like opal. >> translator: i didn't know moonlight was blue. >> translator: it's a perfect

triangle. i'm glad. this is wonderful. i'm glad i got to see it. it's so moving. >> moonlight performed a miracle. >> translator: after that, a wave of excitement washed over me. i couldn't fall asleep. i felt happy that something extraordinary haed. i didn't feel that way at first, but i did feel the excitement. >> translator: what about the summer solstice? >> translator: well, as i've never seen one in the summer, i'd like to see it if possible.

>> she now seems to be falling under the mystic spell, too. >> translator: let's throw a summer solstice party. >> the ogamigaishi stones attract visitors seeking their supernatural power. and, indeed, when bathed in moonlight, the giant rocks add enough magic to bring a family closer together.