welcome to "newsline." it is monday, october 3rd. 8:00 a.m. in tokyo. i'm catherine kobayashi. japan is hoping to strengthen its ties with russia as russia prime minister vladimir putin is seeking to return to the presidency next year. putin recently announced his intention to run in russia's presidential election scheduled next march. his victory appears likely as

the opposition camp has no viable candidates. japanese foreign minister has said japan continues on course to strengthen ties with russia no matter who becomes president. some in the government expect progress on territorial issues between the two nations if putin is elected, saying he had a good understanding of the issues during his last presidency. efforts to enhance bilateral ties are already under way. the japanese government is studying the possibility of holding high-level security talks with russia. two typhoons hit the philippines this week leaving more than 50 people dead. heavy rain and strong winds caused flooding and mudslides in some parts of the country. it landed on saturday, following last tuesday's landfall of typhoon nesat.

rivers overflowing caused massive flooding. residents climbed onto roofs to escape the floods. some had to wade through waist high water to safety. the philippine government says the two typhoons killed 52 people and 30 are missing. it added nearly 500,000 had to evacuate their homes. in northern mountainous areas, residents are stranded as roads have been blocked by mud slides. it has now moved to the south china sea, but a new low pressure system is gradually developing in waters off the east philippines and is expected to approach the country. you can share electric cars. the city of paris and french electric car maker began a two month pilot program sunday. the test service kicked off with 66 four-seater cars.

full services will be launched in december. the city plans to expand car sharing service to 3,000 electric cars across the city and its vicinities. 1100 charging stations will also be included. the head of the car company said this is not just a car sharing scheme but something that could change people's way of life in urban areas. users will be charged an annual fee of about $200, and for every 30 minutes of driving, the charge will be about $6.50. >> translator: the service is more convenient than other transportation and it's cheap. i think it's wonderful. "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post march 11. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings insight and information on the fukushima

daiichi crisis. and "the road ahead" covers efforts to recover and rebuild. today's road ahead. this is where people in a disaster hit area get away from it all. for a few hours, they can sit back and enjoy the entertainment offered by this popup theater. we have a report from miyagi prefecture. >> after two hours of pumping air, this inflatable building comes to life. japan's first popup movie theater rises up. over four days, the popup cinema showed locals 15 movies. the theater cost over a million dollars to make. it seats 120 people comfortably. the seating is arranged so everyone in the audience has a clear view of the screen no

matter where they sit. thick fabric keeps light from getting in the theater. they can view it in almost complete darkness. the idea for the theater came from a famous movie producer. he says he worried whether movie goers would find it authentic. during his career, lee has produced many cinematic hits. one of his most famous films, hula girl. they take up hula dancing to save their small mining village. last year, the recession forced lee to stop making films. but after the march 11th disaster, he felt he had to return to the industry. he heard from people in the

disaster area where he had produced a movie. >> translator: i was so grateful for comments like i was inspired by your film. they gave me a deeper understanding of why i made films. i felt my role in life is to make movies. >> now he is bringing movies to people in the disaster area. lee's career in the film industry is reborn. he wanted lots of people to come to his popup theater. lee walked around town passing out brochures for his film festival. a 74-year-old restaurant owner

shows interest. portraits of james dean decorate. he is a true movie buff. when in his 20s, he spent much of his time off at the movies. >> i saw three movies a day. they helped during tough times because you can get fully immersed in the film. it was the only time i could forget my trouble. >> he moved here and opened a restaurant, but the town had no movie theater. it has been eight years since he has gone to a movie. when he saw the festival lineup, one film really excited him. it was the 1946 american film "it's a wonderful life." he wanted to see this classic

for years. the main character lends money to the local townsfolk even if they're poor. bad luck hounds him. even as he tries to take his life. >> is that your wish? you'd never been born? >> but an angel appears and shows him how valuable life is. >> each man's life touches so many other lives. >> the night the film is screened. a movie buff is there with his wife. >> translator: i'm very excited. it's been awhile. ever since i heard it was playing, i have been looking forward to it.

>> and at the film's climax. >> get me back to my wife and kids. help me, please, please. >> kids, jany. >> are you real? >> george! >> the main character sees how wonderful life is and he and his family break into song. >> translator: my heart is beating. it's important to keep moving forward and i'm going to give it my best shot. the people of our town have to stay strong and carry on. i was moved to tears. >> the audience laughed and cried throughout the movie. now lee is convinced the disaster area should have a

movie theater. >> i was reminded just how important films can be. they give us strength and hope for a better tomorrow. i do this because i want to hear people say your film gave me courage. for that reason alone, i'll keep on going. >> the popup movie theater will travel the region until mid november. japanese listed companies have seen the paper profits on their share holdings decline by more than 38% in the last half year. japanese brokerage nomura securities researched the current market shares and acquisition price for about 1,800 listed firms as of friday. the amount was 4.1 trillion yen or $53 billion.

the unrealized gain and indication of the firm's financial strength has declined by more than 38%. the profit on shares had fallen to the level marked immediately after the financial crisis began in september 2008. the topix index on the tokyo stock exchange has lost more than 100 points or 12% in the six-month period on concerns that the european credit situation will have an adverse impact on the global economy. some 100 real estate firms from japan, the united states and ten other countries are taking part in an international property fair that opened in shanghai on sunday. they are hoping to attract investment from wealthy chinese. a chinese online real estate firm organized the event. five japanese property companies said this is a good time to buy japanese real estate as prices are very reasonable. the firm showed videos of condominiums and commercial buildings in the tokyo metropolitan area as well as

resort facilities in the southern-most region of okinawa. investment in foreign real estate is becoming increasingly popular among wealthy chinese who fear that the domestic market will become sluggish because of the government's attempts to control speculative investment. >> translator: the u.s. is in a recession, so it's a good time to buy. >> translator: overseas real estate is expected to increase in value. i would like to invest some money. >> some chinese buyers have already signed agreements to purchase properties in the u.s. and singapore. an estimated 10,000 visitors are expected on the first day. the steep rise in the value of the yen against the u.s. dollar is hurting exporters. goods are becoming expensive for overseas customers. many japanese exporters are losing money. some risk going out of business.

now many of them, including smaller manufacturers are shifting their operations overseas. >> this small company in western japan has 20 employees. the firm manufacturers ingredients and equipment for producing tofu. the company's most popular product is a kit for making tofu at home. sales have been good as the overseas demand for japanese food was high. for about the past five years, the company's exports for u.s. and europe were rising. now the surge of the japanese yen means overseas shoppers pay more for the product. say orders have been falling. this year, the company expects sales to be 30% lower than last year. >> first the earthquake, now the strong yen. orders have been cancelled. lots of companies find it hard

to compete with the yen this strong. >> this company is considering shifting production overseas. it is looking into opportunities in south korea. on this day, the firm met with a korean trading company. over the past three years, the yen has appreciated 40% against the south korean one. by manufacturing in korea, the product will cost about 50% less than in japan. korean firms of wooing the japanese company aggressively. >> translator: naturally to grow or survive, many japanese companies are looking to make their products overseas. there is no question that manufacturing japan will become very difficult. >> but small to medium size companies have limited financial resources. so when they move overseas to manufacturer their goods, they take on risks. to offset them, some companies

have formed joint operations. in the spring, 13 small companies, including an auto parts manufacturer got together to set up a company in thailand. together, they put a total of about $200,000 into the joint venture. they spent the money on the production plant and hiring local staff. one invest manufacturers. the company employs 60 workers. they make conveyer belts for factory production lines. >> this one for auto parts manufacturers is headed to mexico. >> the yen strong appreciation has resulted in companies losing more and more orders to overseas manufacturers. this summer, the company lost a substantial order worth more than $130,000 to a chinese firm.

its bid was more than 30% lower. in response, the japanese company started to produce some products at the plant in thailand. the local staff have high technical skills and the quality of their products equals what is produced in japan. the plant in thailand will increase the number of local staff from 8 to 50. while the manufacturer wants to protect domestic jobs as much as he can, he has major concerns about the future of japanese manufacturing. >> translator: looking ahead, i think that companies will search for markets overseas. and it's quite possible that the majority of their business will be overseas.

when bad luck strikes, people will do almost anything to turn things around. in thailand, an unusual ceremony is giving pima fresh start on life. here is the story. >> reporter: let's ask the holy spirit to rid us of bad luck. >> living bodies get inside the coffins. they are people who gave their life take a turn for the worse and want a fresh start.

they do a chant. that's part of tradition. another plan for the newborn. they open up and their new life begins. >> i feel alive. ready to live my life. my body and my mind are refreshed. >> i tried this. after one mipt in the coffin, my new life supposedly starts now. won't know if it is true.

lying in the coffin is not something i will easily forget. >> they only used one coffin and only did it twice a year. now they do more than twice a day. more than 200 people take part every day. >> translator: when people come seeking peace of mind, our role is to help make them feel better. demand is so high, we can't take any time off. >> 65 years motorcycle taxi driver took part in the ceremony. >> translator: i hope the funeral works so i can avoid traffic accidents in the future.

>> this taxi driver for more than 40 years. even though he works from dawn to dusk, earns only $12 a day. life is a daily struggle. he also decided to join the mock funeral. during the ceremony, he prayed for peace of mind. >> translator: i feel relieved. my life will improve. i'll get more passengers than the other taxi drivers. >> as many continue to struggle in the hopes of achieving a better life, the popularity of

ceremonial rebirth is sure to remain high for some time to come. welcome back to your weather update. southeast asia still dealing with tropical activity. you have the clouds here from the tropical storm system. get a better look at its path. moving across the south china seas. slowed down at the moment, not moving a whole lot. it will likely maintain quite a bit of slow speed as it heads into mostly westerly direction, brushing past thailand, then making landfall somewhere along central vietnam in the next couple days. it is currently a severe tropical storm system. some winds weak end. now 90 kilometers per hour.

plenty of stormy conditions. as it is a fairly slow moving system, we'll be talking about plenty of rain in the gulf area in the next 72 hours. you can see rain will continue to move across hinan island and impact vietnam. the same system effecting that monsoon. talking plenty of rainfall across the philippines and indo china peninsula. southern china looking at additional moisture thanks to the tropical storm system. taiwan having pretty heavy fog. looking to continue today. southern islands of japan for you, too, downpours are going to be a possibility throughout monday. for japan, northern areas with cold rain, even upper elevation. monday's high, 21 in tokyo. 19 in seoul, and getting cool in

shanghai as well. in the americas, you have clouds from the hurricane system here that is heading to eastern canada. coupled with these systems, it is looking to bring in quite a bit of rain to the northeastern united states and the canadian maritime. western coastline with moisture coming in off the pacific. monday, warmup in win i peg. eastern section of new york at 16. with showers, it will be a gray and chilly day for you. and finally a look at europe where the clouds remap well away from continental europe again today. high pressure is firmly in control, keeping clouds and rain well up to the north. so instead, parts of the baltic states and british isles will see rain and some winds.

london warms up to 25 degrees during the daytime. paris up to 28. still very warm conditions continuing for you here. berlin, 23. vienna coming in at 25 degrees. that's a look at your weather conditions for now. i'll round it off with the three day outlook.

japan hopes to strept strengthen ties with russia. putin plans to return to the presidency next year. putin announced his intention to run in rush's election in march. his victory seems likely as there are no viable candidates. japan continues on course to strept entice with russia no matter who is president. they expect progress on territorial issues between the two nations if putin is elected saying he had a good understanding of the issues during his last presidency. efforts to enhance bilateral ties are under way. japanese government is studying

the possibility of holding high level security talks with russia. par eegss can share electric cars. they began a two month pilot program sunday. the test service called auto lib kicked off with 66 four-seat cars. they plan to expand the car sharing service to 3,000 electric cars across the city and its vicinities. 1100 charging stations will also be included. the head of the car company said this is not just a car sharing scheme but something that could change people's way of life in urban areas. users will be charged an annual fee of about $200. and for every 30 minutes of driving, the charge will be about $6.50. >> translator: the service is more convenient than other transportation and it's cheap.

i think it's wonderful. before we wrap up, we show you a unique parade with roots in the 17th century that was held sunday in honor of a mouth watering item for many japanese. local people wearing traditional costumes marched through the city, carrying baskets with about 30 mushrooms weighing two kilograms. these mushrooms are known for their special flavor and are an awesome delicasy in japan. the parade reenacts the ritual of presenting the mushrooms. >> translator: it was great to go back in time. >> my shoulder hurts, but i'm glad lots of people cheered for

us. that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.