hello there and welcome. you're tuned in to nhk world, and this is "newsline." first we check in with ines matsuyama for the latest in business news. ines? >> thank you very much, catherine. hello. japan's industrial output for june fell for the first time in four months. the ministry of economy announced that the indicator of corporate production activities fell 1.5% last month compared to may. the drop goes against an advance that many economists had forecast. major decliners by product

include passenger cars, mobile phones, and solar cell modules. the ministry says industrial production has been moderating temporarily but continues to show an upward trend. looking ahead, manufacturers expect output to decline by 0.2% in july, and by contrast increase 2% in august. meanwhile, japan's consumer prices are going down for a 16th consecutive month. the internal affairs ministry says the consumer price index excluding volatile fresh food prices fell 1% in june from a year earlier. the drop in prices reflects a large decline in high school tuition fees. this is after the government made tuition free for public high schools and began subsidizing private high school fees from april. tokyo shares are lower on friday morning on investor jitters over the u.s. economic outlook. the nikkei 225 closed the morning session at 9,550 points,

down 1.5%, or 146 ticks almost. sell orders dominated due to the strength of the yen, and on the weakness of new york shares. some electronics and automotive shares bucked the trend on the back of robust earnings reports. to currencies, on the tokyo foreign exchange the dollar is losing ground against the yen on friday morning. the greenback is currently changing hands at 86.47-51. investors took their cue from the dollar's overnight losses in other markets. contributing to the fall was the downgrade by the u.s. federal reserve of its economic assessment for some districts, dampening america's recovery outlook. concerns over ballooning u.s. fiscal deficits are also weighing down on the dollar. and here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond. in other asian markets, hong

kong's hang seng opened down 0.4%. it's currently down 0.2%, slightly recovered here. the shanghai key index for major blue chips is down .25%. and in shenzhen the sse composite is down just a fraction. japan's unemployment rate in june rose from the previous month for a fourth month in a row. the internal affairs ministry reported on friday that the seasonally adjusted jobless rate for the month stood at 5.3%. that's up 0.1 percentage point from may. the number of people with jobs stood at just under 63 million, which was down 200,000 from the same month a year ago. meanwhile, the number of unemployed improved at 3.4 million, compared with a year ago. in a separate report, the ratio of job offers to seekers in june improved from the previous month. the labor ministry said there are 52 positions for every 100 job seekers.

those figures confirm that jobs are still hard to come by in japan. and that's also true for new college graduates across the nation. japanese college students typically start looking for jobs in their junior year. as there are fewer opportunities for a mid-career job switch, students take their initial search very seriously. nhk world's nahoko yamada reports. >> reporter: in mid july, 2,000 students have flocked to this job fair in tokyo, hoping to land a job with one of the 30 participating companies. large corporations normally stop accepting job applications by the end of the may. so the large attendance here some six weeks later is testament to how hard it is to find a job this year. >> translator: only a few of my friends have received offers. it's a tough market for sure. >> translator: many of last year's graduates are still

without jobs, too. competition is fierce. >> translator: deflation is taking its toll on job supply, especially in the domestic service and distribution industries. these sectors have cut down on hiring. that's a heavy blow for humanities majors. >> reporter: miyoki knack yama has been looking for a job for almost two years. she graduated this march and she is still looking. she said she has applied at no less than 100 companies. >> translator: i've had so many ups and downs, it's hard to keep motivated. it's taking so long. i'm not a new college graduate, so i'm not a fresh face, but at the same time, i don't have experience. it's a tough market for someone like me.

>> reporter: miyuki is doing what she can to make herself more marketable. she has been attending government-subsidized vocational school since april to gain more skills. from 9:00 to 4:00 on weekdays she studies bookkeeping, computing, and other administrative skills. miyuki also takes lessons in interview skills. >> reporter: an advisor grades her on how she presents her personal background, and she answers possible interview questions. she even learns how to perfect her bows, as the career counselor stresses these manners are important, too. miyuki says attending the school helps her feel more confident.

>> translator: what i'm picking up here is something new college graduates don't have, and it could be an advantage for me. i'll make it my sales point for the companies i apply to. >> reporter: jobless college graduates like miyuki were said to number 31,000 nationwide as despite the economic recovery, companies don't necessarily start hiring people, says the chief economist at dai-ichi life research institute. >> translator: the hiring of college graduates lags behind economic recovery. especially now when companies think they're overstaffed. they'll cut back on hiring. unless they start feeling staff shortages, the job situations for graduates won't recover for some time. >> reporter: as of july, slightly below 70% of new college graduates have clinched

job offers. that's down 10 percentage points from the good times. some analysts say this year's job market will be the worst on record. whether they learn smarter presentation or more diverse skills, new graduates will need that competitive edge. nahoko yamada, nhk world. toyota motor is recalling about 480,000 vehicles worldwide. two models are said to have steering problems. the japanese automaker announced on thursday that the recall is affecting about 80,000 lexus lx470 sports utility vehicles. they were sold between 2003 and 2007 in the u.s., japan, and other countries. about 400,000 avalon sedans will also be recalled. these were sold from 2000 to 2004. toyota says there are flaws in the avalon's steering lock. in the worst case it could crack and lead to a loss of control.

on the lexus lx470 the steering shaft could come out from its proper position when passing over a big bump. a driver could then lose control. japanese steelmakers showed profits, thanks to more exports to china and other asian markets. that marks a turnaround from losses posted a year ago. but higher raw material costs are weighing on the industry. for the april to june quarter the leading maker nippon steel saw its sales grow 30%, or slightly over $11 billion, compared to the same period last year. operating profit came in at about $710 million. jfe holdings, kobe steel, and sumitomo metal industries also returned to profit. the makers say higher prices of iron ore and coal since april are cutting into their profits. they go on to say they have not been able to pass on the extra costs to the customers. due to uncertainties over raw material prices, nippon steel and sumitomo metal did not

release sales forecasts for the full business year in their latest earnings reports. japan's nintendo said it suffered from the recent surge in the yen. it showed a foreign exchange loss of over $800 million due to a plummet in the yen value of its foreign assets. in its quarterly earnings report from april through june, the maker of game consoles and content said it posted a net loss of about $290 million. that's a change in direction from a $485 million profit a year ago. the company says sales fell more than 25%, about $2.2 billion, due to a lack of hits in game contents. despite the devaluation loss on its foreign assets, nintendo is keeping its earnings forecast unchanged for the business year through march 2011 at $2.3 billion. next is a recap of the latest market figures.

♪ next is a recap of the latest market figures. excuse me. that's all for now in biz news. and now back to the main news with catherine. >> all right. thanks very much, ines. the united states will send a senior state and treasury department officials to japan and south korea next week to discuss sanctions on iran and north korea. u.s. assistant secretary of state philip crowley told reporters about the upcoming visit on thursday.

the state department is sending robert einhorn, its special adviser for non-proliferation and arms control. the treasury department is sending its deputy assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes, daniel glaser. they'll arrive in seoul on monday and tokyo on tuesday. the u.s. government imposed more sanctions against iran earlier this month. the move followed the u.n. security council's adoption of a resolution to impose further sanctions on iran due to its nuclear development. the u.n. sanctions mainly target foreign firms that have exported oil products to iran. the united states is also working on further sanctions against north korea following the march sinking of a south korean warship allegedly by the north. the sanctions are said to include freezing of assets of north korean entities and individuals in the u.s. the u.s. is expected to call on japan and south korea to follow suit. it aims to increase pressure on iran and north korea and make

its sanctions more effective. thai prime minister abhisit vejjajiva announced thursday that he has lifted the state of emergency in six more provinces. however, he added that the law remains in effect for the capital of bangkok, even though protests there ended over two months ago. the government imposed emergency rule in 24 provinces during mass protests that lasted from march to may. at that time, 90 people were killed and nearly 1,900 were injured in violent clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces. from the beginning of this month, emergency rule has been gradually lifted in various provinces. however, it remains in effect in bangkok, where a bomb exploded in the downtown area on sunday, killing one person and wounding ten others. british prime minister david cameron and indian prime minister manmohan singh have agreed to expand economic ties.

cameron met with his indian counterpart in the capital new delhi on thursday, accompanied by representatives of british financial and telecommunication companies during his first visit to india as prime minister. the two leaders discussed ways to expand investment. they agreed to consider the participation of british companies in road construction projects in india. after the meeting, they held a news conference. >> we cannot wait to come back again and make further progress in this, an important and winning relationship for both our countries. >> his presence here so soon after his election victory in may this year indicates the strength of the bonds that tie india and the united kingdom. >> singh also said he wants to double the amount of bilateral trade over the next five years. pakistan is experiencing the heaviest rainfall recorded in

the past 35 years. monsoon rains have triggered flooding and mudslides, leaving close to 80 people dead, according to local authorities. 250 to 300 millimeters of rain pounded parts of the northwest region over a period of 36 hours. military troops and rescue teams are trying to help thousands of people who remain stranded in their homes. however, the bad weather is hampering rescue efforts, and helicopters cannot be sent in. the death toll may rise as pakistan's weather officials warn that torrential rains are forecast to continue in the northwest. the association of southeast asian nations plans to arrange a regular defense ministers conference with eight countries in the pacific basin. this year's host, vietnam, announced on thursday that the

first asean meeting will be held on october 12th in the capital, hanoi. natural disaster rescue and anti-piracy measures will be high on the agenda. it said the conference for asean defense ministers will be expanded to include japan, south korea, china, russia, india, australia, new zealand and the united states. >> translator: the eight countries hope to use their collective experience to maintain peace in the southeast asian region. asean will enhance its presence as the focus of international dialogue. >> expanded talks will be scheduled every three years, and high-ranking working-level discussions will take place annually. observers say asean's goal is apparently to check china's ambitions in the region by involving defense ministers from the eight major countries. some asean members currently have a territorial dispute with china over islands in the south china sea. south korea's prime minister chung un chan announced his

resignation thursday one month after parliament shot down his attempt to scrap a plan to transfer government offices outside the capital city of seoul. >> president lee myung bak's government has been trying to cancel the project conceived by former president roh moo-hyun's administration. the plan involved transferring government to chungcheong province, about 100 kilometers south of seoul. the government calls the plan a waste of taxpayers' money and has instead proposed building a business and academic center in the same area. however, the alternative proposal was voted down by the national assembly on june 29th,

opposed not only by opposition parties, but also by some in the ruling party. president lee myung bak is expected to appoint chung's successor soon. lee also plans to reshuffle the cabinet as part of an apparent effort to stabilize his administration. japanese shipping firm mitsui o.s.k. lines has released photographs of one of its tankers that was allegedly hit by an explosion in the strait of hormuz in the middle east on wednesday. the 160,000-ton "m. star" was heading from the united arab emirates to japan. the firm says the blast caused a huge dent in the tanker's starboard stern and a minor injury to one crew member. the photos show damage to doors, the ceiling, and walls of the cabin closest to the stern as well as window frames leaning against tables and shattered glass in the ship's dining hall. mitsui o.s.k. says the explosion could not have happened inside the tanker, as all damaged objects were blown in from the

outside. it also says neither gas nor fires were used in the dining hall. the firm says the tanker may have been attacked. officials from the firm are inspecting the damage with u.s. and british military experts. u.s. assistant secretary of state philip crowley told reporters on wednesday that the u.s. had no information at this point that suggests the tanker was indeed attacked. meanwhile, port authorities in the united arab emirates showed to the media the japanese oil tanker that was damaged on thursday. the vessel is currently docked at fujairah port in the uae. it has a four-square-meter dent in its right stern. many scratches are visible on the surrounding area. speaking to reporters on thursday, an official from fujairah port said that the tanker may have collided with something, and expressed doubt about the shipping firm's suspicion that the ship was attacked. >> if there's a collision, there is a damage.

but whether the case is, i don't know. until an investigation has taken place. >> uae coast guards and officials will continue to inspect the damage over the next few days and interview all the crew members to try to find out what caused the incident. a high court in japan has ordered the government to pay about $4.2 million in damages to residents for noise pollution from a nearby u.s. air force base. the amount is 2.5 times that ordered by a lower court. about 400 people living near the u.s. marine corps futenma air station in ginowan city in the southern prefecture of okinawa had demanded compensation and a ban on nighttime flights. both the residents and the state had appealed against a lower court ruling that ordered the state to compensate all the plaintiffs but did not grant a ban on flights. on thursday the presiding judge at the fukuoka high court's branch in okinawa ruled that the residents have suffered mental pain from the noise and has

disturbed their sleep, conversations, and tv viewing. he ordered an increase in compensation, citing the government's failure to take substantial measures to reduce noise pollution, even though the resident suffering has increased since a u.s. marine helicopter crashed inside a nearby university campus six years ago. he added that a limitation on flights after 10:00 p.m. based on an anti-noise agreement has not been observed. however, he upheld the lower court ruling that dismissed the plaintiffs' claim for a suspension of nighttime flights, saying that japan has no law that can limit the activities of u.s. forces. >> translator: i thank the court for its thorough investigation of the dangers of futenma. however, we couldn't realize a ban on night flights, which was our main demand. we will now bring the issue to the supreme court. in japan's traditional

kabuki theater actor matsumoto koshito has accomplished the feat of staging the classic work "kanjin-sho" in all 47 prefectures of japan. koshiro gave the milestone performance in ibaraki prefecture on thursday, ending his 36-yearlong circuit across the nation. kanjincho is the story of a runaway warrior and his retainer, who are attempting to pass through a particular gate along the road that is being guarded by a local noble. koshiro first played the role of benkei when he was 16 years old and started the national tour in 1974. during a curtain call koshiro expressed gratitude to his audience that's have ranged from the northernmost prefecture of hokkaido to southernmost okinawa.

>> koshiro, who will be 68 years old next month, plans to continue performing kabuki dramas across japan. hi there. welcome back to your world weather update. well, flooding is a major concern up in the north of japan. it has been raining quite a lot recently. so even as that rain moves away from the area, we will need to watch out for flooding possibilities. rain also moving out of central portions, as well, but it does mean that the heat is going to be returning from the west with temperatures easily exceeding 30 degrees from this afternoon.

over towards china, northeastern corner will be dealing with heavy rains today, and this area is quite saturated. so we do need to watch out for flooding here as well. much of china is going to be basking in sunshine today. it's going to be very hot across the region. down in the south contending with more monsoon rain. along the southern coast and then down into the indo-china peninsula as well. the monsoon rains also kicking up across india today, especially along the southwestern corner here dealing with torrential rain. some areas picked up up to 160 millimeters in the last 24 hours. and it looks like that rain will stay in place throughout the next few days. up in pakistan, as well, this low pressure system is showing signs of weakening, but there is still more heavy rain in store on friday. especially up in the north. so further flooding and landslides are possible here. let's take a look at the temperatures, then. 40 degrees in chongqing today. so very hot conditions. shanghai coming in at 37.

looking for 31 in seoul and 34 up in beijing. let's head to europe, then. we have a new system that's arriving from the atlantic that's going to make its way steadily across the british isles over the next couple of days, bringing some showers first of all to ireland, northern ireland, and scotland. and in the mid-section of europe also dealing with lots of rain and thunderstorms. first of all, towards the north this big low pressure system is going to continue to bring very windy conditions here for sweden as well as norway, and down in the central mediterranean for italy and the alpine region. parts of balkans too will be dealing with lots ofd perhaps s severe storms as well. so do watch out for that. the east is looking essentially dry. there is going to be a bit of rain making its way into western russia. hopefully, that will help cool things down in the capital of moscow here. and of course this area has been dealing with excessive heat the past weeks. and not just the heat but of

course the wildfires as well. in fact, we're going to take a look at some footage now coming in from the south of the capital. this showing you the wildfires going on here. 70 homes were burning in the voronezh in the south of moscow. peat fires continue to rage and burn across the region. meanwhile, in moscow dealing with the smog that has reached dangerous levels, said to be ten times above recommended safe levels. a mask a very good idea if you are going outside. and very, very bad conditions. very poor air quality here as well. now, in terms of temperatures, that rain is going to be helping to cool things down in moscow. today 28 degrees. but it is only going to be a little bit of a break in that heat as temperatures are coming right back up over the weekend, not just in moscow but elsewhere across western russia. okay. here's your extended forecast now. ♪

♪ ♪ thanks for joining us. that concludes this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. we'll see you again soon.