we'll learn to make better decisions today that will determine earth's climate tomorrow, and in turn, nature's services on which all of us depend. welcome to nhk world "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo. the minutes of a u.s. federal reserve meeting show that policy makers agreed to maintain additional credit-easing measures amid a persistently high jobless rate. the fed's move raised criticism that it may lead to higher long-term interest rates, which could delay the recovery of the housing market. critics also said further monetary easing may also cause more inflation than necessary.

but the minutes from the december 14th meeting, released on tuesday, showed that the agreement was reached as risks outweigh the possibility that u.s. economic recovery could pick up its pace due to rising consumer spending. the risks include a worsening of the housing market due to continued high employment. state and city governments may cut spending or raise taxes due to deteriorating fiscal health. and the european debt problem may also negatively impact the u.s. economy. the minutes add that u.s. long-term interest rates rose due to an improving economic outlook and because the fed's additional easing fell below some market expectations. here in japan leading department store sales had a good start in 2011, with promising sales on the first two days of business. sales on sunday and monday combined went up about 13% from mitsukoshi compared to a year ago. this was partly due tie huge expansion of floor space at its ginza store. sales figures for isetan

followed suit rising 2.6% and tack shooemia up about 1.5%. department store operators say sales were good for winter clothing and so-called lucky bags that contain designer brand items. however, december sales for most department store operators were either about the same or a little lower than a year ago despite good sales of traditional new year gourmet dishes. department store officials say that the number of shoppers is increasing but the future course is uncertain because consumers remain cautious about spending money. central japan railway company is looking for ways to strengthen its bullet trains in order to meet u.s. safety standards. the firm hopes to export shinkansen bullet train cars to the u.s. for its high-speed rail lines. the u.s. government is drafting safety standards that could be stricter than japanese ones. these would include the ability of the cars to withstand collisions. the j.r. company's shinkansen say models are designed to run on customized tracks with no brakes or crossings to prevent accidents. however, there are no standards

for the strengths of its cars. the film is consulting with a manufacturer to design stronger cars that are also light and energy efficient. the company, railway company says it hopes to win orders for a high-speed rail network for the state of florida. bidding is expected to start by the end of this year. share prices moved in a narrow range in tokyo on wednesday morning with few incentives affecting the market. the nikkei average shed .12%, or 12 points, ended the morning session at 10,385. the broader topix ending at 911. sources say that the market was without direction as some investors sold shares to lock in profits from tuesday's gains while others bought export-related issues in hopes of a recovery for the u.s. economy. looking at currencies on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is lower against the yen on thursday morning. the greenback now trading at 82.09-12 with the euro at

1.3281-3284. investors are selling the dollar to lock in gains after the u.s. currency advanced to the lower 82-yen level on tuesday. here's a look at the latest long-term interest rates. this is the yield on the benchmark 10-year japanese government bond. looking at other asian markets, hong kong's hang seng index down by .25%. the shanghai index for major blue chips declining by half of 1%. the shenzhen sse composite declining by .3%. prime minister naoto kan and former democratic party leader ichiro ozawa are increasingly at odds over an alleged political funds scandal. tensions are mounting ahead of the party convention and diet session later this month. ozawa's expected to be indicted as early as this month over the scandal. >> translator: ozawa should make clear his future plans as a

politician if indicted. and he should concentrate on his trial. >> kan made the remark on tuesday. he indicated that ozawa should consider leaving the ruling party and resign as a lawmaker. later in the day ozawa said his scandal should not be the prime minister's concern. he added that kan should focus on what to do with the country and how to protect people's lives. a lawmaker close to ozawa also criticized the prime minister's statement. he said it makes no sense to suddenly talk about the former party leader's future. another democratic party lawmaker said the prime minister should not have said anything that could stir up conflict among party members. prime minister kan may attend the world economic forum in davos later this month. he hopes to explain japan's stance on promoting trade liberalization. the annual forum at the swiss resort attracts leading politicians and business figures. the five-day meeting will begin on january 26th. prime minister kan says the event is a good opportunity to

raise japan's economic profile and he would like to participate if his schedule allows. the ordinary session -- or diet session is expected to be convened in late january. >> translator: i expect bipartisan cooperation in arranging the diet schedule. so that cabinet ministers can join such meetings if they are in the national interest. japan's national sport sumo was rocked by a series of illegal gambling scandals last year. the association chairman, hanada goma has expressed his determination to regain the trust of fans. >> reporter: stable masters and wrestlers are fully aware of what they need to do. i believe such scandals will never happen again. >> the association is gearing up for the new year grand sumo tournament, which begins sunday

in tokyo. work began on tuesday to construct a new clay sumo ring in kokugikan stadium. a bluefin tuna has fetched a record price in the year's first auction at tokyo's tsukiji market, the biggest wholesale fish market in japan. trading began at 5:00 a.m. on wednesday. the trading floor was filled with nearly 500 tunas, some caught in waters near japan and others flown in from overseas. one bluefin was auctioned for $400,000. officials say that's the highest price in 12 years of record keeping. the bluefin was jointly purchased by the owner of a sushi restaurant in hong kong and a high-end sushi spot in tokyo's ginza district. >> translator: people in hong kong and china think japanese tunas are the best. i'm happy i could buy the bluefin.

>> translator: i had the new year's luck to get the tuna in the year's first auction. though it was expensive. >> japanese sushi restaurants are finding it increasingly difficult to purchase bluefin tuna caught off japan due to the fish's growing popularity among chinese customers and connoisseurs of good food. u.s. lawmakers open a new session of congress on wednesday. with republicans taking over as the majority party, president barack obama has called for bipartisan support on the economy. obama spoke to reporters about air force one -- aboard air force one on tuesday. he was on his way to washington from a vacation in hawaii. >> my job this year is to make

sure we build up recovery. we started making good progress during the lame duck and i expect to build on that progress when i get back. >> obama said politics will be played but he hopes republicans realize they have plenty of time to campaign for the next presidential election in 2012. the president said he's confident the conservative party will recognize the need to deliver jobs for american people and create a competitive economy. republicans scored a convincing win in november's midterm elections. they're expected to use their control of the house of representatives to oppose the obama administration's policies. iran says it will invite representatives from the european union and several countries to visit its nuclear facilities in mid january. the visits will take place before iran discusses its nuclear program with major powers later this month. sources say that officials from china, russia, hungary, and other nations will be invited to iran for two days from january 15th to see a uranium enrichment facility in natanz and a heavier

water reactor in arak. hungary currently holds the eu presidency. the united states and eu countries suspect iran intends to develop nuclear weapons. iranian foreign ministry spokesperson ramin mehmanparast says that is not the purpose. >> translator: by inviting ambassadors from different countries to visit our nuclear facilities, we are showing once again our goodwill and cooperative attitude. this will make it clear that our nuclear development is for peaceful purposes. >> in december iran and six nations including the united states, china, and russia held their first talks in 14 months to discuss tehran's nuclear program. but they failed to narrow their differences. at the time the six countries were urging iran to stop its uranium enrichment. the governor of pakistan's punjab province has been assassinated by one of his own

bodyguards. investigators say the police officer objected to the governor's religious views. salman taseer was a leading member of the ruling pakistan people's party, close to president asif ali zardari. on tuesday he was shot from behind in a market in the capital islamabad while getting into his car. he was rushed to the hospital but later confirmed dead. the guard was arrested on sight. police quoted the man as saying he could not tolerate the governor's calls to reform the country's blasphemy law. in november last year a christian woman was sentenced to death for insulting the prophet muhammad, causing debate over the law. governor taseer was an outspoken critic of the legislation. in egypt protests are continuing in the aftermath of the suicide bomb attack that killed 21 christians at a coptic church in alexandria on new year's day. the attack has sparked a series of protests against the egyptian

government, which the demonstrators say has failed to ensure securities for christians in the muslim-majority country. in the capital cairo protesters threw rocks, smashed the windows of shops and cars, and clashed with security forces late on monday night. no one has claimed responsibility for the attack. but a radical islamic group had earlier issued an online threat against christians in egypt. the egyptian government has stepped up security around churches where local christians will be celebrating the coptic christmas from thursday night. we bring you two stories about astronomy. people in the middle east and europe have enjoyed watching the first solar eclipse of the year. the eclipse was at its maximum in sweden. the moon blocked out about 90% of the sun. people wore sunglasses to watch the phenomenon while braving subzero temperatures. in prague many people gathered at an astronomical observatory to enjoy the heavenly cosmic

show. in giza, egypt many tourists observed nature's work amid monuments of ancient civilization. >> this had nothing to do with technique. it's just a wonder of nature. and indeed it's pretty amazing. >> and to see this in the beautiful desert with the pyramids as a backdrop is amazing. and i think it's really made the day special. >> three more partial solar eclipses will be visible around the world this year. some planets outside our solar system may have material that is three times as dense as diamonds. japanese researchers have announced such a possibility after studying so-called super-earths. astronomers have found more than 500 planets outside the solar system, but the majority of them mostly consist of gas like jupiter. only 23 are thought to have a similar composition to our own planet. these are known as super-earths.

ihimei university professor taku suchiya sxhiz colleagues created a computer model to study the content of super earths that contain structures 23 times the structure of ow planet. it could be 6 million times greater than that of our earth's. this makes it highly likely that the planet will have an unknown substance that is about three times as dense as diamonds. professor tsuchiya says the unknown material may cause phenomena that have never taken place on earth. he adds that his team's discovery will lay the groundwork for more research. the finding will be published in the online edition of "the proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states." it takes a strong body and will to run a marathon, especially in the antarctic. every two years some of the hardiest runners cross 250

kilometers of rough terrain over six date. the recent one was the fourth in antarctica. we follow a japanese runner who tests his endurance. nhk world's masa noriyokota has more. >> reporter: 55 people are about to compete in the marathon. they come from 25 countries and territories. it's already summer in antarctica. the temperature stays below 5 degrees celsius. even during the day. sometimes it dips to minus 10. the weather changes often. runners also cope with wind that gusts to 20 meters a second. last november takesh akasaka joined the race. >> translator: it's great to run

here. antarctica is magnificent. >> reporter: he started running marathons ten years ago. two years ago he competed in week-long marathons. he crossed deserts like the sahara. after finishing three races like that he qualified for this marathon. >> translator: i think that the race may be too trying and exhausting. but i keep getting more excited about what i will find there and what kind of experiences await me. >> reporter: akasaka started training two months ahead of the marathon by running two hours a day. he always carried a 20-kilogram pack, just like in the race.

he also had to raise funds. it costs nearly $12,000 to take part in the race. hoping to cut expenses, akasaka visits nearly 20 sporting goods companies. half of them make a donation. at last it's time to run. the marathon turns out to be more difficult than akasaka had imagined. they put up with a strong wind and below zero temperatures. everyone has to keep moving just to stay warm. they also struggle with mud, knee-deep snow, and other obstacles. sometimes they take a spill. several times akasaka must tend

to broken blisters. but when he's about to give up, antarctica's grandeur boosts his spirits and spurs him on. >> translator: there's snow all around. you feel the bitter cold wind on your cheeks. you smell the penguins. you know it's possible to experience antarctica with all your senses. as you run, you get this special feeling of enjoying being on the ear earth. >> reporter: akasaka came in 41st out of 55 competitors. but he has no regrets. >> congratulations, takeshi. >> thank you. thank you. >> translator: marathons have

taught me not to give up. to keep going at something. i think that's what life is all about. >> to qualify for this race a runner must complete at least two long-distance races in a desert. more runners are taking part every year. but i think i'll skip it this year. all right. here's the weather forecast with sumi zushi. >> hello there. time now for your world weather update. well, first taking a look east in asia. in japan winter weather in store for much of northern areas. things really expected to intensify as we head into the evening hours. you can expect significant snowfall of up to 50 centimeters in the next 24 hours. that's going to be accompanied by fierce winds and thunderstorms as well. so watch out for blizzard-like conditions as well as high waves at sea. the pacific edge, as you can

see, stays dry and settled all the way toward the south. perhaps some light showers bubbling up in the south. now take a look at a bigger picture. high pressure system firmly in control for china. keeping things dry and settled. pretty windy across the north. got the cold air really keeping into this region. chilly indeed. some light precipitation found toward the south for china, and some of that could be snow and sleet as well. showers across taiwan, and then more rain as we head toward the southern philippines, contending with some really heavy downpours. and of course this is the area that has been dealing with lots of flooding and landslide problems. 30 degrees in manila today. 17 in hong kong. gets much cooler in shanghai. 6 degrees and quite cloudy out here as well. minus 3 only in seoul and looking quite cloudy too. now, heading into north america, largely settled and dry for the most part. a couple of high pressure systems in control. more lake effect snow for the

northeastern corner of the u.s. as well as eastern canada. and then down toward the south thunderstorms kicking up again for texas. but that area of rain and thundershowers will be making its way into the southeastern corner here. the main story today is going to be this winter weather that's affecting the northwestern corner. seeing quite a bit of snow already falling in british columbia, canada. and that will continue throughout your wednesday. some of that snow making its way into the u.s. as well. with places like washington, montana, idaho. significant snow of up to 30 centimeters is possible. and remember that including that is going to be freezing rain that could make really icy conditions on the road and for coastal rain as well affecting washington and british columbia. 6 degrees in vancouver today. a touch milder today. still bitterly cold in winnipeg. minus 18. minus 1 in toronto. and then 11 degrees down in atlanta. finally, take a look at europe, then, lots of wet and windy weather affecting the

northwestern corner here. quite a bit of snow to affect the northwestern corner of the uk. that rain, though, is going to be heading into continental europe next, as will that steady rain moving across spain and portugal. all that rain heading into france and the low countries. we've got lots of rain in store for you. more rain to come for the northwestern corner of spain as well accompanied by strong winds and thunderstorms. and then for central and eastern europe looking quite dry. still pretty cold, though. and then we've got that snow that's going to be impacting the northern tier of europe, the baltic states as well as southern scandinavia. good spells of sunshine in moscow today. minus 12. still very frigid out here. minus 4 in warsaw. and then minus 5 in berlin and minus 3 in vienna. a touch milder in london, but with heavy rain in store for you. here's your extended forecast.

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once again, the headlines this hour, the minutes of a u.s. federal reserve meeting show that policymakers agree to maintain additional credit-easing measures amid a persistently high jobless rate. the fed's move raised criticism that it may lead to higher long-term interest rates, which could delay the recovery of the housing market. critics also said further monetary easing may also cause more inflation than necessary. but the minutes from the december 14th meeting released on tuesday showed the agreement was reached as risks outweigh the possibility that u.s. economic recovery could pick up its pace due to rising consumer spending. the risks include a worsening of the housing market due to continued high unemployment. state and city governments may cut spending or raise taxes due to deteriorating fiscal health. the european debt problem may also negatively impact the u.s. economy. the minutes add that u.s.

long-term interest rates rose due to improving economic outlook and because of the fed's additional easing fell below some market expectations. in japan leading department stores had a good start to 2011 with promising sales on the first two days of business. sales on sunday and monday combined went up about 13% for mitsukoshi compared to a year ago. this is partly due toy ahuge expansion of floor space at its ginza store. sales figures for isetan followed suit rising 2.6% and takashimaya up 1%. department store operators say sales were good for winter clothing and so-called lucky bags that contain designer brand name items. however, december sales for most department store operators were either about the same or a little lower than a year ago. despite good sales of traditional new year gourmet dishes. department store officials say that the number of shoppers is increasing but the future course is uncertain because consumers remain cautious about spending

money. central japan railway company is looking for ways to strengthen its bullet trains in order to meet u.s. safety standards. the firm hopes to export shinkansen bullet train cars to the u.s. for its high-speed rail lines. the u.s. government is drafting safety standards that could be stricter than japanese ones. these would include the ability of the cars to withstand collisions. the j.r. company's shinkansen models are designed to run on customized tracks with no brakes or crossings to prevent accidents. however, there are no standards for the strength of its cars. the firm is consulting with a manufacturer to design stronger cars that are also light and energy efficient. the railway company says it hopes to win orders for high-speed rail network for the state of bidding is expected to start by the end of this year. in japan's ancient capital of kyoto players wearing traditional costumes have competed in an old ball-kicking game called kemari.

in shim p.ogami shinto shrine it's played every january 4th. it was believed to have come from china. it was popular among court nobles in the heian period from the 8th to 12th centuries. players dressed in heian court costumes competed to keep the deerskin ball in the air as long as possible. spectators cheered when players made fine saves to keep the ball from falling to the ground. >> translator: i enjoyed the new year's atmosphere. >> translator: the players were all good. i'll do my best this year. that concludes this edition of "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo.

we'll be back in half an hour with the latest news and weather.