welcome welcome to nhk world "newsline." the employment s the employment situation in the united states is moving forward. but still at a crawl. the labor department released its employment data for march. the numbers show the jobless rate dropped to 8.2%. it was 8.3% in february. nonfarm employment rose by 120,000 jobs. economists had expected almost double that. the increase is the lowest since last october. the manufacturing sector added 37,000 jobs. the motor vehicles and parts sector gained 12,000 positions.

the machinery sector added 7,000 jobs. japan's economy is showing signs of growth for the first time in two months. government incentives for buyers of ecofriendly cars boosted sales, especially in the auto sector. the the cabinet office says the coincident index which points to the current state of the economy went up 1 point in february from the month before. the index reflects economic activities like industrial production and employment. meanwhile, the leading index climbed 2.1 points, which was a fourth straight monthly advce. this index predicts the state of the economy a few months down the root. officials say increased shipments of smartphones and other electronic products helped push up the leading index. they remain cautious about the economic outlook, however. one reason is high oil prices. officials say they have to monitor the cost of crude carefully and see how it will affect the economy. japan's prime minister has approved a strategy to deal with one of his most pressing issues.

yoshihiko noda's government adopted new safety standards for nuclear plants. this is supposed to be a step toward restarting the first reactors since last year's accident at fukushima daiichi. noda and three cabinet ministers approved the standards after meeting about the ohi plant. two of its reactors are at the center of the debate on firing up idled units. they supply power to western japan. noda and the m noda and the ministers defined three requirements for restarting nuclear plants. first, facilities must be equipped to deal with power outages caused by earthquakes or tsunami. second the gov second the government has to assess plants are able to prevent meltdowns. third, utility companies must present a schedule for the introduction of additional preventive measures based on the lessons from the fukushima accident. >> translator: >> translator: there's no upper limit to the measures that could be introduced to ensure the safety of nuclear plants. the most important lesson to be learned from fukushima is to say

good-bye to the myth that nuclear power is safe. >> industry ministry yukio edano told ohi plant operator kansai electric power company to make sure the facility meets the new standards. he also asked he also asked the utility to draw up a timeline to implement the regulations. prime minister noda and his ministers will meet again after kansai electric replies to the request. the first step f the first step for the government is to assess the safety of ohi and then edano will travel to fukui prefecture to talk to local communities about restarting the reactors. noda's government said public consent is a precondition for the restart. japan's kansai region is heavily dependent on nuclear power. meeting this s meeting this summer's energy demand will be a challenge without the ohi plant, that's one of the reasons restarting the reactors is getting serious considation. other regions ar other regions are also expected to face an electricity shortfall. before the fuk before the fukushima accident, 37 of japan's 54 reactors were running.

since then, no u since then, no unit that has gone off line for regular maintenance has been allowed to restart. the last working the last working reactor will shut down in early may, on the northern island of hokkaido. the fukushima accident prompted the government to impose safety checks for all reactors undergoing regular maintenance. utilities used computer simulation to assess the resistance of facilities against powerful earthquakes and resulting tsunami. passing these so-called stress tests is a prerequisite for restarting units. members of the nuclear safety commission endorsed the first set of results in march for those two reactors at the ohi plant but the governor of fukui is demanding the central government come up with stricter safety standards before the units go back online. the government is using these new standards to address public concerns about the safety of nuclear plants. another big challenge facing the noda administration is the disposal of debris generated by last year's disaster.

many prefectures refuse taking in waste from the affected areas due to concerns about radiation. millions of tons of debris are still piled up in disaster areas. last month pri last month prime minister noda asked 35 prefectes and ten major cities to accept the waste. an nhk survey an nhk survey suggests only five prefectures and two cities are ready to comply. they see the measures as a contribution to rebuilding affected areas. the vast majority of local authorities either refuse to take in the debris at this time or are still debating the issue. they cite doubts about the government's debris management standards and oppositions by their constituents. children around japan have started to return to school at the start of the new year. this stands true for students in the country's disaster-stricken northeast. the kids have be the kids have been reuniting with old friends but for some they are in new places. three public schools in naraha

town held a joint opening ceremony at a leased facility in the neighboring city of iwaki. >> translator: i will always appreciate the support we received, and will approach the future with a positive attitude. >> the three schools are based in the no-go zone around the disabled area around the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. they were clos they were closed after the disaster. the students s the students spent the rest of the year studying near or where they had evacuated, but the kids are now back together. in the disaster-hit city of kesennuma in miyagi prefecture, a group of elementary schoolchildren has received a gift from a city devastated by an earthquake 17 years ago. the three-by-eight meter drawing depicts cherry blossoms, a symbol of spring and new life in japan. it was drawn b it was drawn by schoolchildren in kobe. >> translator: it makes me so happy to know someone cared enough to do this for us.

>> translator: i feel encouraged to know that they share the pain of the children in kesennuma. >> the three children from the shishiori school died in the disaster last march. about 20% of its students are still living in temporary housing. full scale full scale work has begun to rebuild a breakwater in northeastern japan that was severely damaged by last year's tsunami. workers on fri workers on friday began installing large ferroconcrete blocks in the port of hachinohe in aomori prefecture. the tsunami destroyed almost half of the 3,500 meter long breakwater. ferries and co ferries and container ships in the port have been left exposed to powerful waves that have hindered navigation and unloading. the transport the transport ministry hopes to complete the work by the end of 2013. the remain the remains of a japanese fishing boat are settling on the bottom of the pacific ocean. u.s. coast guard officers sank

the rusty ship thursday. last year's march tsunami dragged it out to sea, along with millions of tons of debris. the vessel traveled 8,000 kilometers to end up off the coast of north america. its appearance surprised and fascinated people but it quickly turned into a hazard. we spoke to cbc news reporter maggie zelaya in vancouver. >> reporter: the u.s. coast guard has succeeded and the ship is no more. the boat finally sunk at 6:15, alaska time. it was first spotted off the coast of western canada last month and then it drifted into american waters in the gulf of alaska. so the coast gua so the coast guard said they opened fire around 1:00 alaska time in the afternoon. they shot a 25-millimeter cannon into the hull of the boat. and first the vessel went up in flames and then it started to list to the side. it took about five hours for the boat to finally take on enough water that it sunk. so actually someone here in bc did try to save the boat, a fisherman.

they sent three they sent three crew members onto the boat but found there was oil and fuel everywhere so they couldn't save it. that's when the coast guard decided to shoot it. the reason they wanted to shoot it is because they say it's a danger to other ships, because there is no one navigating and there are no lights, and the other reason, it could crash into the shore and the fuel could spill. the boat is carrying 7,500 liters of fuel. so that fuel is expected to either just evaporate into the ocean naturally. now the coast card tonight is going to clean up some of the debris that's left over. there's a bit of small pieces of the boat still hanging around, they're going to clean that up and also a bit of oil on the surface of the water, but that should go away naturally. the coast guard is very pleased with the way the operation went, it all went according to plan, and they say that the boat has about 6,000 feet to go down into the water before it hits the ocean floor. the general reaction here from the public i think is mostly fascination. everyone is ve everyone is very intrigued by the debris coming over. i think there's a sense of sadness, too, that we're going to start seeing things that may have belonged to people.

and there's an eeriness to the quality of the items coming over. people are may people are maybe dreading it but also kind of eager to see it. environmentally there are concerns there could be fuel spills and that's why they took the action they did today. and there's also just the matter of the environment maybe being polluted. we've heard st we've heard stories about a mass of garbage in the middle of the ocean where a lot of the debris could end up, so i think that's why authorities took the swift action today to get rid of the boat, make sure that it didn't spill and possibly hit an environmentally sensitive area, a shoreline where there are birds or people, and i think we can expect more of that, some of the experts said there are definitely going to be more boats coming, at least from canada, they're expecting maybe a dozen more is the number we heard today. so we can expect that people will try to save things if they can because there's a lot of respect from the item coming over because of the magnitude of the tragedy but when they need to, to prevent environmental degradation or pollution, they will take care of it.

>> that was maggie zelaya of cbc news in vancouver. authorities in france say an accident at one of the country's nuclear facilities will impose a threat to the environment. a fire broke out thursday at the penly plant, triggering a leak of radioactive water. spokespersons for france's nuclear safety agency say a puddle of oil on the floor of a reactor building is behind the fire. safety devices safety devices automatically shut down the unit. shut down the unit. emergency work emergency workers put out the flames. one of them re one of them reportedly suffered minor burns. investigators found radioactive coolant had seeped from a pump joint. plant operator plant operators say they plugged the leak and mopped up the contaminated water. iran's foreign minister is searching for a place to hold the next round of international negotiations on his country's nuclear program. ali akbar salehi is planning to ask neighboring iraq or china. representatives from iran and six western nations are scheduled to meet april 13th.

they last got together 15 months ago. iranian leader iranian leaders wanted to hold talks in istanbul, but the idea collapsed because of differences between their government and turkey over syria. iran is closely allied with syrian president bashar al assad's regime. turkey and western nations are demanding assad resign because of his brutal crackdown on his opponents. u.s. autho u.s. authorities imposed new sanctions on iran over this nuclear issue. they're trying to cut the revenue the country makes on oil exports. that's raised fe that's raised fears iranian forces could block the strait of hormuz, the only shipping lane for oil tankers in the nation. the american navy is on stand by, but its commanders worry they could face a new threat. nhk world's sunshine paclibar explains. >> reporter: >> reporter: u.s. navy personnel have steered two aircraft carriers into the gulf. they're watching iran's movements. and the irania and the iranian authorities know

it. they recently they recently ordered high speed boats to harass the u.s. vessels by repeatedly approaching them. the boats are believed to be able to go faster than 100 kilometers per hour. iran can't match the u.s. navy in terms of strength, but it's managed to put the americans on high alert. the main reason, the memory of the attack on the "uss cole" in 2000. suicide bombers suicide bombers used a small boat loaded with explosives to target the ship when it was off the coast of yemen. 17 sailors died. u.s. navy commanders are worried iran might use high speed boats to do the same thing should another emergency arise. >> the use of small boats, especially if they're suicidal and they do number in the hundreds, is very difficult to defend against.

traditional naval battles have been fought between large ships. >> reporter: and so the u.s. navy is doing something it's never done before. it's using several state of the art unmanned aircraft to survey the persian gulf. the planes keep around the clock watch for suspicious activity at sea. the navy's als the navy's also equipping all its vessels in the gulf with precision cannons capable of shooting approaching high speed boats. the preparatio the preparations don't end there. u.s. military lead u.s. military leaders have a contingency plan in place should iran's revolutionary guard's navy try to block the strait of hormuz. experts believe experts believe iranian authorities ha authorities have stockpiled

about 5,000 underwater mines. to counter the threat, more u.s. navy vessels are now equipped with robots that can dive and search for the explosives. last month u.s. navy brass announced they will double the number of this type of ship in the gulf to eight. >> we will monitor the situation with their exercise carefully and act professionally at sea and we don't go looking for trouble, but if trouble finds us, we know what to do. >> reporter: so the u.s. navy will stay prepared, and stay vigilant. right now, thi right now, this is just a war of wills in the persian gulf between two long-time foes. but if the tension turns to conflict, lives, regional security and the status of the oil market will all be at stake.

sunshine paclibar, nhk world, dubai. gulf state gulf states are also making plans to deal with the situation. they see no signs they see no signs the tension will subside soon so they're strengthening their militaries. people gathered in qatar last week for the largest arms fair in the middle east. and different types of equipment for navy vessels were among the exhibits. more than 100 we more than 100 weaponsmakers from around the world took part. representatives from countries in the region visited booths and held negotiations. >> translator: we have on display the latest cutting-edge weapons. >> saudi arabia >> saudi arabia defense officials boug officials bought 84 new f15 advanced fighter jets from the u.s. for about $29 billion. buyers representing the united arab emirates purchased a u.s. developed defense system. the technology can shoot down ballistic missiles when they're high above earth. japan's foreign ministry says north korea's nuclear and

missile development continues to represent a global threat. it made the warning in this year's diplomatic bluebook that was released in a cabinet meeting on friday. the annual report says japan should work to denuclearize the north in collaboration with other countries including the united states and south korea. the policy would include a suspension of north korea's uranium enrichment program. the report also refers to the abductions of japanese nationals by north korean agents in the 1970s and '80s. it says the japanese government has repeatedly demanded that pyongyang conduct a full scale investigation based on a 2008 agreement. it adds the go it adds the government will make every effort to bring the abductees home. the report says japan's position remains unchanged on a territorial dispute with south korea. the government the government insists that the takeshima islets are inherent japanese territory based on historical fact and international law. the islets are known as dokdo in south korea.

it says japan will patiently continue its diplomatic efforts toward a peaceful settlement of the issue. people in ch people in china's growing middle class have no shortage of options when it comes spending their disposable income. cars, travel and designer goods are just a few of them. but some are using their savings to get their hands dirty. nhk world's kengo okamoto tells us about a popular trend going back to the land. >> reporter:'m in the north part of beijing, about one hour and a half drive from the city center. this is an all this is an allotment called little donkey farm, covering more than 15 hectares. the local government opened it four years ago. together with the university.

anyone with $240 can rent a part land for a year to farm. it measures 30 square meters. renters can grow any vegetable they want. the number of renters surges each year. 400 groups, mostly residents of beijing, signed up last year. >> translator: farming is tiring but fun. it's a great opportunity for family and friends to get together. >> translator: >> translator: farming is really interesting. you like working h you like working here, don't you? >> translator: >> translator: yes, i brought this here. >> reporter: ubind and his wife have just started farming for the first time. they hope to teach their son to appreciate nature. he is in grade six. on this day, the family had only intended to register.

>> translator: the shoes are not suited for farming. we didn't mean to farm today. >> reporter: the three hobby farmers live in beijing with the wife's parents. four years ago, wu quit the trade farm and started up his own business. now he runs it with his wife. most of the time the business runs smoothly. but from time to time volatility into the exchange rate eats into profits. the couple doe the couple doesn't have many employees, so the amount of care of their transactions can be painstaking and stressful. >> translator: i'm very busy with my work. i'm always under quite a bit of pressure. >> translator: >> translator: we all live in concrete buildings in e city. it is only natural for us to pine for nature. >> reporter: the day after they registered, the family returns

to plant seedlings. farming equipment and fertilizer are provided free. they have no farming experience, but staff assists them. shaobo turned 12 today. the farming experience made this year's birthday one he won't forg forget. forget. >> t >> translator: normally on my birthday mom and dad buy me a cake, but today we planted vegetable seedlings together. i really enjoy that. >> reporter: the family planted seedlings to grow cauliflower and four other vegetables. this farm promotes organic farming so the family doesn't plan to use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. >> translator: we can breathe in plenty of fresh air, and at the same time, strengthen our bodies.

also, we get t also, we get to eat better food. we can get quite a lot out of farming. >> translator: >> translator: this is a great opportunity for our son to get in touch with nature. we adults also benefit as farming reduces stress from our jobs. >> reporter: a >> reporter: as china's economy booms, people in the cities are becoming better off. now they are beginning to look for something to make their lives more satisfying. many find what they are looking for in hobby farming. kengo okamoto, nhk world, beijing. it's cherry it's cherry blossom season here in japan and it is the weekend. mai shoji joins mai shoji joins us on how the weather is going to fare out for here as well as elsewhere. mai? >> it is going t >> it is going to be the perfect weekend for our cherry blossom viewing here in central parts of tokyo. i was actually i was actually out today during the day taking some pictures of the full bloom flowers. let's take a look at these pictures coming out from tokyo.

this is near aomori area. sunshine and full bloom flowers. what a beautiful day. and this is what it is going to be looking like for the weekend. 12 degrees, a little on the chillier side on saturday. but plenty of sunshine as well as sunday, 14 degrees. so you might need a little coat or thin coat, i should say, but it will be a very nice, fantastic weekend for this. all right, we may see a little -- a few showers across central parts of japan, but it is not going to be too significant. however, snow however, snow accumulation could be as much as 20 centimeters here in the hokuriku region. on the western side of japan. high pressure will be dominating much of the korean peninsula, northern china, mongolia and eastern china. but hanging on to this coastline, these are some showers that will be lingering across the area in and around

hong kong, especially the land is very saturated, no additional rain is welcomed there. indochina peninsula, we'll see a bulk of very heavy rain moving across these areas. and summer thunderstorms are things to be watching out for the weekend. temperature, excuse me, let's skip the temperatures and move on to the americas. a few thunderstorms may be likely in the carolinas. but let's talk about georgia where the masters tournament is being held. as we speak, we already have seen some sunshine on friday with temperatures rehing 19 degrees. for saturday and for saturday and sunday, reaching up to 2 reaching up to 24, so what a nice golf weekend here in augusta, georgia. elsewhere here in the americas, and canada, all the way up towards saskatchewan, this is where snow could accumulate as much as 20 centimeters over the mountains. mixed precipit mixed precipitation in the north and then some few thunderstorms could be found with the associated cold front. but in behind that, very gusty conditions around colorado and

eastern wyoming. and dry fuels, especially the low humidity, a great recipe for the fire risk. toward the great lakes region, a very different story, where things are going to be in the freezing zone. which is going to be frost. vegetation, which is not covered. these are the these are the things that we should take precautions for saturday. overnight hour overnight hours, things are going to get very chilly in montreal. minus 2 for th minus 2 for the low. tawas city, minus 4. even in the cities, down to 3 degrees. heading over to eu headinover to europe now, things are looking very messy in the southern continent. we're taking -- we're going to be seeing some chances of thunderstormic activity across much of the areas. and things are gusty. 72 kilometers per hour has been reported in bulgaria. and this is likely to continue on for the weekend. clearing out in the british isles, maybe a little patch of light showers. but nothing too significant there as well.

temperaturewise, we're looking at london at 9 degrees. paris at 12. looking at moscow, just 7. warsaw, 9. a little chilly there. kiev reaching up to 15 degrees. here is the extended forecast.

we'll we'll be back with more news in 30 minutes. i'm gene otani in tokyo. q