hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm ross mihara in tokyo with the stories after this hour. engineers working on the cleanup at the power plant hit another snag. radioactive water may have seeped out of a storage pond. a spokesperson for tokyo electric power company said engineers detected water on the pond outside of a waterproof sheet. the level of radioactivity is low. he said engineers will investigate what caused the problem and he said they plan to transfer the water to another

pond. engineers dug the ponds to store ground would the water that floods into the reactor building and gets contaminated. they have to filter and store hundreds of tons every day. they reported a string of other problems, the cooling system for a fuel pool failed on friday. it was off line for three hours. and a power failure last month caused a blackout that lastedñ v transported poultry and a woman with no fixed occupation. one of the 31 people who recently had contact with her has a fever and is being treated in an isolated hospital unit. officials with the agriculture ministry say inspectors defected h7n9 in pigeons at a market collected in shanghai.

it's likely to have the same origin of those found in some of the patients. city authorities have closed the live poultry section of the market and destroyed all the birds. they're investigating where the pigeons came from and where they ended up. an expert on infectious diseases says the central government should take responsibility and bring in prompt countermeasures. >> translator: the important thing is we make use of our past experience in our assessment of the situation. we should provide doctors with the information we have. in addition, it's vital that we educate chicken farmers and other people on how to deal with birds and how to prevent infection. >> he says government officials need to do more to inform people about what's going on. scientists from other countries are using genetic data

from this stain to assess the risk of a pandemic. a japanese expert is warning the virus could mutate in a form that's even more infectious. nhk world's susumo kojima has more on that. >> reporter: scientists say the new avian virus differs in several ways from the h5n1 influenza. scientists say more than 370 people have died from that virus between 2003 and 2013. h5n1 killed millions of birds. also, it stopped the spread of the virus by cutting many more. scientists point out that unlike capable of infecting birds without causing symptoms. this has made it hard to detect outbreaks. an expert on infectious diseases from the university of tokyo m professor kawaoka, says part of the genetic sequence has

mutated. this has made the virus more infectious to humans. >> we have not been exposed to h7n9 viruses, so we're not immune to these viruses, and that is one of the reasons why a percentage of people who were infected with this virus can develop severe disease. >> reporter: w.h.o. officials stress because there's no evidence of human-to-human transmission, the situation is a long way from becoming a pandemic. but kawaoka pointed out that there's a possibility the structure of the virus could further change. >> by looking at sequences, one can tell these viruses can replicate among mammalian species, including humans. and it is possible with additional mutation, these viruses may become transmissable

in humans. >> reporter: kawaoka says scientists need to keep a close eye on the spread of the virus to better understand it. susumi kojima, nhk world, tokyo. authorities in seoul, tokyo and washington are responding to reports that north korea has loaded a medium range missile on a mobile launcher near the east coast. nhk has learned from japanese and u.s. diplomatic sources that north korea transported two large pieces of equipment to a site near wonsan. they say mobile launchers were also unloaded. images taken by u.s. satellite show what analysts believe could be a musudan ballistic missile transported eastward by train. the musudan missile has an estimated range of 2,500 to 4,000 kilometers. it's capable of hitting targets as far as japan and the u.s. island of guam.

south korea's navy commanders have dispatched two destroyers equipped with advanced radar systems that can track missiles. the defense ministry sent one vessel to the sea of japan east of the country and the other to the yellow sea to the west. officials say they cannot rule out the possibility that the north will fire a short-range missile into the yellow sea. kurt cam bl pbel helped cra the obama administration's asian strategy. >> there have been those who have suggested that the united states was not committed to trying to engage either the previous leadership or the new leadership in reference to kim.

i can tell you directly that is not the case. the united states in consultation with allies and friends has attempted to engage directly and has generally been rebuffed. prime minister abe told his crisis manager to do whatever it takes to keep people safe. abe urged deputy chief cabinet secretary for crisis management to keep citizens informed. chief cabinet secretary suga said the north koreans' behavior is regrettable. >> translator: japan will try to convince north korea that the country won't benefit from these actions and that these actions must stop. >> the defense minister said his

staff are stepping up their alert level. he said they'll prepare for all possible scenarios. south korean leaders are not letting the tensions stop them from helping ordinary people in the north. the unification minister says they'll keep sending humanitarian aid. he criticized north korean officials' refusal to allow people from the south to enter the park. he said it will be the north's fault if workers can't continue production. still, he suggested south korean leaders are mindful of president park geun-hye's goal of building trust. >> translator: in principle, we should give humanitarian aid regardless of the political and military situation. >> he said the door to dialogue is always open. the philippines is hosting a large-scale joint military drill

with the u.s. that started friday. it has been an annually scheduled event for decades. the two nations seem to have new focus in recent years as china's military presence grows. the united states is promoting new policies focusing on the asia-pacific region. we report from manila with the details. charmaine deogracias has more. >> reporter: day one of the joint drill started on the island. a total of 8,000 troops are taking part. in addition to military exercises, japan was trailing singapore and three other asia-pacific nations in a maritime simulation. the philippines and china are locked in a territorial dispute over islands in the south china sea. philippine foreign affairs secretary implicitly criticized china for far-reaching territorial claims without specifically naming the country. >> this comes at a crucial time for my country and my region. for our region, excessive and exaggerated maritime and

territorial claims have not only created uncertainty but have undermined the rule of law. regional stability has been placed at serious risk. >> reporter: u.s. ambassador harry thomas spoke at event of building bilateral ties. >> persistence from our respective country's army, navy, air force and marine corps have come together to plan an extraordinary event that will undoubtedly strengthen our excellent relationship and enhance our ability to work together. >> reporter: ahead of the exercise, rosario met u.s. secretary of state john kerry on

tuesday. kerry pledged support to the philippines to peacefully settle disputes in accordance with the rule of law. in january, the philippines notified china that it is seeking arbitration under u.n. convention on the law of the sea. the alliance with the u.s. is an invaluable asset in terms of security for the philippines. the philippine government is fully prepared to maintain the alliance. it wants to prove itself a match to its huge and mighty neighbor, china. charmain deogracias, nhk world, manila. the job market in the united states appears to be improving slightly. but the number of new openings in the nonfarm sector grew much slower than market forecasts. u.s. labor department officials released the latest numbers. the unemployment rate for march

fell to 7.6% from 7.7% the previous month. it has remained below 8% for seven consecutive months. however, the labor department spokespersons say american employees added just 88,000 jobs in the nonfarm sector. analysts expected about 190,000. the employment opportunities increased for professional and business services and also in health care but declined in the retail sector. some analysts say the slower job creation points to a slowdown in economic growth. here's a view from dean mackey at barclay's capital. one main message we take away from the march employment report is that some of the optimism that was generated after the remember report was displaced. there was a sense among some that we were transitioning into 200,000 or more job growth

environment on a pier persistent basis. we thought that was overstating what the message from february was. we're looking for gdp growth to be slowing down 1.5% down from what we expect to be 3.5% in the first quarter. and the reason is that some of the boost to growth in the first quarter looks unsustainable. inventories bounced higher. that's not going to last. we do think the sequestration is also likely to weigh on growth in the second quarter. so we view this slowdown in job growth in march as a prelude to that slowing in the trend in job growth in the second quarter. there's been talk among some analysts that the federal reserve would start to flow its purchases over the next couple of quarters. and that intensified after some of the stronger labor market readings of the last few months. we have felt that was premature. we expect the fed to be buying

assets at an $85 billion per month pace throughout this year and into early next year. and the main message from today's employment report is that forecast is on track. many investors in tokyo enjoyed the kind of trading day that they don't get that often. the nikkei stock average hit a multiyear high trading volume was the biggest ever. the nikkei climbed 1.58% to finish at 12,833. it reached its highest level in four years and seven months. tokyo shares got a lift due to stronger than expected monetary easing measures announced by the bank of japan on thursday. japanese securities houses specializing in online trading are getting flooded with inquiries from people looking to open new accounts. on friday, staffers at the call center of one brokerage were busy handling such inquiries as well as buy and sell orders. they say they received two times more calls than they had done

the previous day. they note the number of new accounts that have been open so far this month has shown a near three-fold increase compared with the same period last year. >> translator: we had never expected a trading day like this. people were screaming with joy. >> bank of japan governor kuroda stressed his resolve to end deflation with the bank's fresh monetary easing measures. under the bold measures adopted on thursday, the central bank will, in two years, double the monetary base or the money it supplies to the markets. speaking to a parliamentary committee, kuroda repeated the importance of the measures. >> translator: the steps represent a different level of easing both in quality and quantity. they will bolster positive moves that have begun appearing in the economy and financial markets.

and they will also fuel expected price increases. all of these will help the japanese economy to get out of nearly 15 years of deflation. >> kuroda was asked if the new policy could lead to an asset-inflated economy. he says he does not see such a bubble situation in the stock and bond markets at present. kuroda went on to say there are no immediate risks, but he added that the bank will keep a careful eye on such trends. japanese and u.s. negotiators have taken another step toward realigning u.s. forces in japan. they've been trying to ease the burden on okinawa, which has long hosted the bulk of u.s. forces in japan. they've agreed on a plan to return some land currently used for american military

facilities. prime minister abe met with the u.s. ambassador to sign off on the plan. it calls for the return of more than 100,000 hectares of land. the base could be returned within ten years, but the negotiators agreed the timeframe could be much longer. they added conditions as well. they agreed that some facilities would be relocated to ensure u.s. forces maintained their operational capability. >> translator: this plan is the fruit of my efforts to reduce the burden on the people of okinawa. i am determined to follow through on the plan. >> defense minister onedera will visit okinawa on saturday to explain the plan to local mayors. he can expect to hear some complaints.

many residents have protested against previous proposals to relocate the bases. >> translator: it's good that they decided the timetable. we want to get it back as soon as possible. >> translator: the base has been here since i was born. i can't imagine how the land will be used if it is returned. actually, i don't think it will happen. >> translator: nine years from now is too late. even if the land is returned, we need another ten years to prepare to use it. >> japanese and u.s. officials have debated these issues over and over. their discussions have never been easy. we get more from yoichiro tateiwa.

>> reporter: u.s. troops have been stationed in okinawa ever since the second world war. their presence is at the center of u.s.-japan security treaty. u.s. bases are indicated in orange. more than 70% of u.s. military facilities are concentrated in the prefecture. but there's not a lot of space. okinawa makes up less than 1% of japanese land. kudena is the largest u.s. military base in asia. planes take off from and land on two runways, each four kilometers long. the futenma air station serves as a base for the u.s. marines. it's located in a densely populated area. it's noisy, and it has a history of accidents. many locals used to think hosting the bases was good for the economy. many of them have changed their mind.

this graph shows the propulsion of income generated by the presence of u.s. bases in okinawa, including land leases to the u.s. military. in 1972, the figure was about 16%. by 1977, it had dropped to less than 9%. over the last few years, it's been steady around 5%. events in 1995 changed the dynamic. three u.s. servicemen raped a 12-year-old girl. residents were outraged. japanese and u.s. officers started talking about reducing the u.s. presence.

president governor at the time added his voice to those demanding that the airfield be moved. >> i was told that even though they would return the futenma marine corps air base, they need the relocation site within okinawa. so i was very much discouraged. >> reporter: prime minister shinzo abe has stressed the importance of the japan-u.s. security alliance ever since he took office. he's trying to strengthen relations by proceeding with this plan. but many residents are skeptical. they're not convinced that relocating bases within okinawa will reduce their burden. abe needs their support if he's to strengthen the alliance. emerging economic powers still struggling with poverty. emboldened citizens still demanding democracy. the threat of violence, the push for peace, the shadow of conflict. get news and insight on south and southeast asia every weekday live from bangkok only on nhk world "newsline." the bangkok international motor show currently taking place is just one example of

thailand's booming economy. and it's a useful indicator of the positive economic outlook for this year. at the show, it's increasingly clear that more and more young drivers are willing to splash out on luxury vehicles. nhk world's dhra dhirakaosal has more. >> reporter: the ten-day event is one of the largest motor shows in southeast asia. 36 car makers from ten countries are taking part, showcasing their newest models. another segment of the auto industry that has been rapidly booming is the luxury premium sector. despite an import tax over 100% on some of these european vehicles, many are willing to pay up while the going is good. surprisingly, many buy on the spot at the motor show. this german brand sold more than 1,000 cars during less than two

weeks of last year's motor show. >> translator: it's my birthday today. i wanted it, and the price is reasonable. so i decided to buy on the spot. >> reporter: the premium car segment is growing rapidly. german premium brands bmw and mercedes benz are the market leaders, selling more than 12,000 premium cars between them last year. both notched a near 40% increase from 2011. taking note of their growing wealth, high-end automakers have

a clear eye on the younger target. >> it's very, very important segment which is growing. what we see in thailand compared to europe is that we have a very big group of young customers can, very affluent, that participate on the general economic growth of the country , that are successful. >> reporter: as more successful young entrepreneurs emerge, they're opting for these premium cars. exclusive auto rallies for owners of luxury european vehicles often take place. kriwich hemindra, 28, is a fertilizer entrepreneur. this is his first european luxury car purchase. his new car cost more than $160,000, and he paid half the

amount in cash. >> translator: paying the monthly installments can be difficult sometimes because business is not going well all the time. i feel proud to be driving this car because there are many people who dream of owning one, but they might never get the chance. but i can. >> reporter: thanks to his purchase, kriwich's now joined an exclusive club with more than 10,000 members. beside its comfort, his car also functions as a very conspicuous symbol of success. with booming economies across southeast asia, premium carmakers are planning more expansion in the region. >> asia was never -- we never left the focus on asia. and so we're investing in our plans to increase our capacities to fulfill the marvelous market demands. >> reporter: as luxury cars become increasingly popular status symbols for the nouveau riche, the emerging economies have become both a dream have become both a dream opportunity and a cutthroat battleground for the high-end automakers.

dhra dhirakaosal, nhk world, bangkok. here's the world weather now check out the latest market figures. moving on to the weather forecast for the next three days.

that's all we have this hour on "news line." thank you for watching and have

a good day.