>> hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." people in scotland are awaiting the results of an historic referendum. they've cast ballots to decide whether or not to break away from the united kingdom. polling stations across scotland closed on thursday at 10:00 p.m. local time. the ballots are being counted in each of scotland's local authority districts. after each tally, each area will declare its result. scots are paying close attention

to the referendum. >> i'm voting yes. >> people break away from the union, there is no -- whatsoever. >> scottish national party leader heads the pro independence camp. he voted near the eastern city of aberdeen. >> it's a once in a lifetime opportunity to take scotland's future into scotland's hands. >> the ballot adds people should scotland be an independent country, they can choose yes or no. if yes votes outnumber yes votes, scotland will leave the united kingdom regardless of the turnout. barack obama is pledging more money to help ukraine. sending an additional $53 million. >> providing additional substantiate, both economic and

security assistance to ukraine. >> and the president stressed that americans will work with other countries to seek a diplomat solution. assistance includes military equipment and will provide food and aid to residents in eastern ukraine. he thanked the u.s. for the stance and said he hopes the on going cease fire will transform into real peace. early in the day, he spoke before congress and appealed for weapons. french president says his country will join u.s. air strikes against islamic state extremists. he says the move is in response to the iraqi government. >> once we identify a target, we will act.

we will begin our air strikes soon. >> he stressed his government would not -- air stiks on syria and said there won't be french troops on the ground josh earnest said france's air support is is a significant contribution to the coalition combatting islamic state extremists. many people are reportedly joining the islamic group. the french government announced more than 900 of its citizens including youth and women traveled to iraq or syria and may join in the fighting. he hosted a conference -- international organizations on monday in paris. the u.s. financial markets -- in the world of business -- good morning.

>> well, people are relieved that the federal reserve remains committed to supporting the recovery, so investors are buying stock and the dollar. the dow jones industrial average ended at another record, the broader s&p 500 index hit a fresh high and the dollar is at four-year highs against other major currencies. rameen is standing by at the tokyo stock exchange. >> the current monetary policy stance is really helping to fuel or drive the rally in the u.s. and after the sharp fall in u.s. housing starts data that came out confirmed that the fed may not be able to rise interest rates anytime soon. it's looking closely at economic data. let's have a look at how the nika akay and top ix are reactig here the nikkei hitting fresh year highs.

16,187. the nikkei closed the previous session above 16,000 for the first time since january this year and we're continuing higher right now. stock prices really been bianuccied by the rise in the dollar. the u.s. currency is hitting fresh six-year highs in the wake of the fed's policy statement. pretty positive start here. >> where is the dollar trading now against other major currencies? >> let's have a look. >> that's keenly watched currency pair. six-year high against the yen has rallied against other currencies including the euro. the british pound has however bournsed back a touch following recent lows against the dollar. the results of the vote on independence is going to be a big focus for global currency

markets. now, in case of a no vote, an analyst i spoke to this morning expects trader to buy the pound sterling against the dollar and no vote means less disruption to the overall british economy than a yes vote according to him. it will also be focusing on shares of mobile phone carriers in japan as today, we see the release of the latest iphone 6 lineup of products and i know we're going to have more court and jury. china's biggest retail website initial public offering has been priced at 86, beg your pardon, $68 a share and it's now the world's or the u.s.'s biggest internet public offering ever. over here in japan, a major stakeholder such as soft bank will be a focus. currency, smart phones and online retail accounts. that's going to be a big focus today. but the nikkei hitting fresh

year highs. this morning. back to you. a top u.s. trade official has called on -- to take action. the time has come to strike an agreement in the free trade talks. the u.s. trade representative is due to meet japan's minister in charge of talks next week in washington. they'll aim to wrap up negotiations over terrorists on five categories of farm products. a critical issue that has been a sticking point in their talks. he delivered a speech ahead of the talks and called for a comprehensive deal to ensure the tpp is successful. he urged his japanese counterparts to exercise robust political power and stressed the it's time to make concrete progress. he said the u.s. would not

benefit from any further delay. members of the japanese government panel are trying to boost industrial competitiveness and revitalize the economy. they say they'll hold meetings to check that abe's growth strategy is carried out as planned. the members gathered for the first time since abe reshuffled his cabinet this month. abe told the members his growth strategy comes with clear targets. >> we need to keep refining and improving our growth strategy as we xwo. >> economic revitalization

member will head new heating to inspect the progress of the growth strategy measures. they include a reform to make work practice more flexible and improve productivity. they also include promotion of an aggressive agricultural policy to expand exports of farm products. i'll have more of your business headlines for you next hour. i'll leave you now with a check on markets.

the folk owe market leads the way. >> from the decisions that could change the course of an economy. >> to the companies at the forefront of change. >> up to the minute market reports. >> and analysis by specialists from around the world. >> get all the latest every day here on "newsline." japanese prime minister abe will join other heads of states next week in new york. they'll be attending the 69th session of the united nation's general assembly to discuss the world's pressing issues from wars in syria and iraq to outbreaks of the ebola virus. japan's ambassador to the u u.n. sat down with nhk's u.n. correspondent to talk about the country's contributions. >> city of conflict in the

middle east and africa are causing an unprecedented level of humanitarian crisis. the u.n. warns that the number of people in need of aid have shot up to more than 100 million. am he stresses that japan should be able to play a bigger role in peace keeping operations. >> here in the united nations, the world's expectation that s that japan should participate more to the u.n. operations. we are hoping that the new japanese policy will enable us to participate nor wildly in the peace keeping operation. >> last year, he said he would pursue his contribution to peace. based on the contribution, the

government has been drafting legislature that would enable japan to contribute more to peace and stability of national security. another area japan can make more of a contribution is in disaster prevention. many countries have been hit by natural disasters. the city of sendai is one of the hardest hit areas by the 2011 earthquake. the japanese government will host the third u.n. world conference on disaster risk and reduction next march there. >> we are unfortunately hit by natural disasters quite often and we have accumulated experien experiences, soft power and the sfrux infrastructure and we are right to use that for the forthcoming conference in sendai.

he believes one of challenges the organization faces is how to reform the security counsel. the five current members have remained the same for decades. >> the last time the united nation's charter was changed was 50 years ago and we are working with the very like minded countries so, group of four countries, japan, india, germany and brazil. >> those are some top requireties. as world leaders gather here, they will be waiting to see how far prime minister abe will be able to push for change. at the u.n. headquarters in new york.

. some fishermen are voicing their opposition to deal with the build up of contaminated ground water at the nuclear plant. they attended a briefing on thursday in iwaki city. officials say their plan involves removing radioactive chemicals from the water before it's discharged to the ocean. they're dealing with ground water at the facility that amounts to about 400 tons a day and they say they would only release decontaminated ground water into the sea once tests confirmed radiation levels meet safety standards, but many fishermen say they're thot convinceded the plan will work. >> contaminated water is still contaminated. i think consumers would be

concerned. >> i understand we need to continue to explain our plan to more fishermen. >> tepco officials have agreed to hold another meeting. many of the fishermen who wanted to attend could not get into the crowded venue. tepco has been working on another measure to deal with contaminated water. officials say collecting ground water before it reaches the plant is proving effective. in may, the operators started pumping up water on the hillsides surrounding the facility. officials call this method a ground water bypass and they've discharged 36,000 tons into the sea. tepco announced the measure is decreasing the build up of radioactive water at the plant by 50 to 80 tons per day. they say since the plan was implemented by 20 centimeters near the monitoring sites. they say they'll continue to monoterror the effects of the operation.

a traditional form of japanese theatre is facing a crisis. the artists have attempting to revive the stage and attract new spectators and they're doing so by restyling one of shakespeare's characters. ♪ >> it has been given the modern makeover with a beer belly, pierced naval and spikey hair. such a jolly figure is rare in the world of pupt theatre.

>> there is no comedy. the characters almost always die. >> the latest production modernized the traditional stage to attract newcomers. >> the backdrops and much larger than usual. willi will shax spear appears as a supporting character. he's sitting in a pub, writing the scenes that unfold in front of him. the lines incorporate shakespeare rhymes and world play. ♪ >> the play ends with the english folk song, greensleeves,

played on japanese instruments. another play -- and shakespeare takes his farewell. >> it was interesting to see how they managed to incorporate. >> this is a new kind of idea. it's great. the artist, not all of their fans are taking to the new style, but they think it's essential if they're going to keep the art form relevant. >> i think welcoming by creating this kind of new play is the most thing for the future of -- >> the performers are trying

hard to build the appeal of their art form. pushing the boundaries of tradition can be did i feel. but it might be what it takes to breathe new life into this venerable art form. some expressive movements there. sumo wrestlers are in the thick of another tournament. our expert has more. >> pride of mongolia won the last two tournaments and since then, nothing has slowed him down. on thursday, he entered day five with a spotless record. he is hoping to tie the former

record of 31 championships, then focus on the record of 32 championships. here, the bulky one from bulgaria is hoping to knock off hakuho for the first time. but it didn't happen. he flinched and hakuho easily improved his record, which is now 5-0. now, a couple of -- fighters. they both come from mongolia. they're the top divisions eldest and youngest and have been exciting everyone with their feisty performances. the eldest turned 40 last week. he's the first 40-year-old in six decades to compete in the top division. with his strong work ethic and energy, i believe he can stand up to two or three more years of action. right now, he is 4-1 and who

knows, we might be in for a big surprise at the end of the competition. he is 21. the youngest in the top division. he made his debut in january and already, is making a statement. the rookie's got physique, power and good agility. after five days, nobody has been able to beat him. remember that name because for a long time, he'll be a force to be reckoned with. finally, let's check in on the newly promoted ozeki champion. he told me he'll give 100% to win the championship. but so far, he only seems to be giving 50%. that's right. he's only one-half of his four bouts. his opponent comes out with all guns blazing.

the new one sweeps by with a last minute slap down. far from a championship performance, so he's yet to find a way to win more convincingly. so, keep your eye on those profiles today because all of them could be contention right up to the end of the tournament. it's time now for a check of the weather. people in the u.s. state of texas are dealing with heavy rain and severe flooding. thousands of r numerous roads have been cut off. >> the situation up there, you're right, well, we had that category 4 hurricane slam into caba san lucas the other day. the system is now over toward the texas panhandle. no matter who you the intensity is, it has been bringing

numerous flooding and is quite severe. we have some pictures to show you from this area. heavy rainfall associated with the remnants hit the city wednesday and thursday, causing severe flooding. up to 50 millimeters of rain fell causing flash flooding. interstate 10 was closed for a period of time as rescue crews worked to pull people from cars on the highway after becoming submerged. now, additional rainfall is expected for much of the region and flood warnings still remain in parts of texas. sitting here as i mentioned, pooling that moist all the way from the south end making it for a very heavy rainfall. about 70 millimeters have fallen in parts of new mexico and as the system surges, more moisture to texas, about the same amounts of 70 millimeters will continue on your friday. we see another area of heavy rainfall moving into baja, california. this is the hurricane, polo.

it's now a tropical storm, so it has been downgraded in intensity. still has a tropical storm warning in place and it made the outer bounds will probably spread a little bit of that showers across baja, california, too, so recovery could be hindered. gulf state, we have a stalled front which will be bringing you severe thunderstorms. it could create small hail and strong gusts. towards the north, high pressure is dominating much of the area bringing clear skies for you, but the arctic chill is cooling down. you'll see the morning across and temperatures dipping to about freezing for the northern locations. that's why you see a little bit of that white stuff falling in the north. while the temperatures will be on the warming trend from your saturday, but your high here in chicago at 23. new york at 19, but on sunday, recovering to about 27 degrees. towa towards the flip side of the continent still looking midsummer and it's going to be even hotter in that, that 36 for both saturday and sunday, so try to rearrange your schedule

outdoors if you are going to be and try to avoid heatstroke. out towards the tropics, still the system is is is in the east of the philippines. it could make land fall not yet over land masses, but bringing k chaos to manila and some are being forced to evacuate. it is still a tropical storm status, but by the time it reaches toward the north approaching taiwan, it could become a severe thunderstorm and even make its way towards okinawa as a typhoon, so we'll be very closely monitoring this. so that's the system moving in the area, but it's more of the rainfall that we're really concerned of because it could lead to flooding. about 500 millimeters of

rainfall could fall across northern luzon towards taiwan. another area we're seeing with this front is in western japan and that's likely to create about 100 millimeters of land fall. here are your temperatures. tokyo at 26. 28 with plenty of sunshine. now, the extended forecast.

that's all for this edition of "newsline." thanks for staying with us. >r7jñ

♪ premier li says china's economy is sound but analysts hear more creaking in the property market. japan rolls out the welcome mat for indonesian tourists with help from a soccer star. hello. you're watching "asia biz forecast." we start with japan where a stumbling economy is giving policymakers plenty to think about. it's true, bad news had been expected. a sales tax hike in april scared away shoppers and discouraged business investment. but the latest figure show growth in the second quarter contracted even more than first thought. government officials are trying to put a brave