and without sufficient competition would lead to a high price tag. fewer people in thailand are buying new cars and the downturn is hitting japanese automakers especially hard. ramin mellegard joins us from the business desk. thailand is a key market for japanese automakers. >> major market, catherine. and that's a big focus for the major brands here and they account for 90% of the nation's market. they've also manufacturing bases

in thailand. but vehicle sales in thailand slid more than 16% from the same period a year ago. a survey by toyota motors shows 377,000 vehicles by all makers were sold in the southeastern nation -- asian nation during the six months. the figure's even lower than last year's when a coup dented sales. toyota sales are down 25%. sales at is uz you were off 16.7 and honda 15.9%. the president of toyota motor thailand says he's revising down toyota's forecast for 2015 of overall vehicle sales in thailand from 120,000 units to below 800,000. >> translator: thailand's economic situation is worse than we imagined. we attribute that to a high household debt ratio and the impact of drought. >> but toyota will work to boost

exports from thailand to other asian countries and the middle east. he expects some relief from the falling value of the thai baht. and staying in the auto industry japan's major automakers reported their domestic production in june fell from a year earlier marking a 12th straight month of decline. the eight major automakers produced 460,000 vehicles in japan last month, down from the same month last year but the decline was smaller than the figures seen in may. output at toyota, mazda, and fuji heavy industries rose as exports increased. the auto automakers produced nearly 4.4 million vehicles in japan in the first half of this year. that's down about 8% from the same period last year marking the first decline in the january to june period in two years. now, let's get a check on the markets for this wednesday. as we saw a rise in major global indexes, investors pretty much brushing aside the volatility in

chinese stocks. and to see how markets here are reacting we go to mayu yoshida who is standing by at the tokyo stock exchange. we saw a lot of volatility yesterday but how are the markets opening this morning here in tokyo? >> good morning, ramin. aside from china the focus this week is on the fed's policy meeting. investors are worried about how this whole china story may affect the timing of rate hikes in the u.s. they may just stay on the sidelines today before the fed's conclusions come out later today. here's how the japanese markets are opening this wednesday morning. it's july 29th. shares are bouncing back from two-week lows. nikkei up 0.2%. 20366 and the topix is opening up 0.5%. market watchers say the timing of rate hike is very close call between september and december. now, many were initially expecting a september rate hike but that's sort of been fais

fading away because, one, we just saw weak consumer confidence and two, investors are worried that china's economic slowdown play ripple through the u.s. and japan. but if the fed waits till year end to raise rates for the first time in nine years that's considered a positive for equity markets. wall street gained sharply snapping a five-day losing streak. it snapped up just over 1% at 17630 and the nasdaq jumped nearly 1%. now movers included twitter which showed strong revenue but disappointing user growth. energy stocks rallied as oil prices bounce back. so i'll definitely track the japanese energy sector today as well. and since we're right in the middle of the earnings season here in japan, some of the major companies today are hitachi, panasonic, nissan nintendo and some broke sun brokerages. >> the slide in chinese stocks

took a toll on the stock markets in the past couple of days. what about currencies? have you seen any major moves there? >> dealers are pulling their money away from emerging market currencies on fears that chinese economic slowdown may pressure the global economy. for example, the indonesian rupee fell to the lowest number since 1998. brazilian real dropped to the lowest number in years. the greenback is gaining ahead of the meeting. it covered from a 2 1/2-week low to the yen. euro yen is around 136.77. so markets overall maybe range today. stocks with earnings or some other news may become the movers. that's it for me. >> thank you very much. market is looking nixed right now. now, metro sexual men in

south korea are turning age-old assumptions about gender on their head. they're also driving big changes in industries that traditionally cater to members of the opposite sex. nhk world has more. >> reporter: young men take a lesson in the art of skin care and makeup. the people who run the course say demand for this kind of thing is soaring. they usually operate an online clothing store but this month they branched out into other classes, too. >> i wanted to know what clothes to wear and how to treat my skin before i started job hunting. >> reporter: men like this belong to a group known in south korea as the grooming tribe. they say presentation is everything. the key to confidence and success in all aspects of life.

>> translator: i pack my face every three days to brighten up my skin. and i apply a facial cream to make my skin look better whenever i go out. >> reporter: they're picking up products that give their face that finish. >> translator: i have to serve customers. so it's really important for me to make a good impression. >> reporter: stores in seoul have changed their focus. the products mainly targeting female consumers but things are changing. increasingly it stocks skin care lines and cosmetics specifically for men. many clientele have aspects to all kinds of products here from creams that claim to reverse the effects of aging to lotions that control shine. this summer is a splashed-out

50% more on beauty products than last summer. the guys loved this one. they use it to thin out their leg hair and create a supple but subtle look. >> translator: i want to wear shorts this summer. and, let's face it completely hairless legs can look weird. this way i get a more natural effect. >> reporter: many south korean men show their smooth legs all over town. for those who want the total package, they can drop in here for clothes, haircuts and everything in between. this is an engineering student. he wants a snappy new war dpdrobe to impress his new girlfriend. he stops to pick out a shirt, pants and shoes. now he's on his way to the second floor for some styling.

a barber gives him a buzz to match his new outfit. >> translator: it's a one topstop shop where i can buy clothes and get my hair cut. i'm saving time and money. >> reporter: he's rocking a killer new look. his hairdo and his confidence he's certain will, too. >> translator: the number of customers is increasing. guys who come in for haircuts end up looking at clothes as well. so sales are growing upstairs and down. >> reporter: south korea's metro sexual men are worth big bucks to beauty industries. they shell out more than $900 million a year in their quest for the perfect look.

but any of them will tell you the result is totally worth it. reporting for nhk world from seoul. and that's all for business news for this hour. i'll leave you with another check on the markets. on top of news we're following this hour police in tokyo are working to determine the cause of a plane crash on sunday. the small aircraft plunged into a residential area shortly after takeoff. three people died and five people were injured. investigators searched companies that own and operate the plane. they're trying to find out if any professional negligence

caused the deaths and injuries. a resident took this video. he saw the plane flying extremely low and black smoke seconds later. transport safety officials say the plane was carrying enough fuel to fly for five hours according to its flight plan. >> translator: there was nothing we could do because of the massive flame. we were unable to get close. >> police say the pilot radioed the air traffic controller that there was nothing unusual shortly before takeoff. that was the last recorded contact. officials say the pilots may have had no time to relay any distress signal. the plane hit the roofs of nearby houses. investigators are probing whether there was any safety or operational problems. asean foreign ministers will hold key meetings in malaysia's capital from this weekend. they'll be discussing regional security issues and creating a single market. nhk world spoke with an expert

in kuala lumpur. >> pleased to meet you. >> good to see you. >> >> reporter: he's a former secretary general of malaysian ministry of foreign affairs. he now serves as chairman and the chief executive of a security think tank. the institute of strategic and international studies malaysia. >> tensions are high on china's reclamation work in the china sea. how asean will deal with this? >> activities that have taken place in the south china sea that have raised concern. you might recall that the last asean summit a statement was issued regarding that. i believe that it reflects the sentiment that exists among all the countries concerned, all the other asean countries. because activities of this nature actually run counter to

international law. i think china has taken notice of that. and obviously, they also are taking steps to ensure that tensions are not raised in the south china sea. >> some people might worry that it's not really making any progress. what is your assessment of the code of conduct? >> i believe what is important is that the parties concerned are talking. people are aware of the need to ensure that tension does not rise. >> how does the involvement of the united states in the region? >> the asean countries recognize that the united states has a role to play in southeast asia. economic security political and in other aspects as well. now, of course we -- while we're coming the united states

interests in the region i think it is important also to ensure that the united states does not create situations that could give rise to problems in the region. now, with the china and the united states and if conflict arises between the two, then, of course, we in southeast asia would feel the impact. >> what role japan can play? >> and japan has been very forthcoming in terms of providing the necessary resources for the development of the asean countries. what should not happen is for japan to come into the fray on the side of anyone. if japan were to come in with intentions that are seen as not so peaceful then it could

create problems. >> what could economic integration mean for asean? >> it provides opportunities for a market that is stable that is fairly large. therefore, obviously, the communities will be able to attract a lot of investments from abroad. saga prefecture is offer the main corridor for tourism in japan japan. but it's developing into a source of tourism from thailand. >> konichi-wa. >> reporter: kyoto, not tokyo. passengers were getting off the tour bus in saga prefecture.

the shrine has become one of the most popular spots for thai tourists. >> translator: i hope for a safe trip. >> translator: we see at least 30 thai people here each day. they've become regulars here. >> reporter: reputation grew once the shrine was used as a location in a well-known thai movie. the government has been courting producers from thailand to shoot in the prefecture. three dramas have been filmed there since 2013. the natural scenery and the traditional events make for good settings. once thai audiences see the scenery on the screen they want to get a look at it in person. the number of them coming to saga is four times what it was just a couple of years ago.

>> translator: i didn't know anything about saga until i saw the drama. >> reporter: many of the visitors want to write wishes and prayers on wooden plaques called emma. their own language works just fine. like many shrines, this one has fortune telling paper strips. right now they're available in a few other languages with perhaps more to come. >> translator: we are considering adding them in the thai language. >> reporter: the priests at the shrine are adapting to the new stream of visitors. and the saga government hopes to make the most of the opportunity they bring. >> translator: thai visitors often come to japan more than

once. we'll do our best to give them a warm welcome and a happy experience. >> reporter: the prefecture has set up a team to add to the momentum. saga may not be the best known place in japan but for visitors from thailand it's proving to be a favorite. people in south asia are dealing with rough weather. residents in northern areas of india are getting hit especially hard. meteorologist robert speta joins us with the latest. >> well the latest is what we're seeing right now, this rainfall is just continuing across much of this area. the problem is it's not the short time heavy rain not localized thunderstorm it's the persistent moisture flowing in with the monsoon combined with several areas of low pressure. this is in the bay of bengal. this is separate. but another one over here towards western india is just surging in that moisture off the indian ocean and you need this rain, the farmers depend on this. the problem is we get too much

and it causes some serious flooding out here. and we have -- well this satellite image, this is from space. it gives you a derived rainfall. some location have seen well over 500 millimeters in the week. here over 900 millimeters. this is coming out of northern india. where that flooding really has been quite serious. it's been disrupting not only residents but pilgrims here to a hindu shrine. those that kimcame from far away have become stranded. they're facing problems that have continued, mud slides. this city flood waters have rushed to residential areas. and if you remember where that landslides are taking place in northern india, same area back in 2013. took some severe flooding over 5,000 casualties in that event. so this area is known for getting the heavy rainfall but just recently we're seeing this

very severe flooding out here. as far as the forecast we've got more precipitation on the way. actually over there towards western india, an additional 1 to 2 millimeters in the last 72 hours. over here in the bay of bengal is just continuing to pump that moisture on shore out here. now, farther towards the north a separate low just to the west of hainan here in northern vietnam is bringing severe flooding. one landslide killed over a dozen people. we're still seeing more moisture in the forecast, over 500 millimeters has fallen in the past several days. this will continue to linger here. at least in central china you're seeing high pressure sunny skies continue to dominate. it is resulting in very hot temperature. so we're looking at the threat of heat stroke and heat exhaustion. especially once you get into the midsummer temperatures. i know you hear that a lot, stay hydrated, stay cool. but you have to remember that once we start to see up here. as far as japan is concerned, it is very hot and humid.

it's got that sudden moisture flow coming in. the thing with this is this is going to be looking at partly cloudy skies out here across most of japan, but once that humidity kicks in you might get the localized thunderstorms. look at fukushima. tokyo into the mid-30s as well. hang high in the high 30s. and hong kong the monsoonal flow. so you've got the showers coming in. this area of deep low pressure is impacting the northern plains over towards central canada and manitoba reports of tornadoes. one large wedge tornado caused some damage out there. that's drifting towards the east. that will impact the western portions of the great lakes on your tuesday and wednesday. down towards the south that moisture is flowing in off the gulf of mexico. houston, thunderstorms, atlanta thunderstorms, washington, d.c. over towards miami, just afternoon showers will be kicking up here and the hot and humid moisture lingering through the rest of the week. i'll leave you now with your extended outlook.

and that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. michaela: hello and a very warm welcome to "global 3000." cannabis -- an innocuous looking

green plant at the heart of a multi-billion dollar global industry. but should we ban it or tax it? this week we look at two very different approaches to the consumption of the controversial crop. that's just one of the topics coming up on the show. cannabis in colorado -- how legalizing the drug has helped to keep the municipal coffers full. inside an armenian prison -- for despondent inmates, reform can't come a moment too soon. and -- national park status in uganda --