hello there. welcome to nhk "newsline." it's thursday, april 28th. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. residents in kumamoto are still coming to grip with the aftermath of disastrous earthquakes. thursday marks two weeks. meteorological officials are officials are worried about landslides. as of thursday. had had the region. the first was a magnitude 6.5 that hit the town. just over a day later, the magnitude 7.3 hit again, as well as a neighboring village. officials say 49 people were

killed and one is still missing. 16 others have died since then, possibly because of the physical burden of evacuating. more than 36 those peoples are in shelters and thousands cut off from water supplies. some schools have started classes and lunch service for students. >> translator: it's nice to have lunch with my friends. i want to study hard again. >> teachers spoke to them about their health. city officials want to resume classes at all schools in the next couple of weeks. japan's kyushu shinkansen

bullet tran is now running its entire route and is raising some people's spirits. >> translator: people think the reopening there speed up recovery. it's encouraging. municipal authorities have started receiving public housing applications for evacuees. government officials say they'll provide more than 350 residences. nhk has learned that the japanese government is making arrangements to extend an order to shoot. it was a response to repeated missile launches by north korea, and is valid under the end of the monday. the government officials are now preparing to extend it until the end of may. interceptoren a aegis destroyers. on wednesday, north korea announced its ruling workers party congress will start may 6,

and neighboring countries are stepping up monitoring of its military actions. recently pyongyang launched what appeared to be a new type of midrange ballistic blifls. last saturday the country fired what it called a submarine launched ballistic missiles. south korea's military says the north is also preparing an artillery drill targeting a mockup of the presidential office in seoul. an official says satellite images show the north military has more than 30 types of weapons on a fire ranges. the officials recalled the north february threat of a potential strike to protest a joint american/south korean military drills. pyongyang then said the

presidential office would be the main target. the officials added that the move appears to be aimed at strengthening unity in the north by stoking animosity towards the south. it's time to check on the markets and the latest trading on wall street. >> the numbers give a better idea of how the economy is performing. the data is all for the month of march. let's start with household spending. the data shows that consumer in japan are tightening their pursestrin pursestrin pursestrings. household spending posted the first decline in two months.

spending by all households with two or more members was down 5 to 3%. the average monthly idea for workers households stood at about $4,060. that's up from the previous year. the key piece of data on prices, the consumer price index for march was down for the first time in five months. the index includes oil products but not fresh food. the figure was down by 0.3%. the gauge was actually up. that figure rose for the 30th consecutive month. the ministry officials say the unploim rate came in at 3.2% improving 0.1% from the previous month. em pl oy em

the figure is up from february. the ratio has continued to be at its highest level in nearly quartzer of a century. policy makers have made their latest decision. they are keeping interest rates at current levels. it's unchanged for a third straight meeting. fed policy makers wrapped up the two-day meeting on wednesday. they decided to keep the key rate from 0.25 and 0.5%. the fed raised the key rate in december for the first time in 9.5 years. the statement released after the meeting indicates a cautious view on the u.s. economy. labor market conditions have improved further even as growth in economic activity appears to

have slowed. the statement did not hint at when the next rate hike will be. because policy makers had indicated they expected two rate hikes this year, some analysts think the fed might be on a rate hike at the earliest. what happened on wall street p the dow jones industrial average rose about .3%. the tech heavy nasdaq fell about half a percent. it extended the losing streak to five more sessions. what are you seeing over there. >> after the fed policy meeting

all eyes will on the bank of japan. quite a few are expecting something. we shall see around lunchtime. given the boj may unlease something later today. the key index may trade in a bit of a range. we'll still have large impact on the prospects for global growth and analysts suggesting a lot of imf officials will be closely watching what the boj may do later today. that will be a big focus. >> whatever steps the boj may take, it's sure going to -- surely to jolt currencies into

action especially the dollar yen. tell us about some of the levels before the outcome. >> that's going to be a big focus. we've had the fed meeting and the boj meeting and the dollar yen. sca squarely center stage now. any aggressive moves would result in weaker yen and a stronger dollar. some predicting t ining they ma interest rates further. some said the boj may provide relief to lenders by offering negative rates on some loans. the interesting factor in all of this is that after today, japan is going to be shut down for ten days this what's known as golden weak holidays here. that could invite a bit of volatility as well and not to mention the reaction in overseas

market while tokyo is closed for business. amidst all of this, let's not forget crude oil futures settled at five months high. helping to boost the fed stance as tone down global concerns following the policy meetings. looking at the dollar. that's a bit of a focus there after australian dollar fell over 2% following inflation data. some of the index is trading in the positive. china markets open in an hour and a half. >> sounds like it will be a busy day for you. talk to you in a few hours. there are big changes under way at japanese firms that are

serious about employing and retaining more women. in the final installment of our series, nhk visits two companies that are leading the way. >> reporter: the color of the car is unusual and so the driver. >> i really enjoy this job. >> reporter: the company that employs is finding workers and actively recruiting young women by making them feel welcome. cameras provide a sense of safety. women have lounges and bathrooms for their use in all depots. the number of women driving for the company has increased from 30 to 130. that's inspired new services for the elderly and children that are bringing in 200 reservations

per month. >> translator: in the near future, we might be confronting low cost competitors. we believe we can attract customers by providing high quality service. >> reporter: recruiting women and retaining them continues to be a challenge. some companies are transforming the way they work so that mothers can take their kids to and from day care and still hold down full-time jobs. six years ago this home building firm launched employment systems that provide full time benefits for those who put in as little as five hours day. she began her career in sales at a renovations firm but left after giving birth. now she's joined the human resources department. a work sharing program operates in each division. it matches each reduced hour employee with another on the

standard schedule. they exchange information so when one leaves the other can seamlessly take over. >> we should call them first thing tomorrow morning to request the paper work. >> reporter: with that, she goes to pick up her daughter from day care. the company ensures the team employees both benefit. >> translator: i've joined this division and without her expertise i'd be lost. i feel like i'm benefitting from her insight and experience. >> reporter: some reduced hour employees are helping to win business. she works in sales. her experience managing a household has inspired design and construction ideas. she works hard to win the trust of clients. >> translator: if it weren't for her, i wouldn't have had this company build my house.

because we're both women, she understands exactly what i'm looking for in a home. >> reporter: sales is a time intensive job but work sharing has allowed her to keep at it. >> translator: there's no way i would be able to do this job if we weren't offered this style of working. >> reporter: she overseas the program. she says it benefits the company too. >> translator: reduced hour employees often manage their time better. that's getting everyone else to rethink how they work. as a result, the entire company is showing increased productivity. >> reporter: in japan, putting in long hours has been a badge of honor but some businesses are finding success by adopting a new approach that's making families happy and boosting profits.

>> you can watch all three installments of our series, women at work on the nhk world website displayed here. i'll be back next hour with more of your business headlines. here is a check on markets. it's time for eye on asia. they're being detain inside a

controversial detention center. the smaller island country says it will shut it down after the supreme court ruled the practice is illegal and on constitutional. australian immigration law orders asylum seekers and refugees to be detained on islands in the south pacific. it's being criticized by human rights groups as well as the united nations. people cheered the law. >> it was a good decision. he's been here for two years. we need help. >> the immigration ministers said it's not bound by the court's decision and will not resettle the more than 800 people being held.

>> they have come to the country illegally by boat. they will not settle permanently in our country. >> he will allow them to stay in the country if they wish. people in thailand believe they know the reason why a football club in england's premiere league is doing so well this season. leicester city football club is usually an underdog in the division, but this year it's the front-runner ahead of powerhouses such as manchester united and chelsea and thai fans couldn't be happier. nhk world has the details. >> reporter: it may be 10,000 kilometers from leicester to bangkok, but fans nevertheless cheer with passion as they watch their team play.

their enthusiasm might be because leicester city is owned by a thai company. >> translator: leicester is just like a thai team. >> reporter: some thai people say the secret behind leicester city comes from the amulet given by thai monk. >> reporter: the amulet bears the team's emblem. it was given to players by a well-known monk. the monk belongs to a major temple in the thai capital. the complex dates back more than 700 years. the monk gave amulets to the leicester players in person. people say this act may be behind the team's winning streak. >> translator: the team's players and coach have outstanding skills. i believe moral support has been

added to the skills and brought them together. >> reporter: with only a handful of matches left in the season, the leicester fans in thailand are waiting in anticipation. they are hoping their cheers and prayers and secret amulets will lead the team to a miraculous league win. nhk world, bangkok. japan is known for attention to detail, and nhk world's maria yanaka reports. it shows 13 of the birds flocking together.

the eyes are sharp as well as the detailed spots on the cones. each feather is drawn victimly. he kept chickens in his garden and observed them closely. he was determined to breathe life into the plants and animals in his works. wow. one of the other highlights is this room, his masterpiece of 33 scrolled paintings are being displayed together for the first time in tokyo. the abuist sits silently in the center. they're joined by animals and plants that represent the precious nature of all things that having granted existence on this earth. a school of fish swim in a lotus pond. the leaves float on the surface. it's the perspective from above or below? jakyu takes the viewer to both

places. colorful peonies fill this brilliant work. red, white, pink. birds keep watch as horseflies flit about. ito was born in, when he turned 40, he dedicated himself to painting. he decided to following his own muse than belong to any school. he used his brush to depict his version of nirvana. a sacred white elephant is surrounded by 28 animals, including a tiger, a monkey and a camel. on the left a phoenix stands firmly on its two legs. 45 birds fill the spay space. the ground colors are painted in one centimeter squares and are overlaid with similar colors. this unique square cell drawing

technique creates a three dimensional effect, similar to pixels in digital art, but painstakingly crafted by hand. he's also the base for a younger artist who keeps his work down to earth. his shoe creations are seen around the world. the ornamentation is almost sculptural, but the works exist in the realm of fantasy. lady gaga approves. she wears his shoes on stage and off. he created a series based on the rooster. one of it's called a fusion of bird and bewitch. the shoe evolves into a rooster in three stages, one for each. traditional silks adorn the shoe body. he dyed the feathers himself.

from heel to together, he was able to captured the lifeforce of jaku's rooster. >> i think he would have thought they were beautiful and been impressed by their revolution beyond the human concept of what an animal is. i love his spirit of inquiry about his subjects. as well as his love and deep involvement with them. and his tenacity. >> reporter: he embraces the natural world, while unleashing his imagination. realism for them is more than what meets the eye. maria yanaka, nhk world. authorities are warning of more tremors and land slides.

robert speta explains how the weather is playing into that. >> over the past 24 hours, especially through the overnight hours here on wednesday into thursday morning, we did see heavy rainfall across this area, and the big problem there, the ground is definitely very loose. once it becomes waterlogged, it becomes prone to landslides. that threat will still be there through the rest of thursday even though the rain has started to taper off. the good news heading into the weekend, it should start to dry out as we look ahead with some sunnier and clearer skies. not so much the case back towards the north, though, here across the tokyo area, maybe even some thunderstorms there in the tohoku, and snowfall across parts of hokkaido, especially over towards ko shirro, could be shall gusty winds. something to watch out for, talking about the blizzard-like conditions, and cooler temperatures spilling in,

definitely having an impact in the overnight hours. but also bringing in some rougher weather over towards taiwan, southern areas of china, and also diving into the tropics. you have this very warm pre-monsoonal heat here over towards the philippines, also into vietnam. you definitely need the rain here. so that's the good news. unfortunately looking at some strong thunderstorms at times as well heading into your thursday afternoon through the evening hours just into the instability. and also expecting those thunderstorms. heading here into the americas. over the past 24 hours. the never several days, you can watch this, just blows right up a very severe complex that developed across the region. some video we have out of texas,

yeah, well, you can see right there some of the damage from a few of these tornadoes. in fact, upwards of 13 tornadoes were reported here by the national weather service. hail as big as golf ball size, also winds upwards, per hour reported in parse of texas as well. the heavy rainfall caused some flooding in new jersey, and so definitely very severe storm system here on your thus evening. now -- or as we go ahead through your wednesday, we're still looking at more severe weather across the mississippi river valley, more so the widespread chance of hail and even damaging winds. tornadoes are still possible, especially back there towards kansas, but it's not going to be as widespread as we have seen here on tuesday. all of that will shift off to the east. it's still pulling in cooler air from the north. some areas in the rockies, you're looking at about 38, 35 centimeters of snowfall

accumulation, another line is going to be setting up here along the dry line in central areas of texas, could be looking at a bout of some strong to severe thunderstorms. oklahoma city, thunderstorms on your thursday, houston as well. los angeles some sunny skies, back towards the east, you still have temperatures into the low teens across much of the northeast. i'll leave you now with the extended outlook. that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. x

>> today on "in good shape." possible causes of chronic neck pain. how children learn better when they move. and how to gain control over eating disorders. and here is dr. carsten lekutat. >> hello, and welcome to "in good shape." the world health organization states that there are approximately 500 different kinds of psychological disorders. it is very hard to know what is going on in someone else's head. nobody kows it better than dr. cora weber, who invited me into the park klinik sophie charlotte