glad to have you on this edition of nhk "newsline." it is thursday october 20th, 9:00 a.m., i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. iraqi and kurdish soldiers are engaged in a fierce battle to liberate a key city under islamic state control. they say they're closing in on mosul in northern iraq. and they've uncovered networks of underground tunnels used by the militants. the iraqi army is targeting the group in towns 30 kilometers southeast of mosul. the prime minister says he's optimistic. >> translator: the plan is going well. our priority is to protect civilians, to liberate mosul with the least casualties.

god willing, you will hear the good news. >> but the militants are putting up a fight. they've carried out suicide attacks using cars packed with explosives. iraqi officers say they found booby trapped buildings and roadside bombs. this tunnel was found on mosul's outskirts. it's believed the militants used it as an evacuation route and a bunker to take cover from air strikes. >> translator: when we attacked them, they were cooking. >> the tunnel offers clues as to how the militants have dug in to try to defend the city they've controlled for two years. it has a cooking area and abandoned food. there are also electric cables. similar tunnels have been found in other abandoned villages. the mission is being backed by the u.s. military who are providing air and ground support.

humanitarian organizations are urging caution. they say civilians trying to flee mosul are at great risk of being caught in crossfire. human rights activists are revealing a grim picture of syria's civil war. they say more than 3,000 people have died since last month's cease-fire failed and without a sign of a truce, the number of civilian deaths will continue to rise. syrian observatory for human rights is a uk-based monitoring group. has documented 3,367 deaths in a month until october 19th. the group says about 1,300 of them are civilians including about 300 children. it also says that a majority of the civilian victims are in aleppo. the northern city has long been pounded by fierce air strikes by government forces led by president bashar al assad. philippine president rodrigo

duterte and chinese president xi jinping will hold their first summit in beijing on thursday. observers say duterte is eager to improve ties with china in return for generous economic assistance. duterte spoke to reporters on wednesday in beijing. he said he would not bring up with xi the issue of manila's dispute with beijing over the south china sea. >> i have to wait for your president to mention it. so it would not be in keeping with the courtesy and goodwill if i'm the one to open it. >> an arbitration tribunal in the hague ruled in july in favor of the philippines, denying china's claims in the the south china sea. chinese foreign minister wang yi welcomed duterte's visit, calling it historic. he said it heralded a fresh start in the bilateral relationship. chinese state-run media are running positive reports on the visit.

the head of the international olympic committee says he wants the 2020 tokyo games to be a showcase for recovery. he's suggesting holding some events in the country's northeast where devastation was widespread after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. ioc president tomas bach is in tokyo for meetings about the upcoming olympics. he met with prime minister shinzo abe on wednesday and told him about the proposal. abe welcomed the idea. >> one of the options under discussion given the great popularity of this sport here in japan. >> bach said having the country's team play in the disaster zone would send a strong message about recovery. earlier in the day bach met with the head of the tokyo organizing committee. at the top of the agenda this

time was how to cut ballooning costs which could grow to more than $30 billion. that's four times the original estimate. a panel of experts appointed by the metropolitan government earlier proposed a review to review the current venues for three events. it recommended the governor consider scrapping plans that require new facilities. she's considering changing the venues to cut costs. but the organizing committee has been reluctant to revise the current plan saying it was completed after careful deliberation but he agreed to bach's proposal of setting up talks to look at costs.she agre bach's proposal of setting up talks to look at costs. >> this working group is not about who's taking the lead, who is doing what. this working group is a technical working group putting together the figures, putting together. >> bach says they need to find

ways to make the games sustainable and feasible. >> we will cooperate to fulfill the most important task to make the olympics successful. >> the talks will be held after the governor final ice izes her cutting plans later this month. officials from japan's ruling democratic party agreed to extend the term limit on its president's tenure. it allows the party leader to hold the top post for two consecutive terms. prime minister shinzo abe is in his second term as party president. his term will expire in december 2018 under the current rules. the ldp's vice president and members from all eight factions of the party gathered on wednesday for a third meeting on the issue. they agreed it's preferable to either extend the limit on the president's tenure to three

terms, which would be nine years or abolish the limit entirely. the participant also agreed to leave it to him to figure out how to propose the idea at a lawmakers meeting expected later this month. the ldp officials plan to consolidate opinions on the rule by the end of the year and amend it at their convention next march. a japanese cabinet minister is taking heat for remarks he made about trans-pacific partnership free trade agreement. legislation for the agreement is the focus of the current session of the diet. the agriculture minister made reference on wednesday to the bill's passing being inevitable. >> translator: it's the chairman of the committee who decides whether to ram the bill through, so i came here to make an address for the chairman. >> the remarks came as opposition parties are calling for time to thoroughly debate the bills. they're urging the government to disclose how japan negotiated the deal with other tpp members. democratic party calls for the minister to resign.

>> translator: he should take responsibility for what he said. he can't discuss the bills until the issue is settled. we now have a lack of trust. >> yamamoto later withdrew his comments. >> translator: i'd like to retract my remarks and offer an apology. >> yamamoto says he expects a thorough explanation of the contents of the tpp will be given to the public. this is the second time a ruling party lawmaker mentioned the possibility of steam rolling the bills. a member of the tpp special committee said last month that he will do his best to bulldoze the legislation. the ruling coalition is aiming to have the bills pass the lower house by the end of october and wants to make sure that they'll be enacted at the current diet session. the government says it wants to give momentum to put the deal into effect quickly. a riot police mman's offense slur at a u.s. training site in

okinawa has created an uproar. local police are apologizing. prefecture police say the officer from osaka called protesters the japanese word that could be translated as uncivilized native and has deeply insulting and discriminatory connotations. police authorities in okinawa say the officer's remark was very regrettable. at the time, the officer was warning the protesters not to climb over the fence of the u.s. military's northern training area. the group was demonstrating against the helipads under construction there. civic group members and local residents protest daily at the site. the helipads are being built as a precondition to return parts of the training area to the japanese side. >> translator: i can't believe that people who are in a position to protect human rights are making such statements. such discriminatory statements. >> translator: i cannot tolerate

statements like this as a prefecture resident and as the governor. the comment was outrageous and i am furious. >> chief cabinet secretary suga said the police will work to prevent the recurrence of such an offensive incident. investors around the world are trying to guess when the u.s. central bank is going to hike its key interest rate. a report just released may give them a hint. ai uchida joins us now from the business desk. ai, good morning. tell us about this report. >> good morning, catherine. you're talking about the beige book, a report compiled by the federal reserve and based on surveys of businesses conducted in the bank's 12 districts. well, the report says that the u.s. economy continues to expand. overall, consumer spending was mixed from late august to early october but retail sales increased in a majority of districts. employment expanded at a moderate pace while labor market conditions remain tight across

most districts. some reported labor shortages are putting upward pressure on wages in certain sectors. the beige book cites concerns among some fed officials that uncertainty over economic policies of the next administration could affect personal consumption. evidence of a strong economy raises the likelihood of a rate hike. market players are speck laulat the central bank will make its move in december. now let's go to markets. wall street did end higher. that is as speculations -- that's over much speculation about the fed's rate hike. strong earnings reports and higher oil prices also helped to boost sentiment and the dow jones industrial average ended the day up just about .2% and the tech-heavy nasdaq ended slightly higher. let's see what is happening here in tokyo this morning. we're going to go to our reporter john ladu, he's at the tokyo stock exchange. good morning, john. tell us how markets are opening

here. >> reporter: good morning, ai. yes, the positive sentiment was brought on by morgan stanley, the quarterly profits for the bank boosted the financial sector and also beat expectations. as you said, also the energy-related shares were up on higher crude oil prices. let's take a look at how stocks in japan are opening up this thursday, october 20th. the nikkei is up about a third of a percent. and the broader topix is up just slightly about .1%. the nikkei marked four straight days of gain this week. the little benchmark on the figures were in line with analyst expectations. and the wti crude oil went above $51 a barrel hitting the highest level since mid july. that's after a u.s. government report said oil stockpiles fell last week. and today, we'll be watching shares of mitsubishi motors and

nissan on wednesday. nissan is reported to appoint its ceo charles goan as chairman of mitsubishi. makes him the chairman at nissan, mitsubishi and the french automaker at the same time. toshiba is also in focus. japan's securities regulators has interviewed three former presidents of the electronics firm for their related role in accounting irregularities. ai? >> tell us about how major currencies are atrades this morning, john, especially following the beige book that says the u.s. economy continues to expand. >> yes, ai, actually the dollar fell against the yen overnight. it is now at 103.48. the u.s. housing startles fell to an 18-month low. the euro weakened against the ya yen and the dollar before the european central bank policy meeting. investors are watching whether ecb president mario draghi will

give clues about its bond purchasing program. let's take a look at other indexes open across the asia-pacific region. seoul's kospi is up. australia's index is up just slightly. now, the final u.s. president debate will begin in just under an hour and that may cause volatility for the markets and, of course, investo erors will b closely watching the key ecb meeting later in the day. back to you, ai. >> sounds like a busy day, all right, john, thanks a lot. we'll touch base with you in a if hours' time. a growing number of reports of samsung's galaxy note 7 catching fire are aputting company into trouble. three users have filed a suit against samsung electronics seeking damages. the maker has stopped production and sales of new model after numerous reports of fire. the company is asking customers not to use the devices for

safety reasons. three plaintiffs in nevada and elsewhere say they were forced to pay monthly charges even after they were advised not to use their phones. they say samsung did not offer any compensation. analysts say the company may face a large-scale class action as about a million devices have been sold in the united states, alone. samsung has declined to comment. tourism officials say foreign travelers in japan are keeping a tighter grip on their pursestrings. between july and september, their total spending dropped nearly 3% from a year earlier. it is the first quarterly decline in almost five years. japan tourism agency officials estimate visitors shelled out about $9.4 billion in the quarter. they say the country welcomed a record number of foreign tourists in that period, but they calculate the average expenditure per traveler was down 17%. the officials say the higher yen is discouraging tourists from

buying expensive items such as watches and cameras. and they point out that the chinese government has raised the tax on the goods travelers bring into china. a shinkansen bullet train to hokkaido has been in service for six months. it's opened up a new high-speed route to a popular tourist spot. as our next piece explains, surging visitor numbers are causing some headaches. >> reporter: hakudate is bu bustling with tourists. this hotel is in the popular waterfront area. since shinkansen service began, it's been almost fully booked. things appear to be going well, but the manager is worried. >> translator: we don't have enough workers to meet our needs. we've been recruiting new hires, but no one has applied.

>> reporter: the jump in business created by the shinkansen has existing staff feeling stretched. >> translator: the shinkansen has made a huge difference. we're way too busy. >> reporter: the hotel isn't the only business that's struggling. hakudate's entire tourism industry is dealing with a labor shortage. a key reason is a shrinking population of working-age people. for some, multitasking has become a way of life. this woman works for a local company that operates sightseeing buses. as soon as she gets a break from her duties as a guide, she starts cleaning the bus. she has no time to relax. her real job is managing the company's office. the shinkansen has fueled demand for sightseeing rides but the company hasn't been able to hire

for guides so she's had to take on the task of showing tourists around town. she was already busy with her managerial duties. she doubts she can keep juggling two jobs for long. >> translator: i should sit at my desk all day taking care of the office, but i can't. it's impossible to look after every little thing that's going on at the office now. >> reporter: some tourism officials are trying to tackle the labor issue head-on. this hokkaidhokkaido-based hote teamed up with the university. together they created a two-week course on the hospitality industry. the classes are taught by hotel managers and tourism experts. students also receive hands-on training at hotels so they can put what they learn into practice. the hotel chain covers a portion of the costs for accommodation,

meals and transportation. the university offers students credit. the course has been popular. students say it gives them a real feel for work in the hospitality business. >> translator: we want to help young people set career goals for themselves and encourage them to join the tourism industry. >> reporter: labor shortages are forcing some accommodations to turn away guests even if they have vacancies. as the shinkansen whisks more and more tourists to this city, finding creativetaking on a new. >> and that is the latest in business for this hour. i'm going to leave you with a check on markets.

a photographry prize in northern japan stirred controversy. the subject of the wins photo was a teenager who committed suicide. the organizers withdrew the prize once, but following severe criticism, they reversed their decision. nhk world has that story. >> reporter: this photo shows a folk dance. the 13-year-old had practiced hard for the annual festival. >> translator: it shows her smiling and being happy. dancing with people she loved. >> reporter: she committed suicide ten days after the photo

was taken. she left a note on her smartphone calling on classmates to never bully her again. >> translator: i want people to know the harsh truth that a girl could fall victim to the cruelty of bullying. >> reporter: when organizers called her father to ask for permission to use the photo, he was happy. he wanted people to see the image of his daughter. it was an honor for the family. the picture was given the top prize. as part of the city festival. however, three days later, that was taken away. organizers said they withdrew the prize because a photo of a dead student would be inappropriate for an award.

her father says the family was hurt and felt the organizers wanted to distance themselves from trouble. ultimately, he made the photo publ public, himself. the withdrawal triggered a major backlash. >> translator: it's unkind of the organizers. >> translator: i have mixed feelings when thinking about the girl. >> reporter: on wednesday, the city mayor came forward to announce that the photo would be given the prize. he said his office had received more than 1,000 phone calls and e-mails. most of them critical. >> translator: i deeply apologize to the family for the lack of consideration. >> reporter: her father says he

hopes the photo gives everyone a chance to think about bullying and he says that will be his daughter's wish. nhk world, tokyo. people in northern areas of the philippines are waking up to assess damage of typhoon hima. the storm hit the country overnight. our meteorologist robert speta joins us with the latest. >> yes. this is still tracking just off the west coast of luzon here, see on the satellite imagery, after this made landfall right around 3:00 a.m. locally there in northeastern areas of that island. and now just blowing right over northern luzon and definitely leaving some damage in its wake. this is actually satellite imagery taken just prior to sunset here on wednesday evening. clear defined eye but it's this

bubble of convection right in there, that inner eye wall, where we definitely fear there is going to be some of that worst of the damage as it pushed overhead here. i want to show you video after this was shot here out of northern luzon, people preparing looking at blinding rains. signal warning number five issued for typhoon warnings from the philippine weather agency. highest on their scale. all schools, flights, businesses, mostly have been closed here across northern luzon. further travel is expected to be delayed out there plus thousands evacuated. see right in there, making those very serious preparations ahead of this storm. but absolutely fearsome and already getting very vague reports out of this area. still this widespread power outages but there has been reports of damage thus far, even some of the shelters taking some damage out there across central luzon. so this is definitely a very serious ongoing situation. behind it, at least clearing conditions are going it rapidly

improve through the early afternoon hours. this is moving actually fairly quickly at about 30 kilometers per hour. still has winds gusting in the center, though, up to 216 kilometers per hour. so you're going to be expecting those winds to really taper off. still have those tropical-storm-strength winds wrapping in behind it as we go through the rest of your thursday and this eventually will track off toward the north. do want to mention, though, southeastern china has been seeing heavy rainfall out here. mainly the result of what is left of the northeast monsoon continuing to push onshore. actually we had flooding reported in hong kong on wednesday afternoon and this could make that situation worse. so i think as we head into the weekend, southeastern china out here from guangdong, fujon, severe flood threat looking ahead with the storms. meanwhile if we take a look back toward the north, we have an opposite setup here. a cold surge diving in out of northeastern china, and with that, the leading edge is

actually going to keep these storm systems further toward the south, really bring scattered showers into the weekend across parts of kyushu, but it is dropping the temperatures down forkaihokkaido, even blowing snow in the mountains and further south to tokyo, looking at going from 28 here on thursday, almost summer-like, down to 22, 21. overnight lows could be pushing near the single digit, by the way. look at this, hokkaido, 7 there for your high, snowfall definitely in the forecast. we are looking at severe weather in the central u.s. at this time here on wednesday evening. tornado warnings have been issued in a few locations out there. this going to continue to develop and pull toward the northeast across the ohio river valley. behind it, cooler temperatures setting up. for example, chicago, 15 for your high. winnipeg at 7. how about los angeles, though? 37 here on thursday. all right. here's extended outlook.

and that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks very much for joining us. 0

announcer: welcome to "in good shape." coming up -- dental hygiene. why having your teeth cleaned by a professional makes sense. microsurgery. a new operation that can help relieve obstructed lymph nodes. and, inner space. modern methods in radiology. and here's your host, dr. carsten lekutat. dr. lekutat: radiology is an inspirational field for artists like sweden's bertil leidner. works like his are based on imaging technologies by ct scans