hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm keiko kitagawa in tokyo. when the leaders of japan and russia meet next week, they're expected to discuss joint economic activity on four disputed islands controlled by russia. japan claims that it calls them northern territories and maintains they're an inherent part of its territory. it says the islands were illegally occupied after world war ii. shinzo abe and vladimir putin discussed the matter in peru next month. next week's meetings will take place in western japan and tokyo. the leaders plan to reaffirm

agreements on an economic cooperation proposal presented by japan earlier this year, including joint ventures and freedom of movement. >> translator: the japanese government is sticking to its position that the joint economic activity should be conducted on the premise that it will not infringe on japan's legal position. >> russia had previously proposed economic cooperation but it didn't materialize because of those concerns. germany's top court has ordered the government to pay compensation to electricity companies because of a decision to end all nuclear power generation in the country. the federal constitutional court issued the ruling on tuesday in a case brought by three nuclear plant operators. two firms are german and the other, swedish. the government made the decision in the wake of the 2011 nuclear

accident in japan's fukushima region. it plans to shut down all plants by 2022. the companies argue they suffered huge economic damage because of the sudden decision. the court ruled it was constitutional, but that the government needs to compensate the firms for their investments. the court did not specify the amount. u.s. president-elect donald trump met with one of japan's most prominent businessmen tuesday. he's the head of telecom and internet firm softbank. let's find out what they talked about from ai who joins us from the business desk. how did the meeting go? >> well, from the expression on their faces, it looks like it was a successful meeting. it lasted just about 45 minutes. and not surprisingly, they discussed business. son met trump at his home in new york and promised to invest in the united states. >> ladies and gentlemen, this is massa of softbank from japan, and he's just agreed to invest

$50 billion in the united states and 50,000 jobs. and he's one of the great men of industry, so i just want to thank him very. >> thank you, thank you, thank you very much. >> softbank group will invest over the next four years. trump has said he wants to protect american jobs, and that increasing employment is one of his policy priorities. some believe the meeting with son was a way for trump to show that he is already moving forward with his pledge. >> i believe that the u.s. will become positive again for the growth. that there will be much more job opportunity, business opportunity. it will be much more deregulated, and the people will be energized. business people will be energized. >> son told reporters it was the first time he had met with trump and that the appointment was set up last week through a mutual friend. he noted that trump has

extensive business experience and will be able to follow through on his promise of deregulation. major japanese oil wholesalers are considering a capital tie-up ahead of a planned merger. the two firms agreed to merge, but have delayed the plan, because ira mitt su's founder opposes it and is refusing to talk with the management. sources say the two companies are studying a cross-shareholdering arrangement. under the plan, ira midemitsu w hold 24.9%. shell would hold 20% through a takeover bid or a third-party allocation of new shares. the two firms are planning to jointly operate refineries and cooperate in providing petroleum products to filling stations. executives of the two countries hope that maintaining relations

will lead to a merger in the future, but idemitsu's founding family is expected to oppose a capital tie-up. the private jet industry has been showing slow growth recently on the back of lower crude oil prices, but the field is expected to expand along with an increase in demand. a business aviation trade fair has kicked off in dubai in the yubs. more than 400 aircraft makers and related firms from around the globe are taking part in the fair, which is held every two years. brazil is showcasing its latest gest and an official said demand will grow once crude oil prices recover. the honda jet is on display. it's a small jet developed by japanese automaker honda. >> we know what to do, getting into the sky --

>> translator: honda jet has the best fuel efficiency of among aircraft of the same grade, along with very high performance. so i think it will appeal to people who like high end super cars or sports cars. >> fujino expressed his intention on open up the middle east market. the dow jones industrial average closed at another record high. that positive finish on wall street fueled risk sentiment and encouraged yen selling and tokyo share prices opened higher. the nikkei 225 is trading higher by almost .75%. 18,494. exporters like carmakers are seeing gains. one of the strongest performers on the index is softbank group, after the telecom giant's top executive met trump. now let's look at currencies. the dollar has come back to trade again at the 114 yen level, the pair at 114.27

to .28. the euro/yen is also steady. turning to markets in the asia pacific, australia missed expectations, dipping half a percent from the previous three months. the australian dollar fell against the u.s. currency. sill they're trading higher by .7%. we're seeing south korea''s kospi up more than a quarter%. china markets will open in just under half an hour. speaking of china, the number of chinese tourists coming to japan is growing rapidly. this year, more than 5.5 million chinese had visited japan by october, surpassing last year's figure. chinese firms have been invited to invest in japan's flourishing industry. about 50 people attended a

seminar organized by the japan external trade organization in beijing. an official said chinese firms can be confident that investment in japan's tourist industry will yield positive results due to the growing number of chinese visitors. the official said the group decided to invest about $175 million to operate about 20 hotels in japan. a representative of a chinese investment firm said japan is likely to attract more investors from asia as real estate is relatively cheap and borrowing rates are low. while the japanese government is inviting foreign investment as a way to promote economic growth, but so far, chinese investors have been slow to respond. now a small town in japan is doing its part to attract investment too. a group of plum farmers are sharing the secrets of their success, and nhk world explains why so many people are coming to listen.

>> reporter: in the mountains of southwest japan, oyama was once a poor farming village. now it's attracting a steady stream of visitors from around the world. last year alone, brought 1,400 came, about half the town's population. the town recently hosted a group of farmers from south korea who want to learn from oyama's success. a local official tells them they need to do more than grow produce. >> translator: we produce, process, and sell. it's about increasing income from limited farmland. >> reporter: the town has been developing its business model for decades. back in the 1960s, it decided to switch from large farming to growing plants and chestnuts. farmers' income rose sharply. so much so it began a tradition of taking vacations to hawaii

every year. but the real turnaround started in 1970. the town began processing its crops, focusing on jams. over the years, oyama continued to find ways to generate higher profits. in 1990, the cooperative opened its own market and restaurant. it now operates ten stores. last year, they earned over $50 million. some have seen their income decline with the rise of free trade and they are worried about the future. >> translator: it was educational. i wasn't sure about the business model, but i learned a lot. >> reporter: this system is taking off in south korea. i'm from a small town, that's why i joined the observation tour. >> reporter: despite its

success, oyama is facing a new challenge. the town's population is declining. there are 50% from the 1960s. the agriculture core is already working on the next idea. a farming theme park. >> translator: it's a great view, isn't it? it will be a great place. >> reporter: it has already chosen a site where it plans to grow 35,000 trees, using hundreds of varieties. the park will give visitors a hands-on experience of farming, including harvesting the trees. there are also plans to build hot spring resorts and museums. the idea is to make farming popular and the town hopes some visitors will decide to stay. >> translator: to achieve a dream, one must first plant the seeds. many farming villages in japan are suffering from declining

population. people are leaving villages because they feel they cannot make a living. we need to create villages where people can have fun and dream. agriculture cooperatives must help such efforts. >> reporter: many rural communities are slow to embrace change. the farmers of oyama see it as another chance to grow. asaki n asakinaito. asia pacific stocks are higher this morning. i'll leave you with a check on those markets. ♪ ♪

indian women are taking on greater economic roles but social attitudes in many parts of the country haven't matched those changes. violent crimes against women have doubled over the last decade. now police in one state are dedicated to protecting them. nhk world reports. >> reporter: these officers riding motorcycles through the ancient city are at the vanguard of a ground-breaking initiative. they're known as the lady patrols and their mission is clear. crime against women in indian society has recently increased. hence the special team of lady police to make the women feel

safer in society. the northwestern state of rajasthan is india's largest. it's also one of the most -- people here hold on to traditional ideas of gender roles. the state has one of the highest rates of crime against women in the country. >> male-dominated and women suffer a lot, only women can help women realize security. >> reporter: the 24 members of the lady patrol are in their 20s. they are trained to be ready for anything. this woman has been a police officer for about six years. born into a ruler's family, she says her own mother was a victim of domestic abuse. she says many girls in her

village are denied education and forced to marry while still young. >> translator: when they're poor, women can do nothing, except endure the hardship. i want to help solve their problem. >> reporter: the unit patrols around the clock, trying to meet women in every corner of the city. it receives about ten complaints a day, through a telephone hotline. some crimes such as stalking and street molestation are down over 50% in six weeks. >> translator: i saved the hotline in my mobile phone. being able to consult the officer anytime, makes me feel safer. >> reporter: on this day, a patrol unit is heading to a university. it received a phone call from a student who says she is being stalked. >> translator: it's the man with

this phone number. he's been harassing me with gross remarks for the past week. >> translator: next time he calls, please contact us. >> translator: i wouldn't dare tell my parents or the regular police. that would be too scary. but the female unit always arrives quickly and they listen to my complaints. >> translator: i'm happy wewomei want to keep supporting them. >> reporter: improving indian women's security could help boost their contributions to society and economics. they will be watching closely whether the all female police patrol can change deep-rooted attitudes. nhk world, rajasthan.

visitors from around the world come to japan each year to soak up its bath culture. with the 2020 tokyo olympics and paralympics on the horizon, some officials feel there could be confusion on the way to the tub. so they're proposing a change. >> reporter: thousands of tourists come to japan each year for a long soak at one of these hot springs, where the government thinks finding them can be confusing. the reason, sign confusion. so what do visitors think the onsen logo means? >> what do you think it means? >> ramen. >> what do you think? >> coffee. >> food. >> coffee. >> reporter: so the government is proposing a new sign. this one has people in the tub.

>> i think this is more explicit of what it says. this is hard to read. it's a nice logo, but it doesn't say what it is. >> it's clearer. this one is clearer. definitely. this looks like hot soup, coffee, or, you know, maybe bowl of noodles steaming. this shows the people and heat. >> reporter: but not everyone is big on the government's take. many japanese who live around hot spring regions like the current logo and itin its more 350-year history. >> i've grown up looking at this logo. as i local, i prefer the original sign. >> reporter: on tuesday, government officials met to discuss changes to 90 signs they feel are confusing. they also got input from groups about the proposals. >> reporter: we want foreign visitors to know that we've had this logo for centuries in

japan, and it's very important for us. >> reporter: the pitch to change signs is an effort to make japan more visitor friendly for the tokyo 2020 olympics. a decision is expected by march. nhk world, tokyo. a japanese yachtsman have become the first asian to complete in an around-the-globe yacht race that many consider to be the ultimate challenge in sailing. nhk world has the story. >> reporter: this man is 49 years old and no stranger to crossing oceans. at the age of 26, he became the youngest solo to complete a solo, non-stop voyage around the world.

this is his first attempt in the race. he arrived in france seven months laahead of the race to prepare. >> translator: i always wanted to take part in this race. this is the only yacht race in the world, in which you can take on the whole planet all by yourself. >> reporter: the yachts start from the french port and head for the southern hemisphere. they cross the indian ocean, the antarctic sea before returning to the starting point. a journey of more than 40,000 kilometers. it takes about three months. they have to keep their boats on course in all kinds of weather and have little time to sleep. they are not allowed to stop, take on supplies, or ask for help, except in emergency. most times, about half the boats retire before the finish. he loads his yacht with supplies.

the food alone weighs 150 kilograms. he has a preparation of 40,000, but at this time, almost two million people turn up to watch the event. we are at the hub where the ships will start the race. today a lot of people are coming from all over the world, came to see the boats and try toe meet t -- to meet the skippers. [ speaking foreign the sailors file report three times a week. his report showed his yacht was sailing smoothly. he crossed the equator, celebrating in japanese style.

and on day 25, he had to climb to the top of the mast to fix some equipment. despite that, he still seemed to be in good spirits. but two days later, disaster struck. he reported broken mast. on sunday, he told organizers, he was retiring from the race. >> translator: unfortunately, i have had to pull out of this globe. i would like to express my gratitude to everyone who has supported me. >> reporter: it's not the ending he hoped for, but he remains an inspiration to other asian sailors. nhk world, paris.

time now for the world weather update. yesterday was warm and sunny in the morning, but the temperature went down rather dramatically in tokyo. let's ask our meteorologist robert speta what's happening. >> yes, let's start off talking about this, because we did see this dramatic drop in temperatures. it was all because of the strong northwesterly winds coming in with our latest cold surge across most of japan. you can see the lines moving in from the northwest. that's the sea effect snow, indicating cool northerly winds and creating fairly heavy snow totals. at one location, 40 centimeters in just the past 24 hours, on top of the snow already on the ground. in hokkaido, reports of 30 centimeters outs there. plenty of snowfall. it does look like things will be tapering off as far as precipitation on wednesday morning. as we go into wednesday evening

through thursday morning, you can see the high is moving overhead, keeping things clear and cooler. we have another low right on its heels, and the interaction between these weather systems is going to be making for some exceptional instability. definitely with this deep cold air aloft, moving overhead, we'll see widespread snowfall, but also the threat of some thunderstorms. some of them could become rather strong, with the potential of hail, maybe even a chance of a tornado or two, as this does move through, and of course plenty of more snow in the forecast. that's along the sea of japan coastline. tokyo has a high of 10, sunny skies on wednesday, at least heading through the afternoon. cloudy conditions over there and into shanghai, partly conditions. temperatures still into the teens. down in the tropics, into the 30s. parts of central and southern thailand, we have been seeing severe flooding. we had some images earlier on today of flooding out there, but

that is all really due to this tropical low developing just towards the west. continuing to pull in moisture from the east and actually now a tropical depression, according to the indian meteorology department, expect it to become a cyclonic storm in the near future. rain moving away from indonesia, but eventually it could be nearing the coastline of india. something we want to be watching out for, because there's definitely that threat of flooding in the extended outlook heading through the week. and especially as this does continue to move ahead. across europe, we still have several areas we're watching, but i do want to start off noting high pressure is dominating central areas of the continent, creating some rather clear conditions. like to say big bubble, no trouble. what i mean by that, this bubble of high pressure just blocking out any rough weather out there. back to the north, gusty winds across the british isles,

through the scandinavian peninsula, bringing windy conditions and snowfall. vienna with a high of 3, warsaw, zero, berlin getting up to 4. here in the americas, we have a storm system moving through ontario, extending to the northeastern u.s. behind it, some fairly cold northwesterly winds, could kick up lake-effect snow but temperatures are cooling off with this polar air moving towards the south. take a look at the four-day outlook and especially saturday. minus 16 for your low there in toronto. all right, here's your extended outlook. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm keiko kitagawa in tokyo. thank you for watching.

woman: a place in costa rica where a remarkably high number of people live to be over the age of 100. what's the secret to their longevity? i'm elaine reyes in washington, dc and this is "americas now." first up, costa rica's largest peninsula also hasne of the largest populations of centenarians on the planet, with more residents who are over 80 than anywhere else on earth. man: they have sort of a positive outlook on life and they value a lot their social, their relationship with their families and with the community. [man speaking spanish] elaine: correspondent harris whitbeck visits the people of the nicoya peninsula. he'll tell us why inhabitants of this lush location live such long lives. ne