a very warm welcome to nhk "newsline" broadcasting to viewers around the globe. i'm catherine kobayashi. the u.s. defense department says one of its destroyers fired at boats. the boats were approaching at high speed and ignored requests to stay away. officials say four boats from the iranian revolutionary guard corps closed in. the officials say it fired warn shots after the boats ignored

radio warnings and came within about 800 meters of the ship. >> these types of actions are concerning. we should look for ways to deescalate. >> a u.s. navy vessel last august fired warning shots at iranian military boats in the same waters. moscow is hitting back at allegations it ran a hacking campaign. the president ordered cyber helo

damage hillary clinton. kremlin's spokesperson dismissed the claims as base less. he said he's tired of such accusations. he added that the u.s. will soon have a prudent administration which he predicted will take careful steps to seek dialogue. trump said if toyota motor builds a factory in mexico, they should get hit with a big border tax. get us updated on the story. >> you'll remember the message surprised many automakers because mexico is a big hub for cars that get sent to american dealerships. we are getting reactions from the heads of big automakers, including the president of toyota. he said he's not planning to reconsider the plant in mexico.

he did reveal a huge investment plan in the u.s. >> we'll be investing another 10 billion here in just the next five years along. >> toyota stressed his company's contribution to u.s. employment noting that his companies largest factory is located in the u.s. he added some 136,000 people across the country are on toyota's payroll. the president of honda motor addressed his company's manufacturing plants. >> translator: we intend to maintain our production in mexico for now. we will wait for the president-elect's policies to become clear before reviewing our plans. >> he stressed honda's contribution to the u.s. economy. noted that honda was the first

japanese automaker to manufacture its vehicles in the country. japanese firm has announced a major acquisition. officials say they will purchase all outstanding shares bringing the u.s. firm under their wing. it's been developing new medicines to advance the treatment of rare forms of leukemia, lung cancer as well as other cancers. they've been focusing on cancer and neurological diseases. it's a unique opportunity to will help advance the company's priorities. u.s. media outlets are reporting that the federal bureau of investigation arrested an executive of

vo voeks wagon. various media reported on monday that authorities arrested oliver schmidt. they admitted in september 2015, it installed illegal software on some of its diesel vehicles. it was meant to reduce pollutants during emissions tests. >> we were surprised by the news yesterday. we cannot comment on this. it's an ongoing investigation. we continue to work closely with the government on there. >> u.s. investigators previously indicted a volkswagen engineer on charges of fraud. let's turn to markets and see what's happening there. share prices in tokyo opened

stronger. right now the nikkei is trading lower. it is down by about a third of a percent. energy related shares and exporters are dragging down the benchmark. wti futures touumbled more than 3%. that was about prime minister may suggested that britain would drastically rework trade ties with the european union. kospi is trading lower.

let's check on our global economic calendar for the week. the next day brings china's trade data for 2016 mirroring on economic slowdown monthly exports and imports. both posted year on year declines for much of last year. also on friday, an update on the u.s. economy when officials announce retail sales for december. every week we ask specialists to share their perspectives on the week.

we hear from the senior economist at mitsubishi research and consulting. he expects the account balance to show another surplus in september. >> japan's current account balance for november is forecast to remain in the black. expanding by more than $1.7 billion compared to the same month last year. the surplus is protected to tea tol $11.2 billion. the main reason is an expected increase in japan's trade surplus. the japanese yen weakened against the dollar in november from the month before but the yen was still around 10% higher than the same month last year. yen based crude oil prices have

fallen about 10% from take year earlier. this means there was a greater reduction in imports than exports. >> starting in december, though, he believes the trade surplus could start to shrink. >> translator: when the u.s. currency strengths against the yen japan's imports rather than exports tend to grow when calculated in yen. since the trade surplus will shrink when the yen falls against the dollar, there's a possibility of decline in the surplus. if oil prices keep rising there's also a possibility that the current account surplus will diminish. >> u.s. president-elect trump has promised to reduce the u.s. trade deficit, still japan is not likely to be a high priority target for his administration. >> translator: in the past, japanese companies built production plants overseas.

after being criticized by other countries for accumulating a be considerable trade surplus, as a result the number of cars produced by japanese automakers in the u.s. is more than twice the number they export from japan. in that sense, japan is contributing to creating jobs in the u.s. and since china accounts for half of the u.s. trade deficit, i think japan ranks lower as a concern for the u.s. administration. >> and that is the latest in business news for this hour. i'm going to leave you with another check on markets.

>> our japan's ambassador to it south korea has returned to tokyo symbolizes people comfort wichlt along with ambassador yasumasa prime minister shinzo abe earlier this week to discuss the installation, japan has been calling on south korea to remove it. the statue is similar to one outside the japanese embassy in seoul. abe discussed the issue on sunday. he noted both governments agreed in 2015 that it had been finally

and irreversibly resolved. >> translator: i believe south korea needs to fulfill its own obligation honoring the agreement is a matter of national credibility even if the government changes. >> abe stressed his country has been carrying out its obligations under the agreement. japan has contributed $8.5 million to south korea foundation supporting former comfort women. japan's air self-defense scrambled fighter jets monday. officials were responding to chinese military planes. defense officials say air space was not violented. the aircraft included 6 bombers, one early warning plane and one surveillance plane. the officials say the plans headed northeast over the sea of japan. the scrambled to intercept the

chinese aircraft flying near japanese air space. chinese military planes were also as opposed toed in over the straight in august. the country's aircraft carrier made its first appearance last month in the pacific ocean. the phillipines annual black nazarene procession has drawn over 1 million devotees to the state. >> every january 9th a statue of jesus usually kept in a church is paraded through the capital. police estimate that this year 1 is .5 million people came out to see it. many tried to touch the statue which is believed to create miracles such as cure the sick.

other people threw towels through the statue, the crowds and hot weather led to injury and illness. the red cross says over 1,000 people received medical treatment. >> the new year sumo tournament is under way. it's a fierce contest of fighting spirit and strength. >> when a sumo wrestler enters the ring the first thing likely to capture eye is his ceremonial apron. the embroidery is custom made. only top wrestlers can wear them and only the top craftsman can make them. one such artisan is 58-year-old. his involvement with sumo

started 26 years ago. a sumo official came to one of his exhibitions and was impressed with the delicate pattern. he has been working on aprons ever since. >> translator: i see it as a costume for a big moment in a wrestlers life. i will want to c make him look appealing on that special occasion. i also want to make sure the design suits the wrestler who wears it. >> a grand tournament is approaching and he's busy with his latest project. this is masa he's just been promoted to it judeal and now has the right to wear the apron. the design depicts the big sun ridesing from the sea off the island the wrestler's hometown. he stitches everything by hand.

this delicate work requires a lot of patience, the time is running out. he sometimes works from 4:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. to get it ready for the tournament's opening. >> translator: the apron they wear in their first tournament will stay in their memory for ever so i want to make a really good one. >> he's broidered for some of the biggest names in the sport. >> translator: i knew he was an exceptional sumo wrestler. i was extremely nervous and took extra care with his apron. >> now another wrestler is rising up the ranks and his apron is ready.

>> translator: this isn't bad. i like it. it's a good one with a simple design. this will suit him. >> the grand tournament has opened and he watches as he steps into the ring. >> translator: this is good. it suits him will well. they make new april problems only at important turning points in their it career. i've heard that the people have high expectations for masay. i want him to do well and be promoted to higher ranks. that would be a great pleasure for me too. >> it's a big moment in the career of a sumo wrestler and it's celebrated in every stitch of his apron.

tourists from overseas have been seeking out a food attraction of sorts in one of tokyo's neighborhoods. but many of the visitors are there to find plastic food samples. you can get life size replicas or miniatures for souvenirs. >> reporter: is neither a restaurant owner nor tourist. she's a house wife and her food is something like a food sample museum. a huge parfait stands at the entrance.

>> a dumpling covers the light switch. >> the walls are adorned with her favorite form of decoration. one section is devoted to sweets. she's got more in the drawers. all together some 10,000 pieces accumulated over ten years. in 2014 guinness world recorders recognizes her collection as the biggest anywhere. in fact, miniatures are what got her started and she hasn't ever stopped. >> translator: you can tell this is a grilled fish right away. the shine are so convincing. i can almost smell the food. it's really something.

>> many of the samples all around tokyo come from a place 400 kilometers away. this company offers a history lesson in luke alight cuisine. wax was then fed into it to create a sample. in the 1970s plastic became the material of choice. on the left-hand side is wax, and on the right plastic, the change in the coating is noticeable and more detailed. nutritionist also rely on replicas for counseling. >> so these food samples have tabs on the back. the tabs contain information about the contents. the monitor displays things like the number of calories and the amount of salt. >> i think i'm having too much carbs so i'm going to it get rid of the big rice and some smaller portions.

i went down in calories as well. >> the replicas help people make healthy choices so they're used in hospitals and in schools for educational purposes. >> it's great that they tell you exactly what you can and shouldn't eat from food samples. >> the samples also preserve food culture and show how it has evolved, for example, replicas are being created for traditional japanese confectionary restorers copying the shape, color and texture. >> many confectioners are getting old and can't easily show their products. samples will give future generations a sense of what they produced. >> visitors can try making a sample in the old fashioned style using wax.

when we stopped by some tourists from abroad were taking a 30 minute course in making realistic lettuce and shrimp tempura. >> the samples may not be fit to eat but they have a culinary tradition all their own. >> amazing work there some of those models look better than the real thing. people in western states of the u.s. are experiencing severe weather conditions. let's find out more from our meteorologist robert speta. he joins us with the details. >> this river of moisture has been bringing intense rain and snow here across parts of california through oregon and also into nevada and onto idaho

and wyoming. you've been seeing all this precipitation. it's been lined up. some areas across the mountains of california off to a meter of snowfall. you have the snowfall amounts combining with the rain creating intense flooding. the storm brought about 100 kilometer winds down in numerous trees. some very large ones as well. up to 40 centimeters seen here into oregon. as i mentioned in the mountains of california, you've seen up to 100 centimeters in a few locations. you're expecting more on top of it. 40 additional centimeters. the big issue if you are a skier or snow boarder especially in the mountains, you might think

this is great news. the problem is and we've been seeing this on a lot of hillsides is the threat of averanue -- it's causing travel problems as well. now, we look back tards the east across the north eastern u.s., we do have another storm moving through. that's bringing snow across the great lakes. additional 15 to 20 centimeters out there. even freezing rain in there. want to keep a close eye on that. snow in your forecast. washington, d.c. probably going to miss out on the snow. it's staying chilly for the high of three there. as we look down towards south eastern asia, we do have the storm system still lingering off the coast of thailand.

with that, continuing to bring heavy rains. we've been mentioning the flooding that's already been taking place there. over 20 casualties reported because of that per sis tent rainfall this past week. back towards the air, cold air dominating. complete opposite. big thing with this, it's not just over north eastern china but all that is flowing toward the south over the sea of japan. it's going to be a very classic winter set up this coming week. 40 centimeters possible. the big thing, that's just through wednesday morning. this same set up will stay in place. not really let up in friday into saturday. we're going to be looking at very heavy snow. some areas in the end could see up to about 100 centimeters. you're looking at sfloe all

through the rest of the week. tokyo you'll miss out on it. it will be chilly but dry through the rest of the workweek. i'll leave you now with your extended outlook. we have one more story to share before we go. thousands of people have been competing for the title of luckiest person of the year.

they were taking part in a new year's foot race. it's held every january 10th as part of a ritual to pray for success in business. they lined up for the race's 6:00 a.m. start. when the gate opened, they dashed to the main hall. roughly 230 meters away. the top three runners were crowned there year's luckiest men and women. the fastest runner this year was a 21-year-old university student. >> translator: i'm just very happy. i've watched it on tv every year. i always wanted the take part. i was determined to finish in at least third place, so i did my best. >> he said he hopes the luck will help him become a pilot. >> and that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." thanks for joining us.

>> hello and welcome to "focus on europ" prdais notwe had originally planned to bring you in the midst of thhoy season. but we had to change it after germany was hit by a violent act of terror. ♪ a terrorist drove a truck through the middle of a crowded christmas market in berlin. people were killed and many injured. berliners gathered, appalled and confused by the carnage. one woman remarked -- i can not understand the people who make such a thing, quite honestly. >> with the sharp rise of terrorist attacks in europe, many people in germany feared