welcome to "newsline." here are some of the stories we are following this hour. japanese researchers have conducted the first ever surgery using ips cell on a patient suffering a serious eye disease. japan's new science and technology policy minister lays out plans for the country's technology sector. women in many countries find

that doors are closed for them and many are finding it hard to live out their dreams. a group of japanese researchers is claiming a world first in regenerative medicine. they say they have used ips cells on a patient suffering from a serious eye disease in an attempt to restore her vision. the team is led by takahashi. she says the patient is suffering from age-related macular degeneration. the patient is a woman in her 70s. the surgeon used cells and used it to stem cells. using the cells the team cultivated the ips cells into redeveloped tissue. it was surgically placed into

the patient's eye. the operation lasted about 2 1/2 hours. researchers say it will be at least several weeks before they can judge the operation's effectiveness. professor from tokyo yievt wuni was awarded the nobel prize for his work in developing the ips cells. russian president vladimir putin wants to test the combat readiness of his troops. it raised fears of a russian intervention in ukraine. officers will drill with armed units for a week. defense officials did not specify how many soldiers would take part. the exercises will include checks on civilian ministries and agencies to test their preparredness. officers are weighing how to

respond to creating a rapid force. they have staged a number of exercises. on wednesday the crew of a nuclear powered submarine in the arctic ocean test fired a new type of ballistic missile. it can carry a nuclear war head. the newspaperen union announced that new sanctions against russia will go into effect on friday. there was a package of sanctions. european council president and other officials made the announcement on thursday. the new sanctions reinforced policies targeting russia financial, defense and energy sectors. the package restricts three major energy companies and defense firms from accessing markets. and it restricts banks from

procuring funds in europe. arctic oil exploration is also restricted. the eu has suggested that it may review the new sanctions this month depending on the russian response whether the cease-fire is observed. in washington u.s. president barack obama said his country is joining the e ux. he said the u.s. will deepen sanctions on russia. obama said if rushy fully implements commitments to work for a lasting resolution in the ukraine the u.s. soonkzs can be rolled back but if russia continues aggressive actions the cost for russia will continue to rise. a top japanese government spokesperson says they will work closely with g 7 partrs on how to impose additional sanctions

on russia. >> translator: japan will take appropriate steps watching closely the situations of the cease-fire as well as actions taken by the u.s. and the eu. >> he spoke about comments saying putin's visit to tokyo is falling behind schedule. he says he doesn't believe that the russian side has decided to postpone their visit. he says nothing has been decided and the matter should be handled by considering various factors comprehensively. japanese prime minister says space development is important in the rapidly changing security situation. and he has instructed all relevant cabinet members to compile a basic program by the end of this year. abe held a meeting of the

government's strategic headquarters. the participants discussed a report that calls for boosting surveillance using satellites in response to china's increased maritime activities. >> translator: japan's space industry is losing strength. some companies have shut down space-related businesses or reduced manpower. it is our urgent task to revi l revitalize and support industry. >> he says the new plan will consider fiscal limitations. japan's new science and technology policy minister attended the meeting. he says he is particularly interested in space and is determined to promote the country's technological expertise and laid out plans in a recent meeting with nhk. >> reporter: this is the first time he has searched in the

cabinet but he has been given a number of portfolios to oversee. one of the most important is science and technology. >> translator: japan can lead the world in various fields with its advanced technology. science and technology have always been considered important, but not enough effort has been put into promoting it and the budget has been limited. i think the cabinet office should fulfill its role as commander in chief and promote japan's science and technology. >> reporter: he stressed the significance of japan's space program. he referred to the probe which returned to earth in 2010 after collecting samples from a small asteroid. it was the first time this had ever been achieved. its successor is scheduled to be launched as early as this december. >> translator: a successful rocket launch is the culmination

of years of basic research. its success has had considerable influence on scientific studies and has brought benefit to industry. that's why i am determined to place greater emphasis on this field for japan's future. >> reporter: he also oversees the portfolio for okinawa and northern territories' affairs. more than 40% are located in okinawa. local people have been asking the government to reduce the burden on the prefecture for decades. on the day following this interview he flew to okinawa where he visited the u.s. marine corps air station. the minister wants to develop the region that is still

burdened with the legacy from world war ii. >> translator: i want to study places in okinawa that have become de-populated and do whatever i can do to support these regions. i want okinawa to be the forefront of development in japan. >> now, to what is happening in the world of business. ron madison has the latest. >> straight to the markets. investors in japan saw the country's main bench mark reach another closing eye. the nikkei average rose quarter a percent 15,948. shares of companies such as toyota motor went higher. taking a look at other markets. markets finished like this with some seeing gains and others

seeing losses. traders a bit cautious ahead of the release of output. shanghai up nearly a percent. investors took part from the latest economic data. lending from banks rose in august. in taiwan the index declined more than 1% and finished at 9,223 making for a third straight day of losses following announcement of new iphones earlier this week. investors dumped shares of suppliers for apple products. a major british bank warned it will move headquarters out of scotland if they voted to break away from the united kingdom. the royal bank of scotland said it will ship to london as scotland votes for independence. the bank says the vote could have a bearing on its credit

ratings. other top british banks and insurance companies say they may do the same. the leader of the scottish national party who leads the independence campaign dismissed the threat as scaremongering and accused the british government at briefing the media. he said his side will win the referendum. sharp has unveiled a new energy-saving display for smart phones and tablet computers. the product was first to be developed jointly with quaalcomm. investors unveiled the display on friday. sharp tried to tie up with quaalcomm in 2012. sharp says the display uses less energy than liquid crystal or organic el displays and produces crisp images. plans to start manufacturing the

screen as early as 2017. female leaders are meeting in tokyo to discuss empowerment of women in society. the three-day world assembly for men opened friday. christine laguard is among guests. the japanese government is co-hosting the forum. prime minister abe delivered the opening speech and says he wants more women to work but japan has fewer lawmakers and business managers than other developed nations. >> translator: we have to take action right now to empower women. japan has set a goal of having women occupy about 30% of executive posts by the year 2020. >> many japanese women say they struggle to pursue careers because of poor social infrastructure.

they say more daycare centers are needed for working mothers. the forum will discuss these and other challenges as well as ways to overcome them. unlike japan the situation for women in the united states is perceived as being close to ideal. women are firmly established. for those who lost jobs in the recent recession or took time off to raise children an increasing number are finding it difficult to get back into the job market. >> reporter: people waiting to take part in a job fair formed a long line at a hotel in virginia. the u.s. economy is on a recovery track but job growth slowed sharply in august and a lot of pawomen are still having trouble finding work. >> i am a mom trying to look for a job. having trouble, graduated about two years ago. >> i'm hur i have a lot of

competition. >> reporter: many women have risen to the upper levels of the u.s. business world. the entry of women into the workforce is far ahead of japan. but more and more women are now becoming old time homemakers. in 1999 this group accounted for 23% of the u.s. female population with children under age 18. this figure rose to nearly 30% in 2012. many women had no other choice as jobs were scarce in the sluggish economy following the financial crisis. women who take time off from work to raise children are also having problems finding a job. 47 year old erica labets lives in a chicago suburb. she used to work as a real estate lawyer. her twin children are now in

elementary school so she has more free time. ♪ she decides to find a job a year ago to pay for her children's enrichment lessons and to save for their college education. >> i really feel that i'm trying to prepare for the next segment of our lives as a family. >> reporter: she quit working about ten years ago. until then she was handling a lot of real estate deals in chicago. with her past career experience she thought she could pick up a job anytime she wants it. she is looking for a full-time position at a law office or in a corporate legal division but she is facing an uphill battle. she has posted her resume and photos on the internet and contacted recruiters but rarely gets an interview. >> when i was working i never had trouble getting a job ever. it is always like you look like

you have the skills you need and i admit your credential to the employer and if it looks good we will call you back. i haven't really been called back. >> reporter: she bought a new suit and a bag for job interviews but hasn't had much chance to use them. >> it is tough. i think that the economy hopefully more positions will open up. i hope the economy does get better. >> she feels frustrated that not enough firms want to hire women who have been away from work for a while. her experience and those of other women around the world suggest that despite recent progress there is still a long way to go. nhk world chicago. that is going to do it for biz this hour. let's get a check of the markets.

more and more people in japan are living longer. the latest government survey shows that the number of citizens aged 100 or older has risen to a record high of nearly 59,000 and the world of centenarians women rule. >> reporter: world officials announced survey of centenarians on friday. they counted 58,820 people.

nearly 90% of them are women. at 116 years old she is the oldest person on the list. she lives in the western city of osaka. guinness world records recognized her last year as the world's oldest person. the world's oldest man is also japanese. he is 111 years old. he lives in tokyo. officials say japan had 153 centenarians when the survey began. the figure exceeded the 10,000 mark in 1998 and for the past several years it has increased by 3,000 to 4,000 every year.

people in japan will celebrate respect for the age day on monday. nhk world tokyo. tokyo. [ cheers and applause ] >> japanese wheelchair tennis player is on a roll. she won singles skpl doubles titles at the u.s. open in new york and now is heading for parlimpic gold. >> reporter: nothing keeps her from training. >> i am number one wheelchair tennis player in the world. >> reporter: she is just 142 centimeters tall but competes

against international rivals with stronger physiques. the rules of wheelchair tennis are the same for the standard game but players are allowed two bounces of the ball. her strong point is her chairwork. she is quick to return balls even in intense volleys. she was born with a spinal cord defect. ooze as a child she was able to run a little. by the time she turned 11 she lost strength in her legs. but about the same time her elder sister started tennis. she soon followed in a wheelchair. she says once she picked up tennis it was easier to access being in a wheelchair. >> translator: in tennis if i practice hard enough i can compete with anyone on equal

terms. that is the attraction of wheelchair tennis. >> she practiced for five hours every day with an unyielding spirit she improved her skills. at the age of 14 she became the youngest player to top the japanese rankings. in the last year of high school in 2012 she competed in the london para limpics. she got as far as the quarter finals. before that she thought about quitting to focus on studying or to look for a job. >> translator: i continue to play as i wanted to see more of the world and get back on the stage. she decided to concentrate all of her energy on becoming a world class athlete. she worked hard to address her

weak points including her backhand shots. she mustered slight shots that bounced long making full use of the forehand. she rose to the top of the world rankings in less than two years. this year she reached a milestone by leading the grand slam titles. she is now ranked number one in both singles and doubles and is not backing off and set a new target of becoming champion. her rivals won't let her get comfortable. they are studying her playing style but she is determined to stay on top until the 2020 games. >> a gold medal is my biggest goal but my little goal is to be the champion in 2020 tokyo. >> reporter: she will compete in

the asia paralympics next month. if she wins she will be guaranteed a ticket to rio and will be one step closer to winning two straight golds. people in the northern u.s. are dealing with cold temperatures and heavy snowfall. our meteorologist joins us for more on that. >> it's still mid september but people in the northern u.s. are experiencing winter-like conditions in south dakota, part of the area are in white. take a look at rapids city. rapids city made a time leap and transformed into a winter wonderland thursday. early snow storm dumped up to 20 millimeters of precipitation. this is the earliest record snow fall recorded mptd the heavy wet snow is expected to continue and power outages and fallen trees

are highly possible. western canada was hit by heavy snowfall earlier this week. the cold air is brought by these high pressure systems and these high pressure systems are moving to the south reaching sugern planes on your friday. warm air is coming in from the south. in between severe weather is happeni happening. memphis, tennessee, you are hit by about 115 millimeters of rain in about 24 hours. as we go into saturday more heavy rain will be pounding the area. flooding will have you at a high risk. take a look at temperatures on your friday. only 9 degrees for the high in denver with snow on the menu. but believe it or not on your saturday your temperatures will be back up to the 20s. meanwhile 14 degrees in chicago in the last day of the business

week. to the south in the 30s in atlanta as well as houston. now across japan cold air is existing in the upper atmosphere. that is colliding with warm and humid air from the pacific creating humid weather. record rain fell in the southwestern corner of hokkeidk forcing residents to evacuate. we have this low pressure system continuously bringing heavy rainfall, gusty winds and thunder showers in particular locations. flooding landslides are a quite continued concern. the system will likely move away by saturday eesk nng. clear conditions should come back starting on sunday. as for the rest of japan such as tokyo and osaka nice weather expected. across the southern areas of asia we are looking at a

tropical storm forming over the east of the country. this is tropical storm meaning seagull. it will make it to the northern parts of the philippines by monday. winds will be strong along with storm surges and heavy rain is in the menu probably 250 millimeters of rain is likely into the next 72 hours or so. finally over europe quite severe weather is happening over the balkan peninsula and parts of central europe like poland and germany. unstable weather will continue to stay with you into the weekend. here is the extended forecast.

and that concludes this edition of "newsline." on behalf of our team, thank you for staying with us. gg99ññwççá

>> welcome to the "france 24" newsroom. guilty of culpable homicide. the judge in the oscar pistorius trial finds the athlete responsible for the negligent murder of his girlfriend reeva steenkamp. president francois hollande touches down in baghdad. he meets with the new iraqi government and pledges to support iraq in the fight against islamist extremists. fresh sanctions against russia go into effect. the latest round of punitive measures aimed to keep the pressure on moscow over its involvement in ukraine.