welcome to nhk world "newsline." i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we're following this hour. prime minister abe's ruling coalition has won a landslide victory, securing two-thirds of the seats in japan's lower house. police in hong kong have torn down barricades, folded up tents, and cleared away the last pro-democracy protest site. and a quarterly survey by japan's central bank shows a mixed business sentiment among company managers.

the japanese prime minister's political gamble in calling an early election has paid off. shinzo abe's ruling coalition won a landslide victory. his liberal democratic party and its partner komeito have secured a two thirds majority in the lower house. the parties won 326 of the 475 seats in the chamber. that's well above the 317 needed to secure a two-thirds majority, and it means the ruling parties will be able to set their agenda for the diet, and see it through. abe says he wants to push forward with his policies. they include his economic plan known as abenomics. he spoke to media on monday, one day after the election win. >> translator: yesterday, we got voter support for abenomics.

so i want to advance the policy in three areas. we will take action immediately with economic stimulus measures by the end of this year. we will compile a budget for the next fiscal year. the diet will be convened at the start of next year. we want to carry out drastic deregulation in areas such as agriculture, health care, and energy. and we'll strongly promote our growth strategy. we will not change our policy of reducing dependency on nuclear power or through energy savings, and introducing renewable resources. but as for nuclear plants, if we can confirm the necessary safety measures, we'd like the facilities to be restarted with

the consent of local people. amending the constitution has been our party's consistent aim since its foundation. amendments need two thirds approval in the diet. and a majority of support in a national referendum. as ldp president i would like to continue to work to seek public understanding on the matter. >> our senior political commentator masayo nakajima gave us his insight on prime minister abe's news conference. >> while prime minister abe emphasized that he will continue his policy of putting the economy first.

the prime minister said that he called the general election because he wanted voters to weigh in on his economic policy known as abenomics. he views his victory as strong mandate to press on and abe's positioning himself to tackle other issues on his agenda. he promised to pass legislation for a new security policy. allowing japan to defend closely related countries that come under attack. and he'll seek a final decision on restarting nuclear reactors, which have passed safety standards. abe also said he will work to earn the public's understanding about amending the constitution. the ldp's stance is that amending the constitution is necessary to strengthen japan's defense. but i think the prime minister's tough priority is delivering on his promise to revive the world's third largest economy.

gdp has slumped consecutively. a hike in the consumption tax from 5% to 8% in april is largely to blame. that's why abe decided to put off a plan to raise the tax again to 10% until 2017. abe mentioned new economic measures to get the economy moving. japanese voters are now waiting to see if he'll do that successfully. the coalition led by abe's liberal democrats had a sizable majority ahead of the vote. abe could have continued to govern japan, work on the economy, and delay the consumption tax increase. all without sending voters to the polls. but his public approval rating had fallen. abe wanted to boost support ahead of the liberal democratic party leadership election next autumn. he must be re-elected as ldp president if he wants to stay on as prime minister. the decisive victory in the lower house election strengthens

abe's hand against rivals within his party. he can tell ldp members that he has a public's backing to lead the country for another four years. >> and here's what people in tokyo had to say about abe's win. >> translator: i'm happy the ldp has scored a major victory. i think abe is the person who can make us proud of our country. >> translator: i'm afraid japan's politics will turn auto contractic. i think it would be better if various parties could take part by providing different ideas for the public good. >> people in fukushima are hopeful the government will focus more on the reconstruction of the prefecture. >> translator: i hope the winners will try hard for fukushima's recovery. >> translator: i want the government to come up with a policy that makes me feel glad

to have been a farmer in japan. a policy that will last for 100 years. >> many people questioned the low voters turnout in sunday's election. >> translator: i saw many friends saying on twitter that they are not going to the vote because it was cold. they weren't interested. so i thought i didn't have to go either. >> translator: my colleagues weren't going to the vote. i have an impression that only elder people went. >> voter turnout was 52.66%. a post-war low. that's more than 6 points lower than the general election two years ago. people in southern prefecture of okinawa took advantage of the election to make themselves heard. they voted out of -- they voted out of office the four local candidates for abe's party. the prefectural governor says the results are proof that residents are against the planned relocation of a u.s. air

station within the prefecture. ed four candidates who won electoral districts opposed central government plan to move a u.s. air station in ginowan city to a less populated area in the prefecture. >> translator: all the candidates who were elected have the same opinion as i about the relocation plan. this means i have the backing of the people in okinawa not to allow the futenma air station to be moved to the less populated hanoko district. >> onaga was elected as okinawa governor in november on a platform that opposed the base relocation. one by one they emerged, at least five people all running from a cafe in sydney, australia. that's become the scene of a hostage crisis. a man believed to be a radical islamist has been holding possibly dozens of people

against their will. and at this point, it's unclear if ones who got out escaped or were let go. more from nhk world's craig dale. >> reporter: well, this hostage crisis has been going on for hours now. the sight of these people running to their freedom has been a relief for many. let's get straight to the video here. we can see what appears to be an employ eee of the cafe with a lk of sheer panic on her face racing into the arms of police. soon after one of her colleagues dashes down the sidewalk. now earlier we saw three people emerge from a different exit, one man runs out. then another follows, seconds later. and then shortly thereafter, a third man goes racing out. the cafe is located in an area called martin place in the central business district or cbd. hundreds of heavily armed officers are on the scene, including tactical units and negotiators. authorities have shut down roads, evacuated buildings and kept people at a distance. police say at least one suspect is involved. reuters notes that negotiators are in contact with them and are

trying to work out his motives. he's reportedly holding anywhere from 10 to 40 people. police said they couldn't speculate on how many others remain inside, aside from the people who got out. but they don't believe anyone's been harmed. now earlier we saw some of the hostages with their hands pressed against the windows of the cafe. australian media also released an image of a man believed to be one of the suspects. and we saw this. it's a flag that says in arabic, there is no god but allah. the flag isn't the same as the one flown by islamic state the group is fighting in syria and iraq, but it raised concerns radical islamists are behind this incident. now the commissioner of the new south wales police force says his officers are on a quote footing that's consistent with a terrorist event. but he cautioned the situation is fluid. >> we have not yet confirmed this is a terrorism related event. we are dealing with a hostage situation, with an armed defender, and we're dealing with it accordingly. now we are ready to escalate should we need to. but at this stage we have vast amount of resources available to us. the best trained, the most

prepared, and most professional police agency in the nation. and we're looking to resolve this just as quickly as we can. >> reporter: the concern in australia is that islamic state listed the country as one of a number of nations their followers should attack. in september australia joined the international coalition fighting against the militant group in iraq. dozens of radicalized australians have joined islamic state. authorities have stopped some from leaving the country, arrested some for trying to recruit fighters, and detained others for planning an attack on the capital canberra. prime minister tony abbott held a meeting of his national security committee to discuss this hostage crisis, and he's been getting regular briefings from police. abbott described the situation as distressing, terrifying and very disturbing. now before today, the prime minister had warned militants could attack australian targets. but he said in his briefing, their security forces are ready for any situations or contingencies. police in hong kong have put an end to more than two months of violence and chaos in the

streets. they've cleared the last pro-democracy protest site. they removed barricades on monday along a 100 meter stretch of road in causeway bay, a major shopping area. the students left the area voluntarily. they've been blocking several major roads in the city since september. they're upset over a decision by leaders in beijing that blocked pro-democracy candidates from running for the territory's chief executive in 2017. >> occupation, our fight, true democracy will not end. >> the confrontations between the demonstrators and authorities are expected to continue. police arrested more than 20 people over the weekend during a protest march. the world was supposed to be a happier place with lower oil prices. not so, say some. and ron madison for the biz team is here to explain. >> of course, it makes drivers happy when they see prices go down. but there are other impacts from

falling oil prices and that's what has global investors anxious today. they feared that could hurt emerging economies that rely on energy exports. market players are reluctant to take risks and are seeking safe haven assets such as government bonds, and the yen. brent crude sank to just above $60 a barrel. that's the lowest level in 5 1/2 years. it's now being quoted at around $63. the rebound in oil prices is giving investors some relief. they're picking up bargain shares in europe after a broad sell-off last week. we are seeing all of the majors in positive range right now roughly 0.3% to 0.4%. now all of the indexes in the asia pacific region ended lower. tokyo's nikkei shed more than 1.5% plunging it to a one-month low. australia's main index gave up over 0.6%, and that extended losses into a fifth straight session. indonesian shares down by 1%. indonesia's rupiah is one of the

currencies hit by the recent fall in oil prices. the dollar climbed to its highest level since august 1998. let's take a look at other currencies. the risk among investors is supporting the yen. dollar/yen is at 118.60. the euro remains under a bit of pressure. traders are speculating about further monetary easing by the european central bank. so euro dollar right now is at 1.2418. officials at the bank of japan say their latest business survey shows that sentiment is mixed. the quarterly survey asked managers at about 10,000 companies their thoughts about the economy. the index measures the percentage of respondents who say business conditions are good against those who say conditions are poor. the index at major manufacturers was plus 1. that's down one point from the previous survey released in october. sentiment worsened for the first time in two quarters. now the index sentiment at major nonmanufacturers improved. the index was plus 16, that was up 3 points. as for small and midsize

companies the manufacturers gave a reading of plus one and the index for nonmanufacturers was minus one. managers at big manufacturers are less confident about the coming quarter. they gave an outlook of plus nine, down three points from the current survey result. the number of new condominiums put on sale in greater tokyo in november fell from the previous year. it's the tenth consecutive year-on-year decline. the real estate economic institute says about 3,300 units came onto the market in tokyo, and three neighboring prefectures last month. it's down a third from a year ago. researchers blamed the lingering effects of the consumption tax hike in april and rising condo prices. they say higher labor costs and other construction expenses are behind the trend. so the luxury condos in central tokyo remain relatively solid. but those in the suburbs are struggling to find buyers. south korean experts are in japan to study seafood from fukushima and seven other prefectures. the five-day study trip could

result in seoul lifting a 15-month ban on seafood imports from these areas. the south korean researchers visited agriculture and fisheries ministry in tokyo on monday. they said consumers back home are concerned about food safety. but the head of the fisheries agency said it is monitoring marine products strictly to ensure that only safe seafood circulates both at home and abroad. the expert said they will scrutinize how japanese fisheries workers handle products. they said their findings will be reflected in their decision on whether to end the import ban. the group will visit the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant to see how workers are trying to prevent radioactive water from leaking into the sea. they also plan to watch test fishing off fukushima prefecture. well, millions of japanese people exchange greeting cards at the beginning of the new year. and with just two weeks left till the end of 2014, post offices have started gearing up for the deluge.

♪ japan post officials marked the opening of the card season in tokyo. they selected an all-girl pop group as special ambassadors for the cards, which they started accepting for delivery. japan post president toru takahashi said his company will do what they can to deliver cards on time for new year's day. the company plans to print roughly 3.4 billion cards. that's about the same number as last year. postal workers are asking people to be sure to mail their greetings by december 25th so they'll be sure to arrive on january 1st. okay. that is going to do it for biz tonight. let's get a recap of the markets.

some people in france are getting passionate about a japanese handicraft. they love the elegance of traditional handmade paper called washi. and they're experiencing it thanks to a french craftsman who devoted himself to learning the skills. more from nhk world. >> reporter: in southern france, it's known as a city where master vincent van gogh painted some of his best-known works. he said the city's beauty was comparable to japan. the newly opened museum for

vincent van gogh. it displays items like stationery and hats made of japanese traditional paper, or washi. renoir is the first and only washi artisan in france. he has been making the paper for two years with his wife stephanie. four years ago, he lost his job as a manufacturing at a major paper making company due to restructuring. and encouraged by his wife he embarked on the path of becoming a washi artisan. washi is made of mulberry fibers called kozu. they give the paper a soft texture that is also tough and durable. >> translator: when i cut the

kozu i try to think about which branches yield the best quality paper. >> reporter: he went to japan to learn the traditional techniques of japanese washi paper making. the artisan makes every sheet of paper by extracting mulberry fibers from the bark. then he agitates the solution until it's evenly spread on a bamboo mesh screen. in the suburbs he rejted space in an old factory and set up a workshop. he's tutoring a french artist. she was trained in new york in weaving and other textile work. the plan to hold an exhibition of washi, fabric and thread in paris. >> i think that there were so

many possibilities when i came and i saw what they do, and i mean they're really inspiring people. >> reporter: france has seen a recent upsurge of interest in washi. a french nature photographer plans to exhibit his own work printed on washi that benoit made. >> pictures are like paintings. when you take the picture, you have a landscape like a painting. washi, i think, is a very good approach. >> reporter: washi is used to repair works of art such as florentine pictures. >> the japanese paper, the washi, is very nice, and beautiful paper because it has long fibers, and it's very

strong. and strong enough. >> reporter: he dreams of sharing the wonders of washi with his children's generation. >> translator: i want to help spread the use of washi for clothing and other purposes. and i want everyone to know that it's environmentally friendly. >> reporter: from a small town in the south of france he's working to spread japan's washi culture. donovan raynal, nhk world. people in northern japan are digging out from heavy snow. but they were expecting blizzard conditions once again. our meteorologist sayaka mori is here with the latest. sayaka? >> yes, gene, heavy know is not falling at this moment over northern japan. however we're expecting more heavy snowfall starting tuesday. now, these are the numbers what we've already had. now, over 100 centimeters of snow has fallen, or actually

piled up in hokkaido and nearly two meters in me aceh prefecture and more than normal for this time of year across western japan. high pressure system is now covering most of country. however as you can see a couple of low pressure systems are approaching. and these systems will intensify quite rapidly into tuesday and move across japan, so not just heavy rainfall. heavy snowfall. we're expecting gusts of nearly 130 kilometers per hour. waves are going to be up to six meters, and the risk of avalanches will be very, very high over the mountainous locations. as we go into wednesday, these systems will merge into one big system off the west coast of hokkaido. last year actually nine people were killed due to a blizzard condition. and this system will likely add strong as last year's storm so incidents may happen so please be careful. now over the next three days stormy conditions will batter most part of japan. tokyo rainy weather, cold

temperatures on tuesday, and snow will increase, starting wednesday and thursday across the northern areas like niigata and hokkaido. across europe, unstable conditions for the mediterranean countries. the wlors is happening over the eastern parts of the iberian peninsula and that will spread to italy and the western parts of the balkan peninsula as we go into tuesday. and a wintry mix and gusty conditions for the british isles, as well as the scandinavian peninsula. but temperatures are generally mild in many parts of japan -- in parts of europe, i should say. now, across the american continent, lots of rain is still going on across california. an additional 80 millimeters of rain in the next 24 hours, and rain will likely continue into your wednesday, at least in the los angeles area. that is raising the potential for flooding, as well as mudslides. meanwhile, severe weathermaker is now affecting the mid part of the u.s. actually, snowfall for the northern locations, freezing rain will continue in north dakota, as we go into early monday morning.

so watch out when you drive or walk on roads. now, rain will spread into the eastern parts of the united states, as we go into monday. all right, temperatures are going to be as follows. still on the warmer side in chicago, we have 10 degrees with rainy weather. but that could go down to freezing temperatures on tuesday. meanwhile, 4 degrees in denver with plenty of sunshine, and single digits for you in both seattle as well as vancouver on your monday. now, i want to take you to hawaii. honolulu actually hosted the honolulu marathon sunday morning under rainy and windy conditions. starting monday, sunny weather will return with seasonably high temperatures. honolulu up to 28 degrees for the high on tuesday with windy conditions. now from hawaii, we have some fun video. take a look. most people associate santa claus with the chilly weather of the north pole. but this weekend, the jolly elf was found relaxing in hawaii. he was spotted on waikiki beach

padalling in a canoe and singing hawaiian christmas songs. dancing hull la girls greeted saint nick as he came onshore and he was also given a full welcome with sfesivities. all right here's your extended forecast.

that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo.

first, to sydney, australia, where the hostage situation is still underway. authorities say they are negotiating with the gunman who has been holding people in the café in sydney for over 12 hours now. police were quick to seal off and evacuate the area. five hostages ran out of the building earlier today, but it is still unclear how many are inside. there have been a series of