welcome to nhk world "newsline" i'm gene otani in tokyo. here is a look at some of the stories we are following this hour. investigators at a japanese research institute have concluded that cells once hailed as a ground breaking discovery are actually far more ordinary. tokyo's population is one of the largest in the world. now government officials have drawn up measures they hope will correct that. and chinese tourists are

heading to japan in growing numbers to take advantage of the weaker yen. officials investigating the work of a discredited japanese any type of tissue. they've been looking into her research on stap cells which she claimed produced ground-breaking results. and they say evidence shows she was doing research of another kind. they published the findings in january in the british journal "nature." they claimed they found a way to reprogram cells from animals which could be transformed into any type of tissue. they said stap cells were easy to produce. but scientists around the world reported they could not replicate the process. a panel of experts was set up to investigate the matter. they examined the material in the lab and the data used in the papers. >> translator: all the cells she said she created were actually embryonic stem cells.

>> es cells are another type of cells. they're commonly used in labs around the globe. investigators suspect someone may have deliberately introduced them into the experiment but have no way to determine who might have done it. she denies responsibility. >> translator: she says she never mixed in the es cells. she was very consistent in her remarks. >> the investigators also identified two fresh instances in which she fabricated data, in addition to other two cases that were already known. analysts say she will face severe scrutiny because the supervisors failed to notice the flaws in her research. government officials have compiled measures aimed at following through on a promise.

prime minister abe has presented a panel with two sets of policy programs. one outlines a course of action that covers the next five years. the other sets out a longer term vision. the five-year strategy aims to increase populations. it calls for creating 300,000 jobs specifically targeting young people. after the period ends the strategy hopes 100,000 regional jobs will be created annually. the plan focuses on population movements and seeks to encourage more people to move out of the tokyo metropolitan area while discouraging people from relocating to the capital. the strategy seeks to increase japan's fertility rate. the goal is to get japan's population to stabilize at about 100 million by 2060.

>> translator: we presented the talla policy programs but that is not the end of the process at all. we have to make strennious efforts to get the message across to local communities and every citizen around the country. >> the cabinet is expected to formally endorse the policy programs on saturday. japan post has announced a plan to list its holding company on the tokyo stock exchange. the listing could take place as early as next autumn. >> translator: we decided to

list the three in simultaneously. we need to establish an independently managed system. >> the government has a 100% stake in japan post holdings which owns all the shares of the units. japan post will sell the two unit shares in phases initially aiming to offload half. selling more than 50% of the two unit shares would allow them to launch new businesses without government approval. the government plans to use revenues from the listing to rebuild the region hit by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. japan post says it will reveal next summer the scale of the shares to be put on sale. turning to the markets japan's main stock index inched up again after investors bought back shares on thin trading. they are expecting tokyo share prices will continue rising in the new year. the nikkei rose 0.07% on a day

when many investors are on holiday. some are expecting another government stimulus package. china's shanghai rose 2.77%. many investors bought financial related shares including banks and securities. shares in taiwan closed up 0.6% to 9,214. reports that parliament has decided to close on shares. in currency the dollars moving at a narrow range against the yen. analysts say the dollar will stay strong against many currencies because of expectations that the u.s. federal reserve will raise interest rates next year. yield for the japanese government bond hit record lows dipping to 0.3% at one stage

during trading after large scale monetary easing measures. people around the world have watched the yen plunge. they have seen the japanese currency drop. in just six months the yen has fallen by roughly 15% against the greenback. and it slid by 15% against the chinese juan in the same period. >> reporter: the downtown shanghai about 600 people gather for an event. many in the crowd are crowding the streets made possible by their strength and courage. >> translator: i am interested in these rock gardens.

currently the yen is weak so i like to go to kyoto again. >> translator: when do you want to go to japan? >> translator: now should be a good time. >> reporter: a travel agency in shanghai say tours grew by over 30% from a year ago in terms of sales. the growth appears steeper for next year. reservation for february in time for chinese new year and after late march japan's cherry blossom season has more than doubled. >> translator: the yen is weakening so i would be able to buy luxury goods. >> translator: the currency situation is very good for us. it's a seller's market. otherwise i don't think we would have had such a surge in the number of customers. >> translator: the fallen

exchange rate also good news for some chinese companies involved. this company has been receiving an increasing number of inquiries since last month. some people are keen to investing japanese firms. others want to buy high performance machinery equipment. >> translator: in the past it could only invest 150 billion in japan. if you invest the same amount in japan it becomes 200 billion yen. the total investment value in japan has increased. now is a good time for investment opportunities for chinese firms. >> reporter: it's a different story for japanese companies. the main business of this firm is to make plastic products. the company started operations in december 2012.

disposable spoons, cups and other items. it's representative received a directive from the tokyo head office to start with profits. set up sales routes in china and sales expanded. the yen fell to levels no one had anticipated. depreciation shrunk the firm's reven revenues. revenues down more than 10% from estimates. authorities have raised the legal minimum wage by more than 20% in the past year or so. that has compounded the company. as an urgent cost-cutting move required newmanmanry to stream

line operations. it cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. >> translator: now one person can do the job. >> reporter: even so the firm's plan has bane delayed. expects the firm won't fall into the plan into the middle of next year. >> translator: the profit margin is not very large to start with. so honestly speaking a 10% to 15% move in the exchange rate usually means we start losing money. >> earlier talked with senior commentator at nhk world. he gave us more insights into what is happening. >> used to be [ inaudible ] but china has gradually widened on

the movement. the range was plus or minus 0.3% against the dollar. it is now plus or minus 2%. under the system the value has climbed fairly consistently due to china's rapid economic growth. it has increased against the dollar since april due to growing expectations that economic stimulus measures may produce the results. >> are the implications spreading overseas?

>> it is enhancing the profile of the chinese yuan? >> that's correct. the chinese government is promoting international use of the yuan, making it easier to use abroad. that's another big factor. china has also been strengthening trade between other countries. direct trading between chinese and south korean currencies began last month. such moves are not limited to asia and are accelerating in other european countries. in october the treasury similar moves were approved in germany and france. as china's economy continues to grow, several countries in europe plan to expand trade and financial transaction with china, using the yuan as a point of contact. they hope this will lead to revitalization of the economies. >> so why is china promoting the internationalization of the yuan? >> one reason is to avoid exchange for firms doing business outside china.

china is also trying to put the brakes on the u.s. dominance of the international economic system. china's leaders are using the currency to strengthen the country's influence around the globe. to achieve that goal, china is expected to further ease regulations, such as expanding the ban of its currency. but if the yuan is to become more popular around the world, china also needs to ease domestic financial regulations, including those involving interest rates and transactions. in other words, the future of the yuan depends on how much china can ease its regulations. >> all right. there are only a few days left before the end of the year. department stores in japan are preparing bargain packages known as lucky bags for the new year sales period. lucky bags filled with items at

bargain prices are a popular new year purchase. it is preparing bags for foreign visitors for the first time because the number of foreign tourists is rising due to the weaker yen. some bags are themed on japan's hot springs and contain bathing goods and a traditional outfit for relaxing. other bags contain japanese table ware. >> translator: our lucky bags contain quality japanese goods. i hope foreign visitors will enjoy the items and have good memories of japan after they return home. >> the store's operator is preparing lucky bags of regional specialties for sale online. company officials hope these bags will help revitalize regional stores suffering. here are the latest market figures.

the japanese government has released more interview accounts of the fukushima plant. one is that tep co refused to use the term melt down at the time. the company operates the crippled nuclear plant. 772 interviews were conducted in 2011 and 2012 by a government committee that investigated the

disaster. the testimony came mainly from government officials. 127 interviews were made public on thursday, after receiving consent from the participants. one is from an employee at the tepco headquarters. he analyzed conditions inside reactor in early april 2011. the worker said he thought the upper half of the nuclear fuel rods in the number 1 reactor core must have completely melted down. cooling water was only covering the lower half of the rods. he added he heard tepco feared that a misunderstanding could occur as there was no exact definition of the term "meltdown." nuclear fuel melted at the number 1, 2 and 3 reactors. but tepco only admitted the possibility of meltdowns in may 2011. other testimonies highlight a failure to share key information.

it a member of the task force said he was told his team would use the cooling seystem to adjust te internal pressure of the reactor. he did not know the system was not functioning because power had been shut down during the approach of the tsunami. workers later realized that the cooling system was off and they tried to turn it on by opening a valve. they failed to get it to work and closed the valve again. the task force official says there was no record the valve was closed and does not remember receiving any notice about it from the shift head. russians prepare to ring in the new year with worries on their mind.

inflation on track to pass 11%. many are getting ready to endure what is considered more and more likely a recession. craig dale reports. >> reporter: performers dressed as angels paraded through the streets of moscow for the holidays. if russians ever needed some sort of divine intervention, now is the time. their economy is ending 2014 in tatters. president vladimir putin is keenly aware 2015 will be tough. he canceled the new year's holidays for his cabinet. "people have the right to relax," he said, "but the government can't afford to take time off." russians are trying to figure out what they can afford as the cost of living continues to climb. >> translator: we're worried our pensions won't be enough to buy all we need, says this woman. >> reporter: the economic problems simmered for much of the year but quickly came to a boil midway through. oil prices fell below $100 a barrel and kept falling. the commodity is a main export for russia and by far the

largest source of tax revenue. the ruble buckled under the pressure, taking a nose dive against the dollar to reach 80 rubles per dollar in mid december compared to 30 to 35 in the first part of the year. it's now trading in the low 50s, yanked back by the central bank. policy makers raised interest rates to 17% from around 10%, and they used billions of dollars to intervene on foreign exchange markets and to give loans to banks. that sent gold and foreign currency reserves below $400 billion for the first time in more than five years. the other big drag on the economy, western sanctions for russia's role in the crisis in ukraine. and even as some muscovites played in the snow, politicians delivered more bleak news, ending a year already considered the worst since 1998. the finance minister said inflation would surpass 11%. the silver lining perhaps is that president putin has put a freeze on vodka prices.

but many russians know the current pinch will become more pronounced. >> translator: we really want to have a third baby, but we can't afford to in this apartment, and we can't move because of our mortgage. we owe the bank more than this apartment is worth. >> reporter: those who have savings are hedging their bets and buying items that retain value. cars and electronics, for example. analysts say the worst isn't over yet. >> i think investors continue to pull money from the economy. that will continue to make vladimir putin's life very difficult. and for ordinary russians in particular. >> reporter: the beginning of the new year is a time of celebration in russia. a festive feeling is still in the air. but so is a feeling that 2015 will be hard, even for a country that's no stranger to hardship. craig dale, nhk world. a snowy system is moving

eastward into the central plains leading into a possible snowy weekend for those on the eastern side of the united states. >> we are monitoring a system that is pushing towards the east. we had a low pressure system rolling over the rocky mountains. let me show you the video coming out of california where a potent snow storm hit the mountains there dropping 33 centimeters of snow on christmas day. traffic was disrupted but many people welcome the fresh snow and their pets did, as well. skiers and winter sport enthusiasts flocked to the snow. the system is heading eastward and will bring a little more snowfall to the rockies as we progress throughout the next few days. we have a couple of lows to talk about. one is getting closer to chicago and another one located in the

u.s. desert southwest. these will start to tangle with each other and will produce more in terms of snowfall and then it will start picking up heat. it will transition into more of a wet system for the u.s. southeast. it will be a progressive system and move relatively quickly friday moving into the southern and central plains and then the western portions of the deep south by saturday and by sunday arriving into the carolinas. it will start picking up speed as we go through the weekend. snow in denver. high of negative 6. dry with high pressure from d.c. into atlanta with highs into the teens. i want to draw your attention to vancouver and seattle. they're dry for today. you will see highs in the single digits but you won't be dealing with the rain that you have been for the past few weeks. as we go to europe you are seeing a dip in the jet stream, the beltway up high in the atmosphere that helps divide the

cold air from the warm air to the south. we have a couple of low pressure systems that will bring rain. possibly snowfall into the scandinavian peninsula. i mentioned that jet stream just a second ago. that cold air divider slicing through europe will move further towards the south as we go into friday which means temperatures drop significantly. stockholm with a high of negative 5. 1 in berlin, 8 in paris. relatively dry conditions. rain towards rome and rain down towards athens as we go through friday. let's take a look at the forecast for south asia. we have this big tropical belt where low pressure areas are developing and these are not good news. each of these low pressure systems are located slightly east to the land mass that we

are talking about. sri lanka seeing one over to malaysia seeing one and the southern portions of the philippines seeing another one. all of these are picking up the moisture from the ocean and throwing them back on to land. you already so so much rain. that is causing flooding problems. that is causing landslides and more than 100,000 people had to be evacuated out of malaysia because of the rainfall. we are looking at up to 300 millimeters of rainfall in accumulation as we go through the weekend. definitely be wary of the weather situation because i don't see any type of drying period as we go through the next few days. hope you have a good day wherever you are. here is your extended outlook.

year end cleaning is a time honored ritual in japan. a group of people who were

evacuated helped spruce up a local buddhist temple. about 20 members got together on friday. they used bamboo leaves to clean a statue of a deity at the main gate. authorities had allowed residents to visit homes between december 24 and january 7. >> translator: i made the decoration hoping that families will soon be able to live together again. >> translator: it's been quite a long time since we were ordered to evacuate. i'm so touched that people are willing to help clean the temple. i'm grateful for that. i truly hope people can return home. that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo.

from all of us here at nhk world, thanks very much for joining us. until next time, good bye. qm?xp

prayers and tears as people remember the victim those of the indian ocean tsunami. nearly a quarter of a million people died 10 years ago today. the ivory coast former first lady heads to coach on trial for her role in the country's deadly postelection violence in 2010. pro-russian rebels prepared to exchange prisoners as the latest round of cease-fire talks gets pushed back. those are the top stories this hour. thanks for joining us. 10 years ago today, a 9.3 earthquake struck off of indonesia's western tip.