here in japan it's 7:00 p.m. on a wednesday, i'm james tengan in tokyo. welcome to "newsline." here are some of the stories we're following this hour. a split decision, japan's top court says one article regarding marriage in the century old civil code is unconstitutional. but that another is not. and auction prices in japan reveal economic trends across

asia. japan's supreme court has ruled that one of the century old civil code provisions regarding marriage is unconstitutional. it's the first time the top court has made such ruling. the decision will oblige the legislature to revise the article which prohibits women from remarrying for six months after divorce. the top court said that the article concerning remarriage violates the constitution. the provision aims to prevent disputes over paternity. but the justices said a waiting period of more than 100 days is excessive. >> translator: this decision reflects how women feel. we hope the diet will revise the law as soon as possible. >> meanwhile, the justices said another article requiring a married couple to use the same surname does not violate the

constitution. some argue being forced to change one's surname results in a loss of identity. they said common use of birth names in business and social situations after marriage alleviates such concerns. plaintiffs argued that both articles violated the constitution's guarantee of gender equality. conservatives have been saying that allowing couples to use different surnames could weaken family bonds and the six-month post-divorce waiting period is reasonable to establish paternity if the woman is pregnant. japan's governing parties outlined changes to a coming tax increase. join gene otani joins us. they've announced detail of the revision to the new tax, previously agreeing to have exempt certain items from the 2017 consumption tax hike. the outline says the tax rate on

all fresh and processed foods will stay at 8% but it will go up to 10% on alcoholic beverages and dining out. 8% rate will be kept for some newspaper subscriptions. the tax exemption will lower government revenue by more than $8 billion. the panel's outline says officials will look for sources of funds to make up for the reduction. the outline also says the corporate tax rate will be lowered from the current 32% to just under 30% for the next fiscal year starting in april. merger negotiations involving sharp are now entering a critical phase. this comes after several buyout offers. a taiwan-based electronics giant submitted several offers to rebuild sharp. sources say some of the proposals made last week by hunhi officials want to buy sharp's liquid crystal display

and home electronics technology to improve competitiveness. meanwhile, the innovation network corporation of japan is considering whether to invest in sharp's struggling lcd business. sharp is planning to spin offer the display business. the japanese government backed fund is in negotiations to take a majority of shares in the spinoff. tokyo stocks surgeon wednesday taking cues from a strong finish on wall street. all eyes are on the u.s. federal reserve's policy decision. for the details we go to our business reporter, mayu yoshida at the tokyo stock exchange. >> the sentiment is rising before the likely hike in u.s. key interest rates. they believe the rally means the markets are fully pricing in a rate hike in the u.s. tokyo joined the global rebound as a rise in oil spices convinced investors in asia to buy stocked today, on wednesday. the nikkei rose 2.6%, the

biggest one-day gain since september 9th. the broader topix rose 2.5%. investors bargain hunted japanese stocks after the nikkei slipped more than 650 points in two days through yesterday showing signs as oversold levels. japanese banks were the biggest gainers today, mega banks like misuho and mitsubishi ufj closed higher and chiba bank was higher as well. energy stocks also gained ground today with inpex up 2.8%, idemtitsu kosan up 3.14%. and square enix rose 4.6% after getting an upgrade by goldman sachs amid strong sales of video games for consoles. we saw broad buying on the historic fed day as market

players widely expect the fed to raise rates for the first time in nearly a decade. i'm mayu yoshida, reporting from the tokyo stock exchange. >> mayu, thanks. other markets in the asia-pacific region rose ahead of the outcome of the fed's meeting. traying in china remained on a cautious mode. the shanghai composite edged higher closing at 3,516. energy related stocks gained after the government temporarily stopped adjusting prices of gasoline and diesel. hong kong's hang seng index climbed 2%, finally snapping its nine days of losses, the longest losing streak since 1984. a sharp rebound in oil prices supported the rise. seoul's kospi extended gains. singapore advanced 0.9%. the s&p sx rebounded from a two-year low. here's a look at some of the other business stories we're

following. executives at toyota motor say next year the company and its subsidiaries expect to sell more than 10 million vehicles worldwide, almost the same level as this year's estimate. the world's top-selling automaker projects strong demand for its new prius hybrid model in japan. also expects sales to decline in emerging countries with slowing economies. the number of foreign visitors to japan climbed to another record. government officials say almost 18 million people came to the country in the first 11 months of 2015. that figure is 4.5 million more than last year's record. officialsay the weaker yen and relaxed visa requirements for chinese travelers are the main factors behind the rise. members of the world trade organization are holding a ministerial session in nairobi. one issue they're tackling is the doha talks which began in 2001. the trade minister wants to move beyond the comprehensive

approach that deadlocked the discussion. he says the parties should sit down together and work out issues in specific fields. a growing number of women in southeast asia are making waves in the business world. in the second installment of our two-part series. we sit down with a leader of a business empire in thailand. >> reporter: this is the ceo of one of thailand's large ef st rl developers. she succeeded her father. she has worked hard to stay ahead of the curve. >> customers' behavior is changing every day. the stores or the shopping mall cannot stay the same, therefore, it's our policy to renovate our shopping malls, actually every few years. >> reporter: this shopping center underwent a face lift two

years ago. chadatip had to persuade 200 well-known international and lopht brands with shops here to make some changes as well. included are creating sales floors unlike other stores and releasing products at the center before anywhere else in thailand. she required tenants to come up with products that would be sold exclusively at this mall. >> translator: there are clothes, cosmetics and lots of other things. this place is at the center of the fashion world. >> reporter: the shopping world business is booming in thailand. tourism and growing personal roles are attracting investors. chadatip believes originality is the key to beating the competition. >> the whole building has to have its own -- like a person who has a heart and a soul clearly defined, because nowadays every shopping mall

mostly look the same. our philosophy is to create a placthat inspires people and make them happy. >> reporter: chadatip says a childhood experience in tokyo helped shape her business philosophy. when she was about 5 years old, her mother took her to one of the city's most luxurious department stores. >> i bought something. it took a long time for the girl to wrap in a very tiny gift package. that looks really good, i then want to open it when i got back home. that's a very good example for me to set our service system in our shopping mall and department store to be something which is really impressive and very much into detail, just to show that we care. >> reporter: she's trying to re-create that kind of experience and develop a new landmark in southeast asia.

chadatip is building a complex in bangkok that will include high-end residences and stores. the project will involve the largest private investment in the country's history. it's scheduled to open in 2017. now chadatip is working with the managers of the department store she visited all those years ago. she's asked them to open a store in the new complex. >> translator: we want to establish a world-class store that we can be proud of. along with the best products from japan and the rest of the world. >> reporter: chadatip says the complex will be shops from thailand and neighboring countries as well. she believes it will become the foremost retail destination in southeast asia. >> we're surrounding and connected by land with so many emerging countries. that is, of course, they are

also the new destination of foreign investment as well. so because of what thailand has been and what we are today, i still believe that we have more advantage than other countryies to grow more and to become one of the leaders of this area. >> reporter: this innovative business leader is enthusiastic about the future of retail. and she hopes her iconic new project will offer shoppers an unforgettable experience. kyoka fujita, nhk world. that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets.

national security took center stage as candidates for the u.s. republican presidential nomination met for a debate. the event included nine leading contenders for the 2016 election. front-runner donald trump was asked about his proposal to prohibit muslims from entering the united states. >> we are not talking about isolation. we are talking about supreme court. we're not talking about religion. we're talking about security. our country is out of control. people are pouring across the southern border. i will build a wall. it will be a great wall. >> trump's proposal has sparked an outcry in the u.s. and elsewhere, but the latest poll by abc news and "washington post" indicates that 38% of registered republican and gop leaning independent voters

support trump. that's a new high. ted cruz follows with 15% support. other candidates took trump to task. former florida governor jeb bush called his idea unserious. >> first of all, we need to destroy isis in the caliphate. donald, you know, is great at the one-liners, but he's a chaos candidate, and he'd be a chaos president. >> no hate debate! no hate debate! no hate debate! >> demonstrators held a rally outside the debate venue. participants shouted anti-trump slogans and held up a large effigy of the candidate. >> he says he's not racists but his actions say otherwise. he says muslims should go back home or september out of the country for a while. but that's what america's about. >> several protesters said trump represents division and hatred. an international group

promoting press freedom says the number of journalists detained in the middle east has surged this year due to the rise of islamic state militants and other extremists. paris-based reporters without borders says 54 journalists are currently being held hostage around the world, 14 more than last year. 26 are being held in syria. 13 in yemen and 10 in iraq. the islamic state militant group is believed to be holding 18 journalists for ransom or propaganda purposes. 65 reporters, including kenji moto have been held since last year. reporterers without borders is urging journalists to stay on the alert. it points to the rapid spread of kidnapping as a business in some conflict regions. tokyo police are reporting progress in their investigation into an explosion at a shrine honoring japan's war dead.

they say a south korean man arrested in connection with the blast has again suggested he planted some kind of device after denying similar comments he made initially. the explosion last month occurred in a rest room at the entrance to the yasukuni shrine. investigators found steel pipes at the site. they contained traces of substances used in gun powder. police arrested 27-year-old jo chunghung last week. japanese and u.s. officials gather every year for a drill at an american naval base at tokyo. this year's simulation focuses on preventing a nuclear leak. nhk world has the details. >> reporter: about 160 people took part in the drill at the naval base. they took part in a scenario involving the "uss ronald

reagan." the nuclear powered aircraft carrier was deployed to the base earlier this year. participants pretended a small amount of radioactive water had leaked from the vessel and practiced their response. after the ship's crew got a warning about the leak, they sent a research vessel to see if radioactive water had leaked into the sea. >> information sharing is the other key component to today's exercise. though want to make sure information goes smoothly from the national to the local level. here, the mayor and senior officials are meeting with u.s. personnel after receiving the first news of the simulated nuclear leak. they're holding a mock briefing to practice how each side would respond. city officials went over the steps for making sure citizens receive accurate information. the ronald reagan replaced

another nuclear powered aircraft carrier that would turn to the u.s. for maintenance. its arrival in octoberriggered protests. residents said not enough was being done to ensure their safety. some are still concerned. they came to see how the safety drill played out. >> translator: ordinary citizens should also be involved in this drill so that we can be prepared for disaster too. >> reporter: the japanese government overhauled its guidelines on nuclear accidents after the 2011 disaster in fukushima. but the guidelines don't cover accidents involving nuclear powered vessels. >> translator: the central government needs to fully understand how the drill is carried out. experts are currently looking over the guidelines, so i'd like

to pay close attention to those discussions. >> reporter: everyone involved says close communication between u.s. and japanese officials and authorities in yokosuka is one key to keeping everyone safe. nhk world. auctioning fish is a big business here in japan with the most flavorful making their way to top-tier sushi restaurants but one particular auction -- at one particular auction some buyers are buying big bucks to keep them alive. nhk world reports. >> reporter: overseas bloggers get out of their car to take in the preview of auction lots.

some carp are worth $12,000. their colorful pattern have earn them the nickname swimming jewels. they account for 95% of this annual sale. he says he's seeing a shift in nationalities. >> translator: i used to have a lot of european buyers. >> reporter: this graph shows export sales of aquarium fish. over the past ten years, the biggest increase has come from hong kong, the doorway to china. that market has started to shrink, though. this man from hong kong exports to china. he buys carp at this auction every year. but he says wealthy chinese aren't spending like they used to.

>> now in china it goes down, not so good. >> reporter: on the other hand, this man is eager to buy. he's a broker from indonesia. >> indonesia market, i think now growing. >> reporter: the country has been enjoying economic growth. as well as other parts of southeast asia. indonesia is a huge market with the fourth largest population in the world. many well-to-do young people are moving from jakarta to the suburbs where they have room to build big houses with gardens. >> the design, given the design offered to everybody who want to buy this house like this and then have a koy pond.

>> reporter: he was keeping an eye on the large carp going up for auction but he wasn't the only one. >> maybe this is one. maybe. >> reporter: the price goes up and up but he got what he came for, more than 1 million yen bid, more than $8,000. he went on to pay an even higher price for another carp. >> i think it's good. >> reporter: the leader from hong kong was shopping in the $2,500 range. his strategy was to resell to younger customers. he bought 35 carp, more than any

other buyer. >> and the china economy -- >> reporter: altogether, the auction has both volume and money, following the economies in asia. nhk world. >> traditionally known to be a symbol of affluence in asia, maria, thanks. today's high hovered around 18 degrees celsius or 64 fahrenheit. fight warm for this time of year for tokyo. the people in the philippines are dealing with the aftermath of a powerful typhoon. we are joined with the details. >> melor is a troublesome system, making landfall on money in the philippines. clouds are lingering over the northern areas of the country, causing strong winds and heavy rainfall.

we have footage coming out of the country to share the situation on tuesday. melor caused storm surges, causing more than 8,000 people to evacuate their homes. in the province of sorsogon began clearing debris from their homes. schools and some businesses were closed on tuesday. dozens of domestic flights and ferry services were canceled and at least four people have been reportedly killed due to the storm system. we have some good news. melor has weakened to a severe tropical storm. the gusts were about 210 kilometers per hour yesterday but down to 126 kilometers. however, it's still a very strong system and it's still located near the coast of luzon. still bringing stormy conditions for luzon. it's starting to depart the philippines tonight. and then move its way towards the southwest, heading for the island of borneo or the

peninsula for the next several days. they will see waves up to 5 meters and gusts u to 120 kilometers, strong enough to topple trees and cause structural damage. heavy rainfall of 250 millimeters are still likely, though the rainfall could be up to 800 millimeters. coastal flooding is highly likely as well as inland flooding, too. to the west, there is another low pressure system, another tropical depression which could become a tropical storm and then become a severe tropical storm in effect during the next couple days. heavy rain is on the way for much of the philippines this week. we're looking at a high pressure system over the constant and low pressure system to the east of japan and this system will likely move away. what's going to happen is heavy sea effect snow across the seas ofapan's side of the nation from hokkaido down towards western japan, we're expecting

up to 40 sent mecentimetesencen could fall, making for dangerous driving conditions. we could also see the first snowfall on thursday in this region. temperatures will drop significantly during the next couple days. sparro sapporo, down to negative 4 on saturday. europe, fight messy picture across the northern areas. a couple of low pressure systems will be moving into the british iscsles pen the sca s and the s peninsula. severe weather is affecting new south wales, australia. we had reports of gusts of over

200 kilometers per hour. so cyclone-strength strong winds battered the area as well as heavy rainfall, too. conditions will finally ease on thursday but temperatures will remain fight high for the next several days in australia. all right. here's your extended forecast.

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is "france 24," time for 60 minutes live. headlines.the the u.s. and russia agree it orge ahead with talks to stop syria's brutal civil war but there's no clear answer as to syrian president will stay as the russians want or go. violence breaks the cease-fire in yemen one day after it came into effect. the government and rebel groups say each other is to blame but