welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm miki yamamoto in ise-shima. we continue our special coverage on the g7 summit. leaders are here to discuss a range of global issues such as terrorism, the refugee crisis, maritime security and conditions in north korea and ukraine. they started with the topic

which japanese prime minister shinzo abe says is the most important, the global economy. they discussed ways to maintain sustainable growth, and abe spoke about his concerns. he said commodity prices for things like food and raw materials have dropped by more than half since 2014. he said the last time there was a similar drop was during the 2008 financial crisis. abe also showed data suggesting that investments in emerging economies decreased last year for the first time since the crisis. he said the world economy is at a turning point and there is a risk of another economic crisis if countries fail to take appropriate measures. the prime minister has been advocating the importance of fiscal stimulus to boost demand. but some member countries prioritize fiscal discipline and are being cautious about boosting government spending. as the chair of the meeting abe will try to find common ground so the g7 can present a unified

stance. the group will issue a joint statement on friday, the finally day of the summit. earlier, the leaders got the two-day program under way with a visit to a centuries old shrine. prime minister abe welcomed his guests to ise shrine, dedicated to the sun goddess and the deity of agriculture and industry. the site attracts people from all over japan. >> the summ-- journalists from over the world are in ise-shima to follow the action. we've asked them to identify the

issues they're following. >> reporter: there's room for 6,000 people in the media center. reporters have been arriving over the past few days to get set up. this section includes broadcast and print media. looking around, we can see journalists have come from many different places. i have talked to some of them to find out what they're focusing on. >> i am really interested in how leaders discuss the topic of how to move the world economy forward on how they think about the issue of interest rates as japan has kept its interest rates really low in the last years. so has the european central bank. but there's more and more the notion especially coming from germany that it's time to raise interest rates. so i am sure there will be a lot of controversy about that. >> reporter: the media crews are not only from g7 countries but also from nations attending the outreach nations.

>> it's of much significance to sri lanka merely because your prime minister has extended his good will and invited our president for the outreach session. so that tells me the great impact in the sri lankans wanting to see what would transpire from such a meeting. >> the topic of discussion is very wide. environmental issues. empowerment, security. eradication of poverty are also issues. i am focusing on what the rich countries are going to offer the poor nations in solving common recommends of mankind like environmental issues and others. >> reporter: many are focusing on economic issues. much has been made about g7 countries working to boost the global economy. interviewing foreign media from

developing countries, they say they hope rich nations will assist developing ones. nhk world, ise-shima. >> that's all for now from the g7 media center in ise-shima. we'll be back with more later. we'll hand over the program to james tengan in tokyo. >> thanks for the reports. "newsline" will keep you up to speed on the latest developments out of ise-shima, so stay with us. g7 leaders will be in ise-shima until friday. once the summit wraps up, u.s. president barack obama will head to hiroshima for a historic visit. he will be the first sitting american president to visit the city where his country dropped the atomic bomb 71 years ago. at least three atomic bomb survivors will accompany obama when he lays flowers at a cenotaph dedicated to the victims. >> translator: i want to tell the president the goal is for a nuclear free world. if i get a chance, i want to say

we're supporting him and let's work together toward the future. >> meanwhile, the head of u.s. veterans group told nhk a former prisoner of war will not join the trip. the group had chosen a 94-year-old veteran who was held by the now defunct imperial japanese army. an official at the white house told nhk they were merely considering inviting a former p.o.w. but decided not to. nuclear disarmaments and nuclear proliferation have been central to obama's policy. he will deliver a message on the issue from hiroshima. we get some background to the president's visit. >> reporter: soon after he took office, president obama made it clear that he would strive f foa world wiwithout nuclear weapons >> as the only nuclearar power hahave used a nuclear weapon, t united states has a moral

responsibility to act. so today i state clearly and with conviction, america's commmement tseekek the peace and security o o a world without nunuclr weweaps. >> reporr: it wasn't alws s thcasese. itit w thehe u.s. government th decided drop atomic bombs on hiroshima and nasasaki f the first time in human history in 1945. th attacks left both cities in ashes. itit's estimated that more than 210,000 people died by the end of the year andhe lives of ununtlesototherseree changed forer. th-presint truman saihe bombin were nessary to end the war. >> we have used it i ordero shortethe agony of wa in order to save the veves o thousands dd thousds o young americans. >> rororte aftererhe war a nuclear arms race began between the two major powers at the timeththe u.s. and the former sovietunion. they condued test after test.

in hirosha, people s startedo organizenn annl memorial f its victims. the city gradually became a symbol for the anti-nuclear movement. survivors began actively campaigning for world peace and for abolishing nuclear arms inside and out of japan. the cold war arms race is over, but still today there are about 15,000 nuclear warheads around the world. the difference is they're increasingly seen as a source of risk rather than deterrence. countries like north korea are developing nuclear arms and there is danger that weapons and materials could fall into the hands of terrorists so nuclear security hasas been one of obams top priorities.. the u.s. has hosted international summits on the issue. >> the urgency of the threat and the catasastrophic consequencesf even a single act of nuclear terrorism demand an effort that is at once bold and pragmatic. >> repeporter: and in 2010 the obama administration began

sending representatives to hiroshima's memorial ceremony. secretary of state john n kerry visited the memorial p park a a museum lasast month. >> it is a gut-wrenchching display. it tugs at all of your sensibilities as a human being. >> reporter: now the president himself is going. >> we should do everything we can to try to promote peace and dialogue around the world. that we should continue to strive for a world without nucleaear weapons. >> repeporter: obabama will sps r a sho time in hiroshima, an t therere h hop hisemarks andd h vis wll help the worlrlmove f ftherwayy from this a cloro nucleafree fure. jan ho, nhk world. >> nhkworld's jathanh is i roshima. you've snt the lt coupl days ithe city. can you ll us about the preparations and what people saying. >> reporter: hello from

hiroshima. the big story here is the security that has been ramping up as the city is preparing for president obama's arrival. i wanted to point out all the police presence has really stepped up over the past really 24 hours. usually residents around here do not get to see this much patrol around peace memorial park, but that's definitely what's taking place right now. earlier in the day there were so many students walking through this park. the reason why is this is the high season for japanese students to come to hiroshima to learn about the history of what took place here back in 1945. and they told me that the most compelling part of their visit was hearing the stories of those who survived the a atomic bombis back in n 1945. i ske with some of them during the past couple of days, and they are really excited to hear that president obama is coming but they are anticipating what he has to say coming up friday afternoon. nhk world spent time with one of

the survivors who retold her harrowing story but also tried to send a message of peace. >> reporter: 78-year-old keiko gura has been waiting for this visit for a long time. >> translator: i am so happy. >> reporter: she was 8 years old when the bomb was dropped. the impact of the blast knocked her out. she lay unconscious for a while bubut luckily escaped serious injues. nearer house, ough, she witnessea sceneheould neveforget >> tre was a long le of wounde people, and skin was peeling off and showing internal organs. >> reporter: she dedicated half of her life to describing those horrors to people from around the world. she says the bomb attack not only left scars but also

long-time psychologicical wound for many survivors. >> a couple of people died after drinking water from my hand. that became my trauma. i saw nightmares so many years. >> reporter: she believes that once people listen to a survivor's story they will understand how inhumane nuclear weapons are. >> i if we have another nuclear weapon, you and me will suffer the same way. you will hear. and that's great because already you started your peace activities. [ applause ] >> i think it's very important that we all hear that story, around the world hear that story, because we don't want ththis to ever happen again. >> it was humbling, as an american, but it's also the

flame of peace we hope that you can put it out. >> reporter: ogura hopes people from different countries can come together to push for a nuclear-free world and she hopes president obama's visit could be a significant step forward. >> every time i come here and some kind of switch is on because we have to do something still now, or the world has a nuclear weapon. i want to president obama to lead the word, the word of peace and about a total ban of nuclear weapons. >> reporter: she says she is not asking for an apology, but she hopes that the president will have a chance to meet survivors and listen to their stories. >> seeing each other, that is important, and we feel that he came here, he will come here not just as a president but as a

human being, as a person. this is important. and then reconciliation will be done. >> reporter: he andnd other survivors are hoping obama can join them to send a strong message so that what they experienced 71 years ago will never h happen again. nhk world, hiroshima. >> reporter: back at peace memorial park in hiroshima. you're looking at the central portion of the park. in the middle of that there is a flame of peace that is burning. and that flame is expected to continue to burn as long as nuclear weapons are in existence around the world. and the survivors, as you just heard in that story and as i spent time with them, they're hoping that in their lifetime that flame is extinguished so that therere are no nuclear weapons around the world. and they're hoping that president obama's time here on

friday will give them momentum for that particular movement. i just have to say that these people are in their 70s, 80s and 90s. yet their passion for life is very evevident, and a desire fo their mission to get rid of all these nuclear weapons is very evident in our conversations. >> peace campaigners in the u.s. and japan are hoping obama's visit will help shine a stronger light on their work. a brother of an atomic bomb victim and grandson of the late u.s. president, president truman, are joining forces to talk about how hiroshima suffered after the bombing. he told students in a school in los angeles about his sister. she was exposed to radiation from the bomb and later developed leukemia. >> translator: if we have kindness in our hearts instead of hate, a peaceful spirit will grow and create for us a

wowonderful world.d. >> the story of folding 1,000 paper cranes in her hospital bed has become famous and people visit a statue of her in hiroshima's peace memorial park. >> it should be taught to everyonene becausese it's sad t she died but it really impacted a lot of people. >> my grandfather was president harry s. truman, 33rd president of the united states, who ordered the atomic bombings of hiroshima and nagasaki. >> he also said the american people need to understand what happened in hiroshima and nagasaki. the school children then tried to fold paper cranes just like sadako once did. >> as the g7 summit wraps up we'll bring you a special edition of nhk "newsline," live coverage of president obama's historic visit to hiroshima on friday. a major japanese retailer

has made its first top management change in more than two decades. gene otani has the details and all the other main business headlines. japanese retail giant seven & i holdings has a fresh management team under the new president replacing the former chairman and ceo as the head of the company. many considered suzuki a pioneer of the convenience store business. shareholders approved isaka as the new president on thursday. they gave the green light to a new list of boardrd members, th first time in 2 24 years the company has changed itsts top executive. suzukiki announced his resignann in april after the board rejected his proposasal too repe isaka who at ththe time was president of the companany's subsidiary, seveven-eleven n ja. suzuki spoke at thursday's shareholder meeting and said he'll continue on with the company as an adviser. new data from the bank of japan shows companies are paying

more for services from other businesses. boj officials say the service producer price index was up 0.2% last month from a year earlier. the april data shows prices have risen continuously for two years ten months. hoy telll room rateses surged 9 as tourists pushed up demand. internet advertising and other related services were also higher. only advertisements rose 6.4% and internet fees were up 6.4%. the boj officials say the increases are smaller compared to last year in some sectors and momentum is not so strong. they plan to monitor the impact from the current labor shortage. tokyo shared prices pared earlier gains as a stronger yen dampened investor appetite for stocks. let's go to phoebe. >> trading was off to a positive start on high oil prices and a rally on wall street but as

stronger yen and continuing concerns over the chaez economy and a potential rate hike in the u.s. have erased gains. let's see how tokyo stocks closed. nikkei closed at 16,772. and the broader topix finished flat. the energy sector outperforming on rising oil prices. jx holdings climbed 1.3%. however, telecome's company fell 3.7%. softbank owns equity shares in alibaba which announced it's being investigated by u.s. sec over its accounting practices. turning to currencies. traders sold the dollar to lock in profits. the dollar-yen pair f fell belo the 110 yen mark during trading hours. investors are looking for clues about a rate hike on friday. and of course they'll follow the

g7 summit closely to see what leaders have to say about the global economy. >> thank you very much for that. many other markets in the asia-pacific region ending higher. sentiment improved. hong kong's hang seng gained by 1.4%. sydney up by 0.3%. in china, the shanghai composite gained 0.3% to finish at 2822 for the closing number. trading volume remained thin as many investors were cautious about the country's economy. singapore's index gained by .24% after the latest data showed that industrial output for april grew a the fastest pace in nearly two years. japanese government officials want retailers to tackle the growing problem of data theft from credit cards. they plan to require stores nationwide to install i.c. chip readers. many stores in japan use

magnetetic strip reading device but they are less secure than the i.c. chip readers. the industry ministry is planning to revise legislation to make it mandatory for stores to install the chip-reading devices as early as 2018. officials hope to boost credit card security by 2020 when tokyo hosts the olympic and paralympic games. as tourism too japan takes off shops in asian countries are becoming more common including everything from making sushi to enjoying hot springs. this store in the southern chinese see of guan joe specializes in sushi. not only does it sell the rolls, it holds regular work shops on how to make them. visitors took part in an event to make a sushi roll five meters long. japanese cuisine has become more popular for the chinese. the middle class are increasingly traveling to japan.

and over in singapore large japanese-style public bath house will open its doors on friday. the media got a sneak peak of the facilitate which offers several tubs and offers visitors a chance to wear a japanese bath robe free of charge. it hopes it will give local people the feel of visiting a hot springs in japan. that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets.

nhk "newsline" comes to you live from tokyo where it's partly fair with a temperature of 71 degrees fahrenheit. sayaka mori joins us with the forecast starting with tokyo. >> it will be rainy tomorrow, but for the next several hours we'll see dry weather. we're looking at sunny weather persisting for the next couple hours in the tokyo area, but again, a low pressure system is approaching, so we'll see rainy weather starting tonight continuing into tomorrow. there is a frontal sysystem fro th west into northern japan but it's not bringing heavy rainfall, b but the low pressur system which is bringing ample moisture to shikoku will head to the east at a slow pace. across western japan things will improve into friday, so hiroshima where president obama will be visiting, temperatures will be quite high and it's going to be drdry. partrtly sunny skies w with a h

of 29 degrees. across southeast asia there is a tropical depression t that has just formed in the area b betwe the philippines as well as the indo-china peninsula. the system is bringnging h heav rainfall to vietnam as welell a the philippines. this system will likely make its way towards the north aiming for guan don provinince. the areas will see increasing rainll a and winds intnto tomorw mornining. the tropical depression will not intensify to a tropical system or tropical storm. that's at least good nenews. across northth america, may is severe weather s season. in fact, we see about 280 tornadoes a month, and also hail and also strong winds affect the country during this time of year. now, on tuesday a tornado was reported in oklahoma, and hail stones hit denver. i want to show you some video coming out of these places. fierce winds damaged buildings

in bristow, oklahoma, after tornado warnings were posted in the area on tuesday evening. the same system caused tornadoes in the great plains. two people were critically injured in kansas. a hail storm hit denver on the same day. drivers were forced to drive carefully through flooded streets caused by a lot of hail stones and rainfall. it has been a wild weather over the past several days and on wednesday about ten tornadoes were reported in kansas, oklahoma as well as minnesota. and hail the size of up to 10 centimeters in diameter was reported across the united states. the risk of severe weather will continue to grip the similar area as we go into thursday, so areas like the southern plains up into the great lakes region, there is a potential for severe thunderstorms, gusty winds and even more tornadoes. in fact, the worst weather will likely be found across oklahoma, kansas, as well as nebraska. so watch out for severe weather.

behind it very dry a and windyo conditions are idealal for fire to spread rapidly across new mexico. across the eastern half of the united states temperatures are abnormally warm for this time of year, about 30 degrees across the east. u.s. capital sees a high of 30. new york city, 29. temperatures will stay quite warm into the next several days. wednesday the mercury hit 31.1 degrees in boston as well as new york, that's about ten degrees higher than normal. staying quite warm as we go into the weekend at least. that's it for me now. up next is your three-day forecast.

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>> welcome. you are watching live from paris. here the headlines. protests and strikes across brands. the country's gas tanks and railroads are being targeted to try to force the government to roll back a bill that would reform labor laws. the g7 gets underway in japan. on the agenda, supporting the global economy, the refugee crisis, and beijing?