here in japan it's 7:00 p.m. on a wednesday. i am james tengan in tokyo. welcome to nhk "newsline." we start off with a quickck loo at the hour's top stories. wooing support. political candidates across japan have started their official campaigns for an upper house election next month. more provocations from pyongyang. south korea's military says north korea launched two

ballistic missiles early wednesday, but one appears to have failed. and coping with over abundance. high-tech solutions are taking hold in japan to keep edible food from winding up as trash. official campaigning is now under way for japan's upper house election on july 10th. political leaders have gone out across the country to call for voters' support. among the major issues are shinzo abe's economic policies. new national security laws and the idea of amending the constitution. >> translator: i thought i must launch my election campaign from kumamoto. i thought i will convey to the entire nation our commitment to rebuilding kumamoto after the earthquakes. the key issue of this electionn is economic policy. opposition party members cannot open their mouths without criticizing, all they say is

abenomics has failed. this fight is about whether to advance or retreat. are we going to vigorously push forward abenomics to see japan grow and each region prosper to create a country where everyone can feel the economy is picking up, or will we go back to four years ago? are we going to return to that dark and sluggish period? this is the decision you are making in this election. we'll bring the abe administration's reckless drive to an end and change the political landscape. if we allow the parties that want to change the constitution to get two-thirds of the seats, they're certain to push the changes through, especially to article 9. they want to allow japan to exercise the right to collect a self-defense without limits. we should not allow the japan-u.s. alliance to be forged in blood.

many young people are not seeing their salaries increase, and they're giving up on marriage, even paem in theeople in their 40s. it's a reality in japan. the government needs to develop government and a fairer distribution of welt. abe says the wealth will trickle down to the people but abenomics is the wrong direction for japan. >> translator: we have delivered results steadily over the past three years, aiming at reviving the economy and ending deflation. tech revenue has increased. it's important to distribute the outcome achieved by the coalition government to these people yet to benefit from abenomics. we cannot hand the administration to the democratic and japanese communityist parties. they are fielding unified candidates with no clear explanation of their

responsibilities after the election. >> translator: the four parties are brought together in the common cause of abolishing the security laws and restoring constitutionalism. to put it simply, we need to restore a proper government that adheres to the constitution. this should be the utmost priority, and we should put policy differences aside. we are questioning the abe administration, which goes against public opinion. >> translator: stingy is the key word. we're being stingy at the osaka prefecturily and governments. it's natural in osaka. if we can do small things like that across the country there will be no need to increase taxes.

on the issue of politics and money, we want to review the political funds control law which has loopholes. >> translator: this upper house election is about stopping reckless abe politics which don't follow the constitution and fail to consider people's lives and livelihoods through the pass constitution. let's aim for a country that won't go to war. >> translator: since the abe administration took power three years ago, only 1% of the population -- no, more like 0.1% -- have benefited. we have to change the way we collect taxes and how we allocate the funds so we can do more to help the underprivileged. >> translator: the constitution itself should express the character of japanese people s. it should reflect japanese

traditions and the japanese spirit. we should build a nation that is seen as trustworthy and amicable by the international community. >> translator: you can't just take abenomics and rev up its engine to create success. if we want to solve real problems, we have to turn the wheel and steer in the direction of real people and their households. >> translator: half of the 242 upper house seats are at stake every three years. they are divided between electoral districts and a proportional representation system. here is a look at the parties and political groups fielding candidates for electoral districts so far. liberal democratic party, democratic party, coy mato. japanese communist party. initiatives from osaka. social democratic party, party

for japanese kokoro, new renaissance party. genzei nip pon. happiness realization party. angry voice of the people. other groups. independents. now, here are the parties and political groups vying for proportional representation seats in order of entry. social democratic party, angry voice of the people, initiatives from osaka, komeito. japanese communist party, hapness realization party. liberal democratic party. new renaissance party. party for japanese kokoro, people's life party. democratic party. the official campaign runs for 18 days. prime minister abe says that his

ruling bloc aims to w win a majorityty of seats conontesteds time. that's 61 1 of the 121 seats up for grabs. >> nhk "newsline" will bring you extensive coverage in the leadup to the polls including results and analysis on election day. in other news, north korea launched two missiles in the span of a few hours wednesday morning, both are believed to have been intermediate range ballistic missiles known as musudans. japan's defense ministry officials say one reached an altitude of more than 1,000 kilometers. the launches took place in the country's east. officials say the first one appears to have broken up in the air and fell around the coast. they say the other flew 400 kilometers northeast before falling into the sea of japan. a missile expert says the north may have chosen a higher trajectory to reduce the horizontal distance. a former vice admiral of japan's

maritime self-defense force says leaders in pyongyang may have thought neighboring countries would react sharply if missiles flew over japan or other nations. ca nada says the launch may have improved the ability of the musudan and its launcher to some extent. >> translator: the launches may lead to increased capability of ballistic missiles that could reach japan and its surrounding waters. we are seriously concerned in view of our national security. >> south korean military officials also told nhk that they see some degree of success in the second launch. they say the capability of the musudan missile has been increasing through test launches. pyongyang is believed to have made four failed attempts to launch musudans in the past couple of months. >> translator: the north nuclear missile program are a serious provocation that threatens the

peace not only on the korean peninsula but also northeast asia and the world. leaders in pyongyang should realize e that reckless provocations only lead to complete isolation and ruin. >> a spokesperson for the chinese foreign ministry says the situation on the korean peninsula is sensitive to complicated. she says relevant countries should refrain from any acts that could raise tensions. u.s. state department spokesperson john kirby says his country intends to raise its concerns at the united nations to hold north korea accountable. a host of japanese firms held their shareholders meetings today. gene otani joins us from the business desk with the details. nissan president revealed his salalary for 2015 and addressed the sandal hit mitsubishi motors. ghosn was paid about $10

million. that's up more than $340,000 from the previous year. ghosn sought the understanding of shareholders by saying such pay levels are necessary to secure the best human resources. he said salaries for top executives in japan are still relatively low. some shareholders question why sne nissan is investing in mitsubishi motors. ghosn said cooperation between the firms in sales, research and development will benefit both firms. fiddling the fuel data is proving costly at mitsubishi motors. executives say they're looking at a net loss for fiscal 2016 of nearly $1.4 billion. it would be the first such plunge in eight years. officials have also calculated a so-called special loss that comes to a similar amount. the first must pay more than $1.4 billion mainly to ownerersf the nine affected models. nissan motor will also receive compensatition as twtwo of the models were produced for the

firm. one of the world's largest mobile phone carriers, softbank group, made a surprise change in management. the company's number two, president nikesh arora, has stepped down. he had been viewed as the likely successor to chairman and chief executive masa son. softbank group says arora quit after its annual shareholders meeting wednesday. he w will sererve as an advisorm july 1. >> i would likike to seek your support to transitioion to an advisor so i can keep supporting mr. son. >> arora was wooed to softbank in 2014 from google and became group president and receive operating officer last year.. softbank group firms include sprint andnd yahoo japan. the 58-year-olold chairmrman explained the move. > translator:r: i had hoped and over the b baton o on my 60

birthday, but i now feel that i want to continue the job for a little bit longer. >> and that decision has stirred mixed reaction. softbank group's shareholders attended the meeting held in tokyo. >> translator: i trust son. i don't think he is making any mistakes in his decision. >> translator: it's a big shock for me that the company's number two quit his post. >> the company also announced that it is selling its stake in finnish game developer supercell to chinese i.t. company tencent. softbank will receive about $7.3 bilillion in exchange for majority ownership of the developer of clash of clans. checking the markets. investors played it safe ahead of the looming british referendum on whether to leave the eu. tokyo share prices edged lower after their resent rally. for the details,i giangng nguye

reports. >> the nikkei closed lower as investors sold showers to boost profits after three straight sessions of gains. the nikkei ended down at t 16,0. the broader topix lost.7%. utilities amongng the hardest . tokyo gas tumbled and softbank rose 2.6% o on s surprise news its president stepping down. many welcome chairman masa son staying on the top post longer. the dollar briefly surged above 105 yen. the rally against the safe haven yen reflects a bit of confidence among investors that britain may vote to stay in the eu. britain heads to the polls on thursday. marketplace aree b bracing for volatilility in the currency markets and an exit vote could drive up the yen significantly and bear down on stock prices in

tokyo. movaliover in china the sha composite gaining by almost 1% to finish at 2905. some investors cheered that u.s. fed chair janet yellen suggested the fed will not hurry to raise its key interest rates. sydney ended slightly lower down by 5,270. gold miners lost ground as the price of the precious metal fell amid expectations britain would vote to stay in the eu. other markets in the asia-pacific region ended like this. seoul's kospi gaining by .5%. hong kong's hang seng index gaining by .6%. shareholders in electronics firm sharp will meet tomorrow. the chairman of taiwan's hon hai precision industry expressed confidence his takeover deal will put the japanese electronics maker back on track.

he spoke at hon hai head quarters in northern taiwan. the company agreed in april to invest $3.7 billion in the ailing sharp. go said sharp's advantage will benefit both firms and said all necessary procedures for the deal should be completed as early as by the end of june. he dismissed worries over sharp's financial statate sayin he'll swiftly improve business efficiency. he vowed to develop new product faster, shut down unprofitable overseas operations and put more weight on performance when rewarding employees. in a look at other business stories we're following today. gasoline prices at the pump in japan increased for 15 straight weeks on the back of higher crude oil pricices. as of monday the average retail price per liter of regular gas was 124 yen, about $1.20, up

0.4 yen frfrom the previous wee. officials say thursday's referendum in britain will likely further affect crude futures markets. they say reports the pro eu camp is gaining a lead is pushing prices higher. supermarket sales across japan marked a year on year fall in may. data from the chain stores association show sales at 9,000 supermarkets last month total $10.5 billion. officials say economic uncertainty is dampening conv consumer sentiment and that's slowed sales of clothing and commodities. 6 million tons of food is wasted each year in japan. companies have to get rid of products that are outdated. recently corporations are starting to take on the issue by coming up with high-tech ways to keep perfectly good food out of the trash can.

>> reporter: this japanese tofu maker is tackling a problem facing many food companies. over-production. >> translator: these products will be thrown out. >> reporter: executives are testing a new system aimed at cutting down on waste. they've teamed up with a weather consulting firm to create business forecasts based on weather data. >> translator: we send information like this every day so the company can predict demand for tofu. >> reporter: the data includes a special index which projects consumers' appetite for teofu. it analyzes temperature and past sales results. it also indicates whether demand is likely to rise or fall on the following day. thanks to the system, the company wasted 30% less tofu

last fiscal year comparered to year earlier. >> translator:r: there were limitationons to how much we cod do on our own. with this data, we hope to reduce waste to the absolute minimum. >> reporter: a new appliance is designed to make consumers more conscious about wasting food. this refrigerator helps to keep track of the freshness of food stored inside. >> translator: i put in beef. >> reporter: the user makes an audio recording while stocking the fridge. the appliance is equipped with a database on the expiration of over 1500 kinds of food. it uses this information to inform the user when products get old. a smartphone app makes it

possible to check the fridge's contents away from home. that cuts down on purchchases o things already on handnd. >> translator: we hope our technology helps consumers who want to avoid wasting food. >> reporter: a website provides another tool. >> translator: the price goes from 22,000 yen to 3,960. >> reporter: it offers discounts of up to 90% on food that's about to expire. >> translator: i know food waste is a big problem in japan. i thought ththat by using this service i might help solve the problem. >> reporter: new technologies and services are raising people's awareness about a problem borne of plenty. >> that's a look at business news. i'm going to leave you with the markets.

the mayor of rio de janeiro is promising tighter security after recent assaults on olympic athletes. he says the city will be safe for the games by start in august. last month thieves robbed members and a coach of spain's sailing team at gunpoint, and on sunday two men reportedly attacked an australian paralympic sailor before taking her bike. >> translator: i regret this. i think it's unacceptable that such a thing should happen, not just to her but to anyone.

we know the challenges facing rio security. i am sure that during the games it will be better. >> 85,000 police and soldiers are to patrol the streets during the games. but some observers are questioning rio's ability to ensure public safety as it grapples with a financial crisis. the brazilian government says it will inject about $850 million in emergency funds to pay for security and infrastructure. now for weather. inundating rain is plaguing southwestern japan. jonathan oh joins us with the forecast starting with the affected areas. jonathan. >> it looks like we're going to be dealing with rain for the rest of the week unfortunately. the culprit that is continuing to bring the rainfall over the western portion of japan will be in place at least until friday, possibly lasting even longer, because this is part of the rairai rainy season. notice the clouds streaming into

from the west moving toorwards e east. some areas have had close to a meter of rainfall. in one location, in the past 72 hours. 585.5 meters of rainfall fell in that location. this is the culprit, the stationary front lingering over the western portitions of japa. it will continue to remainn in place, meaeaning it will bring even more rainfall t throughout the day on thursday and even into friday. maybe as we go into the weekend we may s see a slight break fro that mostst of thehe tim we'll bee dealing with a lot more rainfall. some of these a areas may s stie looking at up to 120 andd mayay even 1 150 millimetersrs of rail asas we go through the rest of e weweek. this is the reason why residents will be dealing with something very difficult as we continue on for the next few days. now, according to this particular viewpoint, this gives us an idea of how much rainfall fell over the past week. for the islander kyushu, it's

close to the 500-millimeter mark. landslides are a concern, the ground is so saturated with moisture. that will continue to be a problem. and the problem lingers back into the other portions of china. it will beings like a belt around the area. that continues to be a an issue. as we go throughout the rest of the week, we're looking at some places seeing up to 150 millimeters of rainfall and dealing with more flooding problems. in tokyo. typ looking at the forecast for nonoh america,a, we are watchin for aa cold d front thahat was passing through the eastern side of the united states. it was responsible for creating some very strong thunderstorms. this is a video coming out of new jersey that gives you an idea of what the damage looks like as a possible tornado hit parts of the state tuesday causing structural damage and downining trees.

the streets were littered with leaves, branches and debris and thouousands of homes were left without power. you may notice right there that the roof was ripped off this particular building in the city of wildwood. fiererce winds also caused problems. and it looks like that, for this moment, this is the bright spot in the news.. ththe fact that no injuries wer reported at this time. just a lot of damage. that's going to take time to recover. we have another low coming through the central portions of the united states. this is a big, powerful low. so we are looking at up to a moderate risk for severe weather on wednesday with a bull's eye right over chicago and the great lakes through the ohio river valley and even into portions of north carolina, you're looking at a chance for severe weather. be on the lookout for that. rain and a high of 26 in chicago on wednesday. wrapping things up with a look at europe. we have a couple areas that are looking out for severe weather. the eastern side near the balkans and off of france we're looking at the possibility of severe weather into thursday morning.

be on the lookout: you'll need the umbrella handy for the rainfall and heavy downpours from time to time on wednesday. hope you have a good day wherever you are. here is your extended outlook. staff at a printing company have helped restore a japanese feudal era castle to its former glory. they used computer graphics s t

despigpict the capastle before series of earthquakes. it dates back to the early 17th century and has been the symbol for kumamoto for centuries. it suffered extensive damage in the quakes. the printing company referred to centuries old blueprints as well 40,000 photographs. this turret narrowly escaped collapsese. the company graphics show what it used to look like. the images reproduced the exact number of roof tiles as well as the interior of the cacastle. >> t translator: i w would be ry happy if the virtual touour encourages people to rebuild the castle and the regionon. >> the video is on dispspy at tokyo nationall museum through mid july. the viewing fee goes to the castle. and with that we conclude

this hour's nhk "newsline." be sure to watch "newsroom tokyo" at the top of the hour. for all of us here on the show, thanks for watching.

>> live from paris. >> you are live from paris. >> your rendezvous with the world right here on "france 24." >> this is "france 24." aroundw for 60 minutes the world. i am genie godula. these are the headlines. it is the last day of campaigning before britain votes tomorrow on staying in or out of the european union. formerent and mamayors of london went live ina televised debate. we will nearly later from our european editor. north koreas from