live from our studios here in tokyo, i'm james tengan. we start off with a quick look at some of the stories we're following. stronger sanctions. the u.n. security council is imposing tougher measures against north korea in response to its latest nuclear test. what are the stakes. members of japan's main ruling party are pushing a bill to

legalize casinos. and no where to go. reported cases of child abuse are on the rise in japan and the vast majority of children taken into protective care end up in institutions. the united states security council has adopted a resolution to impose fresh sanctions on north korea. it takes aim at the country's main sources of revenue and is the latest response to pyongyang's september nuclear test. >> today's resolution, as many of you know, because you've been waiting for it for a while, is the product of nearly 12 painstaking weeks of diplomacy, and it results in a further tightening of the strongest sanctions regime the security council has imposed on any country in more than a generation. >> the talks were led by the united states and china. members of the council unanimously approved the resolution. it slashes coal exports to less

than half the current amount. china has been the biggest importer. member countries wanted to close a loophole from the last resolution adopted in march. countries were allowed to import as long as the coal was for civilian use. the new sanctions also ban north korean exports of silver, copper, and nickel. >> we think that what has been agreed on is very important, and we hope that the membership, the total membership of the united nations will comply and help us in this work that is most important. >> but the political climate is casting doubt whether the international community can work as one. china agrees to the additional sanctions but denounced u.s. plans to deploy an anti-missile system in south korea. saying it was provoking pyongyang. u.s. president-elect donald trump has yet to clarify his

issue on diplomacy and security issues. and south korea's president is facing growing calls to step down. japan's main ruling party is pushing casinos and opposition lawmakers are divided. plan to put a bill to a vote in a lower house committee on friday. they want to promote construction of resort facilities that include casinos. >> translator: it's a very significant bowl in terms of promoting tourisms. details on how these types of resorts will be developed. we'll discuss measures to address various concerns. >> opponents say that casinos could lead to an increase in gambling addiction. some are calling for careful consideration of the legislation. the leader of the main opposition democratic party says the ruling block is trying to

railroad the bill. >> translator: it is totally unacceptable for them to talk about putting the bill to a vote without consulting us. >> but the opposition party are divided on the issue. some say resort democrat could lead to economic growth and others say the law could be beneficial to prevent gambling addiction in general. they failed to reach consensus on thursday. they say now the government oversees horse racing and other gambling but addiction remains a problem. >> translator: we want the government to create an organization that would oversee all kinds of gambling and carry out measures to prevent addiction independently from ministries and agencies. >> the families called on opposition lawmakers to not boycott deliberations and convey

their opinions. delegates from the world's biggest oil companies giving a boost to crude prices and tokyo stocks. our business team has the details. >> members agreed in september to curb output. they figured exactly how they'll distribute that burden among themselves wednesday. the first time since the global financial crisis struck in 2008 that opec has decided to limit production. >> with the cooperation and understanding of all member countries, we have been able to reach an agreement. >> the cap on overall output will be 32.5 million barrels a day. that's a reduction of 1.2 million barrels. the effect will happen in

january. iran will boost its output. tehran will regain some of the market share it lost. no opec countries were quick to respond. welcomed the agreement calling if a crucial step for the global oil industry. alexander novak say it will accept opec to tighten its own caps. moscow will reduce by 3,000 barrels but will do it in phases. opec will hold a meeting with nonmember countries next week. opec was established in 1960. its 14-member states include saudi arabia, iran and iraq. and played a key role in controlling the price and supply of crude oil. various factors influence the price of oil. global economic conditions and regional conflict.

two years ago the benchmark hovered around $100 per barrel and then it tumbled more than 50%. economic slow downs in europe and china had dampened the outlook for demand. the price dropped even more as shell oil production expanded in the u.s. in february it reached about $26 a barrel. that's a figure lower than 2008 during the global financial crisis. then in september opec took investors by surprise. its members agreed to limit output for the first time in eight years and an extraordinary meeting in nigeria. the price of crude rose to about $50 a barrel. many analysts weren't convinced that the group's members would actually agree to specific reduction targets. opec members have agreed to reduce our oil opec. we asked what's behind the deal, an expert on political economy in the middle east. he is the chief senior researcher at the institute of developing economies and

affiliate of the japan external trade ororganization. >> i think outcome for opec and its members. because they achieve the production. from saudi arabia they need a lot of oil because they are suffering from the financial difficulties that they need more and, also, saudi arabia plan to make up ipo of oil company aramco. and, also, for iran. iran needs a lot of oil. so those reasons, all of them, the outcome of the oopec meeting. crude oil prices may be affected something to boost the price.

maybe the crude oil price oil futures will be higher more than $500 per. maybe to the 50s. but 60s maybe a little bit because the higher oil prices induce united states share oil production. maybe will increase a little bit more, but it will take some time and crude oil price and crude oil price. five person, ten person. since 2014. a lot decreased.

oopec was dysfunctioned. this timee opec to control the oil price. some members of the opec want to make more production cut to boost oil price. such occasion maybe ooppepec wi try to make more production cut more and more. >> look at this graph crude prices. dropping to the $50 level following opec's announcement. this boosted senment in tokyo and sent the nikkei average soaring for the year. >> many investors were pleasantly surprised that the opec deal materialized and the weaker yen helped investors regain their appetite for risk. the closing levels for this thursday, december 1st. the nikkei surged more than 1%.

18,513. broader topix 1,483. that followed a strong gain for november. looking at currencies the dollar rallied against the yen. the pair touched a more than nine-month high in the 114 yen level as investors unloaded the safe haven japanese currency. the energy sector advanced by leaps and bounds. japan petroleum was more than 12% and inpex gained more than 10%. jx holdings added more than 7%. means the cost of fuel is rising and airline companies trade at lower. but japan airlines and ana holdings lost about 2.5%. now that the opec meeting has passed, the focus will be on t e u.s. november employment report due out on friday. many analysts are expecting stronger job growth than in

october. i'm giang nguyen. moving on to china, the latest purchasing index beat marketing expectations. came in at 51.7, its highest since july 2014. a reading about 50 indicates expansion. the strong data lifted sentiment among chinese investors. 3,273 the closing number. range of shares were higher with the energy sector leading the gains. boost benchmarks across the asia pacific region. main board up almost 1% snapping a three-day losing streak. small business owners and one central japanese city are embracing cutting edge technology to lift sales. testing a system of digital transactions that rely on the same technology used by virtual currency b bit coin.

the shop owners are taking part in the trial at the invitation at a local bank. they're offering discounts and services to shoppers who produce electronic coupons available free through a smartphone app. the system is based on block chain, a technology that acts as a public ledger of online transactions. stores can provide a coupon service without installing a large server or a specialized terminal. the trial will run until february. the bank, ultimately, hopes to invite stores in other districts to introduce the system. here's a look at some of the other business stories we're following. four out of japan's five major department stores say their november sales are down from last year. reported declines of more than 4%. hankyu hanshin and takashimaya

was a little better. customers bought fewer jackets and sweaters for winter and splulurged less on luxury items. japanese airline ana holding will invest in a firm to send travelers to space. $45,000 to help develop a passenger aircraft for space. they're hoping the first mission will blast aoff from december 202023. the cost of a trip for one person is expected to be around $120,000. and you can catch our report again online together with a full transcript. look for nhk world and business wrap. and that's a look at business news. i'll leave you with the markets.

down filled closes are one of the most reliable defenses against clothe weather but animal rights activists are raising alarm over the way some are sourced. an ethical and sustainable supply. a warning to our viewers, some may find the images disturbing. >> reporter: animal rights activists filmed this video in china. they're plucking the birds' down while they're still alive.

demand for down continues to grow, especially in emerging markets. people at companies that use down are turning their attention to how it is being procured. last year, manufacturers and firms in japan launched a collaboration to recycle down. 25 companies and organizations are currently taking part in the green down project. participating stores, first of all, encourage customers to bring in jackets, coats and other items using down. the items are then sent to a factory. each piece of clothing is taken apart and the down removed. using special technology, the down is cleaned and reused in another item. if it's taken care of properly, down is durable and canan b reused for many decades. a label is attached to each item to indicate that it's made from recycled down. four companies now sell these

products. >> translator: just like plastic bottles or aluminum cans down is a resource that shouldn't be just thrown away. >> reporter: but most people aren't aware that down can be recycled so stores has haven't collected many items. >> translator: we have tried a few initiatives to to give coupons to customers who bring in coats. but we're not moving forward the way we hoped. >> reporter: in yamaaguchi prefecture, they collect lout the region, not just at clothing stores. for instance, they're going to create pickup points at dry cleaners. and stores that sell bedding. there are now 47 locations in the prefecture where people can drop off used down items. the local government is also helping. it's arranged for down products

thrown out as waste to be collected and sent to the project's recycling center. >> translator: we need to present many ways for people to join the project and show them it's possible to recycle down. then the effort will gain momentum. >> reporter: people involved in the project are hoping that word of their product will spread helping reduce waste and improving the treatment of birds. in japan, when the decision is made to put children in government care it's the care that's lacking. the vast majority of those children end up in institutions and the reported number of child abuse cases is on the rise. nhk world has more.

>> reporter: these doctors have been brought frin a consult that has become all too common in japan. they're checking x-rays of children where child abuse is expected. >> translator: this is caused in a case of being hit or kicked in a part of the body. >> reporter: maybe the nail is indicating malnutrition. >> translator: i can see clear echdz that there was stress on the child's nutritious status. medically i say this is a child abuse case that needs protection. >> reporter: the decision will play a major factor in determining whether children get to stay with their parents or end up in a system that's dysfunctional. in one recent case, a 6-month-old baby was carried into the emergency room with convulsions. doctors found cracks in the baby's skull and ribs.

>> translator: the e entire bra is shown in a dark color in this image. this does not happen in a baby that cannot roll over on its own. inexplicable bleeding in the brain. this is a major sign of child abuse. >> reporter: the hospital reported the case to the child guidance center. the center agreed that the baby was likely abused and stepped in. after six weeks, the baby was ready to leave the hospital, but japan's system had no where that could provide proper care. so, that meant another ten months of bottles and diaper changes from hospital staff. a s scenario that was far from acceptable. >> traranslator: it's really stressful for children to stay in hospitals. it goes without saying that they'd be happier in an environment with a home-like atmosphere where they can live

like other children. have friends and opportunities to go out and play. >> reporter: in australia roughly 90% of children who can't live with their families live with foster parents or other care givers. in the uk and the u.s., it's around 70%. in japan, only about 15% meaning more than 30,000 children have been institutionalized. it's a number seen as so severe for rich countries that the u.n. has issued warnings to find a solution. fostering or adopting children is unpopular because of japan's culture that has relations. while the system is unable to handle its current load, reported cases of child abuse are on the rise. record high of more than 100,000 cases were reported in the 2015 fiscal year. the government is trying to change things.

it recently overhauled its 17-year old child welfare law. but its goal is just to find foster care for a thihird of children needing it by the year 2029. and details of how to do this are few. kurando tago, nhk world, tokyo. nhk newsline comes to you live from tokyo. let's now turn to weather with wildfires in the u.s. >> its large wildfirires are engulfing two famous tourist spots in eastern tennessee, including gatlinburg. yes, we did have some rainfafal but the amount was not enough so conditions are still quite severe. let's go to some video. devastating fires in the great smoky mountains have left seven people dead and damaging 100 homes so far this week. thousands of people fled gatlinburg due to powerful

wildfires that spread quickly to strong winds and extremely dry conditions. rainy weather did help the firefighters, but downed power lines and fallen trees stopped several smaller fires in the area. about 12,000 homes and businesses are left without power. the weather has been extremely dry and, in fact, 99% of tennessee is under severe to exceptional drought. much of the southeastern u.s. has been having dry weather. yesterday we had some rainfall, but the severe weathermaker is pushing away. it's dry lat at least into saturday. dry weather will continue. severe weathermaker has pushed away. the system caused at least 35 tornadoes on tuesday and wednesday in the southeastern united states. snowy weather is across soututheastern canada including southern quebec and news

brunswick. the combination could cause low visibility making for extremely dangerous driving coconditions. now, let's go to south asia. we're looking at a powerful system moving into parts of the continent. now, this system is a cycloloni storm at this moment. the system will likely weaken a bit and as a depresession the center will likely move over the coast. soso we'll see some heavy rainfl increasing winds as we go into the next couple of days. looks likike the peak of t the stormy weather will be tomorrow morning local time. watch out for bad weather. severe weather could cause some flooding, as well. chennai will see thunderstorms on thursday due to ample moisture coming in from the storm. and new delhi, you'll see hazy conditions and temperatures in the mid-20s. across japan, a powerful winter storm is expected to move over northern japan from tonight. it is causing a lot of severe weather, includingg very strong

winds and also blustery conditions plus very snonowy conditions. in fact, up to 30 centimeters of snsnow could fall i in the nort areas. wind gusts could be as much as 130 kilometers. sorrrry, going to be typhoon-strength wind gusts. so the combination could cause blowing snow and blizzard conditions. the visibility will be very low and waves will be up through six meters and lots of events happen across the north tonight to friday. across the continent, thanks to a large hhh pressure system it is going to be dry but morning hours quite chilly due to radiation cooling. now, temperatures during the daytime hours are as follows. 7 degrees in beijing. 8 degrees in seoul and down towards the south 21 with partly sunny skies in hong kong. here's the extended forecast.

we now take you to the ancient japanese city of na tra which has been showing its wild side. ♪ a ceremonial horn at a shinto shrine brought 100 deer out of the forest. the tradition of deer calling goes back more than a century. these days, it's a draw for tourists. >> translator: i've never seen so many deer together. this is great! >> translator: the deer are cute, but they're scary at times. they rushed at me when i had food. >> if you're heading to nara, you can catch the deer calling almost every day until the middle of this month.

a great place to go if you're craving for attention. make sure you have a rice cracker in hand. i'm james tengan, thank you for watching this edition of nhk o#ñ

>> hello, you are watching live from paris. a desperate mayday. the plane that crashed in colombia had run out of fuel and suffered total electrical failure according to a leaked tape of the flight's final moments. columbia approves a landmark peace deal after more than five decades of conflict and four years of negotiations. the revised