♪ hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara. we begin in the united states where president donald trump and the first lady have tested positive for covid-19 just one month before americans head to the polls. the white house released a doctor's report saying both trump and his wife are well and

will be treated in their official residence. trump underwent tests for the virus after one of his top advisers reportedly fell ill during a campaign stop on wednesday. hope hicks traveled with trump to cleveland earlier this week for his debate against democratic candidate joe biden. the coronavirus has been a central issue for the campaign as the united states has become the world's biggest hot spot. more than 200,000 people there have died. trump has been criticized for down playing the impact of the disease. he said in february it's going to disappear one day like a miracle more recently he's been reluctant to call for people to wear masks despite repeated requests from experts. following his diagnosis trump tweeted he and melania trump have already begun the recovery process saying we will get through this together. the first lady also took to social media to relay the news

telling followers that she and her husband are feeling good. to find out more, we spoke to professor kubo fume ak ka from the university off tokyo. he says the situation is still developing but expects trump to continue governing. >> he's in quarantine but he can still talk to assistants, secretaries. so in that sense, unless his situation gets serious, he can still carry out his official duties. >> kubo says it's not immediately clear whether this will influence how trump handles the pandemic. as for the campaign, he doesn't think it will affect diehard trump supporters but may influence those on the fence. >> he will not be able to

campaign like in florida, ohio, swing states. he is obviously an underdog at this moment in his campaign. he needs to catch up with mr. biden. so i think this will be a serious blow to him. >> trump's condition has already forced him to cancel plans to attend a friday rally in florida. there's no word yet on how it will impmpact the finanal two debatet debates. trump iss not t the first world leaderer to be infected with t virus. british prime minister b boris johnson who camame down with covid-19 in march wished a speeeedy recovery to trump via twitter. johnson eventually needed intensive care and spent several weeks recovering before returning to work. another prominent case is brazil's president gentleman

here bolsonaro. he notably called the disease a little flu. a group of leading scientists says japan's government may have trampled on a core commitment to independent academic study. the science council of japan is asking for an explanation of why prime ministerer suga yoshihide refusesed to add somome of its nominees as new members. the council met on friday to discuss what it calls a pressing issue. half of the council's members are chosen everyry three yeaear. the council makes recommendations and the prime minister makes the final appointment. this t time, however, six of th 105 recommended candidates were rejected. the council says this is the first time any nominee has been rejected since the current system began in 2004. council president and nobel l laureate k kajita takaaki says this is a serious problem. that's because the council plays a key role in making policy proposals free of government

interference. >> translator: i believe the council's independent from the government to some extent and addresses issuess based on economic resesearch. we cannot give u up on that. >> opposition parties met friday to hear from three of the rejected academics. the three say the new administration is distorting the future of academic inquiry. the chief cabinet secretary had little to say about the matter. >> translator: there's a limit to what we can say about personnel appointments. >> kato says the prime minister ths jurisdiction over e council and his appointments are within the law. he says he'll explain as best he can to gain public understanding.

now to afghanistan where a senior official is urging the taliban to commit to an immediatee cease-fire. the militant group has been taking part in peace talks, but continues to carry out attacks. the two sides began negotiating in qatar weeks ago in the hopes of ending decades of conflict. it comes after the u.s. struck its o own deal with thealib tan earlier this year to draw down its military presence in the country. the head of the afghan government delegation, abdullah abdullah told local media that fighting has escalated since the talks started. he called on the group to stop the violence. but the talibanan say a cease-fe won't be on the table until the two sides discuss whether to govern the country according to islamic law. a japanese construction company has signed a multibillion dollar contract with iraq to build new

facilities at an oil refinery in the southern city of basra. it is supported by the largest reconstruction assistance in japan since the 2002 war with iraq, the project is expected to be funded mostly by yen loans from japan. it's aimed at increasing the country's production of gasoline and diesel fuel. >> translator: we want to train over a thousand iraqi people and provide a transfer of technology at the same time. >> translator: i expect the project will create many jobs. it is ecofriendly and will help develop iraq's e economy. >> iraq is one of the world's leading producers of o oil, butt now relies heavily on imports of

petroleum products due to asian facilities and the rise of the islamic state militants. in north korea leader kim jong-un has reportedly visited another part of the country devastated by extreme weather. atest media said kim praised soldiers helping to rebuild in the eastern province. more than 1,000 houses were damaged by flooding in august. it is the latest visit by kim to communities recovering from heavy ras and a trio of typhoons. the paper quoted kim as saying that 2020 has been a year of unprecedented hardships. he was accompanied by his sister, kim yo jong who is widely seen as an increasingly powerful figure in the regime. it was her first public appearance since late july. leaders in the european union have agreed to impose sanctions on senior government

officials in belarus. the country is still dealing with disputed election results and accusations that it has violated the rights of its citizens. the sanctions are expected to target about 40 officials who are accused of falsifying election results and cracking down on anti-government protesters. >> we would like to tell the people of belarus they have the right to determine what's their own future. >> protests in belarus have continued unabated since president alexander lukashenko claimed victory in the august election. the government has stepped up pressure on opposition leaders and citizens. the european union is taking legal action against the united kingdom over the brexit withdrawal agreement. >> this draft bill is by its very nature a breach of the obligation of good faith laid

down in the withdrawal agreement. moreover, if adopted as is, it will be in full contradiction to the protocol of ireland, northern ireland. >> the uk left the eu in january. the withdrawal agreement ensures eu rules apply to trade between northern ireland andnd the republic of ireland. the north is part of the uk, but the republic is a member of the eu. the uk bill would allow the government to set its own rules if free trade talks fail to reach an agreement. negotiators held their latest round of talks this week over trade and other matters in the post brexit world. the eu says the uk legislation violates intnternational law. it demanded that the uk government retract contentious sections of the bill by this past wednesday, but london refused. the parliament's lower house passed the bill on tuesday. it's now up for debate in the house of lords.

european commission president ursula vonder line says a letter of formal notice is being sent to the uk government. if there's no satisfactory response within a month, the commission may refer the matter to the eu's top court. the japanese government has decided to distribute coronavirus vaccines for free and to pay compensation in case recipients develop side effects. a health ministry panel of experts approved a plan saying people who get the shop and develop side effects will be eligible for financial annual other relief benefits. support would be at the same level as for those who develop health problems due to regular infectious disease vaccinations such as tuberculosis. if drug firms need to pay

compensation, the government will cover the cost afterward. the plan also says municipalities will be in charge of vaccinations and they should urge residents to get the shot. everyone will be required to make efforts to get vaccinated. the government has been in negotiation with western pharmaceutical companies to secure enough doses for all residents of japan by the first half of next year. the tokyo med politan government confirmed 196 new cases of the virus in the japanese capital on friday. the total number of confirmed cases in tokyo is over 26,000. the new month is bringing in relaxed border controls for japan originally put in place to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. now mid to long-term visa holders from all countries will gradually be allowed to enter. >> after months of waiting, medical and educational

professionals and students, as well as business people from abroad, can finally land in japan. but airports are looking different these days. four restrooms at narita airport near tokyo were renovated into inspection rooms for the expected increase in arrivals. >> translator:r: i'm grateful t be abl teo come now. i want to work in japan. >> reporter: foreigners can enter only if their employers or schools ensure they spend two weeks in quarantine upon arriva one company has started to be a sponsor's alternatative. since visitors can't use public transit, a condominium operator in tokyo offers chauffeured cars as a way to travel from the airport. each visitor is given a private room, equipped with home appliances. they can work without coming into contact with anyone during the quarantine. a staffer interviews them online every day in their language of choice about their health h conditioions.

>> so far you don't have any fever for the last 14 4 days. >> the operator monitors the location information on the visitors' smartphones. the service costs $2,000 for eachch visitoror. a relatively higigh price, perhrhaps, but one that compani are willing to pay. >> t translator: ourur foreign employees have to deal with isolation measures while navigating the japanese language. we selected this company because of the peace of mind it provides. >> reporter: others are struggling finding places for employees and students to quarantine. this japanese language school stilill has 180 students missin from its classrooms. school officials he beaven looking at options at student dorms and business hotels but they say they can't afford the expense. >> translator: we are very happy that entry restrictions have been eased.

but it's difficult to take the next step in the current situation. we really don't knknow what to . >> reporter: this vietnamese student borrowed over $4,000 to study in japan b but hasn't bee abable to afford the two-week quarantine. >> reporter: an expert says the government should provide assistanance considering it a long-t-term investment in the country's future. >> translator: the government has had the policy of acaccepti foreign students as human resources neededed for societyt. i want the governmnment to suppt them based on that preremi. >> reporter: with the approaching summer olympics, the government is planning to further ease restrictions as the country reopens.

but before foreign tourists can be welcomed back to japan, challenges remain for students and business travelers anxious to return. people in tokyo saw a return of unseasonably warm weather and perfect blue skies. to find out the weekend weather, let's turn to our meteorologist sayaka mori. >> last night many people in japan enjoyed a moon viewing because yesterday was august 15th on the lunar calendar. that's the day when we celebrate the day by watching the moon. the sky kept clear in tokyo as we go into friday. it's going to be cloudier as we go into saturday, but warm weather will continue. rain is expected for the north, though. we are looking at very dangerous conditions. in fact, we have a storm system moving over the country, so that will cause thunderstorms. sapp pour rah might see rain almost every day as we go into next week.

tokyo will remain calm, 26, but on the cloudier side. compared to what we saw on friday, unusually warm on monday. 28, five degrees higher than normal this time of year. warmer conditions continue through early next week. the western pacific has been abnormally quiet this year. we've had only 13 named storms and zero storms, tropical storms have made landfall in the main islands of japan by october 2nd. that's the first time in 11 years. temperatures in tokyo, 26 on saturday and snow will once again hit in ulan bat tar, one degree for the high. luzon has been experiencing dryer conditions. thunderstorms are possible on yourur satururday in manila. let's go to europe. we have been looking at this powerful and huge storm.

they've named the storm alex. it's brought strong winds to france. gusts of over 180 kilometers per hour. so hurricane-force winds are blowing across western europe. alex is explosively developing. it will continue to cause veryl powerful winds and heavy rainfall and also snow is expected for the alps. we might see up to 80 centimeters of snow in the higher elevations, up to 300 millimeters of rain could fall in switzerland and portions of france. dangerous weather into the weekend in western europe. temperatures will drop to the mid teens in london as well as paris. sunny weather in madrid, but rome will see thunderstorms on yourur saturday. now, it's going to be another warm day across many p places o south america. in factct, on thursday we saw record high temperatures in parts of southern brazil as well aspa raguay. that's it for me. stay safe.

♪ ♪ that's all for this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo.

thanks for watching and do stay with us for more. ♪ this is "newsline biz." i'm gene otani. trading resumed on the tokyo stock exchange on friday after it was h halted by a technical glitch for all of thursday. the session ended without any disruptions. trading kicked offff at the usu

time at 9:00 a.m. bringing some relief to market participants. tse officials said thursday the glititch was tririggered by y a hardware failure in n the syste switching to a backup device also failed making it impossible for market information to be distributed. the tse replaced the equipment that caused the failure and confirmed that there was no problem with the trading system. the outage had a wide ranging impact. local exchanges use the same system as tokyo to execute trades. they also reopened on friday after a hiatus the previous day. the nikkei average finished .7% lower, compared to wednesday's close. the index tumbled after u.s. president t donald trumpmp twee he and the first lady tested positive for covid-19. some investors were in a wait-and-see mood as they were

still worried about the system's stability. looking at individual stocks and firms related to thursday's technical glitch lost ground. japan's group which operates the tse shed nearly 2%. fujitsu which developed the trading system tumbled by 2.75%. the financial services agency instructed the japan exchange group and the tse to report what measures they'll take to prevent a recurrence. officials at panasonic say they're going to close a factory in southwestern japan that makes video cameras, intensifying competition and weakening demand are behind the decision. the planned manufacturers equipment for personal use customers include tv stations and video productions companies. they say operations will be transferred to a factory in osaka. about 300 employees will keep their jobs and be relocated to the other plant. the move excludes temporary staff members.

honda motors says it's withdrawing from formula one. the carmaker will stop providing power units at the end of the 2021 season as the japanese company pivots to a focus on green energy. president and ceo takehiro says the firm will use its expertise acquired from f-1 to develop advanced energy technologies. these include fuel cell and battery electric vehicles. honda became the first japanese carmaker to participate in formula 1 in 1964. vehicles with its engine won the world's top motor race numerous times from the late 1980s to early 1990s. the carmaker temporarily pulled out from the event in 2008 amid the global financial crisis. it later returned to the circuit and has won five times in the 2019 and 2020 seasons.

auto makers in china are working hard to stay at the front of the global race for industry reform and innovation. their efforts are on display at the beijing motor show that's gone ahead this week with antivirus measures in place. nhk world's iga akita reports. > reporter: about 800 models are on display. the f focus is on electric vehicles known as ev. their development is a national strategygy in chihina with ev s in the country representing nearly half its global market. but china's ev industry is facing some challenges. overproduction is a problem, but beijing is facing debt with reduced subsidies. that's causing financial

troubles for some manufacturers. there's also big computation. the united states firm tesla is now selling made-in-china models, taking top spot in the new energy market. china's domestic carmakers are trying various strategies to compete. across the industry the buzzword is c.a.s.e., an acronym for connected, ought tautonomous, s and electric. a carmaker has developedd a system that enables a vehicle to find a space and park. >> translator: it's important to develop and offer products and services the customers demand. it's the only way to survive. >> reporter: one of china's

largest automakers, guanjo group, is a partner in a startup autonomous venture. >> translator: we manufacture electric vehicles, but what's more important to us at present is smart functionality. that's where the industry is headed. the startup is called will you ride, it offers mobile taxi services, a ride hailing service using self-driving cars. >> translator: i used to be a bit worried about the safety aspect, but that's no longer a concern for meme. >> reporter: nearly 100,000 people have used the service since its launch in november last year. the robo taxi fleet has traveled

almost 3 million kilometers. an experiment is also under way into completely unattended driving o o p public roads.s. remote control via 5g technology is the emergrgency backup.p. instead of the person who currently sits in the driver's seat of the robo taxi. >> translator: if completely automatic driving becomes a reality, you'll probably be able to use the car's glass windows as screens, for example. there's potential for a wide variety of added value with wonderful business opportunities. >> reporter: the engines may be silent, but the vehicles of the future are roaring to life as competetition heats u up in chi and beyond. iga taketo, nhk world.

from the "newsline biz" team in tokyo, i'm gene otani. thanks very much for joining us. 8

8 >> welcome to global 3 3000. this week wewe visit the mountains of c colombia, home o the speckled bear. but for how much lononger? their numbers are dwindling. we report on the permafrost in siberia, or what's left of it. climate change is all too visible here.. but we begin in n thailandnd, e the pandemic has left many sex workers without income. the entire industry is struggling to survive. the coronavirus is like one