hello. glad to have you with us on nhk "newsline." i'm yamamoto miki in tokyo. share prices in new york fell monday to lowest levels in weeks. the benchmark dow jones industrial average tumbled 2.3%, or 650 points from last week's close. ending the day at 27,685.

it was the biggest single day drop since september 3rd. the index fell more than 950 points at one point. worries about the economy rose after the daily tally of new intexass in the u.s. climbed over the weekend to about 83,000. the tech-heavy nasdaq fell at well. people in the markets said investors sold on fears that the surge in new cases would derail efforts to get the economy moving again. investors are turning cautious as lawmakers in congress remain far from a deal on additional stimulus measures. staying in the u.s., the republican-controlled senate is set to confirm amy coney barrett's appointment to the country's top court. the 48-year-old will bed third supreme court justice toews chosen by president donald trump. she will succeed ruth bager ginsburg who passed away last month. her lifetime appointment samcems

a 6-3 majority on the bench. divisive issues such as abortion, gun control and health care. trump, trailing in polls, made barrett's nomination part of his pitch to voters as he campaigned for a second term. the democrats are firmly opposed to holding the confirmation before election day. they argue the winner of the november 3rd vote should pick the next supreme court justice. and for more on the race for the white house we go to our new york studio where nhk world's report sir closely watching developments for us. looks like the two candidates are rallying support in another key battleground state. >> reporter: that's right, miki, u.s. president donald trump barnstormed territory with just over a week before the election. he headed back to pennsylvania,

a state that's seen coronavirus cases spike. but the president isn't shying away from talking about the pandemic. [ cheers and applause ] trump won the state four years ago, and it's crucial to his chances of winning a second term. so he has met with supporters there again and again, always with a warning about his rival joe biden. >> he wants to shut down the whole country. and we're rounding the turn. all they want to talk about is covid. on november 4th you won't be hearing so much about it. covid, covid, covid! [ applause [ applause ] >> reporter: biden, too, returned to pennsylvania, reminding trump that americans are stl dill dieing of the viru and urged the president to have a little bit of shame. >> the bottom line is, donald

trump is the worst possible president, the worst possible person to try to lead us through this pandemic. i don't think he gets that, either doesn't have any idea what to do or he just doesn't care. >> reporter: more than 60 million americans have already cast their ballots. the u.s. elections project suggests voters are on pace to break records with the highest turnout rate in more than a century. all this enthusiasm has some concerned about the balloting and what might come next. i spoke earlier with professor richard pilldis of the new york university school of law who explained what would happen if the election is contested. >> so the first phase of challenges are with the election officials as they make decisions about whether ballots of valid or not valid. the section stage would be taking those issues to the court, which could involve

federal courts including the supreme court, and then the final stage of challenges would be with coress, when congress receives the votes fm the electoral college in early january. and that's the ultimate forum for t resolution of a contested presidential election. >> reporter: and how long can these disputes go on for? >> well, the president's term ends by virtue of the constitution january 20th, no the maer wh ermatter what else . the electoral college votes on december 18th and presumably we woulcertainly like any disputes to be resolved before the electoral college votes. that's six weeksfter the election. if the election is not close we'll have a clear answer within a day or two of election night. so these scenarios that we worry about depend on the election being very, very close, which is

an unusual experience. >> professor, what are some consequences if there is significant delays to get complete results? >> well, the worry is that we are in a very toxic moment in the political culture in the united states. both sides are already prepared to believe the lection is being rigged, if their candidate loses. so if the process gets drawn out too long, i think that will open up opportunities for conspiracy storiefor claims tt the election is being rigged. you know, that would be dangerous to be honest. we are not in a peaceful, calm moment in e nited states at the moment, and given the role social media, that they now play in spreading rumors, conspiracy stories, misinformation, it's easy to anticipate that there would be a lot of fuel being thrown on the

fire of any kinds of controversies that might arise, if the election is close and the process of resolving it goes on for a long period of time. >> reporter: what would happen if either side refuses to commit to a peaceful transfer of power? >> well, of course, we've never had any issue in the united states about the peaceful transition of power, and the losing side accepting the results of the election. so i wod certainly expect that not to happen this year, though there are more anxieties about if there were resistance, the political leadership of the country would have to rally and unify behind the peaceful transition of power. i expect that that's what would happen in the united states. again, we've never had any even remote risk that there would not be a peaceul transition of power. >> reporter: thank you very much, professor, for your time and's insights.

>> glad to be with you, thanks. >> reporter: professor richard pilldis. now back to our studio in tokyo. >> thank you very much. from new york. the commander of u.s. forces in japan has said the capabilities of japan's self-defense forces and the u.s. military can be used to defend the sink cenkaku islands in theh china sea. lieutenant general kevin schneider was speaking to reporters on monday aboard a maritime self-defense force destroyer. that kicked off on the sme day saying that the u.s. military and japan's sdf are developing new and better ways to operate in exercises like this one and added such exercise clearly

demonstrates the growing interoperability of the u.s./japan alliance. >> our arrival today was simply to demonstrate the ability to transport a few people, but this same capability can and could be used to deliver combat troops to defend the senkakus or respond to other crises and contingencies. >> officials from japan's defense ministry view the remarks as a warning to china, which has been stepping up its activities in waters near the senkaku islands. japan controls the island. china and taiwan claim them. the japanese government maintains they are a part of their territory. in july support in regard to the island saying his country is 100% absolutely steadfast in its commitment to help the japanese government with the situation. the chinese government says they will impose sanctions on u.s.ndividuals involved in arm

sales to taiwan. last week the administration of president donald trump approved arm sales including air-to-ground mills totally $1.8 billion. in a news confront on monday a chinese foreign minister person says chi will impose sanctions on lockheed martin, boeing defense and raytheon technologies as well as individuals. >> translator: once again we urge the united states to respect the one china principle, and stop arms sales to taiwan or have any military ties with it. >> he did not say when or what exact measures will be taken. france is facing a mounting backlash from those around the world following president macron's marks over the prophet muhammad. a male history teacher was

killed in an attack by an 18-year-old man of chechen origin. macron said on monday tat francwill dend freedom of expression and will not give up caricatures. on monday turkey's president erdogan called for a halt to the hit campaign against muslims led by his french counterpart. >> translator: i call on my nation here and now. do not pay attention to french-labeled goods. do not buy them. >> boycotts of french goods have been spreading. at supermarket in jordan, staff removed french products from the shelves. calls for a boycott of french goods are also growing online among muslims. protests broke out outside the french embassy in the iraqi capital of baghdad. protesters set fire to french national flags and against

macron saying they need the ambassador to begin in protests. let's check out the world weather. dealing with back-to-back storms wreaking halve is over there. what's the latest? >> looking at over the south china sea, continuing to move away from the philippines, however, another storm system could affect the country this weekend. temperatures are warmer than normal for this time over of the year over the pacific making for a busy storm season. in fact, five storms just in october. each storm took a similar path that caused major flooding and deadly landslides. this is no exception. it's likely to hit a seconds of vietnam by wednesday as a very strong typhoon. it has already seen about 2.5 meters of rainfall this month, up to 250 millimeters of additional rainfall is expected

in the same locations for the next couple of days. so more flooding and landslides of the biggest concerns. in addition, high winds will impact going into wednesday. winds will be dmoin manila and few persisting on tuesday. and this hurricane over the caribbean sea. going into the peninsula and is likely to affect the central gulf by thursday. this could be the fifth tropical storm that hit louisiana this hurricane season's more rain contributing to widespread flooding. meanwhile, it's been extremely dry in the southwest. wildfire popping up in southern california and here what it looked like. spreading fires related to this area monday. the blaze grew to over 200

hechtars causing closures of roads. some electrical lines sparked the fires. and a hypersystem pushes in but no rainfall is expected in many parts of the southwestern u.s. unfortunately, there is fire conditions that persist in the area going into thursday. high of 25 degrees in l.a. with sunny skies. that's it for now. back to you.

and that's nhk "newsline" for this hour. thanks for staying with us. welcome to "newsline in dept depth". today we look at transport and mobility of the golden opportunities in an uncertain world. the coronavirus pandemic stopped many of us in our tracks changing where how and even if we move around in our daily lives. that raises many questions about the future of personal mobility. both airlines and others hit

hard by the economic impact. business leaders in these industries have had to find creative ways to stay afloat. start with the airline industry. the pandemic crippled airlines across the globe, forced to lay off and slash air routes. asian carriers are no exception. faced with the task of making a profit without flying planes, operators are moving into unchartered territory. >> reporter: the malaysian group is asia's low-cost carrier grew from rock-bottom fares and a quick expansion 67 routes serving 83 million passenger as year at its peak. but the coronavirus pandemic forced the airline to ground its international flights. although some domestic routes resumed, its revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was down a staggering 96% from a year

ago. looking for a life line, the company turned to a surprising source for income. in-flight meals. the airline once sold 24 million in the skies annually. now they are hoping to replicate that success at restaurants. their most popular dish is nashi malan an asian spicy coconut rice. >> a lot of people miss flying and surprisingly one of the reasons people choose to fly is because of the food. >> reporter: at this restaurant about 30% of its business is from food deliveries. this in-flight meal plan orders them three time as week to capture some of the magic of air travel. >> it's not really a desire to fly, but i feel the desire to eat in-flight food definitely.

it can make me happy. >> reporter: the restaurant business is seeing brisk sales of more than 700 dishes a day. the company plans to franchise and progressively increase the number of restaurants selling in-flight meals in malaysia and overseas. last month thai restaurants opened their own. a dining experience. business is booming with more than 1,000 customers served a day. the restaurant's selling point is business-class level meals. as cabin attendants serve customers with a smile. guests sit in seats that have been removed from the planes by maintenance staff and pilots sometimes stop by to appear in photos. the company is trying to give stock in all divisions the opportunity to work as much as possible.

>> translator: my last flight was in march and i have not flown once since then. so i have no interest in flying. this restaurant is on the ground but i feel very happy because i can offer the same services as i did in the sky. >> translator: we hope these activities will help thai airways make it through. i am rooting for them. >> reporter: the airlines make much less from the business of food than the business of flying. but they are pulling out all the stops to weather the economic turbulence as they chart a course to recovery. >> translator: we're experiencing a new normal. so we have to change our approach. it is critical for the company to meet new demand and raise revenue within thailand. >> and update on air asia. the company announced it will shut down operations in japan in december and pull out of the market. despite the airline operators

created measures, many remain under pressure throughout asia. with no end in sight to the epidemic and the longer the health crisis drags on, the harder it will be to keep their businesses going. time to change lanes now and see what's happening in the auto industry. carmakers are slowly recovering after taking a beating in the initial phase of the pandemic. but many questions remain about their plans to push into electric vehicles and green energy technology. to find out what lies ahead, we visited one of the world's biggest moat othtor shows whichd off in beijing late last month. >> reporter: about 800 models are on display. the focus is on electric vehicles known as ev. their development is a national strategy in china. with ev sales in the country

representing nearly half its global market. but china's ev industry is facing some challenges. over-production is a problem. but facing debt with reduced subsidies. that, in turn, is causing financial troubles for in manufacturers. there's also some big competition. the united states firm tesla is now selling made in china models taking top spots in the new energy market. china's domestic carmakers are trying to compete. across the industry this ac acronym for case -- developed a system that enables a vehicle to

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 oilmakers is a partner in a start-up autonomous venture. >> translator: we manufacturer electric vehicles, but what's more important for us as present is smart functionality. that's where the industry is headed. >> reporter: the start-up is called weride. it offers robotaxis, using self-driving cars.

>> translator: i used to be a bit worried about the safety aspects, but that's no longer a concern for me. >> reporter: nearly 100,000 people have used the service since its launch in november last year. the robotaxi fleet has chartered almost 3 million kilometers and the experiment is also under way to complete driving on public roads. remote control is the emergency backup. insead of the person who currently sits in the driver's seat of the robotaxi. >> translator: it's completely automatic driving becoming a reality. you will probably be able to use the car's glass window as screens, for example. there's potential for a wide variety of added value with wonderful business opportunities. >> reporter: the engine is small

but the vehicles of the future are rolling into life as competition heats up in china and beyond. reporting for nhk world. we're now joined by christopher rixer and automotive analyst at securities japan. thank you for joining us. >> you're welcome. >> now, evs are positioned to become the mainstream car transportation, but they are still significantly more expensive than the gasoline vehicles. what challenges do you see ahead for the ev company is and the hurdle auto mikors make in this space? >> first, there's two types of electric vehicles. the battery ev, or bev with a nother variation is the plug-in hybrid with a smaller battery and an engine. bevs are still too expensive. for example, one battery ev

tesla the mod's 3 costs $50,000. while a lot of progress has been made in lowering battery costs, they're still high and that's a problem if you mandate them. and we worry about the price of raw materials like cobalt and nickel if you go mass markets. the auto industry is a con tich kniss consumer of materials and needs to be possible. this might be a possible solution. charging structure is also limited, and the government will probably help to -- need to provide the infrastructure. >> okay. decreasing vehicles carbon footprint is also a challenge for the car industry. critics say, though, evs don't necessarily decrease negative environment impact. any insight on this? >> well, if you're burning coal to make electricity, the benefit of evs limited. ultimately, however, this isn't the auto industry's problem, but

the electric power industry's. >> hmm. >> and governments need to reduce emissions from electricity generation as well as cars. so it's a tough problem. there's also a problem with recycling batteries. something the ev industry hasn't fully cracked yet. >> and besides selling cars, any other ways the auto industry can stay profitable? >> many services have an element of transportation attached to them. through delivery, garbage removal, health care, patrolling. street sweeping and postal package delivery, and the development of vehicle autonomy can take the human out of the equation and avoid the spread of current or future viruss. thus, it's time for automakers to think of themselves as service providers too. toyota developed an autonomous van which can be anything from a restaurant to an office on

wheels. >> oh! and what other changes will automakers be forced to make due to the decreased revenue from the pandemic in their shift to mobilitiy of the future? >> the investment in electrification, autonomy and connectivity is huge. automakers are increasingly collaborating to spread the costs. for example, honda has worked with gm on fuel cells and vehicle economy and recently tightened the relationship to add vehicle development, including evs. toyota has stakes in suzuki, subaru and plamadah for the sam reason. also fueling the merger of companies in europe. we're sure we'll see more deals like this going forward. >> we'll keep an eye on this, too. thank you. >> you're welcome. governments are another player to watch in this space. just last month the state of california, for example, is planning to ban all new gasoline

cars by 2035. plenty of changes are on the horizon for transport and mobility. descrip leaders will need to ensure they strike the right balance between the needs of business users and the environment. thank y

>> a race against the coronavirus that europe is losing. the who once governments to speed up their response. ♪ hello. you are watching al jazeera live from london. also coming up on the program, french products in the firing line as a war of words between turkey and friends escalate. reports of violations of the u.s. brokered cease-fire. a lasting peace continues to remain out of reach. find out what nasa has discovered