♪ hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo. we begin with an announcement from japan's imperial household agency. princess mako will marry her boyfriend komuro kei on october 26th. it comes after years of delay and intense public scrutiny.

the couple will not hold a traditional wedding ceremony reserved for imperial family members. the 29-year-old princess mako is the eldest daughter ofrown prince and princess akishino. her boyfriend komuro returned to japan after living in new york to study law. once he finishes a self-isolation period as a precaution for the coronavirus virus the couple will see each other for the first time in lee years. their planned engagement was first announced in 2017, but it was postponed after media reported on a financial dispute between komuro's mother and her former fiance. princess mako declined to receive a lump sum of about $1.4 million, which she's eligible for upon her marriage. agency officials say behind that decision was the significant stress she had faced. they say it was caused by what appeared to be defamatory information about their families

as well as public criticism over receiving the payment. officials also say the princess has been diagnosed with complex ptsd because of the criticism. the couple will start their new life together in new york as komuro works at a law firm there. they plan to hold a news conference after they get married. the new leader for japan's main ruling liberal democratic party has officially announced his party executives. kishida fumio is virtually assured of becoming prime minister next week. >> translator: we must continue to tackle the new coronavirus with determination. we must steadily push forward with economic measures. we must fulfill our political responsibilities and produce results. >> kishida will go into the upcoming lower house election with these new party officials. amari akira will be in the key

post of secretary general. he was a central figure who rallied support for kishida in this week's leader race. fukuda tatsuo was named general council chairperson, the party's highest decisionmaing position. leads the group of lawmakers calling for reform. takaichi san any will be policy research chairperson drawing up the party's promises for the national election. takaichi came in third in the leadership race. in the runoff many of her supporters are believed to given their votes to kishida. and endo toshiaki was once the minister in charge of the tokyo olympic and paralympic games. kishida is expected to be named prime minister in the diet on monday as the ldp-led coalition controls both chambers. his lineup will likely be announced at the same time.

the tokyo area is experiencing heavy rain and strong winds as a large typhoon sweeps up japan's pacific coast. japan's meteorological agency says mindulle is moving northeast at 35 kilometers per hour. parts of the greater tokyo area, chiba and ibaraki prefectures are in the storm zone. the highest emergency alert is in place for the coast. a river has overflowed its banks. some residential areas have been hit by power outages. forecasters are warning of strong winds in the coastal areas in the country's northeast and ask people to stay on alert about possible mudslides, rough sea conditions and high waves. an evacuation order has been issued for parts of chiba. elsewhere, people have been urged to keep up to date on developments and be ready to move to safety if necessary.

evacuation centers have been set up in several locations in chiba. >> translator: i feel safe here, but i'm worried about what state my house will be in after the typhoon has passed. >> train services in parts of chiba and ibaraki prefectures have been suspended and nearly 200 flights were canceled at tokyo's haneda airport on friday. our meteorologist sayaka mori is here with more on typhoon mindulle. >> typhoon mindulle is starting to pull away from the main island of japan but winds are still howling outsidehe studios because it's a large typhoon. it didn't make landfall but it approached the main iand of japan and these islands. we saw about 260 millimeters of rainfall in places like katsuda and oshima.

these islands felt gusts of nearly 150 kilometers per hour. mindulle used to be a violent typhoon and the third strongest typhoon of the year. it's gradually weakening and speeding up. it will likely continue to move away from japan but it will maintain as a big storm. that means strong winds will continue to affect the eastern half of japan so strong winds will likely continue into saturday, possibly into sunday. still, we could be looking at heavy rainfall along the east coast of the kanto and coshow shu region. maybe up to 160 millimeters. that's not a lot however the land is still saturated. saturday is a different story. we'll see plenty of sunshine and very high temperatures because high pressure system originated from china will cover most part of japan and 30 degrees in tokyo and osaka. that's it for me.

stay safe. nhk has learned japan's immigration services agency will help speed up coronavirus vaccinations among foreign nationals. many are unable to make appointments due to the language barrier or have yet to receive a government voucher that allows people to get vaccinated. the foreign residents support center in tokyo will help people make appointments for inoculations at hospitals in the capital osaka and nagoya starting in mid-october. the center offers assistance in 18 languages. agency staff will arrange for vouchers to be delivered to those not registered as residents. officials say the aim is to ensure foreign residents have access to vaccines and help municipal governments, which are responsible for administering the voucher program. the sumo wrestler considered the strongest of all time says he has no doubts about his decision to retire.

hakuho is the most successful yokozuna grand champion with 45 tournament titles. he's taking on a new role and name. >> translator: i will assume the name of magaki and will teach the younger generation. i would like to thank everyone for their support during these 20 years. >> in a press conference on friday magaki says he feels relieved to have finished his two decade career. the 36-year-old added that repeated injuries to his right knee led to his retirement this week. hakuho made his debut in 2001. he won his first title in 2007 and became the second mongolian

born wrestler to attain sumo's highest rank. but many criticized his more recent fighting style and his behavior outside the ring, calling it unbecoming of yokozuna. he had to take the unusual step of signing a pledge to become an sumo coach. he promised he would uphold the traditional culture, rules and customs of sumo. >> translator: i regret that i have not been able to perform my ideal sumo style because of repeated injuries and i feel sorry for myself as well. from now on, i would like to study and do my best as an oyakata. he said his goal is to lead young wrestlers to be kind to others, strict with themselves, and to have a sense of duty and humanity.

south korean president moon jae-in has stressed his commitment to beef up his country's defense capabilities to respond to threats. >> translator: we will firmly respond to any actions that threaten the lives and safety of the people. >> moon delivered a speech on a naval transport ship on friday to mark the anniversary of the founding of the country's military. he said his administratn plans to increase next year's military budget to nearly $50 billion. moon also cited south korea's first successful test of a submarine launched ballistic missile in september and the development of a new light aircraft carrier. moon made no mention of pyongyang's recent actions. the north has carried out a series of missile tests in the past month, as well as expressed willingness to restore

communication links with seoul. meanwhile, north korea has tested another weapon in the country's latest show of force. the newspaper of the ruling workers party says the military has fired a new missile. rodong sinmun says it's a newly developed anti-aircraft missile. the paper reports the tests on thursday was meant to confirm the missile's range and the accuracy of its guidance system. officials with the military weapons developer, the academy of national defense science, carried out the test. the paper suggests the launch is of practical significance in developing anti-aircraft systems. north korea has test-fired a number of different missile types over the past week. observers say pyongyang is trying to impress upon the world it's developing a variety of weapons. the move is apparently based on a five-year plan be to boost national defense, which leader kim jong-un unveiled in january.

in a related story the u.s. secretary of state is calling for a united international response to north korea. >> we've seen repeated violations now of u.n. security council resolutions that the international community needs to take very seriously. >> antony blinken made the comment before pyongyang announced its latest launch. this week, the country said it test-fired a hypersonic missile for the first time. >> blinken said the u.s. is analyzing the recent launches to understand what technology was use. >> on thursday the u.n. security council was planning to hold an emergency session to discuss the missile tests, but it was postponed. according to u.n. sources, china has been reluctant to hold the meeting. the first world expo to be held in the middle east has kicked off in dubai. it was postponed for a year because of the pandemic. expo 2020 dubai will run for the

next six months. the fair's sprawling grounds were built in a desert suburb of the united arab emirates's largest city. travel restrictions are still in place in many parts of the world. visitors over the age of 18 will have to show proof of vaccination or negive pcr test. more than 190 countries will take part. japan's pavilion will introduce the country's traditional culture, anime and new technologies. it will also promote the next world's fair expo 2025 in osaka. ♪

and now here is your three-day world weather forecast.

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. share prices in tokyo plunged on the first trading day of the month. investors are worried about a possible u.s. default, as lawmakers in congress struggle to reach a deal on the debt ceiling. the nikkei average ended on

friday at 28,771, down 681 points or 2.3% from the previous day's close. risk averse investors unloaded shares almost across the board. the index ended lower on every trading day of the week. analysts say other developments could also pose risks for a global economic downturn. they include power shortages throughout china and financial problems surrounding evergrande group, the country's second largest property developer. friday's closing price in tokyo marked the first time in about a month for the nikkei 225 to finish below the 29,000 mark. the u.s. congress has passed a spending bill to avert a government shutdown but a potential debt default still looms. lawmakers approved on thursday a stop-gap funding measure to keep the government running through december 3rd. they faced a midnight deadline before funding ran out.

concerns were growing over a shutdown amid a confrontation between democrats and republicans. the standoff is over a massive spending bill proposed by the administration of president joe biden. but congress faces another crucial deadline. treasury secretary janet yellen has warned that if the debt ceiling is not raised by october 18th, the u.s. may face a crisis. republicans say they will not support a debt limit hike as long as the biden administration and democrats stick to the ambitious spending plan. ♪ the bank of japan's latest tankan survey shows business sentiment at large manufacturers improved for the fifth straight quarter. the central bank released a quarterly report on friday. the reading for sentiment at large manufacturers rose 4 points to plus 18. but their outlook index for the next quarter dropped 4 points to plus 14 indicating that

improvement in sentiment is stalling. business sentiment at major non-manufacturers improved a point from the previous quarter to plus 2. manufacturers might be fairing better, but owners of restaurants, hotels and other service businesses continue to struggle. they are hoping for better times now that japan's coronavirus state of emergency and quasi emergency measures have expired. some are banking on vaccination certificates to kick-start sales, but without the risk of trigging another wave of infections. >> a grilled chicken restaurant south of tokyo, one of many areas just released from months of tough restrictions. customers who show a city-issued vaccination certificate can claim a small reward.

the state of emergency effectively halted alcohol sales. the manager says the result was a number of people eating in at night largely dried up. he sees vaccination certificates as one way to draw them back. >> translator: it would be great if this incentive leads to an increase in customers. >> business owners right along the street are supporting the city's certificate campaign and they hope it will encourage people to get jabbed and provide a shot in the arm for the economy. >> translator: the public and private sectors should work together on this. the sooner that happens, the sooner our shopping districts will be able to attract more customers. >> the governments in other parts of the world are already using vaccination certificates to safely support business. japanese leaders are looking at a national system of their own to certify people who are fully vaccinated, or who have had a negative test result.

some business owners aren't waiting around. they're already offering benefits to people who can prove they are double-jabbed. but not everyone is convinced it's a good time to start lifting restrictions. the owner of this souvenir shop has watched sales drop by half from pre-pandemic levels. he says even though the situation is dire, it could get much worse if japan rushes to reopen when fewer than 60% of people have had two shots. >> translator: even people who are fully vaccinated can get infected. i worry that if the rules are relaxed now, cases could skyrocket. >> one expert says a certificate scheme would lead to an increase in spending, but he says it's important that the government gets the infrastructure right and has clear rules in place. >> translator: to implement this

properly, it's crucial that the government has a system where it offers advice to local authorities and businesses on the practical running of the program. >> experts warn japan could face another surge in infections as it heads into the colder months. that will only add to the challee, as all parties look for ways to revive the economy and keep the virus in check. japan's tourism industry is one sector hoping for a quick return to normal. on friday, some companies resumed bus tours immediately after the state of emergency expired. >> translator: i'm very excited to be able to travel again. for the first time in a long while. >> tourists gathered at a bus terminal in central tokyo at around 7:30 a.m. 14 people set off on a day trip to nagano prefecture in central japan to pick grapes and enjoy a meal at a french restaurant.

the operator resumed bus tours after a gap of about two and a half months. the company also reopened its service counters to custers. >> translator: we've had repeated resumptions in cancellations of sales. we're so glad to restart the tour today. we'll take thorough measures to prevent infection. >> the company says that it plans to provide more tours and some will be limited to people who are fully vaccinated or have tested negative for the coronavirus. all right, let's have a look at the markets.

and from the "newsline biz" team in tokyo, i'm gene otani. thanks very much for joining us. bite-sized snacks cooked on a hot plate. inside each one is a small piece of octopus. they are called takayaki. this is okonomiyaki vegetables, seafood and meat mixed with batter. both use flour and are specialties in osaka known as

konamon. let's take a closer look at those two dishes. first the takayaki. they are made using a hot plate with hemispherecle indentations. a batter made with flour, stock and egg is poured in. then, a small piece of ♪ bite-sized spherical snacks cooked on a hot plate. inside each one is a small piece of octopus. they're called takoyaki. and this is okonomiyaki, vegetables, seafood and meat mixed with batter. both dishes use flour and are specialities in osaka. they're known as konamon. let's take a closer look at those two dishes. first, takoyaki. they're made using a hot plate with spherical indentations. a batter made with flour, stock,

and egg is poured in. then a small piece of octopus is added to each one. as they cook, they are rotated using special sticks, forming them into balls. when the outside is crispy, they are served with toppings like sauce, skipjack tuna flakes, and over 80% of households own a takoyaki grill, and many families have monthly takoyaki feasts. now let's look at okonomiyaki. a batter made with flour, stock, and egg is typically combined with shredded cabbage, fried batter, pork, and other ingredients. the mixture is cooked on a griddle. eventually both sides turn a wonderful golden color. popular toppings include sauce, mayonnaise, skipjack tuna flakes, and dried seaweed, but you can add anything you like. these toppings combine perfectly with the fragrant, golden-brown pancake. both of osaka's famous konamon dishes are perfect as snacks or as full meals.

when did japanese people first discover the appeal of flour-based cuisine? a 400-year-old document mentions a type of konamon called funoyaki. it says that sen no rikyu, a master of the tea ceremony, served them as snacks. funoyaki are thin slices of dough flavored with miso. they are thought to be the precursor to modern konamon. but as wheat flour was very valuable at the time, it wasn't available to everyone.

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>> stopgap funding bill easily passed the house and senate. it's now been signed into law by president joe biden just hours before funding was set to run out. the house prepares to vote on a trillion dollar infrastructure plan. here's more from capitol hill. >> the democrats who control the house are divided on whether or not to support this bill.