hello and welcome to this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan with the news from tokyo. we begin in central japan with the shooting that left two ground self-defense force members dead. investigative sources say the suspect told hem he did not intend to kill one of the victims. the 18-year-old trainee allegedly opened fire wednesday on people who worked at a gsdf shooting range in gifu city.

he's suspected of murder. the two men killed were age 25 and 52. sources tell nhk the target was the older man. the suspect claimed he only shot at the younger man because he was in the way. another 25-year-old man was injured in the incident. the gsdf says the weapon used was a type 89 rifle. the standard issue gun is used by troops across the nation. sources say the rifle should not have been loaded until it was at the shooting position. the suspect reportedly loaded his early. sources also say the suspect was attending his fourth and final gun training exercise. candidates have to train for three months before they can be enlisted. it's not the first shooting at an sdf training facility. in 1994 a 21-year-old member opened fire at a shooting range in yamaguchi city killing one and injuring three. canada says it's sus spending all government-led

activity at a chinese led development bank while it investigates allegations about the institution. canada's finance minister said she's ordered a review of the country's involvement in the aiib, the asian infrastructure investment bank. she says a former canadian employee of the bank had expressed deep concern about its operation. she did not identify the employee, but her announcement came shortly after a canadian executive tweeted that he had resigned from the aiib. bob pickered said the bank is dominated by communist party members and also has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable. the chinese embassy in canada hit back calling the remarks outright lies. freeland did not rule out any outcome of the investigation hinting her country may withdraw from the bank. u.s. secretary of state antony blinken will visit china this week to meet senior chinese officials. people are watching to see if this signals a resumption of

high-level dialogue in key areas of contention amid strained ties between the countries. the trip will be blinken's first to china as a top u.s. diplomat. he'll arrive in beijing on sunday for a two-day visit. the state department has not revealed who blinken will meet, but it's said the secretary's discussions with chinese officials are expected to focus on issues such as u.s./china relations, the situation in the taiwan strait, and russia's invasion of ukraine. a senior official said blinken's visit aims to establish communication channels in order to prevent the competition between the two countries from veering into conflict. but he says the u.s. side is not going into it intending to have some sort of breakthrough. blinken was originally scheduled to visit china in february, but the trip was postponed after an alleged chinese spy balloon flew over u.s. territory. president joe biden recently said he expects a thaw in the frosty relations to come shortly, but china declined an

invitation from the u.s. for a meeting earlier this month between their defense chiefs in singapore. north korean leader kim jong-un has reportedly sent a message to china's leader congratulating him on his 70th birthday. thursday's edition of north korea's ruling workers' party newspaper carried the story on its front page. "rodong sinmun" says kim lauded president xi jinping, saying his vigorous leadership has greatly enhanced china's overall national power and international standing. the paper emphasizes pyongyang's friendly ties with beijing. kim has not traveled outside his country nor held a summit with xi since the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, but both countries have been deepening ties through the exchange of congratulatory messages. kim also sent one to russian president vladimir putin to mark national day this week. it's the anniversary of russia's declaration of sovereignty as a

state in 1990. kim said in a message the friendship between pyongyang and moscow is a valuable strategic asset that should be further strengthened. analysts say north korea wants to fortify ties with both countries in the face of tighter security coordination by japan, the united states, and south korea. leaders in australia have blocked russia from building an embassy just a stone's throw from parliament. they say the risk of diplomacy making way for espionage was too high. >> the government has received very clear security advice as to the risk presented by a new russian presence so close to parliament house. >> lawmakers passed legislation on thursday terminating a deal to lease the plot of land to moscow. the plot is just 300 meters from

parliament house. the knicksed deal has no impact on russia's existing embassy in the capital. >> we don't expect that russia's in a position to talk about international law given their rejection of it so consistently and so brazenly with their invasion of ukraine. >> australia is one of the biggest providers of military and diplomatic support to ukraine among non-nato countries. ukraine's defense ministry says its troops have had partial success in retaking territory in the country's eastern and southern region. ukrainian deputy defense minister said on wednesday troops had advanced 200 to 500 meters in areas near bakhmut in the eastern region of donetsk. she said similar advances were made in the southern region of zaporizhzhia. in an interview with nhk, a ukrainian battalion commander

suggested a full-scale counter offensive will soon begin. >> translator: i think this counter attack will be a major turning point for ukraine. it's the most important battle in the past 100 years. >> but russia's defense ministry says its troops have fought off ukraine's forces in the done usk and zaporizhzhia regions claiming more than 1,000 ukrainian soldiers have been killed. britain's defense officials say there's been an uptick in russian tactical combat authorities in the last two weeks especially over southern ukraine. meanwhile russian president putin stated ukraine's counter offensive has been unsuccessful. >> translator: we have plans for all eventualities and will take measures depending on the situation. >> regarding a series of drone

attacks within his country, putin said it's difficult for russian air defense systems to detect drones. he said the systems were designed to deal with missiles and conventional combat aircraft, but he stressed his intention to enhance measures against drone attacks. in other news, european union lawmakers have agreed to include tougher rules on generative ai systems such as chat gpt in a draft decision. the parliament agreed on wednesday to revise the bill on ai by a majority vote. it requires systems like chatgpt to disclose whether content generated was by ai. >> any time technology advances, it must go hand in hand with our fundamental rights and democratic values. >> the european parliament and eu member nations will negotiate a final version of the law governing ai based on the vote. officials aim to reach a final

agreement by the end of the year. south korea is having a reckoning with school bullying. physical and mental scars have prompted survivors to come forward even long after graduation. officials have promised action, but as you'll see in our next report, some experts warn their focus is off. >> reporter: he has bitter memories of his time in school. the 23-year-old says the bullying he endured was so intense, he was hospitalized for three months for depression. >> translator: it was hell. they abused me with their words and with their actions. >> reporter: like many others, they suffered no consequences for their behavior, but that's starting to change in high

profile places. from k-pop stars to star athletes, south korean celebrities accused of having bullied classmates are facing fallout from their actions even years later. some have lost jobs and being forced to apologize. but that comes as cases of bullying in the country's schools have jumped three-fold in the last decade. the government is seeking a solution for students while they're still in school. >> translator: we will hold offenders accountable. in april south korea unveiled plans to include any records of bullying in a student's university application. it could have a major impact in the country's highly competitive academic environment. under the current system such records are deleted if the students are found to have changed their behavior. officials say putting bully's

academic careers on the line will protect other students. >> translator: we'll make abusers clearly recognize what kinds of disadvantages their errors can cause for themselves. >> reporter: but a lawyer who often represents parents of kids accused of bullying warns it may bog down the system. she says she's had a growing number of cases where clients appeal for lighter penalties. involving university exams will only drag out the process both for bullies and their targets. >> translator: penalizing abusers is important, but the priority including cases is to protect the victim. >> reporter: a south korean anti-bullying counselor also warns the new plan could harm. rather than teaching kids why

harassment and abuse is wrong, it will lead to lifelong punishment. >> translator: they become adults with this perpetrator label. anti-bullying measures should instead focus on getting abusers to reflect on their actions and become better members of society. >> reporter: a recent poll found 90% of south koreans are in favor of the new tough penalties. but experts warn without getting to the root of why kids become bullies, harsher punishment will only lead to more suffering long after class has ended. next, k-pop super group bts may be on a break, but fans feel they still have permission to celebrate. many are heading to south korea's capital to mark a big anniversary for the band. >> happy anniversary, bts!

>> reporter: it's a birthday party being celebrated in cafes and venues across the store. everyone is invited, and hundreds of thousands have come from all over the world. >> we're from russia. >> i'm here from india. i came specifically forhe s koanand turn worldwi r th first k-pop grp to top the billoards chart e firstsian acto w top priz at t amecan music awards. by 2022 they were the most debuted artist in youtube history. bts debuted ten years ago this week. the band is currently on hiatus

with two members doing mandatory military service. even so, the anniversary celebrations here are over the top. two full weeks of events dubbed bts fest 2023. this post office is bustling with fans many of whom have lined up for hours. they're here to buy limited edition bts anniversary commemorative stamps. >> translator: i'm so happy i was able to safely buy the maximum number of these stamps. >> tens of thousands of foreigners have already come, and we expect more people to come during the event and jeanerate tens of millions of dollars in sales. >> reporter: businesses are also cashing in. this korean donut chain are selling special bts donuts for

the month of june. at this hotel in seoul special pacts are being offered as part of bts fest. let's look into this special purple box and you see bts festa and special key rings, and these are all sealed but these are wineglasses and a t-shirt. the hotel restaurant is offering a special bts menu. there's even a bts cocktail which naturally turns purple. all of this will help the tourism industry that has been pummelled by the pandemic. hotels are nearly fully booked. >> we still have a little bit to sell, but we're pretty confident we'll sell them all. >> reporter: it will be at least two years before bts will be able to perform together again as a band.

but even in their absence, they're lighting up the city and a global fan base. nhk world, seoul. and now here's a three-day outlook for weather for selected cities around the globe.

and that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo. coming up next is "newsline biz" with ramin mellegard, so stay right there.

this is "newsline biz"mism i'm ramin mellegard. the bank of japan's two day board meetings got under way on thursday. investors around the world are watching closely to see if and when the central bank governor will be able to shift course on its ultra-loose monetary policy. now, we spoke with inuo at the research institute. he said the policy makers will

maintain the status quo for the time being as they do not see an up surge in policy speculation now. under the yield curve control the boj targets the short-term interest rate at minus 0.1% and ten-year yield at 0.5% above or below zero. >> it's much less trouble for the boj to start the normalization process. i don't expect the bank of japan or the boj to modify the control. there are a number of reasons to postpone the modification. also there appears to be signs of modest improvement particularly market participants identify some recovery of market functions and both in terms of

the shape of the yield curve. moreover the yield has slightly diverged from the target range. secondly, market pressures or modification has not gained momentum in comparison with previous occasions of policy meetings. >> he said the bank of japan should provide clearer guidelines on the process of monitoring its policy when it updates its inflation forecast at its next meeting in july. >> i have started to think, however, the viability of alternative approach concerning less pressures for modification of control and closing to stabilize achievement of the inflation target in every meaning of the word. for example, the boj would integrate the two courses in a coherent matter depending only on the inflation dynamics.

overall the inflation outlook will be the more important factor. apparently the next is the july meeting it might be desirable for the bank of japan to launch a policy loan month. toyota motor is rolling out an electric vehicle charging network in japan that's exclusive to its luxury brand lexus. the outo maker stepping up its ev offers amid foreign competition on its home turf. a charging station was opened at a commercial complex in tokyo on thursday. the facility sits inside the building's underground parking lot. owners can get a full charge there in about 30 minutes. toyota is planning to install 100 such stations across japan by 2030.

>> translator: many customers are worried about charging. they basically top up their cars at home, but it's important for there to be facilities they can use to charge their vehicles when traveling long distances. >> toyota says it aims to make every new lexus model electric by 2035. japanese auto makers are lagging behind their overseas rivals in the domestic ev market. international car makers have been rolling out more offerings in japan hoping to cash in an eventual shift to electric vehicles. and the japanese government says the country's trade deficit narrowed in may compare today the previous year. strong automobile exports and falling costs for energy imports helped close the gap. the finance ministry says imports have passed exports by nearly 1.4 trillion yen or about $10 billion. the deficit strang from about 40% from a year earlier.

the value of exports grew but only 0.6% in yen terms from a year ago. auto exports especially for the u.s. increased the semiconductor supply chain disres eased. but overall shipments were dragged down by sluggish numbers for china. imports fell by nearly 10% as the costs for energy dropped. crude oil was down 20%. coal and liquid natural gas fell more than 40%. and chinese economic data indicates the pace of the country's economy is slowing. this comes amid growing concern about employment as the jobless rate for young people hit a record high. the national bureau of statistics says industrial production rose 3.5% in may from a year earlier, and that's slower than april's 5.6%. domestic demand was sluggish as property investments remained weak. there was also a drop in exports due to economic slow downs

overseas. retail sales gained 12.7% in may year on year. restaurants saw a big improvement from the pandemic low, but the overall margin was smaller than the 18.4% in the previous month. the jobless rate among people aged 16 to 24 in urban areas last month came in at 20.8%. that's a record since comparable data became available in 2018. now, southeast asia's real estate sector is heating up as a flood of money comes in from abroad especially china. buyers in the country are looking for better returns as property prices at home remain stagnant. >> translator: this is a condominium that's been popular among wealthy chinese. the rooftop offers great views and a luxurious pool. >> reporter: this high end condo

is in northern thailand. its most expensive units goes for about $260,000. inquiries have been pouring in from china. some are being shown remotely to a real estate agent looking for properties for his chinese clients. the influx of buyers in china may be due to the country's lackluster recovery from the pandemic and the continuing downturn in its property market. >> translator: some chinese investors withdrew from their domestic assets and used that money to buy properties overseas. in thailand there has been an especially high rate of return. >> reporter: in the first three months of the year, the number of condominiums in thailand purchased by foreigners has nearly doubled. almost half were bought by chinese.

the developer of the condo believes there are still ample opportunities. he plans to start construction of a new building worth tens of millions of dollars. >> translator: if we offer rooms at the same prices, i'm sure they'll all sellout. >> reporter: but there are worries in some parts of southeast asia the market is overheating. in singapore the number of high end condominiums purchased by a single buyer in a central area soared to a nine-year high in 2023. the boom comes amid unlimited supply of new properties due to a slow down in construction during the pandemic. the situation has pushed real estate prices and rents through the roof. this japanese man living in singapore says when it came time to renew the contract on his apartment the new rent was 60% higher. he felt he had no choice but to move out. >> translator: i was sort of

prepared for an increase, but the jump was so huge. it went up to a level that i simply couldn't afford. >> reporter: the singaporean government has been moving to cool the market. in april it doubled the special tax for foreign buyers to 60%. but annalist says overseas investors with means likely will not stop their shopping spree. >> there's thinking there will be at least a positive return. they're wealthy and they can by the luxury homes. i think many of them they continue to purchase in the long run. >> reporter: southeast asia may be a bright spot in a sluggish global market, but as foreign investors seeking returns end, the spiking real estate prices could hurt local residents along with the economy. okay, let's get a check on the markets.

and that's all for business news.

imran: finding concrete solutions to a problem continent wide. eu states are learning how to deal with the of thousands of people. among all 27 members won't be but finding consensusamong all 27 members won't be easy. what are the challenges? and can they reach a balance that works for those making the often-hazardous journey to europe? this is inside story. imran: wco