hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm yoshi ogasawara in tokyo. we begin this hour with economic worries in china. the crisis in the real estate sector appears to be deepening. the biggest developer country garden posted a net loss of $6.7 billion for the first half of the year. company representatives blame the loss on weak sales and a slumping property market.

they also say they reduced the appraised value of properties they're building. country garden was china's leading developer last year in terms of housing sales with value. it's focused on smaller provincial cities as well as big cities such as beijing and shanghai. it grew quickly with a business model of high turnover and small profits. in the past few years it's been in the american business magazine fortune's list of the world's biggest 500 companies in terms of sales. country garden's problems come after a crisis at the rival chinese developer evergrande group. evergrande got into difficulties after trying to diversify. it posted a first half net loss of about $4.5 pillion. it later filed for chapter 15 bankruptcy protection with a court in the united states. country garden has not diversified away from real estate and was believed to be in relatively good financial

health, but it has suffered from a prolonged slump in the market especially in smaller provincial cities. it's delayed interest payments on some bonds. the real estate sector is estimated to account for a quarter of china's gdp. so the problems that evergrande group and country garden are heightening concerns about the outlook for the chinese economy. the deputy head of taiwan's main opposition party has met with a top chinese official on cross strait affairs. it comes as they're go gearing up for taiwan's presidential election in january and beijing is keen to strengthen ties. china's state run agency reported the taiwan affairs office directing met with the vice chair on wednesday. some claim separatist forces in taiwan are colluding with

external powers forcing taiwanese to choose between peace and war. he says beijing wants to work with the knt and other parties to restore peaceful relations. he said his party is willing to strengthen cooperation with the mainland. the knt is pitching a conciliatory stance with beijing as it's hoping to win back power for the first time in 80 years. meanwhile, taiwanese armed forces will be getting an unprecedented boost from the united states. washington has okayed the first ever transfer of military aid to taiwan using a program typically reserved for sovereign states. u.s. media outlets report the state department notified congress of the aid package on wednesday. taiwan is being offered $80 million through the foreign military financing program. it can use the funds to purchase

equipment and receive u.s. military training. u.s. house of representatives foreign affairs committee chairman michael mccaul welcomed the move. he said the weapons will not just help taiwan but also strengthen u.s. deterrence and national security in response to an increasingly aggressive china. the aid package's language will likely draw a sharp reaction from beijing, which has condemned u.s. support for taiwan. well, peace in the taiwan strait was a major focus for british foreign secretary james cleverly on his visit to china. his country has been a vocal critic of beijing's human rights abuses and support for russia. but cleverly says diplomacy makes a difference. the british secretary says he's clear-eyed about which areas the u.k. and china disagree. he welcomed the opportunity to

discuss them with foreign minister wang yi on wednesday. >> translator: dialogue and cooperation are the key words and main tone of china's policy towards the u.k. of course we've also noticed from time to time there have been some noises in the relationship. >> but also we're able to speak about the opportunities that i foresee, opportunities for chinese people, for british people. >> he also met with chinese vice president han jun. cleverly said he brought up the damage to rights and freedoms in hong kong caused by beijing's national security law. he also stressed the importance of peace and stability in the taiwan strait. on the same day members of a british parliamentary committee published a report referring to taiwan as an independent country. a spokesperson for the chinese foreign ministry said they're confusing right and wrong, and he urged them to abide by the

one-china principle. those lawmakers have criticized prime minister richi sunak and his government for a lack of coherence on china, but he says the leaders plan to cooperate on global challenges including climate change. he says it's important to maintain a pragmatic, sensible working relationship. a senior u.s. official says pyeongyang appears to be actively plotting to sell arms to moscow. he says the weapons could be used to help fuel russia's war with ukraine. white house national security council spokesperson john kirby made the announcement on wednesday. he said north korean leader kim jong-un and russian president vladimir putin have been exchanging letters. he said the proposed arms deal

has been in the works after russia's defense minister's trip to pyeongyang in july. se sergei shoigu was there to mark the anniversary of the korean armistice. >> following his visit another group of russian officials traveled to pyeongyang for follow arm deals discussions between the dprk and russia. >> kirby says more negotiations could happen over the coming months as the invasion of ukraine drags on. washington's u.n. ambassador accused moscow of trying to violate security council resolutions. >> we cannot and we will not stay silent as we receive more information that russia continues to turn to rogue regimes to try to obtain weapons and equipment in order to support its brutal war of aggression. >> she said the u.s. and its allies will work to counter russia's attempts to acquire

north korean arms. moscow and pyeongyang have denied the allegations. it's been one week since the operator at the damaged fukushima daiichi nuclear plant began releasing the treated and diluted water into the ocean. tokyo electric power company says tritium concentrations near the facility continue to fall below detectable levels. water accumulating at the facility is being treated and stored in more than a thousand tanks. they hold some 1.35 million tons of treated water almost at capacity. most radioactive materials are removed, but the treated water still contains tritium. before release the treated water is diluted. that reduces the tritium concentrations to about one-seventh of the world health organization's guidelines for drinking water. as of wednesday tepco says it's

discharged more than 2,900 tons of treated water. the company says daily samples taken from waters within 3 kilometers of the plant show below detectable levels of 10 per liter. that's in line with findings from japan's environment ministry and fukushima prefecture. fish caught in waters near the plant and examined by the fisheries agency also showed no detectable levelsch the water released is expected to continue for about 30 years. local fishers and others oppose the discharge fearing reputational damage. japan's government and tepco have promised to ensure long-term safety and provide transparent information about the release.

japanese adventurer -- took on arguably the toughest challenge of his astounding career this week. at 90 years old he aimed to summit japan's famed mount fuji. and age wasn't the biggest obstacle he had to overcome to make it to the top. >> reporter: world famous adventurer -- came on tuesday and headed straight for the summit as he had so many times before, but this climb is different. >> translator: i'm not in good condition yet. everyone helped me, and i've finally come this far. my legs have lost half their strength. >> reporter: this time the man who has called the tallest peaks on every continent on the planet needs help not because of his

age, because of a rare disease has robbed him of the strength in his legs forcing him to a wheelchair. his son, a medical doctor, supports his latest and possibly toughest adventure. >> translator: my father's health is very stable. my father himself was very motivated to walk. without my father's determination to climb mount fuji, this team would never have come and united together. >> reporter: miura is also supported by climbers, mountain guides, high school students who had been influenced and inspired by miura's way of life. >> translator: the most wonderful thing is that everyone is enjoying climbing. they are sweating a lot and

enjoying themselves. i think this is amazing and wonderful. >> reporter: miura's life has been about pushing boundaries. in italy 1964 he set a world speed record in skiing. three years later he'd become the first person to ski straight down from the summit of mount fuji. he summited mount everest three times at the age of 70 and at 80 setting a new world record for the oldest person to climb the world's tallest mountain. but in june 2020 when he was 87 years old he developed a rare disease that caused paralysis in his legs. he was bedridden in the hospital for about eight months. but where he may have been physically weakened, miura didn't lose his mental strength.

he started rehabilitation working, training, determined to make a comeback. this week miura kept that come pam back as possibly his most meaningful accomplishment as an adventure. he made it to the top of the highest point in japan, the summit of mount fuji. >> translator: no matter how many times i climb here, i'm moved by mount fuji. the weather is good this time. this is such a wonderful scene that i will never forget it. >> reporter: 90-year-old miura yuchiro showing the world once again no challenge is too difficult to overcome. nhk world. >> and we spoke with miura shortly after he'd just safely descended from mount fuji.

>> miura says he isn't finished with his adventures just yet. he says he also plans to ski down the highest peak in europe

again. now it's time for a check on the weather. a hurricane slammed into florida on wednesday and caused many disruptions. our meteorologist has an update on the current situation. >> the hurricane made landfall wednesday morning as a category 3 storm causing flash flooding, tropic disruptions and power cuts. hurricane idalia did widespread damage in florida. officials say they're looking into a traffic accident that could be connected to one death. at least 75 people were rescued from flood waters. more than 1,000 flights were canceled. the system will move offshore on thursday. however, the flooding issues will continue. meanwhile, in east asia the main concern is in these tropical

systems. it left heavy downpours in southern diwan and now is targeting southern china including hong kong. al over 500 millimeters of rainfall is possible in just two days by sunday. so flash flooding and landslides are possible. please be prepared by friday. another system is approaching okinawa on saturday and northern taiwan on sunday. 7 meter high waves and storm surge are in the forecast. we also have one more system in the pacific. it is expected to move north to ogasawara during the weaken and will bring moisture to japan next week. however, in the mainland of japan excessive heat is still the big issue. on friday tokyo was at 35, and the dangerous conditions in yom gotta and fukushima with highs

of 38. so please stay hydrated as much as you can. that's all for me. stay safe. and that wraps up 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. the labor union of the sogo and seibu department store chain has staged a one-day strike in a rare protest for the industry. the flagship store was shutdown on thursday. the strike is in response to the planned sale of the struggling department store. sogo and seibu's parent company

decided in november to sell it to u.s. based firm fortress investment group. the labor union's objections stems from worries about job lass. this strike is the first at a major department store in japan in about 60 years. seven and i held a board meeting earlier in the day and approved a sale worth $20 billion yen or about $1.5 billion. the japanese unit says the firm will do its best to keep its department store business going. it also says it'll work with seven & i to preserve as many jobs as possible. but talks with the union have yet to lead to a break through. the strikes come as businesses are worsening for department stores. seven & i merged. that was back in 2006. the company believed the move would improve its overall

competitiveness. it thought the brand recognition of the department stores would complement the new products developed by its convenient stores, but the department store industry began to struggle soon after as specialty shops and online retailers gained popularity. sogo and seibu has logged net losses in ten out of the 17 years including four straight yein fiscal 2022. the trains are considered a possible solution to the acute truck driver shortage affecting shipping networks across japan. a shinkansen loaded with 750 crates of goods left niigata city in central japan. it arrived in tokyo around noon.

the crates were then transported by truck to supermarkets and other destinations in the tokyo area. >> translator: shinkansen bullet trains are fast, punctual, and reliable in any weather conditions. we want to take advantage of th these strengths. >> the train operator plans to study the results and figure out the best way to bring the system into commercial use. bullet trains are famously punctual, but the launch of an extended line along the sea of japan coast has been quite the opposite. officials say services will finally be up and running on march 16th. that's a whole year later than planned. east and west japan railway company officials made the announcement on wednesday. the new section of the hokuriku shinkansen runs between conzawa

and ishikawa prefecture. the fastest trains will make nine round trips between each day. the slower trains will make five traveling from tokyo to fukui could take as little as 2 hours, 51 minutes. officials plan to finalize fares and a timetable by the end of the year. test runs are set to start september 23rd. sbi securities will cut its commissions to zero from september 30th. rakuten security says it'll begin a commission-free service on october 1st. the firms currently charge anywhere between about 40 cents and about $7 per order depending

on the value of the transaction. this comes ahead of the expansion of a preferential tag system for individual investors. both companies believe it'll help them gain customers interested in building assets for the future, but they'll have to find other ways to remain profitable as they eliminate commissions. japan has one of the fastest aging societies in the world. it's a situation that is creating challenges but also innovations. one researcher has used his expertise in 3-d printing for something that could bring benefits for the elderly. >> reporter: the professor is on the faculty of engineering at

yamagata university. he's been working to develop a 3-d printer that can produce more realistic food items. first the food is analyzed in three dimensions to create a blueprint for a 3-d printer. for this pumpkin food item he's using a gel made of reconstituted pumpkin powder. the instructions tell the machine how much to secrete for each layer as a plate underneath moves with precision. it creates a variety of products such as tuna and shrimp. >> translator: even though it uses a soft gel-like substance, a 3-d printer allows the creation of detailed items. >> reporter: as japanese society ages, the device is getting attention for its potential to help people in nursing homes. patients in the facilities who have trouble eating are served meals in an easy to swallow form such as paste or jelly. the kitchen staff do what they can to create variety, but ultimately the food is still in

liquid form for every meal. >> translator: these patients ask what is this. they don't feel comfortable with foods they don't recognize. it makes it hard for them to work up an appetite which comes from stimulating individual and olfactory senses. >> reporter: after consulting with nursing home staff the professor decided to try and see if he could make something more appealing. he decided to create 3-d printed vegetables. their appearance and taste is easy to re-create. he's especially proud of his 3-d printed broccoli. he has re-created stalks with unique textures by tweaking the amount of coloring and water added to broccoli powder. anot only does it look better, it can also be tailored to each patient. >> translator: using 3-d

printers to make nursing home food allows the texture and calorie count to be adjusted to meet each person's physical and nutritional needs. >> reporter: in late june professor furikawa put his broccoli to the test with a tasting session for staff who make nursing home food. >> translator: i brought something for everyone to try. >> translator: it's actually close to the real thing. >> it's a little watery. >> reporter: despite still being in the research stage, the printer can produce items customized to a person's individual needs. >> translator: broccoli is something we couldn't serve to some patients. i think they will welcome this. >> translator: if 3-d printers can open up new possibilities for schools and nursing homes

and hospitals. i'm only just getting started. >> reporter: it's spurring innovations that can create revolution in providing individualized care for seniors. >> 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.

>> is the panama canal in danger of drying up? low water levels caused by drought are causing resurgence on ships. cargo deliveries are being delayed and supply chains are affected worldwide. this is "inside story". ♪ mohammed: it is a major traffic them on one of the world most important shipping routes. hundds