praying for peace. people in nagasaki mark the 67th anniversary of the atomic bombing and speak out about the current nuclear issues. people have been gathering in nagasaki every year for nearly seven decades to mark the city's darkest day. with words, songs and prayers,

they look back on august 9th, 1945. the day the u.s. military dropped the atomic bomb on the port city. thousands of people went to peace park. the bomb detonated 500 meters above the area. representatives of victims' families and survivors placed a list of the names of more than 158,000 victims. officials have added more than 3,000 names since last year's ceremony. participants observed a moment of silence was observed at 11:02. that is when the plane boxcar dropped the bomb code named "fatman." [ bell tolls ] then the mayor of nagasaki spoke. he mentioned last year's accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant and he weighed in on the current debate over japan's future energy policy.

>> translator: we call on the japanese government to set new energy policy goals to build a society free of the fear of radioactivity and to implement measures. >> prime minister noda spoke about what he hopes the energy policy will achieve. >> translator: under the principle of less dependence of nuclear power, we will aim to establish a policy that ensures people's sense of safety over the long term. >> representatives from more than 40 countries also attended the ceremony, including u.s. ambassador john roos. it's the first time someone in his position has gone to the memorial in nagasaki. people who lived through war are sometimes reluctant to tell their stories. not hiroshio. he spent years remembering what happened after the atomic bomb

destroyed nagasaki nearly seven decades ago. he dedicated his life to speak out against nuclear weapons. recently, his life took an unexpected turn. >> reporter: he is a survivor and a story teller. the 81-year-old lived through nagasaki's atomic bombing. he spent years recounting tales of that day. >> translator: the story telling has made my life worthwhile. there is nothing more dreadful than an atomic bombing. it will be good if i can recount even some of my stories. >> reporter: he was born in nagasaki. he was a 14-year-old student with an interest in art when the bomb exploded above the city on august 9th, 1945.

he says the city burned. he recovered and went on to work for a local fire department, but he continued to draw. he created his painting 29 years after the end of world war ii. he witnessed the cremation of two girls ten days after the bombing. he never forgot what he saw. he has drawn more scenes of the bombings since then. he has shown them in public while telling stories. but recently, his strong voice fell silent. doctors diagnosed him last year with cancer of the throat. they removed his vocal chords. he pushed himself to get over

his despair and vowed he would speak again. he learned how to use an artificial device. most people need a year of training, but he mastered the device in eight months. >> translator: it must have been tough for a person of his age to deal with the physical demands, but he never complained. i could tell he is strong willed. i was thrilled for him and respect him so much. >> reporter: after the war and surgery and the rehabilitation, he was ready for his comeback performance. he showed drawings and told a story last month. he focused on the classmates he lost following the atomic bombing. they died of radiation sickness.

even when he lost his voice, he never lost his sense of duty. his commitment to using his new found voice to tell about the dark day in history and inspire

people to work for peace. reporting for nhk world, nagasaki. hiroshima, nagasaki. the atomic bombings marked a brutal conclusion to the brutal conflicts. world war ii ended 67 years ago today. from the fight to abolish nuclear weapons and to promote peace. our coverage "war to peace, lessons of 1945" continues until friday, august 17th. syrian president bashar al-assad is using the might of his military machine to try to take back the country's largest city. thousands of soldiers are targeting anti-government fighters in the streets of the country's largest city of aleppo.

the government reportedly sent 20,000 troops to the northern city. opposition fighters say assad's forces have launched ground attacks in the district. syria-state run tv says reports troops have recaptured the rebel stronghold. but an anti-government activist in aleppo disputes that claim. the activist tells nhk that fighting is fierce and the opposition continues to control half of the city. syria's neighbor turkey is feeling the heat of the conflict on its border. officials there say more than 1,700 refugees sought to their country. manufacturing in japan policymakers at japan's central bank unanimously decided to maintain the current monetary policy supplying a huge amount of money to the financial

markets. bank of japan officials said thu thursday the economy is gradually picking up and they say domestic demand is recovering due to rebuilding efforts in the areas hit by march 11th disaster. corporate capital investment is increasing and consumption is strong partly due to government subsidies for buyers of eco friendly cars. meanwhile, uncertainties remain during the on going european debt crisis. looking ahead the central bank maintained its economic outlook that domestic demand will continue to be steady. it warns that close monitoring of economic development in europe is needed. china's consumer price index rose at its lowest pace in 2 1/2 years last month. the government may now be taking another monetary easing measure as a result. the national bureau of statistics said on thursday that the index grew by 1.8% from a

year ago. the increase was relatively minor because food prices, which are a major component of the index remain stable. behind the slowdown was falling consumption on the back of the european debt crisis. some analysts say this may lead to lower corporate profits as well. manufacturing in japan picked up in june. orders for machinery rose for the first time in two months. thanks to a robust telecom industry. the cabinet office on thursday said june orders at major machinery makers were valued at more than $9 billion. that is up 5.6% in yen terms from the previous month. orders overall remain low prompting the office to downgrade the assessment. they now say conditions are fluctuating rather than improving gradually.

the cabinet office contributes it from the ship making machines. it forecast machinery orders to fall from july to september as companies shy away from capital investment. toyota motors says it will build a plant to make auto engines in the state of sao paolo. the firm aims to cut costs by using more locally made parts. toyota announced the plant will begin operation in the second half of 2015. it will produce 200,000 engines annually for corolla sedans manufactured in brazil and for compact cars. the compact car will be put on the brazilian market next month. toyota officials say the new plant will allow the automaker to increase the local parts procurement ratio. it will be raised to 85%. that's up from the current 70%. global automakers are scrambling to increase their production and sales in brazil as the u.s. and european markets

are sluggish. u.s. and european car makers account for nearly 80% of the brazilian auto market. the world's fourth largest. however, toyota's market share in brazil was only 3% last year. summer is usually a good time for beer makers. markets in europe and the united states are drying up due to the prolonged impact of the euro zone debt crisis. and that has prompted global breweries to turn to asia and fight over what is called the last frontier of their industry. nhk's reporter has more from singapore. >> reporter: asia is already the biggest beer market. accounting for over 30% of global consumption. demand is brisk in china and vietnam. beer sales in europe and north america weakened.

major breweries are stepping up in asia fearing competition. the focus is moving to southeast asia where the potential for expansion. it is also more room to grow as the less presence of global giants compared to other regions. the southeast asia market got a jolt last week. leading heineken to announce it reached an agreement with major singaporean beermaker for $4.1 billion. heineken is acquiring a stake of 80% of asia breweries or apb. it is known for the popular beer tiger brand. it will open the way for heineken to advance deeper into southeast asia. apb runs 30 breweries in the

region and maintains strong marketing networks. we asked an analyst what's so attractive about southeast asia beer market and what we can expect ahead. >> i think the brewery market has been ten years of consolidation. there are few big players that offer heineken. i think there will be more to come as it increases the share in emerging markets. southeast asia will be popular because of the population. we can expect more production in the chinese market or even the african market. >> reporter: as the southeast asia beer market keeps growing,

so does the competition among breweries that are trying to conquer the beer industry's last frontier. reporting for nhk world, singapore. >> following heineken's announcement, a thai group offered to buy a stake in apb. competition over a winning share in the south east asian beer market is expected to escalate. south korea's popular music once played second fiddle to japan in western tunes, but the distinctive sound and style of k-pop is sweeping asia. even the government is getting behind the trend. nhk world's ana jong has more. >> reporter: many fans don't just love k-pop, they live for it. fans drop in to star shops along this busy street in downtown seoul.

lots of foreigners who want to feel closer to their favorite stars. at the k-store cafe, customers buy all kinds of souvenirs, including the outfits the stars wear on stage. 70% of the shoppers come from other countries. >> first time k-store. as soon as i got in, i was like wow. k-pop is a big part of my life. >> reporter: the cafe is on the tourist map. its profits have shot up 25% each month since it opened last october. what makes people so keen on k-pop? i'm at a training studio for future k-pop singers in seoul. all the trainees here are high school students. they heard about the studio on the internet. they have to practice singing and dancing until 10:00 every

night, even on weekends. >> translator: i want to go to europe and debut there. i think i can because now a days, korean culture is very popular in the world. >> reporter: producer kim uk has helped make k-pop what it is today. he has developed a lot of k-pop stars. >> translator: k-pop singers are well trained. we improve the quality of the product because of advancements in digital video, videos have been posted on youtube.

it has gained popularity around the world. >> reporter: in south korea's government is getting in on the k-pop boom to enhance the country's image. the government invited foreign k-pop fans to a free tour of south korea. the guests came from asia and the pacific region and europe and the u.s. >> i love k-pop. that is all i listen to. i listen to it all the time. even if we don't understand the language, it is really good music to listen to. i really like it a lot. >> reporter: now the moment these fans will never forget. >> one, two, three! >> reporter: they will soon chat in person to some k-pop stars. the group enjoyed a dreamy day with their favorite stars. they also sampled korea's traditional culture. >> translator: if we promote korea's favorable image to young

people, they will stay interested in the country and come back some day. that is why we focus on tourism campaigns in cooperation with k-pop stars. >> reporter: and the beat goes on. k-pop promoters won't rest until they make k-pop a global sensation. anna jung, nhk world, seoul. japanese astronauts is preparing for a zero gravity repair job. he and a u.s. astronaut will go on a 6 1/2 space walk at the end of the month. they will be doing work on the international space station. the third japanese ever to walk in space. he began his mission to the iss last month. he returns to earth in november. using a robotic arm to install new equipment on the japanese

experimental module. this is the second space mission. he will follow in the footsteps of his japanese predecessors. o on august 30th. american and russian astronauts do the majority of space walks. now if you have been watching the summer games in london, you have seen plenty of stunning performances. team usa's michael phelps, swimming to become the most decorated olympian ever. japan's matsumoto fighting her way to gold in judo, and usain bolt. now thanks to a british newspaper you can relive the moments in a rather unique way. >> in the final of 200

>> reporter: phelps as you have never seen before. remember the women's semifinal and dramatic appeal from the south korean competitor. more than 500,000 views in four days after its release. this man is behind the animations. his hobby caught the attention of the editors at "the guardian" a british newspaper. they invited him to london to give their online olympic coverage an entertaining edge. we sat in as he reconstructed a men's rowing event. the british team won gold. boris gets the equipment ready while carefully considering the

camera work and how to connect the scenes. he also spends time figuring out how best to replicate the athletes too. >> so like here, he is sitting here, and when i see this is possible, and -- that will be the movement later. >> morris pays attention to the finest details. he takes notes on the sunglasses and caps worn by the rowers on each team and based on the notes, he hand picks the perfect plastic brick figures. then, comes a really hard work. morris painstakingly moves the boats and figures by tiny fractions taking the picture between each adjustment. he shoots about 300 images to make just two minutes of

animation. morris works through the night so the video can be uploaded to the internet the following day. and then, everyone can enjoy the final product. >> i think really -- amusing for people. people enjoy it. and it is a thing that -- you don't need to be able to speak english. >> morris has used his skill and dedication to watch and remember the 2012 olympic games. let's now get a check of the weather from rachel ferguson. >> all right. we have now a tropical storm, moving west through eastern china. this was the hurricane that yesterday made landfall in the province. and has in the last 24 hours, brought upwards of 300 millimeters of rain to parts of the provinces. now into the next 24 hours it is likely to bring anywhere from 2

up to another 400 millimeters of rain to these places as it continues its path westward. moving at 15 kilometers an hour. wind gusts are up at 90 kilometers an hour. still a very potent system. although it has downgraded to a tropical storm. we will be watching for more heavy rain to come, over the next couple of days. now, down towards the south, and northern philippines has been dealing with torrential trafl which has led to a widespread flooding situation in and around the metropolitananila metropolitan area. in the last two days. sinces to days, some places have picked up, 870 millimeters of rain. unfortunately, into the next 48 hours, we are likely to see an additional 100 millimeters or so for the western coast of luzon. it's not looking good in terms of improving that situation. we are going to head over to the americas now and look down towards central america and

our -- storm ernesto, a hurricane when it made landfall in the yucatan peninsula. it is crossing the very southern area of the bay of campeche and will make landfall in mexico, not becoming a hurricane again, but staying as it is, possibly, making, hurricane stat us again before making a second landfall. the wind are still at 100 kilometers an hour. stronger gue eer gusts of that . we are expecting more rainfall up in the elevations you can see, 300 millimeters of rain. that means a very high risk of mudslides. also, taking a look now at our bigger picture, the u.s. and canada, we are going to be seeing a lot of wet weather across the east. down to the south. thunderstorms, another front heading up in towards new england. we are going to see potential for some pretty rough thunderstorms in and around the great lakes region. hail, strong gusts with that as well. so, staying pretty unstable towards the east. the west though -- some

monsoonal flow, bringing showers across the four corners. unfortunately, not really affecting the desert southwest where it is going to be hot and dry. l.a. getting up to 36 degrees on friday. las vegas, you are at 44 on thursday. and, that's for phoenix and yuma. 44 all the way through into saturday. so, really intense heat here. and we are going to fold that heat right through to europe. and the mediterranean where temperatures are not far off. we have got spain, as well as italy and southern france, in the upper 30s in towards the mid 40s. so, some very intense heat here. in towards the weekend. as for -- london, well we are not quite into the 40s, but you are going to be getting up to 26 degrees on friday with some good spells of sunshine for the next three days. do enjoy that. and i will leave you now with your extended forecast. ♪ ♪

that's all for this hour. i'm shery ahn. thank you for watching.