many leaders have been reluctant to invest in their own companies. this time it's down 0.1%. investment in housing decreased by 0.2%. prime minister shinzo abe will be studying today's april to june gdp figures very closely. they are among the key economic figures abe needs before deciding to go ahead on a consumption tax hike in april 2014. he will make a final decision at an extraordinary diet session in the autumn. legislation already passed says the tax rate will be raised to 8% in april 2014 and 10% in october 2015, but the law allows for the hike to be postponed depending on economic conditions. the government is being careful. later this month, it will start discussions with about 50 experts on the impact of the tax hike and on possible delays. japanese officials say they

need to reduce government debt to restore fiscal health. raising the consumption tax could help. the question is whether the economy is strong enough. more from nhk world's. >> reporter: shoppers in tokyo are crowding the store, many looking for a robot vacuum cleaner. they are not detoured by the average price tag of about $600. store managers say sales are strong. rice cookers are also popular. a staple item in japanese homes and its high-end models are doing the best business >> translator: i'm interesting in saving products even if they cost more. i thin they're worth it >> translator: i think the market is improving. people are getting better

bonuses and they're starting to loosen the purse strings. >> reporter: home and electronic stores are not the only ones that are benefiting. this auto dealer says luxury cars that cost as much as $50,000 are getting traction and the dealer plans to expand its showroom. >> translator: more customers now want to drive a car that stands out and that's why sales are booming. >> reporter: but corporate capital spending remains sluggish compared to increasing consumption. some 300 workers at the factory are making window sashes. the company president says demand in april to june quota was up 20% more than he

expected. it's plant is operating at capacity as new houses and apartments go up. >> translator: these are the new machines that we invested in. >> reporter: he says limiting capital investment in recent years. this year, his company spent $300,000 on the machines, more than three times he spent last year. but the factory has several machines that are more than 20 years old and saiki says he can't afford to replace them for the time being. he says orders are increasing, but profits are not. and there's no way to know how long demand will continue to

grow at this pace. >> translator: i think it's too soon to decide to invest more in the economy just because the economy has improved. you can't take that step until you are certain that orders will increase. >> reporter: experts say the government should introduce policies to encourage companies to spend more. they say this is essential to sustaining japan's boding economic recovery. >> firms are burdened with excess facilities and have no reason to build more if the government does not introduce incentives such as tax breaks, firms may invest abroad. >> reporter: the economy is starting to pick up, but the outlook remains unclear. the mind of prime minister abe as he

is set to decide whether to raise the consumption tax as planned. daisuke azuma, nhk world. time to check on stocks across the asia-pacific region. investors seem a little more optimistic about the chinese economy, trade and industrial production figures. therefore, july showed some signs of stability. mainland chinese shares led the gains, shanghai rose 2.39% at 2,101. in hong kong, shares extended their advance to three days, the benchmark hang seng finished 2.13% higher at 22,271. investors bought major issues including real estate sectors. australian shares rebounded 1.06% to 5,108. a rise in metal prices helped to boost mining shares, the country's major business sector. in tokyo, unexpectedly low

fwchltgdp numbers weighed on the nikkei, which fell after a volatile section. trading volume was the lowest for the year as many were on holiday. creating more demand, first year-on-year rise in years. japan's energy consumption for fiscal year 2013 will be up 0.7% from the year before. this is a reversal of declines following the march 2011 disaster. the reason is the rise in power usage by retailers and hotels on the back of an economic recovery. steel and cement plants are also using more energy as they ramp up production. meanwhile, household energy use continues to drop. officials at the institute say japan's consumption may rise further in 2014 if the global economy continues to improve.

japanese wholesale prices rose in july as a weaker yen pushed up the cost of raw materials. bank of japan officials says the corporate goods index climbed half a percent in june, a month-on-month increase except for may this year. utilities surgeried over 5% month-on-month. gas and oil rose more than 2%. and food up 2% due to the rising cost of wheat and bread. japan is jockeying for more positions in myanmar but they lost out on a bid to build a new airport near myanmar's biggest city. the contract will go to other companies from other asian countries. myanmar officials said sunday they selected a consortium of

fis to build the airport, handling 12 million travelers for the year. the contract for expanding the old airport went from china, singapore and malaysia that will work with local firms on the deal. it will likely be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. shinzo abe visited myanmar, accompanied by executives from companies bidding for those jobs, including airport operators and construction firms. israeli leaders have approved the construction of about 1,200 new homes for jewish settlers in occupied palestine territories. it comes after the two sides decided to meet after three years. israeli and palestinian negotiators agreed to try to

reach a peace agreement within nine months. the talks had been stalled, mainly due to disagreement over israel's construction of jewish settlers on occupied land. the israeli government said sunday that tenders were being issued to build new homes in part of the west bank and east jerusalem. >> and why? who does these things? determined to undermine the peace negotiations, determined to force people like us to leave the negotiations. >> analysts say the latest decision by israel is designed to appease settlers who are concerned about the peace talks. the settlements are considered illegal under international law. near the capital of afghanistan, kabul. at least 22 people have died. the downpour flood a rural area over the weekend. many victims were found inside

vehicles and six children were among the dead. rescue teams are searching for those reported missing. a stretch of hillside that collapsed, destroying the foundation of several homes. many people were visiting relatives in the area to celebrate the end of ramadan. >> translator: it was dreadful flooding. i wanted to evacuate the children from the house. but in less than ten minutes, it was destroyed. >> government officials in afghanistan have been on alert since last week when flash floods killed more than 60 people near the border with pakistan. u.s. marines have resumed their transfer of a controversial aircraft to a base in southern japan. people in okinawa have long been concerned about the safety record of the osprey and the crash of a u.s. military

helicopter last week hasn't helped. nine ospreys arrived at futenma from a base in iwakuni, partitive group of 12 aircraft being moved. two of them had flown to futenma at the start of the month. 12 were deployed there last october. the helicopter crash took place during a training mission last week. one airman was killed. u.s. military suspended the osprey transfer following the accident. and as the osppreys arrived at futenma, more than 100 people gathered outside the base to vent their anger. protesters held up the signs opposing the osprey deployment. some staged sit-ins, blocking the u.s. from the entrance >> translator: we've seen too many accidents involving u.s.

planes. i've even seen ospreys fly over schools. i really can't take this anymore. >> some protesters became involved in scuffles with the police. shinzo abe says the japanese government will continue pushing forward with the deployment of ospreys. >> translator: my administration will continue working closely with the united states to properly implement our bilateral agreement. i'm determined to do all i can to reduce the burden of american military bases on the people of okinawa. >> families of the victim's of japan's deadliest air accident are returning to the site on the 20th anniversary, climbing a mountain to the spot where the plane went down. it took off from tokyo's haneda airport. it suffered mechanical failure and crashed into a ridge.

families of the victims and airline officials began scaling the mountain early monday. many of them head up every year. some believe they can communicate with the souls of those they lost. >> translator: time flies. i feel the accident happened just last year. but i reported to my sister that all of us have spent another year safely. >> many offer their prayers in frent of the cenotaph offered at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crashed.frent of the cenotaph o at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crasherfrent of the cenotaph of at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crasheofrent of the cenotaph ofd at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crashefrent of the cenotaph offered at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crashetfrent of the cenotaph offered at the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crashe of the cenotaph offered t the crash site. 6:56 pm, the time that the plane crashed. tourists from near and far are setting across one of

japan's most scenic highways to see the vistas around an inland sea. many prefer to see the sights not from a car window but the seat of a bicycle. >> reporter: 60 kilometers of highway, 10 huge bridges and l some of the finest views in japan, but it is not only for cars. alongside the road there are also cycle lanes. the highway links shimanami kaido. 80 meters above the sea and with nothing above but sky, it's a spectacular ride. >> translator: this road high above the ocean, it feels great. >> reporter: there are plenty of bicycle rental stations so this route is possible popular now with foreign visitors, too. >> it's beautiful.

>> reporter: this man works with an npo. it's aim is torevitalize towns along the highway with bicycle tourism. he has been cycling all his life. over ten years, he visited 88 different countries and territories by bike. along the way, he met many people and received lots of encouragement. this interaction with local people was what he found most rewarding. he wants to create that same experience for visitors here. >> translator: it has beautiful views and it's a great sensation riding over the bridges, but i think the real fun is being able to meet and talk with local people. that is the essence of cycling. >> reporter: the npo has created a network of local residents and local government bodies that

people can call on for help in the event of a bike-related accident or injury. local mechanics and gas stations act as so-called rescue points where broken parts can be repaired. a taxi company keeps rescue taxis on call to help in case of breakdowns or injuries. local guest houses have formed a network of cycle oasis where visitors on two wheels can rest up. besides free air for tires they provide water and use of their restrooms. there are more than 20 of these oasis along the islands of the route. >> translator: we just came up a steep hill so we needed to take a break. it's nice to have a place like

this. >> reporter: hotels are responding to this growing demand. since bicycles can cost over $1,000, guests here are allowed to bring their bikes into their rooms. there is special equipment in the lobby for cyclists to tune up their bicycles, perfect for enthusiasts who like to travel with their own bikes. >> translator: i really appreciate all these amenities and being able to bring my bicycle inside. sfwlrt we're glad that cyclists are coming here to enjoy the view as they slowly ride along the highway. we welcome them to stay with us. >> reporter: it doesn't matter what you're riding as long as you're exploring on two wheels,

they have a welcome for you, promoting itself as japan's top city for cycling and the world is spreading to the rest of the world. there's a violent typhoon over the philippines. meteorologist robert speta is back with the details on that. robert? >> well, yeah, gene. typhoon ator. we were watching that last week and now here into monday morning. it made landfall here in northeastern luzon, one report of a casualty out of this. 114 people are still missing, many fishermen that encountered waves up to 10 meters high. dangerous stuff. now moving away from the west coast of luzon. it dropped a tremendous amount of rainfall, damaging winds. landfall about 250 kilometer-per-hour winds. the storm just made landfall today but we also had one push

through last week as well. we saw heavy rain totals from that, farther north with this one pushing through here as well. you're seeing these widespread, heavy accumulations across the philippines. very serious risk of flooding the next 24 to 48 hours. as this tracks west, inflow of moisture wrapping around it. even in manila, don't be surprised if you see low-lying accumulation of the water. and then into -- well, southern china, where the storm system is heading next. we had mangkhui push through, and jebi before that. this one looks like it will be farther to the northeast. it is expected to intensify. high winds and waves along with it, 100 to 250 millimeters generally expected out of this once it makes landfall about into the afternoon hours on wednesday. we want to continue to keep a very close eye on this very potent and powerful storm

system. farther to the north, northeastern china, looking at heavy rainfall here. low pressure area is pushing through. that could cause flooding here as well. and across -- well, we were talking about the heat, still those thunderstorms flaring up here. even widespread power outages in tokyo this evening. tokyo, korea and central eastern china, we are seeing this high pressure in place. it is just keeping things hot. it's not just japan. temperatures are reflecting this. out of tokyo, still above average here. chongqing up to 30 as well. uisan in korea, you're above average throughout the mid part of the week. let's head over to the americas. severe weather in the central plains. last week we were talking about serious flooding out here. it looks like a cold front is diving in from the north right

now, bringing yet more heavy rainfall in kansas, oklahoma. ping pong sized hails, winds out of this storm system as it drifts down to the south. another system moving towards the atlantic seaboard. this will not be as potent but it's still bringing storm systems and ushering in colder air behind it. dry, cooler air mass coming in out of canada. winnipeg, toronto, you'll see temperatures go from the mid 20s down to the low 20s and even the high teens, especially in the overnight hours, by mid week. that's a look at your world weather. here is the extended forecast.

many of japan's big summer festivals are getting into full swing in the middle of a heat wave. the most popular is the awa odori in western japan. about 700 dancers from 33 groups turned out sunday in tokushima city. they performed to the sounds of flutes, drums and the traditional three-stringed instrument, the shamisen.

>> i really enjoyed the dancing by so many groups together. i look forward to the festival. >> the dancing isn't done. dancers will keep moving until thursday. that's "newsline" for this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo. for all of us here at nhk world, thanks so much for joining us. have a great day, wherever you are.

tavis: good evening. from los angeles, i am tavis tonight a conversation with grace lee boggs, who nearly 98 years old, has affect did change. she worked alongside her husband, activist james talks.

are glad you could join us. a fascinating conversation with grace lee boggs is coming up now. >> there is a saying that dr. king had that said there is always the right time to do the right thing. i try to live my life every day by doing the right thing. we know that we are only halfway to completely eliminating hunger and we have work to do. walmart committed $2 billion to fighting hunger in the u.s. as we work together, we can stamp hunger out. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. tavis: at almost 98

years old grace lee boggs has been a witness to so many changes, but she has also been a participant. she has learned important lessons she is sharing with new generations through her can tame you'd work in her home cap -- continued work in her hometown of detroit. >> i feel so sorry for people not living in detroit. detroit gives a sense of civilization in a way you do not get in a city like new york. obvious what was does not

work. striving forways giant, and this is how giants fall. to have youhonored on this program. i am glad you are here. >> i am glad to be here. >> let me ask you what it is about detroit that makes you hopeful. aboute you so optimistic detroit's future? was a picture of the packard motor company. it is now 38 years