preparing to ease sanctions on north korea. they've been trying to determine the fate of japanese nationals abducted in the 1970s and '80s. north korean authorities have promised to create a panel to reinvestigate what happened. the japanese are responding by easing economic penalties. prime minister shinzo abe and some of his ministers met to review talks earlier this week between japanese and north korean delegates. they learned north korean authorities would allow investigators to look into any organization in the country. and the ministers agreed the inquiry would be effective.

>> translator: we've come to understand that north korea will set up an investigative panel that can make decisions with the national defense commission at the forefront. >> in return, japan will ease restrictions on travel and on financial payments sent to north korea. and it will allow north korean ships into japanese ports for humanitarian purposes. chief cabinet secretary yoshihide suga says leaders in pyongyang promise to report back in the next few months. japanese officials will set up direct channels of communication, including a telephone and fax line. they say in the past, north korean authorities have not been honest about what happened to the abductees and they want to monitor the progress of the investigation. many other japanese share those concerns. they want to know how far the north koreans are prepared to go. representatives of the national defense commission and the secret police will sit on the

panel. investigators will be divided into four groups, each of which will cover a different area. they'll examine the fate of the abductees, other missing people, those left behind during world war ii, and spouses of north koreans. and finally the remains of those who died around the end of the war. some analysts fear those looking into the abductions will have difficulty investigating the agents who carried out the kidnappings. they say it's hard to dig up information on secret missions. the families of the abductees will meet later on friday with prime minister abe. they fear the north koreans will not carry out a thorough investigation and they don't want abe to back down. izuka leads the group. his sister went missing in 1978. he and megumi disappeared in 1977. they're expected to ask abe to

proceed carefully and to determine what north korean authorities are trying to do. leaders in pyongyang agreed ten years ago to carry out an investigation. they submitted what they claimed were the remains of megumi yokota. but dna analysis indicated the remains were not hers. some are concerned this investigation may not bring the abductees home. in other news, chinese president xi jinping is now meeting with his south korean counterpart park geun-hye. in talks in seoul the two leaders confirmed their countries will work closely on the north korean nuclear issue. the trip marks the first time a chinese leader has gone to south korea before visiting the north, china's long-time ally. >> reporter: xi began his two-day visit to south korea on thursday. after attending a welcome ceremony, he held talks with park. >> translator: if south korea and china join hands to create a

new northeast asia, the dream of the two nations will spread across the region. >> translator: i want to hold in-depth talks on a broad range of international and regional issues of concern to china and and south korea. >> reporter: after the meeting, the two presidents said they agree to strengthen bilateral ties in a wide spectrum of fields. they said the two nations will work hard to conclude a free trade accord by the end of the year. the leaders also expressed strong concerns over north korea's nuclear program. >> translator: we have agreed to work for the denuclearization of north korea and strongly protest its nuclear testing. >> translator: we will support efforts to make concrete progress on denuclearizing the

korean peninsula through negotiations in such frameworks as the six-party talks. >> reporter: xi and park are trying to rein in north korea's nuclear ambitions and hardline stance by jointly delivering a tough message to pyongyang. kunihiro yamamoto, nhk world. health ministers from 11 west african nations have adopted a new strategy to try to contain the worst-ever outbreak of the deadly ebola virus. the ministers and officials from the world health organization have been discussing the matter at a two-day emergency meeting in ghana. delegates called for immediate action. they said steps taken so far have been insufficient. the latest ebola outbreak began in guinea in march. it has since spread to neighboring liberia and sierra

leone. the number of confirmed and suspected cases in the three countries has reached 759. 467 people have died. >> the impact of this outbreak has been enormous in terms of loss of human life and negative effects in socioeconomic life. >> the delegates have agreed to increase surveillance and information-sharing. they will also set up a subregional control center in guinea to oversee coordination. efforts to contain the outbreak have been complicated because it covers such a wide area. w.h.o. officials say they think it will take u.n. workers several months to get the disease under control. kurdish leaders in iraq have taken another step in their drive for independce. but iraqi leaders are trying to block their efforts.

the kurds' leader called on regional lawmakers to lay the groundwork for a referendum in the kurdish autonomous region. barzani says he intends to hold the vote within the next several months. kurds make up 20% of iraq's population. they have long been at odds with the government and prime minister nuri al maliki has resisted any attempts toward independence. but over the last several weeks, sunni militants have launched an offensive across northern and western iraq. kurdish fighters have taken advantage of the instability by seizing disputed territory. they've taken control of kirkuk, site of one of the country's largest oil fields. but the kurds face opposition from turkey and iran, both of which have large kurdish minority populations. the family of a palestinian teenager is planning to say good-b good-bye. his family believes he was murdered in a revenge killing.

hundreds of palestinians took to the streets of east jerusalem in protest. some hurled firebombs and stones at israeli police. several people were injured. the boy was last seen on wednesday being forced into a car. he was found later in the day in a wooded area. his body reportedly had wound marks on it. many palestinians believe somebody killed him in retaliation for the murders of three israeli teenagers. the teens were abducted last month. their bodies were found earlier this week. israeli leaders blame the members of the islamic resistance group hamas. some israelis posted messages online calling for retaliation. u.s. president barack obama is waving around the latest u.s. jobs figures and he says they show the recovery is taking hold. ai uchida joins us from the business desk with some of the numbers. >> economists have complained throughout obama's tenure that he needs to get more americans working. in fact, some have suggested the

economy should be adding at least 300,000 jobs every month. well, obama is getting closer. the people who crunch the numbers do not include farm jobs in their figures. those vary too much from month to month. but u.s. employment growth has jumped and the jobless rate provides evidence of a healthy economy. labor department officials say in june, nonfarm employers beat analysts' expectations and added 288,000 jobs. more workers found jobs in the health care, food, retail and auto industries. and department officials revised their figures for the previous two months, adding a total of 29,000 jobs. the unmoment rate for june fell to 6.1 percent, the lowest level since september 2008. obama is talking up the figures. he says hard-working americans have helped put the economy back on track.

>> we just got a jobs report today showing that we have now seen the fastest job growth in the united states in the first half of the year since 1999. >> but obama said many workers are still struggling and he wants to put more money in their wallets. >> we still have not seen as much increase in income and wages as we'd like to see. a lot of folks are still digging themselves out of challenges that arose out of the great recession. >> obama said lifting wages will encourage people to spend more and have ripple effects throughout the economy. investors bought stocks on the jobs numbers. wall street hit fresh highs and analysts say the upbeat mood carried over to tokyo. the nikkei opened higher and is just shy of the 15,500 level last seen back in january.

investors are buying shares in export others a stronger dollar against the yen. the jobs numbers triggered a wave of dollar-buying. the u.s. currency is now back above the 102 yen level. in fact, the dollar is stronger against most major currencies including the euro. still, people who track the markets say trading may be a little quiet today. u.s. investors have already started their independence day weekend. and indeed we are seeing modest moves on other asian markets. south korea's kospi up just a touch. shanghai's key index is in negative territory by about a tenth of a percent. in hong kong the hang seng up by .20%. chinese leaders have been putting the supports in place to reinforce their economy. and they're seeing signs their efforts may be paying off. financial leaders checked the government's monthly purchasing managers index to check the state of manufacturing. a figure above 50 indicates growth. a figure below points to a

contraction. in june, the official index climbed to 51, the best reading since december. people are also seeing some heartening numbers on industrial output, retail sales, and capital investment. they all gained momentum in may. let's find out what economists make of the data. dickey long is the executive director of research at kingston securities in hong kong. thanks always for joining us, dickey. how do you feel about the numbers? >> good morning. >> good morning. how do you feel about the numbers that we've been seeing? >> well, generally speaking the data definitely was improving. as we all know, signs of recovery. no matter the official pmi-51 is at a six-month high and also other data. hsbc market was over 50. basically if we talk about the

pmi data alone, definitely was improving. even we take a closer look to like new orders, as you said, orders, economic data like retail sales, also property markets, i do clearly see the signs of recovery in chinese economy. >> what do you think could derail this recovery, dickey? >> well, i will not say the word derail, but definitely you're right, because like 7.5 gdp growth this year, as premier xi said before, it's not something easy to achieve. i do believe that the chinese government needs to introduce new and even more fiscal policy and monetary policy to boost overall domestic consumption. because as we all know, the chinese government, anti-corruption is the first thing they need to do but it may hurt high-end consumer good

sales. so they need to do something to compensate and to boost the domestic consumption to achieve the gdp growth. >> and how soon do you think leaders could put some measures in place? >> this is not an easy question to answer. but i guess within this year, they may do some kind of fiscal and monetary policy. but actually, they did. like the targeted reserve requirements, ratio cuts for those banks. they do more lending for those rural areas. and also medium-size to small-size firm. they introduced that. and i do expect some kind of tax reform will be introduced in third quarter then in the fourth quarter to boost overall domestic consumption. not talk about the very high-end consumer goods but talk about the mid-year consumer good toth achieve the economic growth. >> now, officials announced a

7.4% growth in the first quarter. second quarter numbers will be out in a couple of wee. what are you expecting there? >> well, my expectation is so simple. i think it will improve. overall, on the year on year basis or compared to first quarter, i expect when we see the gd pchp growth on july 16th will be like 7.6. this is my forecast. >> 7.6, okay. >> yes. >> we'll be watching out for those numbers. dickey, thank you very much for your time, director of research, executive director of research, excuse me, at kingston securities in hong kong. experts at the world bank have asked japanese officials for help on a matter that's close to home. th've collaborated on a report to help developing countries prepare for natural disasters. the report draws on lessons from the earthquake and tsunami three years ago in northeastern japan.

the disaster severed transport routes and paralyzed manufacturers. the report says businesses need to be well prepared so they can keep going in the event of a catastrophe. and it says government leaders should make sure they have protective infrastructure and evacuation plans in place. the report says authorities should use radio and smartphones to share information. it says it's impossible to avoid natural disasters, but effective planning can lessen the damage. that's the latest in business for this hour. i'll leave you with a check on markets.

we're just getting an update on our top story this hour. the japanese government has formally decided to lift some sanctions on north korea. it made the decision as the north's new panel is about to start reinvestigating cases of japanese citizens abducted by its agents decades ago. japan is lifting three sanctions on north korea. they cover restrictions on travel, money transfers, and port calls by ships. once again the japanese government has formally decided to lift some sanctions on north korea. more details as they come in. some visually impaired japanese soccer players have squared off on the pitch. they competed in a national tournament and they've also used the event to showcase their new sport to intrigued fans.

>> reporter: players running back and forth on a soccer pitch. an ordinary scene, except they cannot see the ball. japan's blind soccer championships were held at the end of june. 12 teams from around the country competed in the tournament. bearings placed inside the ball produce a rattling noise. sound is critical in the absence of visual information. players also rely on the instructions of a teammate standing behind the goal. this person is known as the caller. >> sho! shoot! shoot! >> reporter: verbal communication is an essential aspect of blind soccer. this player has been selected to train with japan's national squad. he started playing blind soccer in junior high.

now he's hoping to win over more fans. >> translator: blind soccer teaches people all kinds of things, for example, the value of communication. i'm hoping people will go and try it out for themselves and then watch a real game at a stadium. >> reporter: this boy is on his way to an elementary school on the outskirts of tokyo. the visit is part of a special program to let children experience this unique sport. >> by giving them the opportunity of interacting with someone like me, i am hoping they will understand that being disabled is not such a big deal, that i'm not so different from them. >> reporter: the children begin by wearing a blindfold and following vocal instructions. >> translator: stop. go left.

a bit further. >> reporter: once they feel a bit more comfortable, the children can start chasing and passing the ball, also based on vocal instructions. >> translator: it was pretty scary. >> translator: now i see how tough it is to be blind. >> reporter: in april, the japan blind football association started offering training programs to private companies. 50 junior employees of a real estate company are taking part in today's session. >> translator: i want you to blindfolds. improve your teamwork with these blindfolds. improve your teamwoe blindfolds. >> reporter: this exercise involves running straight toward a teammate. participants find it very difficult to run at full speed if they don't trust their partner.

in this other game, the blindfolded player is placed inside a circle. the point is to try and touch the ball as it's passed around. here again, other members use their voice to guide the sightless player. the objective of this drill is to improve focus and communication. >> translator: exercises like these put you in someone else's shoes. they are essential to our job as salespeople, because we have to be able to think from our customers' perspective. >> reporter: strong teamwork is a key element in many sports. the extra skills required for blind soccer are making it increasingly popular beyond the world of the visually impaired.

>> the blind football world championships take place every four years. athletes will compete again this november in tokyo. it is time now for a check of the weather. people in the u.s. state of north carolina are dealing with the effects of a hurricane. meteorologist sayaka mori gives us the details. >> the first atlantic hurricane of the year is impacting the eastern parts of the carolinas with drenching rain, damaging winds and also storm surges. because it's a compact system, it can hold the strength easily and also because the water is quite warm enough to support the system, the system has turned to be a category 2 system packing gusts of 160 kilometers per hour in the center at this moment. now, the center could probably reach the eastern edge of north carolina tonight as a hurricane and then stay close to the east coast of the u.s. as we go into friday. and then make it nova scotia as

a low pressure system by your friday night local time. the carolinas will continue to deal with stormy conditions for the next several hours. we're expecting up to 200 millimeters of rain which could cause coastal flooding as well as landslides and tornados are not out of the question. two tornados have already been sighted in north carolina. to the north, because of a different system which is a cold front enhanced by this tropical moisture caused by arthur, lots of severe weather is already happening in the mid-atlantic coast up into the new england states. lots of damaging winds and large hail have been reported. and extremely heavy rain is falling in and around new york city as well as washington, d.c. rain is falling at a rate of 15 millimeters. sighted in many places.ready that's your forecast on your thursday. but by your friday, your independence day, the sun day come out in washington, d.c. with the departure of arthur in

the afternoon hours. boston remaining on a wet side throughout your friday. enjoy some indoor activities. new york city mostly rainy, however, clear conditions will come back by the nighttime hours. i think the firework events should be okay. los angeles, sunny weather with extremely high temperatures. so watch out when you use fire because it has been quite dry. severe weather is affecting the western continent. we had hailstorms yesterday, take a look. a freak hailstorm on thursday surprised resident in spain. it fell for more than ten minutes and blanketed the ground in white with hailstones from the size of a marble to as big as golf balls. severe weather also struck other locations. powerful rainfall triggered flooding and traffic disruptions. over 200 lightning strikes hit the town in almazan where 70% of

the houses were severely damaged. the severe weather is still continuing in the border of france as well as spain. the system will likely make its way toward the low countries as well as germany as we go into the next 24 hours. staying dry and sunny in the london area throughout your friday. but turning stormy as we go into your saturday. paris, thundershowers are in the cards for you on friday with a high of 26 degrees. finally over east asia, we have a tropical depression nearby the southern areas of the marianna islands. it could intensify to a tropical storm and move north. a seasonal rain band is affecting central parts of china. shanghai will see lots of heavy rainfall on your friday. here's your extended forecast.

be a update on our lead story this hour. the japanese government has formally decided to lift some sanctions on north korea. it made the decision as the north's new panel is about to start reinvestigating cases of japanese citizens abducted by its agents decades ago. japan is lifting three sanctions on north korea. they cover restrictions on travel, money transfers, and port calls by ships. the japanese government has formally decided to lift some sanctions on north korea. more on this developing story as details come in. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. we'll be back at the top of the hour. hope to see you again then.

good evening from los angeles. i'm tavis smiley. tonight first a conversation with the creators of the freakonomics franchise steven d. levitt and stephen j. dubner. it was a best selling book and then a documentary, a radio show, and now a blog. now they're back with a new freakonomics called "think like a freak." love the title. then we'll pivot to a conversation with fwramy and tony winning singer jennifer holliday. after 23 years hiatus she's back with a new album after "dream girls." the song is you and she'll close out tonight with a performance. we're glad you joined us. a conversation and performance from jennifer holliday coming up right now.