sources say shingingko tokyo is considering a merger with the tokyo ty financial group. shingingko would then become the group's subsidiary. the tokyo government owns about 80% of shingingko's voting shares. if the merger goes ahead, the bank would exchange those shares for those in the financial group. shingingko was bailed out with about $330 million at current rates by the tokyo government following the financial crash of 2008. the funds were taken from taxes paid by tokyo citizens. the tokyo government has promised the tokyo metropolitan assembly the value of the funds will not be marked down. >>> it is time now for "view from the top." manga has emerged from japanese subculture to become famous across the world. top manga author has made millions of fans with her distinctive storylines. nhk talks to her about how she comes up with her ideas. >> reporter: in the movie an ancient roman time travel to modern japan and experiences its public baths. the box office hit and about $50 million. the movie was adapted from a comic by mari yamasaki. she broke the common boundar

the first stop was a bonsai museum north of tokyo. the museum features about 70 trees crafted in the traditional style. this is the first time they have seen so many high-end bonsai. this pine tree is thought to be about 500 years old. >> standing 1.6 meters or 5'2" this bonsai is one of the largest in this museum's collection. >> yeah. very -- very amazing. i'm quite overwhelmed. >> reporter: the highlight of the tour is an opportunityo meet a world-famous craftsman, kimura. this is one of his masterpieces called dancing dragon. kimura developed special machines to shape the winding trunk with intricate curves. last year alone, visitors from 30 countries took part in the tour. it's contributing to a growing interest in bonsai and a boost in exports. >> do you have one favorite tree? too hard. very, very beautiful. yeah. it's something you could only really dream about, having yourself a collection like this. i definitely recommend it to other people, too. >> yeah. >> translator: when people who take the tour get back home they talk a

i'm james tengan in tokyo. welcome to this hour's "newsline". we start off with a quick look at the hour's headlines. islamic state militants seized almost all of the syrian city of palmyra. unesco fears a world heritage site in the ancient city could be at risk. >>> a japanese doctor born in china is using her medical and communication skills to build a bridge between the two countries. >>> the islamic state militant group has taken control of most of the syrian city of palmyra. concerns are rising that ancient monuments in the city listed as a unesco world heritage site could be damaged. the syrian observatory for human rights says the militants forced government troops to withdraw after fierce fighting and seized a large swath of the city. palmyra is in a strategic location, along a highway linking damascus with areas controlled by the group. it is not yet known whether the fighters have entered the district of the city containing an ancient temple and monuments. the structures date back 2,000 years. the syrian government has been trying to f

stay tuned for newsroom tokyo live at the top of the hour. i'm james tengan in tokyo. thanks for watching. headlines. a breakthrough in southeast asia on the mike green -- on the migrant crisis. they will take in thousands of people stranded at sea, but not for longer than one year. the iraqi army says it has pushed back an attack by islamic state militants outside ramad i. the isp to go over that -- the i ask route took over that s week. the president in burundi postpones elections by a week. also coming

japan must seriously address threats ahead of the 2020 games in tokyo. they cited the kill of japanese nationals by islamic state militants. the incident made it clear japan faces threats. he referred to a group of seven summits scheduled for next year in japan as requiring special attention. >> translator: i want the intelligence network expanded so that we can gather all terror-related information accurately. >> he also wants more information to help bring home nationals abducted by north korea. the japanese government says north korean agents kidnapped at least 17 citizens in the 1970s and '80s. and he said the country's building up its military strength by developing nuclear and missile capabilities. >>> preparations are being made for japan's prince and princess to visit brazil in the autumn. japanese government officials say they'll attend events to commemorate 120 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries. the prince and his wife will start their two-week trip in late october. they'll meet the brazilian president in the capital and a

tokyo, going to be seeing some decent weather. as i mentioned, some areas of the plain could see some thunder, 26, partly cloudy skies. take a look at the americas. severe weather continuing to erupt here across the central plains. we do have those thunderstorms still flaring up in some fairly heavy precipitation working in with that. also there is the risk of some hail and even tornadoes coming out of this. meanwhile, the other side of the country, there into new england, another storm system, working its way out the door, but the big thing i think with this is we have the cold air wrapping in behind it. temperatures will be going down, even some snowfall possible in parts of ontario as well. new york, high of 22. look at toronto, chicago, just 8 and 14 there for your high. wrap things up here in europe. big topic here is this swirl on the satellite picture extending off of that, the cold front pushing down there toward the south, tail end of that, another low. the big thing all of this is bringing that threat of some rather roug

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> japanese investigators are learning more about what caused a south korean airliner to skid off the runway in hiroshima one month ago. they're closing in on what went on in the cockpit in the final minutes before the passenger jet touched down and they say the pilot may have failed a landing attempt. investigators say the asiana airlines airbus a-320 approached at an unusually low altitude. it clipped a communications antenna at the end of the tarmac before the pilot made a hard landing. the jet then veered off the runway before coming to a stop. more than 20 passengers were injured. officials with japan's transport safety board released their analysis of data from the flight recorder. they say the aircraft started to lose too much altitude after the pilot switched from automatic to manual control. they say that happened one minute before the accident, and they say the pilot then tried to lift the plane's nose about two seconds before touching down by applying full engine thrust, b

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> soccer's world governing body is trying to show it's business as usual amid allegations of corruption. fifa has opened its congress as scheduled. sepp balloter has failed to accept responsibility for the scandal. >> i cannot monitor everyone all of the time. >> balloter made his first appearance since u.s. authorities indicted nine high ranking officials including two vice presidents. authorities say the men took the money in exchange for swaying the outcome of the body's past presidential election, the selection of host nations for the world cup and broadcasting rights. balloter said he vowed to find a way to fix things. balloter is running for his fifth term in office. reactions are coming in from around the world. former brazil striker and current senator romario slammed the officials. >> translator: the most corrupt body in soccer is the brazilian federation and worldwide it's fifa. >> the president of uefa met with reporters ahead of the fifa congress. uefa is under fifa's um

may grand tournament in tokyo. he has been battling a serious leg injury outside the ring, but he has been fighting hard to show fans he is back to championship form. nhk world's hiro morita has that story. >> reporter: -- is from georgia in the caucuses. he is 192 centimeters tall and weighs in at 167 kilograms. his build and a strong pair of legs give him considerable power in the ring. he has experience in judo and in sambo, a martial arts form developed in russia. he won second place at the junior world sumo championships in 2005. -- made his debut in the world of professional sumo in 2006. he achieved a promotion to the highest division in just over two years, among the fastest promotions in sumo history. in the 2011 may tournament, he was in the championship race until the final day. in the end, he lost to a yokozuna grand champion. in the 2013 july tournament, he ruptured a ligament in his right knee. the injury forced him to miss four straight tournaments. his ranking fell from the top division to the third

i'm james tengan in tokyo. welcome to "newsline".we start off with a quick look at the hour's top stories. >>> the new u.s. commander for the asia-pacific region has tough words for china about the spratly islands. >>> japanese lawmakers are now engaged in heated debate in the diet over proposed new security legislation. >>> and american and swiss authorities have indicted several high ranking members of football's world governing body on suspicion of taking millions of dollars in bribes. >>> there's a neumann at the helm of u.s. military forces in the asia-pacific. admiral harry harris has shown he's prepared to deal with the flury of activity in the south china sea. [ applause ] >> reporter: harris was speaking at a change of command ceremony in hawaii. he said the u.s. base has no shortage of challenges but ready to meet them. [ applause ] >> from north korea with its quest for nuclear weapons and means to deliver them to china's claims and land reclamation in the south china sea. the u.s. will rebalance to the pacific. our joint

for that, from the tokyo stock exchange is mayu yoshida. we saw the nikkei marking the longest rally in 27 years. how is the market starting off? >> it's pretty strong. good morning, ai. the market is strong. so let's see exactly where the levels are right now. shares are rising for 11 days in a row now. the nikkei is in the positive at 20,558 and the topix is up .2%. however analysts are saying that tokyo markets are overheating as the nikkei gained 5% in just one day. we may see profit taking today. looking at thursday on wall street, the dow jones closed down .2%. and the tech-heavy nasdaq retreated to close at 5,097. investors at new york sold stocks after a negative handover from china. the composite slumped 6.5% yesterday and thursday and posted the biggest slump in seven years and four months. basically we're seeing a pause in the global rally in stock markets. so we look to see if the profit-taking move will spill over more to tokyo. in fact while foreign investors are on a buying spree of japanese stocks japanese retail investors a

from the tokyo stock exchange. how are things looking? >> positive here. record highs set in the u.s. and higher bond yields and the dollar rose as well. that should be a boost for exporters here. let's have a look at the nikkei. we are reaching levels we haven't seen since april 28th and i'm talking about just about touching the 20,000 level. we were one point shy of that. we'll see how that develops in the morning session. the nikkei ended at the highest level in three weeks on monday. investors looking more to returned talking about dividendance buybacks as a sign of strength. insurers propelled on monday and today might be the turn of non-life insurers media reports said all three major non-life insurers in japan including tokyo marine holdings are expected to show record profits. analysts pointing to stronger returns in auto insurance, lower benefit payouts and a lot of overseas acquisitions by non-life insurers in japan. also in the tech sector apple shares rose 1% in new york. carl icahn urging apple to buy

market players stayed on the sidelines. >>> the supply of new condominium in greater tokyo area fell to a 23 year low in april. sluggish demand in the suburbs is dragging down the overall market. the real estate economic institute says april saw nearly 2300 units come on the market in tokyo and three neighboring prefectures. that's the lowest figure since 1992 for the month of april. down 7.6% year-on-year marking a decline for the four straight month. rising construction cost led to a drop of units but officials predict an upturn in coming months. they say condos in large come pleases will come on to the market from june in the city center where there's demand from affluent home buyers. >>> japanese authorities are debating what to do about drones. recent accidents have prompted calls for stricter regulation. yet business people say the unmanned aircraft provide speed and efficiency. that's the case with a japanese insurance company which is using drones to investigate traffic accidents sites. the footage gives investigators a close up and detailed view of accident sites. they say t

about 70 gathered in a park in northern tokyo. they prayed and lit candles that formed an outline of their country. >> translator: i hope the nepalese will recover the way the japanese did after the disaster in 2011. >> the group is planning a fundraising event for later this month. >>> scientists have noticed a rise in the number of earthquakes at a mountain near tokyo. they have been conducting a survey a volcano that may spill out gas on a small scale. the meteorologists have examined a valley on the northern slope of mt. hakone. they checked how vapor was spewing from springs and measured the temperature. the number of earthquakes near the mountain surface has been increasing since april 26th. they found a force of the vapor has grown stronger. >> translator: the pressure of gas from underneath has become slightly stronger. we'll study the data and decide eruption level. >> a tourist facility overlooking the valley is crowded with visitors. but a hiking trail is closed. >> translator: it's a little bit sad, but i want to enjoy

nhk world, tokyo. >> thank you for that report. members of japan's ruling democratic party are seeking ways to put pressure on north korea. they plan to form a, woing group to consider increasing sanctions over the country. north korea set up a special committee last july loo took into the fate of the missing japanese including those abducted. pyongyang has failed to report on their investigation. the lpd will operate under the task force party issue. the members will consider reenstating the restrictions between the countries that were put in place last year and they will discussion additional economic sanctions. they same to decide on the sanctions before the summer. the size of the task force said they will do all they can to put pressure on north korea so progress can be made in resolving the abduction issue. the japanese government says north korean agents kidnapped at least 70 japanese nationals in the 70s and 80s, 12 are still unaccounted for. >>> people are heading to the polls to cast their votes in england. david cameron

tokyo. welcome to "newsline". here are some of the stories we're following this hour. >>> the bbc is projecting prime minister david cameron's conservative party will secure a majority in the nation's general election. judge saudi arabia has offered to suspend air strikes against rebels in yemen to allow delivery of humanitarian aid. >>> and we look at recent talks between a key member of taiwan's political leadership and china's president. >>> british prime minister david cameron says he's ready to don't lead a united country. nearly all the ballots have been counted in thursday's general election and the nation's public broadcaster is predicting cameron's conservative party will secure a majority in the house of commons. the bbc projects the main governing party will clinch the majority of the seats. >> i want my party and i hope a government i would like to lead to reclaim a mantle we should never have lost a mantle of one united nation one united kingdom that's how i will govern if i'm fortunate enough to form

look at this for monday. 30 in tokyo. 32 in beijing.'re seeing these temperatures really moving up. and then on tuesday, we saw temperatures very similar to these. and i think we're going to see these warm temperatures continue. look at this. high pressure continues to control the weather as we progress into wednesday. the areas down toward the south, we are seeing that rainy season front in place. so we will continue to see the wet weather, flooding concerns are in place. we may even see a few strong thunderstorms popping up. you notice these purple shades. those are where the heavier rain bands should be developing as we go into wednesday. please keep that in mind. still very warm temperatures in place even in the areas where we are seeing the rain. 30 in taipei. 31 in hong kong. 34 down toward manila. we're seeing a repeat of warm conditions from beijing to tokyo as we go throughout wednesday. now, if we look forward into the forecast and seeing if we're going to see a cooldown that's not going to be the case. look at this thursday f

tokyo will be hot at 29 degrees.ere in the americas severe weather is happening from texas into the great lakes region. anywhere along this we're likely to find thunderstorms on the severe side and even tornados. this system has spawned at least 15 tornado touchdowns just on monday afternoon hours. that is likely to spread all the way to the east. the temperatures are in the 30s in washington, d.c. i'll leave you now for your extended forecast. >>> and that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. [ mid-tempo music plays ] [ paper rustling ] [ dog barking ] [ dog whines ] [ wind whistling ] [ wind whistling ] [ engine turns over ] [ engine revs ] [ engine shuts off ] [ rainfall footsteps splashing ] "film school shorts" is made possible by a grant from maurice kanbar celebrating the vitality and power of the moving image, and by the members of kqed. announcer: "euromaxx highlights," host: good evening. the latest trends year, fashion and photography festival. cryst

i'm ross mihara in tokyo. >>> international rescue teams in nepal are gradually reaching isolated villages cut off by last saturday's massive earthquake. more than 6,200 have been confirmed dead in nepal. over 100 more in countries nearby. more than 13,000 people were injured. nhk world's yuichi tabata has details. >> reporter: about 2.8 million people are living in tents or temporary structures, anything to protect them from the elements. many are struggling with the physical or mental health problems. medical teams from japan's self-defense force has been examining survivors at the square in central kathmandu. the square has become a makeshift campsite. six days after the earthquake, many survivors are still too scared to stay indoors. people lined up to receive medical treatments. >> translator: it's been impossible to take my child to hospitals since the quake. but finally we saw a doctor. and i'm happy. >> translator: we're just the initial responders, so what we can do is limited. but the main team will

we are joined by ramin mellegard at the tokyo stock exchange. what are you seeing this tuesday morning? >> good morning, ai. we are seeing investors taking a note from the selloff we saw in the u.s. with the nikkei slightly lower and the dollar, however is in the 120-yen range. let's have a look at how the nikkei and topix are kicking off tuesday may 12th. the nikkei is lower and the topix is up .1%. the nikkei may be supported by the view the u.s. economy is on a path to recovery and shares may also be supported after china cut key rates for a third time in six months in a bid to shore up its committee. the question is when will the u.s. raise its key interest rates and if further economic stimulus measures may come from china. head winds remain with regards to greece as finance ministers met yet again to discuss funding for greece. and let's not forget asian markets may be a big focus. shanghai composite was the star performer and that jumped up 3% after the rate cut by the central bank bouncing back after falling over 5%. let's not forget las

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for staying with us. -on this edition of "native report," we attend a summer youth program at the university of wisconsin-eau claire, we visit leech lake tribal college and learn about the development of the campus, and we revisit the "cobell" litigation. - --by having all these lands held in trust for individual indians. -we also learn something new about indian country here from our elders on this "native report." narrator: production of "native report" is made possible by grants from shakopee mdewakton sioux community and the blandin foundation.

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> u.s. government officials say they plan to sell osprey transport aircraft to japan's self-defense forces. they say the planes will boost japan's ability to work with the american military. the sale needs the approval of congress before it can go ahead. government officials told congress about the plan. the deal is worth an estimated $3 billion. japan's ground self-defense force hopes to take possession of 17 aircraft by 2019. the u.s. says the planes will enhance japan's ability to carry out humanitarian relief. the announcement comes after japan and the u.s. agreed on new defense cooperation guidelines. officials in tokyo and washington say the aim is to strengthen the alliance and enable japan to play a more active security role. >>> children in nepal could face another challenge after surviving last month's powerful earthquake. officials say the quake damaged or destroyed thousands of schools in the country. they say the prospect of many children returning to classes any time soon is sl

house and senate leaders held a ceremony at the capitol honoring the doolittle tokyo raiders for their service during world war ii. the 80 man volunteer unit conducted the first air raids on japan in april, 1942, four months after the attack on pearl harbor. speakers include mitch mcconnell, nancy pelosi and dick durbin. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the majority leader of the united states senate, the honorable mitch mcconnell. [applause] >> good afternoon everyone. welcome to the capital. normally, speaker boehner would reside over this ceremony. over the weekend, his younger brother rick passed away. the speaker is with his family today in southwest ohio. he asked me to send his deepest regards and regrets that he is unable to be here. today, pursuant to hr 1209, we will present a congressional gold medal to the doolittle tokyo raiders. the gold-medal represents congress' highest expression of gratitude for distinguished achievements and contributions. it is being presented to the doolittle raters for their -- doolittle raiders for the outstanding heroism during world war ii.

tokyo will be hot at 29 degrees.ere in the americas severe weather is happening from texas into the great lakes region. anywhere along this we're likely to find thunderstorms on the severe side and even tornados. this system has spawned at least 15 tornado touchdowns just on monday afternoon hours. that is likely to spread all the way to the east. the temperatures are in the 30s in washington, d.c. i'll leave you now for your extended forecast. >>> and that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. announcer: "euromaxx highlights," host: good evening. the latest trends year, fashion and photography festival. crystal cloud, a sparkling sensation somewhere in the austrian else. taking things to the limit at the german obstacle course. terrace, london, and milan are still the hubs for mainstream fashion here in europe but the who's who of the industry also have a much more eclectic and intimate -- in the french city of hyeres.

this probably helped tokyo markets. i'll keep track of tech shares especially sony since it announced it will cut about $720 million in costs over two years in its smartphone business. and other stocks i will track is yamada holdings after announcing a new online service. >> the dollar hit 124 yen and backed off a big. give us an update where it is now. >> it is losing that momentum because now the dollar is around 123.74. but given that it was 119 yen just a few weeks ago, you can tell that it is still pretty strong. and a senior currency dealer i talked to said that the dollar could reach 130 yen by year end because the u.s. will probably raise rates while japan may launch easing measures. moving on to the euro. it's at 1.0890 against the dollar overnight. but it is inching up as greece's debt situation prompted some to buy back the euro. the shanghai composite rose to a seven-year high extending its gains to seven days. but other markets closed lower and some investors are concerned that a possible rate hike in the u

weather from our studios here in tokyo. we start off with a quick look at the hour's top stories. >>> officials around the world are voicing concern about china's expanding maritime ambitions in the south china sea. >>> japanese lawmakers have start ad heated discussion over the possible use of the right to collective self-defense under new security legislation. >>> and major restoration work has been completed on a castle, a unesco world heritage site in western japan. many people are eager to see the castle's fresh new look. >>> chinese government leaders are breaking ground on a controversial construction project in the south china sea. they are building lighthouses on the spratly islands. world leaders are taking notice and voicing their concerns. >> reporter: state-run tv in china is reporting what will be the next major project on the disputed spratly islands. it says two large lighthouses will be constructed on the reef. a foreign ministry spokes person said the project is for peaceful purposes. >> translator: the li

i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. >>> italian police say they have arrested a man suspected of being involved in a deadly attack in tunisia. they say he arrived in the country on a migrant boat. they describe him as a 22-year-old from morocco. they say the man crossed the mediterranean with migrants on a smuggler's boat in february. italian authorities say they ordered him to leave the country but don't know where he went after that. his arrest is getting criticism from groups. tunisia is hunting for several suspects on the attack on the bardo museum in due nis. 22 people were killed. >>> in other news, the foreign ministers of thailand, malaysia and indonesia, have held emergency talks on the thousands of migrants adrift off their coasts. most of the migrants are row hin ga migrants from myanmar. they have agreed to continue to shelter them. the thai foreign minister withheld a decision suggesting that a legal progress was needed. >> reporter: amid increasing international pressure, the foreign ministers of the three

i'm catherine kobiyashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us. >> 2015 is the un's international year of soils designed to raise awareness of the importance of the ground we walk on. and, as if that weren't reason enough to be focusing on all things earthy, then it just so happens to be global soil week as well, with experts of more than 70 countries meeting here in berlin. hello and a very warm welcome to global 3000, where we have the following stories coming up. parched earth -- concern over worldwide threats to soil quality sun, skis and snow -- meet the people skiing for a new afghanistan

i'm raja pradhan in tokyo. >>> japanese prime minister shinzo abe's speech to the u.s. congress is not going over well with opposition parties back home. they remain divided on whether to support the use of the right to collective self-defense. abe told american lawmakers his nation is determined to enact new security legislation by this summer. this would include bills enabling japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense. governing parties have shown understanding of abe's pledge but opposition groups remain critical and plan to question the prime minister's stance in diet deliberations. >> announcer: >> translator: japan's diet is not a subcontractor of the u.s. congress. >> edano said as a state representative, abe's remarks are inappropriate. japan innovation party leader eda says the prime minister is neglecting the public and the head of the japanese communist party secretariat says abe is disregarding japan's independence and sovereignty. the government and ruling parties hope to begin deliber

i'm james tengan in tokyo. welcome to "newsline". we start off with a quick look at the hour's top stories. >>> intelligence officials in seoul say north korea's defense chief may have been executed for not obeying leader kim jong-un. >> in philadelphia five people are dead and more than 50 are injured after a passenger train derailed and tipped over. >>> a strong earthquake has rocked northeastern japan. authorities say there's no major damage but warn another tremor may hit within days. >>> south korea's intelligence officials say north korea's defense chief may have been executed for treason. the move follows the purge. officials from the national intelligence service gave the update on twoed a parliamentary committee in seoul. they say minister of people's armed forces hyon yong choi was shot to death at a firing range in the capital late last month. they suspect he was executed after not obeying kim jong-un and expressing his dissatisfaction. he visited moscow shortly before his death. he held talks with his russian counterparts

oç >>> it's a friday evening here in japan i'm james tengan in tokyo.welcome to this hour's edition of "newsline". we start off with a quick look at the hour's top stories. >> a volcano on a southern japanese island is erupting. hot rocks and gases are reaching the shore and everyone has evacuated. >>> a diet committee debating security bills broke up on friday after lawmakers walked out. >>> a new survey shows people in japan and south korea realize the importance of the relationship between the two countries but still have negative views of each other. >> a volcano in southern japan has erupted. officials have issued the highest level warning and ordered all the residents to >> mt, shindake exploded a little before 10:00 a.m. friday local time. it sent up a 9,000 meter column of smoke. 140 people live on the island. one resident said he heard a huge explosion when the volcano erupted. officials say rapid flows of gases and rocks have reached the coast. >> translator: more strong and large scale explosions could happen. we want people where explosions

i'm ross mihara in tokyo. taiwanese officials say they are checking food from japan much more closely. the japanese agricultural minister says they had no scientific grounds. taiwanese authorities banned food from parts of japan in 2011 because of the fukushima nuclear accident. but produce from those areas showed up a couple of months ago. that prompted consumer groups to call for tighter restrictions. all food imports from japan now have to carry certificates of origin. some have to be checked for radiation. japanese agriculture minister called the new rules extremely regrettable. >> translator: taiwan acted unilaterally without any scientific grounds. >> he said he'll urge the taiwanese to retract their new restrictions. he said he may file a complaint with the world trade organization unless they act. >>> chinese authorities have punished another citizen who called for more democracy. prosecutors indicted a prominent human rights lawyer they'd been holding for more than a year. they charged him with provok

the committee will discuss tokyo's revised plan to conduct research whaling. the international court of justice last year ordered japan to stop the program. the court ruled that it does not meet sign tick standards. japanese fisheries ministry hope to resume research whaling towards the end of the year. >> translator: we will try our best to have the members of the committee understand that scientific basis of our new plan. >> japanese government officials are offering to reduce the number of whales caught to one-third of the previous plan. >>> finance ministry officials have released data showing that japan is still the biggest creditor nation. they say the gap between value of overseas assets held by japan and what foreigners own in the country is the widest in the world. the officials refer to that difference as net external assets totalling nearly $3 trillion. third straight record high and 24th year in a row when japan has ranked as the world's top creditor. firms say weaker yen boosted the value of foreign stocks and bonds owned by japanese citizens. >>>

i'm keiko kitagawa in tokyo. thanks for staying with us. ' 'l. anne: hello and a very warm welcome to "euromaxx highlights," where we put together the best bits of the week for you. let's have a look at what's coming up. dynamic designs -- danish architect bjarke ingels is in big demand all over. traveling man -- gunther holtorf spent 26 years driving around the world. and living sculptures -- artist willi dorner presents performance art of a different kind. "think big" is his motto, so it's no wonder architect bjarke ingels has won numerous accolades and awards for his work. the dane is one contemporary architect with a plan to make sustainability practical and easy to do.

we haven't had any rain during the golden week in tokyo, by the way. now warmth because of the warmth cherry blossoms started to bloom in eastern hokkaido 11 days than normal and earliest on record. a high pressure system is ambulance kepting many parts of the japan with the exception of the south. southern portions of the japan especially okinawa will see rainfall and thunderstorms as we go into thursday. the same front is also affecting the south of china more heavy rain is likely as we go into tomorrow. this is the start of the rainy stone for you. more heavy rain is falling over the waters due to a severe tropical storm. this is the storm noh. it has been near the island of yap. has been causing stormy conditions in the island over the past couple of days. it has caused about 110 kilometers of gust. it's expected to intensify even further because of sea surface temperatures. it's about 30 degrees warm enough to provide ample moisture to the system. it could intensify to a very strong system by the time it approaches the east coast of the philippine

on friday, the walkers arrived in tokyo at the end of the journey.hk world's reporter has more. >> reporter: people from japan and south korea kick off their walk with a celebration in seoul. the journey has been held every two years since 2007. participants walk most of the day. they average about 30 kilometers a day. the majority of them are japanese. it's difficult for participants to get to know each other. it makes for quite a journey. >> translator: we decided to promote friendship between south korea and japan by experiencing some of the hardships felt by those who worked to improve bilateral ties. >> reporter: one of the workers is yo un he's an 11th generation grandson of a man who led an envoy in japan in the year 1607. on this day yo and the other participants hike through a deep pass, a key passage. >> translator: it was cold and the wind was blowing. when i climbed the pass, i was sweating. during the dissent, i shivered because of the cold, but our ancestors had even more difficulties back then. >> reporter: during a break, japanese and

now, tokyo, again, will see another round of 30s. will leave you now for extended forecast. >>> that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for staying with us. stacey thunder (voiceover): on this edition of "native report," we visit harvard university and learn about the archaeology and history of the indian college at colonial harvard. we meet robert anderson, visiting professor at harvard law school. and from the "native report" archives we take a look back at a story about the federal recognition process. we also learned something new about indian country and hear from our elders on this native report. announcer: production for "native report" is made possible by grants from the shakopee mdewakanton sioux community and the blandin foundation. [music playing]