The u. S. State Department Says north korea proposed holding peace talks to formally end the korean war sometime before its Fourth Nuclear test in january. But both sides failed to agree on conditions for the meeting. Spokesperson john kirby said on sunday that the Obama Administration considered pyongyangs proposal. He said the administration asked north korea to include denuclearization as part of the talks, but the country rejected it. Kirby did not say exactly when north korea made the proposal. Pyongyang has repeatedly asked washington to end what it calls a hostile policy towards it. The u. S. Position is that it will not start any dialog unless north korea takes concrete action towards denuclearization. The fighting in the korean war ended in 1953, with an armistice instead of a peace treaty. Experts on north korea are analyzing pyongyangs intentions. The professor is from the university of shizuoka, and he says after obtaining nuclear capability, they were trying to maintain stability in the region by improving their relationship with the u. S. Second subject is to conclude that some peace treaty with the United States, it means, well, to make a much more deeper assurance for their own security or the peace and stability on the korean peninsula. So therefore, its not a contradiction. On the one hand, they see some nuclear capability. But on the other, also, they ask the u. S. To sit down to start the talk for a peace treaty. And that was professor from a university of shizuka. A swedish think tank says china has almost doubled its weapons exports over the past five years. It says chinas now the Third Largest arms exporter. The latest report by the Stockholm International Peace Institute says more arms were transferred worldwide between 2011 and 2015. Thats kpards to the compared to the previous fiveyear period. China posted the largest growth among the three largest exporters, up 88 . China posted among the three largest exporters, up 88 . But the report says chinas share of Global Exports at 5. 9 is still well behind the United States and russia. Beijings main customers were pakistan, bangladesh and myanmar. China has dropped to become the Third Largest importer after india and saudi arabia. A Senior Researcher with the institute says china continues to expand its military capabilities with imported and zpeskically produced weapons. Im gene otani with a look at the business stories were following today. Bank of japan governor howard kurda has stressed the positive outcome at a Lower House Budget Committee meeting. Translator its a firsttime experience for japan. So the reality is that the reactions been varied. The policy will encourage commercial banks to lower rates on loans. That, in turn, boosts lending. We want people to understand that the policy has positive effects to stimulate the economy. Kuroda says the central bank will continue to deliver sufficient and flexible easing measures to the economy in the aim to achieve its 2 inflation target. Checking the markets, tokyo stocks ended higher, thats after the broader topix index had its best Weekly Performance in six weeks last week. We go to the Tokyo Stock Exchange reporter. Reporter when you take a look at major exporters they were quite sluggish. This means investors are still worried about the global economy. Although those stocks ended the day higher, trading was choppy throughout the day. The nikkei closed up at 16,111. And topix at 1,300. Take a look at the dollaryen pair. There was a breather taken during tokyo trading hours, which should be good news for exporters. Tech and auto sectors were quite sluggish with toyota and sony ended lower. Suntory rose 5 . Investors were busy cherry picking stocks that were less vulnerable to global fluctuations. Analysts set up over a rate cut in india are diminishing. We also saw gains in the hong kong dollar and stocks in china but there is a waitandsee stance ahead of the g 20 meeting later this week. Moving on to other markets in the arab asiapacific region. Shanghai, finished at 2927. The highest percentage in four weeks. They replaced the top securities regulator. Many investors hope the new chief will promote reforms in the market. The upward momentum helped hsi, 19,464. Seouls kospi ended almost flat, 0. 01 rise. Singapore edge higher to hit a 1 1 2 month high, led by property shares. Sydney is up almost a percent. Japans memory chip business is getting a Second Chance in china. Nhk has learned a Company Founded by Japanese Semiconductor engineers will work with a neighboring asian country. Theyll make electronics used in cell phones and other products. South korean manufacturers eventually took over the market. Japans last remaining manufacturer, elpida went bankrupt in 2012. The Company President and some engineers started a Semiconductor Research firm last year. Sources say the engineers have now decided to work with china to manufacture chips. The city plans to invest about 7 billion. It has already started constructing the plant and expects production to start in two years. They will make profits by providing Technology Without having its own factories. It will employ about 1,000 engineers. The sources say the firm has already entered similar talks with other local authorities in china. Japanese food manufacturers are seeking new markets as a free trade deal in the horizon will bump up competition. The big sell for them is health and quality. And theyre showing their presence at one of the Worlds Largest food trade shows in the middle east. Some 5,000 companies and organizations from 120 countries are at gulf foods in dubai. Japans pavilion is aimed at healthconscious consumers. Theres green tea, amino acid containing soft drinks and supplements. Visitors can try highquality brands as well as wagyu beef. Translator japanese foods still havent penetrated the market in the middle east. I think well create a lot of Business Opportunities by promoting the products. Organizers expect more than 90,000 buyers at the fiveday event. Heres a look at other business stories were following today. Super market sales across japan in january increased for the first time in three months. Japan Chain Store Association says sales totaled more than 10 billion. Up administer than 2 from a year earlier. Sales were good for food and clothing. Shipments of Home Appliances in japan topped 150 billion yen or more than 1. 3 billion in january. Up 9 from a year earlier and a ninth straight month of year on year increase. Officials say popular items were bigger refrigerators to reduce Shopping Trips and pricier washing machines for larger loads. The average price for new condominiums in japan hit a record high. The average was about 46 million yen or 410,000. Thats up more than 7 from the previous year. The rise reflects increases in Construction Costs due to surging material prices and labor expenditure. Medical care is part of the Employee Benefit package for many japanese companies. The firms think they mean Lower Health Care costs. Local banks are eyeing corporations who share that thought and have started to provide incentives. Reporter at this Waste Disposal firm in hiroshima prefecture western japan, keeping workers healthy has become a high priority. A single sick worker at a Small Business like this can have a significant impact. So they pay for Health Checkups and theyve hired an instructor to conduct stretching classes to keep their staff in top form. Translator healthy employees are essential to ensuring the companys longterm health and promoting job security. In the long run, the initiative will be a big help in attracting workers. Reporter but such efforts dont come cheap. So executives turned to a local bank with an intriguing new loan program. It offers preferential rates to those who keep their employees healthy. They include measures to curb passive smoking. The applicants receive one of four grades. The higher the grade, the lower the interest rate. Translator we offer local firms proposals that can really help their operations. Its something other banks dont provide. And when our clients perform better, we do too. Reporr bank ficials recently visited a major local Food Processor to introduce the loan program. They presented the review criteria to help Company Executives evaluate how valuable their Health Promotion efforts had been. Translator we hope youll use this, regardless of whether you decide to go with our loan program. Translator i can identify with the contents. I think its an interesting program. Were really grateful for this independent assessment. We believe raising the overall level of enjoyment in the workplace will have a positive effect. Reporter Health Conscious Management Practices like these could help firms across japan improve their odds of attracting talent and stretch their limited resources even further. Thats it for business news. Ill leave you now with the markets. People in new zealand are marking five years since a powerful earthquake struck the Southern City of christchurch. The magnitude 6. 3 quake rocked the city on february 22nd, 2011. The tremor caused massive damage, killing 185 people. About 3,000 people gathered at a Memorial Ceremony in a park in the city center on monday to remember those who died. But we must acknowledge that there are still many people who have unanswered questions. People with unresolved insurance claims. People who are still living in the houses that were damaged five years ago. [ bell tolling ] participants observed a minute of silence at 12 51 local time, the exact time the earthquake hit. Each of the victims names was read out. Translator as a parent, its still heartbreaking to think that my daughters life was lost. Bereaved families were among those who visited the most severely damaged areas to offer prayers for their loved ones. Five years on, frustration is growing among residents as they still wait for their homes to be repaired or rebuilt. Nhk reports. Reporter Hugo Christensen has a sinking problem. We have shrunk by 60 centimeters, and therefore, we are expected to continue sinking. This is very, very upsetting. Reporter he lives on the eastern side of christchurch. Near the sea. Five years ago, the earthquake cracked the outside walls of his house. One side of his house has been leaning ever since. And in the city center, theres gradual signs of recovery. 80 of the buildings in downtown christchurch collapsed or were severely damaged in the 2011 earthquake. But the operation to tear down condemned buildings has still not been completed. Developer nick hunt was forced to tear down all five of his office buildings. Were prepared in to Start Building until those issues have been dealt with, and that took quite a long time. Reporter he began rebuilding two years ago. Renting his space is another challenge. Theres been a bit of inflation, obviously, in the building industry, and thats pushed the prices up. The challenge has been getting the tenants. Reporter all of the frustration came to a head sunday. People gathered in the city center to protest. Theyre upset with how the government is handling earthquake damage claims. Christensen was one of the organizers. In new zealand, home buyers ar autotically rolled i rthquakensurancerograms, which is administered by the National Earthquake commission, a government agency. Christensens house was assessed for damage, and he applied to receive earthquake insurance benefit, but he says little progress has been made in settling the claim. The ceo of the Earthquake Commission says time is needed to determine whether the sinking ocrred becse of th earthqke or for other reasons. We had a sequence of earthquakes over 18 months. So we had repeated damage upon damage, so we have to go back and reassess houses and reassess property as we went through. Reporter about a week ago, a magnitude 5. 8 earthquake rocked christchurch. It caused pavement to liquefy. Damage to roads that had just been repaired from the 2011 quake. Christensen says he has thought about just leaving, but the government holds the key to his freedom. They should just pay out for the land, pay out for the house and allow us to move on. Reporter he says until that happens, he remains tied to his house like a prisoner. Nhk world, christchurch. A group of elderly japanese fishermen exposed to u. S. Nuclear bomb tests 60 years ago are demanding help from the government. They will seek workrelated compensation. The u. S. Conducted the hydrogen tests on the bikini atoll in 1954. Over 1,000 japanese fishing boatwere in e area athe time of e tests. 23 fisrmen wershoweredith raation anone diedix mohs later othersay they were also exposed. A Citizens Group representing seven fishermen plans to apply fobenefitsn friday doctors who support the claims say their exposure to radiation caused cancer and other diseases. Translator i hope the government will approve our application and that others will also be compensated. If approved, the former fishermen and their bereaved families will receive back payments for the health cost as well as higher pensions. We all know that hearing a Favorite Song can improve our mood or make us feel sentiment. Scientists say there could be a medical benefit especially for people with did he minute that dementia. Nhk explains how. Reporter this woman was diagnosed with dementia four years ago. She comes here once a week for treatment. She was an Elementary School teacher. She sang this tune with students every year at graduation ceremonies. Translator it reminds me of those days long ago. Young children standing next to their mothers. Those memories come flooding back to me. The main goal of this type of Music Therapy is to slow down memory loss. The key is to find the right song. Staff begin by finding out the patients life story and what kind of music they like. The therapists look for pieces that make an emotional connection. They have learned that for many patients, when they listen to music that has a Strong Association with their past, they are able to recall events more easily. Translator music helps bring back more and more vivid memories of past events and the patients develop a clearer sense of their own identity. Reporter neuroscientists are intrigued. They are trying to figure out why music alleviates the symptoms of did i minute dementia dementia. One of them has research that indicates Music Therapy may improve brain functio in dementia patients. He examined the activity of six alzheimers patients while they were singing and tracked them for six months. He observed changes in flow of blood to one part of the brain. Translator singing songs requires complex cognitive activity. First the patients listen to the music. Next they analyze the tempo and pitch, then they start singing along. I believe this helps to improve their brain function. Reporter with more Scientist Research in this field, Music Therapy for dementia patients is likely to be heard in hospitals around japan. So therapeutic. One of the most pawrl storms powerful storms on record in the Southern Hemisphere battered the fiji islands. Lets go to our meteorologist sayaka mori. Cyclone winston hit fiji on saturday. It was the strongest cyclone ever to hit the country, it was a category 5, the strongest category for a cyclone. Wind gusts of over 300 Kilometers Per Hour were reported. Several villages were destroyed. This is the satellite imagery when the center of the eye moved over the Central Island of fiji. It affected many areas. We have some pictures coming out of fiji to show you the stormy conditions. Category 5 winston made landfall on the north coast of fijis main island around 7 00 saturday. At least 17 people were killed. Trees were uprooted and buildis were severely damaged. Authorities declared a 30day state of emergency. But the airport reopened monday morning because the system is pulling away from the island, but it is still a strong system and packing winds of over 170 Kilometers Per Hour. Its still a category 4 cyclone. So its a monster storm. But instead of moving over toward the west, heading toward New Caledonia or vanuatu, its going to move down towards the south. So these islands will be escaping the worst of it. Whoevers north of new zealand will be battered by gusty conditions for the next several days. This system will likely affect fiji for the next couple of days. So we are looking at heavy rainfall and heavy winds for the next three days, at least. Across australia, extremely high temperatures can be found across the northeast. Sydney, the average high is 37, but the average high could be up to 34 degrees, seven Degrees Higher than normal. And melbourne, 37 degrees on tuesday. Please stay hydrated. But with the cold front coming in, we may see temperatures going down to 23 degrees in melbourne on thursday and temperatures go down to the 20s in sydney on friday. Lets go to japan. We saw heavy snow in the next 24 hours,ut rightow high pressureystem isausing clear conditions, but things are getting wet across the wes espeally kyuu. Rain wilmove intthe shiku regi as well some swers expted in t tokyo region starting tonight going into tuesday, but not going in too heavy. Now as for temperatures in sapporo, temperatures at 2 degrees on tuesday with snow expected, but starting on your wednesday, it will continuing into friday. And as for tokyo, its going to be a perfect day for going out on wednesday. 12 degrees for a high with partly sunny skies. Lets go to the other area of asia. Calm conditionacross t northernalf of cna, including beijing, but rain is falling heavily across Mainland China and rain will be expected across taiwan. We have aid wind advisory posted in the island. Wind advisory po in the island. Now as for temperatures on your tuesday, 9 degrees expected in shanghai, 4 degrees in seoul and right on target in beijing, 4 degrees for the high, and minus 11 in ulan bator. With partly sunny skies. Thats all for now. Next, your threeday forecast. Thanks for joining us here on newsline. Be sure to watch newsroom tokyo at the top of the hour. Gn hello and welcome to live from paris. I am claire pryde. The headlines the pound slides after the mayor of londons shock decision to back the brexit campaign. David cameron prepared to give mps the details of leslies meeting with e. U. Leaders. As violence continues in syria with more than 100 People Killed sunday, john kerry announces a deal has beens truck with russia through partial truth rid a referendum to let bolivia hospiras and, eva morales
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