NHK WORLD

Nursing care provider bankruptcies hit highest ever in 2024 first half Bankruptcies of nursing care providers in Japan hit their highest-ever level in the first half of 2024. Credit reporting agency Tokyo Shoko Research says a record 81 care providers went bankrupt between January and June. The number of failures with liabilities of 62,000 dollars or more during the period went up by 27 compared with a year earlier. The figure is significantly larger than the previous record of 58 set in 2020 and the highest since recordkeeping began in 2000. Forty of the failed businesses provided home visit nursing care, while 25 offered day care services or short stays. Nine were residential nursing homes. All three sectors reported the highest number of failures for this period. Some 80 percent of the nursing care providers, accounting for 64 providers, cited low profitability. Tokyo Shoko Research attributes the failures to an acute labor shortage and a surge in utility and other prices. It notes that in particular, a number of the businesses got caught in a negative cycle of being unable to secure enough workers due to their poor business performance. The research firm says the trend will likely continue due to uncertainties in the labor market and soaring prices. #Japan⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

Biden to meet Democratic congressional leaders following shaky TV debate The White House says US President Joe Biden will meet Democratic congressional leaders this week. The move comes after last week's televised debate fueled calls for his withdrawal from this year's presidential election. Biden's shaky performance during the event against former President Donald Trump prompted a major US newspaper to publish an editorial calling on Biden to drop out of the race. On Tuesday, Democratic Representative Lloyd Doggett issued a statement saying, "Instead of reassuring voters, the President failed to effectively defend his many accomplishments and expose Trump's many lies." The statement says Biden should make the painful decision to withdraw. US media say Doggett became the first congressional Democrat to openly make such a call. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Tuesday, "We understand the concerns. We get it the President did not have a great night." She added, "This week, the President will speak with Hill leaders and Democratic governors." Biden apparently intends to continue his election campaign. It has been announced that he will begin visiting two battleground states later this week for campaign events. #World,#US_presidential_election,#US⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

US to give Ukraine 2.3-billion-dollar security assistance package US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has revealed the United States will soon announce that it is sending Ukraine more than 2.3 billion dollars in security assistance. Austin unveiled the plan during a meeting with Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov at the Pentagon on Tuesday. Austin said the US will "continue to provide critical capabilities that Ukraine needs to push back Russian aggression today and to deter Russian aggression tomorrow." He added that the package will include air defense interceptors and other critical munitions. Austin's revelation comes ahead of a NATO summit in Washington next week. The leaders are expected to discuss support for Ukraine at the meeting. Umerov expressed his appreciation for the planned assistance. He also said that he is looking forward to discussing how Ukraine can become a member of NATO in the future. #World,#War_in_Ukraine,#US⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

Ukraine media: Zelenskyy dismisses ceasefire proposal by Hungarian PM Orban Ukrainian media say President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's proposal for a temporary ceasefire with Russia. Orban made the proposal on Tuesday during his meeting with Zelenskyy. The Hungarian leader, who is known for his pro-Russian stance, arrived in Kyiv earlier in the day for his first visit to Ukraine since Russia began its full-scale invasion of the neighboring country over two years ago. Orban revealed at a news conference after the meeting that he urged Zelenskyy to consider speeding up peace talks by making a ceasefire first. Ukrainian media quoted Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Ihor Zhovkva as saying that Zelenskyy dismissed the proposal. Zhovkva reportedly said the president "listened to" Orban, but in response, he "stated Ukraine's position -- clear, understandable, and well-known." Zelenskyy has expressed his position of pursuing his peace plan, which includes the withdrawal of Russian forces, saying a ceasefire at this moment is solely in Moscow's interests. Hungary holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union from Monday through the end of the year. Continued Russian attacks further victimized civilians in Ukraine. The governor of Dnipropetrovsk says Russian attacks with missiles and drones killed four people and injured 27 in the eastern Ukrainian region on Wednesday. #World,#War_in_Ukraine⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

Taiwan urges China to release fishing boat, crew Taiwanese authorities have urged China to explain why it seized a Taiwanese fishing boat off the coast of southern China on Tuesday night, and to release the vessel and the crew. The Taiwanese boat was inspected by two Chinese coast guard vessels in waters off Fujian Province. It was then taken to a port in the province. On Wednesday, a senior official of Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration told a news conference that five Taiwanese and Indonesian crew members were on board the fishing boat. The official said the inspection took place outside the waters within which Taiwan claims jurisdiction, although the spot was close to the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Islands. He said it was inside Chinese territorial waters. The official called on China not to use political factors to handle the matter, and quickly release the crew. Noting that Beijing has unilaterally set a no-fishing period in the waters from May to August, the official said the Chinese side may have determined the boat had violated the rule. Taiwan's coast guard says there have been three cases in which Taiwanese boats were subjected to inspection by Chinese authorities for alleged violation of the fishing suspension rule, but they were released within two days. In waters near the Kinmen Islands, China's coast guard has stepped up routine patrols after a Chinese fishing boat, which was allegedly fishing illegally, capsized while being chased by Taiwanese maritime authorities in February. #Asia,#China,#Taiwan⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

UN voices concern over Israel's new evacuation orders for Gaza The United Nations has expressed strong concern over the Israeli military's latest evacuation orders for people in parts of southern Gaza. The Israeli military on Monday ordered people in Khan Younis, Rafah and other parts in the south to immediately leave. At a regularly scheduled news conference on Tuesday, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the orders apply to 117 square kilometers, or about one third of the Gaza Strip. He noted that about 250,000 people will be forced to evacuate, making it the largest evacuation since October when the fighting began and residents were ordered to leave northern Gaza. Dujarric said, "An evacuation of such a massive scale will only heighten the suffering of civilians and drive humanitarian needs even higher." UN Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag reported at a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday that 1.9 million people are displaced across Gaza. Kaag said the new evacuation orders' impact on the civilian population is deep and that "nowhere is safe" in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month said the phase of intense fighting in the Gaza Strip was about to end. But some media outlets say the Israeli military is continuing attacks in multiple areas as Hamas moves to regroup. #World,#Israel_Hamas_conflict⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

Japan issues first new banknotes in 20 years Japan issued new banknotes for the first time in 20 years on Wednesday. A ceremony was held in the morning at the head office of the Bank of Japan in Tokyo's Nihonbashi. BOJ Governor Ueda Kazuo said that the bank plans to put 1.6 trillion yen, or about 9.9 billion dollars, worth of new banknotes into circulation on the day. He said that while cashless transactions are becoming more prevalent, he believes that cash will continue to play a major role as it is a reliable payment method that can be used by anyone, anywhere and at any time. Ueda added he hopes that the new notes will become widely distributed among the public and serve as a lubricant for the Japanese economy. Shortly after 8 a.m., the central bank handed over batches of the new banknotes to financial institutions. Many financial institutions are expected to limit the handling of the new notes to select branches on Wednesday. The face of the new 10,000-yen note is Shibusawa Eiichi, a businessman known as the father of the modern Japanese economy. He was involved in the launch or development of about 500 businesses. The new 5,000-yen note features Tsuda Umeko, who was among the first Japanese women to go abroad for education. The new 1,000-yen note has a portrait of Kitasato Shibasaburo, a bacteriologist who developed a cure for tetanus. Under the latest redesign, the banknotes incorporate the latest hologram technology to make them more difficult to counterfeit. The National Printing Bureau said this is the first time the technology has been used on banknotes worldwide. They also feature universal design elements, with the denomination displayed more prominently in numerals than in kanji characters to make them easier for foreigners to use. #Japan,#Biz_Tech⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

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Japan Prime Minister Kishida sends message of condolence to India over stampede Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has sent a message of condolence to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi following a fatal stampede in the state of Uttar Pradesh. At least 121 people died at a Hindu religious gathering in northern India on Tuesday, in the country's worst stampede in years. Kishida said in the message that he was deeply saddened that many precious lives were lost. He offered his heartfelt condolences to the victims and their bereaved families. The prime minister added he is praying for a swift recovery to those who were injured. #Japan,#India⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld

Japanese hotels turn to Indonesia to ease staff shortage Indonesia and Japan are tightening cooperation to secure people to work at Japanese hotels. Japan's tourism industry is suffering serious labor shortages as visitors return following the end of the pandemic. The Indonesian and Japanese governments organized a 2-day-event in Jakarta that began Tuesday to promote Japan's service industry. About 30 hotels from across Japan participated. The Japan National Tourism Organization estimates that over 3 million travelers visited Japan in May, topping the number for the same period in 2019. An organization consisting of hotels and inns across Japan says many workers left their jobs during the pandemic. Now that the tourists are back, hotels are desperate to find enough workers. At the event, Indonesian job seekers got to directly ask personnel from Japanese hotels about necessary qualifications. One participant said many Indonesians find Japan attractive, first for salary and also because Japanese workplaces seem to be well-disciplined. Indonesia's Labor Market Center head, Muhammad Yusuf, emphasized that Indonesia is going through a population boom, and has potential for Japan, which is facing an aging society. He also said the government will back up young people who seek job opportunities in Japan. #Asia,#Tourism,#Japan,#Indonesia⁣ Read Full Article HERE @NHKworld