February 1, Monday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara and Ms. Emma Howard
1. Syria’s government says Sunday’s deadly bombing attacks in a Damascus suburb were supported by opposition groups taking part in the UN.-mediated peace talks in Geneva.
2. The 6th Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD, will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, in August.
3. Israeli government says it will build an official area where men and women can pray together at Jerusalem’s Western Wall.
February 2, Tuesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. The World Health Organization has declared the current outbreak of the zika virus as a public health emergency.
2. Delegations from the Syrian government and the main opposition group have yet to narrow their differences before the two sides start direct talks in Geneva.
3. Japan’s export of farm fish and other farm products hit a record high in 2015 for the third straight year.
February 3, Wednesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms.Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. North Korea has notified international organizations that the country plans to launch what it calls a satellite between February 8th and 25th.
2. Organizers of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil say they are stepping up measures to prevent the spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus.
3. Japan’s government plans to pledge 350 million dollars in aid for Syrian people who have fled their homes or country due to the prolonged civil war.
February 4, Thursday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. U.S. researchers say new satellite imagery of a North Korean launch site supports the country’s announced launch window this month.
2. Japanese officials are stepping up diplomatic efforts to urge North Korean leader to exercise restraint.
3. NHK has learned that executives of Sharp has chosen Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry as its partner for a business turnaround.
February 5, Friday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms.Mariko Kojima
1. Delegates at an international donor conference for Syria has pledged 11 billion dollars in aid by 2020 to the war-torn country.
2. Defense Minister Gen Nakatani says Japan’s Self-Defense Forces will be ready for North Korea’s rocket launch by Sunday.
3. Japanese electronics manufacturer Sharp has begun full-scale negotiations on a nearly 6-billion-dollar takeover bid from Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry.
February 6, Saturday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Risa Shimizu and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. Rescue workers in Taiwan continue to scour collapsed buildings for survivors after a powerful earthquake struck the southern region of the island early on Saturday morning. Authorities have confirmed that at least 4 people have died and more than 130 people were injured.
2. NHK has learned that China was not able to persuade North Korea to drop plans to launch what is widely believed to be a long-range ballistic missile.
February 7, Sunday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. The Japanese government says North Korea launched what is widely believed to be a long-range ballistic missile on Sunday morning.
2. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said that North Korea’s missile launch is unacceptable.
3. The mayor of Taiwan says more than 120 people may be still inside the building collapsed by Saturday’s powerful earthquake.
February 8, Monday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Emma Howard and Mr. Raja Pradan
1. The U.N. Security Council has condemned North Korea for its launch of a rocket that is believed to have been a long-range ballistic missile test.
2. A minister of the United Arab Emirates says the country is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight militants of the Islamic State group.
3. Emergency workers in Taiwan have pulled a 45-year-old woman alive from a collapsed condominium more than 52 hours after a powerful earthquake.
February 9, Tuesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. The yield of 10-year Japanese government bonds has dipped below zero for the first time ever.
2. Share prices plunged Tuesday morning on the Tokyo Stock Exchange following similar moves of the U.S. and European markets.
3. India’s economy continues to expand more than 7 percent in the last 3 months of 2015 thanks to a strong manufacturing sector.
February 10, Wednesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1. Japanese government officials are making final adjustments to tighten sanctions against North Korea following its rocket launch.
2. Taiwan’s judicial authorities have detained 3 people in connection with the collapse of a condominium building in Saturday’s earthquake.
3. Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei average fell below the 16,000 mark for the first time since October 2014.
February 11, Thursday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Sara McDonald and Ms. Hiroko Kitadai
1. The Japanese government has decided to have its envoy in charge of North Korean affairs hold talks with his Russian counterpart.
2. The international nuclear agency appears set to provide techniques to help control the population of mosquitoes that transmit the Zika virus.
3. One of Japan’s biggest breweries, Asahi Group Holdings , has announced that it had acquired the right to buy four European beer brands as a means of seeking growth.February 12, Friday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Mariko Kojima and Mr. Maxwell Powers
1. Share prices tumbled Friday on the Tokyo Stock Exchange with the benchmark, Nikkei average, plunging below the 15,000 mark for the first time in about 16 months.
2. Diplomats in Germany discussing Syria have agreed to secure a country-wide ceasefire, hopefully in a week, except for attacks on the Islamic State militants and other extremists.
3. North Korea expelled all South Korean nationals from the jointly-managed Kaesong industrial park on Thursday amid tension following the North’s rocket launch.
February 13, Saturday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. North Korea says it has halted an investigation into missing Japanese nationals, including those who were abducted by the North.
2. Saturday marks one week since a powerful earthquake struck southern Taiwan. The search continues for survivors in the collapsed building in Tainan City.
February 14, Sunday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. Divisions between the United States and Russia over Syria have surfaced again at an international conference in Germany.
2. The World Health Organization says the current outbreak of Zika virus has affected 34 countries and territories.
3. A deputy chief of Japan’s central bank has defended the bank’s introduction of a negative interest rate and called a recent substantial drop in financial shares “a little overdone.”
February 15, Monday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Japan’s real Gross Domestic Product in the October to December quarter contracted by 0.4 percent from the previous 3 months.
2. U.S. President Barack Obama has urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the air campaign against moderate opposition forces in Syria.
3. Japan’s Kei Nishikori won the Memphis Open tennis tournament in the United States in straight sets to clinch his 4th consecutive title.
February 16, Tuesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Turkey has accused Russia of carrying out an airstrike on Monday that killed many civilians in the northern Syrian town of Azaz.
2. South Korean President Park Guen-hye has called for stronger sanctions against North Korea, saying existing methods cannot stop its nuclear and missile programs.
3. Japan and Australia have agreed on the need for additional sanctions against North Korea for what it called a satellite launch.
February 17, Wednesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. Space researchers in Japan are set to launch a new astronomical observation satellite, the ASTRO-H.
2. The United Nations’ special envoy for Syria has urged the administration of President Bashar al-Assad to implement the ceasefire agreement reached last week.
3. Saudi Arabia, Russia and two major oil-producing nations have agreed to freeze output at January levels.
February 18, Thursday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. Japan’s government plans to step up defense cooperation with countries around the South China Sea in response to China’s military buildup on an island there.
2. The United Nations has started transporting humanitarian aid into besieged areas in Syria while fierce battles continue between government and opposition forces.
3. Four cities have submitted their bids to host the 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics with the International Olympic Committee.February 19, Friday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1. The foreign ministers of Japan and France have agreed to continue pushing the U.N. Security Council to quickly adopt tougher sanctions against North Korea.
2. The White House says President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will visit Cuba next month.
3. Turkey’s government has blamed Syrian Kurdish forces for Wednesday’s deadly explosion in Ankara and vowed to intensify military operations in retaliation.
February 20, Saturday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Risa Shimizu and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. European Union leaders have unanimously agreed on reform plans aimed at keeping Britain in the regional block.
2. Fighting continued in Syria on Friday, the day set by concerned parties as the start of a ceasefire.
3. A company founded by Japanese semiconductor engineers will work with a local government in China to make DRAM memory chips for use in smartphones and other products.
February 21, Sunday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. British citizens will vote on June 23rd on whether to remain or leave the European Union.
2. The Serbian government says two Serbian nationals held hostage in Libya last year have been killed in Friday’s U.S. airstrikes against Islamic State militants.
3. U.S. researchers have announced the results of a study on antibodies taken from the blood of an Ebola virus patient.
February 22, Monday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Raja Pradan and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. U.S. officials say they received a North Korean proposal for peace talks to formally end the Korean War before Pyongyang’s nuclear test last month.
2. Bomb blasts in the Syrian cities of Homs and Damascus killed 142 people on Sunday. The Islamic State militant group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.
3. Researchers in Brazil say one out of three babies born with abnormally small heads also have defects in their eyes.
February 23, Tuesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Mick Corliss and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. The United Nations has launched a working group to discuss the possibility of a legal ban on nuclear weapons.
2. The International Atomic Energy Agency has opened a 5-day conference in Vienna to discuss ways to promote nuclear safety.
3. The United States and Russia announced on Monday that they have agreed on a new ceasefire for Syria that will take effect Saturday.
February 24, Wednesday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Yuka Mastumoto and Ms. Fumiko Konoe
1. North Korea has warned of harsh retaliation against South Korea and its ally, the United States.
2. Leaders of 2 of Japan’s opposition parties are hoping to agree as early as this week on a plan to merge next month.
3. Amnesty International says more than 10,000 refugees from Syria are stranded in the desert area because neighboring countries are restricting entry.
February 25, Thursday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Hiroko Kitadai and Ms. Yuka Matsumoto
1. The United States and China have agreed on a draft resolution to expand U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear and long-range launch tests.
2. Struggling Japanese electronics firm Sharp is to accept a takeover bid by Taiwan-based manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry—better known as Foxconn.
3. An international team of scientists say they have traced the source of bursts of radio waves to a distant galaxy.
February 26, Friday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Maxwell Powers and Ms. Mariko Kojima
1. The United States has submitted to the U.N. Security Council a draft resolution to expand sanctions against North Korea for its recent nuclear test and rocket launch.
2. The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant says it will soon be able to stop the influx of radioactive water at some parts of the plant’s reactor facility.
3. Officials of Japan’s health ministry say a male high school student in Kanagawa Prefecture is infected with the Zika virus.
February 27, Saturday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Ms. Fumiko Konoe and Ms. Risa Shimizu
1. Finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging nations have begun a second day of meetings with an aim to prop up the world economy.
2. U.N. officials are trying to verify whether Syrian government troops and opposition fighters are complying with a ceasefire that came into effect at midnight on Friday, local time.
3. Members of soccer’s world governing body FIFA have elected Gianni Infantino as new president. Infantino is the general secretary of the European soccer confederation, UEFA.
February 28, Sunday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Hirokazu Sakamaki and Ms. Keiko Kitagawa
1. Foreign ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations have expressed serious concern about China’s growing military activity in disputed waters in the South China Sea.
2. The Japanese government says it is working to conclude an agreement to transfer defense equipment to Indonesia and Malaysia.
3. Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has won the Democratic primary in South Carolina, beating her rival Senator Bernie Sanders, by a wide margin.
February 29, Monday, 2016 (2:00 p.m.) Read by Mr. Yoshi Ogasawara and Ms. Emma Howard
1. Three former executives of the Tokyo Electric Power Company have been indicted for the March 2011 nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi plant.
2. The Japanese government is to grant a fresh fund of nearly 119 billion yen, or around 1 billion dollars, to rebuild areas affected by the March 2011 disaster.
3. Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 nations have agreed to use all policy tools available to achieve market stability.