(THIS IS THE TRANSCRIPTS OF ARIRANG NEWS THAT AIRED ON JULY 05, 2010- 17:00 KST.) Title : Pres. Lee Holds Summit with Prime Minister of New Zealand President Lee Myung-bak held a bilateral summit with visiting prime minister of New Zealand John Key this afternoon... and discussed ways to improve cooperation in trade and human resource exchanges. The Presidential Office in Seoul says the two leaders were also expected to exchange opinions on geopolitical issues surrounding the Korean peninsula and global issues of mutual concern such as climate change. Prime Minister Key also sat down with Korea's Prime Minister Chung Un-chan earlier in the day. Title : Chinese Warships Spotted Passing Through Okinawa Two Chinese naval warships were spotted passing through international waters between Japan's southern islands of Okinawa and Miyako... en route to the Pacific Ocean. Tokyo's Defense Ministry... which has been keeping a close eye on the Chinese navy's activities announced that... this is the first time Chinese military vessels have been seen passing through the waters since April. The announcement comes amid reports of Beijing's plan to conduct naval exercises in the East China Sea from late June until early July. China said its military forces would kick-off live ammunition exercises... in an apparent response to a joint naval manuever between the US and South Korea. Whether the two ships are related to the event... is yet to be known. Title : US in Heated Debate Over Withdrawal Date From Afghanistan The announcement of the 2011 withdrawal date of US forces from Afgahnistan is raising concerns in the US. Amid much debate regarding the pullout... US General David Petraeus took over his new role as commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan... vowing to win the war against the Taliban-led insurgents. Yoo Ji-hae reports. The new US-Afghan war commander, David Petraeus officially took over control of the over 140-thousand NATO troops in Afghanistan... from General Stanley McChrystal... who was sacked last month for insubordination. At a ceremony held at NATO headquarters in Kabul... the US General vowed that his foreign forces are determined to win the battle of wills... and called for a united effort against the Taliban-led insurgents in the war-stricken country. (English) [INTERVIEW : David Petraeus, Commander,US Forces in Afghanistan] ''After years of war, we have arrived at a critical moment. We must demonstrate to the Afghan people and to the world that al-Qaeda and its network of extremist allies will not be allowed once again to establish sanctuary in Afghanistan.'' The four-star general said... in order to do so... he would reconsider rules... including curbing the use of airpower and heavy weapons... if civilians are at risk. Casualites of US and NATO soldiers reached record highs... with a total of 102 foreign soldiers killed in June... almost triple the May figure... and surpassing the previous highest monthly toll of 77 in August. Meanwhile... (the) Ambassador of Afghanistan to the US pointed out that setting a firm date for withdrawal of the troops from Afghanistan... is not a realistic measure... and that any deadline must be based on the present situation. (English?) [INTERVIEW : Said Jawad, Afghan Ambassador to the US] ''If you overemphasize a deadline that is not realistic, you're making the enemy a lot more bold. You are prolonging the war. If that, that deadline should be realistic.'' Republicans... including Senator John McCain... raised opposition to the July 2011 target for pulling out US troops from the region... saying that the move... would raise questions about US commitment there... and that enemies will wait until the forces leave. McCain stressed that the US should only leave Afghanistan when the country is stable enough to maintain a strong government. Yoo Ji-hae, Arirang News. Title : Japan's New PM Losing Public Support The approval rating for Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan's new cabinet dropped 9 percentage points from a previous poll conducted a week earlier... to 39 percent due to his proposed tax hike. The latest figure... from an Asahi Shimbun poll this past weekend... also showed a higher disapproval rating of 40 percent... up from 29 percent. The news agency links the fall in public support to concerns over Kan's financial measures, including a possible sales tax hike to rein in Japan's enormous public debt. Meanwhile... Japan's Mainichi Shimbun said... it is still up in the air whether the Democratic Party will secure the 56 seats needed in order to keep control of the upper house prior to the election on July 11th. Title : 17시 경제 뉴스 브릿지 Title : Korea's FDI Restrictiveness Ranks 6th Among OECD Members Korea is one of the most restrictive countries among OECD nations... when it comes to regulations on foreign direct investment. According to a report released by the OECD on Sunday... Korea ranked sixth among the 31 member nations... in an index that measures inward FDI restrictions. Korea recorded 0-point-1-4-2... coming behind Iceland, Mexico, New Zealand, Japan and Canada. The indicator evaluates three broad categories of restrictions... such as limitations on foreign ownership, screening or notification procedures, and management and operational restrictions. Meanwhile, Luxembourg and the Netherlands were at the bottom of the list... indicating that they were the most open to foreign businesses. Title : New Zealand's Prime Minister Meets with Business Leaders in Korea New Zealand's Prime Minister... John Key... met with the business leaders in Seoul. High on the agenda was the pending Korea-New Zealand free trade agreement. Choi You-sun reports. The pending free trade agreement between Korea and New Zealand was at the forefront of talks during New Zealand Prime Minister John Key's meeting in Seoul with business community members from both countries. With an annual bilateral trade volume worth some 1-point-8 billion US dollars, Korea has become the seventh largest market mainly for New Zealand's food produce including beef, fruits and dairy. Korean businesses in automobile, electronics and machinery, on the other hand, have found a lucrative market in the Pacific island nation. Discussions on easing Seoul-Wellington trade barriers kick-started last year, followed by four rounds of negotiations thus far. Of a number of sticky issues to be compromised, Korea's concern regarding an impact on the domestic agricultural industry was alleviated by the prime minister. (English) [INTERVIEW : John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand] ''New Zealand is really not competing with domestic producers here in Korea. But really more with the other markets who are likely to sign a free trade agreement with Korea, mainly the United States, the European Union and Australia.'' Since establishing diplomatic ties in 1962, Korea's appeal to New Zealand has not only expanded economically, but also in the areas of culture, tourism and human resources. About 32-thousand people of Korean descent make up nearly one percent of New Zealand's populace, and students from the Asian country belong to the second largest group by nationality. Such history and a blossoming relationship have widened business prospects for investors in New Zealand. (English) [INTERVIEW : Graeme Solloway, Trade Commissioner,New Zealand Trade & Enterprise] ''By encouraging and providing a more open framework for businesses to move and operate in, those are all the sorts of things that will help Korean businesses in New Zealand and New Zealand businesses in Korea to expand and grow our linkages and partnerships.'' Korea's growth in international profile, as the host of the upcoming G20 summit in November and the Nuclear Security Summit in 2012, is also winning the trust of overseas investors. (Stand-up) ''Citing a global domination shift from the West to East, Prime Minister Key raised hopes a free trade deal with Asia's fourth largest economy will help his country make huge inroads into the region. Choi You-sun, Arirang News.'' Title : China Inflation Emerges as Major Concern Growing demands for wage hikes and a rise in walkouts in China is increasingly taking a toll on manufacturers there... who are concerned that the recent developments will fuel inflation in the Asian country. Park Jong-hong has this report. The China risk factor is starting to take a toll on foreign businesses. The recent wave of demands for higher wages and improved benefits by Chinese workers are leading to an ever-growing burden for manufacturers. At present, a series of strikes can be seen in China at companies like Honda of Japan... and Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology Group. The walkouts envitably affecting an array of subcontractors that rely on business with those firms. Analysts fear that the worst case scenario will be China inflation... where the sharp wage hikes will lead to increases in commodities... and this in turn triggering inflation around the globe... given the enormous influence it has as the ''manufacturing capital of the world.'' In particular, the increasing labor unrest in China is delivering a blow to companies that set up shop there eyeing the cheap labor. So far this year, the rate of hikes in major Chinese cities has been alarming. According to data provided by the Korea International Trade Association, Shanghai has seen an average of a 15 percent wage hike. Gwangdong has seen a 22 percent rise, Shandong 21 percent... and Hubei at 28 and a half percent... which topped the list for the biggest hikes. Korea is especially worried about how all this will play out. There are an estimated 20-thousand Korean manufacturers doing business in China... and the sharp hikes are eroding their bottom line. Lee Pyong-bok, an adviser at the Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency, says... that the era of cheap labor in China has come to an end... and already there are companies that are packing up and leaving. Another cause of concern is Korea's heavy reliance on China as an export market. China accounts for about 25 percent of Korea's total overseas market... and chances are that the current labor unrest has the potential to have a negative impact on the Korean economy. Park Jong-hong Arirang News. Title : Shares End Slightly Up on Bargain Hunting Taking a look at today's action on the stock market... Shares ended slightly higher today as retail investors went bargain hunting. The benchmark KOSPI GAINED THREE points (3.55)... to finish at ONE-thousand-SIX-hundred-and-75 (1,675.37)... while the tech-heavy KOSDAQ ADDED ZERO-POINT-FOUR-SIX points (0.46) to end at FOUR hundred-and-86 (486.15). On the FX counter... the Korean currency traded at ONE-thousand-TWO-hundred-23 won (1,223.40) against the US dollar. Title : 1600/1700/1900 WEATHER Time now to take a look at weather conditions around the globe. Title : 1700 CLOSING That's all the news for now. From all of us here at Arirang Bulletin, thank you for watching. THE TRANSCRIPT MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.)