SNA (Tokyo) — The following stories were reported today by the Shingetsu News Agency.

Politics

—Party of Hope and Democratic Party exploring possibility of forming a united parliamentary caucus. This could be an early step towards a full merger of the two political parties.

International

—North Korean fishermen who washed ashore in Hokkaido a couple of weeks ago prove to be bad guests. First they try to plunder an uninhabited Japanese island. Yesterday, they tried to make a break for it in their wooden boat, but the Japan Coast Guard caught them in about an hour.

—The US Marine Corps is reportedly casting doubts on idea that object that fell from sky upon an Okinawan nursery school was from them. The object has English written on it.

Economy

—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says that the terms of the Japan-European Union trade agreement have been finalized.

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