♪ the sovereign debt crisis claims another european head. in spain, the conservative people's party has cruised to victory. welcome to "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. spain will soon have a new government as the opposition people's party is on course to win the general election. people's party leader mariano

rajoy has declared the win. vote counting is going on for sunday's election after the polling stations were closed several hours ago. the interior ministry has released its forecast. it predicts the conservative people's party will win a majority of the 350 seats in the lower house by 186 seats. the party is on track to finish with 110 seats, a loss of 59 seats. >> translator: the spanish people have put their trust in our party to govern for the next few years. we have no enemies except joblessness, the deficit and our economic malaise.

>> spanish people is have been critical about austerity measures to improve the country's fiscal health along the economic slump. the yield of spain's ten-year bonds hit almost 7% because of a lack of confidence in the country's ability to shoulder its massive debts. attention is focused whether a new government led by the people's party can reduce government debts and erase concerns about spain's credit crisis. spain, greece and italy have been grouped under the acronym p.i.g.s. in february irish prime minister brian cowan was forced to resign from parliament in his handling over the fiscal crisis. his party was defeated in the following general election. in portugal the prime minister resigned and his party lost in a

general election in june. in greece, where the debt crisis began, political turmoil over the european union bailout plan cost prime minister george papandreou his job this month. a new administration was form on november 11th and in the latest fallout prime minister silvio berlusconi resigned as the sovereign debt crisis spread to italy, the third largest economy in the euro region. a new administration was formed on wednesday. six people have been killed and more than 1,300 injured in three days of protests in the egyptian capital of cairo. the tension is posing a threat to the country's upcoming part amount tear elections. the violence began in central cairo saturday after more than 10,000 demonstrated in tahrir square. president hosni mubarak was ousted in saturday but some egyptians are dissatisfied with the military led interim

government. egypt's first parliamentary elections since mubarak's ouster are scheduled to begin november 28th. protest rallies have spread to the capital to the second largest city of alexandria. >> translator: we need civilian rule. we need a president that we are all agreed on. we need a constitution before the elections that will get rid of the remnants of the previous regime. >> a military spokesperson said in a statement that the young people's actions do not represent the feelings of all egyptians. the arab league has rejected syria's demand to alter its plan to send observers to the country. syria sinist something the league give advanced notice of its itinerary but the league says that would not protect syrian citizens. the dispute comes after the arab league suspended syria on wednesday and gave it three days to end the violent crackdown on

anti-government demonstrators. it raised the possibility of imposing economic sanctions if the crackdown continued. it has demanded that syria accept its observers. the arab league says it will hold an emergency meeting thursday to discuss new sanctions. syrian foreign minister walid al muallem said on sunday at a news conference that the country was ready to receive arab league observers if they give prior notice of their plans. muallem said syria will fight with gangsters and also fight foreign countries if they intervene in syria's domestic matters. the association of southeast asian nations approved on thursday myanmar's bid to chair the ten-member regional bloc in 2014. the decision came after myanmar launched a program of reforms that includes the release of political prisoners and dialogue with pro democracy leader aung san suu kyi. the united states welcomed these developments. for more on the situation in

myanmar we spoke with toshuhiri kudo, an expert at the institute of developing economies jetro in tokyo. >> they want to attract more foreign investment and economic assistance. in addition to this regime, myanmar had to become more dependent on china in terms of diplomacy and economic terms. however, the president started to seek for all-around diplomacy by improved relations with united states, the asean and japan. on december -- on september, the president thaksin decided to freeze the construction of the missile project that is undertaken by chinese

state-owned company. this action clearly sends a message to the united states. historically, myanmar has been cautious about the relation with china. however, the international sanctions during the military regime led the government to develop its ties with beijing. even though china still acts as sort of pa tron of mian more in the international community, myanmar doesn't want to be sort of client state of that. one factor is president obama's concerns over the chinese influence on myanmar. myanmar is part of the u.s.'s new grand strategy in the asia-pacific region. other asean members want myanmar to promote democratic reforms and to maintain a united front. they want to prevent china from place a divisive role in the region.

now we look at the latest in business news with ai uchida, the latest trade data was just released. what was the balance? >> catherine, unfortunately we dipped into the red for october. japan's trade balance fell into the negative for october, as exports slipped for the first time in three months, due to a strong yen. the finance ministry said on monday that exports fell 3.7%, while imports rose 17.9% in october, when compared to a year ago. semiconductors led the decline in exports. the trade deficit stands at $3.5 billion, adding to the strong yen, a slowdown of the global economy is also weighing down on japan's exports. the tokyo stock exchange is to extend trading hours starting monday. it's a bid to turn around recent thin trading and the bourse says it will also benefit investors. but tse says its morning trading session, which until friday ran from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.,

will be extended by 30 minutes to 11:30. the operator of the exchange had also discussed the possibility of extending the afternoon trading hours. currently the afternoon session opens at 12:30 p.m. and closes at 3:00 p.m. skipping a lunch break had also been considered, like the bourses in new york, london and singapore but these measures were decided against after some financial institutions argued the costs of such a change would be enormous. tokyo is now the world's fourth largest stock exchange in terms of trading volume. the shanghai market replaced japan as the third largest bourse in 2009. and speaking of the stock exchange, let's get a check on the markets now. u.s. stocks closed mixed on friday with the dow higher and the nasdaq lower. to see how markets are kicking off here in japan we're going to go to ramin mellegard, he is at the tokyo stock exchange. ramin the tokyo bourse will extend trading hours today. what is the market looking like

so far? >> good morning to you, ai. the tokyo stock exchange along with other local bourses will extend the morning trading by 30 minutes and also for the evening session, they are looking to extend trading for futures in derivatives under a trading system called tdex plus, they had a big ceremony this morning to talk about that as well and that's to attract more retail investors as well as foreign investors, but let's have a look at how the nikkei and the topix are opening this monday morning, and just a tad lower for both indexes, not a great move but just a little bit lower. on friday also the tse, the tokyo stock exchange and the osaka securities exchange reached a basic agreement to integrate their operations by early 2013. now that would make it the second biggest securities exchange in the world by market capitalization, so that's by 2013 we'll keep track of that. here in japan as you mentioned we had those trade balance numbers and first time in two months it has dipped back into a

deficit. we'll see how that plays into the markets but last week really the main story driving the markets was the eurozone debt issues, and that's not likely to change this week, and we've seen bond yields in italy and spain rising and also we touched on the spanish general elections as well, and so we're going to see how all of that plays into the markets, as well as the currency markets. let's have a look at the currency levels this morning for dollar/yen and euro/yen. yen again holding strong against both currencies and the dollar actually may come under more pressure this week as u.s. lawmakers try to beat a deadline to agree to a debt reduction plan, but europe's debt crisis may actually overshadow even that event, and perhaps spare some of the dollar weakness. now, let's not forget this week in the u.s., it's going to be a holiday shortened week with thanksgiving on thursday so the markets will be closed. a lot of people taking friday

off as well. so all of the data is going to be in the first three days of the week. we'll have third quarter gdp in the u.s., and friday in japan the consumer price index for october but for now the nikkei and the topix trading just a touch lower. back to you. >> thank you for that, ramin mellegard from the tokyo stock exchange. japanese credit unions are requesting public funds to help out small to mid-sized firms affected by the march disaster. four credit unions in northeastern japan will be the first to apply for funding under a government program set up after the march earthquake and tsunami. lenders in the afflicted regions face the need to strengthen their financial base as their clients, many of them smaller businesses, were severely affected by the disaster and require funds for recovery. after the disaster, the government approved a scheme for lenders such as credit unions in the affected areas to cover defaulted loans using a deposit insurance system. and now time to get you a

recap of the latest market figures. and that is the latest from business. now it's back to catherine. >> thanks very much, ai. japan's top court is scheduled to rule on the case of a former senior member of the aum gas attacks. endo was charged with murder and other crimes. the lower courts sentenced him to death for the attacks on the subway system that killed 13 people and sickened more than

6,000. his defense team was appealing the death sentence, saying endo produced the sarin not knowing what it would be used for. the supreme court has also upheld the death sentence handed down on another former senior cult member, tomomasa nakagawa last friday. he was charged with 11 crimes including involvement in the sarin gas attack. he played a key role in murders of a lawyer who was strongly critical about the cult. the lawyer, sakamoto, his son and wife were killed in november 1989. the tokyo district and high courts both sentenced nakagawa to death but his defense team filed an appeal saying the defendant had a psychological disorder and was hallucinating when he committed the crimes. nakagawa was chewsed by chiso matsumoto, the cult founder ordered nakagawa to take part in a number of crimes. nakagawa joined aum in 19 8 when he was a university medical

student. he quit working for a hospital in osaka a year later. nakagawa's medical training made him a valuable member of the cult. he helped manufacture the group's supply of sarin gas. nakaga nakagawa admitted his involvement in a number of crimes during his crime. he described his feelings in a letter he mailed to nhk before the supreme court's ruling. >> translator: i feel the reasons behind the incidents have not yet been fully disclosed. i wish asahara had provided a full explanation because there are many things that only he knew. i hope from the bottom of my heart that incidents like the ones we caused will never happen again. >> tomoyuki oyama devoted his life to figuring out why nakagawa and other members killed his daughter along with her son and husband. he observed the courtroom proceedings and jotted down his

thoughts. he and many others wondered what inspired nakagawa and others to join the cult. nhk obtained a memo from a close friend who visited him at the detention center, gives details of the struggles nakagawa had with so-called abnormal experiences before he joined the aum cult. for example he saw a white light climbing up his body, forced him to think of quitting his job. aum founder asahara helped him with his problems. >> translator: i was drawn to asahara like a moth fluttering around a fluorescent light. i simply had to stay with aum. >> narushito noda used to be an aum executive. he joined the cult when he was at the university of tokyo. he described how the leader attracted devotees. >> translator: a person with a psychological or physical illness would visit asahara.

if he or she was able to overcome the sickness or problems by following his instructions, that person was driven to have faith in asahara. >> that same faith drove nakagawa to commit a spate of vicious crimes. >> translator: i've produced sarin many times and inhaled the gas which almost killed me. matsumoto referred to the possibility of creating an atomic bomb he would activate on his own. >> he says he recognizes the complexity underlying the crimes committed by the cult members. the motives remain unknown. >> translator: the defendant claims he's not to blame because he merely followed orders. he hasn't given any deep thought to his deeds. even if he was driven to commit the crimes, it's his own responsibility to protect

himself. believing religion was all to blame is a sin. >> 189 members of the cult have been indicted. 13 of them have been sentenced to death including asahara. the court decision on monday should bring all aum-related criminal trials to an end after 16 years. "newsline" is the place to turn to for the latest on japan post-march 11th. we have two segments offering two unique perspectives on the fallout from the earthquake and tsunami. "nuclear watch" brings you insight and information on the impact of the fukushima daiichi crisis and "the road ahead" examines japan's efforts to recover and rebuild. don't miss "nuclear watch" and "the road ahead" on "newsline." walking down the streets of tokyo, you can't help but notice trendy women decorated with what

seem to be tiny works of art. nhk world's rina nakana attended an event in tokyo which is highlighting one glittery element of the booming japanese fashion industry. ♪ >> reporter: this isn't your average runway show. the focus isn't on the clothes, accessories or even the hair. audiences are keeping a close eye on the details of the models' fingertips. the tokyo nail expo brings in more than 50,000 people every year. the two-day event is one of the largest nail expositions in the world. from professionals to regular customers, people come here to shop the booths and check out the latest trends in nail art. japan's slumping economy hasn't had much of an impact on its nail industry. every year, it's showing steady growth.

it generated more than $2.5 billion in 2010, a figure shared by japan's animation industry. >> translator: i don't think it matters much to women what the economy is like. i think we all strive for beauty no matter the cost. >> translator: nails are like clothing and makeup to me. if i don't have them done, i feel so embarrassed. >> reporter: decades ago, japanese nail artists learned and copied foreign styles. since then, they found a way to make simple manicures into three-dimensional pieces of art. it's a style that's been recognized worldwide thanks to sachiko nakasone. she trained in the u.s. in the 1970s and returned to tokyo in the 1980s to start a nail academy. >> translator: japanese people are really detail oriented, diligent and hard-working. i hear lady gaga has a japanese

nail artist. i'm sure she enjoys the unique japanese style. >> reporter: newcomers to the industry try to make their mark at the tokyo nail expo. these young professionals are given one hour to create their designs in the competition rounds. yu meko is this year's nail champion. >> translator: i prepared for two months. i'm so happy, that's all. i'm just so happy. >> reporter: it's young nail artists like nakai who will set

the standard for the future of the japanese nail industry. >> translator: nail art in japan is still an urban trend, but one day i want everyone to enjoy it, whether you're a farmer in hokkaido or okinawa, i want everyone to be able to stop by a neighborhood nail salon. that's my goal. >> reporter: every year, more than 50,000 people in japan take the test to become a certified nail technician. experts say that number is a promising sign that this multibillion dollar industry will continue to grow. rina nakano, nhk world, tokyo. >> all the glitz and glam isn't just for the ladies though. the event also has a men's nail care competition. the 2011 tokyo nail expo will be opened to the public until monday at tokyo big site. after a warm, sunny sunday, tokyo residents are having a chilly monday morning. let's go to the global weather forecast with saki ochi.

>> welcome back to your weather update. getting a look at conditions in east asia. first off we are looking at a little bit of a chilly wintry weather impacting this northern end of japan here. winds are picking up and we are looking at snowfall, as well. blizzard-like conditions are going to be possible with blowing snow, icy conditions in the hokkaido area. also for this northwestern corner of the hoe hoe cue region, we are going to be looking at cold precipitation throughout most of the day. elsewhere, it does stay dry for much of the pacific side of the country as does the southern end of japan, but still, we are looking at much cooler temperatures than yesterday. over towards the korean peninsula throughout china, scattered areas picking up light precipitation, but nothing too major. as we look towards the southeast, it does look wetter

here. the south china sea region looking at more moisture again to the southeast coast of china and in through vietnam. philippines, too, will be looking at showers, as well as thunderstorms again today. as for those highs for monday, we are looking at 10 only in beijing. seoul in the single digits. tokyo gets up to 15. that will be significantly cooler than yesterday. as we look toward the south, 22 in taipei. manila expected to get up to 33. toward the americas and in the pacific here, the very bottom of our screen, this cluster of clouds looking to show signs of organizing and developing. this is actually a tropical storm system kenneth, really rare for this time of year. it is nearing the end of the hurricane season, but nonetheless it did form. it's going to stay out at sea. really remain well away from land. over towards the u.s., looking at this long cold front that is looking to trigger rain as well as even some stormy weather for areas like texas into the lower mississippi valley.

that's going to be a lingering story continuing well into monday. out towards the west, rain out of southern california will head for the four corners region, turning over into snow as it does. in the pacific northwest, too, can see another round of showers coming off the coastline. coastal areas will be looking at rain. then snow will be spreading in those upper elevations. as for highs on monday, 7 in seattle. vancouver remains at 8. minus 6 in winnipeg. then looking at 9 in chicago. definitely temperatures are starting to drop across the northern regions. and finally, a look at europe here. activity continues in the mediterranean, especially this western side. rain has been intense at times across the pyrenees. rain will gradually move towards the italy region. we are looking at chances of heavy rain in the area the islands in the mediterranean

will be looking at significant showers, as well. the british isles will be looking at also real cold front moving in. that brings in more periods of rain. that's going to be continuing, as well. as for those temperatures on monday, 10 in london, 14 in paris. despite the rain, not too bad, fairly seasonal, but vienna at 1. berlin comes in at 6 degrees. up next we have your three-day outlook.

that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.