great expectations. mitt romney fights off rivals in the race to face barack obama. it is the race for the republican nominee for the u.s. presidential election. ballot stations close by 8:00 p.m. tuesday. polls released a day before the primary suggest that former massachusetts governor mitt romney remains the frontrunner

with 37%. the moderate republican has a sizable lead over the other candidates, although the margin is shrinking. congressman ron paul, an advocate of small government came second with 18%, followed by former ambassador to china jon huntsman with 16%. huntsman skipped iowa caucuses and focused his campaign in new hampshire. rick santorum was at 11%. he failed to build momentum from his close second finish to romney in iowa. a back to back win in new hampshire would give a boost to romney's campaign. his revals are increasing attacks on the frontrunner. preliminary results are expected in a couple of hours. human rights groups are increasing criticism of the syrian president after his defiant speech tuesday. assad defended crackdown on

anti-government proerts blaming foreign conspiracies for the unrest. the president refused to respond to calls for his resignation. he says priority is on regaining security by hitting the terrorists with an iron hand. human rights groups said the speech was aimed at ordering troops to kill more citizens. the groups say government forces continue to fire on demonstrators across syria, killing about 30 people. the syrian administration has not offered any support to the monitors it has allowed into the country. opposition forces say the arab league isn't doing anything to halt the crackdown. prime minister yoshihiko noda visited a fish processing plant in ishinomaki city that

was affected by the march tsunami and resumed operations last month. he also visited a disaster cement plant which relaunched a production last november. some residents at a temporary housing facility asked noda to help boost the region's employment. they also mentioned the cold temperatures in the vicinity and asked for help with home heat ing. >> translator: the government must speed up reconstruction in response to the needs of affected people under a new agency launched next month. you could call it the price of power in japan. the country had six prime ministers in five years. perhaps it is no surprise its latest leader is in trouble.

yoshihiko noda took office and approval is cut in half. he may be forced to call a general election. the survey suggests 30% of respondents support his cabinet. that's a drop of seven points from a month ago. it is half the approval rating cabinet had when he took office in september. the disapproval rating rose by seven points to 49%. looking at the people that disapprove of noda's cabinet, 45% said they have no confidence in its policies. another 27% said the cabinet lacks the ability to implement those policies. part of it was about the consumption tax. 38% said they disapprove. 26% approve. the survey also asked respondents if they want political change. 51% said yes while 42% said no. nhk world's commentator gave us

some perspective on the poll and tough political choices facing prime minister noda. >> more voters are criticizing his ruling democratic party for not keeping campaign pledges it made when they took power in 2009. the prime minister wants to double the japan sales tax by 2015 to 10% from current 5. previously said they wouldn't do that. reforms must be made, but taxpayers don't want to shoulder the full burden. they want the administration to cut back on government costs. dpga promised to reduce the number of lawmakers and civil servants, but the biggest supporters, labor unions, are basically against that idea. while noda's government can't pass bills -- japan's diet is

still divided. the ruling parties control the lower house and opposition has a lock on the upper house. noda's biggest challenge is getting approval for legislation needed to enact the budget for the next fiscal year which begins april 1st. he also has to win support for consumption tax hike. but opposing party is almost determined not to cooperate with the unpopular prime minister, and if those bills are rejected, noda will certainly call an election. he could call election between maran june, but with his low approval rating, they will probably lose the majority in the lower house and it is unlikely any party will be able to form a majority. so we'll have another coalition in the country. the party with most seats will most likely take the prime

minister's job. the detroit motor show opens this weekend. ai has details. good morning. >> we had the tokyo motor show here, now it is over in detroit. among new models unveiled, toyota motors next generation hybrid car. it boosts use of solar power. this comes as the firm anticipates a further rise in the popularity of eco friendly vehicles. the concept model made its debut at the detroit motor show tuesday. the car is based on a plug-in hybrid that can be recharged at home. it also comes loaded with other advanced features. solar panels on the roof can power the air conditioner to cool the inside, small cameras by side mere ors and on the back give a wider view. a radar system keeps an eye on

surroundings and prevents collisions. toyota aims to mass produce the car in three years. the almost also plans to increase the lineup of hybrid vehicles, including plug in hybrids in the u.s. and elsewhere. overnight in new york, the dow rose for the second day in a row, closing at the highest level in more than five months. to see how stocks are trading in japan, we switch to ramin mellegard at the tokyo stock exchange. ramin, good morning. big focus on u.s. earnings this week. how are stocks reacting this wednesday morning? >> exactly. big focus on earnings as you say there, ai. alcoa, unofficially kicks off earnings season posted stronger sales for october, december quarter and gave an upbeat forecast for the aluminum industry. the focus is also going to be on the high tech sector, auto sector and banking sector. upcoming earnings results from those sectors to see if there's further upbeat forecasts going

forward. let's look at the opening levels for nikkei and topix this wednesday morning in tokyo. you can see they're marginally higher, not a massive move, still in the positive. speaking of banks, we will watch banking shares. they did gain yesterday, and domestic and foreign investors looking to buy up some undervalued banking stocks which were quite heavily sold off last year due to eurozone debt crisis. also, japan's mega banks, mitsubishi and others have a little less exposure to eurozone debt than say, for instance, u.s. and european counter parts. so that's also a factor which plays into the banking sector. also because of the slightly weaker dollar, we did see a bit of a gain in commodity related stocks, so we're going to keep track of gold, oil, energy related stocks. we did see gold up about 1.5%,

benchmark wti crude was up almost a dollar. we will keep track of trading houses and shipping companies involved in that also. ai? >> you mention the slightly weaker dollar, ramin. what's the latest in currencies? >> let's look at the levels this morning as tokyo trading kicks off there. the yen really remaining stronger against the basket of currency, specifically against the euro. hovering around 98.02-07 we have already seen it trading with a 97 handle in recent days. also coming up today, u.s. feds look at economic activity at each of the federal reserve bank districts, known as beige book. that may also cast more interest and focus on the dollar. we will see how it goes. for now, the nikkei and topix marginally in the positive. >> thanks, ramin mellegard from the tokyo stock exchange. japan's trade minister has

asked an indian state to improve roads and ports as a growing number of japanese firms are setting up plants in the region. he met the chief minister in the state capital tuesday. he was conveying message about those doing business in the southern indian state. the indian chief minister said she's aware of the need for better infrastructure and will promptly take up the issue. state government and japanese consortium agreed tuesday to build an industrial park for small and medium size japanese businesses. she says india has huge economic potential and even small businesses will find it an attractive market, if there's good infrastructure. japan is hoping to strike a deal with india to import bullet train technology in order to improve india's infrastructure. the transport minister will

visit the country to promote the train system known for its safety. it has never had a major accident in its 45 year history. india is researching the possibility of high speed railway networks in six areas throughout the country. this would include routes that connect new delhi and others. they will ask them to consider the technology while pledging financial aid for the infrastructure buildup. transport minister will meet with the indian rail ways minister to explain the merits of the bullet train's operational system and car design. let's look at markets again.

>> that's the latest in business. >> thanks very much. an atomic bomb museum in hiroshima has reset a clock known as the peace watch. the clock at the hiroshima memorial museum displays the number of days since the world's last nuclear test. the director pressed the button setting the clock back to 55, the number of days since the u.s. carried out a test. the number on display had been 285, the number of days since a different u.s. test in march 2011. this is the 15th time the clock has been reset since it was created in august 2001 to encourage eradication of nuclear weapons.

>> translator: it's a shame the u.s. keep such destructive nuclear weapons arsenal. hiroshima and nagasaki must constantly work to eliminate these weapons. japan's space agency has unveiled a satellite. the aerospace exploration agency showed the satellite to the media. it will capture weak radio waves released by water on the earth's surface. this will enable it to observe change in ocean surface temperatures that trigger climate change such as the el nino effect. it also also measure the level of soil moisture and detect changes in the size of the arctic sea ice cover. >> translator: understanding the circulation of water on a global level is extremely important for forecasting climate change.

i hope to use the data for antidisaster measures. >> the agency is planning to launch the shizuku by march next year. countless numbers of children are struggling with the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami. the disaster ripped apart communities and families, left many children with unimaginable memories. the japan international cooperation agency last month sent 22 teachers to banda aceh's, to traumatized children, and in doing so, are helping bring back smiles to their faces. we have the story. >> reporter: the 22 teachers in the district in banda aceh that

suffered the catastrophic tsunami. they met with residents to find out how they copied while the water receded. here is one of the teachers who took a part in the tour. >> translator: look at this. this is my town. what do you think about it? >> translator: everything was submerged. nothing was left. in the iwata prefecture. much of the city was swept away by the raging waters. >> translator: the tsunami was higher than the roof. the children were so petrified they couldn't cry, they could only remain silent.

>> reporter: fortunately the students survived, but 80% of them lost their homes. despite the passage of ten months, the students remained extremely sensitive to earthquakes, no matter how small. nakasato says many students worry about the future and do not smile as they used to. >> translator: there is a vague sense of anxiety. i want to find something that will help the kids feel safer and give them hope for the future. >> nakas. ato and the teachers asked the teachers in banda aceh how they dealt with it. >> how did you deal with the children traumatized by the tsunami.

>> i never forced them to study. >> translator: i asked the children to read poems, to play games, or to dance. after that, i saw an immediate change in their spirits. >> reporter: the teachers went to a facility for children who were all found by the tsunami while living away from their parents for economical reasons. the teachers visited and asked how they overcome the emotional trauma. about 40 children live in the facility. 17-year-old halnia has lived here since 2007. he lost two younger brothers in the tsunami. he was sent here, because his parents were never to farm the -- land after the disaster.

>> i feel lonely, because i am away from my parents. i only meet them five times a year. >> reporter: darwin jamal is in charge of the facility. he's been doing his best to help a healing. he has arranged activities such as sporting events to traditional dance lessons, and help the other children react to deal with the emotional trauma. they are never forced to study if they don't want to. jamal says at first he was afraid of earthquakes. he says he didn't have other friends and spent much time alone, but jamal says that by studying when he wanted to and counseling him, he eventually --

>> i used to think about the tsunami, but not anymore. i want to be a gym teacher. >> translator: building bonds with the children will improve their self-confidence and help them overcome the trauma. i think they can change. >> reporter: nakasato says he was encouraged to see the smiles of the children. >> translator: the children were lively at all the schools we visited. i was impressed seeing their smiles. i've been seeing students who smile very little despite their seemingly calm attitude. i want our kids to become like these. >> reporter: nakasato says he has -- with the children, with the people who survived the tsunami in banda aceh. he says it's not about employing a special method, but with teachers always being there to support the children.

in other words, doing what teachers are meant to do. daisuke, nhk world, banda aceh, indonesia. let's look at the latest in sumo. happy new year, and it's a happy start to the new year's sumo tournament. it's day 3, and time to highlight some of the action. rank and file okay nami is yet to open his 2012 account. he's making his return to

the top ranks, but looked out of his element. he seems to have the expectations of many sumo fans in his debut tourney as aosecci. he hits and shifts, attacks with his left hand, straight over the edge. the new osecci looks large and in charge. new com subi was discovering how tough it was. he looks to be on track after recovering from surgery in december. wakakoyu begins with the trademark thrusts. he takes licks, looking for a solid grip. despite his efforts to upset the ozeki, good toss hatamafuji winning in the opening three days.

hakuho really loses in the first week. he last beat him in 2008. ominously tried a half-hearted attack, and pushes out. a perfect start for hakuho was usual. days 2 and 3 mark the first time since may 2009 tourney that all ozeki won their bouts on back-to-back days. that's a good thing. will it continue on day 4? join ross mihara to find out. it's been unusually dry here in tokyo. we haven't had any rain for a while. let's go to the weather picture here and elsewhere. >> welcome to your weather today. let's look at what's happening

across east asia. a high pressure system that is containing frigid, dry air covering much of china, and the korean peninsula, some showers are inland, but that's not on the severe side. across japan, as catherine said, most of the pacific side will stay largely dry, but the western side of japan is a completely different story, heavy snow again, the areas could be seeing up to 70 centimeters of snow by thursday, the rest of the areas could be picking up as much as 40 to 50 centimeters. strong winds could pick up, resulting in high waves and blowing snow conditions. temperature wise, very cold air going southward reaching the korean peninsula. minus 3 degrees in seoul. tokyo coming in at 10 degrees today, but will drop to 6 degrees on thursday. across the south, getting up to 31 in manila. the same goes for bangkok.

with morning fog. heading over to the americas, across the deep south, this is where we're seeing lots of active weather. we're talking about severe thunderstorms, large hail, damaging winds, even tornadoes. it looks like the bulk of the heavy rain is moving into the mid-atlantic region. the system has been moving very, very slowly, so the rainfall total could be significant. on wednesday, heavy rain will also target the mid-atlantic region. up towards the north, a couple systems are bringing in snow showers across central canada, and the northern rockies, and those systems are ushering in very cold air from the north. so we are going to see a significant drop in temperatures across the northwestern areas. minus 14 degrees in winnipeg, and minus 4 in denver, about you the rest of the areas are still enjoying warmer than average temperatures. 10 expected in chicago, 7 in

northern, and 9 in washington d.c. finally let's go over to europe. a high pressure system is settling over western continental europe, bringing very dry weather. as the system pushes on to the east southern italy and the balkan peninsula should get drier. this is bringing in thunderstorms and strong winds in most of turkey. precipitation will be snow rather than rain in inland areas. up towards the north, a series of low pressure systems has been bringing very wet and gusty conditions across the northern british isles and the west coast of norway, and it looks like snow showers will also spread to fin land, the baltic states and western russia in the next 24 hours. temperaturewise, we're expecting 11 degrees in london, and 10 degrees in paris, and 5 degrees expected in stockholm, dipping to minus 3 degrees in moscow, and 0 degrees in kiev. that's it for me now. here is your extended forecast.

that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. tokyo. thanks for joining us. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com