temperature rising. the operator of fukushima daiichi tries to figure out what's going on inside reactor number two. the people who run tokyo electric power company are puzzled over the state of one of the reactors. they say a thermometer in the damaged number two reactor indicates the temperature inside has gone up. they're trying to figure out if and how to cool it down.

spokespersons for tepco say one of three thermometers at the bottom of the reactor read more than 71 degrees celsius sunday afternoon. a jump of about 25 degrees in ten days. tepco rearranged water pipes to cool the reactor more efficiently. the spokespersons say the two other thermometers read about 45 degrees. they say they don't know why only one shows higher temperatures. workers partially suspended the injection of cooling water during plumbing work in late january. the spokespersons say the procedure may have changed the way the water circulated inside the reactor. and they say that may have prevented the system from sufficiently cooling the nuclear fuel. a staged arbitration body wants tepco to make advance payments to people effected by the fukushima nuclear accident before the final amount of compensation is decided.

the arbitrator recommended monday that the utility should pay about $20,000 to a family of four. the family filed a complaint with the arbitrator saying they are unhappy with the proposed standard monthly payment of $1300. the family also says they are running out of money as the dispute remains unscld. the arbitrator is recommending advance payments because survivors need money to rebuild their lives. >> translator: the payments will help many people effected by the accident that face financial difficulties. >> tokyo electric is studying the recommendation. the tsunami last march left farmland on the coast unusable. some are trying to help the farmers on the northeast coast grow new crops. we have that story on this

week's "the road ahead." >> one-third the farmland was flooded with sea water. until last year, he grew lettuce and arranged shipments for a neighbor's crops to a fast food chain. >> there used to be trees here, but they're all gone now. >> his fields are only 700 meters from the coast. the salt has made them unusable. he also lost his home and his younger brother, a fireman, died helping people to safety. >> translator: my fields were covered with cars and wreckage. i was really worried because i knew it would be a long time before i could start farming again.

>> he was at a loss. about a month after the tsunami, he received an offer through a business partner to help set up a farm. the idea came from a major restaurant chain based near tokyo as a way to help the disaster area. this restaurant chain says italian food and uses lots of tomatoes. its 900 restaurants around the country use 1,000 tons of tomatoes every year. it has its own distribution network sourcing tomatoes from all over japan. the company has a farm where it develops new strains of tomatoes. it wants to draw on this know how to help farmers in the

disaster area. >> we are hoping we can develop this area into a major tomato producing region. >> she and ten other local farmers began by putting up greenhouses. they're not aware of special requirements for greenhouses, so it took them longer than planned. but he is optimistic. >> i feel this is the only way to make the initial step back into farming. >> it took them four months longer than planned. finally, the first tomato saplings reached them. in place of soil, they use a material that holds the water

well. the young plants are fed with nutrient rich hide row upon i can liquid. this means they don't have to use salt logged soil. by carefully adjusting the temperature, the growing season can be extended and they can produce three times as many tomatoes compared it growing them outdoors. he is planning on learning a lot about growing tomatoes, and hopes to turn sendai into a new tomato producing area. >> there are many farmers here who won't be able to use their land for the next two or three years. before we lose this valuable work force, we want to give them a chance to work as farmers again. >> he expects to ship the first tomatoes in april. officials in sendai say it will

take two more years for the salt to be leeched out of the farmland. even then, farmers will need new equipment to replace what they lost in the tsunami. greek politicians must agree os a moose i have budget cut to get aid the country needs. they have known it for months, still have yet to reach a deal. ai, good morning. >> good morning. there was a meeting this weekend in greece, where the prime minister and leaders of the three coalition parties agreed on a drastic reduction in the nation's ex-pund tour, but they fell short of working out details of the austerity measures. he met coalition partners to discuss tougher cutbacks demanded by creditors. it includes pay cuts for civil servants. after the meeting, he released a statement that they agreed on a

huge reduction in the greece budget worth 1.5% of the nation's growth domestic product. they will meet again before reaching a final agreement. separately, the greek government is negotiating with private financial institutions for major debt relief. details haven't been disclosed. a large amount of greek government bonds will mature in march. the country could go into default if they don't get funding from the european union and international monetary fund. moving to markets, the dow surged higher friday to prelehman collapse levels following jobs data. see how the stocks are kicking off in tokyo. ramin mellegard is at the tokyo stock exchange. good morning. what can you tell us. >> good morning to you. the dow had the highest close since may, 2008 after the surprisingly strong jobs data friday in the u.s. and nasdaq hitting an 11 year high as well.

it could be good for exporters and financials. the banking sectors one of the biggest gainers friday. let's look at the opening levels this monday morning here in japan. the nikkei well up over 100 points in the first few minutes of trading as you see, topix up 10 points. stocks in japan have been trading on positive sentiment out of the u.s. economy so far, but a couple of factors may hold back some momentum. one, the continuing concerns as you mention about greece and weaker eurozone countries, and also some earnings that we have had out of japan, especially if you look at the outlook and guidance from some of those companies. but let's look at currencies as well this monday morning. the yen may still be supported there because of continuing concerns over greece, means investors may keep money in safer assets such as the yen. you can see the dollar yen at the top of the page, euro yen,

100.44-49. again, we have seen further concerns over greece. we will see how it plays into the euro yen. >> ramin, we should still keep an eye out for key earnings reports due out, as well as economic data from asia. >> indeed. we have inflation data out of china. a lot of focus how that country is trying to reign inflation. in japan, earnings from toyota and nissan, again the focus there on the japanese auto industry, how it is trying to regain global market share following the disaster last year, and flooding in thailand. that's a big focus as well. >> and we can't forget about greece. >> exactly. later today, in fact, greek leaders decide whether they accept the new measures to help ease their debt burden for their country. we'll see how that plays into currency markets and key stock indexes globally. but for now, the nikkei having a

positive start this monday, up over 100 points. back to you, ai. >> thanks a lot for that update. ramin mellegard from the tokyo stock exchange. japanese private research firms expect the country's economic growth for the last quarter of 2011 to return to negative territory due to sluggish exports. ten economic institutes predicted the gdp for october to december will shrink from between 0.1% and 1% compared to the previous quarter in real terms. the figures represent contractions of 0.5% to 3.9% on an annualized basis. sluggish exports attribute to global economic slow down caused by the european credit crisis. historic appreciation of yen and massive floods in thailand. they project gdp contractions of 1% for the year 2011.

the first economic contraction since 2009 when a global slow down stemming from the collapse of lehman brothers shook japan. the japanese government will release official figures next monday. let's find out what's on the global business calendar for the week. in japan, earnings season for october through december quarter will reach its peak. also in japan, current account numbers for december, and for 2011 are due out. that's on wednesday. the current account surplus for last year is expected to shrink. the government already announced the 2011 trade balance flipped into the red for the first time in 30 years. thursday, the consumer price index for january. turning to europe, the european central bank will have a regular meeting of the governing council. and they are waiting to see what the president says a the debt crisis after the meeting. and finally friday, the trade

balance for december will come out in the united states. let's see where the markets are trading this hour. >> that's the latest in business. back to katherine. yoshihiko noda may face back lash after the free trade agreement. japan will begin talks with

eight other nations involved by end of february. ministers and government officials will have seminars at nine locations across japan to explain the discussions. the move aimed at laying the ground work for japan's participation. a group of lawmakers are voicing their concerns. they say japan should first study the effects of the new free trade agreement between the u.s. and south korea. members of the group will be meeting south korean lawmakers and leaders of agricultural organizations to learn more about their strategy and negotiations with the u.s. the world is gaining a second. scientists will adjust the globe's most accurate timepiece, the atomic clock, june 30th, coordinated universal time, utc. the practice known as the leap second will be used for the first time in three-and-a-half years. the earth's rotation actually takes slightly longer than 24 hours. so scientists add a leap second

to adjust the atomic clock. scientists instituted this system 40 years ago. this will be the 25th leap second. they added the last one december 31st, 2008, utc. all clocks need to be set one second behind manually, except for those adjusted automatically by radio signal set to atomic time. the international telecommunications union met in geneva last month to discuss the possibility of abolishing the practice. representatives of some nations oppose the leap second, said it could cause computer problems. others said the practice keeps the atomic clock in line with movement of the sun. members of the union decided to retain the practice for now. "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." the death toll from syria's crackdown on protesters is feared to rise as many people are buried under rubble following a fierce military attack on the opposition strong hold of homs. human rights activists a300 civilians were killed friday and saturday in the deadliest attacks since protests began last march against president bashar al assad. searches are continuing for people buried under collapsed buildings. dozens of people are also believed to have died on saturday in attacks by security forces in several districts outside the capital damascus. on saturday, china and russia vetoed a u.n. security council

resolution calling on assad to stop the violence. the united nations says it can no longer conduct a reliable survey into the number of casualties in syria amid the intensifying military offensive. the organization said last month that 5,400 people had died in the crackdown. a severe cold spell in europe is causing more deaths. officials warn that the harsh weather will continue for a few more days. over 200 deaths have, reported in countries including poland and romania. ukraine has the highest death toll with more than 130 fatalities. the authorities in the capital kiev are setting up heated tents for the homeless. bosnia's government declared a state of emergency in the capital sarajevo due to heavy snowfall. all schools have been closed. austria and italy are losing gas supplies from russia, which is also being affected by the cold wave. air traffic is being disrupted

in many countries. london's heathrow airport canceled one-third of its flights on sunday. several countries oppose cutting back carbon dioxide from airplanes. the european union making them cut co 2rks emissions. it began the beginning of january, are the first of their kind in the world. >> we are in the boeing. for this aircraft, they have taken many measures for environments. a lot of people from new york's airline industry are checking out these measures at an event in frankfurt, germany. they are finding out just how fuel efficient this aircraft is.

>> well, it is important because aviation wants to meet its commitments to improvement in its carbon performance. >> since the new regulations went into effect january 1st, europe's airline industry has been stepping up a force to fight climate change. airlines are carrying out, aiming to use bio fuel on future commercial flights. >> this is bio jet product, and it is made. >> bio fuel is made from plants as they grow. as a result, fuel gives us less carbon dioxide. >> if we were to use, we would

decrease emissions by 80%. it is a significant impact. >> but for commercial flights it is a few years away. for now, airlines must buy credits for any emission higher than the allowed amount. as a result, the airline industry expects to pay an additional amount of more than a billion this year. because of the new regulation, air fares to and from europe will likely rise by as much as $15 a person. the u.s. and china are protesting strongly, insist the regulation is one sided and that it infringes on national sovereignty. japanese airlines also oppose the eu regulation. >> translator: i think it is important that all the world's airline companies agree to establish environmental measures, based on one rule. >> the eu will not compromise on

this issue. it wants to show international leadership in addressing climate change. >> does not reach the principle of sovereignty. if you want to operate in europe, you have to respect the law, you have to respect the environmental law. >> no one can agree which country should be responsible for co 2 that airplanes emit, nor does the protocol address the issue. it looks like there will be no early end to the deadlock. it was warmer coming to work. i left my umbrella home. it may not have been the wisest choice. here is the world weather picture for here and elsewhere.

>> hello, welcome to your weather update. let's begin with east asia. we have a long frontal lane from china up to southern japan that's bringing widespread rain. as it moves eastward, the whole of japan will be affected by today. and the pacific side, will see the heaviest rain, about 100 to 150 millimeters are possible in the next 24 hours. thunderstorms and gusty winds are expected as well. back behind it, a light snow in the northern korean peninsula and northeastern china will gradually diminish today. down toward southeast asia, it's going to be a dry day for you in the indochina peninsula. as for the philippines, the northern sections including manila are experiencing dry conditions, but it looks like we'll continue to see rain throughout today.

today's high looking like this. 31 degrees in manila. 22 in hong kong. a cold wave is blanketing mongolia and china lowering temperatures. winds are going to pick up in eastern china. moving on to the americas, it's mostly dry, but there are a few spots that have been dealing with wet weather. the southern tip of the florida peninsula will continue to see heavy thundershowers throughout monday. and up toward the north, heavy snow in much of quebec are gradually easing, but by then, about 15 centimeters of snow are possible. meanwhile, we can see another area of snow in the four corners region. and across the west, it's mostly dry in western canada as well as the western u.s., but a system will move in and that will produce heavy rain in california starting monday night. expected highs on monday are looking like this. 22 degrees in los angeles.

12 degrees in oklahoma city. the eastern seaboard is still on the warmer side. we're expecting 12 in new york. 11 degrees in washington, d.c. finally, let's go over to europe. as we've been reporting, the harsh cold conditions are still impacting much of the area. and in addition to that, there are multiple systems that are bringing wet and windy weather. these couple of lows are producing rain in the southern tip of italy as well as much of the balkan peninsula and snow for the rest of the area. over the next 24 hours, the balkan peninsula will see heavy rain, torrential rain are expected on monday here. and up toward the north, it's windy and snowy in much of norway at this moment. but that will ease on monday. so that's good news. meanwhile, a mix of rain and snow in ireland is moving southward and affect the northern iberian peninsula in the next 24 hours.

we can see lots of freezing temperatures. minus 1 in paris. minus 7 in vienna. the mediterranean countries, temperatures are slowly moderating. we're expecting 10 degrees in rome and 11 in athens. it looks like the cold condition here will likely continue throughout the week. so that could worsen the situation. all right. here's your extended forecast.

our lead story this hour. the operator of the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant says one of the thermometers in the damaged number two reactor has been indicating a rise in temperature. they are trying to figure out if and how to cool it down. spokespersons says one of the three thermometers at the bottom of the reactor read 71.7 degrees celsius on sunday afternoon. that's a jump of about 25 degrees in ten days. tepco has rearranged water pipes to cool the reactor more efficiently. the company says the two other thermometers have been reading about 45 degrees. tepco adds it does not know why only one is showing higher temperatures. tepco notes the injection of cooling water was partially suspended when plumbing work was conducted on january 26th. it says the procedure may have changed the way the water circulated inside the reactor, possibly preventing the system

from sufficiently cooling down the nuclear fuel. that's all for this edition of newsline. i'm cae kobayashi in tokyo. tokyo. thanks for joining us. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com