putin power. the prime minister declares victory in russia's presidential election. vladimir putin set to extend his hold over russia another six years. he swept the presidential election in a vote observers say was marred by fraud. he pushed back against his

opponents in a speech with emotion. election workers have counted more than 60% of the ballots. the central election commission reports putin has a significant lead with more than 64% of the vote. communist party leader in second with 17%. the 59-year-old putin served two terms as president between 2000 and 2008. he spent the past four years as prime minister. he suffered from a vote rigging scandal in the lower hours.

they organized protests since. he promised to improve support in latter stages of the campaign by pledging stability for the nation. a lack of viable contenders also worked in his favor. putin will serve a six year term as president once his victory becomes official. japanese government officials say they'll monitor putin's new administration. they want to explore ways to resolve a territorial dispute with russia. the countries have been arguing over a group of four islands off northern japan for more than 60 years. soviet troops seized the islands after world war ii. japanese officials have been requesting they be returned ever since. japanese government officials welcoming putin's victory. they say he understands the importance of the dispute, and is willing to resolve the conflict. some foreign ministry officials remain skeptical. they say russian officials are unlikely to make concessions.

they want prime minister noda to meet with putin on the sidelines of the group of 8 summit in may in chicago. tokyo traders are looking to wall street for queues this monday morning. new york markets ended the week on a down note. ai uchida is here. >> we saw a small pull back after a strong rally. investors may have been taking profits ahead of key economic data. ramin, judging by the open investors taking a step back here as well until hearing more about jobs data in the u.s. this week. jobs data is a key focus due out friday. a couple of events in europe may get focus of investors. mainly the greek bond swap deal, and also european central bank

meeting thursday. also a bit of focus in europe as well as jobs data in the u.s. let's look at the opening levels this monday morning. looking at the nikkei and topix, both indexes trade marginally lower. let's not forget nikkei ended friday higher, despite data friday which showed a slight rise in unemployment in january and slight dip in the consumer price index. the key factor gains in the nikkei so far has been the weaker yen. that helped propel the nikkei higher in the last few weeks, approaching 10,000. we have to wait and see for that one. let's switch to currencies as well. as i mention, the weaker yen playing a big part in gains we've seen in stocks, and 81.61-66 dollar yen, and euro yen, 107.70-74. weaker yen may boost oversees earnings in key sectors like autos, construction machinery,

electronics, high tech products as well as we come to the next earnings reporting season here in japan, and also we have been seeing some of the reversal effects of the stronger yen, which we saw last year, and of course, a lot of the effects from the march 11th disaster. >> a big focus as we approach the earthquake and tsunami as well as fallout from the plants. >> definitely. a lot of investors are looking for a faster recovery in a lot of key sectors like the exporting sector for japan because of the weakening trend that we've seen in the yen, and also signs for domestic manufacturing, farming and also construction areas looking for a pickup in those areas as well. and however, some head winds are also on the alert for a lot of investors with geopolitical tensions mounting, and also the

price volatility for oil in the last few weeks as well, trading up by a couple of dollars, trading lower, so that price volatility may effect some energy related stocks here in japan, trading companies, and oil and gas stocks as well. for now, nikkei and topix just marginally lower this monday morning. back to you. >> ramin mellegard, thanks for that update from the tokyo stock exchange. tens of thousands flocked to a trade show featuring products made by small and mid size japanese firms. 170 firms, organizations and local governments took part in the trade show organized by an online retailer. the three-day event that opened friday gave them an opportunity to gauge consumer reactions before making full in roads into the chinese market. it drew 50,000 visitors. double the organizers' projection. they asked questions about

products on display or bought some of them on the spot. >> i like japanese products because japanese people are dedicated to developing technology. >> the organizers says consumers in shanghai and other major chinese cities are becoming more quality conscious. they're especially interested in trendy goods, hand woven textiles, and traditional crafts. major supermarkets are expanding products and services for the elderly. the stores are targeting seniors in anticipation of the mass retirement of baby boomers this year. a new one opened in tokyo, targeting middle aged an older consumers. lettering on price tags is three times larger than normal. the shops also offer low salt food dishes in smaller portions. that's because ingesting too much salt can cause higher blood pressure. the shop doubled the amount of

floor space in the pet supply department, expecting increase in the number of people keeping pets as their children leave home. it tripled the space for healthcare products. other chains added floor space for apparel and healthcare products for seniors. let's look at the latest figures once again. >> that's the latest in business news. back to catherine. officials have a warning for residents on the pacific coast.

they say a tsunami could overwhelm sea walls at half of the major ports if another strong earthquake occurs offshore. scientists conducted simulations for tsunami after the one last march destroyed sea walls at many ports. they estimate the damage following an earthquake in tokyo with maximum magnitude of 8.4 or one in southern and central of 8.9. it shows the sea wall at kochi port would be hit by a 12 meter high tsunami. the wall at hidaka, about 6 meters high, would face a 10 meter wave. the findings show that a 5 meter sea wall at one port in western japan would be hit by tsunami 12 meters high. the 6 meter wall at another port in the region would face a 10 meter wave. the ministry plans to reinforce the existing barriers to reduce possible impact of bigger

tsunami. one of the major headaches for the japanese government has been how to deal with vast amount of debris from last year's disaster. prime minister yoshihiko noda planned to give financial support to those accepting the burden. the quake and tsunami left more than 20 million tons of debris on the coast of the hardest-hit three prefectures alone. the government has been calling on local governments to dispose of the debris. but due to concerns about the effects of radiation, few communities have responded positively. noda said the central government may conduct radiation checks as it is vital to seek understanding from local residents. the prime minister said his government will support the communities in expanding their disposal sites or building new ones. let's go to a special report on miyagi, one of the prefectures hit hardest by the disaster. these photos were taken soon

after the disaster. in the debris, there were a lot of pine trees uprooted and washed ashore. volunteers turned the trees into musical instruments and have organized a recital. locals will take part in the performance. they hope it will convey their gratitude to all of those who supported them. our reporter has more from miyagi. >> reporter: musical director organized the recital. more than 100 disaster survivors in miyagi prefecture will participate in the show. >> translator: i want to encourage the survivors. i hope they look forward to seeing me each weekend for rehearsals.

>> reporter: he hit on the idea because he wanted to lift the spirit of one of the victims. he lost his house to the tsunami and is now living in temporary housing. they have played in a band for 30 years. the musical director invited his bandmate to play guitar in the upcoming recital. made of a pine tree salvaged from the tsunami. he asked his friend, a guitar craftsman, to make it. guitar craftman came to tokyo from miyagi prefecture. the lumber was too moist and moldy to craft.

he dried it with care and completed his work in just four months. >> translator: i was moved that survivors thanked the people in the recital, even though they have been forced to live a hard life. i thought, i have to make guitars to make the survivors smile. >> reporter: he made the guitars hoping that the survivors will recover from the tsunami. it is designed to represent the tsunami hitting the shore and shows buildings that were washed away. he made a second guitar from the same pine. he decorated this one with

cherry blossoms, both symbolizing survival. he brings the guitars to the rehearsal. ♪ >> reporter: praying for the resumption of local trade service as well as a revival of local activity. he listened to the hardships of all 116 participants. wrote lyrics and dialogue. >> translator: our house was wiped away except for the foundation. i lost my mother, brother, and sister-in-law in tsunami.

>> translator: my factory in sendai was swept away, too. >> translator: 360,000 blankets were delivered to us from all over the world. thank you very much. ♪ >> translator: i don't have a clear with regard to reconstruction but i want to keep my head up and forward with vigor. >> translator: the tsunami brought many hardships but it also brought us a recital and friends, new personal relationships. new bonds will be built and will become stronger and more important. >> the recital will be held in

tokyo on the 18th of this month. an earthquake that swallowed a nation, a nuclear plant that spiralled out of control. japan marks the first anniversary of the march 11 disaster. what lessons have been learned? find out on "newsline," starting monday, march 5th. then sunday, join us at 2:00 p.m. japan time for lessons of march 11th, one year on. china's defense spending continues to rise. the country's defense budget for 2012 has increased by 11.2% to about 670 billion yuan or nearly $110 billion. national peoples congress spokesperson li zhaoxing revealed this on sunday.

li said the annual budget covers the cost of research, development and procurement of all weapons, including new types of equipment, but he did not give any further details, including the proportion of the national budget that is spent on defense. >> he also said it was a lower percentage than the united states, britain and other major powers. china's defense spending has logged double-digit growth every year since 1989, with the exception of 2010. the expansion of the defense budget is expected to fuel global concerns about china's rapid military buildup. nhk world's kengo okamoto reports from beijing with more details on china's defense strategy. >> reporter: china is keeping a careful watch on the united states as the asian nation steps up its military capability.

president barack obama's administration wants to strengthen the u.s. presence in the asia-pacific. it's believed that china wants to deter the u.s. from entering maritime territory near the country. china views the issue of taiwan sovereignty as one of its core interests. in particular, china is planning to beef up its maritime military capability and expand its action zone. china's ambition is best symbolized by its first aircraft carriers. it bought a soviet aircraft carrier from ukraine, and the leadership went on a trial voyage last august. there is a speculation that china may deploy aircraft carriers in the south china sea, the focus of territorial disputes with some southeast asian countries.

china has also reportedly conducted many trials of its stealth fighter jets. the country is devoting a great deal of energy to research and development for military equipment. china is also interested in space development. its civilian technologies in this field could have military applications. five years ago, china was strongly criticized by the u.s. and other countries when it tried to destroy its old satellite by using a ballistic missile. but china has continued with its ambitious space program. observers say china will keep beefing up its military might, but china will be asked to act more responsibly as a major nation by the international community and to disclose more information on its defense. yokomoto there with a report on china.

north korea organized a massive rally based on accusations that south korea defamed its new leader, kim jong-un and his late father, kim jong-il. the rally took place in a square in central pyongyang on sunday. it was a response to photos of the father and son with threatening slogans posted at a military unit in the south. north korea's chief of staff, ri yong ho, read a statement that the military will wage what it calls a sacred war against the south. citizens and soldiers who filled the square chanted that they will become guns and bombs to protect the new leader. observers say the north korean leadership is trying to tighten its grip ahead of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the country's founder, kim il-sung, on april 15th. japan's emperor is back at

the palace after spending 16 days in the hospital. minimum february, he had heart by pass surgery. the imperial household agency overseeing his duties is seeking ways to lighten his busy schedule. the emperor left the hospital in tokyo sunday afternoon. the medical supervisor said water is collecting in the emperor's chest, and he shows a lack of appetite, but he says the emperor's condition is improving. he said the emperor will undergo rehabilitation, including strolling the grounds of the imperial palace and using a treadmill. the imperial doctor said the emperor should not conduct official duties until at least the end of march, but he added that the emperor can attend a memorial event for the anniversary of the tohoku's disasters if his attendance was brief. doctors said it was necessary

for him to decrease official duties. he pointed to his age of 78 and the effects of a drug he has been taking since a prostate operation in 2003. it is cold and rainy this morning in tokyo, and the rain is really coming down on us. >> we have a lot of rain and it could intensify over the course of today. the reason, we have a developing low pressure system moving across the pacific side so it is going to be particularly cold along the pacific side, 120 millimeters are possible over the next 24 hours and that could be accompanied by thunderstorms as well as gusty winds. tohoku region looking at snow, but may change over to rain from this afternoon and it could become heavy as well, and in hokkaido , good chance of

blowing snow tonight into tuesday. in southern china, because of the frontal system, most of the precipitation will move out to sea by this evening. up towards the north, a separate system is moving across northeastern china bringing quite a bit of snow here as well as the northern peninsula and rain in south korea. temperatures are as follows. almost averaging with 10 degrees but tokyo only 6 degrees expected but it will warm up to 15 degrees on tuesday. that's definitely something we are looking forward to. and very warm for this time of year in taipei and 35 in bangkok. now, moving over to the americas, last week tornadoes damaged the eastern u.s. the system that brought severe weather has moved out to sea so things are getting much calmer in the east. however, the exception is going to be the lower appalachian. winter-some conditions will

continue throughout the nighttime hours. the combination of dry weather, as well as lots of warmer air, is producing fire weather in the southern and central plains. out towards the west, a developing low pressure system is moving across the british columbia region as well as the pacific northwest bringing mountain snow along the cascades, about 45 centimeters are in the forecast. expected highs are as follows. heavy rain in seattle with 7 degrees. 0 degrees in winnipeg. minus one and 7 degrees in d.c. with cloudy skies. finally, let's go over to europe. we can see lots of clouds in the east. we've got multiple systems in the west. multiple systems are bringing quite a bit of rain in the east and wintry mix in the southeastern tip of the uk.

over the next 24 hours, the alpine region will see heavy snow and thunderstorms in northern italy. rain in southern italy will move towards the east and affect the southern peninsula as well as turkey over the course of monday. out towards the east, snow showers in eastern europe are gradually subsiding on monday. temperatures are looking like this, cooler than average in moscow with minus 4 degrees and minus 3 in kiev and 10 degrees in london and 4 in paris. >> there will be a chance of sleet in the afternoon. all right. here's your extended forecast.

our lead story this hour. vladimir putin set to extend his hold over russia the next six years. he swept the presidential election in a vote observers say was marred by fraud. he pushed back from opponents in a speech filled with emotion. >> putin!

>> election workers counted more than 60% of ballots. central election commission reports putin has a significant lead with more than 64% of the vote. communist party leader zuganov is in second at 17%. the 59-year-old putin served two terms as president between 2000 and 2008. he then spent four years as prime minister under current president dmitry medvedev. putin's popularity suffered from a vote-rigging scandal in december's lower house election and a series of anti-putin protests that followed. he managed to improve his support in the later stages of the campaign by pledging stability for the nation. a lack of viable contenders also worked in his favor. he will serve a six-year term as president once his victory becomes official. that's it for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in

tokyo. we'll be back at the top of the next hour. next hour. do stay with us. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com