growing scandal. another former top executive at olympus organization is charged in trying to build up losses. an independent panel investigating olympus. a report will be submitted o the company on tuesday. the panel has found olympus started transferring losses to overseas funds around 1999. that's when kish mow toe was president.

it caused two to resign. olympus lost a lot of money it made. the work to hide those loss started ahead of japan's preparations in the early 2000s to introduce new accounting standards. the company transferred the debt to overseas funds and used a series of corporate buyouts to conceal it. sources close to the investigation say the report will accuse both former presidents of being involved in the scandal. former president told the panel he learned only recently about how the losses were concealed. kishimoto has also denied any role in the fraud. nhk has contacted sources close to the independent panel. we learned olympus concealed up to 130 billion yen in losses. our sources say the company incurred latent losses of 100 billion yen in the early 1990s. those losses later increased to 130 billion yen. nhk has learned olympus

recovered from the losses. we've also found out the reduction in assets following the revelation of the coverup is unlikely to have a major impact on the company's business. olympus is expected to avoid a sharp decline in its financial status for the first half of this business year. now on to other stories we're following here on "newsline." standard & poor's has placed nearly all eurozone nations on negative watch. what does this mean? >> it means a credit downgrade could be coming even for the countries with that top aaa rating. of course this would make it harder for these companies to borrow money. it also means the s&p isn't just looking at the fiscal problems of eurozone fiscal companies but the currency block as a whole. s&p announced monday it would review the sovereign debt of 15 nations including germany and

france. increasing bonds yields are making it difficult for the blocks government to raise funds. s&p also cited a lack of unity among the nations in their efforts to ease market jitters. the agency says it will wait for the results of the eu summit later this week and conclude its review as soon as possible. debt ratings of debt-strapped eurozone countries such as greece have been downgraded individually. but the s&p's thorough review is yet another sign of the severity of the currency zone's credit problems. the leaders of france and germany believe they have a plan that will help pull the you euro back from the brink. creating new fiscal rules and punishment if they're broken. french president sarkozy and merkel planned to impose

penalties on excessive budget deficits. they met in paris. they outlined their plans after the talks saying they hope to draw up the revised treaty by march of next year. >> translator: new rules are needed to prevent a recurrence of the debt crisis in the eurozone. >> merkel said the existing treaty provides no means of restoring confidence. france was previously reluctant to impose sanctions on countries that overspend, but it made concessions to germany in an effort to maintain unity. the leaders will formally present the idea to european council on wednesday. it will be discussed at a eu summit thursday and friday. merkel and sarkozy also called off a plan to issue a eurozone common bond saying it would not

solve the crisis. the plan to strengthen the eurozone's fiscal yield eased tensions over night. slipped to around 5.9% at one point. this was the first time in about five weeks that it dropped to the 5% level. the yield recently reached 7%. that's a level that would make it difficult for the country to rebuild finances on its own. the yield of spanish bonds also fell to about 5.1%. let's get a check on tokyo markets. tokyo stocks are down this tuesday morning after the u.s. credit rating agency s&p warned it may downgrade sovereign debts of eurozone nations. the nikkei trading at 8,651. that's down half a percent. the topix is down 1/3 of a prt. many are holding back from trading to keep an eye on the credit problems.

they shrugged off the german and french leaders' pledge atz that would likely take awhile to accomplish. although sentiment on european bonds is up on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is losing ground againsthe yen this tuesday as investors remained worried about the eurozone. the green is 77.74-77 yen. market analysts say that investors are buying the yen. it's considered a safe asset. this followed the announcement the s&p may downgrade more bonds. here's a look at the long-term interest rates. ten year japanese government bond is down just about half a base point. let's also look at some other market figures.

>> that is the latest in business for this hour. back to catherine. >> thanks very much, ai. the country will need international support after 2014. hamid cakarsai outlined his nee. >> to make our success certain, and our progress irreversible, we will need your steadfast support for at least another decade. >> reporter: afghan president

h hamid karsai made a request. he said the future of afghanistan depends on its people but international commitment and help are crucial. representatives from about 100 countries and organizations took part in the meeting. among them were u.n. secretary general moon and u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton. they renewed their commitment to the country. will invite to tokyo next ju. participants agreed to continue supporting afghanistan until 2024. ten years beyond the withdrawal of international forces. but challenges remain as there is no prospect in sight. there were no specific discussions but a meeting about how to restore law and order

amid the resurging taliban issue or about providing financial aid. the international committee will need to map a path to stabilize the country at the follow-up meeting next year in tokyo. but that would pose a huge challenge to japan, united states, and the european countries. nhk world. japan's environment minister is preparing to sell his country's plan to replace the kyoto protocol. attending meetings in durban south africa. he's expected to call for a new framework. arrived in durban to taepd a meeting. he met for a climate change and energy efficiency meeting. >> translator: i will explain

japan's stance at the meeting. i will do my best to gain mutual benefit through bilateral talks with member countries, by sharing views with each other. >> japan is exposed. . some delegates support its plans to create a new framework to replace the treaty. the europeanindicated it will allow to continue. the chinese government is suggesting it may accept legally binding targets beyond 2020. japan is pushing for a new framework to be created at an early date. but tough negotiations are expected because there's growing pressure to extend the kyoto protocol. a major trade fair of state of the art solar cells and ecofriendly technologies is underway in tokyo.

>> reporter: more than 200 companies from around the world are taking part in the event. they are displaying latest models such as a product that can be used in place. solar cells come in various shapes and sizes to suit different needs. some generate power using lenses. they are more efficient than others. then there are some that are extremely light and can be bent. >> translator: japanese makers have been accumulating a lot of know how and other things in the domestic market. we can offer a total package in this area, and that's where our strength lies. >> reporter: solar firms in

japan could soon see an increase in domestic demand. a new reusable energy law takes effect next july. it will require utilities to have sources such as solar and wind produced by household and businesses. the government will start the process. the new law is expected to boost solar energy generation by the industrial sector. but companies will need better ways to store all the power they produce. that's one reason there's a showcase of solar batteries in use at large scale power plants and factories. the demand for solar batteries in japan is rapidly increasing. overseas makers are trying to increase sales and gain market share. nhk world. russians used ballots to

show how unhappy they are with the state of politics in their country. many of them turned against prime minister vladimir putin and his russia party when they voted in sunday's election. the central election commission made an announcement monday after 96% of the ballots had been counted. united russia had won 49.5% of the vote. the communist party took 19.2%. it's the largest opposition force. it was led by just russia. the right wing secured 11.7%. >> translator: we will manager to remain the dominant political power. thank you for all your support. >> translator: i intend to announce that we secured a majority of seats in the lower house but the results are not available yet. when the vote counting is over,

let's drink champagne. >> fighting words from putin and medvedev but this election result will have an impact. >> reporter: united russia is still projected to secure about 238 of the 456 seats. but if lost more than 70 seats from the pre-election level. the party had the majority. but it could possibly no longer be able to initiate constitutional revisions on this alope. putin announced his intention to run for the president before the parliamentary election campaign began. in an apparent effort to get voters to vote for his party. his decision to swap the posted president raised concerns about the long-term rule by the two men.

some say putin needs a new strategy to boost his popularity before the presidential election next march. nhk world, moscow. japan's nuclear agency has ordered the operator of the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant to explain the cost of the latest leakage of radioactive water into the ocean. it also demanded to hear how they plan to prevent a reoccurrence. ha leaked from a purification device at the plant. the water leaked through a cracked wall into a gutter that drains into the pacific ocean. tepco says it took workers about 21 hours to notice the leak. it says the contaminated water contains cesium and stroncium. it will take two weeks to

analyze the level in the water. a senior agency official said tepco must review its inspection system given that cracks occurred in recently-installed equipment and it took too long to notice the problem. the japanese government has banned shipments of rice harvested this year from part of a fukushima city after radioactive contamination was discovered. inspections last week found up to 590 becquerels of radioactive cesium per kilogram from rice in three farms. that's over the government limit of 500 becquerels per kilogram. the government says the ban effects 406 rice farms in the region. rice shipments have already been banned at another part of a fukushima city in the prefect e

prefecture. now let's look at the latest? sports with hiro morita.come in report. sato has climbed to one rung below the top. nine and a half years after his professional debut. it is quite clear that he's still looking up. >> he may have been nervous but people in his hometown were

ecstatic. >> translator: a real bargain! >> translator: i want him to reach the top and become a yokozuna. >> translator: i like sinesato. >> has been among his victims. he has won half of their six most recent bouts making him the yokozuna's toughest foe. if the ozeki continues his winning ways, it won't be long.

>> last week we told you about the winner of the final sumo tournament of the year. this week we've got the results of another test of strength and toughness and technique. we go to japan's southernmost island prefecture of okinawa. >> reporter: sumo could get some ideas from these 1 ton competitors. okinawa bullfighting has over a hundred years of history. the match continues until one of the bulls loses its fighting spirit. this family has dedicated its life to the tradition. he's got 30 years of experience in building up animals into mighty contenders. his son has admired what dad

does since childhood. he's training to eventually take over. >> translator: my father has raised and trained bulls that he thinks have what itakes. some of them have met his expectations. i want to develop my own eye for spotting talent. >> reporter: the bull is named anani which means raising. it has a record of 13 wins, two losses, and one draw. others dismissed the animal as weak. they proved them wrong. >> reporte . >> translator: i have trained against strong animals. that proved his potential. >> reporter: he is to take part in the final match of the middle

weight championship. his opponent is a defending champion of the middle weight classes. that's one huge piece of meat. they watch videos of past matches to figure out how the champ might be cut down to size. >> translator: aranami may be able to win if he can sustain himself for the first five minutes. that's the only way to beat the champion. >> reporter: the day of the final match put the challenger to the test. they are in yellow head bands. aranami is on the left. the champion makes aranami aware of his power. aranami gets caught up but manages to hold on. five minutes into the bout, both

bulls are panting. just as it stopped, match has turned into -- >> reporter: but then in the seventh minute, the champions horn traps aranami. and that's that. >> translator: i'm sorry he lost. but i want to thank him for putting up a good fight. >> translator: if we win an easy match, it's no fun. i want to see how well he can do in close matches from now on. >> reporter: father and son and their bull. all devoted to keeping up the charge.

>> and that's all for sports. it's windy in europe and wet in parts of southeast asia. let's go to details on that and more. >> and welcome back to your weather update. now getting a look at the weather across the globe, we'll start off in japan. we're seeing the clouds moving on through. it is largely cloudy for a lot of the country today. but expecting a little bit more sunshine especially for northern sections. should be a nice change from yesterday when we had all that snow. there is a bit of lingering snow in the hokkaido area but little ams at most. then for mainland japan, we are going to be seeing scattered showers. light ones. nothing too heavy. they will move on through this afternoon across portions of the area as well as other here. pulling back we do see largely dry skies for northeastern china

and the korean peninsula should see the showers head away. then instead eastern china this entire region does look to see more scattered showers develop. light ones for most. we could be talking about snowfall rather than rain. further to the south, thunderstorm ace cross taiwan as well as the philippines. still looking quite wet for vietnam. rain has been really continuing here. so you do want to watch out for those well-saturated grounds. 31 expected in manila. 21 for hong kong. colder towards the north. 1 in beijing. highs remain at minus 16 in ulan. heading to the americas and looking at a wet picture for the eastern u.s. long frontal system here continues to produce plenty of rainfall. especially across the

mid-mississippi valley. it is, however, on its way out. that is going to head for the coastline. so mid-atlantic region, new england states watch out for heavy precipitation. the canada region, more snow will drop in from the north. and it's going to bring in gustier conditions as well. for the southern rockies, snow right now. but that should ease as we head into tuesday. denver's high remains below zero at minus 3 degrees again tuesday. and 2 in oklahoma city. it's actually going to be colder here. and houston remains in the single digits. overall it does stay quite cold for the middle of the united states. and a look at europe. it has been gusty and unsettled across the entire region. we're still hearing of these strong gales being recorded on monday starting from as far north at norway all the way

towards italy. hearing of gusts over 60 kilometers per mile. tonight along with the scattered showers for a lot of the region, heavier rain for parts of the peninsula as well as towards scotland. icy conditions that you want to watch out for. highs look like this. 2 in stockholm. 6 degrees in berlin. all right. and up next we have your three-day outlook.

that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. we'll kb back with more of your updates at the top of your next

hour. hope to see you then.