. . . . . . . . . . welcome to "newsline." it's friday, march 16th. i'm catherine kobayashi. stockbrokers are buying shares left and right. how are markets here in tokyo starting off the last trading day of the week? let's go to ai at the business desk. >> on wall street and tokyo. the dow jones industrial average rose overnight closing in at a four-year high. the nikkei has risen for three straight sessions. let's go to ramin mellegard at

the tokyo stock exchange. ramin, good morning. blue chips and tech stocks are higher. how are stocks this friday? >> reporter: we may see a bit of a break from that right now. looking at the nikkei and topix trading lower. you mentioned key levels for the dow and nasdaq. the dow holding above 13,000. the nasdaq above 3,000. the standard & poor's 500 closing above a key level not seen in four years. 1,400. the dow there. keeping above 13,000. that is strong. let's have a look at the opening levels in tokyo this friday morning. you can see what i'm talking about there. the nikkei and the topix just lower. the nikkei closing higher just two days in a row now. especially after the stress tests of american banks this

week. a note of caution coming from asian indexes which we noted yesterday. caution about the path of growth in china and also a bit of a leadership change there causing a bit of concern in markets. let's turn to currency this friday morning during tokyo stock trading hours. the dollar has backed off a bit from the 11-month high of the yen yesterday. with expectations of recovery, the dollar will keep gaining. the wuan will move exporters to that with honda gaining with the south korea markets. ai. >> i hear there are key events for consumers in tokyo today. >> reporter: a couple of big events.

un u uniqlo will open in ginza. it is opening stronger with the domestic demand and consumer spending following the march 11th disaster last year. quite a lot of interest on uniqlo. apple will sell its new ipad as of today also in the ginza district. that is a focus as well for users of that product. also, a lot of japanese companies make the components that go into the ipad. namely toshiba. we will keep track of the stocks. the nikkei and topix lower this friday morning. we will see if we can close above 10,000 for a third day in a row. back to you. >> ramin, thanks for that update. the international monetary

fund has officially approved a four-year bailout for greece worth 28 billion euro. that is nearly $37 billion. >> this morning, the imf executive board approved continued support for greece's ambitious economic program. the board stressed the efforts to improve competitiveness and restore economic growth will be key in overcoming the crisis. >> the imf spokesperson called on greece to steadily implement fiscal reforms. these are pre-conditions for the rescue. the imf move is using its own bailout loans. the group of 20 economies are calling on european companies to bolster their framework to prop up nations with budget problems. iran is being cut off from the global financial system.

the eu decided to block information needed for bank tran tran transitions for the company. in response to the eu decision, the world bank known as swift will stop offering financial messages services to iran starting on saturday. the swift service is vital for transactions for 10,000 banks worldwide. iran's financial institutions, including the central bank, will be affected. iran's exclusion from the swift service will make it more difficult for the country to receive money from a broad to settle trade. here is a recap of the latest market figures.

>> that is the latest in business. back to the news desk. thanks, ai. rival political struggles on top of the communist power. wen jiabao states that they are releasing bo xilai. the communist party removes bo as the party of secretary in the city of chongqing. they are assigned to posts in major cities. bo led efforts to develop chongqing by attracting foreign

investment. he was destined for a position within the party's senior leadership. they say he was dismissed with a power struggle between two groups. factions within the party are over struggles over which leadership they should take. xi jinping is expected to be the top leader at the convention. they are at odds with the communist youth league. citizens were caught off guard by bo's removal. bo is reported to have been charged with negligence of duty in supervising a close aide. police are investigating former vice mayor wang lijun. wang flew to an american

consulate last month. an expert based in hong kong is said wang is said to have corruption which implicates bo and authorities may investigate him too. political maneuvering is expected to intensify in the run up to the party convention. japan's crown prince says he hopes people who experience disasters will share their stories so others can learn from them. he made the appeal to an international forum on water. delegates are attending the sixth world water forum in france. japan's crown prince serves as the president of the secretary-general's advisory board on water and sanitation. he canceled plans to deliver a keynote speech. he stayed in japan to perform the duties of his father. the emperor is recovering from heart bypass surgery. the crown prince delivered a

video message instead. >> i will do my best together with you to share and make use of the experience and lessons in japan and elsewhere in order to help build a safer and better future for all. >> crown prince showed photos of northeast japan and thanked people around the world for their help. the prince stressed the importance of remembers disasters and passing the stories on to future generations. japan's education ministry is inviting foreign students to witness the current situation in areas devastated by the march 11th disaster. on wednesday, 47 students from 24 countries visited soma city in fukushima where survivors are still suffering from the effects of the nuclear accident. we have a report from fukushima.

>> reporter: we hope you keep supporting us. thank you for coming from so far away. >> students gave the survivors presents from their home countries and offered words of encouragement. >> reporter: soma city lost 458 people in the disaster and continues to suffer from the accident of the nearby nuclear plant. about 500 people are living in the temporary complex because their homes were swept away or are within an evacuation area. the visiting students learned that mothers with small children are worried about health issues and farmers are anxious about the future of the industry because of the negative image

the nuclear accident has created. >> we should think of how we can change that. i mean, we have to find other ways of generating energy because there are so many dangers linked between us. >> reporter: a student from a developing country had a different view. >> i think the nuclear energy plan needs to rest. you also need to be a good management of the waste of the nuclear safety. >> i want the students to make use of what they have learned here today and to be aware of how dangerous radiotivity is. i also hope they can see us after we have rebuilt our country and our smiles have returned. >> reporter: the visiting students were discuss the message of reconstruction with japanese students and they will give reports to their schools back in their home countries.

reporting for nhk world in soma city, fukushima prefecture. the united states and south korea will now get cheaper products from each other. a free trade agreement went into effect on thursday eliminating tariffs on most of the exports. the deal will remove tariffs on 94% of south korea items to the united states over the next five years. south korea says it expects the fta will boost the gross domestic product. the south korea president, lee myung-bak speaks about it. >> it will have a positive impact. >> a special sale on thursday launching the fta. it offered u.s. wines at prices

at 30% cheaper than before. about 1,000 organizers gathered in seoul on wednesday to demand a halt to the trade deal. opposition to the fta continues in south korea due to possible damage of sales of domestic farm products. the united states and south korea held a press day to show case their joint military exercises to the media. the aim of the drills is to consequen convince north korea not to aid in further military provocation. the exercise is named "full eagle" and opened to the public on thursday. 100 south korean and 200 u.s. troops took part in a 90-minute drill. it took part in firing howitz

howitzers. >> it is to deploy to korea and combine with the counterparts that we are united and we can fight together and we will fight and we will win. >> north korea has been refusing to hold dialogue with the south. north korean leader kim jung-un has been speaking out. president karzai has met with leon panetta in kabul on thursday and they discussed the shooting spree with the u.s. soldier when the u.s. soldier murdered 16 afghan citizens. afghan forces have the ability to maintain security on their own in rural areas. he said that international forces have lost the trust of afghan people and they must pull out of rural areas. karzai requested that

international forces stay in urban areas and focus on helping reconstruction efforts. panetta reiterated his regret over the shooting incident and said the u.s. will make a gradual transfer of security. in response, the taliban have decided to suspend peace talks with the u.s. some discussions were held in qatar. the unacceptable demands over the statements which say the peace talks will remain on hold until the u.s. makes its positions clear. it did not provide further details of the talks. the taliban reportedly demanded the release of five of their fighters from the u.s. military prison at guantanamo bay. they say the u.s. demanded the detainees be transferred to qatar. the americans demanded that the

taliban cut off all ties with al qaeda and end its armed struggle. next, we go to bangkok to find out what is making headlines in the region. >> myanmar's state tv had a campaign address over aung san suu kyi. >> how will we achieve the rule of law? we have to appeal the rule of law that impress the people. we have to reform the judicial processo it is independent, fair and just. the press must be given full freedom. >> suu kyi talked about her path in the 15-minute slot.

her speech was widely anticipated by people on the street. >> translator: i respect her. she wasn't reading from a script like the others. every word came from the heart. >> suu kyi's party is fielding candidates for the april 1st bi-elections. she is running for a seat herself. myanmar wants a full lifting of the sanctions imposed by the countries. the government wants to show the international community that the upcoming vote will be free and fair. the fukushima nuclear accident a year ago sent shockwaves around the world. in india, fears of a systimilar disaster fueled the anger.

we have a report on the dilemma. >> reporter: i'm standing near the nuclear power plant in southern india. this plant was supposed to be functioning last year, but has been delayed by protests of local people. after the fukushima accident, residents intensified their protests. even closing the road to the entrance of the plant. >> after fukushima, people's awareness of the radiation increased. >> reporter: like japan, india has also suffered the destructive force of massive tsunami. the waves that struck eight years ago claimed over 16,000

lives. anxiety has spread among residents who think another giant tsunami could cause a nuclear catastrophe similar to fukushima. the fisherman who lost his house to the tsunami. having witnessed the ocean's power, he is opposing the nuclear plant. >> translator: for children to continue living here, the nuclear plant must be stopped. >> reporter: the government plans to build 20 additional power plants in the next ten years. it seems the authorities hope opening the plant will give their nuclear plan momentum. >> it's not a choice of one particular fuel for india, but everything which we can lay our

hands on. nuclear is one of the definite choices. >> reporter: the local government has formed a panel of nuclear experts to try and persuade residents. >> if the government decides to do it by force, that will be unfortunate because this is a democratic country. >> reporter: with images of fukushima still fresh in indian minds and the gap between the people and the government is widening. nepha gupta, nhk world. >> that will wrap up our bulletin in bangkok. we have had signs all week in tokyo that spring is coming. let's find out what's in store for the weekend. rachel ferguson has the world weather forecast. >> well, not what you might think is coming, quite soon.

it is going to be a bit of a wet weekend across much of japan. we have more showers coming in from the eastern china area. they are starting to hit here with 100 millimeters of rain here and the rain will spread across much of the country. when we are sitting around the 10-degree mark, if you have rain coming in, it feels chilly. as we head back in to the continent, things are drying up for china as they head across the korean peninsula and into japan. there will be a return to the rain. showers will brew over during the course of the weekend. a snow storm in northeastern china here with significant snow and also some gusty winds. as that heads over, it will be skirting the northern tip of haikkaido. the temperatures will ignite the pop-up thunderstorms during the day. 34 for bangkok.

23 in hong kong. on average, after a bit of a chilly week, 10 degrees in tokyo. once again, below the freezing point in kuala lumpur. into north america we go. not much of a change here. the winter storm confined to the northwestern corner of the continent. today, british columbia and the inter mountain west with gusty winds and heavy rains at the coast and significant snowfall. during the course of the weekend, the snow is going to start to expand down toward the four corners. much of the western half of the u.s. will see snow on sunday and monday. it stays warm across the continent. thunderstorms in the ohio valley and mississippi valley as well. a bit severe, but probably large hail and thunder and gusts rather than high risk of tornadoes. let's take a look at temperatures then. we are still seeing way above average temperatures. it will last, in fact, into next

week. 25 degrees in denver. 26 in chicago. 26 also for washington d.c. a bit cooler in new york city. in fact, in the northeast, it is going to start to get a little bit cooler. we have winds coming from the east here. these back door winds. that will make things cooler for much of new england up into eastern canada and the maritimes. you could see some freezing rain here. all right. into europe we go. very clear across much of the continent. it has been quiet this week. there are some showers starting to move across parts of the iberian peninsula. it is not enough rain to make a dent in the severe drought conditions. heavy rain across the british isles and across scandinavia here. some rain in southern norway. it will be accompanied by strong winds up to 80 miles an hour.

some rain is moving away in turkey. you will see coastal rain and snow today before it starts to move away. temperatures will improve. back up to double digits by sunday. up to 13 degrees on monday. minus 2 in moscow. a little bit cooler. temperatures should start to improve. you can see the warmth through europe. 19 in vienna. 11 degrees in london. i'll leave you now to your extended forecast.

our lead story this hour, rival politicical factions are

power play at the top of the china leadership. bo xilai's removal as the party's secretary in the city of chongqing. senior members of the parties are assigned to posts in such cities. bo led efforts to develop chongqing by attracting foreign investment. he was destined for a position within the senior leadership. they say he was dismissed with a struggle between two groups. groups are fighting over which leadership they should take this autumn. bo is said to be part of a group backing president xi jinping. she is said to be picked for the top leader at the convention. they are at odds with the power youth league. citizens in chongqing were

caught off guard by bo's removal. >> translator: the city's leaders have been doi well. the latest replacement seems odd. >> bo is reported to be changed with negligence of duty in supervising a close aide. police are investigating former vice mayor wang lijun. wang fled to a u.s. consulate last month. an expert on china based in hong kong is said wang is said to have corruption which implicates bo. political maneuvering is said to intensify in the run up to the convention. that is the news for this hour. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.