asia pacific. he met last month with u.s. president barack obama. they agreed that kmilted to agreeing all tariffs is not a requirement for joining talks. members of the democratic party signed off on thursdays on a plan to protect tariffs on rice, white and three other agriculture products. the prime minister is expected to come out to explain his position on the free trade deal. he can expect to face some

criticism. there just as many oppose the tpp as those that support it. >> tell us more about that. the transpacific partnership is designed to create a free trade zone for countries around the pacific rim. negotiations started in 2010 among eight countries. 11 countries are now taking part. the total population of these nations is about 650 million. that accounts for about a third of the world's gross domestic product. the country's taking part in the talks hope to conclude the negotiations by the end of this

year. if japan decides to take part, what would be the impact on i wants economy. there are advantages and disadvantages. here are some of the major issues. u.s. tariffs are 5% for testi televisions and 2.5% for cars. it could enable japanese makers to sell them cheaper. more exports will help create more jobs in japan. the government estimates the real gross domestic product will grow about $33 billion. that's an extra growth of 0.06%. japan imposes import

if tariffs are abolished the total production would be cut by $31 billion. that's a 40% drop from the current output. now let's get a check on the markets. the dow jones is higher for a tenth day. it rose about 0.06% to 14,539 posting another record high. investors continue to see a rosier picture for the world's largest economy. to see how stocks are performing this friday we're going to switch over to ramin. the positive momentum just continues in the u.s. and the nikkei also saw gains yesterday. is that continuing this friday? >> it doesn't seem. we should see further gains. i'll come to the opening levels right now for friday march 15th.

let's have a look at the nikkei and the topix. 12,458 for the nikkei. i have to add volume has been a little bit below average. with some of the profit taking moves we're seeing during the sessions lately it could be investors are a little bit undecided as to the levels that we're at right now. a lot of focus on that. we have been tracking real estate, banks and exporter sectors of the market. those are key sectors to watch out for especially given the fact they are the most likely to gain from further aggressive

monetary easing measures. we are already seeing considerable gains in those secto sectors. i'll be tracking those again. >> against the dollar it looks like further weakening is the norm again. >> i'm seeing a little bit of that. let's look at the exact levels and for the dollar yen specifically we have seen the trading in and out 96 levels. 96.01 to 05. it was at 95.99. we're going to watch that. the dollar and the euro are coming back a little bit. there were concerns regarding the euro yen about italy's finances and the government bond auction midweek but that looks to have subsided a little bit. 124.87 to 92 for the euro yen. we'll see if that can break above 125. just a note about the tech

sector. today will see the launch of microsoft surface tablet. a bit of focus on that sector of the market. a lot of competition heating up for the tablet sector of the market as we well know and have been tracking. we'll cover the tech sector as well. back to you. >> thanks a lot. here is a look at how other narcot markets are opening.

north korean leader kim jong un is showing he is ready for battle. his country's troops put on another show of strength. he supervised a live artillery drill near a disputed sea drill near a disputed sea border with his southern neighbor. it coincides with military exercises by south korean and u.s. forces. state-run tv reports soldiers hit targets on an island off the west coast. it says they're practicing for strikes against two south korean islands. some of these artillery units shelled the island in 2010, killing four people. kim praised the soldiers for being fully prepared to fight their enemies. north korean officials issued a statement justifying the unilateral declaration to void the 1953 armistice that ended hostilities in the korean war. they say the u.s. and south

korea actually broke the cease-fire by going ahead with their joint military exercises which started nearly two weeks ago. the foreign minister have agreed to work together to deal with north korean issues in spite of territorial tension. japan spoke on the phone thursday with the new south korean appointee and said they should keep a broad perspective despite their difficulties. japan claims sovereignty over the south korea controlled takashima islands in the sea of japan. he said the two nations should cooperate in the economy and foster cultural exchange. there was also a request for help over north korea's past abductions of foreign nationals. un said south korea will support japan's campaign. delegates from japan are making a bupush to investigatio

human rights abuse. they say authorities in north korea are committing systematic violations of human rights. they say the north koreaen are imprisoning political prisoners in concentration camps and using torture. they also mention the abductions of foreign citizens. the draft calls on u.n. officials to set up a special committee. they want to find where whether the violations account to crimes of humanity. they will take up the discussion at a meeting next week. protesters in myanmar are showing their displeasure with opposition leader. she gave the green light to a controversial copper mine project. she faced hundreds of protesters at the site. in november police evicted protesters staging a sit in at

the site. more than 100 people were hurt. it's a joint venture between the chinese company and companies connected to the ruler. about 800 demonstrators marched on the site. they say the report favors china and the military regime. she's open to dialogue but residents are still demanding that the project be stopped. >> i'm the one if you don't agree with the commission's findings. you can stage in front of my house. >> she's still critical of the military rulers. analysts say she is showing another side as a politician who is negotiating with the military. this could stance a shadow over her reputation as a

pro-democracy leader. nepal's president has appointed the chief justice to lead the country's interim government. he'll oversee elections in three months. the move is seen as an attempt to end almost one year of political deadlock. the president appointed a supreme court chief justice as the prime minister. it was based on the agreement of the main political parties. regme will lead a caretaker government to hold an election by june 21st. a new parliament will work to complete the drafting of nepal's new constitution. the country abolished the monarchy and became a republic in 2008. political analysts see the appointment as a compromise. they say it's aimed at ending a deadlock that continued since the parliament was dissolved in may last year. voter registration procedures have been slow so it may be a challenge for him to held the election on schedule. smaller political parties are also opposing him. they say a supreme court chief

justice serving as prime minister goes against the separation of powers between legislative and judicial branches. emerging economic powers still struggling with poverty. embolden citizens still demanding democracy. the threat of violence. the push for peace. the shadow of conflict. get news and insight on south and southeast asia every week day live from bangkok only on "nhk world newsline." militants have launched a coordinating attack. they killed 24 people and wounded more than 50. they provered how vulnerable they were after the attack. two more car bombs went off near the foreign and culture minis y ministry. they exchange fire with security

forces for about an hour. then some of the gunmen detonated suicide vests. no one has claimed responsibility for the attack. they resemble those use bid the iraqi arm of al qaeda. security staff at a new terminal there will be using some antiterrorism devices paid for by the japanese government. officials and guests attended the opening ceremony at the queen alia international airport. the airport is a busy international hub. up to nine million people are expected to pass through the new terminal every year. the japanese government spent more than $14 million of its global infrastructure money to buy x-ray devices.

>> translator: these devices will help prevent jordan by preventing terror attacks as well as other people who use the airport as well. >> authorities are strengthening the security measures. they have seen little let up in the conflicts in iraq and syria. japanese leaders are giving canada money for the mess caused by the march 2011 disaster. they are sending 1 million dollar to help clean up tsunami debris that's washing ashore there. some of the debris has reached northern american shores. a motorbike ended up on canada's west coast. styrofoam products have appeared along with plastic containers.

the canadian environment ministry has transferred the funds. japanese leaders decided to offer money to canada and the united states because of the tsunami debris. they have given $5 million to the u.s. thieves in japan have been stealing sacred targets. some people in the west of the country have come up with a new way to stop the robbers. they are faking them out. this tiny village lies in wakayana preif he c wakayana

students dropped off a replica of buddha. they made it themselves. the original was crafted in the 9th century. it was held in the temple. after a theft at a nearby village locals want to make sure it was secure. they decided to store it in the museum and keep a reproduction in the temple. >> translator: we think if it's only a replica it won't get stolen. it's just a precaution. >> reporter: the ormgal is on the left. it's made of wood. the likeness is on the right. it's plastic and not the same color as the original. otherwise the two are identical. they even weigh the same. >> i'm happy we have made a

statue that will be displayed along with historical objects. now i want to get busy preventing other statues from being robbed. >> reporter: the students are studying industrial design at the area's technical high school. making the high school was part of the curriculum. they did the measuring with a high efficiency laser device. it records surfaces from different angle and is accurate to a tiny fraction of a millimeter. it then processes the data. the statue isn't damaged. a special printer created a 3-d image. the students build the model with melted resin. each layer is quarter of a millimeter thick. if the likeness is stolen, it can be replaced.

this is the first temple in the country to substitute an original statue with a remembpl made by high school students. the museum curator came up with the idea. >> translator: if we asked a company to make it, we would have paid a lot of money. by going to public institutions, we saved a large amount of money. >> reporter: a private company would charge over $10,000, but when students make it as part of a class project, the cost is only a few hundred dollars. the young technologists are knowing they helped the community. >> translator: generally things made at school are made just for experience. as a rule no one outside the class sees them. they certainly aren't used for

prayer. these students were given the opportunity to make something people see and touch. it's great for them. >> reporter: students received requests to make more buddhas. the school plans to continue this project. the young technicians are protecting age old statues with tools the original crafts men could never have imagined. it's theater is about to reopen. it's been rebuilt from the ground up. when the curtain rises next month, fans will be there applauding.

scores of other people offer support behind the scenes and one of them is a craftsman whose creations light up the scene. >> reporter: this man's ancestors began making paper lanterns about 200 years ago. he has carried on the craft for about half a century. his specialty is painting. he crew up in the shadows of the kabuki theater. >> i have been visiting ever since i was in primary school. i used to go to my dad's workshop there after school. i would carry his tools home. people in japan have been performing kabuki for about 400 years. the first was built in central tokyo in the late 19th century. it has been rebuilt four times since then.

workers have just put finishing touches on the newest version. this theater is already turning heads with the redesign. the lanterns draw attention of the passersby. dozens of the lights decorate the front of the new theater. the craftsman uses special techniques to make his lanterns glow. >> translator: i make the colors lighter. that allows the light to shine more brightly. >> lanterns are typically round. he cuts them in half so they take up less pace. they take up less space.

he has been working for months crafting lanterns for the new theater. in all, he paints 600 of them, all on his own. >> kabuki really should be performed there. i'm determined to get the lanterns finished on time. >> when actors go on stage, he will be in the wings, cheering them on. nhk world, tokyo. next, let's take a brief : look at what we can expect in world weather. >> unlike yesterday it's going to be warm. good news if more people in tokyo with exception of those

who have hay fever. sunny and weather will help. sunny weather with the exception of north. we're seeing blowing snow continuing. across the west dry for the korean peninsula as well as the northern half of china. the north and central parts of china will be surrounded in yellow sand today. rain will spread across the south western part of china. that will be intensifying and head toward the east. down towards the south eastern part of asia we're seeing thunder showers with the southern parts and the north and south of the philippines. here are your highs. 21 degrees in chongging. much warming than usual. these areas will see seasonal

temperatures. it looks like temperatures will go out significantly over the weekend. 19 degrees in shanghai on sunday. it looks like residents in tokyo will start to see the flowers blooming on sunday. look forward to that. all right. north america, the southern part of the continent is looking dry. however, lot of things are happening across the u.s.-canada border because this is where we're seeing colder air from the north. we're seeing persistent rain for the northwest. heavy rain here and mountain snow will be persisting as well. up to 60 centimeters of snow. we're seeing freezing rain and winter weather for the freezing parts of of u.s. and canada.

low visibility maybe down to 100 meters. if you're driving, keep a lot of distance ahead of you. these conditions will then head towards the north eastern u.s. and south eastern canada for the next couple of days. to the south looking dry. temperatures are warmer than seasonal in many places. 25 in l.a. 22 in denver. that's more than 10 degrees higher than seasonal. we turn into more average levels in washington, d.c. with a high of 13 on friday. finally in europe we talk about the snow and cold across the west. things are improving here. the southeast is getting more active. we have been seeing more thunderstorms and heavy snow showers and strong winds to the north. for example, in hungary you'll be at risk of severe blowing snow. however, it looks like precipitation should be gone by

saturday. to the north wintry weather will be moving towards the northeast effecting north western part of moscow. things will turn stormier in moscow. temperatures are looking like this turning zero degrees in vienna. two in moscow and ten degrees in kiev on friday. here is your extended forecast.