park used the platform of the u.s. house of representatives to issue her latest warning to north korea. the south korean president addressed the joint session of the u.s. congress. >> the president of the republic of career korea. >> she said it's backed by the

mite of its alliance by the u.s. >> so long as this continues you may rest assured no north korean provocation can succeed. >> park alluded to differences south koreans have had with another u.s. ally, japan. south koreans continue to blame the japanese for colonial era abuses and the use of so-called comfort women during world war ii. >> differences stemming from history are widening. it has been said that those who are blind to the past cannot see the future. >> park criticized japan a day earlier, too, when she met with u.s. president barack obama. she said the japanese should have the correct perception of history to improve ties and build peace in the region.

sole security personnel are more prepared than ever for a chemical weapon attack. south korean forces have conducted their largest ever anti-terror drill. thousands of government and military staff staged the enactment. u.s. soldiers based in south korea also got involved. they used the scenario that three people set off a poison gas bomb in a subway station. firefighters in protective gear rescued fallen passers-by. they treated them outside at a first aid station. special forces personnel collected and analyzed bomb fragments. they then decontaminated the station. north korean leaders recently removed a missile launcher from a coastal site, but south korean troops remain alert for a possible attack from the north. chinese leaders are playing their role at mediator. lee hosted netanyahu at a

welcome ceremony in beijing. lee said israelis and palestinians should remove any obstacles to peace talks. they could not coordinate the leaders schedules. leaders in beijing have condemned the report on the state of the agents. commanders at the pentagon levelled the accusations for the first time on monday when they presented their annual report to congress. they say hackers have targeted the computer systems of the u.s. government and those of american firms. they say there's a strong likelihood that chinese agents were involved.

the state run news agency responded to the report and says the paper plays up to the threats and the military supposed lack of transparency. he says u.s. leaders have invested heavily in state-of-the-art weapons and building up their own cyber-attack troops. he says the pentagon report confuses right and wrong. 31 suspects have been arrested if france, belgium. koo on february 18th the group of masked men dressed if police uniforms drove up to a plane in

brussels where cargo is being loaded. the men threatened airport workers with machine guns before making off with 120 cases containing diamonds and other goods. ten of the suspects caught in belgium have ties with criminal gangs. time now to get a check on the markets. a lot of movements in the markets. >> it is cheerful out there. market sources say the rally is being led by monetary easing efforts in developed countries including japan. they say markets will continue to be bullish in the near term.

the index set a new record for the second consecutive day. stocks in frankfurt hit a high for the second straight day. the dax index rose by .8 of a% to 8,249. market players have seen the dax climb 8.4% since the new year. for how tokyo is trading, let's go to ramin who is at the tokyo stock exchange. more good cheer for stock markets with earnings a big part of it in the u.s. and here in japan. >> earnings reports really playing a big part and with many earning reports in the u.s. having come out more upbeat than the consensus than here in japan. toyota came out with its

earnings on wednesday an reported a significant jump in its operating profit. let's have a look at the opening levels today. the index is well into the positive there so another positive start today. let's just remind viewers the nikkei ended at its highest point and trading value came at 3.32 trillion yen. a lot of volume and value in the movements that we're seeing in stocks. i know you're going to go over the numbers for toyota in detail but toyota shares will be a focus here today after world's number one automaker released its earnings report after the bell showing a strong profit gain and also forecast higher numbers for the current fiscal

year. also toyota added it sees the dollar yen at 90 yen and the euro at 120 for this fiscal year. i want to also add about toshiba, we're going to keep an eye on shares of toshiba after it set its sales. >> mixed results but it's interesting to see the assumed rates being set by the likes of toyota which look more and more favorable seeing the yen is on a weakening trend. the dollar yen has been hovering around that 98, 99 yen level. most japanese corporations have revised their levels compared to a year ago.

let's have a look at the euro yen. 130.17 to 22. i've got to viewers we're still not through with earnings. back to you. >> thank you. as he mentioned many major firms are releasing their earnings report this week. toyota is one of them. that's for the business year that ended in march and it's a 3.7 fold year increase from a year ago. the weaker yen boosted sales in the u.s. and southeast asia.

toyota says the operating profit for the current business year will likely exceed 18 billion dollar up by about 5 billion compared to the previous year. the firm's executive said they expect the yen's continued weakness to help sustain overseas sales. toyota's earnings became sluggish five years ago when the collapse of u.s. investment bank lehman brothers triggered a global economic downtown. >> translator: some say it's time to take aggressive action. i believe we just got to the start line of aggressive growth. all of us will make efforts to secure a competitive edge. that needs to be strong enough to let us stay profitable even if we're hit by something more

serious than the lehman crisis. the chinese government is suspected in dumping. if the member nations approve the proposals, the new will be ready around june. the chinese government has already taken action. it's filed a claim to the world trade organization that they are fairly unsubsidizing their solar panel makers. i'll have more in business next hour. here is a check on markets.

japanese leaders are striving to put their country back at number one in computing. they're embarking on a project to develop the world's fastest super computer. education and science ministry officials revealed on wednesday the $1 billion plan. they say the new machine will perform 100 times faster than k, japan's current fastest super computer. the officials say the computer will simulate earthquake damage with greater precision. pharmaceutical experts will also

be able to use it to calculate the effects of new drugs. the officials hope technicians will complete the super computer around 2020. now, japan's k super computer is currently the world's third fastest. the japanese government has given 22 million dollar to build and repair schools in afghanistan. they worked with aide workers. afghan education minister said he was grateful for the assistance. >> translator: our students will no longer be studying under tents. >> japan will continue sending aid for education. >> translator: children are

rough gems and it's up to educators to polish them and make them shine. >> japan plans to spend another $13 million to build 70 schools. sun and sand is two reasons why thailand is popular with tourists. but there is another side to destinations like bangkok and phuket, the sex industry. thailand's economic boom has done little to help the mainly female workers in red light districts, but now some of them are trying to turn their lives around. >> i think that around this exhibit in central bangkok is an expression of the discrimination and stigma they face. the event was one of a series held last month by a thai ngo brought on by the u.n. development program.

thailand's sex industry is thought to employ tens of thousands of workers. prostitution is technically legal, but the law criminalizes only those who provide sexual services. they get no legal protection from abusive managers, and violence which often comes with the work. groups seeking to rectify the situation say the exploitation will continue as long as sex workers are denied legal protection. >> we are living in society, it's discrimination and stigma against our profession. i dream about to have sex workers to be a human being and stand up in society. >> reporter: not everyone shares that view. the head of the bangkok office of one u.s.-based ngo says

legalizing prostitution could benefit underground organizations instead. >> to try to protect their rights in prostitution is only to try to protect them while they're being harmed. but we offer them the opportunity to have a good job, to get paid fair wages, to have benefits that come with a real job. >> reporter: night light is teaching former sex workers to make jewelry and it pays them about $300 a month, close to the average income in thailand. night light sells the jewelry online, and shares the profits with the women. this vocational training makes it different to other support groups that focus on teaching literacy. take recently started visited night light. she works at the global bar five times a week. she used to be an accountant but after losing her job life now is very different.

she says the only way she can pay her sick mother's medical bills and her daughter's university tuition is to work as a prostitute. >> translator: i had no choice because of my situation. but it's hard. this job is killing me. if there was another way i could make a living with stable income, i'd take that opportunity. >> reporter: take says the support she receives from the ngo may allow her to quit the sex trade. >> translator: i'm happy i found a way out. and i'll have a normal job like other people. i'll be proud of myself, again. and i won't need to lie about my job anymore. >> reporter: no one expects thailand's sex industry to disappear overnight.

but women who once felt trapped are fighting back to improve their situations and to find a way out of the red light district. nhk world, bangkok. when economists tabulate the most expensive cities, many put tokyo at the top of the list. apartments don't come cheap. some students have been able to move into places with reducerd rent. there's a catch. they have to roll up their sleeves to give back to the community. >> reporter: this complex opened recently many central tokyo.

the building is part of a redevelopment project. it houses commercial facilities, offices and apartments. student accommodation are located on the 14th and 15th floors. for a studio flat, occupants pay about $750 a month for rent and management fees. that's about 30% lower than the average rent in the area. college sophomore recently moved in. his apartment is only a 5 minute walk to his university. the room is equipped with a washing machine, a microwave, the essentials. >> translator: i'm really lucky. the school is right over there. i feel really comfortable here. >> reporter: but in return for being allowed to live here, students have to do community work. for instance, they plan and take

part in events that promote the district. in downtown tokyo, new high-rise apartments are going up all the time. and as the population increases, the old community spirit is fading. locals thought that if the area was to be redeveloped, the community should be, too. they asked the developer to create a system to get young tenants to put some zest into the community. >> translator: if we have students living in the area, they can help keep the community vibrant and help arrange neighborhood events. >> reporter: oshido wanted some advice so he visited the president of the neighborhood association. he took out custom made cloth, japanese hand towels used for festivals. >> translator: you put it around

your head and tie it. >> reporter: yamaguchi explains the cloths are not only for drying hands but instrumental in distinctive communities. >> translator: the festivals and the towels go together. they carry the spirit of downtown neighborhoods. >> reporter: oshido will hold a fashion show featuring clothes made of hand towels. he collected about 80 samples made from various neighborhoods. and he recruited his university friends. >> translator: each towel has the personality of the community it comes from. i hope to convey this at the show. >> reporter: the day arrives.

shirts, skirts, and bags, they're all made from the hand towels. they're color coordinated and display the name of the neighborhood they come from. towels from each district are sewed together to make a huge flag. yamaguchi is impressed. >> translator: it's amazing how he fits into our town. he's creative and energetic. >> translator: i'll continue planning some -- fun things that bring people together. >> reporter: locals have high hopes for these students and fresh ideas and they bring energy to rejuvenate their adopted community. time now to get a check on the weather.

meteorologist sai aki mori joins us. severe weather continues in china. we're talking about drenching rain, thunderstorms and some wind. some land slides occurred killing three people. i want to show you this footage. residents of guizhou province were hit by hailstorms up to 4 centi meters in diameter ten minutes. . about 150,000 houses were damages and 8 acres of crops were destroyed. about 800,000 people are sure to be very relived the hailstorms are over.

however, drenching rain are expected to continue for the rest of southeastern china. we're talking an additional 100 to 150 millimeters of rain to fall into this evening. more heavy rain coming down afterwards. the risk of landslides as well as flooding is getting higher and conditions are cite critical across southern china for a while. but over the weekend, looking drier through many areas but the southeast coast will be on alert for heavy rain into the weekend. heavy rain also coming down in bangladesh and northeastern india and looking dry for the northern half of china and mongolia and korean peninsula and japan and this is bringing air to much of the country and temperatures will be on the warmer side. for example, in kyoto, our high, is expected to be 28 degrees for you with lots of sunshine. still looking at 20 degrees. there's no mark of rain, however, rain may start tonight. 22 in beijing and warm in lumpur with a high of 18 degrees. north america, lots of heavy

rain and thunderstorms are occurring across the u.s. from the west to the east. lots of things are happening. in fact, there is a risk of severe weather in parts of kansas, colorado, oklahoma and texas. one tornado has been reported in parts of eastern colorado. things will remain on the severe side into this evening. a similar situation can be found in the ohio valley thursday. meanwhile, snow showers and freezing rain is likely for parts of eastern canada and heavy rain in the cards for you in colorado into your thursday evening. scattered rain for much of the rest of the u.s. temperatures will be still on the warmer side across the northwest. 20 in vancouver and 23 degrees in seattle. meanwhile, 21 for toronto, but at the cold front swinging through, temperature may go down to the mid-teens friday. local europe, strong rains and thunderstorms continue in the

british isle into your friday and showers for the scandinavian continent. ahead a system very warm and severe weather continues in the eastern parts of the mediterranean. temperatures will be very very warm in berlin. 23 degrees for you and 27 in warsaw, warmer than we normally see in mid-summer. 23 in rome and 22 in athens with thunderstorms. here's the extended forecast.

that wraps up this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi. we'll be back at the top of the

hour.

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