>> glad to have you with us on this edition of "newsline." it's tuesday, august 19th. i'm catherine kobyoshi in tokyo. ambassadors have struck a deal to extend a cease fire in the gaza strip by another 24 hours. they reached the agreement just minutes before a five-day truce was set to expire. but they still haven't settled their different differences. a palestinian delegate said they had reached a deal but would use the whole day to continue talking.

they proposed to extend talks for a month. japanese government officials are doing what they can to find out what happened to a japanese man missing in syria: the leader of an opposition group says they're negotiating with another group to get the man back. video of the man is the internet. the man crossed the border from turkey late last month. he wanted to collect what he called news material on the group's fight against the islamic state.

the militants have been active in and around aleppo. wikileaks founder julian assange has spent more than two years living in the ecuadorian embassy in london. he's wanted for questioning over alleged sexual assaults and faces arrests if he leaves the embassy. but he said he will leave soon. assange leaked classified u.s. documents on the internet. he did not provide specifics of his plans. but a spokesperson for wikileaks explained that he would not be leaving immediately. assange said living inside the

embassy has not been easy. >> it is an environment in which any healthy person would find themselves soon enough with certain difficulties. >> police have maintained a presence outside the embassy around the clock. they say they will arrest assange if he sets foot inside. police want to speak with assange about charges of sexual assault in sweden. they arrested him when he was visiting london four years ago. a british court ordered his extradition to sweden. but assange got out on bail, was granted asylum by ecuador and took refuge in the embassy. staff at the japanese police in thailand are a step closer to understanding a complex surrogate birth case. they have obtained a dna sample from the japanese man they believe is the biological father of at least a dozen children. >> translator: my client wants to explain that he is the father

of all the children in question. >> earlier this month police discovered nine babies in an apartment the man rented in a suburb of bangkok. they later located more. investigators did dna testing on 12 children and concluded they're from the same father. they took all the children into protective custody. investigators believe the man is involved in 16 surrogate births and they believe some of the children have been teen neighboring cambodia. they want to speak with the man but he's left the country. the association of southeast

foreign ministers of four countries reached an agreement on the delivery of russian aid to eastern ukraine. but they were unable to make progress on a cease-fire accord. ministers from russia, ukraine, france and germany met in berlin to discuss ways of diffusing the conflict. >> translator: we're unable to report positive results about a cease-fire in the first place and about a political process. >> lavrov said the foreign ministers will meet again soon to discuss a cease-fire agreement. he said they were able to resolve problems involving a russian humanitarian convoy waiting to cross the border. he said the trucks carrying aid will soon leave for eastern ukraine. he also suggested russia might deploy its military along the border again. he said his country must remain alert when a real war is under way just a few kilometers away. meanwhile, ukrainian officials say their forces have recaptured >> good morning, catherine. these on investor's minds for a while. they were worried. we saw the stocks fall all over the world. it looks now like they're choosing to focus on the positive, such as humanitarian aid to eastern ukraine. back in the mood to by stocks, u.s. shares bounced back from friday's losses. the dow popped up just over 1%

and investors piled into technology stocks. the nasdaq hit a 14-year high. let's now go to ramin ramine melengard. good morning wharks's on tokyo's investors' minds. >> starting a week on a positive note. some key events may keep investors a little bit sidelines. the nikkei and the topix both well in the positive. the nikkei ended just about in the positive on monday. investors largely focused on the health care sectors, a story we've been reporting, a source looking to spend $10 billion to gain full ownership of two-guy pharmaceutical, japan's third biggest pharmaceutical company.

a lot of to skusz afocus in jap exporters. the dollar yen very important pair for currency traders. right now, it's at 102.63-65. investors bought the dollar after american home builder sentiment rose to its highest level since yan. the eero, by contrast, 137.07-10. janet yellen would be given a speech on friday. many analysts will be talking

about the state of the labor market, jobs. the central bank, mariodragey will also be there. that will be another big focus. many of the market speculating at currency levels. and elsewhere, let's not forget the asian index is here. we'll keep it with china related compares. it actually climbed on monday to an eight month high. a lot of focus there. i'll keep track at both the shanghai composite >> i'll have a full wrap up of the morning suggestion in a couple of hours. >> sounds good, ramin, we'll talk to you then. managers at manufacturers worldwide are starting to hold back from investing in china due in large part to rising payroll costs.

china's rising ministry officials say business stood at about $71 billion during the first 7 months of this year. that's down three tenths of a percent from the same period in 2013. investment from japan plunged more than 45%. diplomatic tensions are continuing to take a toll. falling more than 17% each that's a faster pace of decline than before. chinese government officials say the rising incomes of chinese consumers will likely boost investment in the service sector. but analyst are cautious whether things will turn out the way

they've expected. japanese tax has long been a point of contention. it's levied only on contact by domestic businesses. the government plans to impose it on foreign firms, too. in june, the tax commission filed a tax report plan. it was an obligatory firms in japan with annual sales of over 10 million yen. the tax will start in fiscal 2015 at the earliest. japanese firms have been complaining about a disadvantage worldwide. proposed on the treating on europe. when the system is changed, japanese consumers purchasing online contests such as music must pay the consumption tax.

more headlines in business for you next hour. here's another look at markets. >> people across west africa are hearing more and more about the causes and the spread of ebola.

the ebola outbreak in west africa has created growing distrust among local people toward conventional medical treatment. residents in liberia's capital monrovia on saturday looted a quarantine center for suspected ebola patients. local media say the attackers took away some of those who were being treated. health officials have been struggling to contain the outbreak, but many residents say medical workers are spreading the disease. the world health organization says the death toll from ebola or suspected infection in four west african countries has risen to 1,145. that includes more than 400 in liberia. jakarta. the group was founded in august 1967 by end necia and four ocountries. it has grown to become an important engine of the world economy, but it has also struggled to deal with major issues, such as the rise of china. some asean members have territorial disputes with china in the south china sea. >> asean is altogether facing a

changing geopolitical and economic landscape that is affecting the peace, security and stability of our region. >> china in may erected a huge oil rig in waters near the paracel islands. ships from vietnam and china clashed repeatedly. the philippines has accused beijing of taking control over five shoals in the spratly islands, including johnson south reef. earlier this month, a divide surfaced at the asean regional forum. some countries including the philippines sought to curb china's actions, but they faced opposition from cambodia and other nations that rely on chinese investment. the secretary-general called on members to remain united. >> we need to continue efforts in preserving a united an collective response to these contemporary and emerging challenges. >> asean's members are at different stages of economic development. they encompass a variety of cultures, religions and political systems.

observers say they need to work together more effectively to tackle issues such as regional security, disaster preparedness, and reducing poverty. the death toll from floods new species of plants are still being discovered in myanmar. the country's often called a treasure-trove of medicinal herbs. a japanese pharmaceutical company used to import the ingredients for its herbal medicines from china, but the firm has recently started growing medicinal plants in myanmar. nhk world's yasushi isa has the story. >> reporter: the growing of licorice is under way at this farm in the suburbs of mandarin city in northern myanmar. dried licorice roots are used as an ingredient in herbal medicines that reduce inflammation and relieve pain. >> translator: you need to make sure that you water the plants every two or three hours during

the day. >> reporter: toshiharu nagane is the farming adviser for the japanese pharmaceutical company. the firm has developed its own method for growing licorice over the past eight years. japan imports most of its licorice from china, but the chinese government has started limiting these exports. china says it wants to preserve this natural resource and protect the environment. the price of licorice has risen drastically because of these restrictions. it's 2.5 times more expensive than it was five years ago. this is a huge blow for the pharmaceutical companies that produce herbal medicines. rising costs prompted nagane's farm to turn to myanmar. the countries in the regions have ideal conditions for growing licorice. myanmar also has plenty of workers.

about 70% of its people make their living from the land. on this day, nagane visited the village to check the licorice that was planted in the spring. the roots are set firmly in the soil. local people may also benefit from growing licorice. many of myanmar's farmers struggle to make a living. value-added crops, like licorice, will boost their incomes. >> translator: japanese techniques are really good. i'll do my best because i can expect to increase my income.

>> reporter: nagane would like to persuade more farmers to grow licorice. this farmer wants to grow watermelons. he says chinese sellers will buy everything he produces. nagane tries to convince him that licorice is easier to grow than watermelons. >> translator: i'd like to give it a try if i can make more money. i hope it will benefit me and the development of this area. >> translator: i'm looking forward to seeing our business grow in myanmar. i'll be happy if i can help to increase the farmers' incomes so they can live more stable lives. >> reporter: the first full-scale harvest is expected in four years' time. myanmar is set to become a reliable supplier of this valuable crop. yasushi isa, nhk world, myanmar. emerging economic powers. the threat of violence. the push for peace.

the shadow of conflict. get news and insight on south and southeast asia every weekday "live from bangkok," only on nhk world "newsline." >> teaching locals on the philippine island how to grow buckwheat. he wants to lure rebel fighters away from decades of war and into farnling work. >> reporter: muslims make up about 20% of the population. residents have been struggling with independent for more than 40 years. they clashed with troops, leaving more than 60,000 people dead.

but in march, the government in the country's largest level grew signing deals. the decades-long conflict has left regions in the philippines. but yoshi mikawa wants to change that. he and friends started growing back on the child basis. on the hunch that the green will grow well there. >> farmer serves as the basic foundation on lives. i think the area is ideal for growing buckwheat which means plenty of rain and sunshine. >> his secured backing from a japanese company will purchase buckwheat from foreign countries of low cost. he has been working on this project for seven years. buckwheat in the philippines sells for about twice the price

of corn. it has the potential for earning farmers more money. the next test is to help them build their lives. on this day, he visited a village that's home to many rebels. a senior member of the rebel group with 800 fighters. his four sons also belong to the group. fighting for independence has priority.

until now, becoming a soldier was only natural. >> i'm exhausted from fighting. from now on, we must work to bring a bright future to our children. >> he plans to start groik buckwheat. he says he wants to build a basis for his new life. his efforts are already bearing fruit. some 15 farmers have started growing buckwheat on a trial basis. this year, he hopes to increase the number of growers tenfold with rebel support. a major japanese company is in the process. >> exporters growing buckwheat

in japan are expected to start later this year. >> i hope the buckwheat production here will spread. my dream is to see a peaceful and robust philippines. i'm not sure how long i'll keep working, but i'll do all that i can. >> if successful, the buckwheat project holds a lot of promise. it will allow an autonomous region to become more self reliant. >> it's time now for a check of the weather. people in nepal in northern india are dealing with severe weather conditions. >> unfortunately, i must tell

you, more heavy rain will be pounding the similar locations. considering the monsoonal season, however, it was quite on the scarce side. much of india only saw 80% compared to normal years. some locations only saw 40% of normal rainfall amounts. but a very different story across the border of nepal and northeastern india. we have actually seen a deluge of rainfall of about 500 to 600 mil meters in the past seven days. some locations saw 700 millimeters. on top of that, accumulation could even be staggering amounts of additional 200 millimeters. on top of the rivers that are already exceeding the flooding levels. another area where we may see some heavy rain warnings again will be in the southern locations so rain will be continuing upping the risk of further flooding, i'm afraid. here across eastern continental asia, it is actually a slow start of the tropical storm season.

august is usually the peak of it. we're not seeing that much starting this august. but, we're seeing this rainy season quite like stationary boundary, it is not. but it is bringing a lot of rainfall across northern japan, southern japan, as well as the korean peninsula and down into southern locations of china. this is going to be bringing about 200 millimeters in and around kyushu where deadly flooding has occurred over the weekend. not welcome at all. hokkaido usually does not see this much rainfall in august but 20 millimeters of additional rainfall in the southern peninsula. down towards the south, this is an area with lots of rainfall. we do have a chance of a tropical development here which is carrying a lot of that moisture, dumping it in an ann area of already 180 millimeters have seen. low pressure systems carrying moisture to the southern china peninsula. scattered thunderstorms will be provided in north and southern locations such as bangkok. 34 degrees there. ulan bator, about eight degrees

above your average range. tokyo, another hot day for us at 34 degrees on tuesday. the eastern half of this continent is also looking quite messy. we have a system that will be pulling away but still severe thunderstorms will be affecting nova scotia and eastern coast of canada. this low pressure system quite a slow moving one that will be pulling into mid-atlantic. it is more of the heavy rain that will be prolonging that could cause some flash flooding risk. another system is creating lots of hailstorms now reported in and around dakotas and moving into the great lakes region. similar conditions will be prevailing. then through the next several days looks like much of the eastern two-thirds will be battered with really very heavy. the southwestern monsoonal flow

is quite active across the four corners. likely seeing temperatures as follows -- oklahoma city, still quite summer like. a quick look in europe. again another round of severe weather across the scandinavian and northern central locations. we have numerous reports of gusts. this is on a weakening trend so the wind will be winding down as more of the prolonged rainfall that could cause flooding especially in and around southern sweden. but meanwhile, iberian peninsula, central locations as well as the east looking quite nice. kiev in moscow reaching the high 20s on your tuesday. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast. that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm katherine kobayashi in

that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm katherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.

>> hello, and welcome to the "euromaxx" studios at the brandenburg gate. we take a close look at men's fashion today, amongst other things. let's have a look at the highlights from the week. brief encounters -- designer swimming trunks are this summer's big hit. big brother -- how a cold war listening station became a berlin attraction. and fancy fonts -- a berlin startup shows that penmanship is trendy again. so, have all you men out there got the latest swimming trunks for this season? i think until now we have maybe all thought that swimwear was timeless, especially for men,