hello and welcome to nhk "newsline." i'm ross mihara in tokyo. the prime minister of japan has seen a shake up after last month. abe accepted the resignations of two ministers and has appointed the replacements. they are both facing scandal. >> translator: i express my sincere apologies to everyone i've troubled. >> obuchi's use of political

funds has come under scrutiny. she has faced questioning in the diet by opposition lawmakers about payments for events held for supporters in 2010 and 2011. political funds reports from two support organizations in obuchi's constituency show that payments made to hold the events far exceeded money collected from participants. opposition lawmakers say the groups also failed to issue any political funds report for a similar event held in 2012. hours after obuchi resigned the justice minister tendered her resignation. >> translator: i'm extremely sorry for delaying national politics and for troubling the japanese people through my recent words and actions. >> matsushima said the cabinet faces various challenges, including reviving the japanese economy. she said she's resigning to avoid slowing down the work.

matsushima has come under fire for distributing handheld fans at a festival in her electoral district. members of the opposition say the act constituted a donation and violates the election law. matsushima has denied the accusation. she says the fans were printed with information that would have been of interest to voters. >> translator: it's understandable that they had to resign. i want ministers to be scandal-free. more women are being promoted in the political world and other areas. but only those with proper ability and experience should take important posts. >> translator: i'd hoped that the appointments of female ministers would prompt more women to advance in society, so i'm disappointed. i plan to return to work soon. i was hoping the ministers would help create a better working environment for women. >> prime minister abe offered an apology to the public shortly

after the ministers notified him of their resignations. >> translator: as prime minister, i am responsible for appointing the two ministers. i apologize to the japanese public for causing this situation. >> abe said there should be no delays in the political process. he said there are a number of challenging issues to address. but senior officials of seven opposition parties say they will continue to call on both former ministers to give a full explanation. the officials decided to demand that obuchi and matsushima attend a diet political ethics committee. some officials said the two haven't cleared doubts that they have may have violated the law. >> translator: it's unprecedented that two ministers have stepped down at one time.

as the prime minister admits, he has a serious responsibility for appointing them. >> the officials agreed to work together to hold abe accountable for the decision. the prime minister appointed yuko obuchi and midori matsushima as part of its efforts to promote a bigger role for women in the government. >> reporter: obuchi was first elected to the lower house of the diet in 2000. she is well-known in japan as a daughter of the late former prime minister keizo obuchi. in 2008, obuchi became minister for declining birthrate measures under then prime minister taro aso. she was then 34. making her the youngest minister in any cabinet in post-war japan. abe named obuchi to the number two position in the finance ministry two years ago when he became prime minister for a second time.

she also chaired a lower house committee on education and science. obuchi won praise from prime minister abe and leaders of the ruling liberal democratic party for her understanding of a broad range of issues. that's one reason she was chosen to join the cabinet. matsushima stepped down from her first cabinet post after less than two months on the job. before becoming a lawmaker in 2000, she was a journalist at a newspaper. later she served in the number two position at the economy and industry ministry, and the land and infrastructure ministry. >> and abe has selected two lawmakers to fill the portfolios in his cabinet. abe has chosen upper house member yoichi miyazawa as the new economy, trade and industry minister. he's a nephew of the late former foreign minister miyazawa. he was the finance ministry official before becoming a politician and he's known to be well versed with the economy and fiscal affairs. yoko kamikawa will be the new justice minister. she was a researcher at a private think tank before becoming a lower house member.

she previously served as the minister of declining birthrate measures in abe's first government. analysts say the prime minister picked her to show his resolve to continue promoting women's role in society. apple executives have rattled those with an earnings report to beat expeck tases. break down the numbers for us. >> it is their signature product, the iphone. executives released new versions with bigger screens last month and they sold millions right off the bat. and that's welcome news because the ipad has actually been falling out of favor. executives said in the last quarter, both sales and profit were up 12% from last year. the executives released the new iphone 6 in the u.s. and other countries in mid september and sold more than 10 million of them in the first three days alone. strong demand off set a 13% drop in sales of the ipad.

sales topped $42 billion and net profit surged to more than 8.4 billion. apple executives unveiled last week a thiper ipad. they're hoping it will appeal to holiday shoppers. chief executive tim cook has call apple's new range of products its strongest lineup ever. >> it is a dimpbts story for another u.s. tech giant. executives at ibm say their sales and net profit fell and they'll off load their str struggling semiconductor unit to a chip maker and even pay them to take it off their hands. will give $1.5 million and will include patents and other property rights as part of the deal. the executives will -- internet based storage systems and big

data analysts. investors reacted by unloading. shares dropped more than 7%. the company is a dow heavy weight. the dow only managed to rise by contrast the nasdaq technology index to apple jumped one and a third percent. let's get an update on how tokyo stocks are starting the day. >> investors here will be watching closely the corporate earnings results in the last. we'll see how that affects -- it's time for the opening levels and the topix. the broader topix trading higher. if anything here in tokyo yesterday provided a big boost to global investors. the nikkei has its biggest one-day gain this year, almost wiping out the 5% losses to the

whole of last week in one session. that came reports of japan pension investment funds, the biggest in the world may soon increase holdings of domestic stocks. having said that, some of the earnings reports we've been covering as you just pointed out may also influence investors here. of course, ibm's earnings disappointed a little bit. however, both texas instruments as well as apple provided a bit of a boost beating some estimates and i'll be watching out for related beg your pardon shares here in japan. specifically morado manufacturing and sharp, which make a lot of components that go into apple products. also, there might be a bit of a focus on the steel sector here. that follows reports from tokyo steel that it plans to cut prices after inventories have been building up and that also falls a fall in the price of steel. china has also lowered its demand last month and commodity

resource prices have dipped due to an oversupply and also a dip in slowing growth, so that's another sector to watch out for. >> what can you tell us about the dollar? seems to be struggling to regain momentum over the past couple of weeks. >> it's dipped again against the yen. 106.86-88 and that's below the 107 mark and off the 110 yen mark that we saw back around october 1st. if you remember, now, investors remaining cautious ahead of key inflation data, as well as housing data later in the week, so investors are going to continue to be guided by earnings reports. potential moves by central banks to calm market fears about slowing growth, especially in china and the euro zone. might be a focus on possible reprecussions for abe's administration in the wake of those resignations we've been

covering here of those two cabinet members. so, we'll see how all of that develops, but right now, we're still in a mixed session here with the nikkei lower and broader topix higher. we'll see how that goes on. i'll have another report in a few hours. >> thanks a lot for that. we'll talk to you in a few hours and i'll be back next hour with more of your business headlines. i'll leave you with a check on some other markets.

officials at the world health organization have declared nigeria free of the ebola virus. officials say there have been no new cases reported in 42 days. that's twice the maximum incubation period. an infected man brought the virus from liberia in july. it spread to 20 people. eight have died. health authorities kept track of who came in contact with the infected people. when they confirmed someone had the virus, they isolated them and treated them. they're still screening people at ports and airports. senegal was declared free last friday, but health workers are still battling in guinea and sierra leone. the u.s. military has dropped arms and other supplies to help

curd issue militants in northern syria. they are depending -- a town in northern sierra on the border with turkey known as ko bani against the advancing sunni militants. the islamic state could capture the strategic city. u.s. forces have carried out 135 air strikes on the group. another measure to help curds fighting on the ground. the u.s. central command said american aircraft delivered weapons, ammunition and medical supplies. it did not give more details. leaders in turkey have been watching islamic state militants threat b to take a town just across the border in syria and are ready to let iraqi kurds cross to join in the defense. the foreign minister announced the decision. it's a change apart for an administration that's viewed consideredish separatists as a

threat. he didn't say how many fighters will be allowed to pass through or which routes they'll use. kurds in turkey have been criticizing the government for not giving enough stance to kurdish fighters in syria. student leaders in hong kong are preparing to hold their first meeting, but scuffles over the weekend suggests there's still a wide gulf between them. representatives of the government and the protesters are scheduled to sit down tuesday evening at a school on hong kong island. student leaders say the talks will last about two hours. they say they'll focus on political reforms and other issues, and it will be broadcast live. the people are divided over the protests. some are still occupying the streets while others say they

just want the disruptions to end. >> translator: the two sides should hold talks as soon as possible so that the people can get back to a normal life. >> a bank in a busy district resumed operation on monday for the first time in three weeks, but other businesses remained closed. japanese government leaders say they'll send officials to north korea and expect they'll be given an explanation into the north's fate of japanese ab duke tes. at least 17 of their nationals were kidnapped in the 1970s and '80s by north korean agents. 12 are still missing. the chief cabinet secretary told reporters expects the group will visit pyongyang soon. he says they're still working with their north korean counterparts for a timetable on the trip and says they haven't ruled out the possibility of a visit this month. >> we want to make the investigation go forward.

resolving the issue is the most important task. we will directly asks questions to the special operations committee. it is worthwhile to go to pyongyang to hear the latest details on the investigation. >> he says the delegation will likely be made up of the people currently involved in the talks. it's expected that ihuda, head of japanese foreign ministries will lead the delegation. during high level talks, china in september, north korea suggested japan send officials so they could be briefed face to face. lawmakers gathered at the prime minister's office before the announcement. they met to seek out ideas on the issue. >> i'm aware of the various opinion on the government's plan to send a mission to pyongyang, but i think it's necessary we persistently continue negotiations with the north to revolve the issue based on the

basic tactics of dialogue and pressure and also action for action. >> but some are urging the government to be cautious about sending someone to the north and the families of abductees are also showing concern about the decision. >> most of the family members think that sending the mission at this time is too early. we haven't changed the stance. we are worried about how the government will carry out the negotiation. but at this point, we can't expect any meaningful result, even if the government sends a >> they submitted a petition on urthe govement to wait. they want officials to find out more concrete results of the investigation before traveling

to north korea. a nuclear plant operator is taking steps to put the plant back online. they say they have completed revising safety measures. they've recalculate d their estimate of maximum tsunami heights. the nuclear regulation authority told the utility it underestimated the height in its first assess m. officials had to carry out simulations on two reactors at the plant. structural resilience have been cleared. if nra officials approve the revised measure, they will draft a plan for the plant to resume operations. it will be the second plant to receive a safety plan. the sendai plant was the first. all japan's nuclear reactors are currently offline. some brazilian scer

supporters are scoring points off the pitch. they picked up a habit from japanese fans at the fifa world cup and they're now shooting to keep their stadium clean. >> reporter: brazilian soccer fans, supporting their favorite team. and those here in the southern city are no exception. they cheer loud and proud. but it's what they do after the game that's getting the most attention. they come together to collect the trash left behind in stands.

japanese soccer fans made international headlines when they were spotted cleaning up after themselves at this year's world cup. and it really caught the attention of people in this community. >> translator: we wanted to do the same as the japanese supporters. we thought, wow, they are doing a great thing, so we decided to follow their example. >> reporter: it is the capital, home of the second largest population of japanese brazilians. garbage is a serious issue here, so both government officials and locals have joined in force to tackle the problem. this is garbage truck, and the other side we have fruits and

vegetables truck. what could happen here? this woman brings a bag filled with garbage. she gives to crews on the first truck. and then she gets another bag from the second one. full of fresh bananas. people receive one kilogram of fruit for every four kilos of trash. this second-generation japanese brazilian came up with this project when he was city official. >> translator: the respect the japanese have for nature and for their neighbors is great. i want to let people in brazil follow their example.

>> reporter: so when locals saw japanese collecting trash at the games, he says it was easy for citizens to do the same. >> translator: the spectators can drop their rubbish, but they can also pick it up afterwards so the stadium is cleaner. >> translator: if people in other parts of brazil also follow this example and do the same sort of thing, it would be wonderful. >> reporter: residents have something to be proud of. they were working hard to keep their community clean and they hope that people in other parts of brazil will also start to stash their trash. gabriela yussa, nhk world. wet day here in tokyo. robert speta has more on how

long the rain will last. >> yes, exact ly, throughout th morning hours in tokyo we have been seeing that rainfall out here and going into work today, i'm sure a lot f people have the um brbrella with them. you can see a look at the cloud cover here. one low moving off towards the east, but another coming in behind it. that's going to be bringing that rainfall in not just japan, but other areas. as much as 100 to 120 millimeters. as that pushes off toward the east, specifically by wednesday afternoon, i think the tokyo area could be seeing thunderstorms or at least some heavy rainfall coming out of this, so a lot of people being impacted by the precipitation. it's not too intense. i don't expect widespread flooding out of this. now, as it does push off towards the east, it has a secondary effect with it. we have this cooler air mass

moving in in the northwest, so you're going to be seeing precipitation wednesday morning, but some could be the white stuff out there. you could be seeing flurries for the first time this season. towards tokyo, temperatures on thursday into friday morning could be down into the single digits, then back down towards the west, high pressure is going to be dominating. unfortunately, the winds start to calm down, but then that leads to fog and haze in some cas cases. show you a video out of -- this was most recent case of this. remember back on monday, we were talking about the beijing marathon, which resulted in some severe haze. this is heavy fog though and it shrouded regions of northern china on monday. authorities issued the second highest alert level for the province. visibility dropped about 200 millimeters. about 2.5 we often talk b about and unfortunately, with that high coming in, it is going to keep making those levels

unhealthy to hazardous eventually. so, something to watch out for through the next several days. let's talk about india now. remember, last week, we were talking about those blizzard conditions into nepal and northern india. that's over, but we're seeing rainfall over towards -- look at these 24-hour totals. some areas as much 260 meters was reported. eventually, that low that's developing here could push off towards the west. now let's move over towards brich isles and i want to talk about this, just cruising in from the west. this is ex hundred gonzalez. it's way over toward the east and if you are in the british isles, you may be seeing hurricane strength wind. this is from the met office. see how these lines really close

together, that's a height gradient and it is going to be windy, rainy and eventually working its way toward the low countries. if you're in paris towards germany, you're going to be feeling the effects of this and plus, temperatures will start to cool off into thursday. wrapping things up here into the americas, you want to talk about two things, in the northwest, we got a front coming on front. that's going to make for nasty weather, but also for a lot of you into the northeast, you have a low here, that's bringing rainfall and then another low coming in from the south. expect a nor'easter here by wednesday into thursday. i'll leave you no now with your extended forecast.

that's all we have for now on "newsline." stay tuned for more on nhk world. óxñx

"euromaxx highlights." >> hello and welcome to "euromaxx highlights." we have put together our favorite reports of the week for you. let's have a look at what's coming up. >> traditional getup. dirndls and lederhosen aren't just for bavarians. risky business. cliff jumping with a twist. and pocket -size perspective. a london photographer makes a big deal of little cars. >> this week on "euromaxx," it's all about bavarian traditions and today we are looking at the traditional bavarian clothes. dirdls for the girls and lederhosen or leather pants for the guys. they are back in fashion now and some southerners wear them all the time. this week they aren't alone. lots of visitors have joined in on tun