hello there. welcome to "newsline." it's wednesday, november 5. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. people across the u.s. are voting in midterm elections. the polls have closed in some states. election officials have started counting ballots in kentucky and indiana. abc news projected the republicans are gaining seats in both the house and the senate. 36 of the senate's 100 seats are up for grabs. all 435 seats in the house of representatives are in play. voters in 36 states will choose their next governor. >> i am very supportive of obama. i just think he's done a very good job.

>> i think he's doing a bad job. he's kind of like nixon was. two presidents the worst we've ever had. >> it poses a challenge for democratic candidates. obama had a 68% approval rating in his first three days in office six years ago. but his popularity has fallen steadily as he struggled to revive the economy. he was reelected in 2012, but his ratings have remained below 45% since last october. it dropped to 42% this september. republicans have questioned obama's leadership being critical of how he's handling militants and the ebola outbreak. the latest polls suggest the republican party will retain its majority in the house and gain seats in both chambers. workers at japan's fukushima daiichi plant have finished removing highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel from one of

the reactor buildings. the plant was hit by a massive quake and tsunami in 2011. there were more than 1,500 units of spent and unused fuel in the pool inside the building. officials at tepco are putting priority over removing spent fuel because it's highly radioactive. they began removing more than 1,300 units of spent fuel in november of last year. workers completed the removal of the last units on tuesday. tepco plans to remove the rest of the fuel from the building by the end of the year. the procedure will be more difficult at the number one, two, and three reactor buildings because of high radiation levels. the three reactors suffered meltdowns. they face difficulties with melted fuel because its exact location and condition are unknown. japanese coast guard officials have seen a jump in the number of chinese fishing ships in waters south of tokyo.

the crews are suspected of poaching coral in japanese waters. the coast guard is closely monitoring the ships. they've been traveling around japanese islands in the pacific ocean. japanese officials say they spotted more than 200 boats on thursday near the ogasawara islands and izu islands. about the same number appeared again on monday. they're telling crews on the chinese vessels to leave the waters. a typhoon is expected to approach the area on thursday. residents of the islands are concerned the ships may enter ports to seek shelter. they're worried crew members may land on the islands. coast guard officials say they'll inspect any vessel approaching the islands and prevent the crews from getting off. more than 40 countries are conducting a military exercise in the persian gulf. the participants are focusing on ways to deal with possible attacks by islamic state militants on offshore oil facilities.

nhk's sho beppu has more. >> reporter: the exercise started last week and involves 44 nations. u.s. military officials say it's one of the biggest for a maritime drill. it's led by the u.s. navy's fifth fleet whose responsibility is covering the middle east. japan is one of the countries joining the international maritime exercises. we are now on board a japanese minesweeper. japan has dispatched the ship from japan's maritime defense force. the captain says japanese personnel hope to enhance their mine sweeping capability. >> translator: we are now on an important oil transportation route for japan. >> reporter: about 80% of japan's crude oil imports pass through the persian gulf.

the drill also includes measures to stop and inspect suspicious ships, possibly with terrorists targeting offshore oil facilities. captain dale maxey says all facilities in the gulf are vulnerable, because they are spread out over a wide area. >> if one of those had some nefarious purpose, it would probably be pretty easy to get closer to a, like you said, one of those oil platform type targets. >> reporter: the u.s. navy is also conducting a drill using sea lions to find suspicious persons at sea. the navy is aiming to train 100 of these marine mammals that are sensitive to underwater sounds. the sea lions practice putting markers on divers considered suspicious. the military exercise runs through november 13.

sho beppu, nhk world, the persian gulf. officials at the european commission are downgrading their growth projections. we're joined now from the business desk. can you tell us more about this? >> officials are saying growth in germany, in france, and italy, not going to be as strong as they had thought before. the thing is, those three countries are the biggest economies in the eurozone. that's why officials are expecting overall growth to be weaker, too. officials say growth in 2014 will likely be less than 1%, and they say next year won't be much better. both estimates are lower than what they had expected in may. the commission expects germany's gdp growth to slow to 1.1% next year. the figure for france is 0.7%, and for italy 0.6%. >> all member states need

structural reforms, credible fiscal policies, and clear support to investment. >> officials are asking germany to be aggressive with its fiscal pump priming. and officials are concerned about inflation. they have an inflation target of 2%, but last year prices rose less than 1%. and this year, they're expecting the same. but officials said the region will avoid deflation. they credit the european central bank's monetary easing and the weaker euro for that. crude oil prices dropped in new york, as commodity traders became concerned a rise in u.s. shale oil output could lead to an oversupply worldwide. the benchmark wti futures index fell on tuesday to the low $76 a barrel. that's the lowest level in more than three years. oil production has gone up in iraq and libya, too. traders in the markets suspect that global demand will be

sluggish due to an economic slowdown in china and elsewhere. lower oil prices lead to cheaper gasoline prices. that's good news for consumers, but if oil prices continue to slide, u.s. energy firms could start to cut back on their shale investments. now, let's check on markets. shares of japanese major oil companies are falling in line with the decline in crude oil prices. tokyo stocks opened lower on wednesday. the nikkei right now trading flat, 16,865. some investors are taking profits following the surge in shale prices over the last two trading days. that's after the bank of japan's unexpected extra stimulus. many in the market are avoiding active trading ahead of key events this week like u.s. jobs data. the dollar is moving in a tight range against the yen. some are buying the dollar following the monetary easing. others are selling it to take

profits from recent gains. some traders are buying the euro against major currencies. a media report said some european central bankers disagree with the policy proposed by president mario draggy. some now think further easing may be unlikely. looking at other markets in the asia-pacific region. kospi trading higher. australia's index is in the negative, down more than half a percent. nissan motor is reporting a strong performance. executives at the jap needs automaker say the april to september period saw year-on-year increases in revenues and profits. sales in the u.s. and the weaker yen listed the company's bottom line. nissan officials say global sales for the period came in at more than $49 billion. that's up 8% from the same period last year. they say operating profits were

$2.5 billion. an 18% rise. but for the full fiscal year which runs to march, the executives have lowered their estimate. they expect to sell 5.45 million vehicles, 200,000 fewer than their earlier forecast. they expect nissan will face an uphill challenge in the highly competitive chinese market. sales in thailand and in brazil are also expected to be sluggish. more for you next hour in business. i'll leave you with a check on markets.

every morning investors turn their attention to asia. the tokyo market leads the way. markets around the world follow. >> from the decisions that could change the course of an economy. >> to the companies at the forefront of change. >> up-to-the-minute market reports. >> and analysis by specialists from around the world. >> get all the latest business news and insight every day, here on "newsline." the chinese government is

about to start cracking down on polluters. it's introducing stricter punishments that will go into effect in the new year. japanese manufacturers see an opportunity. they hope their products will attract the interest of companies in china. some 2,000 exhibiters are showing their latest technologies at an industrial fair in shanghai. among them are 60 japanese firms and regional governments who are displaying their products in the environment section. one firm has unveiled equipment that filters pollutants from factory emissions. another is displaying a purification system that removes pm 2.5 particles from the air. >> translator: i came by to see japan's advanced technologies. >> translator: we want to help japanese companies when part of the market in china, with their high level technologies.

>> air pollution in beijing has become a major health problem. last month, the average density of pm 2.5 particles in a 24-hour period was 16 times the limit set by the world health organization. traffic restrictions in china have been expanded outside beijing to try to curb pollution around the capital ahead of an upcoming summit. chinese officials are gearing up to welcome world leaders to the forum economic cooperation forum opening on november 10th. officials in one province which borders the capital announced restrictions would be applied to four other cities. this includes a provincial hub. they will limit traffic to vehicles with certain license plate numbers, but it's affecting businesses. an employee with one shipping firm said deliveries were delayed more than three days. the city next to beijing is set to start limiting traffic on thursday.

soccer officials in india are hoping a new professional league will drum up interest in the sport. they're trying to lure more indians into the stands during matches. and they're also aiming to help the country's national team qualify for the world cup. nhk's reporter explains. >> reporter: i'm at the venue of the inaugural match of indian super league where a large number of supporters have gathered, and they will get a chance to see many international players. a former member of italy's national squad. former brazilian soccer hero. the air to the excitement to the opening game of the indian super league. >> it was wonderful. we had a great time.

>> for the youngsters, the new generation, today is all about soccer. >> reporter: cricket is loved across india. but soccer is trailing behind. but soccer started to catch on among young indians when european league matches were first aired on tv. riding the wave of popularity, the new indian super league is aiming to secure india's first ticket to the world cup finals. it has eight clubs competing for the national championship during a short two-month season. the league has lured star players from abroad with high salaries. it hopes they will help the indian players improve their game. >> i'm happy to share my time with you and with the indian culture, the indian football. >> reporter: clubs are enjoying

support from domestic and foreign companies. this man is a co-owner of a new club. he also has an investment firm. he has invested roughly $6.5 million in the team, believing merchandise sales and other organizations will be profitable. he wants to fill stadium seats with fans. he worked with other sponsors to install large screens at one venue and advertise with posters on the streets. >> it is going to become a business venture. we as a club have started this deal with the idea of generating the passion for football, generating the fever for football and trying to bring football into a global arena from india. >> reporter: the inaugural season opened with great fanfare.

but the high cost of repairing stadiums and acquiring players has led to some challenges. fans are complaining that ticket prices are too high. soccer fans are used to buying a ticket for as little as 15 cents. the cheapest tickets to a recent opening match in the eastern city of calcutta costs around $4. >> translator: i can't afford a pricey ticket to the opening match. i'll watch it on tv. >> reporter: at some stadiums, half the tickets to opening matches remain unsold. another challenge is hard to nurture indian players, nearly half of the players are from overseas. that limits opportunities for domestic players to get in the game. but at the same time, it

provides a learning opportunity. >> i really hope the indian football is learning their skills, their knowledge, and qualifying for the world cup. >> reporter: india currently stands 159th in the fifa rankings of 209 countries and territories, but fans are dreaming of the day when the indian national team will take the field in the world cup finals. nhk world, calcutta, india. an increasing number of japanese students are going to medical school in hungary. they are going for the lower tuition, quality education and lessons in english.

>> reporter: they appreciate the education system for more than just the knowledge. the students who study there boost the economy. 1987, the school started teaching in english. now it has students from 50 nations and territories. three out of every ten students are foreign. >> i think we have a lot of opportunity of practice in the hospital. and yeah. it's a good standard of training >> it's a really high education. back home, it's easy to get a job. >> reporter: about eight years ago, more japanese began to enroll. this man wants to practice medicine internationally.

he registered four years ago. he likes the fact that the school puts so much value on the admittance interview. and he appreciated the school's emphasis on modernization. japanese find the tuition attractive. a year of medical school in hungary costs about $16,000, less than half the cost of private universities in japan. >> translator: i thought i could do well here, so i talked to my parents. they were supportive. they said give it a try, so i decided to come. >> reporter: studying to become a doctor is a dream come true. but keeping up with the advanced lessons taught in english isn't easy. out of 59 japanese who started with him, 17 have dropped out.

students will obtain a medical license in hungary, and can prey anywhere in the eu. they can benefit from opportunities in the u.s. and other countries. if all goes well, kato will graduate in two years. he plans to apply for a medical license in both europe and japan. >> translator: if i can get the license, i think i'll practice in japan first. and i'd also like to work in europe if i have a chance. i hope to bring good medical practices from japan to europe and vice versa. >> reporter: the first four japanese students who studied in hungary passed the national medical exam for the license this year. they've already started practicing in japan. hungary's government is eager to increase the number of international students. this year, it set up a new

scholarship program for foreign students targeting asians. >> this way we establish our place in the european landscape, in european higher education. we can keep improving, maintaining international relationships, plus this program generates an extra income for the university. >> reporter: having succeeded in studying in the foreign system, graduates are well-positioned to flourish anywhere. nhk world, budapest. people in argentina's capital buenos aires are cleaning up after storms left severe flooding. thousands of residents were forced to evacuate their homes. meteorologist robert speta joins us now with the latest weather conditions.

>> yes, let's start off with this storm system, which has really been lingering for nearly a week now. it's been bringing torrential amount of rainfall. you can see on the satellite picture, you have your low pressure center off the coastline. that's starting to plof off to the east. it's really that front associated with this, dumping that rainfall across much of argentina through uruguay and southern portions of brazil have been reporting some flooding out here. let's go to video first out of buenos aires, where you have been seeing that rain really come down. and it's just an unrelenting across this area of the country. some cities throughout the province were flooded on tuesday. one section of highway was also destroyed. you see here people wading through water in front of their homes. and some had to use small boats for transportation. authorities reported about 5,000 people across 23 districts have been evacuated. some sport complexes as well-being used as evacuation

shelters for those people that had to leave their homes. the good news at least right now is we are seeing some improving conditions. as you can see, clearer skies for the most part, especially rth. still, parts of brazil are going to continue to be impacted. you have a drought ongoing up there. so you need the rainfall. but too much in such a short period of time, it really has been resolving in similar conditions off there, into southern portions of that country. let's move toward the northern hemisphere now. i want to talk about our now tropical storm van. this is not a big windmaker. looking at winds sustained around 90 kilometers per hour. it is a rainmaker. right now, you have the tropical storm watches in effect. expecting it to downgrade to a depression just at landfall. but you could still see flooding in central and northern portions of mexico. also, all that moisture

continuing to transport toward the north. parts of texas, oklahoma, indirectly associated with this, and the front to the north. but still gathering moisture from that direction, will also cause some flooding in some areas out here. in western texas, you've reported about 89 millimeters in the past 24 hours. an additional 50 to 100, possibly 180 still could occur. gathering moisture out of the gulf of mexico. a lot of stuff happening with that right there. even severe thunderstorms erupting. snowfall back to the north, though, across parts of quebec, over through ontario, and even into new england, as that low does continue to push off. let's move across the pacific. i want to talk about our typhoon. this is typhoon naha. you can see it pushing to the east, to the southern japanese islands. the big thing with this one, it's starting to pick up its pace, about 15 kilometers per hour. winds gusting up to about 216

kilometers per hour. it will impact the izu islands. some have seen winds as high as 73 miles per hour. i think the biggest issue for much of honshu is going to be the waves. as much as three to four meters high. to the west, high pressure, still dominating your forecast in shanghai, beijing, over to seoul. temperatures pushing into the high teens to low 20s. i'll leave you now with your extended forecast.

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

>> hello and welcome to "global 3000," your weekly check on the global issues beyond the headlines. and here's what we have coming up for you right now. dreaming of the sea -- why landlocked bolivia still has its own navy. ocean nightmare -- how tunisia tries to stave off an influx of foreign jellyfish. and upcycling -- how second-hand clothes become designer frocks in mozambique. now, states that don't see eye-to-eye with their neighbors are nothing unusual. but how do you get your neighbor back to the negotiation table over territory you lost more than 130 years ago?