controlling the crisis. european leaders wrestle with how fast to protect their economies. european union leaders weathered one economic storm after another in the past few years. they are noerpg more sunny times ahead. first they have to disperse the

clouds over greece. they met in brussels deeply divided. the leaders of the 27 eu nations want greece to stay in the eurozone. they are urging politicians there to follow through with austerity measures in exchange for an eu bailout. greek will vote again next month. party members couldn't agree on an austerity package in may and failed to form a coalition vernment. voters in other countries too have grown frustrated with the spending and job cuts. some eu leaders believe the strict policies could be making economic conditions even worse. so they discuss ad joint plan for growth. the leaders already agreed to budget about the to 30 million euro in credit backed guarantees to help companies invest in infrastructure and they discussed ways to increase the lending power of the european investment bank. investors too are in a tough spot. they don't know what positions to take without clear direction

from policymakers. so how are the markets responding to what's happening in europe? >> well investors don't know what to do without a lot of clear direction as you said. so they are staying away from risk, for example the euro as well as european stocks. the crisis in greece continues to fuel concerns dampening investors sentiments. on the stock markets in europe all the major indexes plunged on wednesday. let's take a look at where they ended. london's ftse 100, frankfurt ace dax and cac 40 showed declines of 2.5%. crude oil prices were also down. in the new york commodity markets, wti dipped below $90 a barrel for the first time in 6 1/2 months as investors avoided risk. in the u.s. stock markets, the dow jones ended just a touch lower before rallying before the

close. it was down 0.05% on the day. and for more on how japanese stocks are trading this thursday let's go to the tokyo stock exchange. trading has just begun here. some big place in the markets to watch out for today with oil dropping. we have economic data in china later. the moves in the euro also taking center stage. how is tokyo starting off? >> a lot of issues major issues for investors to tackle as you said three major issues there. but also iran inviting the iaea and that helped ease global oil supply concerns we'll also be fouling china pmi data due out later. and then the euro falling to 22 month low against the dollar and 3 1/2 month low against the yen, dipping below 100 the euro/yen. we'll be following that. let's look at how the stock markets are kicking off this

thursday. marginally lower this thursday morning. the nikkei fell almost 2% yesterday. lowest level since january this year. a key factor in the loss that stems from the eurozon concerns which bank of japan the governor did mention yesterday at his news conference following the two day bank of japan meeting as well as persistent slow growth in china as well. so that should really put another focus there on the pmi data due out of china later this morning. the lack of any action from the bank of japan was a little bit discouraging for the markets here however hopes are for perhaps a move by the central bank at its next meeting in june. the dngra of japan sovereign debt and also its rating review of japanese banks didn't really help markets either we saw that reflected in the financial sector. trade figures also showing japan in the red there. and also reliance on overseas

energy. and touching on energy iran's move really to let the international agency back in helped pushed crude oil prices lower. as you said earlier just below $90 a barrel. growth concerns in europe and china also really another reason for lower oil, crude oil prices. the dollar of course gaining on the back of the drop in oil prices and just having a look at some of the pair there's. looking at the dollar/en, 79.47. the euro under 100, currently 99 policy 81 99.81-88. >> when it rains it pours. anything on the positive side to cheer investors? >> little bit of positive which hit the markets yesterday. in the auto sector mazda's tie up withitaly's fiat mazda shares up 5% at one point yesterday. we'll keep track of that.

after hours hewlett-packard the stock was pushed up 11% in after hours trading. we'll look out for related shirs shares. thanks a lot for that update. now here in japan, modest moves but also in other asian mkets that are open this hour so i'll leave you with the latest in those figures. the w.h.o.orld health

organization says some japanese citizens were exposed to radiation but not enough to cause cancer. the report estimates that two villages in fukushima close to the plant were exposed to the highest levels of 10 to 50 him millisieverts. others got 0.1 to 1 myiy millisievert. the w.h.o. says the estimates may be too high because it assumed that people remained in their communities near the plant for four months after the

accident. in fact most quickly evacuated. the organization saidt wl release a final report in july. that report will include a comprehensive assessment of the accident's impact on human health. a team of experts has cast doubt on japan's goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 25 administers by 2020. the experts say the country is unlikely to reach the target even if it uses nuclear power. the experts were part of a panel set up to examine ways to combat global warming following last year's fukushima crisis. the panel came up with a list of potential reductions by examining scenarios that take into account five different levels of nuclear power generation, and three levels of renewable energy and other anti-global warming steps.

it found that even if japan derived 35% of its energy from nuclear power and adopted the most extreme anti-global warming steps emissions would be cut by only 19% by 2030. without any nuclear power, emissions would be cut by only 11%. observers say the findings are likely to put japan under greater pressure to revise its mid-term emission reduction goals. moving abroad to pursue a relationship can bring much happiness and for some much frustration. women born elsewhere who marry japanese men and move to the northeast have lived through those ups and downs. many face language barriers many lack qualifications and they are having an even more difficult time since the earthquake and tsunami hit last year. we have their story.

>> reporter: she started working at this nursing care facility last december. 74 residents live here including elderly people with physical disabilities. christine got a job after 20 workers quit. the tsunami destroyed their homes, and they had to move. >> translator: it was really hard during my first days here. i wasn't able to give say proper toilet care because i was nervous. but now residents welcome me. i'm so glad. >> reporter: she affectionately called me mom from her early days here. she's so cute. she's my filipino daughter. christina came to japan 15 years

ago to get married. she's one of many foreign born wives who once worked in the city's seafood processing plant. but the tsunami devastated the industry. only a third of production has resumed. to make matters worse, eloyers tended to favor japanese job-seekers. >> translator: this disaster was the worst thing that happened to me in my life. i couldn't forget. >> reporter: atlantis tina struggled to find a job. then she discovered an ngo offering caregiver and language courses to ex-pats. she signed up hoping to find city work. she knew the nursing care system was short of manpower. but she couldn't read or write in japanese. so first she needed to improve

her language skills. she got help from her 86-year-old father-in-law and her son who was in elementary school. christina and seven of her friends passed the exam to become caregivers last december. however, some expats struggle. her japanese was not strong enough. >> translator: i couldn't pass the exam. japanese is really difficult to learn. >> reporter: she got help from

christina and her nursing colleagues who had formed a nursing caregiver group. they have 24 members. they use japanese and other languages to teach about nursing care and give tips on passing the exam. >> translator: this job may be hard, but they say it will be reward ing rewarding. i'll never give up. >> reporter: their efforts are inspiring other people in the northeast to hold seminars to drum up more interest in a sector that needs more workers. christina said she will continue to do her part. >> translator: i want to assist not just in this city but in other areas. i'll work hard to become a role model for other caregivers.

>> reporter: it's much different work than what christina did in the seafood processing plant. but she loves her new job, which is helping her to start a new life in the northeast. people in japan's northeast are focused on overcoming the challenges of the 2011 disaster but it won't be easy. they have to rebuild homes, businesses entire communities. we'll show you their struggles and their successes on the road ahead every wednesday at 1:00 p.m. japan time here on ewsline". washington's top negotiator on north korea has used its leaders not to carry out another nuclear test. instead, glen davies says it's time for north korea to rejoin the international community. davies made the comments in

tokyo on wednesday after visiting seoul and beijing. he said the north should start making choices that benefit the people instead of continuing to violate u.n. security council resolutions. pyongyang denied that it plans to conduct a third nuclear test but it would now decide after monitoring u.s. moves. >> i'm, quite frankly, not certain what they meant by that. the important thing is not what they intend to do, but what they have done and what they will do. >> davies said his government is trying to verify a report by u.s. university researchers that the north is building a new launch pad at a missile base in the northeast. >> talks on iran's nuclear program will go into a second day after iran reject ad proposal by western countries. negotiate others for the five

u.n. security council permanent members, the united states russia, china, britain and france plus germany began talks in baghdad on wednesday. iran's nuclear negotiator and eu foreign policy chief are also taking part. the six countries offered to ease sanctions and urged iran to suspend its uranium enrichment activities that can be used to develop nuclear weapons. but iran rejected the offer which it described as unfair. it countered with a five point proposal and says it has the right to peaceful use of nuclear power. separate talks lasted into the night but failed to produce any break through. the negotiators are hoping they can find common ground in their second day of talks. voters in egypt have begun casting their ballots in the country's first presidential the election since hosni mubarak was forced to step down last year after 30 years in power.

tomoko yamaguchi reports. >> reporter: two day vote pits islamists against supporters of the hosni mubarak regime. >> translator: i'm feeling a sense of freedom to be able to choose the best leader for my country. >> translator: i hope things will stabilize in this country. we also want democracy and security. >> reporter: front runners include muhammad morsi of the islam brotherhood a fundamentalist group and fotuh is also in the race. a moderate islamist who left the brotherhood. other strong contenders are ahmed shafiq a former air force commander and prime minister and amr moussa. he's a former foreign minister and secretary-general.

egyptians voted in parliament the elections between last november and january. islamic parties won the largest share of votes. the result of the votes should be known within the week. no one is likely to win a majority. so the first and second place finishers will face each other next month in a runoff. the winner is to become egypt's first clearly elected president. tomoko yamaguchi, nhk world, iro. sdi abia is one of the most conservative arab nations, especially when it comes to women's place in society. they have been long been banned of work in the service sector. but change is coming at least when it comes to selling

underwear. >> reporter: from the shopping mall saudi arabia is a man dominated society in every way. >> translator: women should defer to their husbands. tralator: islam teaches that women belong in the home. >> reporter: jeddah is one of saudi arabia's commercial cities and in its shopping malls all the sales people are all men. seven years ago it became legal for a woman to work in the service industry, but religious groups oppose this move. they said that allowing women to come in to close contact with many men would be disruptive to saudi society. as a result there still are very few women working in retail stores. however, thing are beginning to change.

it has been only very recently that women have been able to work in stores selling lingerie. the change came about due to one woman's effort. she teaches at a job training center for women. she says there were many times in the past when the way she was treated while buying underwear for herself amounted to sexual harassment. >> reporter: it wasn't my bust size sometimes i was asked more detailed questions. in other countries women work in underwear departments. >> reporter: she started a facebook page called enough embarrassment. she created this for women to express their opinions on this and other issues. she shot a video showing an experience she experienced once. in the video a couple visit the store and is shocked when the

employee asks the women's bust size in front of her husband. three months after setting up a facebook page she had more than 10,000 women calling her. many posted descriptions on their own experiences. her action made huge waves. she was even asked to speak on the mainstream media >> reporter: in january, one year after she started her facebook page, a decree issued by saudi arabia's king took effect. from now on women will be allowed to work in women's lingerie departments. that was to her efforts women

are being hired in saudi arabia network in shops. the change marks a major step forward for women's reits in this traditional society. >> translator: i used to be a housewife but now i dream of opening my own shop. >> reporter: the internet played a major role to bring democracy to the middle east. now social networks have helped to give women in saudi arabia a way for their voices to be heard. unsettled weather in the south of japan, let's go get the world weather forecast. >> good morning. that's right. a tropical storm is traveling towards the north and could it affect the islands by saturday local time. right now a tropical storm that could become less severe tropical storm. no direct impact on mainland

japan is in the forecast but, of course, rough seas are expected along the pacific coast as the system approaches. so we'll keep you posted on its progress. meanwhile, a high pressure system is dominating much of japan bringing sunny weather but tomorrow unstable weather is in the forecast across western and central japan as well as parts of hokkaido. out towards the west yet again heavy rain and thunderstorms are occurring in parts of southern china. today the heaviest rain can be found in several provinces, maybe up to 100 millimeters of rain. lots of land slides have been reported in southwestern china sony additional rain could worsen the situation. as for the highs, 29 degrees in hong kong, rain here but you could be seeing some sunny periods, 23 in shanghai 24 in seoul and tokyo getting up to 26 degrees. let's go americas. tropical storm bud could become

the first hurricane of this year and get close to the southwest coast of mexico. other tropical storm status by saturday. no warnings or watches in effect along the coast but it's already bringing ample moisture to the southern half of mexico bringing some pop up thunder showers. a strong low pressure system is bringing drenching rain and lots of heavy rain as well as a thunderstorm in the southern tip much florida and the caribbean islands. those conditions will likely remain for the next few face and up towards the north there's more potent storm affecting the u.s./canada border severe weather from southern minnesota into colorado should remain overnight and flooding rain will continue in the upper mid-western states into thursday the bulk of heavy rain will be moving into ontario over the next 24 hours. to the south, dry and critical fire danger will likely remain in and around the four corners

region into the weekend. 21 degrees expected in denver 24 in los angeles, very hot, 33 in houston, the warmth is extending to the north affecting chicago your high on thursday is expected to be 32 degrees. all right let's go to europe untable weather is remaining across the eastern half of the mediterranean countries as well as the black sea region. but to the north dry and warm due to this high pressure system. expected highs are looking like this 27 degrees in london 20 degrees in stockholm. down towards the south 22 and 25 degrees in athens. all right. i will leave you now with your extended forecast.

our lead story this hour. european union leaders are discussing the economic turmoil. the leaders of the 27 eu nations want greece to stay in the eurozone. they are urging politicians there to follow through with austerity measures in exchange for an eu bailout. greeks will vote in parliamentary the elections again next month. party members couldn't agree on an austerity package in may and failed to form a coalition government. voters in other countries too have grown frustrated with the spending and job cuts. some eu leaders believe the strict policies could be making economic conditions even worse. so they discussed a joint plan for growth. the leaders already agreed to budget about the to 30 million euro in credit guarantees to help companies invest in infrastructure and they discussed ways to increase the

lending power of the european investment bank. that's all for this edition of "newsline". i'm catherine kobayashi. thank you for joining us.