welcome to nhk world "newsline" i'm gene otani in tokyo. here's a look at some of the stories we're following this hour. russian security forces capture a gunman who killed two people at a school in moscow and held students hostage. the world bank has opened a disaster management hub in tokyo to help developing nations better prepare for the worst. and people living in sochi say despite tight security, they are ready to launch the winter

olympics now just days away. russian police have ended a deadly school siege in moscow. they captured an armed student who was accused of killing two people and holding other students hostage. the school is in the north end of moscow. interior ministry spokespersons say the gunmen held more than 20 students captive at one point. they say he shot and killed a teacher and a police officer who worked as a guard. russian news agency rt reports that all schools in the country have had armed guards since the 2004 terrorist attack on a school in north ossetia. security forces in moscow and across russia are on high alert ahead of the olympics and the black sea resort city of sochi. the opening ceremony for the winter games is on friday. officials in thailand are counting ballots as people on both sides of the country's deep political divide weigh in on the legitimacy of the general election. protesters blocked millions of

thais from voting in sunday's disputed poll. authorities say the demonstrators stopped the delivery of ballot papers to some polling stations. they say as a result, about 20% of electoral districts canceled voting. these districts are in bangkok and southern regions where anti-government sentiment is high. still, prime minister yingluck shinawatra says she's satisfied with the election. >> i think sometimes when we have the conflicts of different opinions, but anyway, at least we can show that people would like to see election. >> the protest leader and former deputy prime minister superette thaugsuban says those who were chosen in the elections are not the true representatives of the people. >> translator: this election has not succeeded the way prime minister yingluck had expected. it has failed. >> suthep denounced the election

and yingluck's resignation. he and his supporters believe she is controlled by her brother thaksin shinawatra, a former prime minister. the military ousted him in 2006. suthep called for protesters to take the streets again. analysts say the ruling pheu thai party is projected to score a landslide victory. election officials say they won't release the results until a new round of voting is held in the districts where it was canceled. so know one knows when the new government will be sworn in. the stalemate in thailand is now threatening to undermine the economy. nhk world has a report. >> reporter: in thailand, casting a shadow over the nation's economy. the country has openly praised one of the students in the developing asian region for its economic role but analysts are now starting to worry about economic damage.

>> translator: some companies are already postponing their investments, or shrinking production. and now the government is being blocked from implementing the budget, which is hurting the economy. >> reporter: thailand's economy largely depends on foreign investment. recent moves by japanese firms, especially drawing attention. last year, they accounted for about 60% of foreign direct investment. japanese auto and electronics manufacturers have been operating in the country for decades. the managers have put thailand as the main production base in the region. but recently, that has begun to change with a plan they call thai plus one. japanese companies have been

moving some of their production lines to neighboring cambodia and laos. rising wages for thai workers is one of the main drivers of this move. thai government leaders decided to raise the minimum wage last year. this resulted in wage hikes of more than 30% in some sectors. at the same time, imagine the economies in the surrounding region have become much more competitive. and they are attracting more foreign investment. the japan chamber of commerce in bangkok recently surveyed japanese companies about the investments in the country. nearly half the respondents said they were considering building or had already built plants outside thailand. analysts warn that japanese firms may speed up their move out of thailand if the political stalemate continues.

>> translator: we had previously predicted that the economy would grow 3.5% this year. but now we think it will stay around 2.5%. the political confusion is pushing businesses to invest in other countries, and thailand is losing its attractiveness as an investment destination in the asean region. >> reporter: foreign investment has helped thailand achieve steady economic growth. but if leaders fail to end the turmoil, the damage to the economy will run deep and that, in turn, will fuel more political unrest. nhk world. the world bank hopes to help developing nations better prepare for natural disasters through a new office in tokyo. the agency opened the tokyo disaster risk management hub on monday, with assistance from the japanese government. experts from various countries

are to provide information and technical aid to keep developing nations safer in emergencies. the bank's acting vice president said earthquakes, floods, and other disasters can destroy centuries of development overnight. >> we're hoping that the tokyo hub will have a global outreach and we're hoping that the countries that will benefit from the expertise and knowledge from the hub will also themselves engage in to a dialogue that will help other low-income countries. >> she said it's time to sincerely call on developing nations to implement policies that address the risks of climate change. she added that she wants japan to share its knowledge about disaster preparation and response. the leadership in pyongyang has agreed to hold working-level talks with south korea to reunite families separated by the korean war in the 1950s. the south welcomed the response,

saying it will work to enable families to meet soon. >> translator: through a letter this morning the north has accepted south korea's proposal for working-level talks to discuss the issue of the reunion of separated families. >> south korean officials say the two sides will held preparatory talks in panmunjom. the talks will take place as early as wednesday. south korea has proposed that family reunions be held from february 17th through the 22nd that a resort in north korea. pyongyang remains strongly against south korea's joint military exercise with the united states. the drill is due to start late this month in the south. attention is focused on whether north korea will use the upcoming talks to demand the suspension of the drill, or if it will seek to impose any other conditions for holding reunions. government officials in moscow allowed demonstrators to take to the streets sunday, just days after the start of the sochi winter olympic games.

analysts believe president vladimir putin is trying to dodge criticism of russia's handling of human rights issues. some groups have demanded the release of political prisoners. while others called for the guarantee of equal rights for gay people. organizers say about 6,000 people attended sunday's demonstration. a far higher number than the government's estimate of 2,000. >> translator: people must continue their protests. >> translator: the government is only pretending to be lenient just ahead of the winter games. >> u.s. president barack obama and french president francois hollande have both said they will not be attending the olympic games opening ceremony. several western nations have criticized russia's human rights record. president putin has reiterated that no one will be discriminated against at the games. holding on to japanese stocks have paid off for many of

the nation's banks. and ron madison is here with the details on that. >> it sure has. especially when you consider the japanese stocks were among the best performers in the world last year, gene. janine's three mega banks have posted strong earnings gains for the first three quarters of this year, indeed, behind the higher stock prices, beyond profit surge, rather, was higher stock prices. mitsubishi ufj financial group reported net profit of $7.7 billion in the april to december period. net climbed 47.5% in yen terms from a year earlier. sumitomo mitsui group earned $6.9 billion up 28%. and mizuho financial group about $5.5 billion, showing a rise of nearly 44%. sumitomo's and mizuho's were the highest since the 2008 financial crisis. it was attributed to an increase in the value of share holdings. strong sales of stocks and

investment trust by securities affiliates also helped. the bank of tokyo mitsubishi ufj and mizuho bank are considering increasing their base salaries this spring. if they do go ahead with the pay raises that would be the first in 19 years. car buyers here in japan are rushing to show rooms before the consumption tax goes up in april. new auto sales surged nearly 30% in january, from a year earlier. industry officials say new models that have hit the market recently are selling well. industry groups say january sales totalled a little more than 496,000 units, including mini vehicles. that's up 29%. and a fifth consecutive increase. but officials of japan automobile dealers association predict that the brisk demand ahead of the tax hike will peak out this month. though they aren't sure how long the expected sales decline after april will continue. now they are watching the market to see if the rollout of future models will make a difference. people who keep a tab on the

japanese economy are sounding an upbeat note. they're predicting a fifth straight quarter of gdp growth. ten private research firms say gross domestic product rose between 0.4, and 0.9% in the october to december period from the previous quarter. that means growth of between 1.8, and 3.7% on an annualized basis. that's up from the 1.1% annualized rise in the july to september quarter. researchers based their positive take on increased purchases of cars, and other big ticket items ahead of the sales tax hike in april. now their data shows that improved earnings also boosted corporate capital spending in both the manufacturing, and nonmanufacturing sectors. but researchers say weak overseas demand could slow growth. let's get a check of the markets now. european equities are extending their losses. investors are still a bit uneasy about emerging markets. london is down now a quarter percent. frankfurt losing nearly 0.7%.

and paris' cac 40 reversing earlier gains now down half a percent. most asia markets declined following downbeat manufacturing data out of china. tokyo's nikkei stayed at its lowest point in 2 1/2 months. singapore's straits times index dropped below the key 3,000 level for the first time in one year and two months. and in thailand investors continued to buy back recently battered shares. the s.e.t. index closed higher. just about 1.5%. 1292. that's the highest level in a week. the market was relieved as the country's election passed without any violence. moving on to currencies the dollar fell to a two-month low against the yen. dollar/yen right now at 101.67. analysts say a next focus will be ism manufacturing data out of the united states, which is due for release later on in the day. meanwhile euro/yen right around 137.37. the british pound also drifted lower after data confirmed that the uk's manufacturing sector

grew at a slower than expected pace in january. two of japan's biggest companies are joining forces to get in on the growing global market for thermal power generation. mitsubishi heavy industries and hitachi have launched a joint venture called mitsubishi hitachi power systems. the new firm's president says mitsubishi and hitachi must work as a single team to become a world leader in the thermal power field. the tie-up combines mitsubishi's strength in asia with hitachi's marketing power in europe and africa. rising production of affordable shale gas is helping to push up global demand for thermal power. general electric of the united states and germany's siemens are currently the biggest players in the field of thermal power. that is going to do it for biz tonight. i'll leave you with the markets.

every morning, investors turn their attention to asia. the tokyo market leads the way. and markets around the world follow. >> from the decisions that could change the course of an economy. >> to the latest business trends. >> 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."

17-year-old japanese ski jumper sara takanashi is in top form just days before the sochi olympics. she scored her 10th world cup win of the season breaking the women's record for single season wins. the 13th world cup event was held in hinzenbach, austria. takanashi made 88.5 meters on her first jump, placing her second. her next jump was 92.5 meters. the longest in the competition. takanashi said she was happy to have jumped well in the run-up to the games. organizers are getting ready to start things off in style on friday, with the opening ceremony. the rest of the olympics machinery is chugging along, too. the security, the merchandise sales, and the massive volunteer effort. nhk world reports from sochi. >> reporter: construction crews have finished work on most of the olympic venues. and public transportation in

sochi has been completed. that's the main stadium. currently, they are rehearsing the opening ceremony. but, of course, the details are secret. and it's off limits for the press. heavy security measures are in place. one example is that air balloon. it's set to carry a surveillance camera. security forces aboard ships are keeping watch on the city from the black sea. inside shops, like this one, they are selling olympic goods such as these official mascots. >> translator: we have increased our stock of the goods. gloves, t-shirts, and coats are very popular. >> reporter: 7,000 kilometers away, in 300 people have left

for sochi to join other volunteers. no more than 25,000 were selected from across the country to help out at the games. >> translator: i am so happy. i was waiting for thises day for a long time. >> reporter: russian president vladimir putin praised them all and sent his best wishes. >> translator: volunteers can significantly contribute to making a good atmosphere at the games. how the athletes and the audience feel will depend on how you create the mood. there is no doubt that you play an important role. >> reporter: every volunteer will get specially designed uniforms.

from gloves, to bottoms. >> translator: it fits me. i like it. >> reporter: all of this olympic branded gear is considered to be hip among the youth. over at the media center, the doors have been open for over a month. here, too, volunteers stand by to do whatever is needed. many are trying to speak foreign languages. 20-year-old valeri eskin is a student in moscow. he speaks japanese and english. he's in charge of dealing with international journalists in the main press conference room. >> translator: i thought it will be my only chance to be involved

in such a big international event like the olympics to be able to contribute in my capacity, it will really be an honor for me. >> reporter: the russian government is turning up the security in and around the city. many here are now eager to show people from around the world they are ready for them. nhk world, sochi. a japanese animation creator has won big on the world stage. miyazaki has been awarded a prominent writing prize for the movie "the wind rises." the audience cheered when the announcement was made at the 41st annie awards ceremony in los angeles. >> miyazaki, "the wind rises."

>> the prizes are regarded as the animation equivalent of the academy awards for movies. this is the second time he has won in the writing category. his first was in 2003 for spirited away, which was also chosen as the best animated feature. but this time the wind rises did not win the most coveted honor for best animated feature. that went to walt disney animation studios' "frozen." "the wind rises" and "frozen" will compete for an oscar statuette for best animated feature on march 2nd. people in tokyo enjoyed the sunshine monday while it lasted. our meteorologist robert speta says it's reversing course tomorrow, and may even snow in some parts of japan. robert? >> yeah, gene, you're right. it is going to get cold, and what's going to happening is we have this big blast of arctic air coming in from siberia all the way up towards the north. as that descends south it's going to bring enough cold

temperatures to possibly make it snow, even in tokyo. take a look at the temperatures on monday, though. this is what we are talking about. tokyo with a high of 18 out here. niigata, typically this time of year, heavy snow fall, 10 degrees there for the high rain showers included, 24 hours from now, though, that is not the case. that cold air starts to descend in from the north. tokyo with a high of 6. rain and snow mixed there. but by the afternoon and the evening hours, this is going to drop down even more. as that cold surge descends down and likely by the evening hours don't be surprised if you start seeing some of that white stuff out here. you can see that area in the blue start to form up near the end of this loop and that is when you're going to be seeing the highest chance of some of that snowfall accumulation. likely going to remain a wintry mix but there is the risk of a little bit of accumulation out of this. the sea effect snow will be setting up and definitely seeing it farther off towards the west. korea and china, you're also feeling, well the cold air come in from the north as well.

temperatures, above average through the weekend, but as you can see here on your forecast, shanghai with a high of 6. on your tuesday, seoul at minus 4. even out towards taipei starting to cool off a little bit. rain showers really there and even over towards southeastern portions of china. actually expect that throughout the rest of the week. let's see what's going on over towards the americas. it is another storm system, indeed, wrapping up here and moving across the ohio river valley. that's after it impacted portions of the central plains. i'm going to show you video coming out of arkansas, actually. well, this heavy snowfall, which added up to about 15 centimeters in some areas, caused numerous traffic accidents out and about. people advised just to stay off the road. it's not just the heavy snowfall. slick conditions due to freezing rain combined here, and it just made for that very treacherous driving weather. now that threat is shifting east, and really much of the mid-atlantic states, even the appalachians, higher elevations out here, 20 centimeters of snow is very well expected. this is going to push east just

making travel weather very dangerous, and treacherous. already, airport delays, and numerous cancellations in new york city have been reported out here. you're going to be seeing the heavy snow farther towards the west. that freezing rain is going to be expected out here. and then rainfall towards the south. but even some severe thunderstorms, isolated severe thunderstorms, could be seen in the deep south. so that system is going to move east. and then behind it a little break in the weather but you can see this coming out of the rockies. another shot, snowfall. it's going to be about 15 centimeters in some of the higher elevations. all that will be shifting east as these temperatures just remain very chilly. let's switch gears from winter weather. want to talk about this cyclone, excyclone now, came onshore here just recently along the northwestern queensland coast off the gulf. so right now it is a low pressure area but it's actually expected to move back west and become another category 1 system. as far as the winds, don't pay too much attention to that. it's just how slow this storm system is moving. could bring about 300 to 400

millimeters. the good news, this is a sparsely populated area. but for the people that are here, it is bringing the risk of some flash flooding. that's a look at your world weather. here's the extended forecast.

residents of a northeastern japanese city flooded by the

2011 tsunami held a race to practice lessons learned from the disaster. participants ran uphill to the temple. the temple is designated as an evacuation site. 40 runners dashed from the town center to the temple in an emergency evacuation exercise. the course is 286 meters. the three fastest runners were honored with the titles lucky men and women. >> translator: i hope this will be a lucky year for me and everybody else. >> translator: i don't want a tragedy like that to happen again. we will continue to hold this race every year for as long as possible. >> the downtown area of the city was flooded and heavily damaged in the march two,000 eleven tsunami. and that's "newsline" for

this hour. i'm gene otani in tokyo. f v vúú

rex in rome, the international community -- >> in rome, the international community is told it has failed syria. aleppo was bombarded saturday and sunday by regime forces. woody allen rejects allegations of sexual abuse that have been made by his adopted hotter -- daughter.