hello and welcome back to "newsline," i'm shery ahn. let's get started with the head lines. south korean officials say they've recovered the bodies of more than 100 people following last week's ferry sinking. nearly 200 are still unaccounted for. defense officials in seoul say authorities in pyongyang may be gearing up for another nuclear test. and tokyo is racing to attract more international conferences and trade shows.

tourism officials say the events will bolster the economy in a big way. divers in south korea are continuing their search inside the ferry "sewol" almost a week after it sank off the southern coast. authorities say more than 100 people have been confirmed dead, and nearly 200 are missing. the ship capsized last wednesday, 476 people were on board, including more than 300 high school students. officials now say that 104 people died and 198 are unaccounted for. prosecutors and coast guard officials are still trying to find out what caused the accident. they're investigating the captain and other crew members. families of the missing have been staying at a gymnasium at the port of jindo. anna jung has more from there. >> the people who have encamped here for nearly a week now are

emotional tapped out. they hoped rescuers would find survivors, but that hope has all but faded. the gym used to be packed with the relatives of the missing. however, some people have left. those who stayed have been back and forth to the port to possibly identify their loved ones. crews continue to bring more bodies ashore. government officials have asked the media to stop aggressively pursuing interviews with the families in jindo and they asked them to refrain from focusing cameras on those who are grieving and in pain. the media has agreed to the request. authorities say divers have focused on combing through the fourth and third levels of the sunken ferry. the cabins located on the fourth level, and the restaurant, lounge and karaoke bar are on the third. it's believed that most of the missing were on that level, because the accident happened around breakfast time. the divers need to break through

a wall so they can access the restaurant. more than 750 of them are taking part in the operation today. the weather conditions are helping. the wind and currents haven't been as strong as in recent days. investigators are also looking into what caused the accident. the captain wasn't steering the ship at the time. an inexperienced third mate was at the controls. investigators are also looking at how the ferry maneuvered before it sank, and it cost part of the ship. they're also trying to determine if modifications to the vessel to accommodate more people and cargo could have affected its balance. nhk world's anna jung reporting there from jindo, south korea. let's now turn to the latest in business with ron madison. >> the japanese minister in charge of the transpacific partnership free trade talks has hinted that he may meet with his

u.s. counterpart again before the japan/u.s. summit on thursday. japan's deputy chief negotiator hiroshi oe and wendy cutler are holding talks in tokyo to try to find some economic ground. akira amari said both sides are gradually narrowing their differences. he said there's still a considerable gap before the two countries can work out a broad agreement on tariffs over five key categories of farm products and automobiles. these are divisive items in the bilateral talks. >> translator: depending on the kind of progress we make in the ongoing working-level talks i could meet my counterpart, mr. fromen, or frank and honest discussions. >> u.s. trade representative michael froman will accompany president obama and arrive in japan on wednesday. froman is expected to continue to push for an accord, until the start of the summit talks.

meanwhile, u.s. house majority leader eric cantor has expressed hope that president obama will make progress in his tpp talks with prime minister abe. cantor is in tokyo ahead of obama's visit. cantor noted u.s. lawmakers from both parties have introduced a bill to speed up trade negotiations. he said the trade promotion authority bill is now working its way through congress. >> the members of the house of representatives are going to cast their vote on tpa, reflecting the quality, if you will, of the agreement on tpp. >> the so-called fast track bill would give more authority to the executive branch of the government in trade talks. japan's giant public pension fund is getting ready to consider shuffling its portfolio. it's chosen new members of its investment committee. they'll be reviewing the fund's investment strategy amid changing economic conditions. the government pension investment fund is one of the largest of its kind in the

world. it manages some $1.2 trillion in assets. among those seven new members is professor yasuhiro yonazawa. he was on a government panel that recommended a shift in the government's investment focus away from japanese government bonds. health labor and welfare minister says the committee's priority is to protect the investors' money. >> translator: as the investment climate changes, so do the things that were once considered safe. and diversifying the investment it's necessary to reduce risk and achieve the target returns at the same time. >> the fund currently invests more than 50% of its assets in government bonds and other domestic securities. let's get a check of the markets now. investors in asia hesitant to make big bets as they wait for fresh cues to trade on. here's how major bourses finished on tuesday. trading volume remained pretty low across the region. market players were keeping an eye on chinese manufacturing data, which is slated for

release on wednesday. the shanghai composite seeing slight gains up about 0.3%, 2,072. that's a rebound from a two-week low that was logged on monday. still investors remaining a bit nervous about a flurry of initial public offerings planned as they were wary of an oversupply of shares on the market. in hong kong the hang seng index down just over 0.1%, 22,730. market attention on china resources holdings which ran into pretty heavy selling today. chinese authorities have been investigating the chairman of the firm in connection with suspected corruption. here in tokyo the nikkei average declined nearly 0.9% to 14,388. that reversed earlier gains, investors were focusing on corporate earnings from large firms, and that will get in to full swing later on this week. justices on the u.s. supreme court are weighing in now on a long fight between the argentinean government, and investors that it failed to pay. in 2001, argentina defaulted on

its debt. it's been in a legal battle with bond holders ever since. lawyers for u.s. hedge funds won decisions from lower courts that compelled argentina to pay back $1.4 billion. and they want the government to reveal its assets around the world so investors can collect. the argentineans refused and took the case to the supreme court. they say u.s. courts cannot force foreign governments to disclose assets they hold abroad. right now the justices are only hearing arguments on the disclosure issue, not the broader argument over the debt. the people at the japan tourism agency are doing their part to drum up business. they're trying to sell organizers of international conferences and trade shows on the benefits of their country. to increase their chances they're doing more and more to cater to participants' needs. >> reporter: the world ophthalmology conference was held in tokyo for the first time. it's one of the biggest medical conferences in the world. >> translator: it's good to have

opportunities to demonstrate what japan can offer. >> reporter: in the past, international meetings were typically held in u.s. or european cities. but after fierce competition with other big cities, singapore established itself as a leading venue for these conferences. not to be outdone, tokyo officials stepped up their efforts three years ago to lure more events. for the ophthalmology conference they organized free sight seeing tours for the attendees and their family members. they also provided the visitors with opportunities to sample japanese culture. >> beautiful. >> actually come and have a cultural program that's integrated into the scientific part, i think that's a bonus, and that will sell it, sell the conference more and get more delegates in, as well. >> reporter: the conference

organizers also arranged a big social event. all their effort paid off. the conference drew some 20,000 attendees, becoming the world's largest-ever ophthalmology gathering. >> the richness of the japanese culture, of the japanese geography, probably decided many people to take this opportunity to come to japan. >> reporter: the hotel in tokyo, where many conference participants stayed, made a special effort to make them welcome. it set up a touchscreen information board at the front desk last month. the board provides sightseeing and traffic information in languages, including english and chinese. >> translator: many conference participants check the board and found places and events they are interested in visiting during their stay. >> reporter: providing medical support is essential for foreign visitors who are in tokyo for a

long-term stay. international conferences are often held in tokyo's seaside district. a hospital in the area improved its display system telling patients which doctor's office they should enter. with a subsidy from the tokyo government, the system began providing the information in english in february. that's not all. >> it's been one year. how are you feeling? >> i'm feeling good. >> reporter: the hospital now has a communication device that can handle simultaneous interpretation in four languages around the clock. >> translator: we'll improve our equipment so we can treat foreign patients. we'll also make sure that our staff can handle those patients. >> reporter: tokyo will host the olympic and paralympic games in 2020. local government officials think

this is a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the city's appeal to the world. >> translator: tokyo will also become better known around the world if we host more international conferences. >> reporter: japan tourism agency officials say the recent conference had a major spillover effect on the country's tourism. >> okay. that is going to do it for biz this hour. let's check in on the markets. south korean defense officials say north korea may be

preparing for another nuclear test. a spokesperson for the defense ministry says there have been signs of increased activity at a test site. south korean military leaders are now increasing their surveillance. defense ministry spokesperson says that north koreans could conduct a nuclear test soon. authorities in pyongyang have already carried out three tests at the same facility in the country's northeast. but the spokesperson said a test isn't a foregone conclusion. he said north korean officials have faked preparations in the past. u.s. president barack obama is trying to show his so-called pivot to asia is still in his playbook. he's starting a four-nation tour of the region this week. his first stop is japan, where he'll meet with prime minister shinzo abe to talk about everything from trade to security to regional relations. nhk world has more from washington.

>> reporter: president obama plans to visit four asian countries, japan, then south korea, malaysia, and the philippines. during his time in tokyo he'll be the first u.s. president to be welcomed as a state guest since bill clinton in 1996. three years ago, obama said he would boost u.s. engagement in the region. the policy became known as the pivot to asia. >> the united states is turning our attention to the vast potential of the asia pacific region. >> reporter: since then his administration has visited the middle east, africa and eastern europe. and last year, the government shut down forced him to pull out of two major conferences in asia.

the senior director of asia on the national security council and a -- under former president george w. bush. he says there is say lot riding on this trip. >> the overall objective is to demonstrate that the so-called pivot or rebalance to asia is still very much alive. remember, president obama canceled his visit to asia last october. for apec and the east asia summit because of budget politics in the congress. so he needs to make up for that. >> reporter: obama would have been in asia at the time of heightened regional tensions. the chinese military have been asserting itself at sea. causing concern in japan, the philippines, and other nations. relations between japanese and south korean leaders have become strained, too. obama had to organize a three-way summit last month to

get prime minister abe and president park to officially meet face to face for the first time. green says the u.s. position in asia is very weak. when japan and south korea are at odds. >> these are our two most important allies with democratic values, the host of most of our military forces, and it hurts us, because north korea thinks that the democracies and the regional powers can't come together to punish them. >> it also sends a message to china. green said leaders in beijing may envision an asia centered on the nation where they can pull south korea or other countries away from japan and the u.s. he stresses it's crucial for obama and abe to strengthen the decades-old alliance that binds their nations.

>> the president himself, i suspect, has learned the nature of the chinese regime, the need for cooperation, but the fact that chinese understand power. and when the americans talk about power, what have we got? our economy, our military, and our alliances. so he'll want to show that this alliance is strong. >> coming to asia would help president obama do that. his administration would send additional naval destroyers to japan. the message seems to be clear. the u.s. is determined to maintain its presence in the region. mass yoshi tanaka, nhk world, washington. about 150 japanese lawmakers and a cabinet minister have visited yasukuni shrine in tokyo for its spring festival. the shrine honors japan's war dead, including leaders convicted of war crimes after world war ii. the lawmakers from both ruling and opposition camps offered prayers at the shrine's main hall on tuesday.

they include hidehisa otsuji. they belong to a cross-party group that promotes invest its to yasukuni. the group paid its respects at the shrine in spring and fall, and on august 15th, the day japan commemorates the end of world war ii. at a news conference he referred to prime minister abe who sent an offering to the shrine on monday without paying a visit. >> translator: i believe the souls of those who died for the country would see prime minister abe's gesture as a decision to protect national interests. >> but some lawmakers are not so positive about the group's visit. the chairman of the ldp diet affairs committee in the upper house says he can partly understand why the legislators want to visit the shrine, but he

himself has never gone. >> translator: i'm concerned that visiting the shrine could escalate various problems given the current environment. it's better to avoid any action that might touch a nerve. >> also new komeito chief natsu yamaguchi said repeated visits to yasukuni are undesirable when neighboring countries are protesting them. >> translator: we should give serious thought to the idea of building a new national facility to one of the war dead, where anybody from japanese citizens to foreign dignitaries and the emperor can pay tribute. >> yamaguchi added that visits to yasukuni shrine can generate diplomatic problems. leaders of a town in fukushima are considering whether to go back home. people were forced to evacuate naraha after the earthquake and

tsunami crippled the nuclear plant three years ago, but many residents are still not sure if their town is safe. most of the town is within 20 kilometers of fukushima daiichi. and the area is still in the government designated evacuation zone. town officials held a meeting in neighboring iwaki city to discuss a possible return. 80% of naraha's residents are staying there. residents learned that workers have finished removing radioactive material from residential areas in the town. officials explained that radiation has dropped by half from pre-decontamination levels, and a municipal panel of experts has judged the town liveable. they also say a makeshift shopping mall has been built. but many residents are wary. >> translator: we're mostly concerned about the exact radiation level. give us more details. >> translator: please don't rush. make a careful decision.

>> naraha's mayor says he wants to hear from more residents and assembly members before deciding when they should start returning. u.n. officials in south sudan have condemned what they call targeted killings of civilians. they say opposition troops slaughtered hundreds of people based on their nationality or ethnic origin. authorities of the u.n. mission in south sudan say the attack happened last week in the northern city of bentu. the area is rich in oil reserves. officials say anti-government forces captured the city then stormed a hospital, a mosque and a church. they say troops singled out people by nationality and ethnic group then killed them. the officials also criticized members of the opposition for using radio broadcasts to spread hate speech. government troops have been battling forces loyal to former

vice president riek machar. the violence began in december. president salva kiir and machar belong to different ethnic groups. the two sides agreed to a truce in january. but sporadic fighting has continued. syrian leaders have called a presidential election in the middle of a civil war. voters will go to the polls in june. president bashar al assad is expected to run for a third term. parliamentary speaker mohammed jihad al aham announced that candidacies will be able to register starting later on tuesday. syria law states that anyone running for president must have lived in the country for the ten years before the elections. that disqualifies many of assad's opponents, who are living in exile. assad is widely expected to win. opposition leaders say the vote is a farce. they say it will hamper prospects for a political solution to the conflict.

let's now bring in our meteorologist robert speta. robert, pretty depressing weather here in tokyo today. dark and wet. how long will this rain last? >> yes, shery. it's been very gloomy the last several days. also relatively cooler. the last four days tokyo hasn't even reached up to the 20 degree mark. at least it does look like going into wednesday we are going to be seeing some improving conditions. it's all been due to this cloud cover. the stationary boundary which has been lingering across much of japan. that's going to drift down here towards the south and see vent usually off towards the east being replaced by high pressure accompanied by some clear skies. so some good news there. even some warming temperatures going through the next 24 to 48 hours. even back towards the west also good news, clear conditions across much of the korean peninsula, specifically southern portions of south korea, off the jindo island you're going to be looking at some clear skies and light winds. good news for the rescue efforts still ongoing down there. and then back towards the west, also some clear conditions across central portions of china. but in the southeast, we're

going to look at the stationary boundary start to redevelop and some rain showers coming out of this in the next 24 hours. heaviest areas could see as much as 80 millimeters of total rain. now behind that, where we have been seeing some very clear conditions, you want the rain, is in yunnan province. and temperatures just absolutely baking out here. got some imagery to show you out of this area of china, where residents have just been scorching under this heat the last several days. this unusually hot weather has pushed peak temperatures to nearly 40 degrees in yunnan province on monday. more than half of the cities in the region have been dealing with these highs, warmer than 30 degrees, all last week, and monday's hot conditions forced the local agencies to issue orange alerts, some of the highest for china. now it does look like those conditions are going to remain in place, so people who do suffer from heat stroke or heat stress very easily stay hydrated. stay out of the sun. 41 degrees and sunny skies there

for you. just off toward the north, chongqing a little bit cooler, 32. shanghai, 21. tokyo, partly cloudy skies on wednesday, 21 degrees there for your high. let's take a look over towards the americas. a low pressure area pushing in to the pacific northwest, higher elevations we're going to be seeing some 5 centimeters of snowfall out of this one and eventually, later on this week, i think the bigger story is this is going to be bringing the threat of severe thunderstorms across the plains. before that happens, the southwest, you're still looking at hot and dry weather here, as well. the threat of blowing sand, believe it or not, into las vegas, over towards phoenix, those critical fire weather situations in effect there. and then, even back towards the east, not fire weather at all but some rainfall if you're in washington, d.c. over towards new york, have a umbrella ready here on your tuesday going into wednesday. as that pushes by, behind it, cooler temperatures. i know you've been enjoying some balmy weather the past weekend. 21 in new york city on tuesday. washington, d.c. up to 29. but as it pushes by, those

temperatures begin to cool off. good news, still right around average, quite seasonable for this time of year. then as we wrap things up here in to europe we are looking at some severe thunderstorms possibly across northern portions of africa. eventually over towards the italian peninsula and into the northern portions of the balkan peninsula. right in here you've been dealing with some foul weather into serbia, over towards romania, as well. and there's still the threat of some large hail and excessive rainfall to come out of that. for the most part, afternoon heating really is going to be triggering some storms out here for you. i do want to leave you with this, april 22nd, earth day. a few things, remember to do every day, to help earth out here. i'll leave you with the extended forecast.

that's all for this hour on "newsline." i'm shery ahn. thank you for watching. a7guc

>> standing by for us in kiev, you have been listening to joe biden. what are the main points you take from his speech? >> he has praise for the ukrainian government for keeping up its end of the bargain in geneva agreement. i don't think we can say the right sector has been fully disarmed, kiev has taken what steps it can in order to get those groups to give up what weapons they have held illegally. there are members