here in japan it's 7:00 p.m. on a tuesday. i'm james tengan in tokyo. welcome to "newsline". u.s. researchers say they have more evidence of a chinese military build-up in the disputed south china sea. they say satellite imagery likely shows the construction of advanced radar systems. the researchers with the center for strategic and international studies released satellite photos of four chinese built islands in the spratly chain. they all show apparent radar

facilities. one of the photos captures a reef late last month. it appears to show two radar towers and a number of tall poles inside the area shown in red. the researchers say the poles could be part of a high frequency radar system. they say china can already monitor the northern half of the region with radar facilities on the paracel islands. a similar array in the spratlys could allow them to cover the entire area. tensions between the u.s. and china heightened last week when officials in washington found an advanced surface-to-air missile system in the paracels. the issue is likely to be high on the agenda when the chinese foreign minister meets secretary of state john kerry in washington. the three-day visit will start tuesday. we spoke to a former japanese air self-defense commander for his take on

china's move. >> translator: the photos apparently reveal one of china's steps to build military bases on reefs reclaim by the country. they may be trying to monitor surrounding areas. they also have communications antennas. the radar systems may include a high-frequency type with an extremely high capacity. it may even be a type with the ability to detect targets beyond the horizon. china is building the radar system just south of fiery cross reef. depending on the output capacity of the system, china could have the upper hand in air and sea within a 300 to 400 kilometer radar of the system. china could cover the entire

south china sea if the country sets up another radar system with the same capability. historically speaking, parties involved have held quite short air strips in the area. those held by vietnam, taiwan, the philippines and malaysia are about 300 meters. its facilities shows strategic ambition in the future. various facilities that china has built on reclaimed reefs cannot be claimed as territory. they are building artificial objects in violation of the u.n. convention on the law of the sea. we must raise the issue and warn china not to expand such

facilities. japan needs to closely share information with the united states. they also need to patrol the south china sea if needed to stop china's blatant attempt to expand its territory. japan also has to work closely with asean nations with which it shares the same values. >> that was the former commander with the japanese air self-defense force. on north korea, chinese leaders say they will support international efforts to curb pyongyang's am ambitions, and a look at their border shows why. >> reporter: china shares a 1,300 border with north korea. the river freezes over in the winter and it's narrow enough for people to cross. many north koreans have used it to flee their country. chinese authorities have been

putting up barbed wire along the river bank and they've been installing surveillance cameras just meters apart. the number of people trying to cross the border has dropped, but officials worry that putting up tougher sanctions on north korea might trigger another exodus. leaders in pyongyang are open about their nuclear and missile programs and they're not listening to beijing's calls for restraint. [ speaking foreign language ]. officials in beijing say their influence on north korea is limited and countries should not count on them to control pyongyang. but economic ties between the two neighbors are strong. 70% of the bilateral trade goes

through a border city. observers say there hasn't been much change in volume since last month's nuclear test. trade between the countries last year reached about $5.5 billion. that's more than three times what it was back in 2006, when the u.n. imposed sanctions on north korea after its first nuclear test. china imports coal and iron ore from its neighbor. some chinese businesses are counting on labor from across the border. these women cross the border and are heading to work in factories nearby. authorities say 90,000 north koreans entered china to work last year. chinese firms like them because they're cheap. they'll work for about half the rate chinese employees will and that's even more important to the firms now that the economy is slowing.

some businesses are even venturing into north korea. one entrepreneur has opened a garment factory in pyongyang. he labels north korean-made garments made in china and exports them to japan and south korea. >> translator: we're making a profit thanks to the cheap north korean labor. >> reporter: last year, $600 million worth of clothing was made in the north and exported to china. some of it was then shipped abroad as chinese products. that's just one of the ways that people are sidestepping the international sanctions. some chinese firms are starting to see north korea as a possible market. they took part in a trade show last year in the north's rason

special economic zone showing everything from food and drink to chinese-made vehicles. to musical instruments. and even massage machines. these exporters say trade with north korea will bring benefits on a broader scale, ushering economic reforms and political stability. but they may not get the chance to prove it. for now they're waiting to see whether their businesses will be caught in the net of new sanctions. an international agency's latest report says oil prices may rise next year. gene otani has the details. the international energy agency reports says the oil

market will be rebalancing in 2017 and u.s. production will follow. the iea forecast that the country's output will drop by 600,000 barrels per day this year and 200,000 barrels next year in response to the current glut that is pressuring prices. oversupply will continue this year but falling investment will lead to sluggish growth in global supply. the executive director says that oil prices will reach $80 a barrel by 2020. he emphasized it is important to continue investing in new production facilities to maintain a stable supply. the opec secretary-general called a potential freeze of crude oil output among major producers a first step to halting falling prices. last week, saudi arabia, two opec nations and russia agreed to freeze output at january levels. other measures could follow if the move is successful. iran and iraq must join the pact to put the hold into effect.

the developments of the u.s. and middle east have caused a spike in oil prices but there's been no lasting impact on japanese stocks. shares gave up gains earlier in the day as the yen appreciated. for more details we go to our business reporter at the tokyo stock change. >> reporter: it's been a very choppy day here in tokyo. the nikkei erased early gains after the yen reached its highest points against the euro in almost three years and dragged down japanese exporters. a rebound in oil prices initially pushed the nikkei more than 1% higher but it soon gave up those gains, closing down over .3 of a percent. a similar move was seen in the topix which ended the day down nearly .7%. now, the yen jumped to its higher level against the euro during april 2013.

euro trading accelerated over whether the u.k. would remain in the e.u. and the dollar dipped to the 111 yen range for the first time in two weeks. sony and mazda ended the day down in the negative. on the flip side, we some recoveries in resource stocks. jfe holding jumped over 5% and inpex also rose. thanks for that. moving on to other markets in the asia-pacific region, the shanghai composite retreated 0.8%, 2903 for the close.

some investors booked profits from yesterday's high. over in singapore, 2672 is the closing number. the improvement came after data show core inflation in january rose 0.4% a year ago. it's the highest figure in months. hong kong, declined a quarter of 1% and sydney lost 0.4%. here's a look at some of the other business stories we're following today. the production value of all cds and dvds in japan plus sales in down loads and streaming in 2016 was about $2.7 billion. it's the first increase in three years. the recording industry association of japan says music fans bawpt fewer cds but their purchases through music sites grew for a second year.

japan's finance minister says he will consider additional measures to bolster the economy if the need arises. some members of the government panel on economic and fiscal policy are calling for new measures as the country's economy shrank in the october to december period. many creative people dream of selling their works online, but turning a hobby into a business isn't easy despite all the shopping platforms available. help is at hand, though, due to some web companies crafting a personal touch. nhk world's keiko aso has more. >> reporter: this shopping site carries a huge range of products, around 2 million items. a closer inspection shows unusual motifs, unordinary shapes and novelty items. most things here are made by ordinary people pursuing a hobby. website selling handicrafts have exploded in recent years. to get a leg up on the

competition, this company is trying a more personal approach. they set up an office space for online sellers to use. here they can develop their ideas along with others with more experience. and the company will even give them tips to get started. a group of women have come looking for help. they all enjoy handicraft, but most have never sold online before. staff will advise vendors to work on photography. a good shot can make or break a sale. background color is key. and it helps to shoot in natural light, using a reflector. >> translator: the gray background makes it look classy, doesn't it? it's a small thing that makes such a difference. >> reporter: the experts also warn against selling products too cheaply.

material cost are just one expense. the make also ha to conser shipping and packaging. >> translator: the information online is limited. it's great that i can listen to the explanations and have my questions answered. >> translator: a growing number of people want to start creating things. last year's transactions at our site totalled about $38 million. and this year i'd like to double that. >> reporter: creativity comes in many forms, and it doesn't always mean hand-made products. this woman is a part-time fashion designer. it all started because she had trouble finding clothes to fit her petite size. now she sells items online for women in the same situation. >> translator: my dress patterns make clothes that make you look stylish by just wearing them. >> reporter: she's an office worker.

she has no training in fashion design. but it's not a problem. the online shop has it covered. all she has to do is upload the drawings of her design and the site operator does the rest. first it creates a paper pattern based on the drawings. then it places an order to a netwk of 200actorieshere e outfits tailor by professionals. the service fee start at around $900. she's featuring two designs, 20 pieces each. >> translator: i always had a dream to do this, but it looked like a difficult process. now, after using the system, i learned at everying was surprisily easy. >>eporter:he system inspired people to experiment. the site offered a variety of clothing from casual wear, to anime costumes.

>> translator: our system enables you to start your own brand without the knowledge, business connections, or money. we offer professional skills and technology usually used for mass manufacturing. >> reporter: you don't run into a lot of people in the cyber-based world of e-commerce. and that's worked fine so far. but perhaps it's the key to future success in the industry will be the old-fashioned personal touch. keiko aso, nhk world. >> that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets. ♪ ♪

the united states and russia have announced a cease-fire plan for syria that will take effect on saturday. the agreement comes after an earlier deal to end the fighting by last friday failed to stop the violence. the u.s. and russia released a joint statement that calls for an end to fighting between bashar al assad and opposition groups moscow backs assad while the u.s. backs the opposition. barack obama and vladimir putin discussed the issue on phone on monday. obama welcomed the agreement and said that the assad regimes have

to faithfully implement the cease fire. a syrian opposition group has laid out conditions for accepting the cease-fire. the head of the high negotiations committee says the conditions include a halt to air strikes and the shelling of civilians but the group expressed doubt that the syrian government and its backers, iran and russia, will end hoilities. theerms for the cease-fire exclude attacks against designated terrorist groups such as the islamic state. in tokyo, we welcomed the plan. >> translator: i expect all to endorse the peace process in syria. >> japan will coordinate with other countries to help improve the situation in syria by focusing its efforts on humanitarian support. leaders of japan's two opposition parties are working

to unite their forces ahead of an upper house election scheduled for the summer. they hope it will give them a better chance against the ruling party. the democratic party is the largest opposition party. its executives agreed to prioritize a merger with the japan innovation party in hopes it will happen by the end of march. to do so, the democratic party is offering to change its name and platform. for their side the innovation party leader suggested he would agree with the idea. the secretary-general of the ruling liberal democratic party said a merger without a clear shared goal should be described as an immature move. he added a union such as this would be a marriage of convenience. japan's government will allow north korea's women's soccer team to join olympic qualifying matches in osaka next week. it's exempting the team from a recent ban on north koreans

entering the country. >> translator: discrimination based on nationality is prohibited. that's common sense in the international sports community. >> suga said the exemption is in line with the soccer world governing body, fifa. the japanese government closed the border to north koreans earlier this month in response to pyongyang's rocket launch. the north korean team arrived in beijing on tuesday. japan's embassy there will issue the entry visa. the team will take part in a regional qualifying tournament. the winners will play at the olympic games later this year in rio de janeiro. japan airlines says that smoke has forced one of its plane to cancel a takeoff in hokkaido. it happened around 3:00 p.m. at an airport in hokkaido. everyone onboard evacuated. the local fire department says three female passengers suffered minor injuries in the process. the plane was supposed to fly to

western japan. 159 passengers and six crew members were on board. one of nhk's staff was on the plane. he says it was on stand-by waiting for the weather to improve. he smelled something burning and saw the smoke coming from the plane's right side engine. officials are investigating the cause. japan will donate $1.2 million to taiwan after an earthquake earlier this month. the money will be donated to the red cross. it will be used for medical assistance and to help those who evacuated their homes. the funding follows a previous aid package sent by japan. the government says it will continue to work with taiwan to help survivors recover from the disaster. currently in tainen city, it

is 20 degrees celsius or 70 degrees fahrenheit. we're joined now with this weather's update starting with the united states. >> wild weather is expected to affect the deep south. we're talkg about isters a heavy rainfall. these events could happen on tuesday as well as wednesday in parts of the united states. the risk for severe thunderstorms can be found in areas from texas into georgia. watch out for tornados, thunderstorms and gusty conditions and to the north because of heavy rainfall there is a threat of flash floods. and then up in the northern portions of the united states, freezing rain is a possibility. now freezing rain looks like rain but the temperature itself is below freezing. once it contacts the ground it freezes everything making for slippery road conditions and

hazardous driving conditions. as we go into wednesday, the threat shifts to the east. we're looking at various kinds of weather across the eastern united states and back behind it through eastern canada, heavy snow is on the menu. across the southern portions of the united states we are looking at heavy rain to continue for the next several hours. watch out for severe thunderstorms. temperatures in houston, warm for this time of year. 21 for the high. but just to the north, oklahoma city, the high could be 9 degrees. across the opposite side of the united states, 30 degrees is expected in l.a. that is more like mid summer, on tuesday. in the southern hemisphere we have been talking about cyclone winston. winston was a category 5 system when it hit fiji during the weekend. it is actually the strongest cyclone to hit fiji onecord. now it is a category 3 system. it caused 300 kilometer per hour wind gusts.

along with rainfall, about 230 millimeters of rainfall. at least 29 people have been confirmed dead. it is the deadliest storm to hit the country on record. now the system is a category 3 system. it's packing winds of 157 kilometers an hour. it is weakening however as a hurricane it is going to move down toward the south. some areas may be dealing with rough sea conditions for the next couple days or so. and across australia the heat dome is raising temperatures. there is the high pressure system that is dragging very warm air from the north. the temperatures are on the rise for the next several days. sydney, it should be about 27 this time of year. the high rose to 29.7 degrees on tuesday. warming up to 34 degrees on thursday. melbourne the high rose to 39.4 degrees.

down from 30, down through 23 degrees. but still on the warm side for the next couple days or so. stay hydrated. across asia looking dry across many parts of china but the rim of the high pressure system strong winds are causing storms in the southeast parts of the country. as well as taiwan. it is quite heavy from hokkaido down through the region. so visibility will be quite low as well. temperatures in tokyo staying warmer at 12 degrees for the high and 7 in beijing on wednesday. here's your extended forecast. ♪ ♪

here in tokyo it's partly cloudy with a temperature current temperature reading of 48 degrees eñ quite hello, welcome to "live

hello,ris." -- >> welcome to "live from paris." the headlines, the syrian government agrees to a partial cease-fire if the deal struck by the u.s. and russia does not islamic state group. a french court delays its ruling on a planned eviction of hundreds of migrants in the jungle. schemeshild protection must be in pce