here in japan it's a tuesday night. i am james tengan. "newsline" starts off with a quick look at the hour's top stories. the hardship continues. earthquake survivors in southwestern japan are struggling and rescuers are still searching for the missing. open doors. empty shelves. convenience stores are adjusting deliveries in earthquake affected areas to ensure that

people get necessities. and rescue efforts continue in ecuador. reports say government officials are updating the death toll from saturday's earthquake to more than 400. people in southwestern japan are bracing against a series of after shocks. they have experienced more than 600 tremors since the earthquake, some of them powerful. this footage is from kumamoto just after the latest quake which was relatively strong. those after-effects are taking a toll on survivors. tens of thousands have evacuated their homes and many are sleeping in emergency shelters or their cars. authorities say the death toll has risen to 47 as a result of the quakes. but concerns are growing over a new deadly threat. officials are raising awareness over so-called economy class syndrome. blood clots develop when

movement is limited. officials say one woman has died. she was one of the thousands taking shelter in vehicles. nearly 20 others are suspected of having the same condition. >> translator: for april, it feels so cold. i'm borrowing a blanket and wrapping myself with it. >> more than 100,000 people are taking refuge. local officials say food and water have been sent to municipality offices but there are not enough people to deliver supplies so the food will now be sent directly to evacuation shelters. many homes are still without electricity, water or gas. power company officials say they will send generator vehicles to help out. rescue and recovery operations continue in the village of m minami aso. on tuesday rescuers found three people under the rubble, all confirmed dead. their work is hampered by the

after-shocks and also by landslides. they've counted more than 60 in the region. many supermarkets and convenience stores in kumamoto prefecture have reopened but getting in and out of the area is a challenge so supplies of food and drinks remain low. people lined up tuesday before this supermarket opened its doors. >> translator: this store is far from my place but i need to get some food. customers were buying long awaited goods, fresh food. >> translator: i'm so glad that i can get what i want here again. >> this convenience store opened monday but most shelves are empty. the chain's distribution center is in one of the areas hardest hit by the quake. trucks can now only make one delivery a day as opposed to the usual three.

many drivers are now in shelters, and their vehicles have been damaged. traffic jams are also slowing distribution, and night delivery is suspended due to frequent tremors. >> translator: we are getting substitute drivers and trying our best to deliver goods quickly. >> managers are making changes to orders to speed up delivery. they decided to unify the variety and volume across all stores to decrease sorting time. >> translator: we are doing our best to remove obstacles and get the flow of goods back to normal as soon as possible. >> police are calling on people to avoid driving during rush hour and to take alternate routes to prevent traffic jams. a little over a week before saturday's quake, heavy rains soaked the area. an expert says that raised the risk of significant landslides. a mudslide 150 meters wide left a scar 800 meters long.

it took out a bridge and dug trenches up to 20 meters deep. at another site houses were buried when a massive section of a slope gave way. landslide expert checked rainfall data and found that more than 100 millimeters of rain fell on april 7th. he has been surveying the damage caused by rushing earth and debris. >> translator: a landslide hit route 57 and the rail line and they're covered in soil and rocks. >> he is urging residents to be aware of the dangerous combination of after-shocks and loose topsoil. the land ministry has been checking slopes, and it's planning emergency inspections of more than 1,000 locations officials say are highly hazardous. there are some services slowly being restored. the first passenger plane since saturday landed at kumamoto

airport. the plane from tokyo arrived tuesday morning. some of the 40 passengers on board were carrying daily necessities for people in kumamoto. saturday's quake damaged a terminal building and led to the airport's closure. airplanes say they'll monitor the effects of after-shocks and repair work to determine when they will increase the number of flights. the earthquakes in japan are disrupting operations for the world's leading auto maker toyota. gene otani has the details along with today's other top business stories. the series of earthquakes has forced factories in hard hit areas to suspend operations. this has disrupted parts supplies for auto and other manufacturers. toyota motor is among them. it is gradually halting assembly lines at most of its factories. on friday the auto maker suspended car production and its

subsidiary which borders kumamoto. four days later toyota is stopping assembly lines at 11 other plants around the country. one is toyota's main factory in central japan. corolla models are produced there. officials say the quakes have affected operations and a supplier subsidiary in kumamoto prefecture. the managers say the temporary halt will last through saturday. officials at the tokyo stock exchange have decided to give the listed firms hit by the earthquakes more time to disclose their earnings. they took similar measures after the 2011 disaster. the tse generallyequires sted comnies to release their earnis rort witn days after their settlements terms end, but the board has decided to grant more time to firms based in the earthquake zones. officials say the companies can release their reports when

they're ready. checking the markets. tokyo stocks rallied on the back of a rebound in oil prices and a weaker yen. many market players also seemed to have oversold after the earthquakes in the kyushu region. for details we go to business reporter giang nguyen. >> investors returned to buying on the back of a rebound in oil prices overnight. this helped the nikkei regain all of monday's losses. the average rose 3.7%, closing at 16,874. on monday it fell 3.4%. the broader topix rose 3.3%. both indexes snapping two sessions of losses. major manufacturers seeing a recovery in share prices after the earthquakes disrupted the supply chains. sony was higher 6.5% after the company clarified that production of image sensors for smartphones is not affected. however, no word on the impact

on earnings for the electronics giant. toyota and nissan bounced back after steep losses. a weak yen helped to drive the gains. the dollar rose to the 109 yen level during trading hours. leading the tokyo stocks were financial firms based in drau disaster-stricken area. they both showed strong gains. many investors are watching the outcome of the european central bank policy meeting on thursday. giang nguyen from the tokyo stock exchange. >> thanks very much for that report. moving to other markets in the asia pacific region. the shanghai composite ended up by a third of one percent. 3,042. trading volume was the lowest in a month. higher oil prices pushed up energy shares. let's look at hong kong's index. jumping 1.3%. 21,436 hong kong dollars there. that's its highest close in more than three months.

hsbc rose 3.7% after the bank said it's preparing for a potential share buy-back. moving to south korea. kospi gaining by .1%. key interest rate unchanged as many analysts expected singapore gaining by 1.2% for the close. it hit a five-month high as most shares there ended higher. senior officials of japan's ruling party say it will be difficult to obtain diet approval of the transpacific partnership free trade deal during the current session. liberal democratic party secretary general and the party's diet affairs chiefs discussed a bill aimed at seeking approval of the tpp deal. it's now under deliberation at a lower house special committee. they say deliberations have been delayed due to the earthquakes in south western japan and other factors. they say it would be difficult to extend the curran session as

an upper house election will be held this summer. the secretary general and the others plan to meet next week to discuss how to handle the bill. here is a look at some of the other business stories we're following. brd mbersfajor japanese retailer and i holders havehosen n presidt. the curre earlier this man suzuki announced his resignation after board members rejected a proposal to change the head of 7-eleven japan. the new management team is expected to take office after a shareholders meeting scheduled for may 26. marubeni has down-graded its earnings projection for the last fiscal year following a slump in oil and commodity prices. it expects to post $550 million

in net profits for 2015 one third of initial estimates. officials cite losses incurred by development projects for copper in chile and iron ore in australia as well as oil and gas businesses in the gulf of mexico. more than 1700 broadcasters and manufacturers from around the world have gathered in the u.s. city of las vegas to showcase their latest technologies. at the nhk booth visitors can see a video shot using the broadcasters super high-vision h 8 k technology. the format offers 16 times the resolution of the current high-vision mode. wearable technology can be found on wrists and wardrobes around the world. it's transforming objects we use every day. nhk world rosa sabrina reports. >> reporter: the south by southwest festival in austin,

texas, is best known for cutting edge music and art, but in march it also drew many companies displaying the latest in wearable technology. like this sportswear from a german venture firm. the garment contains electrodes that stimulate muscles. the people behind it say it provides the same benefit as three hours of muscle training in just 20 minutes of exercise. and this wearable keyboard. a student from an art and design college in new york came up with the idea. >> translator: what's it used for? >> reporter: it encourages people to stretch tired muscles. >> i was animator and graphic designer. and i got back pain and it made me realize and start making this. yeah. >> reporter: several japanese venture firms were also showing off their latest gadgets. at first glance, this looks like ordinary workout clothing but it

features extraordinary technology. embedded sensors detect when the fabric is stretching and generates data on the wearer's movement. the information is transmitted wirelessly. the developers are exploring a number of applications including virtual reality games and health monitoring. >> translator: it feels exactly the same as wearing ordinary clothing. now that we have taken our product to this level, we believe consumers will use it. >> reporter: amid the array of small and medium sized firms' booths, sony's exhibit space stood out. people lined up to try out the company's prototype. its speakers feature a technology that focuses sound around the wearer's ears so listeners can listen to music without headphones and it has another important innovation. >> take a picture.

[ beep, beep, beep ] >> reporter: the camera operated by voice command. >> gps, camera. it has an interesting approach to being hands-free sound. i think, you know, i think that will be interesting to a lot of people. it would be great to see them put it out there for people. >> translator: it is user friendly and does not restrict the user's movements. we believe a wide range of wearables will lead to changes in life-style. >> reporter: as wearable technology continues to evolve, many companies are looking for new and better ways to integrate it into everyday life. and it could be coming soon to a t-shirt to you. nhk world, new york. that's it for business news. i'll leave you with the markets.

in ecuador search and rescue operations are continuing after a powerful earthquake struck off the country's northern coast saturday. the death toll continues to rise. it has now exceeded 400 people. nhk world reports. >> reporter: this is one of the hardest hit cities by the quake.

many buildings are reduced to rubble and it's uncertain how many are still buried under the debris. rescue workers are desperately looking for people trapped under collapsed buildings. thousands of military troops and police officers have been dispatched for the operation. >> translator: there are some neighbors who have complained about bodies and asked why they are not taken away. the priority is to target resources to where there are still signs of life. >> reporter: traumatized people crawled up and spent othanother night outside. some on mattresses outside the rubble of their homes. >> translator: i am desperate to find family members. i won't be able to sleep today. >> reporter: ecuador sits on the ring of fire that circles the pacific. in 1949 a magnitude 6.8 earthquake killed more than 5,000 people. in 1987 about 1,000 people were dead after a magnitude 7 quake.

there have been many after-shocks jolting already weakened buildings. they're still powerful. they keep people awake and shaken. widad franco, nhk world, ecuador. japan's foreign minister's trying to arrange a visit to myanmar to meet with de facto leader aung san suu kyi. he is key to strengthen ties between the governments. nhk learned that kishida is expected to add myanmar to an upcoming tour to china and laso. he wants to convey that japan is ready and willing to offer support and give her a letter from prime minister abe and ask her to visit japan soon. china's foreign minister visited myanmar shortly after the new government took power. other nations are also seeking to cement ties with the emerging southeast asian country.

north korea's foreign minister is on his way to new york despite condemnation of the recent nuclear activity by his country. the minister will attend the signing of the paris agreement adopted at a u.n. climate change conference last year. he left pyongyang and arrived on tuesday. he'll visit the u.s. for the first time since the north conducted a test in january and rocket launch in february. nhk correspondents in beijing say north korean leaders want to stress willingness to work with the international community on global issues. they hope to fend off pressure including u.n. security council sanctions. on friday delegates from 130 countries will attend the signing of the agreement tackling global warming at the u.n. headquarters. u.s. defense officials are accusing their counter parts in beijing of ratcheting up tensions in the south china sea they're criticizing china for landing a plane on a runway

built in the spratly islands. they say the aircraft touched down on sunday they built in the fiery cross reef. they say it was on a humanitarian mission to transport sick workers but u.s. officials say there is no obvious reason to use a military aircraft for that purpose and they believe it's the first time a military plane has landed there. the u.s. department of defense is urging china to reaffirm that there is no plan to deploy military aircraft in the spratlys. china is building two other runways of similar length in the area. about a thousand chinese parents who lost their only child have staged a demonstration in beijing. they say they'll have no one to look after them because they were forced to follow the country's one-child policy. the protesters gathered on monday in front of the national health and family planning commission. about one million households across china are estimated to have lost their sole offspring due to illness or accident.

many such parents feel it's unfair they had to obey a policy the government decided to scrap earlier this year after more than three decades. >> translator: my wife and i are too old to have another child. i want the government to look after us. >> chinese authorities announced on sunday the state would provide a monthly allowance of $50 to each bereaved families but the parents are not satisfied. hundreds of students have become sick and local government officials say they'll investigate the cause. the country's state-run media says it's pollution. that has many citizens outraged. china central televisi say th becam sick after moving to a new building. it was built next to three former chemical factories. >> translator: there was a bad smell that reminded me of duck

egg. i could tell it was from the sounding area. >> cctv said nearly 500 students have abnormal blood readings a health problems and some we diagnosed with leukea or lympho and had skin conditions. >> translator: the skin of my hands is peeling off. >> cctv said a previous survey found the levels of pollutants in ground water and soil were far above safety standards. the broadcaster called it a typical case of build first and assess later. local government officials said environmental assessments conducted in march found no problem. workers with the tokyo metropolitan government are fanning out across parks in search of an unwelcome guest. they're looking for mosquitos that might be carrying zika or the dengue virus, the same type is capable of transmitting both. tokyo officials say they'll

conduct checks twice a month at nine parks. they'll publish the results online. workers are using nets to catch the insects. they're also pouring pesticide into ditches to prevent breeding. so far this year four people returning from trips to latin america were found to be carrying the zika virus. health experts believe zika is connected to birth defects in children. officials in tokyo also want to prevent the dengue virus from spreading as it did in 2014. let's hear about parts of the southern u.s. are experiencing flooding of biblical proportions. >> people in texas, especially houston, are dealing with the historic flooding after days of heavy infall. for example, houston had 447 bh millimeters of rainfall in 24 hours, five times the amount of a monthly rainfall. the roads have turned like rivers.

let's go to video. a stalled system brought unprecedented amounts of heavy rainfall to the city of houston, texas, on monday leaving the city flooded. hundreds of flights were canceled. roads have been closed and widespread power outages were reported. more than 70,000 people lost power as of monday morning. at least five people have been reportedly killed. hundreds of water rescues have been performed after people became stranded in the rising waters. the peak of the heavy rain is over but more rain is anticipated at least for the next three days or so. ample moisture coming from the gulf of mexico will continue to cover the southern plains. an additional 130 millimeters of rain could fall for the next couple of days or so. the ground is already very well saturated. additional rain is definitely not good news. not just rainfall. we may see some tornadoes across the southern areas as well. again, rain and thunderstorms will likely continue at least for the next three days or so across the city of houston.

across the eastern areas of the united states, temperatures are extremely high. yesterday's high was 28 degrees in new york city. it could cool down to 22 degrees on tuesday, but still on the warm side in the u.s. capital, 27 degrees for the high. across the flip side of the u.s. we'll continue to see high temperatures. we saw record high temperatures on monday, and still very hot on your tuesday. seattle at 28 degrees and about 30 degrees for los angeles. across the southern hemisphere we have been watching a cyclone named fantala. it is packing winds of 180 kilometers per hour. the system was the strongest cyclone ever recorded in the indian ocean. it's continuously weakening but still powerful. it's an intense tropical cyclone. this is the second strongest category. this has made a u turn and is moving east at a slow pace. it will make another 180-degree

u turn going into the weekend. so the north coast of madagascar will continue to see high waves, strong winds and heavy rainfall at times. so watch for coastal flooding. across japan clouds moved away from kumamoto as well as tokyo. you can see clouds moving into the northern areas. we may see brief heavy rainfall and thunderstorms across the northern areas of japan, including the north of the kanto region tonight. temperatures will be 24 degrees for the high in kumamoto. sunny weather should continue into wednesday but rain is expected once again on thursday as well as saturday. the ground is loosened. additional rain will raise the potential for landslides and mudslides even further. the system which could bring heavy rainfall into western japan is now affecting southern china. some areas have seen 336 millimeters of rain in 24 hours and more is anticipated into the next couple of days. now temperatures are very hot

across bangkok. 37 degrees for the high. here is your extended forecast.

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genie: you are watching "france 24," live around the world. i am genie godula. these are the headlights. the taliban hits kabul with a massive suicide truck bomb and gunfire attack. 30 have been killed and over 300 hurt. the head of syria upon supposition says he is leaving geneva today. he defends his decision to pull out of the peace talks, saying there is no truce on the ground and he cannot