olympus has been under pressure >>> olympus president, shuichi takayama, said the company started investing in securities in the 1990s, when people were dealing with the collapse of the country's economic bubble. >> translator: most japanese companies at the time were struggling with stagnant sales and declining profits. they decided to invest in securities to try to improve their bottom lines. it seems our company has been hiding its losses since that time. >>> a large number of japanese firms ended up with huge investment losses in the 1990s. olympus is believed to have used shady accounting to cook its books. a fme surities company official tells nhk it was no secret >>> the accounting practice involves the sale of money-losing securities to other companies, at prices higher than market value. that makes a corporation's books look better than they actually are. it's just window dressing, though. the hidden losses are still there. olympus officials continued to conceal the problem for many years. >> translator: those who are responsible for the cover-up must have thought the losses were v

olympus fired the auditors soon after. the securities and exchange commission plans to investigate the company's cover-up of losses. >>> a nuclear facility in the u.s. state of idaho says damage to a decades-old sealed container led to a plutonium leak that exposed workers for radiation. the idaho national laboratory says seven workers, one more than initially announced, were exposed to low-level radiation on tuesday while handling stored plutonium fuel. three workers were undergoing additional checks after examinations pointed to possible internal exposure. the research lab said workers discovered powder leaking from a small opening in the stainless steel case containing the plutonium when they opened an aluminum box housing the case. the lab says the fuel had been stor there for 30 years. lab officials believe the damage to the case caused the plutonium to oxidize and turn into powder form. the facility is looking into how the steel container came to be damaged. it says it has confirmed that no radiation has leaked outsi

who received money from olympus? which organizations or companies or people worked with olympus? we need answers to that. not just saying it was done and that's the end of the story. >> woodford also said he's prepared to return as president if shareholders want him to. the company fired woodford on october 14th. he said he was dismissed because he questioned large payments that were made in four acquisitionses. olympus cited a disagreement over his management style. olympus executives later admitted the company had inflated payments for corporate buyouts to hide investment losses from the 1990s. woodford will meet the tokyo district public prosecutors and the commission of exchange and securities. he remains an olympus director and will also attend a board meeting on friday to question the company about the cover-up. >>> a meeting of nuclear experts from around the world is discussing ways to promote medical research and treatment for radiation exposure. the two-day symposium got under way on wednesday in hiroshima. the gathering is the first of its kind jointly sponsored by hir

was dragged lower after olympus. we will track developments today. let's look at the currency levels as you kickoff stocks this wednesday morning. following on from developments in italy, euro got a slight boost there. still around mid 107 levels. door yen, 77 .70-73. yen gaining a touch there. earnings in japan, toyota had numbers yesterday saying they had operating loss from april to september period, and like many other japanese companies during this earnings period, declined to give outlook for the fiscal year ending march, 2012 because of flooding in thailand. another company due out today is pioneer, which has also been heavily effected by flooding in thailand, also its factories having been effected, so we'll keep track of that. also, trend micro, the world's third biggest mobile, online, anti-virus company, and rakutan, japan's biggest online shopping mall operator. still earnings due out, but a lot of focus on developments in europe. we will see how that all effects stocks today. back to you. >> thanks, rami

who worked with olympus? olympus couldn't have done it on their own. who was given money from olympus? >> woodford remains a director of olympus. he is expected to attend a board meeting on friday. >> but the game is up, you know? face up to where the company is. you know, you could stand up. you're legally responsible. they didn't. so we have a problem in that the board know that they all have to go. >> british and u.s. authorities are showing an interest in the olympus scandal. woodford is scheduled to meet with the u.s. federal bureau of investigation and securities officials later this month. olympus announced thursday the resignation of former president tsuyoshi kikukawa together with two other executives. they were allegedly involved in the cover-up of investment losses. >>> now the latest of business news. developments in europe making headlines this morning. >> that's right. this morning, we are hearing from europe's two biggest economies. the leaders of france and germany reaffirmed support for italy's fiscal rehabilitation efforts. french pre

now, olympus is going to be due to come out with delayed earnings next monday, november 14th. and if it delays that again, then there's going to be heightened concerns about olympus, even to the point where there's a strong possibility it may be delisted. now, looking at currency markets there, the euro actually falling back a touch against the dollar about 2% and also falling back against the yen. you can see there 105.29-34. it was trading around 107 yesterday. and 77.82-83 dollar-yen. now, also we need to keep track of namura holdings after moody's placed it under review for a possible downgrade citing losses are from investment banking trading. but namura's already come out and said it's put in place a plan for about a billion dollars in cost cutting and it's going to be going through with that. now, the stock was up 4% yesterday. but year to dade namura holdings has been down about 53%. another one to watch out for. >> that was ramin mellegard from the tokyo stock xsh. let's take a look ate japanese indicator. machinery orders fell sharply in september. the cabinet office

it's not anything to do with olympus' business. mean the strategic fit is bizarre. >> reporter: olympus maintains that all of the acquisitions were carried out in a correct manner. >>> japan's government is seek ing to confirm that sustained nuclear fission has not resumed at the fukushima daiichi power plant. earlier this week, radioactivity xenon was directed at the plant's number two reactor, indicating that nuclear fission had occurred recently. the minister in charge of the nuclear crisis, goshi hosono, said on friday, that the presence of xenon was not linked to new developments. he said it was the result of detailed radiation monitoring by tokyo electric power company. hosono says he shares the utility's view that xenon was produced by a phenomenon known as spontaneous fission and not criticality. >> translator: ensuring that the situation does not escalate is one of the conditions to bring the reactors to a state of cold shutdown. of course, that includes the absence of recriticality. the company that operates the fukushima

on thursday, takayama reiterated olympus' denials of any wrongdoing concerning m&a deals.ikukawa's departure came less than two weeks after he fired then-ceo michael woodford for failing to understand japanese management practices. woodford said he was sacked for challenging what he vibes as excessively high consultancy fees paid in the buy-outs. >> they're so extraordinary, these payments and the way they've been made. i just can't understand how that could have happened unless there was some type of issue behind them in relation to more sinister matters. >> in 2008, olympus bought british medical equipment maker gyrus for some $2 billion. but the japanese firm reportedly paid more than $687 million to investment firms that advised it on the purchase. which some observers say is outrageously high. between 2006 and 2008, olympus also bought three japanese firms with seemingly little strategic value. for a total of $967 million. olympus wrote down more than three-quarters of their value in the fiscal year ended march 2009. last week, the company said it would establish an i

electronics maker olympus admits to hiding investment losses. greece is close to naming a new prime minister. have investors lost confidence. >> editor in chief says it's not just about hem lines anymore. >>> the future of europe, four words that have investors across the world watching the stock markets minute by minute. attention is turned to italy war the prime minister is fighting for viefl as he struggles to reign in the mounting debt. we'll go to rome in a minute. let's look at how market are trading one hour into the session. we're seeing gains fairly steady. decent actually. more than 1% of the london ftse. up by nearly 1%. one of the themes here is reasonably encouraging corporate news or certainly companies that are reporting numbers which are ahead of expectations, for example the mobile phone service. but the problem is that those are lowered expectations really. let's look at markets in asia where they ended tuesday's session in mixed territory. the nikkei was down by 1.25% after they lost ground against the yen. shares in toyota lo

he doubts that would help olympus overcome the crisis. woodford, though, is standing firm. >> there is also an understanding that these people cannot continue as directors and that there will come a point, hopefully in the near future, that they will stand down, allowing olympus to move forward. >> woodford suggested the company's strong endoscope and camera businesses will help it survive. right now, it's facing the possibility of being delisted from the tokyo stock exchange. >> olympus is a fantastic business. it's a fantastic business. it's got strong cash flows. and if we stop doing all the mickey mouse and nonsense, get that out of the way, focused on our life science business, if the banks are supportive, which i believe they would be, then i believe olympus could survive as an independent entity. very much so. >> woodford said the board agreed its top priority is to avoid delisting by presenting financial statements for the six months until september. the deadline is december 14th. olympus spokespeople released a statement about th

he doubts that would help olympus overcome the crisis. woodford, though, is standing firm. >> there is also an understanding that these people cannot continue as directors and that there will come a point, hopefully in the near future, that they will stand down, allowing olympus to move forward. >> woodford suggested the company's strong endoscope and camera businesses will help it survive. right now, it's facing the possibility of being delisted from the tokyo stock exchange. >> olympus is a fantastic business. it's a fantastic business. it's got strong cash flows. and if we stop doing all the mickey mouse and nonsense, get that out of the way, focused on our life science business, if the banks are supportive, which i believe they would be, then i believe olympus could survive as an independent entity. very much so. >> woodford said the board agreed its top priority is to avoid delisting by presenting financial statements for the six months until september. the deadline is december 14th. olympus spokespeople released a statement about th

olympus couldn't have done it on their own. who was given money from olympus? >> woodford remains director of olympus and is expected to attend a board meeting on friday. >> the game is up. face up to where the company is. you could stand up. you're legally responsible. they didn't. we have a problem in that the board knows they all have to go. >> british and u.s. authorities are showing an interest in the olympus scandal. woodford will meet with the u.s. federal bureau of investigation and security officials later this month. >>> in middle east no shortage of demonstrations. at least five people have died in an anti-government rally in yemen as protesters demand the immediate resignation of president ali abdullah saleh. the dead were among those calling for a mass demonstration in the capital, sanaa on thursday evening. they were shot near the rally site by an armed group that appeared to be supporters of the president. at least 20 other demonstrators were injured. president saleh signed an agreement to transfer power to his deputy, but the group of youth lead

the olympus president in the mid1990s spoke to nhk on wednesday. olympus is now suspected of having started covering up losses around 2000. he was the company's chairman through 2001, but said he does not recall such a practice. >> translator: i never imagined anything like this would happen. so i'm very surprised and disappointed. i feel sorry for the employees. he has this to say about the former president kikukawa who is said to be involved in the wrongdoing. >> president kikukawa was eloquent. he was active and he was good at business. i think he was a good president. but he may have gone too far in some areas. >> and the tokyo stock exchange on wednesday, there was a rush of sell orders for olympus, pushing the share price down to the 20% daily limit. the stock price closed at 584 yen, down 75% from its level before the scandal. >>> the japanese government has instructed tokyo electric power company to draw up a timetable by the end of this year for decommissioning the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. nuclear crisis minister goshi hosono

now, olympus is a high-tech company. it makes sophisticated medical products and cameras and microscopes. and why would we want to compete in the cosmetibs industry with no background or knowledge? >> reporter: woodford is among only a hand full of foreigners who have run japanese companies. >> i knew if i went public, it would get attention. >> reporter: it's also gotten him some vindication. woodford was fired in october for demanding management come clean about its troubled investments and losses. but since then, three senior executives of olympus have resigned. the president apologized, and shareholders in the u.s. and around the world are demanding woodford get his old job back and a full-scale investigation of where all that money went. at stake, not just the fate of the 92-year-old olympus, but the reputation of corporate japan itself. lucy craft, cbs news, tokyo. >> mitchell: in addition to the f.b.i., woodford also meets next week with investigators at the s.e.c. and justice department. there are allegations org

on thursday, takayama reiterated olympus' denials of any wrongdoing concerning m&a deals.ikukawa's departure came less than two weeks after he fired then-ceo michael woodford for failing to understand japanese management practices. woodford said he was sacked for challenging what he vibes as excessively high consultancy fees paid in the buy-outs. >> they're so extraordinary, these payments and the way they've been made. i just can't understand how that could have happened unless there was some type of issue behind them in relation to more sinister matters. >> in 2008, olympus bought british medical equipment maker gyrus for some $2 billion. but the japanese firm reportedly paid more than $687 million to investment firms that advised it on the purchase. which some observers say is outrageously high. between 2006 and 2008, olympus also bought three japanese firms with seemingly little strategic value. for a total of $967 million. olympus wrote down more than three-quarters of their value in the fiscal year ended march 2009. last week, the company said it would establish an i

it's not anything to do with olympus' business. mean the strategic fit is bizarre. >> reporter: olympus maintains that all of the acquisitions were carried out in a correct manner. >>> japan's government is seek ing to confirm that sustained nuclear fission has not resumed at the fukushima daiichi power plant. earlier this week, radioactivity xenon was directed at the plant's number two reactor, indicating that nuclear fission had occurred recently. the minister in charge of the nuclear crisis, goshi hosono, said on friday, that the presence of xenon was not linked to new developments. he said it was the result of detailed radiation monitoring by tokyo electric power company. hosono says he shares the utility's view that xenon was produced by a phenomenon known as spontaneous fission and not criticality. >> translator: ensuring that the situation does not escalate is one of the conditions to bring the reactors to a state of cold shutdown. of course, that includes the absence of recriticality. the company that operates the fukushima

who received money from olympus? which organizations or companies or people worked with olympus?need answers to that. not just saying it was done and that's the end of the story. >> woodford also said he's prepared to return as president if shareholders want him to. the company fired woodford on october 14th. he said he was dismissed because he questioned large payments that were made in four acquisitions. olympus cited a disagreement over his management style. olympus executives later admitted the company had inflated payments for corporate buyouts to hide investment losses from the 1990s. woodford will meet the tokyo district public prosecutors and the commission of exchange and securities. he remains an olympus director meeting on friday to question the company about the cover-up. a meeting of nuclear experts from around the world is discussing ways to promote medical research and treatment for radiation exposure. the two-day symposium got under way on wednesday in hiroshima. the gathering is the first of its kind jointly sponsored by hiroshima prefecture, medical organization

the olympus president until the mid 1990s spoke to nhk on monday. he was also the chairman through 2001 but says he doesn't recall such a practice. >> i never imagined anything like this would happen. i'm very surprised. and disappointed. i feel sorry for the employees. >> meanwhile, he has this to say about former president kikukawa said to be involved in the wrongdoing. >> translator: president kikukawa was eloquent. he was active and he was good at business. i think he was a good president. but he may have gone too far in some areas. >> on the tokyo stock exchange on wednesday, there was a rush of sale orders pushing the share price down to the 20% daily limit. the stock price closed at 584 yen. down 75% from its level before the scandal. >>> also weighing, the european debt crisis. >> so much to take in. to refresh our memory, start with overnight moves. dow-jones tumbled nearly 400 points. investors worried about the european fiscal crisis. the dow down 3.2%. investors are cautious due to sharp decline in european stocks. while they showed decl

olympus' spent the best part of a billion dollars on them. if only to write off the view of the most of the investments a year later. up until now, all of this has been insisting there was nothing suspicious. now it has admitted the payments were used to cover up big losses in securities investments that dated back to the 1990's. >> since i started writing letters and the beginning of september, six letters in japanese, and in the pwc report in japanese and english, condemning all of the board, new wing -- knew they deliberately acted this conspiratorial way and thought the world could just washed away. they will not. >> at a stock exchange, and olympus's shares plummeted by 29%, the biggest one-day fall allowed. it has now lost more than 70% of its value since the middle of october. >> we need stability for the 45,000 people who work for the company and also respecting those who invested in it. >> the vice president has been fired. his chairman resigned last month. olympus said it is considering making criminal complaints. bbc news, tokyo. >

olympus citing a disagreement over management style. the company had inflated payments for corporate buy-outs in the 1990s. woodford will meet prosecutors. he remains an olympus director and will attend a board meeting on friday to question the company about the cover-up. >>> a close call in auckland, new zealand, for people in a busy waterfront shopping district. a pilot was using a helicopter to help install a christmas tree on wednesday. then, something went wrong. the helicopter is hanging steel scaffolding hovering about 8 meters above the ground. look what happens when the chopper's blades touch some cables attached to the scaffolding. what you are hearing is the sound of the engine as it slowly comes to a halt and here is another look at the crash in slow motion. one witness describes what he saw and heard. >> it was just a wet like a power kind of sound and i turned around and just seen it drop. it was already gone halfway down. it just crashed and the security got straight to it and pulled him out. >> workers help the pilot wal

shares of olympus were up 5.8%. the stock is still down more than 55% since its price on october 14th. earlier, woodford faced the board that actually booted him out. three of whom who have given up their positions as of thursday evening. they haven't offered his job back now. what they promised was a change of management when the current crisis is eventually resolved. >> absolutely, this was the scene as woodford arrived on friday morning. >> i'm not in london or new york. i'm here. so, i can talk myself. >> certainly a media scrum. you don't see that scrum for a business person too often in tokyo. the attention certainly intense today. here's what wood ford told cnn. >> we had a constructive and an honest exchange. constructive and honest exchange. this is clearly a shared desire that the company is not delisted. the priorities that we represent our accounts for the 14th of december, which is a prereck was it is that the company can remain tradeable. good for our employees and share holders. there are areas of con

he faced the board members at olympus. again, as you said, the very same people that fired him after he started raising questions -- and this is the background to the story -- raised questions about this $1.3 billion that had been paid out to, as advisory fees to rather obscure company, also money that had been spent on takeovers that were subsequently and largely written off. back at that time, olympus denied any wrongdoing, but they later admitted that, look, they were basically covering up huge investment losses that had been going on for decades. so we know three directors of the firm have resigned. the whole world for olympus has tried to prevent it from being delisted on the tokyo stock exchange, which obviously would be devastating for the company. that's the word going forward on that. >> now, it's black friday in america. why is it called black friday? >> for the retail, one of the biggest days of retail. as the year progresses, this is the first time when the retailers start going into profit, into the black as o

now, olympus fired mr.d after he questioned the company's payment of almost $700 million in advisory fees on a takeover deal. and since then further revelations of impopriety have come thick and fast. well, misdeeds coming to light are so widespread, the questions are now being asked about how they could have gone unnoticed. one of the people asking those questions is the man that olympus fired. he told charles hodgson that the company needs to start talking. >> i've seen some of the documents and release some of them myself. i think there are fundamental questions for the two large companies involved, both kpmg and ernst & young. both qualified the u, accounts which paid the $620 million from the uk to cayman islands on years 2009 and 2010. there was nothing in the accounts. why is that? those questions need to be answered by both kpmg and ernst & young. >> do you think it goes hand in gov with old-school japanese bosses which seems to be he and his old-school bosses who like this kind of subterfuge? you k

olympus paid huge amounts of commissions to companies that brokered the transaction. the panel will look into purchases of three japanese companies that caused losses for olympus. they established the panel because a full investigation by a neutral party is needed. it add, however, that its deals were all appropriate. >>> now let's look at the market figures. >>> cambodia has come a long way since the killing fields of the pol pot era. now they reached another milestone, producing their first vineyard. it is producing made in cambodia wine. we get a taste of the story. >> reporter: the northwest cambodian province. the nation's only winery, it's chan thay chheung is the owner. for the past decade he's been teaching himself how to grow grapes and make wine. using imported tools and equipment he produces about 7,000 bottles of red wine a year. the winery is located in an area filled with land mines. during the civil war it was a major battleground. his brother was killed during the atrocities of khmer rouge area. farms around here were destroyed. >> translator: the line

shares, however, the tse says for now it cannot confirm whether olympus' actions violate the law. >>> let's get a check on how the nikkei is doing. tokyo stocks are trading in a narrow range this tuesday morning as investors continue a wait and see attitude to european countries' response to their credit problems. the benchmark nikkei average now stands at 8,735, that's down just about 31 points, a loss of one-third of a percen the broader topix is trading lower by about half a percent, currently at 746. sources say market players are refraining from active trading, fearing that italy will be next to be hit by the debt crisis, despite the agreement reached in greece to launch a coalition government. >>> and on the tokyo foreign exchange, the dollar is moving in a narrow range against the yen this tuesday morning. the dollar is currently at 78.06-08 yen. the euro is at 107.37-42 yen. market players are seeking the relative safety of the yen amid europe's credit woes. at the same time, they are staying cautious against possible market interventions by japanese monetary authorities. her

. >> the former clrkseo of olympus speaks with prosecutors in japan. speculation is mounting about him taking his oath job back. >>> big shoes to fill at the top of one of the world's biggest conglomerates tata names cyrus mystery as his success store at tata. >>> 2011 has been an exercise in crisis management for nissan ceo car loan grown. he's still optimistic about growth for the future. >>> just about an hour into the trading session in europe. markets started pretty strongly. the likes of the zet draw dax up by .25% after yesterday after germany had a badly received bond sale. that in turn pushed the euro to a six-week low. the currency is rebounding. we've got a key measure of german business confidence set to come out. keep an eye on that market later today. for the rest of the eurozone it's not looking bad either. cac 40 up in excess of 1%. >>> bit more of a mixed picture on this side of the world today. there was the continuing concerns about the european debt crisis. take a look at japan down by nearly 2%. but that was catch up. it closed yes

this is a case for olympus taking a few profits. olympus has doubled in value over the last two weeks. analysts are saying take some money off the table because there's still a long way to go in this olympus story. >> it is fascinating. let's have a closer look at the bond auctions andrew mentioned. debt markets have dominated stock markets in recent weeks in terms of influence, borrowing costs soaring. ten-year bond yields. we have the major south year company companies here, spain and italy with their debt and deficit problems, talking about outreach of 7%. very much in the danger zone. not very far behind you've got belgium, up 3.74%. that follows the downgrade of the sov rhett dealt by standard & poor's on friday. italy, france and pain are also holding bond auctions, france looking at 3.66%. notably germany, of course, failed last week very notably to find buyers for more than a third of the ten-year bonds it put up for sale as investors became averse. this level is standing -- this supp significantly as market watchers would k

the third party panel is investigating a cover up of huge losses by olympus. based on the results of the probe, olympus plans to correct and submit past financial statements to the agency. if irregularities are found, they plan to investigate the firm. the firms to be penalized if they are found to have committed violations like intentionally overlooking false iveications. they plan to hold a meeting with the creditor banks on wednesday and explain what it has learned so far with current business results. on thursday the change dizzy nated olympus as a supervisory issue and cautioned investors. they could fail to release an earnings report by december 14th. >>> japanese prime minister is expected to finally announce his decision this afternoon for japan to join talks on the transpacific partnership. they would eliminate trade barriers with the asia pacific region. there has been an intensive debate even among his party members over whether japan should join the free trade pact. no doubt he was expected to make an document, but he and other leaders agreed to ma

atsushi yusa served as an executive at olympus for 16 years until he retired three years ago. he says he had doubts when the company invested 73.4 billion yen to buy out three domestic firms that were worth far less. >> translator: back in 2008 buyout proposals were abruptly made at the board meeting. i feel responsible. it's sad that a technologically successful company has hurt its reputation that way. >> for many years olympus concealed its massive investment losses incurred in the collapse of the country's bubble economy. yusa and some other directors questioned the valuation of the three firms but management dismissed the idea. japan's securities and exchange surveillance commission is considering filing criminal charges against a former president of the company and other executives for deceiving investors. >>> many survivors of the march 11th disaster are still suffering hardships even if they didn't lose family members or their homes. on this week's "the road ahead," we catch up with volunteers working with these survivors. nhk world's jun yotsomoto has their story. >>

now, what we've heard from olympus is that they say those companies were covering trading losses.ertainly the can of worms in olympus, you see a little pop but it's still got a long way to go before it regains anything like investor trust. >> over on wall street, u.s. stocks finished yesterday with some pretty substantial gains. they opened lower on the back of concerns about rising bond deals in europe. but sharply turned positive following some strong economic data coming out of the united states, in particularly, when it comes to retail sales, they rose for october. that was slightly above analysts' and economists' forecasts. manufacturing in new york city posted its first positive reading after five straight months of declines. here's how the numbers looked at the close. the dow gaining a little more than 0.1%. the nasdaq finishing up a little more than 1%. we're watching to see if u.s. markets can hold on to that kind of momentum right throughout the course of this week. right now this is how the u.s. futures look. they look set for a broadly speaking lower open when trading

that makes it three days in a row it has been only buy orders coming in for olympus. we'll keep track of that the rest of the day. yields on italian bonds back above 7%, and that put pressure on the euro, having to look at levels now. you can see the yen gained yet again against the euro. at one point, it was trading around 103.95, hitting a five week low for the euro. and also on the tech sector. we had earnings from dell computer. we will look for related shares today as well. dell reporting revenue fell for the third quarter and citing a lower projection for the rest of the year. also, wti crude oil prices getting close to $100 a barrel. look for energy related stocks and that was really on the back of retail sales gains and also a new york manufacturing area index. empire state index which also showed some gains. still to come in the u.s. today, consumer price index and industrial production economic data. back to you. >> all right. thanks a lot. that was ramin mellegard. >>> eu toughens rating rules. it is spreading credit worries in the region. while rating agen

. >>> a former president of olympus corporation says he only recently learned of the cover-up of the company's huge investment losses and denied involvement in the matter. the company racked up losses of over 100 billion yen during japan's bubble economy and used a facade of corporate acquisitions to conceal them. former president tsuyoshi kikukawa told the company's third-party investigation committee that he learned about the cover-up just before the company announced it in a news conference on november 8th. his statement contradicts those of the former vice president hisashi mori and also former auditor hideo yamada, who told the committee that they had informed kikukawa of their accounting manipulations for years. olympus told reporters earlier this month that three former executives, including kikukawa, had been involved in the cover-up. the committee will continue its investigation into the matter to try to unravel the contradicting explanations by the three former executives. >>> a plaj or challenge in areas devastated by the march 11 disaster is how to dispose of the mass of

now, domestic cli, focus on olympus shares. it was down around 80% at one point since the corporate bookkeeping scandal broke out. monday through wednesday, was up around 50%. then yesterday was trading up by 18%, only to lose most of that into the close, and this morning it has been down in a volatile session so far, around 6 to 7%. olympus shares are a big focus. let's look at the other markets. yen still gaining with the euro in the past few days on uncertainty surrounding eurozone debt and rising bond yields in italy, spain, and now france. you can see 103.54-56. euro yen, 76.98-99. let's not forget all these issues have hidden the fact that economic data from the u.s. this week have proven to be dronger than what and lists expected. retail sales, industrial production, and inflation numbers, largely in check, and also we had jobless claims yesterday show a more positive side there. we'll see if fundamentals can break through what's been gripping the markets, which is the eurozone debt issues. for now, nikkei down over 100

olympus shot up in speculation that a recent accounting scandal may not cause the company to be listed. australia's government approved miller's $11 billion takeover of foster's group as long as they keep brewing the aussie beer brand in australia. it doesn't look good for at&t on a roadblock to its merger with t-mobile. it has $4 billion to cover its costs if the deals fall apart. if you're short of things to be thankful for yesterday, here's one. a woman got a frozen turkey home and it had an expiration date of november 23rd, 2007. your turkey disaster was not so bad. >>> coming up, tony romo rallies the cowboys for a last second win. >>> and one lions turns out to be a beast of burden, and not in a good way. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. >>> your forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today." >>> good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." >>> and in sports, it was a thanksgiving family affair. for brothers who squared off in the ravens/49ers matchup. here's northbound's bill seward with an early look at all your sports headlines.

also a focus on olympus. they were trading and limited up yesterday. in other words, it was bit only buyers coming in for that stock and up 17% yesterday. also it has been down around 50% in the last couple of weeks. largely as it is caught up in the corporate bookkeeping scandal which is meaning they are volatile. it's got until december 14th to come up with a new audit that may disclose investment losses and if it doesn't do that. it could be delisted from the stock exchange. let's have a look at the levels as well. gaining against the euro amidst the continuing problems with the euro zone especially with spain coming into the four. later today, we will have the release of third quarter gross domestic product with the euro zone and also key dita out of the u.s. which will keep markets on its toes. back to you. >> thank you very much. that was ramin from the tokyo stock exchange. let's also take a look now. >>> that's the latest from business. >> for the last several day, we have been talking about the apec summit in hawaii. they ever being cautious t

meanwhile the stock of scandal hit olympus is being bought and sold in speculative trading. although it was designated as a supervisor issue it's now being treated at 524 yen. now to currencies, the dollar regained ground against the yen on friday morning, putting a halt to its slide since early thursday. the greenback is now changing hands at 77.56-62 yen. the euro is at 105.40-46 yen. the selection of the new greek prime minister and stability in italian government bonds have led to a recovery in the euro. the dollar went higher against the yen as well. here is a look at the latest long-term interest rates. the yield on the benchmark ten-year japanese government bond is up just about one basis point. >>> and in other news, standard & poor's accidentally issued a message about a cut in france's debt rating, amid growing concerns about the european debt problems. the u.s. rating agency said on thursday that the message was sent out to certain subscribers due to a technical error. it retracted the message immediately. the company reaffirmed that the rating of french governmen

. >> let's talk about olympus the japanese camera meth maker.he met with directors for the first time since revealing one of the biggest corporate scandals in history. he says he would like to rejoin the company but it is up to share holders. >> i am not obsessed about returning back. i have a wonderful position and i will be comfortably well off. i was fired for gross misconduct. if any of you look at the case. so if i'm not wanted back, and if the share holders will make the decision, then that's fine by me. >> turning our attention to the day after thanksgiving in america. because it heralds really the start of the holiday shopping season. it is a crucial time of the year for the retailers. this year they are fighting harder than ever for consumer dollars in a tough economy. well, jerry is the boss of one of america's biggest retailers at toys r us. he is confident business will be brisk. >> a lot of consumers have been waiting for this day to start their holiday shopping. something happens when they get in that holiday spirit. i think we all

track of all the exporters relating to the stronger yen and also financials and banks as well as olympushares. let's not forget it gained almost 15% yesterday and it's been up around 60% since last friday. also on another note, ai, today sees the release of the beaujolais nouveaux wines here in japan. so it could be a good idea to stock up before the weekend. thank you. >> thanks a lot, ramin. ramin mellegard from the tokyo stock exchange. let's also take a look at some other market figures now. ♪ and that's the latest from business. now it's back to catherine. >> thanks very much, ai. >>> the harvest season is usually a happy time for farmers in japan. not this year. they've been dealing with the fallout from the fukushima daiichi accident. consumers are worried about radiation in their food. farmers who grow fruit and vegetables outside the 20-kilometer exclusion zone around the nuclear plant are having a tough time selling their products. so they're trying to fight fear with facts. nhk world's susumu kojima has the story. >> translator: farmers from fukushima are promoting their fruit

the former chief executive of olympus is back in tokyo, being questioned by japanese investigators trying to find out who was involved in certainly one of japan's biggest scandals. this is his first return since he was removed as ceo. shares of hcc tumbled after it slashed its forecast. it now says revenues will not grow at all. it previously forecast a 30% growth. the world's number four smartphone maker facing a slow down as competition intensifies and as the global economy continues to weaken. a quick look at the markets. this is what we saw in asia. still reeling. a bit of bargain hunting certainly in europe, after the dismal falls. of the previous five sessions, lost about 7% off the market value. we are seeing a bit of bargain hunting. don't be fooled, though. the eurozone is still very much on their mind. >> thank you very much. leaders of the two main palestinian factions hamas and the five top -- fatah to deal with issues blocking the implementation of the unity deal. in may they signed a surprise agreement to end the bitter rivalry. during may from a mollah -- joining me from ra

however, japan's olympus shot up as much as 25% on speculation that a recent accounting scandal thate ouster of its ceo may not cause the company to be delisted. >>> elsewhere overseas, australia's government approved sab miller's $11 billion takeover of foster's brew, provided the london-based company keeps brewing operations for the iconic aussie beer brand in australia. >>> it does not look good for at&t. on the heels of a new s.e.c. roadblock to its proposed merger with t-mobile, at&t says it has set aside $4 billion to cover its costs, if that deal falls apart. >>> and finally, if you were short on things to be thankful for yesterday, here's one for you -- you can be thankful you weren't one nashville woman who got her frozen turkey home and realized it had an expiration date of november 23rd, 2007. yes, that did actually happen. >>> well, and elsewhere, as more men and women return home from wars in iraq and afghanistan, many of them are having a tough time finding work in this job market, particularly single moms. nbc's thanh truong has more. >> you're going to have the van. >

total of four hundred thirty kilograms in the snatch time to train and take the gold wrong to mount olympus silver medalist mexico with just two kilos behind. one hundred twenty eight so if you can't alexy product the eighteen grams behind in third result bodes well for the russian jew of the forthcoming london olympics. well meanwhile despite mixed fortunes at this year's world championships to make as you say in bold has been named as the twenty levon male athlete of the year for the time by the international athletics federations despite being the overwhelming favorite but was eliminated all in one go that route is a diety for the whole start of however cruised to gold in the two hundred meters and also help to make you set a world record for if i one hundred meters we like. it was in the best season but i promise next year will be better and definitely done before. taking me to her if she's not really appreciate everybody for coming out and support in the tall people in t.v. . and i want to make kids dunks for everything. and funny on the women's side the accolades went to sally pearson