the day after the accident, kan flew to fukushima daiichi. >> translator: i decided to go to the site, because i thought i might be able to grasp what was happening in i spoke to the relevant person. >> the former prime minister explained he wanted to know why emergency venting was not being carried out, despite rising pressure in the containment vessel. kan says the tepco official responded that he didn't know. >> translator: japan might not have been able to function as a nation if the worst case scenario had been realized. after experiencing the accident, the safest thing to do is not to rely on nuclear power but to denuclearize. >> the members of the government panel investigating the fukushima daiichi accident will finalize their report next month and submit it to the speakers of both houses of the diet. >>> japanese scientists say radioactive substances from the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant may have spread around the globe in about 40 days. a research team from fukushima university measured the concentration of airborne radioactive substances in fukushima city. they too

iwano grew up in the town within ten kilometers of the fukushima daiichi. he was forced to move away after the accident. now he lives in a town not far from fukushima city. his friends are scattered all over the place. he hadn't seen so many people in one place since the accident. he wanted to meet some new friends and not just women. >> translator: over the past year, i've been busy taking care of myself. the people around me were so keen to make things better in fukushima. i couldn't have come this far without their help. so now, i want to contribute to those efforts. >> reporter: men pay $80 to get in. women pay $50. then they can go to any restaurant they like, eat and drink as much as they want. and if they're lucky, maybe even find a match. fukushi said the success of the event encouraged him to organize another, and perhaps another after that. >> translator: everyone will come back gradually. and when they do, i want them to find this city lively. i think it's our duty to make that happen. >> reporter: fukuchi says the event helped businesses througho

the day after the accident, kan flew to fukushima daiichi. >> the former prime minister explained heanted to know why emergency venting was not being carried out, despite rising pressure in the container vessel. kan says the tepco officials responded that he didn't know. >> the members of the government panel investigating the fukushima daiichi accident will finalize their report next month and submit it to the speakers of both houses of the diet. >>> engineers at fukushima daiichi are getting ready to carry out a delicate operation. they'll be removing unused fuel rods from a storage pool at the nuclear plant to check them for damage. the procedure is a dry run for the extraction of more than 1500 rods. the volatile material could pose a threat if there is another earthquake. the engineers plan to remove two unused fuel rods in july from the pool at the number four reactor. if they're successful, they'll take out the rest of the rods next year. the reactor did not go into meltdown after the tsunami because it was off line, but areas near the storage pool were damaged when hydrogen f

as it decays quickly so there is radioactive cesium one thirty four in the tuna that is from fukushima daiichi radioactive cesium one thirty seven has a longer half life of thirty years so three hundred to six hundred years of hazardous persistence that is also in thirty years it's half as potent to the sixty years it's a quarter as potent in the high to be going to serve if you should really multiply the halflife by twenty to get the hazardous persistence hazardous persistence for the cesium one thirty four is going to be more like twenty to forty years so how does cesium affect the human body if you if you eat some of those tuna you know what happens it seeks human muscle tissue and so one of the conditions that has come out of turn noble is called turn noble heart and there's actually an oscar award winning documentary film called turn noble heart that shows that in children heart pathology that you wouldn't expect to see in tell much older ages is present in epidemic numbers in belarus ukraine western russia including things like holes in the heart and the belorussian scientists that deter

they've been keeping tabs on the fallout from the march 2011 accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant. their analysis suggests it took 40 days for the radiation to spread around the world. researchers at fukushima university sampled air for radioactivity near the damaged plant. they started the daily tests about two months after the disaster. they say levels rose and fell in 40-day cycles. by march this year, they recorded an 85% drop in radioactivity. professor akira watanabe directed the study. >> translator: the research will enable us to measure the influence the radioactive material from fukushima will have on the planet. >> watanabe says the results can help researchers understand how radiation can spread between regions or countries. >>> wind, clouds and water currents carried most of the contamination away from japan. but migrating fish also played a role. scientists in the u.s. say they found radioactive cesium in tuna that routinely race across the pacific. some of the researchers are from stanford university. they tested bluefin tuna caught last august off san diego i

a earthquake and tsunami disabled the fukushima daiichi plant. seismologists are trying to figure when the next disaster will hit. they say a powerful quake could strike off a peninsula east of tokyo. the epicenter is different from the one that triggered the great kanto earthquake in 1923. members of the geospatial information authority of japan presented their analysis wednesday at a meeting of the coordinating committee for earthquake prediction. gps data shows the tip of the boso peninsula has been moving about three centimeters northward each year since 1997. analysts say seismic pressure may be building up in the area where an oceanic tectonic plate slights under a continental plate. the area off the boso peninsula has not had a major earthquake for at least 300 years. >> translator: we'll conduct new surveys and recalculate our assessments. >> geospask information researchers plan to calculate the infrequent says of expected earthquakes in these areas. >>> south koreans forced to work at japanese factories during world war ii are pushing f

shuzo grew up in amiya town within ten kilometers of the fukushima daiichi. he was forced to move away after the accident. now he lives in a town not far from fukushima city. his friends are scattered all over the place. he hadn't seen so many people in one place since the accident. he wanted to meet some new friends and not just women. >> translator: over the past year, i've been busy taking care of myself. people around me were so keen to make things better in fukushima. i couldn't have come this far without their help. so now i want to contribute to those efforts. >> reporter: men pay $80 to get in. women pay 50. and they can go to any restaurant they like. eat and drink as much as they want. and if they're lucky, maybe even find a match. he says the success of the event encouraged him to organize another. and perhaps another after that. >> translator: everyone will come back gradually. and when they do, i want them to find this city lively. i think it's our duty to make that happen. >> reporter: fukuchi said it helped businesses around the city. restaurant

speakers of both houses of the diet. >>> japanese scientists say radioactive substances from the fukushima daiichiuclear power plant may have spread around the globe in about 40 days. a research team from fukushima university measured the concentration of airborne radioactive substances in fukushima city. they took daily readings from may last year, about two months after the accident. the scientists say the measurements rose and fell in 40-day cycles. but they say the overall density declined by around 85% by march this year. fukushima university professor and research leader says the results of the study can be applied to any other country or region. >> translator: the research will enable us to measure what influence the radioactive materials from fukushima has on the planet. >> the nuclear accident raised concerns about the safety of food from fukushima. some consumers still avoid buying products from that prefecture. even if inspectors have approved the items. police say that prompted a former meat shop manager to bend the rules. investigators say he admitted to selling falsely labeled beef f

and more than a year after the fukushima daiichi accident changed safety standards, that hasn't happened in 42 years, that is. and that's why government leaders are asking people to save energy. cabinet members set voluntary saving targets. they based their standards on electricity demand in 2010 when japan's summer was unusually hot. people living in the cities of osaka and kyoto are expecting to face the most serious short fall. kansai electric power serves the region. it relies heavily on nuclear energy. customers will be asked to reduce their usage by 15% or more. customers further south in kyushu will be asked to reduce their usage by at least 10%. utilities in neighboring areas will be urged to save 5% or more so energy can be diverted to kansai and kyushu. shikoku and hokkaido electric power companies will have reduction targets of at least 7%. cabinet ministers will review the standards if two reactors at kansai's ohi plant go back online. municipalities surrounding the facility are debating a government proposal to restart the units. >>> a liquefied natural gas project led by ja

others said they get irritated over small matters. 7% of officers working near the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant reported symptoms. doctors have not diagnosed any officer in the region with ptsd. still, officers at the police agency plan to study the issue further and write a manual to address the problem. >>> japanese researchers are exploring how to satisfy the country's appetite for energy. now they are turning to an alternative source. wave power. japanese government officials plan to set up test sites as early as 2014 to experiment with marine power generation. this form of renewable energy harnesses the push and pull of ocean waves and tides to drive generators. researchers in other nations have been leading developments in the field. japanese officials want to see how it will help them. members of the government task force are expected to approve the test sites later in the day. they'll need to assess the impact of marine power generation on the environment and they'll have to address some rights issues with fishery unions. japan has the world's sixth longest coastline. rese

last year's accident at fukushima daiichi prompted their discussions. now members of an economy, trade and industry ministry have come up with four options. option one, japan would reduce nuclear power use to zero as soon as possible. option two, atomic energy would be reduced to a lower level subject to review after 2030. option three, it would be maintained at a certain level such as 20% to 25%. and option four, government leaders won't make the decision. consumers will. and this is basically like letting the market decide. and chie yamagushi has been following the discussions and the debate. tell us about some of the points the committee members talked about. >> the economy ministry wanted the committee to decide the percentage of energy sources that will be used in japan in the year 2030. the committee also gratified a long-term revision on nuclear power. >> what are the pros and cons of each of the options we just mentioned. >> the dereliance option is aimed at preventing another nuclear accident in japan where earthquakes occur frequently. it woul

agency says the deaths of six workers at the crippled fukushima daiichi nuclear plant were not linked to radiation. the u.n. scientific committee on the effects of atomic radiation released a preliminary report at its headquarters in vienna on thursday. its study began last may based on data provided by the japanese government. >> we don't have any indication that their death was related to radioactivity and exposure. >> on the other hand, the committee confirmed that eight of the roughly 20,000 workers who had been involved in operations at the plant until late january were exposed to more than 100 millisieverts of radiation. anyone with that dose is said to have an increased risk of cancer. the researchers plan to compile a final report and submit it to the u.n. by the end of next year. >>> police who work in northeast japan have had a host of new challenges to deal with over the past year officials at the national police agency say many of them are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. researchers surveyed more than 10,000 officers and other workers based in the region. mo

that follows the shutdown of nuclear power plants across the country in the wake of the fukushima daiichi accident last year. the organization for economic cooperation and development says the eurozone economy will shrink 0.1% in 2012. that's down from the previous forecast of a 0.2% growth announced six months ago. the oecd urged the euro area to balance fiscal reform with economic growth. it said the recent election results in the block indicate people becoming impatient about austerity measures which are making their lives difficult. the oecd also suggested that the eurozone should issue common bonds to finance infrastructure projects and boost the capital of commercial banks. now on the u.s. economy, the oecd said it will expand 2.4% this year. that's better than the previous forecast. and as with japan, the oecd maintained its growth prediction of 2%. >>> u.s. federal regulators shed light on the investigation on p jpmorgan chase which suffered a $2 billion loss from derivatives trading. following the bank's announcement of the loss earlier in may, the senate banking committee held a

. >>> the fukushima daiichi nuclear disaster fueled worldwide doubts over the merits of nuclear power. in japan, political leaders are debating whether or not to restart nuclear plants. at present, the country's electricity supply is for the first time in 42 years nuclear free. another dilemma japan faces is whether to abandon the decades long objective of establishing a self-sustaining nuclear fuel cycle. in today's nuclear watch, we take a closer look at what has been a pillar of japan's nuclear policy. given its limited natural resources, japan decided in 1956 on a policy to reprocess spent nuclear fuel and use the plutonium extracted in that way. the plutonium was to fuel fast breeder reactors, which theoretically produce more plutonium than they consume. but plans to put fast breeder reactors into use have been stalled since an accident at the prototype reactor in 1995. the project is already running 60 years behind schedule. another key facility for recycling fuel is the processing plant in aomori prefecture, northern japan. it was sport supposed to start operating around 1990 b

noda is trying to expand the alternative energy sector in the wake of the nuclear accident at fukushima daiichi. >> translator: the policy will be a foundation for building society with a new energy infrastructure. it is important for ministers to work closely together and push the efforts forward. >> the prime minister told his ministers to give more support for test projects by the private sector. officials with the government panel on maritime policies met friday. they decided to secure and prepare test areas as early as 2014. the government also plans to create a method to assess the environmental impact and address rights issues with fishery unio unions. the maritime power generation is to utilize the push and pull of ocean waves and tides to drive generators. so far the japanese government has been slow to support research in this area. this has left the nation behind other countries in developing practical technologies. >>> conventional incandescent light bulbs have been illuminating homes and businesses since the 19th century. people like their warm glow. but over the years they've grow

. >>> more than a year after the earthquake and tsunami triggered meltdowns at fukushima daiichi its problems are far from over. tokyo electric power company workers are still trying to prepare damaged reactors for the long decommissioning process. tepco engineers sent a robot inside the suppression chamber of one of the reactors in april for the first time. that's an area located at bottom of the containment vessel. the robot had five cameras and a dosimeter. it traveled around much of the suppression chamber which is 125 meters in circumference. >>> earlier, nhk world told us about the results of the inspection. >> translator: the main purpose of the inspection was to check for any damage to the suppression chamber at reactor number one to number three. high temperature melted fuel made a hole at the bottom of the pressure vessel and part of the fuel had fallen to the bottom of the containment vessel and is lying there in highly radioactive water. tepco had initially thought the water level in the containment vessel of number two reactor was about three meters, but inspection using

very much so one big earthquake at fukushima daiichi could topple the unit four reactor building and inside that pool which is one hundred feet up in the air is one hundred and thirty five tons of high level radioactive waste and once you lose the cooling water supply even if the pools floor fall out which is a risk as well you could have a radioactive inferno within an hour to eight times the radioactive cesium one thirty seven released by chernow bowl there would have to abandon the entire site there are seven pools with eighty five times chernobyl cesium at the fukushima daiichi site you could lose a big chunk of japan if this whole place went up in flames something we have to keep an eye on it unfortunately doesn't look like we're learning the lessons we should be learning tevin thanks a lot for coming on thank you samples covered beyond nuclear coming up the donald says full steam ahead on the reverend jeremiah wright attacks and paul ryan is more delusional than ever all that and more in tonight's politics panel a client of american power continues. things are so bad. might act

tepco, the operator of the crippled fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant will issue special shares to this state-backed nuclear accident compensation fund. those shares will not be circulated in the market. this means the government will have a stake of more than 75% in tepco. tepco will submit the plan at its regular meeting of shareholders next month. if it goes through, the public fund injection benefit $12.5 billion will become official. >>> a major japanese bank is going to help a leading commercial bank in myanmar improve its efficiency. the banking company and kbz bank signed the tie-up deal in yangon. for banks in myanmar, the major challenges tor make their operations more efficient and international. they are settling accounts in cash because they're behind in installing automatic teller machines. banks in myanmar also lack know-how on handling foreign exchange. they will accept trainees from the myanmar bank and provide them with know-how. the move will help kbz bank improve its services. >> translator: many japanese firms are rushing to get themselves into myanmar. it's im

he begins his report from the zone surrounding the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant, where emergencyg to restore cooling and trying to stabilize pressure inside the reactors. >> the fukushima daiichi crisis is not one nuclear emergency. it is four potentially catastrophic events standing side by side. in all, there are six reactor stations. numbers ones through four are in peril. crews risk their lives to get water onto melting uranium fuel. through explosions and blasts of radioactive steam, a few hundred japanese join battle with the most powerful force known to man. one of the americans responding to the emergency is julia nesheiwat. she's a state department official who was already in japan working on nuclear issues. she served in washington as deputy chief of staff to the director of national intelligence. in tokyo, she's been on the fukushima disaster from the start. >> we're providing the full resources of the united states government? everything we've got... >> yes, absolutely. >> we've told them is at their disposal. >> absolutely. >> our best people are on this? >> yes, the

from kazakhstan in cleaning up areas tainted by radiation after last year's accident at the fukushima-daiichi nuclear plant. japan's economy trade and industry minister met kazakhstan's counterpart on tuesday. kazakhstan's national nuclear center has over 20 years of experience in decontaminating nuclear testing sites of the former soviet union. he asked for the nation's cooperation in cleaning up and rebuiltinghe fukushima plant. he said the country will offer its experience and techniques to help japan. adano told reporters that he believes sharing information on decontamination will greatly assist the reconstruction of fukushima. >>> and that's all for now in business news. i'll leave you with a recap of the latest market figures. >>> greek workers filled the streets of athens on may day. they marked international workers day with a protest against austerity measures. and they warned greek leaders they may not stay in power beyond parliamentary elections this sunday. nhk world reports from athens. >> reporter: thousands of greeks hit the streets on a day meant to honor workers. major labor

. >>> in japan, rice planting on a test basis has begun in a village near the crippled fukushima daiichi power plant. this comes after the central government lifted its ban on entering kawauchi village in april. they banned all planting of rice pattys after the accident last year. on sunday, about 40 farmers and volunteers began planting rice at 30 rice pat east. fabric that absorbs radioactivity was laid near irrigation channels. villagers also sewed into the soil substances that absorb radioactivity. once this is confirmed, rice production will be confirmed for next season. >> translator: i am happy to plant. i hope the safety can be confirmed so we can start growing rice next year. >>> the emperor visited a housing complex in northeastern japan sunday to encourage evacuees displaced by the march 11th disaster. emperor akihito visited the sendai city complex where nearly 400 people are staying. the imperial couple talked with the residents. the emperor spoke to an 87-year-old woman that lost her son and daughter in the disaster. he told her to take good care of herself. the empress tal

the operator of the crippled fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant will promote an executive in charge of compensation for nuclear accident victims. tepco plans to select the next president in an extra board meeting on tuesday. the 59-year-old will officially replace the current chief in june after the company gains approval from shareholders. he's been supporting the victims of the nuclear disaster. his promotion is seen as a bid to reyoojuvenate management. tepco faces mounting challenges that include the decommissioning of damaged plantds while providing a stable power supply. this is in addition to the huge compensation payouts. more business for you next hour. i will leave you with a recap of the market figures. >>> syrians went to the polls on monday. they held parliamentary elections for the first time under the new constitution, but the vote took place as the government cracked down on citizens. the election was the first under the three-month-old constitution. the new rules allow opposition parties to compete with the governing ba'ath party. more than 7,000 candidates vied for

they've spent more than a year dealing with the aftermath after the accident of the fukushima daiichi plant. they'll be dealing with it for many years to come. so they're teaming with members to focus on switching to renewable energy. it's truly a unique wind power plant. >> reporter: the planned power plant in fukushima will be built offshore and the entire facility will be floating. the global output of wind-power generation has been growing 20% a year. europe has been installing offshore turbines mounted on structures fixed to the seabed. in contrast, japan is on its way to introduce floating wind turbines, more fit to be built in its deep coastal waters. the government is set to start an experimental run to check its feasibility. a substation will also be built offshore. electricity generated there will be delivered to consumers on land via submarine cables. here, an experiment is under way to build floaters that will keep wind turbines from gets displaced by wave shocks. japan hopes to develop floating power plants that are resilient to tsunami and typhoon and export the cutting-

ministerial panel to look at nuclear power based on lessons learned from last year's accident at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. possible areas for tie-up include decommissioning of reactors, decontamination and boosting measures to combat terrorism that targets nuclear power plants. they agreed to join forces on rare earth minerals. japan and the u.s. will work together on recycling rare earth and developing alternatives. >>> japan has also reached an agreement with india on cooperating on the development of infrastructure and rare earth minerals. the two nations held a minist ministerial level dialogue in yand on monday. they agreed to come up with a plan for japan to help with environmental projects in india. they include solar-powered generation and industrial water development using seawater. these will be part of a large scale infrastructure project worst over $80 billion. also under the agreement japanese trading houses and india will stop producing rare earths in the summer. it's to export the minerals to japan. >> translator: india is a huge market and also has potential as a key p

. >>> japan will get help from kazahkhstan to clean up at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. japan's economy, tray and industry minister met his counterpart on tuesday. the national nuclear center has over 20 years of experience in decontaminating nuclear testing sites of the former soviet union. he asked for the nation's cooperation in cleaning up and rebuilding the fukushima plant. he said his country will offer its experience and if he can nee techniques to help japan. he believes sharing information on decontamination will greatly assist the reconstruction of fukushima. >>> japan airlines began flights using boeing's state-of-the-art 787 jet on tuesday. the dreamliner flew from tokyo to new delhi, india. jal filed for bankruptcy protection in 2010. the air carrier is introducing the energy efficient dreamliner on the international routes as part of its restructuring plan. jal is the first carrier to use the 787 on regular routes in asia. >> translator: it was very comfortable. >> we enjoyed the flight very much. looking forward to doing it again. >> india's economy is gro

and that follows the shutdown of nuclear power plants across the country in the wake of the fukushima daiichi accident last year. > all rit. moren the trade balance as the day progresses. now, separately, an international survey on overall happiness in life has found that japan ranks 21 and that's among 36 industrial emerging nations. the organization released the results on tuesday. japan is rated the safest country of all, because very few people reported falling victim to crimes. the country even ranked second in education, with high scores for reading and mathematics. but japan performs poorly in housing, coming in 25th place. that's because housing costs take up a large share of household budgets. now, japan is number 27 for life satisfaction. and 34 for work life balance. the survey notes many japanese work very long hours. the low scores in these categories put japan in at 21st place for overall well-being. australia is ranked the happiest nation of all, followed by norway, and the united states. many of the top ten nations are in northern europe. might be time for a trip to northern y

no nuclear reactors are running right now, more than a year after the fukushima daiichi accident changed safety standards. that hasn't happened in 42 years and that's why government leaders are asking people to save energy. cabinet members set voluntary power-saving targets for areas served by seven utilities. they based their standards on electricity demand in 2010 when japan's summer was unusually hot. people living in the cities of osaka and kyoto are expecting to face the most serious short fall. kansai electric power serves the region. it relies heavily on nuclear energy. customers will be asked to reduce their usage by 15% or more. customers further south in kyushu will be asked to reduce their usage by at least 10%. utilities in neighboring areas will be urged to save 5% or more so energy can be diverted to kansai and kyushu. shikoku and hokkaido electric power companies will have reduction targets of at least 7%. cabinet ministers will review the standards of two reactors at kansai's ohi plant go back online. municipalities surrounding the facility are debating a government propo

he hopes they can construct a storage center for debris or soil contaminated by the fukushima daiichi nuclear accident. >>> chinese government officials say north korea released all chinese fishermen and their fishing boats that had been seized by the north earlier this month. chinese media reported 29 chinese crew members and three fishing boats were seized on may 8th in the yellow sea by a north korean gun boat. the boats left in the northeast of china. china's embassy officials in pyongyang issued a statement sunday saying they received a report from the north korean foreign ministry. it said all the crews and bolts were released and heading for china. the government did not say whether north korea or its military had any involvement in the seizure. an nhk correspondent says the issue was swiftly resolved so it could not affect the traditional friendly relationship between the two countries. >>> in egypt, 13 candidates ended campaigning on sunday ahead of the country's first presidential election since the dictatorship of hosni mubarak was toppled in february of last year. during t

the government is dedicated to putting new safety standards in place following the accident at fukushima daiichi. that explanation wasn't enough for yamada. >> translator: your explanations are inconsistent with our demands. >> government officials decided last month that the reactors need to be restarted to provide sufficient power to the region during the summer. the reactors are now offline for regular checkups. >>> may the 1st marks the start of a yearly drive to get japanese business people to shed their business suits for cooler clothing. the so-called cool biz campaign was launched by the japanese government in 2005 as a way to get public servants to reduce their consumption of electricity. it became a nationwide movement last year after the fukushima accident triggered power shortages across the country. nhk world's ikoudo ishibushi reports. >> reporter: in southwestern japan, municipal employees who are normally seen in formal business attire now enjoy working in aloha shirts. though summer hasn't arrived yet, a festive spirit is already here. >> translator: i want to brave the summer h

>> reporter: the research shows the bluefin tuna that spawn and feed in the waters near the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant, migrated some 6,000 miles just a few months after the disaster. the fish are contaminated, they are considered far lower than what's dangerous 37. today the fda said they'll continue to monitor radiation levels in fish, and no public health concern has been detected. >> i don't think i'll change the way that i eat, not at the moment. >> it's definitely made me alter just a little bit, not eat quite so much. >> look at the tuna jumping right there. >> reporter: massive in size, up to ten feet and weighing more than 1,000 pounds, pacific bluefin tuna is a delicacy, often eaten as sushi around the world. scientists say the real test on how radiation affects migrating fish will come this summer. they will look at fish that have spent more time in contaminated waters and could have higher levels of pollution. >> that is a distinct possibility. today we don't know the answer. >> reporter: japanese officials will conduct more testing in their waters. this as researchers

they're needed after japanese officials shut down nuclear reactors following the accident at fukushima daiichi. the current account and balance say broad measure of foreign trade and includes income from foreign investments and dividends in addition to exports and imports. >>> china's exports showed slower growth in april for the second straight month due to lingering concerns about european debts. the chinese customs authorities said on thursday that exports in april totaled about $163 billion. that's up just 4.9% from the same month a year ago. it is lower than the 8.9% posted in march. the authorities say the drop is due to a continuous fall in orders from european countries as a result of the debt crisis. european countries are china's biggest trade partners or trading partners. imports meanwhile totaled nearly $145 billion. that's a growth of just 0.3% compared to a year ago and well below the percentage in march. concerns are mounting of a further slowdown in exports because many chinese firms process imported raw materials into goods that are then exported. >>> spain is expected to part

. >> reporter: the bluefin tuna that spawn and feed near the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant travelled just a few months later. today the the fda said they'll continue to monitor radiation levels in fish, and no public health concern has been detected. >> i i don't think i'll change the way i eat, not at the moment. >> it's made me alter just a little bit, not eat quite so much. >> reporter: massive in size, up to ten feet and weighing more than 1,000 pounds. pacific bluefin tuna is a delicacy, often eaten as sushi around the world. the real test on how radiation affects migrating fish could lead to higher levels of pollution. >> that is a distinct possibility. >> reporter: japanese officials will conduct more testing in their waters. this as researchers here do the same many miguel almaguer nbc news, san pedro, california. >>> still ahead on a tuesday night, you're not just getting older, chances are, you are getting shorter as well. dr. nancy snyder fan explains when it's something to worry about, when women shrink with age, and what can be done to prevent it. >>> and later, a remark

the fukushima daiichi accident basically put a lot of focus on the general electric mark one boiling water reactor. but we've known since one thousand nine hundred seventy two that these things were time bombs they were ready to you know basically fail and so on that almost took out detroit this is for me well that was actually fermi one which was not a mark one but a prototype breeder reactor but there is a fermi to a mark one there just outside of detroit but basically now the focus is on all these g.e. mark one and they have now folded in the mark two reactors because they have this vulnerable containment which now has been demonstrated at fukushima with a one hundred percent failure rate when faced with a severe accident all six one well the first the three operational reactors units one two and three they failed under these severe accident condition and they generated this hydrogen gas which then was vented into unit for an exploded and fortunately five and six were not involved yet but again we're concerned and in fact right now the united states nuclear regulatory commission a

some of those were some of the evacuees from the fukushima daiichi power plant.ating look what the a tornado can do, no matter what country. more on the article on my facebook page. -- let's talk about what going on here, haze hanging around air stagnated overnight, looking to northeast towards bodega bay haze is keeping us from doing that. 66 antioch low to mid 50s everywhere else. upper 40s north bay valleys. 50 in santa cruz, watsonville and monterey. afternoon sunshine dominates warming trend continues, clear and comfortable tonight. through mother's day rain free temperatures above average except for at the coast about average. 10° warmer than average today redwood city 84, 86 in napa and san jose. san francisco 78 today. livermore 88. oakland 65, supposed to be jumping up to 83° today that's a huge jump. mid to upper 80s in the east bay valleys today, low to mid 80s along the east bay shore, union city around 85°. mid to upper 80s south bay, los gatos 87° for the warm spot. low to mid 80s peninsula. low to mid 70s along the coast early in the afternoon. lat

the fukushima that daiichi power by theas not affected twister.grich says its on theivable he would be republican presidential ticket. gingrich officially ended his run last week. he was asked if mitt romney might pick can to pick his running mate. gingrich said he highly doubt it. gingrich was sharply critical during the campaign. ahead, your complete forecast. first come and meet a local man who is helping new mothers. one week from today, others honored on mother's day. you to a we introduce is a momoman who herself and as of 8 a huge difference in the lives of other mothers and their babies. she says she's providing a service that did not exist before. the family enjoyed a quiet night at home with their 3-year- old. bed, is the simple act of changing a diaper that change direction of life. after the birth of her son, she help other new mothers. how can i help other mothers andare going through this all the support we have? called local non-profit was stunned by their greatest need. we were shocked to hear diapers. she said she had no idea is f

taking reactors off line since the march earthquake and tsunami that caused the meltdown of the fukushima daiichie. transplant shock has claimed the life of the national christmas tree. work e workers at the national park service will remove the colorado blue spruce today. they've already found a replacement tree, though, also a colorado blue spruce, and it will be planted in late october in plenty of time to be decorated for this year's lighting. >>> finally, between watching the 138th kentucky derby and celebrating cinco de mayo this evening, you may want to take a look at the moon. it's going to be super sized appearing 14% charger and 30% brighter than any other full moons this year. this is because the moon's orbit will be 50,000 miles closer to earth. astronomers say the best viewing will be when the moon is near the horizon near sunset. catch it while you can because the next super moon won't be until 2029. that's the news. now back to lester outside the plaza. if i'm still awake i hope to see that sight. >> courtney, i saw it last night and it was incredibly bright, so i can't wait to see

elsewhere, the operator of japan's fukushima daiichi plant still struggling.ged after tepco's company said it was extremely severe. >> tepco reported a group net loss close to $10 billion for the year ending in march. the company faces billions of dollars in compensation claims. even so, the red ink is much less than the $15 billion loss it posted a year ago. they've had help from the government which took over much of the disaster related liabilities. tepco expects a third straight year of losses. it will forego dividend payments in the foreseeable future. back to you. >> and over in india, the central bank there may have a big problem on its hands. the country's latest inflation numbers show surprise increase in april. >> hi. the inflation figures for this month did not fall -- april rather didn't look too good for us. 7.23%. remember that the food inflation figure came in at 10.49% versus 8.5% -- or, rather, 9% in march. gold manufacturing inflation which is basically without food came in at 5.12% expectations of a lower sub 5% figure this time around. ther

but it has become even more relevant to us after the tsunami, the earthquake and of course fukushima daiichi in japan on march 11, 2011. and we have i'm sure all sat there in amazement as reports have been made of a soccer ball being found, intellectual, -- i believe, in alaska, and a motorcycle in canada, definitely the debris hitting north america. i represent hawaii and we are on watch as well and all indications are is that the debris is making its way, it will hit the northern hawaiian islands maybe in the later part of this year, but definitely we expect that the coast will be hit by 2013 as well as hawaii and other eeleds -- islands. and think about what this means. you're not talking about a ship, you're not talking about things being dropped in the ocean. you're talking about whole cities, i'm sure we can all recall seeing that, in japan, the tsunami coming in and wiping out cities. and think about where that went. i think the problem that many of us have is that we stand there in awe of what happens but we don't think about what the consequences are. and the consequences here are m

japan has the responsibility to make new technology to fix fukushima daiichi. believe this disaster helped to promote new japanese technologies coming soon to help all the country. >> [speaking japanese] >> this is such a stunt -- a complex question but some people who are very polite and respectful in japan. >> [speaking japanese] >> somebody pointed out there was no panic in terms of people receiving food and aid. those people, their culture and characteristic mitigated so much of the panic during such an awful disaster. >> [speaking japanese] >> but it would be questionable during such a large-scale disaster in a metropolitan area, such as tokyo or osaka, whether people would behave in the same manner. >> [speaking japanese] >> i think we can definitely utilize technological advancements to mitigate panic and also risk and damage to the people. >> [speaking japanese] >> i think information technology is such a critical issue that we have to continue to work on and also discuss. i think if people are given accurate information, i believe people would eventual