News Headlines - 15 March 2011

▽Tireless Edano Earns Twitter Respect - Wall Street Journal
http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2011/03/14/tireless-edano-earns-twitter-respect/
The plea has grown so loud that the hashtag #edano_nero has become a global trending topic on the micro-blogging service on Monday. “Nero” means to sleep in Japanese.

▽US embassy cables: MP criticises Japanese nuclear strategy - The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/175295
Lower House Diet Member Taro Kono voiced his strong opposition to the nuclear industry in Japan, especially nuclear reprocessing, based on issues of cost, safety, and security during a dinner with a visiting staffdel, Energy Attache and Economic Officer October 21. Kono also criticized the Japanese bureaucracy and power companies for continuing an outdated nuclear energy strategy, suppressing development of alternative energy, and keeping information from Diet members and the public.

▽Japan battles to contain nuclear crisis and relieve quake survivors - The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/15/japan-battles-contain-nuclear-crisis
Radiation hits harmful levels at Fukushima plant
Prime minister urges public to remain calm
Struggle to supply food, fuel, water and medicine

▽Companies Scramble As Japan Catastrophes Affect Yen Exposures - Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110315-716576.html
As the yen has surged against the dollar and the euro, companies exposed to the Japanese currency are rushing to reevaluate their foreign-exchange hedging positions after Friday's devastating earthquake and tsunami and amid the ongoing nuclear-reactor crisis.
The yen is approaching its all-time strongest level against the dollar. On Tuesday, the dollar traded as low as Y80.60, close to its record low, just below Y80, hit in 1995.

▽EU to apply stress tests on its nuclear plants - BusinessWeek
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9LVPI3G1.htm
Shocked into action by Japan's atomic crisis, European energy officials agreed Tuesday to apply stress tests on nuclear power plants and Germany moved to switch off seven aging reactors -- one of them permanently.