NPR 2011-08-12

 Optimism appears to be the order of the day in the US market with stocks higher in part on news that we may not be headed into a double-dip recession after all. At last check, the Dow was up 440 points, more than 4%, at 11,161, and the NASDAQ was up 4.5% at 2,488. Last week, first-time unemployment claims dropped below 400,000 for the first time in four months. President Obama is talking jobs this hour at an advanced battery facility in Holland, Michigan, where he's linking job growth to technological 1 innovation despite the persistent 2 economic troubles in this country.

 
"As the economy was improving and improving through 2009, 2010, the beginning of this year, suddenly it was hit with the unrest in the Middle East that helped send gas prices through the roof. Europe is dealing 3 with all sorts of financial turmoil 4 that is lapping up on our shores."
 
But today in Europe, the markets were up nearly 3%. From Berlin, NPR's Tom Gjelten tells us that investors 5 are getting some reassurance 6 after their government leaders opted 7 to cut their vacations to deal with the eurozone's troubles.
 
French President Nicolas Sarkozy had been riding his bike in the Riviera. German Chancellor 8 Angela Merkel was hiking with her husband in the Tyrolean Alps. But both are now back at work, and Sarkozy's office says he and Merkel will meet next Tuesday to discuss what can be done to address the eurozone crisis. That announcement was enough to spur a rally in European markets. They closed up across the board after spending most of this week in a nosedive. The selling may not be finished, however. European banks are heavily exposed to high-risk government debt, and investors here know the troubles in the eurozone are far from over.
 
Japan's Trade Ministry 9 will no longer control the country's regulatory agency after accusations 10 surface that the agency has been too cozy 11 with pro-nuclear interest groups. John Matthews reports on the shakeup coming some five months after an earthquake and tsunami 12 damaged the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant and triggered a radiation leak. 
 
Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency has come under heavy fire in the past few months, most notably 13 by Prime Minister Naoto Kan himself for not being an independent watchdog over the country's nuclear plants. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano says the agency will be settling into the Environmental Ministry, noting nuclear and environmental issues share a common bond. The move is the administration's reaction to a building wave of resentment 14 against regulators and their alleged 15 negligence 16 in handling the country's nuclear crisis. The agency will need approval from a divided parliament before relaunching next April. For NPR News, I'm John Matthews in Tokyo.
 
The Dow was up 426 points.
 
This is NPR News.
 
Sporadic 17 fighting still threatens the security of humanitarian 18 groups in Somalia, who are trying to reach those populations stricken by famine. But the United Nations Food Agency says food is getting to more people, especially since Islamist militants 19 pulled out of the capital Mogadishu over the weekend, though they remain in control of regions most severely 20 affected 21 by food shortages. More than 3.5 million people in Somalia are confronted with starvation as the Horn of Africa endures its worst drought in decades.
 
This October could be your last shot for at least a year to travel up the Statue of Liberty. The outside of the monument will still be largely visible to the public, but NPR's Margot Adler reports the interior will be closed to visitors while it gets a 27-million-dollar renovation 22 to make safer and more accessible.
 
The Statue of Liberty was closed for three years after the September 11th attacks. The base reopened in 2004 after a 20-million-dollar security upgrade. The crown reopened in 2009. Stairways, elevators and bathrooms will be upgraded as well as electrical and fire suppression systems. Current fire codes mandate 23 that the statue be evacuated 24 within two hours if necessary, but the current staircases on either side of the pedestal don't meet these standards. Liberty Island will remain open, and views of the statue will mostly be unobstructed. About 3.5 million people visit the Statue of Liberty every year, although only about 240 people a day are allowed to visit the observation deck at the top of the crown. Margot Adler, NPR News, New York.
 
All indexes up more than 4% with the Dow up 445 points at 11,165.
 
I'm Lakshmi Singh, NPR News.