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Ad sales boost Time Warner profit	"Quarterly profits at US media giant TimeWarner jumped 76% to $1.13bn (£600m) for the three months to December, from $639m year-earlier.

The firm, which is now one of the biggest investors in Google, benefited from sales of high-speed internet connections and higher advert sales. TimeWarner said fourth quarter sales rose 2% to $11.1bn from $10.9bn. Its profits were buoyed by one-off gains which offset a profit dip at Warner Bros, and less users for AOL.

Time Warner said on Friday that it now owns 8% of search-engine Google. But its own internet business, AOL, had has mixed fortunes. It lost 464,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter profits were lower than in the preceding three quarters. However, the company said AOL's underlying profit before exceptional items rose 8% on the back of stronger internet advertising revenues. It hopes to increase subscribers by offering the online service free to TimeWarner internet customers and will try to sign up AOL's existing customers for high-speed broadband. TimeWarner also has to restate 2000 and 2003 results following a probe by the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), which is close to concluding.

Time Warner's fourth quarter profits were slightly better than analysts' expectations. But its film division saw profits slump 27% to $284m, helped by box-office flops Alexander and Catwoman, a sharp contrast to year-earlier, when the third and final film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy boosted results. For the full-year, TimeWarner posted a profit of $3.36bn, up 27% from its 2003 performance, while revenues grew 6.4% to $42.09bn. ""Our financial performance was strong, meeting or exceeding all of our full-year objectives and greatly enhancing our flexibility,"" chairman and chief executive Richard Parsons said. For 2005, TimeWarner is projecting operating earnings growth of around 5%, and also expects higher revenue and wider profit margins.

TimeWarner is to restate its accounts as part of efforts to resolve an inquiry into AOL by US market regulators. It has already offered to pay $300m to settle charges, in a deal that is under review by the SEC. The company said it was unable to estimate the amount it needed to set aside for legal reserves, which it previously set at $500m. It intends to adjust the way it accounts for a deal with German music publisher Bertelsmann's purchase of a stake in AOL Europe, which it had reported as advertising revenue. It will now book the sale of its stake in AOL Europe as a loss on the value of that stake.
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Dollar gains on Greenspan speech	"The dollar has hit its highest level against the euro in almost three months after the Federal Reserve head said the US trade deficit is set to stabilise.

And Alan Greenspan highlighted the US government's willingness to curb spending and rising household savings as factors which may help to reduce it. In late trading in New York, the dollar reached $1.2871 against the euro, from $1.2974 on Thursday. Market concerns about the deficit has hit the greenback in recent months. On Friday, Federal Reserve chairman Mr Greenspan's speech in London ahead of the meeting of G7 finance ministers sent the dollar higher after it had earlier tumbled on the back of worse-than-expected US jobs data. ""I think the chairman's taking a much more sanguine view on the current account deficit than he's taken for some time,"" said Robert Sinche, head of currency strategy at Bank of America in New York. ""He's taking a longer-term view, laying out a set of conditions under which the current account deficit can improve this year and next.""

Worries about the deficit concerns about China do, however, remain. China's currency remains pegged to the dollar and the US currency's sharp falls in recent months have therefore made Chinese export prices highly competitive. But calls for a shift in Beijing's policy have fallen on deaf ears, despite recent comments in a major Chinese newspaper that the ""time is ripe"" for a loosening of the peg. The G7 meeting is thought unlikely to produce any meaningful movement in Chinese policy. In the meantime, the US Federal Reserve's decision on 2 February to boost interest rates by a quarter of a point - the sixth such move in as many months - has opened up a differential with European rates. The half-point window, some believe, could be enough to keep US assets looking more attractive, and could help prop up the dollar. The recent falls have partly been the result of big budget deficits, as well as the US's yawning current account gap, both of which need to be funded by the buying of US bonds and assets by foreign firms and governments. The White House will announce its budget on Monday, and many commentators believe the deficit will remain at close to half a trillion dollars.
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Yukos unit buyer faces loan claim	"The owners of embattled Russian oil giant Yukos are to ask the buyer of its former production unit to pay back a $900m (£479m) loan.

State-owned Rosneft bought the Yugansk unit for $9.3bn in a sale forced by Russia to part settle a $27.5bn tax claim against Yukos. Yukos' owner Menatep Group says it will ask Rosneft to repay a loan that Yugansk had secured on its assets. Rosneft already faces a similar $540m repayment demand from foreign banks. Legal experts said Rosneft's purchase of Yugansk would include such obligations. ""The pledged assets are with Rosneft, so it will have to pay real money to the creditors to avoid seizure of Yugansk assets,"" said Moscow-based US lawyer Jamie Firestone, who is not connected to the case. Menatep Group's managing director Tim Osborne told the Reuters news agency: ""If they default, we will fight them where the rule of law exists under the international arbitration clauses of the credit.""

Rosneft officials were unavailable for comment. But the company has said it intends to take action against Menatep to recover some of the tax claims and debts owed by Yugansk. Yukos had filed for bankruptcy protection in a US court in an attempt to prevent the forced sale of its main production arm. The sale went ahead in December and Yugansk was sold to a little-known shell company which in turn was bought by Rosneft. Yukos claims its downfall was punishment for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky and has vowed to sue any participant in the sale.
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High fuel prices hit BA's profits	"British Airways has blamed high fuel prices for a 40% drop in profits.

Reporting its results for the three months to 31 December 2004, the airline made a pre-tax profit of £75m ($141m) compared with £125m a year earlier. Rod Eddington, BA's chief executive, said the results were ""respectable"" in a third quarter when fuel costs rose by £106m or 47.3%. BA's profits were still better than market expectation of £59m, and it expects a rise in full-year revenues.

To help offset the increased price of aviation fuel, BA last year introduced a fuel surcharge for passengers.

In October, it increased this from £6 to £10 one-way for all long-haul flights, while the short-haul surcharge was raised from £2.50 to £4 a leg. Yet aviation analyst Mike Powell of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein says BA's estimated annual surcharge revenues - £160m - will still be way short of its additional fuel costs - a predicted extra £250m. Turnover for the quarter was up 4.3% to £1.97bn, further benefiting from a rise in cargo revenue. Looking ahead to its full year results to March 2005, BA warned that yields - average revenues per passenger - were expected to decline as it continues to lower prices in the face of competition from low-cost carriers. However, it said sales would be better than previously forecast. ""For the year to March 2005, the total revenue outlook is slightly better than previous guidance with a 3% to 3.5% improvement anticipated,"" BA chairman Martin Broughton said. BA had previously forecast a 2% to 3% rise in full-year revenue.

It also reported on Friday that passenger numbers rose 8.1% in January. Aviation analyst Nick Van den Brul of BNP Paribas described BA's latest quarterly results as ""pretty modest"". ""It is quite good on the revenue side and it shows the impact of fuel surcharges and a positive cargo development, however, operating margins down and cost impact of fuel are very strong,"" he said. Since the 11 September 2001 attacks in the United States, BA has cut 13,000 jobs as part of a major cost-cutting drive. ""Our focus remains on reducing controllable costs and debt whilst continuing to invest in our products,"" Mr Eddington said. ""For example, we have taken delivery of six Airbus A321 aircraft and next month we will start further improvements to our Club World flat beds."" BA's shares closed up four pence at 274.5 pence.
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Pernod takeover talk lifts Domecq	"Shares in UK drinks and food firm Allied Domecq have risen on speculation that it could be the target of a takeover by France's Pernod Ricard.

Reports in the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times suggested that the French spirits firm is considering a bid, but has yet to contact its target. Allied Domecq shares in London rose 4% by 1200 GMT, while Pernod shares in Paris slipped 1.2%. Pernod said it was seeking acquisitions but refused to comment on specifics.

Pernod's last major purchase was a third of US giant Seagram in 2000, the move which propelled it into the global top three of drinks firms. The other two-thirds of Seagram was bought by market leader Diageo. In terms of market value, Pernod - at 7.5bn euros ($9.7bn) - is about 9% smaller than Allied Domecq, which has a capitalisation of £5.7bn ($10.7bn; 8.2bn euros). Last year Pernod tried to buy Glenmorangie, one of Scotland's premier whisky firms, but lost out to luxury goods firm LVMH. Pernod is home to brands including Chivas Regal Scotch whisky, Havana Club rum and Jacob's Creek wine. Allied Domecq's big names include Malibu rum, Courvoisier brandy, Stolichnaya vodka and Ballantine's whisky - as well as snack food chains such as Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins ice cream. The WSJ said that the two were ripe for consolidation, having each dealt with problematic parts of their portfolio. Pernod has reduced the debt it took on to fund the Seagram purchase to just 1.8bn euros, while Allied has improved the performance of its fast-food chains.
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Japan narrowly escapes recession	"Japan's economy teetered on the brink of a technical recession in the three months to September, figures show.

Revised figures indicated growth of just 0.1% - and a similar-sized contraction in the previous quarter. On an annual basis, the data suggests annual growth of just 0.2%, suggesting a much more hesitant recovery than had previously been thought. A common technical definition of a recession is two successive quarters of negative growth.

The government was keen to play down the worrying implications of the data. ""I maintain the view that Japan's economy remains in a minor adjustment phase in an upward climb, and we will monitor developments carefully,"" said economy minister Heizo Takenaka. But in the face of the strengthening yen making exports less competitive and indications of weakening economic conditions ahead, observers were less sanguine. ""It's painting a picture of a recovery... much patchier than previously thought,"" said Paul Sheard, economist at Lehman Brothers in Tokyo. Improvements in the job market apparently have yet to feed through to domestic demand, with private consumption up just 0.2% in the third quarter.
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Jobs growth still slow in the US	"The US created fewer jobs than expected in January, but a fall in jobseekers pushed the unemployment rate to its lowest level in three years.

According to Labor Department figures, US firms added only 146,000 jobs in January. The gain in non-farm payrolls was below market expectations of 190,000 new jobs. Nevertheless it was enough to push down the unemployment rate to 5.2%, its lowest level since September 2001. The job gains mean that President Bush can celebrate - albeit by a very fine margin - a net growth in jobs in the US economy in his first term in office. He presided over a net fall in jobs up to last November's Presidential election - the first President to do so since Herbert Hoover. As a result, job creation became a key issue in last year's election. However, when adding December and January's figures, the administration's first term jobs record ended in positive territory.

The Labor Department also said it had revised down the jobs gains in December 2004, from 157,000 to 133,000.

Analysts said the growth in new jobs was not as strong as could be expected given the favourable economic conditions. ""It suggests that employment is continuing to expand at a moderate pace,"" said Rick Egelton, deputy chief economist at BMO Financial Group. ""We are not getting the boost to employment that we would have got given the low value of the dollar and the still relatively low interest rate environment."" ""The economy is producing a moderate but not a satisfying amount of job growth,"" said Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics. ""That means there are a limited number of new opportunities for workers.""
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India calls for fair trade rules	"India, which attends the G7 meeting of seven leading industrialised nations on Friday, is unlikely to be cowed by its newcomer status.

In London on Thursday ahead of the meeting, India's finance minister, lashed out at the restrictive trade policies of the G7 nations. He objected to subsidies on agriculture that make it hard for developing nations like India to compete. He also called for reform of the United Nations, the World Bank and the IMF.

Palaniappan Chidambaram, India's finance minister, argued that these organisations need to take into account the changing world order, given India and China's integration into the global economy. He said the issue is not globalisation but ""the terms of engagement in globalisation."" Mr Chidambaram is attending the G7 meeting as part of the G20 group of nations, which account for two thirds of the world's population. At a conference on developing enterprise hosted by UK finance minister Gordon Brown on Friday, he said that he was in favour of floating exchange rates because they help countries cope with economic shocks. ""A flexible exchange rate is one more channel for absorbing both positive and negative shocks,"" he told the conference. India, along with China, Brazil, South Africa and Russia, has been invited to take part in the G7 meeting taking place in London on Friday and Saturday. China is expected to face renewed pressure to abandon its fixed exchange rate, which G7 nations, in particular the US, have blamed for a surge in cheap Chinese exports. ""Some countries have tried to use fixed exchange rates. I do not wish to make any judgements,"" Mr Chidambaram said. Separately, the IMF warned on Thursday that India's budget deficit was too large and would hamper the country's economic growth, which it forecast to be around 6.5% in the year to March 2005. In the year to March 2004, the Indian economy grew by 8.5%.
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Ethiopia's crop production up 24%	"Ethiopia produced 14.27 million tonnes of crops in 2004, 24% higher than in 2003 and 21% more than the average of the past five years, a report says.

In 2003, crop production totalled 11.49 million tonnes, the joint report from the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme said. Good rains, increased use of fertilizers and improved seeds contributed to the rise in production. Nevertheless, 2.2 million Ethiopians will still need emergency assistance.

The report calculated emergency food requirements for 2005 to be 387,500 tonnes. On top of that, 89,000 tonnes of fortified blended food and vegetable oil for ""targeted supplementary food distributions for a survival programme for children under five and pregnant and lactating women"" will be needed.

In eastern and southern Ethiopia, a prolonged drought has killed crops and drained wells. Last year, a total of 965,000 tonnes of food assistance was needed to help seven million Ethiopians. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) recommend that the food assistance is bought locally. ""Local purchase of cereals for food assistance programmes is recommended as far as possible, so as to assist domestic markets and farmers,"" said Henri Josserand, chief of FAO's Global Information and Early Warning System. Agriculture is the main economic activity in Ethiopia, representing 45% of gross domestic product. About 80% of Ethiopians depend directly or indirectly on agriculture.
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Court rejects $280bn tobacco case	"A US government claim accusing the country's biggest tobacco companies of covering up the effects of smoking has been thrown out by an appeal court.

The demand for $280bn (£155bn) - filed by the Clinton administration in 1999 - was rejected in a 2-1 decision. The court in Washington found that the case could not be brought under federal anti-racketeering laws. Among the accused were Altria Group, RJ Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard Tobacco, Liggett Group and Brown and Williamson. In its case, the government claimed tobacco firms manipulated nicotine levels to increase addiction, targeted teenagers with multi-billion dollar advertising campaigns, lied about the dangers of smoking and ignored research to the contrary.

Prosecutors wanted the cigarette firms to surrender $280bn in profits accumulated over the past 50 years and impose tougher rules on marketing their products. But the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the US government could not sue the firms under legislation drawn up to counteract Mafia infiltration of business. The tobacco companies deny that they illegally conspired to promote smoking and defraud the public. They also say they have already met many of the government's demands in a landmark $206bn settlement reached with 46 states in 1998. Shares of tobacco companies closed higher after the ruling, with Altria rising 5% and Reynolds showing gains of 4.5%.
"	business
Ask Jeeves tips online ad revival	"Ask Jeeves has become the third leading online search firm this week to thank a revival in internet advertising for improving fortunes.

The firm's revenue nearly tripled in the fourth quarter of 2004, exceeding $86m (£46m). Ask Jeeves, once among the best-known names on the web, is now a relatively modest player. Its $17m profit for the quarter was dwarfed by the $204m announced by rival Google earlier in the week. During the same quarter, Yahoo earned $187m, again tipping a resurgence in online advertising.

The trend has taken hold relatively quickly. Late last year, marketing company Doubleclick, one of the leading providers of online advertising, warned that some or all of its business would have to be put up for sale. But on Thursday, it announced that a sharp turnaround had brought about an unexpected increase in profits. Neither Ask Jeeves nor Doubleclick thrilled investors with their profit news, however. In both cases, their shares fell by some 4%. Analysts attributed the falls to excessive expectations in some quarters, fuelled by the dramatic outperformance of Google on Tuesday.
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Indonesians face fuel price rise	"Indonesia's government has confirmed it is considering raising fuel prices by as much as 30%.

Millions of Indonesians use kerosene for basic cooking, and prices have been heavily subsidised for years. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's government has said it wants to curb fuel subsidies and direct the money into aid programmes for the poor. But critics argue cutting subsidies will hurt the poorer families that his government says it wants to help. Millions of people were left homeless in Indonesia Aceh's region following the earthquake and tsunami disaster in late December.

Indonesia pays subsidies to importers in order to stabilise domestic fuel prices, but higher oil prices have forced the government to spend more on holding prices down. It spent 59.2 trillion rupiah ($6.58bn; £3.5bn) on fuel subsidies in 2004, a sum far in excess of its original projection of 14.5 trillion rupiah. Since President Yudhoyono's government came to power in October, it has indicated its intention of raising domestic fuel prices by cutting subsidies. ""The (January to March) quarter of this year is the best time for us to increase fuel prices,"" said Sri Mulyani Indrawati, State Minister for National Development Planning. ""We are still considering if a 30% hike is suitable at the moment. The sooner the better for the state budget."" The BBC's correspondent in Jakarta, Rachel Harvey, told World Business Report that there was likely to be a strong public reaction to any price rise. ""The big question is whether they go for one big, short, sharp shock and raise prices between 20% and 30% or whether they try to stagger it,"" she said. Indonesia's previous government, led by President Megawati Sukarnoputri, also attempted to cut subsidies in 2003, but was forced to back down in the face of public protests.
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Peugeot deal boosts Mitsubishi	"Struggling Japanese car maker Mitsubishi Motors has struck a deal to supply French car maker Peugeot with 30,000 sports utility vehicles (SUV).

The two firms signed a Memorandum of Understanding, and say they expect to seal a final agreement by Spring 2005. The alliance comes as a badly-needed boost for loss-making Mitsubishi, after several profit warnings and poor sales. The SUVs will be built in Japan using Peugeot's diesel engines and sold mainly in the European market. Falling sales have left Mitsubishi Motors with underused capacity, and the production deal with Peugeot gives it a chance to utilise some of it.

In January, Mitsubishi Motors issued its third profits warning in nine months, and cut its sales forecasts for the year to March 2005. Its sales have slid 41% in the past year, catalysed by the revelation that the company had systematically been hiding records of faults and then secretly repairing vehicles. As a result, the Japanese car maker has sought a series of financial bailouts. Last month it said it was looking for a further 540bn yen ($5.2bn; £2.77bn) in fresh financial backing, half of it from other companies in the Mitsubishi group. US-German carmaker DaimlerChrylser, a 30% shareholder in Mitsubishi Motors, decided in April 2004 not to pump in any more money. The deal with Peugeot was celebrated by Mitsubishi's newly-appointed chief executive Takashi Nishioka, who took over after three top bosses stood down last month to shoulder responsibility for the firm's troubles. Mitsubishi Motors has forecast a net loss of 472bn yen in its current financial year to March 2005. Last month, it signed a production agreement with Japanese rival Nissan Motor to supply it with 36,000 small cars for sale in Japan. It has been making cars for Nissan since 2003.
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Telegraph newspapers axe 90 jobs	"The Daily and Sunday Telegraph newspapers are axing 90 journalist jobs - 17% of their editorial staff.

The Telegraph Group says the cuts are needed to fund an £150m investment in new printing facilities. Journalists at the firm met on Friday afternoon to discuss how to react to the surprise announcement. The cuts come against a background of fierce competition for readers and sluggish advertising revenues amid competition from online advertising. The National Union of Journalists has called on the management to recall the notice of redundancy by midday on Monday or face a strike ballot.

Pearson's Financial Times said last week it was offering voluntary redundancy to about 30 reporters.

The National Union of Journalists said it stood strongly behind the journalists and did not rule out a strike. ""Managers have torn up agreed procedures and kicked staff in the teeth by sacking people to pay for printing facilities,"" said Jeremy Dear, NUJ General Secretary. NUJ official Barry Fitzpatrick said the company had ignored the 90-day consultation period required for companies planning more than 10 redundancies. ""They have shown a complete disregard for the consultative rights of our members,"" said Mr Fitzpatrick, who added that the company now planned to observe the consultation procedures. The two Telegraph titles currently employ 521 journalists.

Some broadsheet newspapers - especially those which have not moved to a tabloid format - have suffered circulation declines, which are hitting revenues. The Telegraph has announced no plans to go tabloid although both The Independent and The Times have seen circulation rise since shrinking in size.

The Guardian is hedging its bets, planning a larger tabloid format like those popular in continental Europe. The Telegraph Group was bought by the Barclay twins - Frederick and David - last year, having previously been owned by Lord Conrad Black's Hollinger International. The brothers are currently mulling the sale of another of their businesses, retailer Littlewoods.

Telegraph executive Murdoch MacLennan said the two newspapers would add eight colour pages in the coming months.

""Journalists are the lifeblood of any newspaper, and maintaining the quality of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph for our readers is vital,"" he said. ""However, action to improve our production capability and secure our titles against the competition is also vital."" Many newspapers are investing in new printing machinery that enables them to print more colour pages, or in some cases, have colour on every page. They are hoping that by boosting colour it will make their publications more attractive to advertisers and readers alike. In recent months News Corp's News International unit, which publishes The Sun and the News of the World, the Guardian Media Group, Trinity Mirror and the Daily Mail & General Trust have all announced substantial investments in new printing plants.
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Air passengers win new EU rights	"Air passengers who are unable to board their flights because of overbooking, cancellations or flight delays can now demand greater compensation.

New EU rules set compensation at between 250 euros (£173) and 600 euros, depending on the length of the flight. The new rules will apply to all scheduled and charter flights, including budget airlines. Airlines have attacked the legislation saying they could be forced to push prices higher to cover the extra cost. The European Commission is facing two legal challenges - one from the European Low-fare Airlines Association (ELAA) and the other from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which has attacked the package as a ""bad piece of legislation"". Previously, passengers could claim between 150 euros and 300 euros if they had been stopped from boarding.

However, only scheduled flight operators were obliged to offer compensation in cases of overbooking and they did not have to offer compensation for flight cancellations.

The EU decided to increase passenger compensation in a bid to deter airlines from deliberately overbooking flights. Overbooking can often lead to 'bumping' - when a passenger is moved to a later flight. When this happens against a passenger's will, airlines will now have to offer compensation. In addition, if a flight is cancelled or delayed for more than two hours through the fault of the airline, all passengers must be paid compensation.

However, airlines do not have to offer compensation if flights are cancelled or delayed due to ""extraordinary circumstances"". Airlines fear that ""extraordinary circumstances"" may not include bad weather, security alerts or strikes - events which are outside of their control. All EU-based airlines and operators of flights which take off from the EU will have to adhere to the new compensation regime which came into force on Thursday. Low-cost airlines have criticised the new compensation levels, arguing that the pay-out could be worth more than the ticket. ""It's a preposterous piece of legislation, we among all airlines are fighting this,"" Ryanair deputy chief executive Michael Cawley told Radio 4's Today programme.

The European Regions Airline Association (ERAA) claims that neither airlines nor consumers were consulted over the changes. Andy Clarke, ERAA director of air transport, said that the EC advice misleads customers as it leads them to believe that airlines could be liable for payouts if flights are delayed because of bad weather.

EC spokeswoman Marja Quillinan-Meiland conceded there were ""grey areas"" but said ""these are not as big as the airlines are making out"". In cases of dispute, national enforcement bodies would decide whether the passenger had a case, she said. New technology means it is easier for airlines to take off and land in bad weather, she added. The ERAA's Mr Clarke also warned that while airlines would comply with the new rules, the extra costs would be passed onto passengers. ""We reckon it's going to cost European air passengers - not the airlines, the airlines have no money, it has to be paid by passengers - 1.5bn euros, that's over £1bn a year loaded onto European passengers,"" Mr Clarke said. ""That's basically a transfer of money from passengers whose journeys are not disrupted to passengers whose journeys are disrupted.""

On Wednesday, Jacques Barrot, vice president of the European Commission and also Commissioner for Transport, said that the changes were necessary. ""The boom in air travel needs to be accompanied by proper protection of passengers' right."" ""This is a concrete example of how the Union benefits people's daily lives,"" he added. The EC has launched an information campaign in airports and travel agencies to inform airline passengers of their new rights.
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China keeps tight rein on credit	"China's efforts to stop the economy from overheating by clamping down on credit will continue into 2005, state media report.

The curbs were introduced earlier this year to ward off the risk that rapid expansion might lead to soaring prices. There were also fears that too much stress might be placed on the fragile banking system. Growth in China remains at a breakneck 9.1%, and corporate investment is growing at more than 25% a year. The breakneck pace of economic expansion has kept growth above 9% for more than a year. Rapid tooling-up of China's manufacturing sector means a massive demand for energy - one of the factors which has kept world oil prices sky-high for most of this year. In theory, the government has a 7% growth target, but continues to insist that the overshoot does not mean a ""hard landing"" in the shape of an overbalancing economy. A low exchange rate - China's yuan is pegged to a rate of 8.28 to the dollar, which seems to be in relentless decline - means Chinese exports are cheap on world markets. China has thus far resisted international pressure to break the link or at least to shift the level of its peg. To some extent, the credit controls do seem to be taking effect. Industrial output grew 15.7% in the year to October, down from 23% in February, and inflation slowed to 4.3% - although retail sales are still booming.
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Parmalat boasts doubled profits	"Parmalat, the Italian food group at the centre of one of Europe's most painful corporate scandals, has reported a doubling in profit.

Its pre-tax earnings in the fourth quarter were 77m euros (£53m; $100m), up from 38m in the same period of 2003. Less welcome was the news that the firm had been fined 11m euros for having violated takeover rules five years ago. The firm sought bankruptcy protection in December 2003 after disclosing a 4bn-euro hole in its accounts. Overall, the company's debt is close to 12bn euros, and is falling only slowly. Its brands, well-known in Italy and overseas, have continued to perform strongly, however, and have barely lost revenue since the scandal broke.

But a crucial factor for the company's future is the legal unwinding of its intensely complex financial position. On Tuesday, the company's administrator, turnaround expert Enrico Bondi, sued Morgan Stanley, its former banker, to return 136m euros relating to a 2003 bond deal. That brought to 49 the number of banks that Mr Bondi has sued, a mass of legal action that could bring in as much as 3bn euros. The company has also sued former auditors and financial advisors for damages. And criminal cases against the company's former management are proceeding separately.
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India's rupee hits five-year high	"India's rupee has hit a five-year high after Standard & Poor's (S&P) raised the country's foreign currency rating.

The rupee climbed to 43.305 per US dollar on Thursday, up from a close of 43.41. The currency has gained almost 1% in the past three sessions. S&P, which rates borrowers' creditworthiness, lifted India's rating by one notch to 'BB+'. With Indian assets now seen as less of a gamble, more cash is expected to flow into its markets, buoying the rupee.

""The upgrade is positive and basically people will use it as an excuse to come back to India,"" said Bhanu Baweja, a strategist at UBS. ""Money has moved out from India in the first two or three weeks of January into other markets like Korea and Thailand and this upgrade should lead to a reversal."" India's foreign currency rating is now one notch below investment grade, which starts at 'BBB-'. The increase has put it on the same level as Romania, Egypt and El Salvador, and one level below Russia.
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India widens access to telecoms	"India has raised the limit for foreign direct investment in telecoms companies from 49% to 74%.

Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran said that there is a need to fund the fast-growing mobile market. The government hopes to increase the number of mobile users from 95 million to between 200 and 250 million by 2007. ""We need at least $20bn (£10.6bn) in investment and part of this has to come as foreign direct investment,"" said Mr Maran. The decision to raise the limit for foreign investors faced considerable opposition from the communist parties, which give crucial support to the coalition headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Potential foreign investors will however need government approval before they increase their stake beyond 49%, Mr Maran said. Key positions, such as those of chief executive, chief technology officer and chief financial officer are to be held by Indians, he added.

Analysts and investors have welcomed the government decision. ""It is a positive development for carriers and the investment community, looking to take a longer-term view of the huge growth in the Indian telecoms market,"" said Gartner's principal analyst Kobita Desai. ""The FDI relaxation coupled with rapid local market growth could really ignite interest in the Indian telecommunication industry,"" added Ernst and Young's Sanjay Mehta. Investment bank Morgan Stanley has forecast that India's mobile market is likely to grow by about 40% a year until 2007. The Indian mobile market is currently dominated by four companies, Bharti Televentures which has allied itself with Singapore Telecom, Essar which is linked with Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, the Sterling group and the Tata group.
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Call centre users 'lose patience'	"Customers trying to get through to call centres are getting impatient and quicker to hang up, a survey suggests.

Once past the welcome message, callers on average hang up after just 65 seconds of listening to canned music. The drop in patience comes as the number of calls to call centres is growing at a rate of 20% every year. ""Customers are getting used to the idea of an 'always available' society,"" says Cara Diemont of IT firm Dimension Data, which commissioned the survey. However, call centres also saw a sharp increase of customers simply abandoning calls, she says, from just over 5% in 2003 to a record 13.3% during last year. When automated phone message systems are taken out of the equation, where customers have to pick their way through multiple options and messages, the number of abandoned calls is even higher - a sixth of all callers give up rather than wait. One possible reason for the lack in patience, Ms Diemont says, is the fact that more customers are calling 'on the move' using their mobile phones.

The surge in customers trying to get through to call centres is also a reflection of the centres' growing range of tasks. ""Once a call centre may have looked after mortgages, now its agents may also be responsible for credit cards, insurance and current accounts,"" Ms Diemont says. Problems are occurring because increased responsibility is not going hand-in-hand with more training, the survey found.

In what Dimension Data calls an ""alarming development"", the average induction time for a call centre worker fell last year from 36 to just 21 days, leaving ""agents not equipped to deal with customers"". This, Ms Diemont warns, is ""scary"" and not good for the bottom line either. Poor training frustrates both call centre workers and customers. As a result, call centres have a high ""churn rate"", with nearly a quarter of workers throwing in the towel every year, which in turn forces companies to pay for training new staff. Resolution rates - the number of calls where a customer's query is resolved to mutual satisfaction - are running at just 50%. When the query is passed on to a second or third person - a specialist or manager - rates rise to about 70%, but that is still well below the industry target of an 85% resolution rate.

Suggestions that ""outsourcing"" - relocating call centres to low-cost countries like India or South Africa - is to blame are wrong, Ms Diemont says.

There are ""no big differences in wait time and call resolution"" between call centres based in Europe or North America and those in developing countries around the world. ""You can make call centres perform anywhere if you have good management and the right processes in place,"" she says. However, companies that decide to ""offshore"" their operations are driven not just by cost considerations. Only 42% of them say that saving money is the main consideration when closing domestic call centre operations. Half of them argue that workers in other countries offer better skills for the money. But not everybody believes that outsourcing and offshoring are the solution. Nearly two-thirds of all firms polled for the survey have no plans to offshore their call centres. They give three key reasons for not making the move:

- call centre operations are part of their business ""core function"", 
 - they are worried about the risk of going abroad, 
 - they fear that they will damage their brand if they join the offshoring drive. The survey was conducted by Sunovate on behalf of Dimension Data, and is based on in-depth questionnaires of 166 call centres in 24 countries and five continents. What are your experiences with call centres? Are you happy to listen to Vivaldi or Greensleeves, or do you want an immediate response? And if you work in a call centre: did your training prepare you for your job?
"	business
Rank 'set to sell off film unit'	"Leisure group Rank could unveil plans to demerge its film services unit and sell its media business, reports claim.

Rank, formerly famous for the Carry On series, will expose the shake-up at the announcement of its results on Friday, the Sunday Telegraph reported. Advisors Goldman Sachs are understood to have valued its demerged Deluxe Film unit at £300m, the report added. Speculation of a possible shake-up has mounted since Rank announced a study into a possible demerger in September. Since Mike Smith's appointment as chief executive in 1999, the group has focused on fewer businesses and embarked on a major cost-cutting programme which has seen it dispose of a number of businesses, including the Odeon cinema chain and the Pinewood studios. The move left the group with three core divisions: gaming, Hard Rock and Deluxe Films, which provides technical services to Hollywood studios.

Rank now aims to concentrate on its gaming, bars and hotels business, including extending its Hard Rock brand to its casinos - trials of which have been a success. It also owns Deluxe Media, which makes and distributes DVDs and videos. However, that business is seen as less successful. Last year it made profits of £21.5m on a turnover of £392.1m and experts suggest its success in moving to DVDs from VHS video could make it an attractive target for a private equity buyer. A spokesman for the firm refused to comment on the reports, but said any results from the demerger study were likely to be set out when it unveiled its results on Friday. Analysts predict the firm is likely to report a slight drop in annual pre-tax profits to £170m from £194m last year. Formed in the 1940s the firm was a leading UK film producer and cinema owner for many years. It has now diversified into a range of other leisure activities - mainly in the UK - including hotels, roadside service areas and holiday centres. It now owns 34 Grosvenor casinos, the Mecca Bingo chain and more than 100 Hard Rock Cafes in 38 countries.
"	business
Sluggish economy hits German jobs	"The number of people out of work in Europe's largest economy has risen for the tenth straight month as growth remains stubbornly slow.

German unemployment rose 7,000 in November to 4.464 million people, or 10.8% of the workforce. The seasonally adjusted rise showed a smaller rise than expected, as government measures to encourage job creation began to take effect. But officials said stagnant growth was still stifling the job market. ""There are clear signs of a revival in domestic demand,"" said Frank-Juergen Weise, head of the Federal Labour Agency, in a statement. ""But growth of 0.1%... in the third quarter is still insufficient to deliver positive momentum to the labour market."" High oil prices and the soaring euro - which damages the competitiveness of exporters - were also having a negative effect, he said. The brunt of the unemployment is still being felt in the eastern part of Germany, where the rate is 18.8%.

With unemployment stuck above 4 million for years, the government of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has put job creation at the top of the agenda. A controversial package of measures to shake up incentives to get back to work, paid for by cutting some cherished benefits, has sparked anger among some German workers. Strikes in a number of industries, notably among the country's iconic carmakers, have demonstrated the displeasure - as well as fears about further job losses as outsourcing takes hold. Among the new initiatives are the so-called ""one-euro jobs"" which top up unemployment benefit. The scheme's formal launch is January, but hirings for these positions are already taking place and affecting the unemployment statistics, economists said. ""The deterioration of the labour market does not come as a surprise,"" said Isabelle Kronawitter at Hypovereinsbank. ""Job creation measures probably prevented a stronger increase in the seasonally adjusted numbers.""
"	business
Mixed signals from French economy	"The French economy picked up speed at the end of 2004, official figures show - but still looks set to have fallen short of the government's hopes.

According to state statistics body INSEE, growth for the three months to December was a seasonally-adjusted 0.7-0.8%, ahead of the 0.6% forecast. If confirmed, that would be the best quarterly showing since early 2002. It leaves GDP up 2.3% for the full year, but short of the 2.5% which the French government had predicted.

Despite the apparent shortfall in annual economic growth, the good quarterly figures - a so-called ""flash estimate"" - mark a continuing trend of improving indicators for the health of the French economy. The government is reiterating a 2.5% target for 2005, while the European Central Bank is making positive noises for the 12-nation eurozone as a whole. Also on Friday, France's industrial output for December was released, showing 0.7% growth. ""The numbers are good,"" said David Naude, economist at Deutsche Bank. ""They send a positive signal of a rebound in output... and open the way for a continuation in that trend into the New Year."" Service sector activity improved in January, hitting a seven-month high. But unemployment remains high at about 10%.
"	business
US trade gap hits record in 2004	"The gap between US exports and imports hit an all-time high of $671.7bn (£484bn) in 2004, latest figures show.

The Commerce Department said the trade deficit for all of last year was 24.4% above the previous record - 2003's imbalance of $496.5bn. The deficit with China, up 30.5% at $162bn, was the largest ever recorded with a single country. However, on a monthly basis the US trade gap narrowed by 4.9% in December to £56.4bn. The US consumer's appetite for all things from oil to imported cars, and even wine and cheese, reached record levels last year and the figures are likely to spark fresh criticism of President Bush's economic policies.

Democrats claim the administration has not done enough to clamp down on unfair foreign trade practices. For example, they believe China's currency policy - which US manufacturers claim has undervalued the yuan by as much as 40% - has given China's rapidly expanding economy an unfair advantage against US competitors.

Meanwhile, the Bush administration argues that the US deficit reflects the fact the America is growing at faster rate than the rest of the world, spurring on more demand for imported goods. Some economists say this may allow an upward revision of US economic growth in the fourth quarter. But others point out that the deficit has reached such astronomical proportions that foreigners many choose not to hold as many dollar-denominated assets, which may in turn harm growth. For all of 2004, US exports rose 12.3% to $1.15 trillion, but imports rose even faster by 16.3% to a new record of $1.76 trillion. Foreign oil exports surged by 35.7% to a record $180.7bn, reflecting the rally in global oil prices and increasing domestic demand. Imports were not affected by the dollar's weakness last year. ""We expect the deficit to continue to widen in 2005 even if the dollar gets back to its downward trend,"" said economist Marie-Pierre Ripert at IXIS.
"	business
Yukos loses US bankruptcy battle	"A judge has dismissed an attempt by Russian oil giant Yukos to gain bankruptcy protection in the US.

Yukos filed for Chapter 11 protection in Houston in an unsuccessful attempt to halt the auction of its Yugansk division by the Russian authorities. The court ruling is a blow to efforts to get damages for the sale of Yugansk, which Yukos claims was illegally sold. Separately, former Yukos boss Mikhail Khodorkovsky began testimony on Friday in his trial for fraud and tax evasion.

Mr Khodorkovsky - who has been in jail for more than a year - pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him and denied involvement in any criminal activities. ""I pride myself on heading for 15 years a number of successful companies and helping other enterprises rise from their knees,"" he told a Russian court.

Yugansk was auctioned to help pay off $27.5bn (£14.5bn) in unpaid taxes. It was bought for $9.4bn by a previously-unknown group, which was in turn bought up almost immediately by state-controlled oil company Rosneft.

Texas Judge Letitia Clark said Yukos did not have enough of a US presence to establish US jurisdiction. ""The vast majority of the business and financial activities of Yukos continue to occur in Russia,"" Judge Clark said in her ruling. ""Such activities require the continued participation of the Russian government."" Yukos had argued that a US court was entitled to declare it bankrupt before its Yugansk unit was sold, since it has local bank accounts and its chief finance officer Bruce Misamore lives in Houston. Yukos claimed it sought help in the US because other forums - Russian courts and the European Court of Human Rights - were either unfriendly or offered less protection. Russia had indicated it would in any case not abide by the rulings of the US courts.

In her ruling, the judge acknowledged that ""it appears likely that agencies of the Russian government have acted in a manner that would be considered confiscatory under United States law"". But she said her role was simply to decide on jurisdiction. The US court's jurisdiction had been challenged by Deutsche Bank and Gazpromneft, a former unit of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom which is due to merge with Rosneft. Analysts said the ability of Gazprom and Rosneft to trade freely overseas had been stifled while the ownership of Yugansk remained unclear.

Yukos said it would consider its options in light of the ruling. However, it claimed that the court had backed its argument in four out of five key issues. ""We believe the merits of our case are strong and simple,"" said chief executive Steven Theede. ""Our assets were illegally seized. We want them back or damages paid.""
"	business
Safety alert as GM recalls cars	"The world's biggest carmaker General Motors (GM) is recalling nearly 200,000 vehicles in the US on safety grounds, according to federal regulators.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said the largest recall involves 155,465 pickups, vans and sports utility vehicles (SUVs). This is because of possible malfunctions with the braking systems. The affected vehicles in the product recall are from the 2004 and 2005 model years, GM said. Those vehicles with potential faults are the Chevrolet Avalanche, Express, Kodiak, Silverade and Suburban; the GMC Savana, Sierra and Yukon.

The NHTSA said a pressure accumulator in the braking system could crack during normal driving and fragments could injure people if the hood was open. This could allow hydraulic fluid to leak, which could make it harder to brake or steer and could cause a crash, it warned. GM is also recalling 19,924 Cadillac XLR coupes, SRX SUVs and Pontiac Grand Prix sedans from the 2004 model year. This is because the accelerator pedal may not work properly in extremely cold temperatures, requiring more braking. In addition, the car giant is calling back 17,815 Buick Raniers, Chevrolet Trailblazers, GMC Envoys and Isuzu Ascenders from the 2005 model years because the windshield is not properly fitted and could fall out in a crash. However, GM stressed that it did not know of any injuries related to the problems. News of the recall follows an announcement last month that GM expects earnings this year be lower than in 2004. The world's biggest car maker is grappling with losses in its European business, weak US sales and now a product recall. In January, GM said higher healthcare costs in North America, and lower profits at its financial services subsidiary would hurt its performance in 2005.
"	business
Steel firm 'to cut' 45,000 jobs	"Mittal Steel, one of the world's largest steel producers, could cut up to 45,000 jobs over the next five years, its chief executive has said.

The Netherlands-based company is due to complete its $4.5bn acquisition of US firm ISG next month, making it one of the largest global firms of its kind. However, Lakshmi Mittal has told investors the combined company will have to shed thousands of jobs. The Indian-born magnate did not say where the job losses would fall.

Mr Mittal told US investors that once the acquisition of International Steel Group was completed, the company would aim to reduce its workforce by between 7,000 and 8,000 annually. This could see its workforce trimmed from 155,000 to 110,000 staff by 2010. ""We are investing in modernisation so employees will go down,"" Mr Mittal told the conference in Chicago.

Mittal Steel was formed last year when Mr Mittal's LNM Holdings merged with Dutch firm Ispat. A combination of Mittal Steel and ISG would have annual sales of $32bn (£16.7bn; 24.1bn euros) and a production capacity of 70 million tonnes.

A Mittal Steel spokeman said that no decisions on job cuts have been made yet. ""We are trying to create a sustainable steel industry and if we want to do that, we have to invest in new technology,"" a spokesman said. Mittal Steel has operations in 14 countries. Many of its businesses - particularly those in eastern Europe - were previously state owned and have huge workforces. It employs 50,000 staff in Kazakhstan alone, and has large operations in Romania, the Czech Republic, South Africa and the United States.
"	business
Strong demand triggers oil rally	"Crude oil prices surged back above the $47 a barrel mark on Thursday after an energy market watchdog raised its forecasts for global demand.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) warned demand for Opec's crude in the first quarter would outstrip supply. The IEA raised its estimate of 2005 oil demand growth by 80,000 barrels a day to 84 million barrels a day. US light crude rose $1.64 to $47.10, while Brent crude in London gained $1.32 to $44.45.

The Paris-based IEA watchdog, which advises industrialized nations on energy policy, said the upward revision was due to stronger demand from China and other Asian countries. The fresh rally in crude prices followed gains on Wednesday which were triggered by large falls in US crude supplies following a cold spell in North America in January. The US Department of Energy reported that crude stockpiles had fallen 1m barrels to 294.3m. On top of that, ongoing problems for beleaguered Russian oil giant Yukos have also prompted the IEA to revise its output estimates from Russia - a major non-Opec supplier. ""I think that prices are now beginning to set a new range and it looks like the $40 to $50 level,"" said energy analyst Orin Middleton of Barclays Capital.
"	business
UK firm faces Venezuelan land row	"Venezuelan authorities have said they will seize land owned by a British company as part of President Chavez's agrarian reform programme.

Officials in Cojedes state said on Friday that farmland owned by a subsidiary of the Vestey Group would be taken and used to settle poor farmers. The government is cracking down on so-called latifundios, or large rural estates, which it says are lying idle. The Vestey Group said it had not been informed of any planned seizure.

The firm, whose Agroflora subsidiary operates 13 farms in Venezuela, insisted that it had complied fully with Venezuelan law. Prosecutors in the south of the country have targeted Hato El Charcote, a beef cattle ranch owned by Agroflora. According to Reuters, they plan to seize 12,900 acres (5,200 hectares) from the 32,000 acre (13,000 hectare) farm.

Officials claim that Agroflora does not possess valid documents proving its ownership of the land in question. They also allege that areas of the ranch are not being used for any form of active production. ""The legal boundaries did not match up with the actual boundaries and there is surplus,"" state prosecutor Alexis Ortiz told Reuters. ""As a consequence the government has taken action.""

Controversial reforms passed in 2001 give the government the right to take control of private property if it is declared idle or ownership cannot be traced back to the 19th Century.

Critics say the powers - which President Chavez argues are needed to help the country's poorest citizens and develop the Venezuelan economy - trample all over private property rights. The Vestey Group said it had owned the land since 1920 and would co-operate fully with the authorities. But a spokesman added: ""Agroflora is absolutely confident that what it has submitted will demonstrate the legality of its title to the land."" The company pointed out that the farm, which employs 300 workers, provides meat solely for the Venezuelan market.

Last month, the government said it had identified more than 500 idle farms and had yet to consider the status of a further 40,000. The authorities said landowners whose titles were in order and whose farms were productive had ""nothing to fear"". Under President Chavez, the Venezuelan government has steadily expanded the state's involvement in the country's economy. It recently said all mining contracts involving foreign firms would be examined to ensure they provided sufficient economic benefits to the state.
"	business
Soaring oil 'hits world economy'	"The soaring cost of oil has hit global economic growth, although world's major economies should weather the storm of price rises, according to the OECD.

In its latest bi-annual report, the OECD cut its growth predictions for the world's main industrialised regions. US growth would reach 4.4% in 2004, but fall to 3.3% next year from a previous estimate of 3.7%, the OECD said. However, the Paris-based economics think tank said it believed the global economy could still regain momentum.

Forecasts for Japanese growth were also scaled back to 4.0% from 4.4% this year and 2.1% from 2.8% in 2005. But the outlook was worst for the 12-member eurozone bloc, with already sluggish growth forecasts slipping to 1.8% from 2.0% this year and 1.9% from 2.4% in 2005, the OECD said. Overall, the report forecast total growth of 3.6% in 2004 for the 30 member countries of the OECD, slipping to 2.9% next year before recovering to 3.1% in 2006. ""There are nonetheless good reasons to believe that despite recent oil price turbulence the world economy will regain momentum in a not-too-distant future,"" said Jean-Philippe Cotis, the OECD's chief economist. The price of crude is about 50% higher than it was at the start of 2004, but down on the record high of $55.67 set in late October.

A dip in oil prices and improving jobs prospects would improve consumer confidence and spending, the OECD said. ""The oil shock is not enormous by historical standards - we have seen worse in the seventies. If the oil price does not rise any further, then we think the shock can be absorbed within the next few quarters,"" Vincent Koen, a senior economist with the OECD, told the BBC's World Business Report. ""The recovery that was underway, and has been interrupted a bit by the oil shock this year, would then regain momentum in the course of 2005."" China's booming economy and a ""spectacular comeback"" in Japan - albeit one that has faltered in recent months - would help world economic recovery, the OECD said. ""Supported by strong balance sheets and high profits, the recovery of business investment should continue in North America and start in earnest in Europe,"" it added. However, the report warned: ""It remains to be seen whether continental Europe will play a strong supportive role through a marked upswing of final domestic demand."" The OECD highlighted current depressed household expenditure in Germany and the eurozone's over-reliance on export-led growth.
"	business
Irish markets reach all-time high	"Irish shares have risen to a record high, with investors persuaded to buy into the market by low inflation and strong growth forecasts.

The ISEQ index of leading shares closed up 23 points to 6661.89 on Thursday, fuelled by strong growth in banking and financial stocks. A fall in the rate of inflation to 2.3% in January gave a fresh boost to shares which have advanced 4% this month. The economy is set for strong growth in 2005 while interest rates remain low.

Several of Ireland's biggest companies saw their market value hit recent highs on Thursday. Allied Irish Banks, Ireland's biggest company by capitalisation, touched a five year peak while Bank of Ireland shares rose to their highest level since August 2002.

Telecoms firm Eircom, which recently revealed that it would re-enter the Irish mobile phone market, hit a yearly high. Analysts said that economic conditions were benign and Irish shares were still trading at a discount to other European markets. ""Ireland ticks all the boxes as far as international investors are concerned,"" Roy Asher, chief investment officer of Hibernian Investment Managers, told Reuters. ""Buoyant economic conditions are set to continue in Ireland over the next few years and Irish equities continue to offer quality growth at a reasonable valuation.""

Bernard McAlinden, head of equity research at NCB Stockbrokers, said equities represented good value compared to other investments. ""It is still looking good,"" he told Reuters. ""We have seen good economic data on Ireland which benefits the financial stocks."" Ireland's economic 'miracle' is enjoying a second wind, with 5% growth forecast for 2005 and 2006. The economy cooled markedly between 2001 and 2003 after enjoying spectacular growth of more than 10% in 2000. However, it has bounced back strongly with growth of just under 5% expected in 2004.
"	business
Japanese banking battle at an end	"Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial has withdrawn its takeover offer for rival bank UFJ Holdings, enabling the latter to merge with Mitsubishi Tokyo.

Sumitomo bosses told counterparts at UFJ of its decision on Friday, clearing the way for it to conclude a 3 trillion yen ($29bn) deal with Mitsubishi. The deal would create the world's biggest bank with assets of about 189 trillion yen ($1.8 trillion). Sumitomo's exit ends the most high profile fight in Japanese bank history.

UFJ Holdings, Japan's fourth-largest bank, has been at the centre of a fierce bid battle over the last year. Sumitomo, Japan's third-largest bank, tabled a higher offer for UFJ than its rival, valuing the company at $35bn.

However, UFJ's management was known to prefer the offer from Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group (MTFG), Japan's second-largest bank. Concerns were also raised about Sumitomo's ability to absorb UFJ and the former has now admitted defeat. ""We believe the market and most investors accept a UFJ-MTFG merger,"" Sumitomo said in a statement. ""Given the ongoing integration of UFJ and MTFG operations, persisting with our proposal may not be in the best interests of our shareholders or UFJ's.""

Mitsubishi's takeover of UFJ - which will be Japan's largest-ever takeover deal - will still have to be approved by shareholders of the two firms. However, this is expected to be a formality. Sumitomo may now turn its attention to deepening its ties with Daiwa Securities, another Japanese financial firm. The two are set to merge their venture capital operations and there has been speculation that this could lead to a full-blown merger. Japanese banks are increasingly seeking alliances to boost profits.
"	business
Rich grab half Colombia poor fund	"Half of the money put aside by the Colombian government to help the country's poor is benefiting people who do not need it, a study has found.

A total of 24.2 trillion pesos ($10.2bn; £5.5bn) is earmarked for subsidies for the poor, the government department for planning said. But it also found 12.1 trillion pesos was going to the richest part of the population, rather than to those in need. Sound distribution of the cash could cut poverty levels to 36% from 53%, the government believes. ""Resources are more than enough to reduce poverty and there is no need for more tax reforms but a better distribution,"" deputy planning director Jose Leibovich said.

Colombia has a population of about 44 million and half lives below poverty line. However, some large properties are paying less in tax as they are situated inside poor areas, which benefit from cheaper utilities such as electricity and water, government research found. Government expenditure in areas such as pensions, public services, education, property and health should be revised, Mr Leibovich said. He added that the government is now examining the report, but warned there would be no easy solution to the problem. With a good distribution of such subsidies and economic growth of just 2%, by 2019 poverty could fall as low as 15.3%, he said.
"	business
Rover deal 'may cost 2,000 jobs'	"Some 2,000 jobs at MG Rover's Midlands plant may be cut if investment in the firm by a Chinese car maker goes ahead, the Financial Times has reported.

Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp plans to shift production of the Rover 25 to China and export it to the UK, sources close to the negotiations tell the FT. But Rover told BBC News that reports of job cuts were ""speculation"". A tie-up, seen as Rover's last chance to save its Longbridge plant, has been pushed by UK Chancellor Gordon Brown. Rover confirmed the tie-up would take place ""not very far away from this time"".

Rover bosses have said they are ""confident"" the £1bn ($1.9bn) investment deal would be signed in March or early April.

Transport & General Worker's Union general secretary Tony Woodley repeated his view on Friday that all mergers led to some job cuts. He said investment in new models was needed to ensure the future of the Birmingham plant. ""This is a very crucial and delicate time and our efforts are targeted to securing new models for the company which will mean jobs for our people,"" he said. SAIC says none of its money will be paid to the four owners of Rover, who have been accused by unions of awarding themselves exorbitant salaries, the FT reports. ""SAIC is extremely concerned to ensure that its money is used to invest in the business rather than be distributed to the shareholders,"" the newspaper quotes a source close to the Chinese firm. Meanwhile, according to Chinese state press reports, small state-owned carmaker Nanjing Auto is in negotiations with Rover and SAIC to take a 20% stake in the joint venture. SAIC was unavailable for comment on the job cuts when contacted by BBC News. Rover and SAIC signed a technology-sharing agreement in August.
"	business
Ad firm WPP's profits surge 15%	"UK advertising giant WPP has posted larger-than-expected annual profits and predicted that it will outperform the market in 2005.

Pre-tax profits rose 15% from a year ago to reach £546m ($1.04bn), ahead of average analysts' forecasts of £532m. Revenues were £4.3bn while the firm's operating margins were 14.1%, which it said could reach 14.8% by 2006. During the year WPP bought US rival Grey Global, creating a giant big enough to rival sector leader Omnicom.

Chief Executive Martin Sorrell on Friday told Reuters news agency that WPP had submitted a proposal for United Business Media's NOP World market research unit. Analysts say the unit sell could sell for up to £350m. WPP in recent years has also bought firms such as Ogilvy & Mather and Cordiant Communications. It also includes the firms Young & Rubicam and J Walter Thompson. Events such as the Olympics helped boost WPP's profits in 2004. The company said the US Congressional elections and the FIFA World Cup are likely to present advertising opportunities in the near future. The long-term outlook looks ""very favourable"" because of media and technology developments and the strength of the US economy, WPP said.
"	business
US gives foreign firms extra time	"Foreign firms have been given an extra year to meet tough new corporate governance regulations imposed by the US stock market watchdog.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has extended the deadline to get in line with the rules until 15 July 2006. Many foreign firms had protested that the SEC was imposing an unfair burden. The new rules are the result of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, part of the US clean-up after corporate scandals such as Enron and Worldcom. Section 404 of the Sox Act, as the legislation is nicknamed, calls for all firms to certify that their financial reporting is in line with US rules. Big US firms already have to meet the requirements, but smaller ones and foreign-based firms which list their shares on US stock markets originally had until the middle of this year.

Over the past few months, delegations of European and other business leaders have been heading to the SEC's Washington DC headquarters to protest. They say the burden is too expensive and the timescale too short and some, particularly the UK's CBI, warned that companies would choose to let their US listings drop rather than get in line with section 404. The latest delegation from the CBI met SEC officials on Wednesday, just before the decision to relax the deadline was announced. ""I think this signifies a change of heart at the SEC,"" CBI director-general Sir Digby Jones told the BBC's Today programme. ""They have been listening to us and to many overseas companies, who have reminded America what globalisation really means: that they can't make these rules in isolation."" The SEC said it had taken into consideration the fact that foreign companies were already working to meet more onerous financial reporting rules in their home countries. The European Union, in particular, was imposing new international financial reporting standards in 2005, it noted. ""I don't underestimate the effort (compliance) will require... but this extension will provide additional time for those issuers to take a good hard look at their internal controls,"" said Donald Nicolaisen, the SEC's chief accountant.
"	business
Japanese mogul arrested for fraud	"One of Japan's best-known businessmen was arrested on Thursday on charges of falsifying shareholder information and selling shares based on the false data.

Yoshiaki Tsutsumi was once ranked as the world's richest man and ran a business spanning hotels, railways, construction and a baseball team. His is the latest in a series of arrests of top executives in Japan over business scandals. He was taken away in a van outside one of his Prince hotels in Tokyo.

There was a time when Mr Tsutsumi seemed untouchable. Inheriting a large property business from his father in the 1960s, he became one of Japan's most powerful industrialists, with close connections to many of the country's leading politicians. He used his wealth and influence to bring the Winter Olympic Games to Nagano in 1998. But last year, he was forced to resign from all the posts he held in his business empire, after being accused of falsifying the share-ownership structure of Seibu Railways, one of his companies. Under Japanese stock market rules, no listed company can be more than 80% owned by its 10 largest shareholders. Now Mr Tsutsumi faces criminal charges and the possibility of a prison sentence because he made it look as if the 10 biggest shareholders owned less than this amount. Seibu Railways has been delisted from the stock exchange, its share value has plunged and it is the target of a takeover bid.

Mr Tsutsumi's fall from grace follows the arrests of several other top executives in Japan as the authorities try to curb the murky business practices which were once widespread in Japanese companies. His determination to stay at the top at all costs may have had its roots in his childhood. The illegitimate third son of a rich father, who made his money buying up property as Japan rebuilt after World War II, he has described the demands his father made. ""I felt enormous pressure when I dined with him and it was nothing but pain,"" Tsutsumi told a weekly magazine in 1987. ""He scolded me for pouring too much soy sauce or told me fruit was not for children. He didn't let me use the silk futon, saying it's a luxury."" There have been corporate governance issues at some other Japanese companies too. Last year, twelve managers from Mitsubishi Motors were charged with covering up safety defects in their vehicles and three executives from Japan's troubled UFJ bank were charged with concealing the extent of the bank's bad loans.
"	business
Deutsche Telekom sees mobile gain	"German telecoms firm Deutsche Telekom saw strong fourth quarter profits on the back of upbeat US mobile earnings and better-than-expected asset sales.

Net profit came in at 1.4bn euros (£960m; $1.85bn), a dramatic change from the loss of 364m euros in 2003. Sales rose 2.8% to 14.96bn euros. Sales of stakes in firms including Russia's OAO Mobile Telesystems raised 1.17bn euros. This was more than expected and helped to bring debt down to 35.8bn euros.

A year ago, debt was more than 11bn euros higher. T-Mobile USA, the company's American mobile business, made a strong contribution to profits. ""It's a seminal achievement that they cut debt so low. That gives them some head room to invest in growth now,"" said Hannes Wittig, telecoms analyst at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein. The company also said it would resume paying a dividend, after two years in which it focused on cutting debt.
"	business
Chinese wine tempts Italy's Illva	"Italy's Illva Saronno has agreed to buy 33% of Changyu, the largest wine maker in China.

Changyu said in a statement to the Shenzhen stock exchange that Illva will pay 481.42m yuan ($58.16m; £30.7m), once the government approves the deal. The Italian liqueur maker will acquire the shares from the Yantai State Asset Management Bureau. Chinese wine sales are growing, the US Agriculture Department said, with wine sales in 2003 up 25% at 61.1bn yuan.

China is encouraging state-owned companies to sell shares to foreign investors. Anheuser-Busch, Heineken and Scottish & Newcastle have all invested in the Chinese beer industry in the last two years and now Illva Saronno is betting on the Chinese wine market. Yantai State Asset Management Bureau - a government agency in the north-eastern city of Yantai - owns 55% of Changyu. The state agency will also sell 10% of its stake in Changyu to another overseas company, although it didn't say who. The remaining 12% will be retained by the Yantai city government. The consumption of wine in China is still low, at just 0.22 litres per capita, said the US Agriculture Department. This compares with 59 litres in France, 12 litres in the US and three litres in Japan.
"	business
Umbro profits lifted by Euro 2004	"UK sportswear firm Umbro has posted a 222% rise in annual profit after sales of replica England football kits were boosted by the Euro 2004 tournament.

Pre-tax profit for 2004 was £15.4m ($29.4m). Umbro, which recently lost sponsorship deals with Chelsea and Celtic, said on Thursday it had signed a new four-year agreement with Scottish club Rangers. It hopes 2005 sales will benefit from the launch of a new England replica shirt ahead of the 2006 World Cup. In January, Umbro announced its sponsorship agreement with Chelsea, which gave Umbro the lucrative right to make replica shirts, would end in 2006, five years earlier than expected. The firm, which is to receive a payment from Chelsea of £24.5m, said it is ""appraising a number of additional investment opportunities as a result of this compensation"" . Chief executive Peter McGuigan said the firm plans to grow sales both in the UK and internationally.

The firm, reporting its first annual results since listing on the London Stock Exchange in June, said the UK market had seen sales growth of 8% last year. It said the launch of its Evolution X fashion range had boosted sales. Umbro supplies more than 150 teams across the world including the national sides of Ireland, Sweden and Norway. Shares in Umbro were up 1.76% at 115.5 pence in morning trade.
"	business
Fed chief warning on US deficit	"Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan has warned that allowing huge US budget deficits to continue could have ""severe"" consequences.

Speaking to the House Budget Committee he urged Congress to take action to cut the deficit, such as increasing taxes. While the US economy is growing at a ""reasonably good pace"" he warned that budget concerns were clouding the economic outlook for the US. Pension and healthcare costs posed the greatest risks to the economy, he said.

The government program faces severe financial strains in coming decades as the massive baby-boom generation retires. ""I fear that we may have already committed more physical resources to the baby-boom generation in its retirement years than our economy has the capacity to deliver. If existing promises need to be changed, those changes should be made sooner rather than later,"" Mr Greenspan said. He also warned that unless the nation sees unprecedented rises in productivity ""retirement and health programmes would need ""significant"" changes. He called on Congress to cut promised benefits for retirees, as the promised benefits for the soon-to-retire baby boom generation were much larger than the government could afford.

Meanwhile any move to narrow the deficit gap by raising taxes could pose a significant risk to the economy by dampening growth and spending, he added. He also urged Congress to reinstate lapsed rules that require tax cuts and spending to be offset elsewhere in the budget in an effort to prevent the US heading further into the red. Despite the dire warnings, Mr Greenspan did offer some good news for the short term. As US growth gathers steam and incomes rise that should lead to a narrowing of the deficit. Recent increases in defence and homeland security spending were also not expected to continue indefinitely, which should cut some costs. Since President George W Bush came to office the federal budget has swung from a record surplus to a record deficit of $412bn last year.
"	business
UK Coal plunges into deeper loss	"Shares in UK Coal have fallen after the mining group reported losses had deepened to £51.6m in 2004 from £1.2m.

The UK's biggest coal producer blamed geological problems, industrial action and ""operating flaws"" at its deep mines for its worsening fortunes. The South Yorkshire company, led by new chief executive Gerry Spindler, said it hoped to return to profit in 2006. In early trade on Thursday, its shares were down 10% at 119 pence. UK Coal said it was making ""significant progress"" in shaking up the business. It had introduced new wage structures, a new daily maintenance regime for machinery at its mines and methods to continue mining in adverse conditions. The company said these actions should ""significantly uplift earnings"". It expected 2005 to be a ""transitional year"" and to return to profitability in 2006.

The recent rise in coal prices has failed to benefit the company as most of its output had already been sold, it said. Total production costs were £1.30 per gigajoule, UK Coal said, but the average selling price was just £1.18 per gigajoule. ""We have a long journey ahead to fix these issues. We continue to make progress and great strides have already been made,"" said Mr Spindler. UK Coal operates 15 deep and surface mines across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Yorkshire, the West Midlands, Northumberland and Durham.
"	business
Saudi ministry to employ women	"Women will be employed in Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry for the first time this year, Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal has been reported as saying.

The move comes as the conservative country inches open the door to working women. Last year, Crown Prince Abdullah, the de-facto ruler, told government departments to put plans in place for employing women. But progress has been slow, reports from the country say.

Earlier this week, the local Arab News said Labour Minister Ghazi al-Gosaibi had ""caused uproar"" when he said his ministry was having difficulty hiring women because they demanded segregated offices. The newspaper said many Saudi women found his explanation ""a pitiful excuse for not employing women"". Women now make up more than half of all graduates from Saudi universities but only 5% of the workforce. ""Our educational reforms have created a new generation of highly-educated and professionally trained Saudi women who are acquiring their rightful position in Saudi society,"" Arab News quoted Prince Saud as saying. ""I am proud to mention here that this year we shall have women working in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the first time.""
"	business
Japan economy slides to recession	"The Japanese economy has officially gone back into recession for the fourth time in a decade.

Gross domestic product fell by 0.1% in the last three months of 2004. The fall reflects weak exports and a slowdown in consumer spending, and follows similar falls in GDP in the two previous quarters. The Tokyo stock market fell after the figures were announced, but rose again on a widespread perception that the economy will recover later this year. On Wednesday, the government revised growth figures from earlier in 2004 which, when taking into account performance in the most recent period, effectively tips Japan into recession.

A previous estimate of 0.1% growth between July and September was downgraded to a 0.3% decline. A recession is commonly defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth, although the Japanese government takes other factors into account when judging the status of its economy.

Figures released by the government's Cabinet Office showed that GDP, on an annualised basis, fell 0.5% in the last three months of 2004. However, politicians remain upbeat about prospects for an economic boost later in the year. ""The economy has some soft patches but if you look at the bigger picture, it is in a recovery stage,"" said Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Heizo Takenaka. Gross domestic product measures the overall value of goods and services produced in a country. ""The economy must be assessed comprehensively and we cannot look at GDP alone,"" Mr Takenaka stressed.

Ministers pointed to the fact that consumer spending had been depressed by one-off factors such as the unseasonably mild winter. Analysts said the figures were disappointing but argued that Japan's largest companies had been recording healthy profits and capital spending was on the rise. Japan's economy grew 2.6% overall last year - fuelled by a strong performance in the first few months - and is forecast to see growth of 2.1% in 2005. However, the economy's fragile recovery remains dependent on an upturn in consumer spending, a fall in the value of the yen and an improvement in global economies. ""The results came in at the lower end of expectations but we shouldn't be too pessimistic about the current state and the outlook for the economy,"" said Naoki Iizuka, senior economist at the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute. Japan's economy has seen stretches of moderate growth over the past decade but has periodically slipped back into recession.
"	business
US crude prices surge above $53	"US crude prices have soared to fresh four-month highs above $53 in the US as refinery problems propelled petrol prices to an all-time high.

US light sweet crude futures jumped to $53.09 a barrel in New York before closing at $53.03. The gains tracked a surge in US gasoline futures to a record high of $1.4850 a gallon. The jump followed a fire at Western Refining Company's refinery in Texas, which shut down petrol production. A spokesman for the group was unable to say when the production unit would be back up and running. ""This market simply wants to go up,"" Citigroup Global Markets analyst Kyle Cooper told Reuters news agency. Ed Silliere, analyst at Energy Merchant, added: ""Gasoline is up because of the refinery issues in Texas, which means there will be a scramble for product in the (US) Gulf Coast.""

Elsewhere, a refinery in Houston was closed due to mechanical problems, while on Tuesday production at BP's Texas City refinery was taken down for a short time. In the approach to Spring, the market becomes much more sensitive to problems with petrol production as dealers anticipate rising demand for fuel ahead of the holiday season. The rise in prices came despite a US government report that showed domestic supplies of fuel oil and fuel were rising. Meanwhile, oil production cartel Opec's recent announcement that it was now unlikely to cut production levels has also failed to calm fears on the market. Oil prices are roughly 45% higher than a year ago and have risen sharply in recent weeks due to a combination of colder weather, the declining value of the dollar and fears that Opec could rein in production to head off a seasonal drop in demand. Instability in Iraq and underlying fears about terrorism have also played a part in the rally.
"	business
Industrial output falls in Japan	"Japanese industrial output fell in October while unemployment rose, casting further doubt on the strength of the country's economic recovery.

Production dropped 1.6% in October, reflecting a decline in exports, while unemployment levels edged up 0.1% to 4.7%, slightly higher than forecast. The economy has grown for six quarters but growth slowed dramatically in the last quarter amid weaker global demand. Japan's government remains optimistic due to strong domestic demand.

Analysts had been forecasting a 0.1% rise in month on month industrial output.

According to figures from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the decline was led by a fall in demand for electronic parts for mobile phones and digital televisions. Although inventories fell 0.7% month on month, they were 36% higher than a year ago. ""It's a sign that the economy's adjustment phase is stronger than expected,"" said Takashi Yamanaka, an economist with UFJ Bank. Japan downgraded its overall economic assessment earlier this month for the first time in a year.

Growth slowed to 0.3% in the quarter ending September 30, down from 6.3% in the first quarter of 2004. Experts believe the economy -which stagnated for most of the 1990s -may be entering a softer patch on the back of rising oil prices and the falling dollar. Japanese government officials played down the latest data, arguing that domestic consumer demand was still resilient. ""The outlook for November is positive so I don't think one can say that conditions have worsened just because of the fall in October,"" said a METI official. Despite the rise in unemployment, jobless figures are still some way below historical highs of recent years. The comparatively weak economic date preyed on shares with the Nikkei down 1% in afternoon trade.
"	business
Ryanair in $4bn Boeing plane deal	"Budget airline Ryanair has placed an order for 70 Boeing 737-800 planes, in a deal valued at $4bn (£2.1bn) which should lead to 2,500 new Ryanair jobs.

It also has an option for a further 70 aircraft, a move which brings the Ryanair/Boeing order book up to 225 firm orders and options on 193 more. Ryanair said the new planes would help it to cut operating costs further. The carrier reported a drop in quarterly profit earlier this year after it was hit by higher fuel costs. However, when it reported the results, the airline was upbeat about prospects for 2005, despite tough competition in the budget airline market.

Ryanair chairman David Bonderman said that the 737-800 had ""significantly reduced our unit operating costs and allowed us to reduce air fares each year for the last five years"".

""With this new order and new pricing in place, Ryanair expects that unit operating costs (excluding fuel) will continue to fall each year for the next five years,"" he added. At the end of this year, Ryanair will have taken delivery of about 100 new planes, while the 70 new orders are due for delivery between 2008 and 2012. The airline said that when all these planes have been delivered, it will be able to carry more than 70 million passengers a year, making it Europe's largest airline. About 2,500 new jobs should be created in the next seven years, it added. The order can be seen as good news for Boeing, which in recent years has been overtaken by European plane maker Airbus as the world's biggest-selling plane maker.
"	business
Parmalat to return to stockmarket	"Parmalat, the Italian dairy company which went bust after an accounting scandal, hopes to be back on the Italian stock exchange in July.

The firm gained protection from creditors in 2003 after revealing debts of 14bn euros ($18.34bn; £9.6bn). This was eight times higher than it had previously stated. In a statement issued on Wednesday night, Parmalat Finanziaria detailed administrators' latest plans for re-listing the shares of the group.

As part of the re-listing on the Italian stock exchange, creditors' debts are expected to be converted into shares through two new share issues amounting to more than 2bn euros. The company's creditors will be asked to vote on the plan later this year. The plan is likely to give creditors of Parmalat Finanziaria shares worth about 5.7% of the debts they are owed. This is lower than the 11.3% creditors previously hoped to receive. Creditors of Parmalat, the main operating company, are likely to see the percentage of debt they receive fall from 7.3% to 6.9%.

Several former top Parmalat executives are under investigation for the fraud scandal. Lawmakers said on Wednesday night Enrico Bondi, the turnaround specialist appointed by the Italian government as Parmalat's chief executive, spoke positively about the company during a closed-door hearing of the Chamber of Deputies industry commission. ""Bondi supplied us with elements of positive results on the industrial positions and on the history of debt which will find a point of solution through the Parmalat group's quotation on the market in July,"" Italian news agency Apcom quoted several lawmakers as saying in a statement.
"	business
BMW cash to fuel Mini production	"Less than four years after the new Mini was launched, German car maker BMW has announced £100m of new investment.

Some 200 new jobs are to be created at the Oxford factory, including modernised machinery and a new body shell production building. The result of the investment could be to raise output to more than 200,000 cars from 2007. The rise, from 189,000 last year, is a response to rapidly-rising demand and could help wipe out waiting lists. Before Wednesday's announcement, BMW had invested some £280m in Mini production.

Since its launch during summer 2001, the new Mini has gone from strength to strength.

Last year, almost one in six cars sold by the BMW group was a Mini. The company admits that the success of the brand came despite scepticism from many in the industry. ""Our decision to produce a new Mini was not received well right away,"" said Norbert Reithofer, a member of the BMW management board. Initially, BMW said it would produce 100,000 Mini models a year at its vast Cowley factory on the outskirts of Oxford, but the target was quickly reached, then raised, time and time again. Not everyone is convinced that the boom can continue. ""The risk is that after they've invested massively in the brand, demand tapers off like it did with the new VW Beetle,"" said Brad Wernle, from Automotive News Europe.

The price of the car has also gone up. When it was launched, the cheapest Mini cost just more than £10,000. These days, buyers will have to fork out almost £11,500 to own a new Mini One, or even more for the Cooper S which costs up to £17,730. The Mini Convertible, which was launched last spring, costs up to £15,690 for the top model, and there is even a waiting list. Second-hand Minis are not cheap either. A Mini One bought when the model was launched should still fetch at least £8,000 for the cheapest model, while a used Cooper S is likely to be priced from £12,556, according to the-car buying website Parker's. The consumers' association Which operates with slightly different numbers, yet it confirms that the Mini Cooper 1.6 depreciates slower than any other car, other than the Mercedes Benz C180 SE and the BMW 1 Series 116i SE.

The Cowley factory, which initially seemed far too large a production plant for just 100,000 Minis, is increasingly being put to good use.

There are plans to tear down old buildings and build new ones and there are rumours that a new paint shop could be included in the plans. BMW's Mini adventure has made good much of what went wrong during its stewardship of the UK car maker Rover which it sold for £10 five years ago to the Phoenix consortium. In 1999, when BMW still owned Rover, the Oxford factory was producing the award-winning Rover 75. During that year, 3,500 people produced 56,000 cars. Last year, in the same factory, almost four times as many vehicles were produced by just 4,500 Mini-workers. The Mini factory's current output is equally impressive when compared with the main Rover factory in Longbridge, which in 1999 produced 180,000 Rover cars. Last year, MG Rover, which employs more than 6,000 people, produced just 110,000 cars, though it hopes to land a deal with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) that could help double the number of cars produced at Longbridge. Indeed, Mini is not only producing more cars than MG Rover does; it remains ahead even when the current sales of Land Rovers and Range Rovers (which are made by the former Rover unit that BMW sold to Ford) are taken into account.
"	business
Bad weather hits Nestle sales	"A combination of bad weather, rising raw material costs and the sluggish European economy has hit sales at Swiss food and drink giant Nestle.

Revenue dipped 1.4% to 86.7bn Swiss francs ($74.6bn; £39.1bn) in 2004 as sales of ice cream and mineral water were dampened by the wet summer. However, Nestle's profits margins were helped by a strong performance in the Americas and China. Nestle is to raise its dividend by 11% after paying back some of its debt.

Nestle said that the strength of the Swiss franc against the US dollar, the disposal of businesses and challenging trading conditions in Europe all dented sales. A poor summer across the continent - in contrast to the prolonged heat wave in 2003 - ""severely affected"" demand for ice cream. Sales of bottled water also fell, although chocolate, coffee, frozen goods and petcare products performed better.

Elsewhere, Nestle said it had enjoyed an ""exceptional"" year in North America, outperforming the market in terms of sales growth. Nestle added that it had performed strongly in Africa and Asia despite the impact of high oil prices and political instability. Nestle's total earnings before interest remained broadly flat over the past year, despite the company managing to boost profit margins. As well as increasing its dividend, Nestle plans to buy back shares worth 1bn Swiss francs ($861m; £451m). Looking forward, Nestle forecasts organic earnings growth of about 5% in 2005, although it warned that trading would remain just as competitive.

Uncertainty remains over the future of Perrier, the iconic French mineral water owned by Nestle. Perrier has been locked in a long-standing dispute with unions about productivity levels at the business, which has lead Nestle to consider selling the firm. ""The option of selling is Perrier is still on the table,"" chief executive Peter Brabeck-Letmathe confirmed on Thursday.
"	business
Fiat mulls Ferrari market listing	"Ferrari could be listed on the stock market as part of an overhaul of Fiat's carmaking operations, the Financial Times has reported.

It said Fiat was set to restructure its business after reaching a $2bn (1.53bn euros; £1.05bn) settlement with GM about Fiat's ownership. Steps being considered include listing Ferrari and bringing Maserati and Alfa Romeo closer together, it said. Despite strong sales of Alfa Romeo, Fiat's car business is making a loss.

Under the proposals - which the paper said could be announced within days - the iconic sportscar maker could be listed separately on the market. Fiat owns a 56% stake in Ferrari -best known for its dominant Formula One motor racing team - having first bought into the business in 1969. It considered floating Ferrari in 2002 but opted to sell a minority stake to Italian bank Mediobanca for 775m euros ($1bn). That sale valued Ferrari - which owns the Maserati brand - at 2.3bn euros. The price tag would change if Maserati was stripped out. The Financial Times said Fiat may transfer Maserati within its wholly- owned Alfa Romeo division in an effort to exploit commercial synergies. Such a move would help Alfa Romeo and Maserati to share marketing, distribution and research & development costs. Maserati and Ferrari sell about 10,000 cars between them and both companies broke even in 2003.

Fiat, Italy's largest private sector employer, did not comment on the reported changes. Fiat recently negotiated an end to its alliance with General Motors. The US firm agreed to pay $2bn to exit an agreement under which it could have been liable to buy Fiat outright. Analysts said the reported restructuring was evidence of the greater flexibility which Fiat now had to develop the business.
"	business
Italy to get economic action plan	"Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will unveil plans aimed at kickstarting the country's sputtering economy on Thursday night in Rome.

He will present an ""Action Plan for the Development of Italy"" in a meeting with industrialists and trade union leaders. Mr Berlusconi is expected to table reforms aimed at boosting research and development (R&D) spending, and the competitiveness of small firms. Also in focus will be bankruptcy laws and the slow pace of the legal system. The prime minister is scheduled to start the meeting at 1830 GMT.

The government has been accused of underfunding R&D, making it harder for Italy to compete with other European nations and leading to a ""brain-drain"" of the country's brightest talents. Analysts say that hiring and firing staff is still too difficult and expensive, hampering the development of small- and medium-sized businesses. As a result, they say, Italy's corporate landscape is filled with numerous smaller companies that are often reluctant to become bigger because of all the extra hassle that would accompany the running of a larger firm. At the same time, bankruptcy laws make it difficult for failed company directors to set up new businesses and emerge from their debts, a situation that is hampering Italy's entrepreneurial spirit.

The government says that it has set about tackling the problems, adding that getting growth going was the responsibility of all of Italy's 60 million population. According to Il Sole 24 Ore, Italy's business newspaper, the government will focus on ""opening up markets, infrastructure, research, making more incentives available, bankruptcy law, the slow pace of the justice system"".

Mr Berlusconi has previously promised to cut taxes by 6.5bn euros ($8.6bn; £4.5bn) this year in an effort to get people and companies to spend. He has also promised to cap spending on transport, education and health so as to trim the ballooning budget deficit. Italy plans to raise as much as 25bn euros from privatisations in 2005, including a partial flotation of the post office and utility Enel. Critics argue that these moves do not go far enough and could make Italy's problems worse. Limiting government spending will lead to job losses, they counter, while the income tax cuts will have a negligible effect on sentiment and ultimately favour the wealthy.

The country has been one of the eurozone's worst economic performers in recent years. Growth was 1.1% in 2004, up from just 0.3% in 2003 and 0.4% in 2002 - an improvement but still a long way from ideal. At the same time, business and consumer confidence has dipped and analysts have raised concerns that what little spending there is stems from Italians dipping into their savings accounts or using credit cards. Without a pick up in national growth, they say, the money could eventually run out, bringing Italy's economy to a juddering halt. Consumer spending accounts for about two-thirds of Italy's economy.
"	business
Weak dollar hits Reuters	"Revenues at media group Reuters slipped 11% during 2004, mainly due to the weakness of the dollar, the group said.

The company said it was optimistic about growth even as revenues slipped 11% from £3.24bn ($6.13bn) in 2003 to £2.89bn in 2004. Reuters beat profit forecasts, posting a 52% rise in profits for the year to £198m from the £130m seen a year earlier. Reuters also beat its savings target for 2004, delivering £234m of cuts. Under its three-year Fast Forward turnaround plan it had aimed to save £220m during the 12 months to 31 December.

Reuters also managed to slow a decline in underlying revenues to 5.4% from 10.2% in 2003 and cut its debt back to £160m from £610m a year earlier. The news and financial data seller said the year had begun well, adding it expected ""further gradual improvement"" in the second quarter of the year after good January sales. It added it was planning to deliver a further £105m of savings over the coming year - but said it expects to be hit with an £80m restructuring charge to pay for the cost of moving from Fleet Street to new headquarters in London at Canary Wharf. ""Improving customer relationships, more competitive products and continued strong cost discipline position us well for 2005,"" chief executive Tom Glocer said, adding the company was beginning ""to look beyond recovery to growth"".
"	business
Hyundai to build new India plant	"South Korea's Hyundai Motor has announced that it plans to build a second plant in India to meet the country's growing demand for cars.

The company didn't give details of its investment but it said the new plant would produce 150,000 cars a year. This will boost the annual production capacity of the company - India's second-largest car manufacturer - to 400,000 units. Hyundai expects its sales in India to grow 16% to 250,000 in 2005. By 2010, it expects to nearly double sales to 400,000 cars. The new plant will be built close to the existing one in Chennai, in the southern province of Tamil Nadu.

South Korea's top car maker estimates that the Indian market will grow 15% this year, to 920,000 vehicles, reaching 1.6 million vehicles by 2010. Demand in India has been driven by the poor state of public transport and the very low level of car ownership, analysts said. Figures show that currently only eight people per thousand are car owners. ""We desperately need to expand our production in order to meet growing demand in the Indian auto market, which is growing over 12 percent every year, and to top our competitors,"" chairman Chung Mong-koo said in the statement. He said the company plans to use India as a base for exports to Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. The company - which controls half of the South Korean's market - aims to become a global top five auto maker by 2010.
"	business
SA unveils 'more for all' budget	"The South African government has put tax cuts and increased social spending at the centre of its latest budget.

Aiming to both stir economic growth and aid the country's poor, finance minister Trevor Manuel said the focus of the 2005 budget was ""more for all"". The tax cuts target firms and individuals, cutting corporate tax from 30% to 29% and offering income tax cuts worth 6.8bn rand ($1.2bn; £910m). Spending on health and education will rise by 9.4% and 8.1% respectively. Spending on housing and sanitation will rise by 12%. All the spending increases will run over the next three years.

Unveiling the 418bn-rand budget to parliament, Mr Manuel said the South African economy had grown by an average of 3.2% over the past four years, slightly below the African average of 4%.

He predicted that the South African economy would grow by 4.3% in 2005 and 4.2% in 2006. Mr Manuel added that inflation fell to 4.3% in 2004 and is expected to remain at between 3% and 6% from now until at least 2008, helped by interest rates which are at their lowest level in 24 years. Given that both corporate and personal taxes are being cut - under the new measures, those earning less than 35,000 rand a year will be exempt from income tax - the extra 22.3bn rand in social spending will be partly met by higher fuel, tobacco and alcohol taxes.

""In this budget, the focus is on more for all, not more for some, and not a hell of a lot more for a few, but spread across all of South Africa,"" said Mr Manuel. He said that the economic situation was a ""marked improvement"" on the position at the end of apartheid, but acknowledged that more needed to be done to improve the lives and livelihoods of the disadvantaged. About 280,000 jobs a year have been created in South Africa since 2000 but unemployment remains high, currently close to 30%. Economist Colen Garrow said the budget looked as if it would stimulate economic growth. ""It's pleasant to see the cut in company taxes, it's a good incentive for business,"" he said.
"	business
BMW drives record sales in Asia	"BMW has forecast sales growth of at least 10% in Asia this year after registering record sales there in 2004.

The luxury carmaker saw strong sales of its three marques - BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce - in Asia last year after the launch of three new models. The company, which is vying with Mercedes-Benz for the title of leading premium carmaker, is confident about its prospects for the region in 2005. It is launching a revamped version of its 3-Series saloon class next month.

BMW sold nearly 95,000 cars in Asia last year, up 2.6% on 2003.

BMW-brand sales rose 2.3% to 80,600 while sales of Mini models rose 3.6% to 14,800. There was also a significant increase in sales of Rolls-Royces on the continent. BMW sold more than 100 of the iconic models compared with just ten the previous year. The German carmaker is aiming to boost annual sales in Asia to 150,000 by 2008. ""Here in Asia, we consider a double-digit increase in retail on the order of 10 to 15% to be realistic on the basis of current features,"" said Helmut Panke, BMW's group chief executive.

China remains the main area of concern for BMW after sales there fell 16% last year. However, BMW is hopeful of a much better year in 2005 as its direct investment in China begins to pay dividends. The company only began assembling luxury high-powered sedans in China in 2003. 2004 was generally a good year for BMW, which saw revenues from its core car-making operations rise 11%.
"	business
Economy 'stronger than forecast'	"The UK economy probably grew at a faster rate in the third quarter than the 0.4% reported, according to Bank of England deputy governor Rachel Lomax.

Private sector business surveys suggest a stronger economy than official estimates, Ms Lomax said. Other surveys collectively show a rapid slowdown in UK house price growth, she pointed out. This means that despite a strong economic growth, base rates will probably stay on hold at 4.75%. Official data comes from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Though reliable, ONS data takes longer to publish, so now the BoE is calling for faster delivery of data so it can make more effective policy decisions. ""Recent work by the Bank has shown that private sector surveys add value, even when preliminary ONS estimates are available,"" Ms Lomax said in a speech to the North Wales Business Club.

The ONS is due to publish its second estimate of third quarter growth on Friday. ""The MPC judges that overall growth was a little higher in the third quarter than the official data currently indicate,"" Ms Lomax said. The Bank said successful monetary policy depends on having good information. Rachel Lomax cited the late 1980s as an example of a time when weak economic figures were published, but substantially revised upwards years later.

""The statistical fog surrounding the true state of the economy has proved a particularly potent breeding ground for policy errors in the past,"" she said. Improving the quality of national statistics is the single the best way of making sure the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) makes the right decisions, she said. The Bank of England is working in tandem with the ONS to improve the quality and speed of delivery of data. Her remarks follow criticism from the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, which said the MPC had held interest rates too high given that inflation was way below the 2% target.

A slowdown in the housing market and this year's surge in oil prices has made economic forecasting all the more tricky, leading to a more uncertain outlook. ""This year rising oil prices and a significant slowdown in the housing market have awoken bad memories of the 1970s and 1980s,"" Ms Lomax said. ""The MPC will be doing well if it can achieve the same stability over the next decade as we have enjoyed over the past 10 years."" Decisions on interest rates are made after the MPC gathers together the range of indicators available every month. The clearest signals come when all indicators are pointing the same direction, Ms Lomax intimated. ""In economic assessment, there is safety in numbers.""
"	business
Electrolux to export Europe jobs	"Electrolux saw its shares rise 14% on Tuesday after it said it would be shifting more of its manufacturing to low-cost countries.

The Swedish firm, the world's largest maker of home appliances, said it is to relocate about 10 of its 27 plants in western Europe and North America. It did not say which facilities would be affected, but intends moving them to Asia, eastern Europe and Mexico. The company has two manufacturing sites in County Durham. It makes lawn and garden products in Newton Aycliffe, and cookers and ovens in Spennymoor. The Newton Aycliffe plant could also be affected by Electrolux's separate announcement that it is to spin-off its outdoor products unit into a new separate company.

Electrolux's subsidiary brands include AEG, Zanussi and Frigidaire. The company said it was speeding up its restructuring programme, which aims to save between £190m and £265m annually from 2009. ""We see that about half the plants in high-cost countries - that is around 10 - are at risk,"" said Electrolux chief executive Hans Straberg. ""It looks pretty grim,"" said Swedish trades union official Ulf Carlsson. ""What are we going to end up producing in Sweden?""
"	business
Worldcom ex-boss launches defence	"Lawyers defending former WorldCom chief Bernie Ebbers against a battery of fraud charges have called a company whistleblower as their first witness.

Cynthia Cooper, WorldCom's ex-head of internal accounting, alerted directors to irregular accounting practices at the US telecoms giant in 2002. Her warnings led to the collapse of the firm following the discovery of an $11bn (£5.7bn) accounting fraud. Mr Ebbers has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud and conspiracy.

Prosecution lawyers have argued that Mr Ebbers orchestrated a series of accounting tricks at WorldCom, ordering employees to hide expenses and inflate revenues to meet Wall Street earnings estimates. But Ms Cooper, who now runs her own consulting business, told a jury in New York on Wednesday that external auditors Arthur Andersen had approved WorldCom's accounting in early 2001 and 2002. She said Andersen had given a ""green light"" to the procedures and practices used by WorldCom. Mr Ebber's lawyers have said he was unaware of the fraud, arguing that auditors did not alert him to any problems.

Ms Cooper also said that during shareholder meetings Mr Ebbers often passed over technical questions to the company's finance chief, giving only ""brief"" answers himself. The prosecution's star witness, former WorldCom financial chief Scott Sullivan, has said that Mr Ebbers ordered accounting adjustments at the firm, telling him to ""hit our books"". However, Ms Cooper said Mr Sullivan had not mentioned ""anything uncomfortable"" about WorldCom's accounting during a 2001 audit committee meeting. Mr Ebbers could face a jail sentence of 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing. WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2004, and is now known as MCI. Last week, MCI agreed to a buyout by Verizon Communications in a deal valued at $6.75bn.
"	business
Insurance bosses plead guilty	"Another three US insurance executives have pleaded guilty to fraud charges stemming from an ongoing investigation into industry malpractice.

Two executives from American International Group (AIG) and one from Marsh & McLennan were the latest. The investigation by New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer has now obtained nine guilty pleas. The highest ranking executive pleading guilty on Tuesday was former Marsh senior vice president Joshua Bewlay.

He admitted one felony count of scheming to defraud and faces up to four years in prison. A Marsh spokeswoman said Mr Bewlay was no longer with the company. Mr Spitzer's investigation of the US insurance industry looked at whether companies rigged bids and fixed prices. Last month Marsh agreed to pay $850m (£415m) to settle a lawsuit filed by Mr Spitzer, but under the settlement it ""neither admits nor denies the allegations"".
"	business
Further rise in UK jobless total	"The UK's jobless total rose for the second month in a row in December, official figures show.

The number of people out of work rose 32,000 to 1.41 million in the last three months of 2004, even as 90,000 more people were in employment. Average earnings rose by 4.3% in the year to December up from November's 4.2%, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) added. Meanwhile, the benefit claimant total fell 11,000 to 813,200 last month. Throughout 2004, the number of people in work increased by 296,000 to 28.52 million - the highest figure since records began in 1971.

The apparent discrepancy between rising unemployment and record numbers in work can be explained by an increase in the working population and a fall in those who are economically inactive. While the UK's jobless rate rose to 4.7% from 4.6% in the previous quarter, the rate still remains one of the lowest in the world, compared with 12.1% in Germany, 10.4% in Spain and 9.7% in France. But, despite more people being in work, the manufacturing sector continued to suffer, with 104,000 workers axed during the last quarter of 2004 - pushing employment in the sector to a record low of 3.24 million by the end of last year. The figures prompted some analysts to forecast that the Bank of England will almost certainly raise rates this year. Marc Ostwald, a strategist at Monument Securities told Reuters that while no immediate market impact could be expected, ""it is enough to underline that they (the BoE) will be more hawkish on rates"".
"	business
Wembley firm won't make a profit	"Shares in Multiplex Group, which is building the new Wembley stadium, fell as much as 19% after it said it would not make any money on the project.

The Australian firm said it would only break even on the 1.2bn Australian dollars (£458m; $874m) rebuild, after a rise in costs on the work. Any profits would depend on the outcome of legal cases resulting from a change in steel contractor, it added. It cut A$68m from profit targets for Wembley and another UK project.

Investors were shaken by the news and the firm's shares fell to a four month low of A$4.50, before recovering to close 16% down at A$4.67. The decline came despite Multiplex reporting an 11% rise in pre-tax profits to A$67.7m for 2004 and reaffirming its 2005 profit forecasts. Increased costs at Wembley and a separate development in London's Docklands saw Multiplex's construction division report profits of A$35.1m.

The firm said the result was below expectations but stressed that the majority of its UK projects - which also include the White City redevelopment scheme in west London - were performing strongly.

To recoup any profit from Wembley, where the firm changed its steel contractor due to a legal dispute, Multiplex will have to win legal claims against subcontractors. These claims could take up to two years to resolve. ""Multiplex believes its claim are sound and ultimately will exceed the level needed to support the break even position,"" it said. ""It is expected that profits will be possible in future periods as the claims are finalised."" Wembley Stadium is to due to be completed in January and will officially open for the 2006 FA Cup Final. Analysts expressed concern at the unexpected paring back in profit. ""Such a big writeback on the Wembley project in such a short period has impacted on management credibility,"" Simon Wheatley, from Goldman Sachs, told Reuters.
"	business
Cars pull down US retail figures	"US retail sales fell 0.3% in January, the biggest monthly decline since last August, driven down by a heavy fall in car sales.

The 3.3% fall in car sales had been expected, coming after December's 4% rise in car sales, fuelled by generous pre-Christmas special offers. Excluding the car sector, US retail sales were up 0.6% in January, twice what some analysts had been expecting. US retail spending is expected to rise in 2005, but not as quickly as in 2004.

Steve Gallagher, US chief economist at SG Corporate & Investment Banking, said January's figures were ""decent numbers"".

""We are not seeing the numbers that we saw in the second half of 2004, but they are still pretty healthy,"" he added. Sales at appliance and electronic stores were down 0.6% in January, while sales at hardware stores dropped by 0.3% and furniture store sales dipped 0.1%. Sales at clothing and clothing accessory stores jumped 1.8%, while sales at general merchandise stores, a category that includes department stores, rose by 0.9%. These strong gains were in part put down to consumers spending gift vouchers they had been given for Christmas.

Sales at restaurants, bars and coffee houses rose by 0.3%, while grocery store sales were up 0.5%. In December, overall retail sales rose by 1.1%. Excluding the car sector, sales rose by just 0.3%. Parul Jain, deputy chief economist at Nomura Securities International, said consumer spending would continue to rise in 2005, only at a slower rate of growth than in 2004. ""Consumers continue to retain their strength in the first quarter,"" he said. Van Rourke, a bond strategist at Popular Securities, agreed that the latest retail sales figures were ""slightly stronger than expected"".
"	business
Lufthansa may sue over Bush visit	"German airline Lufthansa may sue federal agencies for damages after the arrival of US president George W Bush disrupted flights.

Lufthansa said that it may lose millions of euros as a result of Air Force One landing at Frankfurt airport. Flights were affected for an hour on Wednesday morning, double the time that had been expected, leading to cancellations and delays. Lufthansa accounts for six out of every 10 planes using Frankfurt's airport.

""We are doing research into the possibilities we have,"" Michael Lamberty, a Lufthansa spokesman told the BBC. ""We are checking if there is action to be taken and in which courts it could be taken."" Mr Lamberty explained that the company did not plan to pursue Germany's air traffic controllers' organisation or the airport authority but wanted instead to see if it was possible to sue the German federal agencies that gave the orders. The company said that it had to cancel 77 short and medium-distance flights, affecting about 5,000 passengers. Long-haul travellers were not disrupted.

Central to the problem was that instead of half an hour, the arrival of President Bush on the German leg of his European tour took the best part of an hour, Lufthansa said. During that time, restrictions were put on planes taxiing, taking off and landing at Frankfurt's Rhein-Main airport. The extra time taken by President Bush and his entourage meant that there was a knock-on effect that led to significant delays. Mr Lamberty said that 92 outgoing flights and 86 income flights were delayed by an average of an hour following President Bush's arrival, affecting almost 17,000 passengers. Despite the problems, Mr Lamberty said that it was not certain that Lufthansa would take legal action.
"	business
EU aiming to fuel development aid	"European Union finance ministers meet on Thursday to discuss proposals, including a tax on jet fuel, to boost development aid for poorer nations.

The policy makers are to ask for a report into how more development money can be raised, the EU said. The world's richest countries have said they want to increase the amount of aid they give to 0.7% of their annual gross national income by 2015. Airlines have reacted strongly against the proposed fuel levy.

Profits have been under pressure in the airline industry, with low-cost firms driving down prices and demand dipping after the 11 September terrorist attacks and the outbreak of the killer SARS virus.

Things have picked up, but some European and US companies are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. At present, the fuel used by airlines enjoys either a very low tax rate or is untaxed in EU member states. ""Of course we applaud humanitarian initiatives, but why target the airlines?"" said Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus, secretary general of the Association of European Airlines. ""Our industry is in the midst of a fundamental crisis...only to be once again confronted with a measure designed to increase our costs,"" he continued.

The EU sought to allay the airlines' fears, stressing that Thursday's meeting was only a first step and that other proposals were also under consideration. It added that any plan to levy taxes on jet fuel ""should not hinder the competitiveness of the airlines and that they themselves will not be solely funding development"". Any tax would only be implemented after full consultation with the airlines, the EU said. There is thought to be widespread support for the plan - tabled by France and Germany following the recent G7 meeting of the world's richest nations - from EU ministers. The issue of poverty in Africa and South Asia has forced itself to the top of the politicial agenda, with politicians and campaigners calling for more to be done. At their meeting in London, G7 finance ministers backed plans to write off up to 100% of the debts of some of the world's poorest countries.
"	business
German business confidence slides	"German business confidence fell in February knocking hopes of a speedy recovery in Europe's largest economy.

Munich-based research institute Ifo said that its confidence index fell to 95.5 in February from 97.5 in January, its first decline in three months. The study found that the outlook in both the manufacturing and retail sectors had worsened. Observers had been hoping that a more confident business sector would signal that economic activity was picking up.

""We're surprised that the Ifo index has taken such a knock,"" said DZ bank economist Bernd Weidensteiner. ""The main reason is probably that the domestic economy is still weak, particularly in the retail trade."" Economy and Labour Minister Wolfgang Clement called the dip in February's Ifo confidence figure ""a very mild decline"". He said that despite the retreat, the index remained at a relatively high level and that he expected ""a modest economic upswing"" to continue.

Germany's economy grew 1.6% last year after shrinking in 2003. However, the economy contracted by 0.2% during the last three months of 2004, mainly due to the reluctance of consumers to spend. Latest indications are that growth is still proving elusive and Ifo president Hans-Werner Sinn said any improvement in German domestic demand was sluggish. Exports had kept things going during the first half of 2004, but demand for exports was then hit as the value of the euro hit record levels making German products less competitive overseas. On top of that, the unemployment rate has been stuck at close to 10% and manufacturing firms, including DaimlerChrysler, Siemens and Volkswagen, have been negotiating with unions over cost cutting measures. Analysts said that the Ifo figures and Germany's continuing problems may delay an interest rate rise by the European Central Bank. Eurozone interest rates are at 2%, but comments from senior officials have recently focused on the threat of inflation, prompting fears that interest rates may rise.
"	business
FAO warns on impact of subsidies	"Billions of farmers' livelihoods are at risk from falling commodity prices and protectionism, the UN's Food & Agriculture Organisation has warned.

Trade barriers and subsidies ""severely"" distort the market, the FAO report on the ""State of Agricultural Commodity Markets 2004"" said. As a result, the 2.5 billion people in the developing world who rely on farming face food insecurity. The most endangered are those who live in the least-developed countries. The FAO report said that support for farmers in industrialised nations was equivalent to 30 times the amount provided as aid for agricultural development in poor countries.

The FAO has urged the World Trade Organisation to swiftly conclude negotiations to liberalise trade, easing developing countries' access to the world market. It also criticised the high tariffs imposed by both developed and developing nations. It recommends that developing countries reduce their own tariffs to encourage trade and take advantage of market liberalisation.

According to the organisation, subsidies and high tariffs have a strong impact on the trade of products such as cotton and rice. Global exports of these products are mainly in the hands of the European Union and the US, who - thanks to subsidies - sell them at very low prices. In fact, almost 30 wealthy nations spend more than $300bn (£158.8bn; 230.9bn euros) in agricultural subsidies. The market situation has divided developing nations in two groups, the FAO said. The first group have a reasonably diverse range of agricultural products while in the second group, agriculture lies largely in the hands of small-scale producers. For 43 developing countries, more than 20% of their export incomes come from the sale of just one product. These countries are mainly situated in Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.
"	business
India seeks to boost construction	"India has cleared a proposal allowing up to 100% foreign direct investment in its construction sector.

Kamal Nath, Commerce and Industry Minister, announced the decision in Delhi on Thursday following a cabinet meeting. Analysts say improving India's infrastructure will boost foreign investment in other sectors too. The Indian government's decision has spread good cheer in the construction sector, according to some Indian firms.

A spokesman for DLF Builders, Dr Vancheshwar, told the BBC this will mean ""better offerings"" for consumers as well as builders. He said the firm will benefit from world class ""strategic partnerships, design expertise and technology, while consumers will have better choice.""

The government proposal states that foreign investment of up to 100% will be allowed on the 'automatic route' in the construction sector, on projects including housing, hotels, resorts, hospitals and educational establishments. The automatic route means that construction companies need only get one set of official approvals and do not need to gain clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, which can be bureaucratic. The government hopes its new policy will create employment for construction workers, and benefit steel and brick-making industries.

Mr Nath also announced plans to allow foreign investors to develop a smaller area of any land they acquired. ""Foreign investors can enter any construction development area, be it to build resorts, townships or commercial premises but they will have to construct at least 50,000 square meters (538,000 square feet) within a specific timeframe,"" said Mr Nath, without specifying the timeframe. Previously foreign investors had to develop a much larger area, discouraging some from entering the Indian market. This measure is designed to discourage foreign investors from buying and selling land speculatively, without developing it. Anshuman Magazine, managing director, of CB Richard Ellis - an international real estate company - told the BBC this was ""a big positive step.""

However, Chittabrata Majumdar, general secretary of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), said allowing FDI in the country is compromising India's own ""self reliance"". He said, ""No country can develop on the basis of foreign investment alone."" Mr Majumdar also said an assessment should be made as to whether foreign investment is indeed beneficial to the country - in terms of employment and money generated - or just another way of international companies filling their deep pockets.
"	business
Boeing unveils new 777 aircraft	"US aircraft firm Boeing has unveiled its new long-distance 777 plane, as it tries to regain its position as the industry's leading manufacturer.

The 777-200LR will be capable of flying almost 11,000 miles non-stop, linking cities such as London and Sydney. Boeing, in contrast to European rival Airbus, hopes airlines will want to fly smaller aircraft over longer distances. Airbus, which overtook Boeing as the number one civilian planemaker in 2003, is focusing on so-called super jumbos.

Analysts are divided over which approach is best and say that this latest tussle between Boeing and Airbus may prove to be a defining moment for the airline industry. Boeing plans to offer twin-engine planes that are able to fly direct to many of the world's airports, getting rid of the need for connecting flights.

It is banking on smaller, slimmer planes such as the 777-200LR and its much-anticipated 787 Dreamliner plane, which is set to take to the skies in 2008. The 777-200LR, which had its launch delayed by the 11 September attacks in the US, is the fifth variation of Boeing's twin-aisle 777 plane. The company offically ""rolled-out"" the new 777 in Seattle at 2200 GMT. Better fuel efficiency from engines made by GE and lighter materials mean that the plane can connect almost any two cities worldwide.

""Boeing has the latest variant in a very successful line of airplanes and there is no doubt it will continue to be very successful,"" said David Learmount, operations and safety editor at industry magazine Flight International. But the 777-200LR ""is a niche player"", Mr Learmount continued, adding that reach was not the only criteria airlines used when picking their aircraft. Mr Learmount pointed out that the 777-200LR has been on the market for a couple of years and only had limited success at attracting orders. He also said that while the plane may be able to fly to Sydney from London in one hit, prevailing winds meant that it would have to stop somewhere on the return journey.

For Airbus, the future is big - it is pinning its hopes on planes that can carry as many as 840 people between large hub airports. From there, passengers would be ferried to their final destinations by smaller planes. Airbus is also keeping its options open and plans to compete in all the main categories of aircraft. It has been producing a rival to Boeing's 777 line for more than a year. ""Airbus is now where Boeing was a few years ago"" with its product range, said Flight International's Mr Learmount.

Both Boeing and Airbus have been taking orders for their new planes. Boeing said it expected to sell about 500 of its 777-200LR planes over the next 20 years. It already has orders from Pakistan International Airlines and EVA of Taiwan. These orders should help underpin the company's profits. Boeing said earnings during the last three months of 2004 dropped by 84% because of costs relating to stopping production of its smallest airliner, the 717, and the cancellation of a US air force 767 tanker contract. Net profit was $186m (£98m; 143m euros) in the quarter, compared with $1.13bn in the same period in 2003.
"	business
Circuit City gets takeover offer	"Circuit City Stores, the second-largest electronics retailer in the US, has received a $3.25bn (£1.7bn) takeover offer.

The bid has come from Boston-based private investment firm Highfields Capital Management, which already owns 6.7% of Circuit City's shares. Shares in the retailer were up 19.6% at $17.04 in Tuesday morning trading in New York following the announcement. Highfield said that it intends to take the Virginia-based firm private.

""Such a transformation would eliminate the public-company transparency into the company's operating strategy that is uniquely damaging in a highly competitive industry where Circuit City is going head-to-head with a tough and entrenched rival,"" Highfield said. One analyst suggested that a bidding battle may now begin for the company. Bill Armstrong, a retail analyst at CL King & Associates, said he expected to see other private investment firms come forward for Circuit City. The retailer is debt free with a good cash flow, despite the fact that it is said to be struggling to keep up with market leader Best Buy and cut-price competition from the likes of Wal-Mart, said Mr Armstrong.
"	business
Japan turns to beer alternatives	"Japanese brewers are increasingly making money from beer-flavoured drinks rather than beer itself

Beer and spirits are heavily taxed in Japan, driving breweries to search for alternatives. Japan's long economic downturn helped drive the trend, as drinkers looked for cheaper opportunities to drown their sorrows. Now, according to Asahi Breweries, the market for so-called ""beer-like"" drinks is set to grow 84% this year.

Asahi is predicting profits to rise 50% in 2005 as it launches a drink based on soybean peptides rather than malt. The chosen name, ""Shinnama"" or ""new draft"", disguises its non-beer nature. But despite a record profit in 2004 of 30.6bn yen ($291m; £154m), up 31.8% on the previous year, Asahi is coming late to the market. Key rival Sapporo is already well-established with the beer-flavoured ""Draft One"". Suntory, meanwhile, is doing well with ""Super Blue"", which combines happoshu - an existing low-cost beer alternative made with malt and seawater - and shochu, a distilled alcohol derived from sweet potatoes or barley. Happoshu has been a mainstay of brewery profits for years, taking over from beer thanks to its low tax and therefore low cost. Kirin, the fourth big name, is launching its own ""third-type"" drink in April.
"	business
S Korean consumers spending again	"South Korea looks set to sustain its revival thanks to renewed private consumption, its central bank says.

The country's economy has suffered from an overhang of personal debt after its consumers' credit card spending spree. Card use fell sharply last year, but is now picking up again with a rise in spending of 14.8% year-on-year. ""The economy is now heading upward rather than downward,"" said central bank governor Park Seung. ""The worst seems to have passed."" Mr Park's statement came as the bank decided to keep interest rates at an all-time low of 3.25%. It had cut rates in November to help revive the economy, but rising inflation - reaching 0.7% month-on-month in January - has stopped it from cutting further. Economic growth in 2004 was about 4.7%, with the central bank predicting 4% growth this year. Other indicators are also suggesting that the country is inching back towards economic health. Exports - traditionally the driver for expansion in Asian economies - grew slower in January than at any time in 17 months. But domestic demand seems to be taking up the slack. Consumer confidence has bounced back from a four-year low in January, and retail sales were up 2.1% in December. Credit card debt is falling, with only one in 13 of the 48 million cards now in default - down from one in eight at the end of 2003. One of its biggest card issuers, LG Card, was rescued from collapse in December, having almost imploded under the weight of its customers' bad debts. The government last year tightened the rules for card lending to keep the card glut under control.
"	business
German growth goes into reverse	"Germany's economy shrank 0.2% in the last three months of 2004, upsetting hopes of a sustained recovery.

The figures confounded hopes of a 0.2% expansion in the fourth quarter in Europe's biggest economy. The Federal Statistics Office said growth for the whole of 2004 was 1.6%, after a year of contraction in 2003, down from an earlier estimate of 1.7%. It said growth in the third quarter had been zero, putting the economy at a standstill from July onward. Germany has been reliant on exports to get its economy back on track, as unemployment of more than five million and impending cuts to welfare mean German consumers have kept their money to themselves. Major companies including Volkswagen, DaimlerChrysler and Siemens have spent much of 2004 in tough talks with unions about trimming jobs and costs. According to the statistics office, Destatis, rising exports were outweighed in the fourth quarter by the continuing weakness of domestic demand.

But the relentless rise in the value of the euro last year has also hit the competitiveness of German products overseas. The effect has been to depress prospects for the 12-nation eurozone as a whole, as well as Germany. Eurozone interest rates are at 2%, but senior officials at the rate-setting European Central Bank are beginning to talk about the threat of inflation, prompting fears that interest rates may rise. The ECB's mandate is to fight rising prices by boosting interest rates - and that could further threaten Germany's hopes of recovery.
"	business
Turkey-Iran mobile deal 'at risk'	"Turkey's investment in Iran's mobile industry looks set to be scrapped after its biggest mobile firm saw its investment there slashed by MPs.

Iran's parliament voted by a large majority to cut Turkcell's stake in a new mobile network from 70% to 49%. The move, which was justified on national security grounds, follows an earlier vote by MPs to give themselves a veto over foreign investments. Turkcell said the decision ""increases the risks"" attached to the project. Although the company's statement said it would continue to monitor developments, observers said they thought Turkcell was set to pull out of the $3bn deal. ""The possibility of carrying out this project is next to zero,"" said Atinc Ozkan, analyst at Finans Investment in Istanbul. If Turkcell does back out, MTN - the South African firm which lost out in the original tender - may well be back in the running. The company has said it is prepared to accept a minority stake if Iran will award it the mobile deal.

Turkcell's mobile deal is the second Turkish investment in Iran to run into trouble. Turkish-Austrian consortium TAV was chosen to build and run Tehran's new Imam Khomeini International Airport - but the army closed it just hours after it opened in May 2004. In both cases, the justification has been national security, amid allegations that the Turkish firms are too close to Israel. The hardline posture taken by parliament, which is dominated by religious conservatives, could yet impact other inward investments.
"	business
EU ministers to mull jet fuel tax	"European Union finance ministers are meeting on Thursday in Brussels, where they are to discuss a controversial jet fuel tax.

A levy on jet fuel has been suggested as a way to raise funds to finance aid for the world's poorest nations. Airlines and aviation bodies have reacted strongly against the plans, saying they would hurt companies at a time when earnings are under pressure. The EU said a tax would only be passed after full consultation with airlines. It was keen to point out earlier this week that any new tax on jet fuel should not hurt the ""competitiveness of the airlines"". Ministers will also be discussing reforms to regulations governing European public spending.

Global leaders have focused attention on poverty reduction and development at recent meetings of the G7 Group and World Economic Forum. The world's richest countries have said they want to boost the amount of aid they give to 0.7% of their annual gross national income by 2015. Many EU ministers are thought to support the plan to tax jet fuel - tabled by France and Germany following the recent G7 meeting. At present, the fuel used by airlines enjoys either a very low tax rate or is untaxed in EU member states.
"	business
Palestinian economy in decline	"Despite a short-lived increase in Palestinian jobs in 2003, the economy is performing well below its potential, said a World Bank report.

Unemployment stood at 25%, compared with 10% before the uprising against Israeli occupation four years ago. Young people are particularly hard hit with 37% out of work, compared with 14% four years ago. But 104,000 new jobs were created last year during a brief easing of violence and closures. However, during the first half of this year, the Palestinian economy lost more than 22,000 jobs. Last year's growth rate of 6% can also be attributed to this temporary gap in violence, the report said. According to the report, Intifada, Closures and Palestinian Economic Crisis: An Assessment, there is a close link between the number of closures - both border closures and internal closures between cities - and Palestinian economic problems. The closures arranged by Israel restrict the movement of Palestinian people and goods, slowing down trade.

""Closures are a key factor behind today's economic crisis in the West Bank,"" said Nigel Roberts, World Bank country director for the West Bank and Gaza. Nearly half of all Palestinians - some 47% - live below the poverty line and are particularly vulnerable to economic shocks. The report said even more would be on the poverty line without an average of $950m a year from international donors, some of which goes towards job creation. It also called on the Palestinian Authority to revive its reform programme and maintain financial discipline to create an investment-friendly climate. This week Colin Powell, US Secretary of State was visiting the West Bank to stress US support for a smooth Palestinian election in January.
"	business
China had role in Yukos split-up	"China lent Russia $6bn (£3.2bn) to help the Russian government renationalise the key Yuganskneftegas unit of oil group Yukos, it has been revealed.

The Kremlin said on Tuesday that the $6bn which Russian state bank VEB lent state-owned Rosneft to help buy Yugansk in turn came from Chinese banks. The revelation came as the Russian government said Rosneft had signed a long-term oil supply deal with China. The deal sees Rosneft receive $6bn in credits from China's CNPC.

According to Russian newspaper Vedomosti, these credits would be used to pay off the loans Rosneft received to finance the purchase of Yugansk. Reports said CNPC had been offered 20% of Yugansk in return for providing finance but the company opted for a long-term oil supply deal instead. Analysts said one factor that might have influenced the Chinese decision was the possibility of litigation from Yukos, Yugansk's former owner, if CNPC had become a shareholder. Rosneft and VEB declined to comment. ""The two companies [Rosneft and CNPC] have agreed on the pre-payment for long-term deliveries,"" said Russian oil official Sergei Oganesyan. ""There is nothing unusual that the pre-payment is for five to six years.""

The announcements help to explain how Rosneft, a medium-sized, indebted, and relatively unknown firm, was able to finance its surprise purchase of Yugansk. Yugansk was sold for $9.3bn in an auction last year to help Yukos pay off part of a $27bn bill in unpaid taxes and fines.

The embattled Russian oil giant had previously filed for bankruptcy protection in a US court in an attempt to prevent the forced sale of its main production arm. But Yugansk was sold to a little known shell company which in turn was bought by Rosneft. Yukos claims its downfall was punishment for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Once the country's richest man, Mr Khodorkovsky is on trial for fraud and tax evasion.

The deal between Rosneft and CNPC is seen as part of China's desire to secure long-term oil supplies to feed its booming economy. China's thirst for products such as crude oil, copper and steel has helped pushed global commodity prices to record levels. ""Clearly the Chinese are trying to get some leverage [in Russia],"" said Dmitry Lukashov, an analyst at brokerage Aton. ""They understand property rights in Russia are not the most important rights, and they are more interested in guaranteeing supplies."" ""If the price of oil is fixed under the deal, which is unlikely, it could be very profitable for the Chinese,"" Mr Lukashov continued. ""And Rosneft is in desperate need of cash, so it's a good deal for them too.""
"	business
Deadline nears for Fiat-GM deal	"Fiat and General Motors (GM) have until midnight on 1 February to settle a disagreement over a potential takeover.

The deadline marks the point at which Fiat will gain the right to sell its car division to GM, part of an alliance agreed in 2000. GM, whose own European operations are losing money, no longer wants to own the unprofitable Fiat unit. Reports of deadlocked talks sent Fiat shares down 1.2% on Tuesday, after Monday's 4% gain on hopes of a payoff. The US firm is thought to be offering about $2bn (£1.06bn) to extricate itself from the arrangement. It has argued the deal was voided by Fiat's decision to sell off Fiat's finance arm and halve GM's stake via a capital-raising effort.

The 2000 deal resulted from a race between GM and DaimlerChrysler to ally with Fiat. The German firm wanted to buy Fiat outright. But Gianni Agnelli, the godfather of the group, wanted to keep control, and preferred GM's offer to buy a 20% stake and give Fiat the right to sell in the future, known as a ""put option"". Since then, however, Fiat cars have lost market share and the firm has piled up losses, while a plan to raise new money in 2003 cut GM's stake in half to 10%. For its part, GM's European units Opel and Saab have both had trouble, with Opel management threatening to cut 12,000 jobs. ""The last thing they need is additional production capacity in Europe,"" said Patrick Juchemich, auto analyst at Sal Oppenheim Bank.
"	business
ID theft surge hits US consumers	"Almost a quarter of a million US consumers complained of being targeted for identity theft in 2004, official figures suggest.

The Federal Trade Commission said two in five of the 635,173 reports it had from consumers concerned ID fraud. ID theft occurs when criminals use someone else's personal information to steal credit or commit other crimes. Internet auctions were the second biggest source of fraud complaints, comprising 16% of the total. The total cost of fraud reported by consumers was $546m (£290m).

The report marks the fifth year in a row in which identity fraud has topped the table. The biggest slice of the 246,570 ID fraud cases reported - almost 30% - concerned abuses of people's credit. Misusing someone's identity to claim new credit cards or loans comprised 16.5% of the total, with almost 12% coming from false claims on existing credit. Another 18% came from attempts to rip off people's bank accounts, while 13% of cases concerned attempts to defraud employers by abusing someone else's identity. Outside the field of ID theft, 53% of the near-400,000 complaints were internet-related. Among the 100,000 internet auction complaints, the failure of sellers to deliver or the supply of sub-standard goods were the most common woes reported. Catalogue and home-shopping frauds were next in line, accounting for 8% of total complaints, while concerns about internet services and computers - including spyware found on people's PCs and undisclosed charges for websites - amounted to 6% of complaints.
"	business
Argentina, Venezuela in oil deal	"Argentina and Venezuela have extended a food-for-oil deal, which helped the former to overcome a severe energy crisis last year.

Argentine President Nestor Kirchner and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed the deal in Buenos Aires on Tuesday. Last April, Argentina signed a $240m agreement to import Venezuelan fuel in exchange for agricultural goods and this deal has now been extended. Venezuela will now import cattle, medicines and medical equipment. Last year, Argentina's severe energy crisis forced President Kirchner to suspend gas exports to Chile. Argentina fears that rising demand could spark another crisis and wants to prevent it by signing this deal. The two countries also formalised a co-operation deal between Venezuelan energy firm PDVSA and Argentina's Enarsa. Under this deal, the Argentine market will be opened to Venezuelan investment. President Chavez added that Brazil's Petrobras could join soon the co-operation deal. President Chavez is an ardent promoter of the concept of a South American oil company, which could include the state-owned companies of Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia. The two presidents also agreed to create 'Television Sur', a Latin American network of state-owned television channels.
"	business
BMW to recall faulty diesel cars	"BMW is to recall all cars equipped with a faulty diesel fuel-injection pump supplied by parts maker Robert Bosch.

The faulty part does not represent a safety risk and the recall only affects pumps made in December and January. BMW said that it was too early to say how many cars were affected or how much the recall would cost. The German company is to extend a planned production break at one of its plants due to the faulty Bosch part. The Dingolfing site will now be closed all next week instead of for just two days. The additional three-day stoppage will mean a production loss of up to 3,600 vehicles, BMW said, adding that it was confident it could make up the numbers later.

Bosch has stopped production of the part but expects to restart by 2 February. The faulty component does not represent a safety risk but causes the motor to stall after a significant amount of mileage. When asked if BMW would be seeking compensation from Bosch, the carmaker's chief executive Helmut Panke said: ""we will first solve the problem before talking about who will pay"". Audi and Mercedes Benz were also supplied with the defective diesel fuel-injection pumps but neither of them have to recall any vehicles. A spokesman for DaimlerChrysler, parent company of Mercedes Benz, said it will however have to halt some production. It is to close the Mercedes factory in Sindelfingen on Monday and Tuesday. Audi said it had been hit by production bottlenecks, due to a shortage of unaffected Bosch parts.
"	business
Takeover rumour lifts Exel shares	"Shares in storage and delivery firm Exel closed up 9% at a two-and-a-half year high on Tuesday on speculation it is to receive an imminent takeover bid.

The talk in the City is that US giant United Parcel Services (UPS) is the most likely bidder for the firm. Yet other names mentioned in connection to buying Exel are DHL-owner Deutsche Post and finance firm GE Capital. With its shares closing Tuesday at 873p, Bracknell-based Exel is currently valued at £2.6bn ($6.3bn).

Exel employs 109,000 people in more than 120 countries and has itself been active in the consolidation of the logistics sector, paying £328m to buy fellow UK firm Tibbett & Britten last August. Its customers include Boots, Burberry, Mothercare and consumer products giant Procter & Gamble. Andrew Beh, of brokers ING, said UPS and Deutsche Post were the most likely bidders and an offer of 950p a share would be fair if a bidding battle did not break out. ""It's a great strategic fit for both companies,"" he said. ""Both are interested in expanding in logistics and you can make a decent case for cost synergies which could justify the premium and that's before you make any argument about revenue synergies.""
"	business
Yukos accused of lying to court	"Russian oil firm Yukos lied to a US court in an attempt to stop the Russian government selling off its key production unit, the court has heard.

The unit, Yugansk, was sold to pay off a $27.5bn (£14.5bn) back tax bill. Yukos argued that since it had a US subsidiary and local bank accounts, the US court could declare it bankrupt and stop the auction of Yugansk. But Deutsche Bank - itself a target of a Yukos lawsuit - said documents had been backdated to strengthen the case.

Deutsche Bank's evidence came on the first day of a two-day hearing in Houston. Its lawyer, Hugh Ray, told the court that Yukos had claimed it had transferred $27m into two Texas bank accounts opened by its new US subsidiary. By doing so, he said, the firm had intended to reinforce its US presence - and thus its chances of getting its case heard in US courts. But he said that the papers documenting the transaction were not drawn up till weeks after Yukos made its bankruptcy application on 14 December, and then backdated.

Yukos chief financial officer Bruce Misamore, who had moved to the US in early December to set up Yukos USA, acknowledged the point. He said the discrepancy was only in the paperwork, but that money had indeed been transferred on 14 December. Even so, he told the court that only $480,000 had been in the accounts that day, with the rest arriving a day later.

Deutsche Bank is involved in the case because it is itself being sued by Yukos. It had agreed to loan to an arm of Russian state gas firm Gazprom the money to bid for Yuganskneftegaz, as the Yukos unit is formally known. The sale went ahead, despite an order from the US bankruptcy court ordered that it should be stopped. In the end, the auction was won by an unknown shell company for $9.4bn - much less than most assessments of its value - before ending up in the hands of state-controlled oil firm Rosneft. Rosneft, meanwhile, has agreed to merge with Gazprom, bringing a large chunk of Russia's very profitable oil business back under state control.

Yukos maintains that it filed for bankruptcy in the US because it feared it would not be able to do so in Russia. It also said that in the event of going bust, it could offer the chance of restructuring. ""It gives us a kind of life after death alternative,"" said Yukos chief executive Steven Theede. Yukos is currently suing four companies - Gazprom, its unit Gazpromneft, Rosneft and the shell company which won the bidding - for their part in Yugansk's disposal. It has also threatened to sue the Russian government for $28bn. Analysts have questioned whether a US court has any jurisdiction over Russian companies, while Moscow officials have dismissed Yukos' legal wrangling as meaningless. Yukos claims that the rights of its shareholders have been ignored and that is has been punished for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky, once Russia's richest man, is in prison, having been charged with fraud and tax evasion and repeatedly denied bail.
"	business
Mexican in US send $16bn home	"Mexican labourers living in the US sent a record $16.6bn (£8.82bn) home last year.

The Bank of Mexico said that remittances grew 24% last year and now represent the country's second-biggest source of income after oil. Better records and greater prosperity of Mexican expatriates in the US are the main reasons behind the increase. About 10 million Mexicans live in the US, where there are 16 million citizens of Mexican origin. Remittances now represent more than 2% of the country's GDP, according to the Bank of Mexico's figures. Last year, there were 50.9 million transactions, with an average value of $327 per remittance, the bank said. According to Standard & Poor's, which has recently upgraded Mexico's sovereign debt rating, the rise in remittances helps protect the Mexican economy against a potential fall in the international oil prices.

The growth in remittances has sparked fierce competition between banks. Bank of America announced last week that it planned to eliminate transfer fees for some customers. Remittance charges are estimated to have dropped by between 50 and 60%, reports from the US Treasury and the Inter-American Development Bank have said. The Inter-American Development Bank estimates that remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean reached $45bn in 2004.
"	business
Home loan approvals rising again	"The number of mortgages approved in the UK has risen for the first time since May last year, according to lending figures from the Bank of England.

New loans in December rose to 83,000, slightly higher than November's nine-year low of 77,000. Mortgage lending rose by £7.1bn in December, up from a £6.4bn rise in November. The figures contradict a survey from the British Bankers' Association, which said approvals were at a five-year low.

Analysts say the figures show the market may be stabilising but still point to further house price softness. ""The modest rise in mortgage approvals and lending in December reinforces the impression that the housing market is currently slowing steadily rather than sharply,"" said Global Insight analyst Howard Archer, commenting on the BoE's figures. The BBA believes that the property market is continuing to cool down. Changes to mortgage regulation may have artificially depressed figures in November, thus flattering the December figures, analysts said. In October last year, new rules came into force, which meant some lenders were forced to withdraw mortgage products temporarily in November and defer some lending until they had made sure they had complied with the rules properly. Separately, the Bank of England said that consumer credit rose by £1.5bn in December, more than the £1.4bn expected and above the £1.4bn reported in the previous month.
"	business
Manufacturing recovery 'slowing'	"UK manufacturing grew at its slowest pace in one-and-a-half years in January, according to a survey.

The Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) said its purchasing manager index (PMI) fell to 51.8 from a revised 53.3 in December. But, despite missing forecasts of 53.7, the PMI number remained above 50 - indicating expansion in the sector. The CIPS said that the strong pound had dented exports while rising oil and metals prices had kept costs high.

The survey added that rising input prices and cooling demand had deterred factory managers from hiring new workers in an effort to cut costs. That triggered the second successive monthly fall in the CIPS employment index to 48.3 - its lowest level since June 2003. The survey is more upbeat than official figures - which suggest that manufacturing is in recession - but analysts said the survey did suggest that the manufacturing recovery was running out of steam. ""It appears that the UK is in a two-tier economy again,"" said Prebon Yamane economist Lena Komileva. ""You have weakness in manufacturing, which I think would concern policymakers at the Bank of England.""
"	business
Worldcom boss 'left books alone'	"Former Worldcom boss Bernie Ebbers, who is accused of overseeing an $11bn (£5.8bn) fraud, never made accounting decisions, a witness has told jurors.

David Myers made the comments under questioning by defence lawyers who have been arguing that Mr Ebbers was not responsible for Worldcom's problems. The phone company collapsed in 2002 and prosecutors claim that losses were hidden to protect the firm's shares. Mr Myers has already pleaded guilty to fraud and is assisting prosecutors.

On Monday, defence lawyer Reid Weingarten tried to distance his client from the allegations. During cross examination, he asked Mr Myers if he ever knew Mr Ebbers ""make an accounting decision?"". ""Not that I am aware of,"" Mr Myers replied. ""Did you ever know Mr Ebbers to make an accounting entry into Worldcom books?"" Mr Weingarten pressed. ""No,"" replied the witness. Mr Myers has admitted that he ordered false accounting entries at the request of former Worldcom chief financial officer Scott Sullivan. Defence lawyers have been trying to paint Mr Sullivan, who has admitted fraud and will testify later in the trial, as the mastermind behind Worldcom's accounting house of cards.

Mr Ebbers' team, meanwhile, are looking to portray him as an affable boss, who by his own admission is more PE graduate than economist. Whatever his abilities, Mr Ebbers transformed Worldcom from a relative unknown into a $160bn telecoms giant and investor darling of the late 1990s. Worldcom's problems mounted, however, as competition increased and the telecoms boom petered out. When the firm finally collapsed, shareholders lost about $180bn and 20,000 workers lost their jobs. Mr Ebbers' trial is expected to last two months and if found guilty the former CEO faces a substantial jail sentence. He has firmly declared his innocence.
"	business
Metlife buys up Citigroup insurer	"US banking giant Citigroup has sold its Travelers Life & Annuity insurance arm to Metlife for $11.5bn (£6.1bn).

The sale is a further move by Citigroup away from its 1990s strategy of offering every financial service - insurance, broking and banking. Profit growth in the insurance market has not matched expansion at Citigroup's other businesses. For Metlife, the US's leading insurance company, the purchase gives it access to a much larger distribution network.

Robert Benmosche, Metlife's chairman and chief executive, said that it was a ""great opportunity for the brand of Metlife to be distributed through Citigroup"". Under the agreement, Metlife will be able to sell its products through Citigroup over the next 10 years. The deal includes Smith Barney retail brokerages and Citibank branches. The company will pay between $1bn and $3bn in Metlife stock with the rest being made up of cash. Travelers had sales of $5.2bn in 2004 and made a profit of $901m. It has total net assets of $96bn. ""This deal employs some of Metlife's excess capital in a potentially higher-return business and gives it more distribution,"" said Stuart Quint, an analyst at Gartmore.
"	business
Europe blames US over weak dollar	"European leaders have openly blamed the US for the sharp rise in the value of the euro.

US officials were talking up the dollar, they said, but failing to take action to back up their words. Meeting in Brussels, finance ministers of the 12 eurozone countries voiced their concern that the rise of the european currency was harming exports. The dollar is within touching distance of an all-time low reached earlier in November. At 0619 GMT on Tuesday, the dollar was up slightly at just above $1.29 to the euro, and buying 105.6 yen in Tokyo. It rallied briefly on Monday amid signs that oil prices are easing.

But analysts said the respite was likely to be only temporary. The European ministers' comments, said Junya Tanase of JPMorgan Chase bank in Tokyo, were ""generally too weak to produce a market reaction"".

Still, by the standards of diplomacy the European ministers were forthright. Nicolas Sarkozy of France said he and his colleagues were unanimous in their worry that the decline of the dollar would hit Europe's economies by eating into their exports. ""We are concerned about these developments, which are destabilising, and which are linked to the accumulation of deficits by our American friends,"" he said. The comments come a day after US Treasury Secretary John Snow said a strong dollar was ""in America's interest"".

But that was not enough for Mr Sarkozy.

""If the Americans were to change their policy, it's up to them to say so,"" he said. And the European Union's monetary affairs commissioner, made it clear that action was necessary. ""I fully welcome the words of Mr Snow,"" said Joaquin Almunia, ""but we will need to see decisions adopted in that direction. ""If the imbalances in the US economy are not adjusted in the future, the decision in the market will be as in the past weeks."" Economists point out that whatever Europe says, in the short term a weaker dollar is a boon to President George W Bush's administration. Not only does it boost US exports, but it also makes the budget deficit easier to fund. On the other hand, slower European exports would mean slower EU growth - potentially reducing the demand for US goods.
"	business
French wine gets 70m euro top-up	"The French government is to hand its struggling wine industry 70m euros ($91m) in aid to help it battle falling sales and damaging overproduction.

The financial package is aimed at assisting vintners in financial trouble and improving how its wine is marketed. The French wine industry, the world's second largest, has been hit by declining consumption at home and the growing popularity of New World wines. Wine makers, however, claimed the support did not go far enough. The package was announced by agriculture minister Dominique Bussereau after talks with vintners' representatives.

The bulk of the money - about 40m euros - will be offered in the form of preferential loans to heavily indebted producers to enable them to reschedule their payments. A further 15m euros will be made available to wine cooperatives, which make up the majority of French producers, in low interest loans. Efforts to promote French wine abroad are to be boosted by an extra 3.5m euros in funding. France fell behind the 'New World' producers of Australia, Chile and the United States for the first time in 2003 in terms of exports.

Domestic consumption, accounting for 70% of sales, has suffered from strict restrictions on advertising and tough drink-driving laws.

The aid package would ""create a positive climate around French viticulture,"" Mr Bussereau said. However, wine makers and farmers said the support was much less than they had been hoping for. ""I am afraid the resources are not up to the ambitions,"" Jean-Michel Lemetayer, from the FNSEA agricultural union, told the Associated Press news agency. In an effort to tackle overcapacity, the government will agree that vines can be destroyed in areas where growers give their unanimous consent, while 500 vintners will be helped to take early retirement. The government will also seek European Union approval to distil about 250 million litres of excess wine into alcohol, with vintners receiving compensation. Production is currently outstripping demand by about 30%. The support is designed to make French producers more competitive in the face of increasing global consolidation across the wine industry. Wine makers in France's best-known regions, such as Burgundy, have found it hard to invest in new technology and to create recognisable brands to appeal to overseas buyers.
"	business
Russia gets investment blessing	"Soaring oil sales and a budget surplus mean Russian debt is no longer a risky investment, one of the world's leading credit rating agencies says.

Standard & Poor's has classed Russian bonds as ""investment grade"", up from their former ""speculative"" rating. Russia's reputation among investors has been hurt in recent months by the heavy tax bills and asset seizures imposed on companies such as oil giant Yukos. S&P said the solidity of government finances outweighed the risk. Russia is now a net creditor rather than a debtor. Gold and foreign currency reserves of $119bn beat its foreign public debt of some $113bn.

The other two major ratings agencies - Fitch and Moody's have long since upped their rating of Russia's sovereign debt. S&P had held back through fear that the government was dragging its feet on economic and legal reforms. Now, though, it has finally followed suit. But the agency made it clear that the improved rating did not mean that the risks were a thing of the past. Instead, with Russian government coffers brimming with tax revenues from energy sales, S&P said the government's own debt is looking a good bet. ""These improvements are so significant that they now outweight the serious and growing political risk that continues to be a key ratings constraint on Russia,"" wrote S&P credit analyst Helena Hessel.

The Yukos saga is the most high-profile of the political risks to which Ms Hessel alludes. The company's founder and ex-chief executive, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, is in jail on trial for tax evasion and fraud. Many believe the real motive for his prosecution is that he threatened to use his wealth to set up a political alternative to President Vladimir Putin. His company, meanwhile, is widely believed to have fallen victim to the Kremlin's wish to get Russian energy resources as far as possible back under state control.
"	business
Iranian MPs threaten mobile deal	"Turkey's biggest private mobile firm could bail out of a $3bn ($1.6bn) deal to build a network in Iran after MPs there slashed its stake in the project.

Conservatives in parliament say Turkcell's stake in Irancell, the new network, should be cut from 70% to 49%. They have already given themselves a veto over all foreign investment deals, following allegations about Turkish firms' involvement in Israel. Turkcell now says it may give up on the deal altogether.

Iran currently has only one heavily congested mobile network, with long waiting lists for new subscribers. Turkcell signed a contract for the new network in September. The new operator planned to offer subscriptions for about $180, well below the existing firm's $500 price tag. But a parliamentary commission has now ruled that Turkcell's 70% controlling stake is too high. They say that Turkcell is a security risk because of alleged business ties with Israel. Parliament as a whole - dominated by religious conservatives - will vote on the ruling on Tuesday.

Turkcell said the ruling would ""make more difficult... Turkcell's financial consolidation of Irancell"" because its stake would be reduced to less than 50%. ""If management control and financial consolidation of Irancell cannot be achieved... the realisation of the project will become risky,"" it warned in a statement. The firm has refused to comment on whether it has business dealings in Israel, although like almost all GSM operators worldwide it has an interconnection deal with Israeli networks so that its customers can use their phones there. The two countries strengthened ties in both defence and economic issues in 2004. Israeli industry minister Ehud Olmert was reported in June to have attended a meeting between Ruhi Dogusoy, Turkcell's chief operating officer, and executives from Israeli telecoms firms. Telecoms is one of two areas specifically targeted by the new veto law on foreign investments, passed earlier in September. The other is airports, a source of controversy after the army closed Tehran's new Imam Khomeini International Airport on its opening day in May 2004. Again, the allegation was that the part-Turkish TAV consortium which built and ran it had links with Israel.
"	business
Argentina closes $102.6bn debt swap	"Argentina is set to close its $102.6bn (£53.51bn) debt restructuring offer for bondholders later on Friday, with the government hopeful that most creditors will accept the deal.

The estimated loss to bondholders is up to 70% of the original value of the bonds, yet the majority are expected to accept the government's offer. Argentina defaulted on its debt three years ago, the biggest sovereign default in modern history. Yesterday Argentina's economy minister, Roberto Lavagna, said that he estimated that the results of the restructuring would be ready around next Thursday (3 March). Argentina's President, Nestor Kirchner, said on Friday: ""A year ago when we started the swap (negotiations), they told us we were crazy, that we were irrational."" But he added that his government was close to achieving: ""The best debt renegotiation in history."" The country has been in default on the $102.6bn - based on an original debt of $81.8bn plus interest - for the past three years. If the offer does not go ahead, international lawsuits on behalf of aggrieved investors could follow but analysts are optimistic that it will go through, despite the tough terms for bondholders. About 70% to 80% of bondholders are expected to accept the terms of the offer. By 18 February, creditors holding $41bn - or 40% of the total debt - had accepted the offer. Sorting out its debt would enhance the country's credibility on international markets and enable it to attract more foreign investment. Of Argentina's bondholders, 38.4% reside in Argentina, 15.6% in Italy, 10.3% in Switzerland, 9.1% in the United States, 5.1% in Germany and 3.1% in Japan. Investors in the UK, Holland and Luxembourg have about 1% each and the remainder were not broken down by country. The deal is likely to be taken up most enthusiastically by domestic investors, who will benefit if Argentina's economy becomes more stable.
"	business
US economy shows solid GDP growth	"The US economy has grown more than expected, expanding at an annual rate of 3.8% in the last quarter of 2004.

The gross domestic product figure was ahead of the 3.1% the government estimated a month ago. The rise reflects stronger spending by businesses on capital equipment and a smaller-than-expected trade deficit. GDP is a measure of a country's economic health, reflecting the value of the goods and services it produces.

The new GDP figure, announced by the Commerce Department on Friday, also topped the 3.5% growth rate that economists had forecast ahead of Friday's announcement. Growth was at an annual rate of 4% in the third quarter of 2004 and for the year it came in at 4.4%, the best figure in five years. However, the positive economic climate may lead to a rise in interest rates, with many expecting US rates to rise on 22 March. In the January-to-March quarter, the economy is expected to grow at an annual rate of about 4%, economists forecast. In the final quarter of 2004, businesses increased spending on capital equipment and software by 18%, up from 17.5% in the third quarter. Consumer spending grew 4.2% in the final quarter, down from the third quarter's 5.1%.
"	business
Profits slide at India's Dr Reddy	"Profits at Indian drugmaker Dr Reddy's fell 93% as research costs rose and sales flagged.

The firm said its profits were 40m rupees ($915,000; £486,000) for the three months to December on sales which fell 8% to 4.7bn rupees. Dr Reddy's has built its reputation on producing generic versions of big-name pharmaceutical products. But competition has intensified and the firm and the company is short on new product launches. The most recent was the annoucement in December 2000 that it had won exclusive marketing rights for a generic version of the famous anti-depressant Prozac from its maker, Eli Lilly. It also lost a key court case in March 2004, banning it from selling a version of Pfizer's popular hypertension drug Norvasc in the US. Research and development of new drugs is continuing apace, with R&D spending rising 37% to 705m rupees - a key cause of the decrease in profits alongside the fall in sales. Patents on a number of well-known products are due to run out in the near future, representing an opportunity for Dr Reddy, whose shares are listed in New York, and other Indian generics manufacturers.

Sales in Dr Reddy's generics business fell 8.6% to 966m rupees. Another staple of the the firm's business, the sale of ingredients for drugs, also performed poorly. Sales were down more than 25% from the previous year to 1.4bn rupees in the face of strong competition both at home, and in the US and Europe. Dr Reddy's Indian competitors are gathering strength although they too face heavy competitive pressures.
"	business
Burren awarded Egyptian contracts	"British energy firm Burren Energy has been awarded two potentially lucrative oil exploration contracts in Egypt.

The company successfully bid for the two contracts, granted by government owned oil firms, covering onshore and offshore areas in the Gulf of Suez. Burren Energy already has a presence in Egypt, having been awarded an exploration contract last year. The firm, which floated in 2003, recently announced a deal to buy 26% of Indian firm Hindustan Oil Exploration. The £13.8m deal gives Burren Energy access to the Indian oil and gas industry. This latest contract expands Burren Energy's global exploration and production portfolio - it also holds contracts in Turkmenistan and the Republic of Congo. ""These assets significantly increase our exploration portfolio in Egypt and we continue to investigate further opportunities in this region,"" said chief executive Finian O'Sullivan.
"	business
'Strong dollar' call halts slide	"The US dollar's slide against the euro and yen has halted after US Treasury Secretary John Snow said a strong dollar was ""in America's interest"".

But analysts said any gains are likely to be short-lived as problems with the US economy were still significant. They also pointed out that positive comments apart, President George W Bush's administration had done little to stop the dollar's slide. A weak dollar helps boost exports and narrow the current account deficit. The dollar was trading at $1.2944 against the euro at 2100GMT, still close to the $1.3006 record level set on 10 November. Against the Japanese yen, it was trading at 105.28 yen, after hitting a seven-month low of 105.17 earlier in the day.

Policy makers in Europe have called the dollar's slide ""brutal"" and have blamed the strength of the euro for dampening economic growth. However, it is unclear whether ministers would issue a declaration aimed at curbing the euro's rise at a monthly meeting of Eurozone ministers late on Monday. Higher growth in Europe is regarded by US officials as a way the huge US current account deficit - that has been weighing on the dollar - could be reduced. Mr Snow who is currently in Dublin at the start of a four-nation EU visit, has applauded Ireland's introduction of lower taxes and deregulation which have helped boost growth. ""The eurozone is growing below its potential. When a major part of the global economy is below potential there are negative consequences... for the citizens of those economies... and for their trading partners,"" he said. Mr Snow's comments may have helped shore up the dollar on Monday, but he was careful to qualify his statement.

""Our basic policy, of course, is to let open, competitive markets set the values,"" he explained. ""Markets are driven by fundamentals and towards fundamentals."" US officials have also said that other economies need to grow, so the US is not the main global growth engine. Economists say that the fundamentals, or key indicators, of the US economy are looking far from rosy. Domestic consumer demand is cooling, and heavy spending by President Bush has pushed the budget deficit to a record $427bn (£230bn). The current account deficit, meanwhile, hit a record $166bn in the second quarter of 2004. For many analysts, a weaker dollar is here to stay. ""No end is in sight,"" said Carsten Fritsch, a strategist at Commerzbank . ""It is only a matter of time until the euro reaches $1.30."" Some analysts maintain the US is secretly happy with a lower dollar which helps makes its exports cheaper in Europe, thus boosting its economy.
"	business
IMF 'cuts' German growth estimate	"The International Monetary Fund is to cut its 2005 growth forecast for the German economy from 1.8% to 0.8%, the Financial Times Deutschland reported.

The IMF will also reduce its growth estimate for the 12-member eurozone economy from 2.2% to 1.6%, the newspaper reported. The German economy has been faltering, with unemployment levels rising to a seventy-year high of 5.2 million. Its sluggish performance continues to hamper the entire eurozone.

The IMF's draft World Economic Outlook - due to be published in April - would point to a marked deterioration in Germany's economy, the FT report said.

In September, the IMF had said that German growth for the current year would be 1.8%. The IMF has also revised eurozone forecasts, the paper said, taking into account high oil prices, the strength of the euro and weak demand in many of the world's leading economies. Europe's economic difficulties have been highlighted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which argued in a report published on Tuesday that the continent could only achieve US living standards by freeing up its labour markets. ""The eurozone does not look like it has a self-sustaining recovery,"" James Carrick, an economist with ABN Amro, told the newspaper. ""It is too dependant on the rest of the world.""
"	business
GM, Ford cut output as sales fall	"US car firms General Motors (GM) and Ford have been forced to cut production in the face of falling car sales.

US sales at GM sank 12.7% in February compared to a year ago while Ford sales dropped 3% as foreign rivals took a bigger share of the market. Meanwhile, Asian carmakers fared well - Toyota sales jumped 11% while rival Nissan notched up a 10% increase. Overall. sales across the industry also fell to 1.25 million vehicles from 1.27 million a year earlier.

GM and Ford blamed high fuel prices for low sales of big trucks and gas-guzzling sports utility vehicles (SUVs) - the vehicles that provide the biggest profits.

GM added that US truck sales fell 9% in February while car business tumbled 17%, however it did acknowledge that some new products - such as the Pontiac G6 and Chevrolet Cobalt - had put in solid performances. ""The calendar year is starting off slower than expected, both for GM and the industry,"" said Mark LaNeve, GM's vice president for North American sales, service and marketing. The slump in sales prompted the group to cut production in North America by 3% - it has already reduced output by around 9% in the face of growing stockpiles. Meanwhile, Ford which posted its ninth consecutive drop in monthly US sales, said it was cutting first-quarter North American production by another 10,000 vehicles, or 1.2%. Chrysler, the US unit of Germany's DaimlerChrysler, was the only Detroit based automaker to boast an increase in market share during the month - with sales rising 8%.

But America's loss was its foreign rivals' gain as they continued to nibble away at the US market. While Japan's top car maker Toyota and Nissan saw sales accelerate, even the smaller Suzuki Motor Corp snapped up a more business with sales improving 17.6% on a year ago. In 2003, the firm launched an ambitious plan to triple US sales by 2007 as it seeks to become a bigger player in the Asian assault on the US market. Korea's Hyundai was another big gainer, turning in a 19% surge in February sales. Toyota put its rise in sales down to strong results for its redesigned Avalon sedan and a 120% surge in sales of its gas-electric Prius hybrid mid-size sedan as petrol-price conscious consumers looked to vehicles that were cheaper to run. ""As gas prices continue their upward march, fuel efficiency catches the public eye,"" Jim Press, vice president and chief operating officer of Toyota's US sales arm, said in a statement.
"	business
Ebbers denies WorldCom fraud	"Former WorldCom chief Bernie Ebbers has denied claims that he knew accountants were doctoring the books at the firm.

Speaking in court, Mr Ebbers rejected allegations he pressured ex-chief financial officer Scott Sullivan to falsify company financial statements. Mr Sullivan ""made accounting decisions,"" he told the federal court, saying his finance chief had ""a keen command of the numbers"". Mr Ebbers has denied charges of fraud and conspiracy. During his second day of questioning in the New York trial Mr Ebbers played down his working relationship with Mr Sullivan and denied he frequently met him to discuss company business when questioned by the prosecution.

""In a lot of weeks, we would speak ... three or four times,"" Mr Ebbers said, adding that conversations about finances were rarely one-on-one and were usually discussed by a ""group of people"" instead.

Mr Ebbers relationship to Mr Sullivan is key to the case surrounding financial corruption that led to the collapse of the firm in 2002 following the discovery of an $11bn accounting fraud. The prosecution's star witness is Mr Sullivan, one of six WorldCom executives indicted in the case, He has pleaded guilty to fraud and appeared as a prosecution witness as part of an agreement with prosecutors. During his time on the witness stand Mr Sullivan repeatedly told jurors he met frequently with Mr Ebbers, told him about changes made to WorldCom's accounts to hide costs and had warned him such practises were improper. However during the case on Tuesday Mr Ebbers denied the allegations. ""I wasn't advised by Scott Sullivan of anything ever being wrong,"" he told the court. ""He's never told me he made an entry that wasn't right. If he had, we wouldn't be here today."" Mr Ebbers could face a jail sentence of up to 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing. Shareholders lost about $180bn in WorldCom's collapse, 20,000 workers lost their jobs and the company went bankrupt. The company emerged from bankruptcy last year and is now known as MCI.
"	business
Australia rates at four year high	"Australia is raising its benchmark interest rate to its highest level in four years despite signs of a slowdown in the country's economy.

The Reserve Bank of Australia lifted interest rates 0.25% to 5.5%, their first upwards move in more than a year. However, shortly after the Bank made its decision, new figures showed a fall in economic growth in the last quarter. The Bank said it had acted to curb inflation but the move was criticised by some analysts.

The rate hike was the first since December 2003 and had been well-flagged in advance. However, opposition parties and some analysts said the move was ill-timed given data showing the Australian economy grew just 0.1% between October and December and 1.5% on an annual basis.

The figures, representing a decline from the 0.2% growth in GDP seen between July and September, were below market expectations. Consumer spending remains strong, however, and the Bank is concerned about growing inflationary pressures. ""Over recent months it has become increasingly clear that remaining spare capacity in the labour and goods markets is becoming rather limited,"" said Ian Macfarlane, Governor of the Reserve Bank.

At 2.6%, inflation remains within the Bank's 2-3% target range. However, exports declined in the second half of 2004, fuelling a rise in the country's current account deficit - the difference in the value of imports compared to exports - to a record Australian dollar 29.4bn. The Australian government said the economy remained strong with unemployment at a near 30 year low. ""The economy has been strong and it is properly moderating but it doesn't look to me like it's slowing in any unreasonable way,"" said Treasurer Peter Costello. Stock markets had factored in the likelihood of a rate rise but analysts still expressed concern about the strength of the economy. ""That 1.5% annual growth rate is the lowest we have seen since the post-election slump we saw back in 2000-1,"" said Michael Blythe, chief economist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. ""This suggests the economy really did slow very sharply in the second half of 2004.""
"	business
US company admits Benin bribery	"A US defence and telecommunications company has agreed to pay $28.5m after admitting bribery in the West African state of Benin.

The Titan corporation was accused of funnelling more than $2m into the 2001 re-election campaign of President Mathieu Kerekou. At the time, Titan was trying to get a higher price for a telecommunications project in Benin. There is no suggestion that Mr Kerekou was himself aware of any wrongdoing. Titan, a California-based company, pleaded guilty to falsifying its accounts and violating US anti-bribery laws. It agreed to pay $13m in criminal penalties, as well as $15.5m to settle a civil lawsuit brought by the US financial watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The SEC had accused Titan of illegally paying $2.1m to an unnamed agent in Benin claiming ties with President Kerekou. Some of the money was used to pay for T-shirts with campaign slogans on them ahead of the 2001 election. Shortly after the poll, which Mr Kerekou won, Benin officials agreed to quadruple Titan's management fee. Prosecuting attorney Carol Lam said: ""All US companies should take note that attempting to bribe foreign officials is criminal conduct and will be appropriately prosecuted."" The company says it no longer tolerates such practices. Under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, it is a crime for American firms to bribe foreign officials.
"	business
US insurer Marsh cuts 2,500 jobs	"Up to 2,500 jobs are to go at US insurance broker Marsh & McLennan in a shake up following bigger-than-expected losses.

The insurer said the cuts were part of a cost-cutting drive, aimed at saving millions of dollars. Marsh posted a $676m (£352m) loss for the last three months of 2004, against a $375m (£195.3m) profit a year before. It blamed an $850m payout to settle a price-rigging lawsuit, brought by New York attorney general Elliot Spitzer. Under the settlement announced in January, Marsh took a pre-tax charge of $618m in the October-to-December quarter, on top of the $232m charge from the previous quarter. ""Clearly 2004 was the most difficult year in MMC's financial history,"" Marsh chief executive Michael Cherkasky said.

An ongoing restructuring drive at the group also led to a $337m hit in the fourth quarter, the world's biggest insurer said.

Analysts expect its latest round of cuts to focus on its brokerage unit, which employs 40,000 staff. The latest layoffs will take the total number of jobs to go at the firm to 5,500 and are expected to lead to annual savings of more than $375m. As part of its efforts to cut costs, the company said it was halving its dividend payment to 17 cents a shares from 34 cents, a move which should enable it to save $360m. Looking ahead, Mr Cherkasky forecast profitable growth for the year ahead ""with an operating margin in the upper-teens, and with the opportunity for further margin expansion"". Meanwhile, the company also announced it would spin-off its MMC Capital private equity unit, which manages the $3bn Trident Funds operation, to a group of employees. Marsh did not say when the move would take place, but said it had signed a letter of intent.

The insurer hit the headlines in October last year when it faced accusations of price rigging. New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer sued the company, accusing it of receiving illegal payments to steer clients to selected firms as well as rigging bids and fixing prices. In January, Marsh agreed to pay $850m to settle the suit - a figure in line with the placement fees it collected in 2003 - and agreed to change its business practices. In February, a former senior executive pleaded guilty to criminal charges in a wide-ranging probe of fraud and bid-rigging in the insurance industry. In January, a former senior vice president also pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to the investigation. In an effort to reform its business practises, Marsh said it has already introduced new leadership, new compliance procedures and new ways of dealing with customers. ""As a result, we are ready to put these matters behind us and move ahead in 2005 to restore the trust our clients have placed in us and to rebuild shareholder value,"" Mr Cherkasky said.
"	business
US seeks new $280bn smoker ruling	"The US Justice Department is to try to overturn a court ruling that threw out its claim for $280bn (£149bn) in damages from tobacco firms.

Earlier this month, a three-judge appeal court panel rejected the claim - filed in 1999 by the administration of Bill Clinton - in a 2-1 decision. Government lawyers said they would ask the full US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to hear the case. The court room battle is seen as key in government attempts to fight smoking. ""It's pretty clear that they've suffered a severe setback,"" said Anthony Sebok, a professor at Brooklyn Law School, adding that the appeal was what the government ""would be expected to ask for"".

Prosecutors had argued that tobacco firms lied about the dangers of smoking, ignored research that highlighted problems, looked to increase addiction by manipulating nicotine levels and targeted the young with their adverts. Among the firms accused were Altria Group, RJ Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard Tobacco, Liggett Group and Brown and Williamson. Prosecutors went after the companies using legislation put in place to fight organised crime, and accused the firms of conspiring and running ""Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organisations"". The tobacco companies denied the charges, saying that they never illegally conspired to promote smoking and fool the public. They also said that they have met many of the government's demands laid out in a landmark $206bn settlement hammered out in 1998 with 46 states. A three-judge panel agreed with the companies, finding that the case could not be brought under federal anti-racketeering laws.

Central to the government's case was a meeting in the Plaza Hotel, New York, on 15 December, 1953. Prosecutors contend that executives from the major tobacco firms met and agreed to present a unified strategy denying the harmful effects of smoking. Despite denying for decades that smoking could be linked to illness, the companies have modified their stances in recent years. Altria's Philip Morris now accepts that nicotine is harmful, and the company's main lawyer William Ohlemeyer told the BBC last year that earlier statements may have been wrong but they were not dishonest. Government lawyers have until 21 March to file their appeal.
"	business
Budget Aston takes on Porsche	"British car maker Aston Martin has gone head-to-head with Porsche's 911 sports cars with the launch of its cheapest model yet.

With a price tag under £80,000, the V8 Vantage is tens of thousands of pounds cheaper than existing Aston models. The Vantage is ""the most important car in the history of our company"", said Aston's chief executive Ulrich Bez. Aston - whose cars were famously used by James Bond - will unveil the Vantage at the Geneva Motor Show on Thursday. Mr Bez - himself a former executive at rival Porsche - said the new car was the company's ""most affordable car ever and makes the brand accessible"". This in turn would make Aston Martin ""globally visible, but still very, very exclusive"", he added.

First shown as a concept car at the 2003 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the V8 Vantage will be available in the UK in late summer. Development costs for the Vantage have been kept low by sharing a platform with Aston's DB9, which Mr Bez described as ""the previous most important car for our company"". There is currently an 18 months waiting list for the DB9, Mr Bez said. The Vantage will be built at the new Aston factory in Gaydon, near Warwick, and should more than double Aston's total output from about 2,000 presently.
"	business
Golden rule 'intact' says ex-aide	"Chancellor Gordon Brown will meet his golden economic rule ""with a margin to spare"", according to his former chief economic adviser.

Formerly one of Mr Brown's closest Treasury aides, Ed Balls hinted at a Budget giveaway on 16 March. He said he hoped more would be done to build on current tax credit rules. Any rate rise ahead of an expected May election would not affect the Labour Party's chances of winning, he added. Last July, Mr Balls won the right to step down from his Treasury position and run for parliament, defending the Labour stronghold of Normanton in West Yorkshire.

Mr Balls rejected the allegation that Mr Brown had been sidelined in the election campaign, saying he was playing a ""different"" role to the one he played in the last two elections. He rejected speculation that Mr Brown was considering becoming Foreign Secretary, saying his recent travels had been linked to efforts to boost international development. Gordon Brown's decision to announce the date of the Budget while on a trip to China was a ""sensible thing to do"", since he was talking about skills and investment at the time, Mr Balls told the BBC. Commenting on speculation of an interest rate rise, he said it was not within the remit of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to factor a potential election into its rate decisions. Expectations of a rate rise have gathered pace after figures showed that house prices are still rising. Consumer borrowing rose at a near-record pace in January. ""I don't believe it would be a big election issue in Britain or a problem for Labour,"" Mr Balls said. Prime Minister Tony Blair has yet to name the date of the election, but most pundits are betting on 5 May as the likely day.
"	business
Liberian economy starts to grow	"The Liberian economy started to grow in 2004, but ""sustained and deep reform efforts"" are needed to ensure long term growth, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said.

An IMF mission made the comments in a report published following 10 days of talks with the transition government. The IMF said that, according to data provided by the Liberians, the country's GDP rose by 2% in 2004, after a 31% decline in 2003. Liberia is recovering from a 14-year civil war that came to an end in 2003. The power-sharing National Transition Government of Liberia will remain in place until elections on 11 October, the first presidential and parliamentary ballots since the conflict ended.

The IMF said Liberia's economy started to grow last year thanks to a ""continued strong recovery in rubber production, domestic manufacturing and local services including post-conflict reconstruction"". The IMF however remains cautious about what it sees as a lack of transparency in government actions. In particular, it pointed to mystery surrounding the sale of iron ore stockpiles and the alleged disappearance of some import and export permits. These matters are now being investigated by the Liberian authorities and the IMF has called for their findings to be made public. The IMF also said it was crucial that the Central Bank of Liberia be strengthened, the national budget be effectively managed and a sound economic basis built to allow the country's large external debt to be addressed. ""The IMF team stands ready to assist the (Liberian) authorities in strengthening the areas mentioned,"" said the report. ""The team agreed with the (Liberian) authorities that the period until elections and the inauguration of a new government will pose exceptional challenges to fiscal management, and expresses its willingness to provide...continued support.""
"	business
Slowdown hits US factory growth	"US industrial production increased for the 21st month in a row in February, but at a slower pace than in January, official figures show.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) index fell to 55.3 in February, from an adjusted 56.4 in January. Although the index was lower than in January, the fact that it held above 50 shows continued growth in the sector. ""February was another good month in the manufacturing sector,"" said ISM survey chairman Norbert Ore.

""While the overall rate of growth is slowing, the overall picture is improving as price increases and shortages are becoming less of a problem. Exports and imports remain strong,"" he said. Analysts had expected February's figure to be stronger than January's and come in at 57. Of the 20 manufacturing sectors surveyed by ISM, 13 reported growth. They included the textiles, apparel, tobacco, chemicals and transportation sectors. The ISM's index of national manufacturing activity is compiled from the responses of purchasing executives at more than 400 industrial companies.
"	business
Lufthansa flies back to profit	"German airline Lufthansa has returned to profit in 2004 after posting huge losses in 2003.

In a preliminary report, the airline announced net profits of 400m euros ($527.61m; £274.73m), compared with a loss of 984m euros in 2003. Operating profits were at 380m euros, ten times more than in 2003. Lufthansa was hit in 2003 by tough competition and a dip in demand following the Iraq war and the killer SARS virus. It was also hit by troubles at its US catering business. Last year, Lufthansa showed signs of recovery even as some European and US airlines were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. The board of Lufthansa has recommended paying a 2004 dividend of 0.30 euros per share. In 2003, shareholders did not get a dividend. The company said that it will give all the details of its 2004 results on 23 March.
"	business
Japanese growth grinds to a halt	"Growth in Japan evaporated in the three months to September, sparking renewed concern about an economy not long out of a decade-long trough.

Output in the period grew just 0.1%, an annual rate of 0.3%. Exports - the usual engine of recovery - faltered, while domestic demand stayed subdued and corporate investment also fell short. The growth falls well short of expectations, but does mark a sixth straight quarter of expansion.

The economy had stagnated throughout the 1990s, experiencing only brief spurts of expansion amid long periods in the doldrums. One result was deflation - prices falling rather than rising - which made Japanese shoppers cautious and kept them from spending.

The effect was to leave the economy more dependent than ever on exports for its recent recovery. But high oil prices have knocked 0.2% off the growth rate, while the falling dollar means products shipped to the US are becoming relatively more expensive.

The performance for the third quarter marks a sharp downturn from earlier in the year. The first quarter showed annual growth of 6.3%, with the second showing 1.1%, and economists had been predicting as much as 2% this time around. ""Exports slowed while capital spending became weaker,"" said Hiromichi Shirakawa, chief economist at UBS Securities in Tokyo. ""Personal consumption looks good, but it was mainly due to temporary factors such as the Olympics. ""The amber light is flashing."" The government may now find it more difficult to raise taxes, a policy it will have to implement when the economy picks up to help deal with Japan's massive public debt.
"	business
Unilever shake up as profit slips	"Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant Unilever is to merge its two management boards after reporting ""unsatisfactory"" earnings for 2004.

It blamed the poor results on sluggish decision making, a rise in discounted retailers and a wet European summer. The company also cited difficult trading conditions and a lack of demand for goods such as its Slimfast range. Unilever, which owns brands including Dove soap, said annual pre-tax profit fell 36% to 2.9bn euros (£1.99bn). Shares fell 1% to 510.75 pence in London, and dropped by 1.2% to 50.50 euros in Amsterdam.

Under the restructuring plans, Patrick Cescau, the UK-based co-chairman, will become group chief executive. Dutch co-chairman Antony Burgmans will take on the role of non-executive chairman.

""We have recognised the need for greater clarity of leadership and we are moving to a simpler leadership structure that will provide a sharper operational focus,"" Mr Burgmans said. ""We are leaving behind one of the key features of Unilever's governance but this is a natural development following the changes introduced last year."" The company, which has had dual headquarters in Rotterdam and London since 1930, will announce the location of its head office at a later date. Unilever is not alone in trying to simplify its business. Oil giant Shell last year dismantled its dual-ownership structure, after a series of problems relating to the size of its oil reserves that hammered its share price and led to the resignation of key board members. ""The best part of the news this morning was that the company announced a structure simplification,"" said Arjan Sweere, an analyst at Petercam.

The company said the organizational changes would speed decision making, and it also may make further changes.

The company said its main focus will be on improving profits, and it is planning to accelerate and increase investment in its 400 main brands. ""While it is certainly the case that markets have been tougher in the past eighteen months than we had expected, we have also lost some market share,"" said Mr Cescau. ""We let a range of targets limit our ability flexibility and did not adjust our plans quickly enough to a more difficult business environment."" ""Our objective is to reverse the share loss that we experienced in some markets in 2004 and return to growth.""

Unilever said European sales fell 2.8% last year, dragged down by below part sales at its beverage division, where revenues dipped by almost 4%.

Sales of ice cream and frozen food dipped by 3.4% In the US last year, revenue grew by 1.5% ""despite disappointing sales in Slimfast"", the company said. In Asia, leading products came under ""attack"" from rivals such as Procter & Gamble. Unilever took a 1.5bn euro one-time charge in the fourth quarter, including a 650m euro write-down on Slimfast diet foods. Sales of Slimfast products have been hit in recent years by the popularity of the Atkins diet. But looking ahead, Unilever said it was optimistic about prospects for its slimming products saying that demand is on the wane for rival low-carbohydrate diets. The company also said it planned to spend 500m euros this year buying back shares.
"	business
France Telecom gets Orange boost	"Strong growth in subscriptions to mobile phone network Orange has helped boost profits at owner France Telecom.

Orange added more than five million new customers in 2004, leading to a 10% increase in its revenues. Increased take-up of broadband telecoms services also boosted France Telecom's profits, which showed a 5.5% rise to 18.3bn euros ($23.4bn; £12.5bn). France Telecom is to spend 578m euros on buying out minority shareholders in data services provider Equant.

France Telecom, one of the world's largest telecoms and internet service providers, saw its full-year sales rise 2.2% to 47.2bn euros in 2004.

Orange enjoyed strong growth outside France and the United Kingdom - its core markets - swelling its subscriber base to 5.4 million. France Telecom's broadband customers also increased, rising to 5.1 million across Europe by the end of the year. The firm said it had met its main strategic objectives of growing its individual businesses and further reducing its large debt. An ill-fated expansion drive in the late 1990s saw France Telecom's debt soar to 72bn euros by 2002. However, this has now been reduced to 43.9bn euros. ""Our results for 2004 allow us to improve our financial structure while focusing on the innovation that drives our strategy,"" said chief executive Thierry Breton.

Looking ahead, the company forecast like-for-like sales growth of between 3% and 5% over the next three years. France Telecom is consolidating its interest in Equant, which provides telecoms and data services to businesses. Subject to approval by shareholders of the two firms, it will buy the shares in Equant it does not already own. France Telecom said it would fund the deal by selling an 8% stake in telephone directory company PagesJaunes.
"	business
Brussels raps mobile call charges	"The European Commission has written to the mobile phone operators Vodafone and T-Mobile to challenge ""the high rates"" they charge for international roaming.

In letters sent to the two companies, the Commission alleged the firms were abusing their dominant market position in the German mobile phone market. It is the second time Vodafone has come under the Commission's scrutiny. The UK operator is already appealing against allegations that its UK roaming rates are ""unfair and excessive"". Vodafone's response to the Commission's letter was defiant. ""We believe the roaming market is competitive and we expect to resist the charges,"" said a Vodafone spokesman. ""However we will need time to examine the statement of objections in detail before we formally respond.""

The Commission's investigation into Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile centres on the tariffs the two companies charge foreign mobile operators to access their networks when subscribers of those foreign operators use their mobile phones in Germany.

The Commission believes these wholesale prices are too high and that the excess is passed on to consumers. ""The Commission aims to ensure that European consumers are not overcharged when they use their mobile phones on their travels around the European Union,"" the Commission said in a statement. Vodafone and O2, Britain's other big mobile phone operator, were sent similar statements of objections by the Commission in July last year. Vodafone sent the Commission a response to those allegations in December last year and is now waiting for a reply. The Vodafone spokesman said a similar process would be set in motion with these latest statement of objections about its operations in Germany.

The companies will have three months to respond to the Commission's allegations and the process ""may go on for some time yet"", the spokesman said. The Commission could charge the companies up to 10% of their annual turnover, though in practice that sort of figure is rarely demanded. The Commission's latest move comes just a few months after national telecoms regulators across Europe launched a joint investigation which could lead to people being charged less for using their mobile phone when travelling abroad. The investigation involves regulators assessing whether there is effective competition in the roaming market.
"	business
WorldCom director admits lying	"The former chief financial officer at US telecoms firm WorldCom has admitted before a New York court that he used to lie to fellow board members.

Speaking at the trial of his former boss Bernard Ebbers, Scott Sullivan said he lied to the board to cover up the hole in WorldCom's finances. Mr Ebbers is on trial for fraud and conspiracy in relation to WorldCom's collapse in 2002. He pleads not guilty. The firm had been overstating its accounts by $11bn (£8.5bn). Mr Sullivan, 42, has already pleaded guilty to fraud and will be sentenced following Mr Ebbers' trial, where he is appearing as a prosecution witness. Mr Ebbers, 63, has always insisted that he was unaware of any hidden shortfalls in WorldCom's finances.

In the New York court on Wednesday, Mr Ebbers' lawyer Reid Weingarten asked Mr Sullivan: ""If you believe something is in your interest, you are willing and able to lie to accomplish it, isn't that right?""

""On that date, yes. I was lying,"" replied Mr Sullivan. Mr Weingarten has suggested that Mr Sullivan is implicating Mr Ebbers only to win a lighter sentence, something Mr Sullivan denies. Mr Sullivan also rejects a suggestion that he had once told fellow WorldCom board member Bert Roberts that Mr Ebbers was unaware of the accounting fraud at WorldCom. The trial of Mr Ebbers is now into its third week.

Under 23 hours of questioning from a federal prosecutor, Mr Sullivan has previously told the court that he repeatedly warned Mr Ebbers that falsifying the books would be the only way to meet Wall Street revenue and earnings expectations. Mr Sullivan claims that Mr Ebbers refused to stop the fraud. Mr Ebbers could face a sentence of 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing. WorldCom's problems appear to have begun with the collapse of the dotcom boom which cut its business from internet companies. Prosecutors allege that the company's top executives responded by orchestrating massive fraud over a two-year period. WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2004, and is now known as MCI.
"	business
Glaxo aims high after profit fall	"GlaxoSmithKline saw its profits fall 9% last year to £6.2bn ($11.5bn), but Europe's biggest drugmaker says a recovery during 2005 is on the way.

Cheap copies of its drugs, particularly anti-depressants Paxil and Wellbutrin, and a weak dollar had hit profits, but global sales were up 1% in 2004. The firm is confident its new drug pipeline will deliver profits despite the failure of an obesity drug. Chief executive Jean-Pierre Garnier said it had been a ""difficult year"".

In early afternoon trade in London the company share price was down 1% at 1218 pence. Mr Garnier said the company had absorbed over £1.5bn of lost sales to generics but still managing to grow the business. ""The continuing success of our key products means we can now look forward to a good performance in 2005,"" he said. ""2005 will also be an important year in terms of research and development pipeline progress."" However, the firm discontinued development of an experimental treatment for obesity, known as '771, after disappointing clinical trial results. Glaxo is relying on new treatments for conditions such as cancer, diabetes, depression, HIV/AIDS and allergies to lift the pace of sales growth after several disappointing years.
"	business
Japan bank shares up on link talk	"Shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial (SMFG), and Daiwa Securities jumped amid speculation that two of Japan's biggest financial companies will merge.

Financial newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun claimed that the firms will join up next year and already have held discussions with Japanese regulators. The firms denied that they are about to link up, but said they are examining ways of working more closely together. SMFG shares climbed by 2.7% to 717,000, and Daiwa added 5.3% to 740 yen.

Combining SMFG, Japan's third-biggest lender, and Daiwa, the country's second-largest brokerage firm, would create a company with assets of more than $1,000bn (£537bn). SMFG President Yoshifumi Nishikawa said that the companies needed to bolster their businesses. ""Both companies need to strengthen retail and other operations,"" he said, adding that ""it's an issue we have in common"". Daiwa said that ""although it is true that the two groups have been engaging in various discussions to enhance cooperation, there are no plans to enter into negotiations to consolidate the two businesses"". Analysts said that consolidation in Japan's financial sector was likely to continue and that it was likely to have a positive impact on earnings. ""Cross-selling opportunities between banks and brokers are increasing thanks to deregulation, so we can expect the relationship to get even stronger,"" said Heronry Nozaki, an analyst at NikkoCitigroup. The merger ""would be a good move,"" he added.
"	business
Car giant hit by Mercedes slump	"A slump in profitability at luxury car maker Mercedes has prompted a big drop in profits at parent DaimlerChrysler.

The German-US carmaker saw fourth quarter operating profits fall to 785m euros ($1bn) from 2.4bn euros in 2003. Mercedes-Benz's woes - its profits slid to just 20m euros - obscured a strong performance from the Chrysler group whose returns met market expectations. Mercedes faces fierce competition in the luxury car sector from BMW and but hopes to revive its fortunes by 2006.

Mercedes' profits over the period compared unfavourably with 2003's 784m euro figure and were well below analyst expectations of 374m euros. For the year as a whole, its operating profits fell 46% to 1.6bn euros. Sales of Mercedes' brands fell 2% as demand cooled, while revenues were affected by the weakness of the US dollar.

The carmaker blamed the fall in profits on high launch costs for new models and losses from its Mercedes Smart mini-car range. Mercedes is hoping to increase productivity by 3bn euros, having negotiated 500m euros in annual savings with German workers last year. The firm said it was determined to retain Mercedes' position as the world's most successful luxury brand. However, DaimlerChrysler's shares fell 1.5% on the news. ""While all these divisions are doing well the big worries continue to surround Mercedes-Benz,"" Michael Rabb, an analyst with Bank Sal Oppenheim, told Reuters.

In contrast, Chrysler enjoyed a 5% annual increase in unit sales while revenues - calculated in US dollars - rose 10%. The US division - whose marques include Dodge and Jeep - transformed a full year operating loss of 506m euros in 2003 into a 1.4bn euros profit last year.

Overall, DaimlerChrysler saw worldwide vehicle sales rise 8% to 4.7 million in 2004 while total revenues added 4% to 142bn euros. Chrysler's strong performance helped the world's fifth largest carmaker boost net income by 400m euros to 2.5bn euros.

""The year 2004 shows that our strategy works well - even in such a challenging competitive environment,"" said Jurgen Schrempp, DaimlerChrysler's chairman. DaimlerChrysler took a 475m euro hit in costs stemming from a defects scandal at its joint venture, Japanese subsidiary Fuso. DaimlerChrysler last week agreed a compensation package with partner Mitsubishi Motors which will see it buy out its stake in Fuso. Looking forward, DaimerChrysler's profits are expected to be slightly higher in 2005. However, it is expecting ""significant improvements"" in profitability in 2006 as a result of a major investment in the Mercedes product range.
"	business
Ericsson sees earnings improve	"Telecoms equipment supplier Ericsson has posted a rise in fourth quarter profits thanks to clients like Deutsche Telekom upgrade their networks.

Operating profit in the three months to 31 December was 9.5bn kronor (£722m; $1.3bn) against 6.3bn kronor last year. Shares tumbled, however, as the company reported a profit margin of 45.6%, less than the 47.3% forecast by analysts and down from 47.1% in the third quarter. Ericsson shares dropped 5.9% to 20.7 kronor in early trading on Thursday. However, the company remained optimistic about its earnings outlook after sales in the fourth quarter rose 9% to 39.4bn kronor. ""Long-term growth drivers of the industry remain solid,"" Ericsson said in a statement.

Chief executive Carl-Henric Svanberg explained that about ""27% of the world's population now has access to mobile communications"". ""This is exciting for a company with a vision of an all-communicating world,"" he added. Mr Svanberg, however, warned that the extra demand that had driven 2004 sales had already dissipated and it was ""business as usual"". He added that sales in the first three months of 2005 would be subject to ""normal seasonality"". For the whole of 2004, Ericsson returned a net profit of 19bn kronor, compared with a loss of 10.8bn kronor in 2003. Sales climbed to 131.9 billion kronor from 117.7bn kronor in 2003.
"	business
Bank opts to leave rates on hold	"The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold at 4.75% for a sixth month in a row.

The Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to take no action amid mixed signals from the economy. But some economists predict a further rise in the cost of borrowing will come later this year. Interest rates rose five times between November 2003 and August 2004 as soaring house prices and buoyant consumer data sparked inflation fears. Bank of England governor Mervyn King has recently warned against placing too much weight on one month's economic data, suggesting the MPC is waiting for a clearer picture to emerge. Economists see next week's inflation report from the MPC as key in assessing whether a further interest rate rise is necessary to keep the economy in check.

Slower consumer spending and a quieter housing market are likely to have convinced the MPC that rates should be left unchanged in recent months. Inflation, however, has been rising faster than expected, hitting an annual rate of 1.6% in December - its highest level in six months. Data on Wednesday also showed manufacturing output rose at its fastest rate since May last month, reinforcing a view that economic growth was stronger than forecasts.

And recent house surveys from the Halifax and Nationwide have indicated prices are still rising, albeit at a slower pace than in recent years. Philip Shaw, chief economist at Investec Securities, said he believed rates would remain at 4.75% for the rest of the year although strong economic data could lead to a further hike. ""The economic landscape has changed quite considerably over the last couple of months, "" he said. ""Growth appears stronger and the MPC may become more concerned about inflation trends."" Howard Archer, economist at Global Insight said the MPC ""may well consider that the balance of risks to the growth and inflation outlook have moved from the downside to the upside"".

Business groups welcomed the MPC's widely-expected move to leave rates on hold and cautioned against further rises. The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said it was ""concerned by the clamour in some quarters"" for early interest rate increases. ""We believe that these demands should be firmly resisted,"" said David Frost, BCC director general. ""Manufacturing still faces extremely serious problems and is performing poorly, in spite of the recent revised figures."" Ian McCafferty, chief economist at the CBI, said the MPC faced an ""interesting"" challenge. ""Consumers appear to have pulled in their horns over the holiday period, and exporters are struggling with the strength of sterling,"" he said. ""However, the broader economy continues to show healthy growth, and the tight labour market and buoyant commodity prices are nudging inflation higher.""
"	business
Nigeria to boost cocoa production	"The government of Nigeria is hoping to triple cocoa production over the next three years with the launch of an ambitious development programme.

Agriculture Minister Adamu Bello said the scheme aimed to boost production from an expected 180,000 tonnes this year to 600,000 tonnes by 2008. The government will pump 154m naira ($1.1m; £591,000) into subsidies for farming chemicals and seedlings. Nigeria is currently the world's fourth-largest cocoa producer.

Cocoa was the main export product in Nigeria during the 1960s. But with the coming of oil, the government began to pay less attention to the cocoa sector and production began to fall from a peak of about 400,000 tonnes a year in 1970. At the launch of the programme in the south-western city of Ibadan, Mr Bello explained that an additional aim of the project is to encourage the processing of cocoa in the country and lift local consumption. He also announced that 91m naira of the funding available had been earmarked for establishing cocoa plant nurseries. The country could be looking to emulate rival Ghana, which produced a bumper crop last year. However, some farmers are sceptical about the proposals. ""People who are not farming will hijack the subsidy,"" said Joshua Osagie, a cocoa farmer from Edo state told Reuters. ""The farmers in the village never see any assistance,"" he added.

At the same time as Nigeria announced its new initiative, Ghana - the world's second largest cocoa exporter - announced revenues from the industry had broken new records. The country saw more than $1.2bn-worth of the beans exported during 2003-04. Analysts said high tech-production techniques and crop spraying introduced by the government led to the huge crop, pushing production closer to levels seen in the 1960s when the country was the world's leading cocoa grower.
"	business
US interest rates increased to 2%	"US interest rates are to rise for the fourth time in five months, in a widely anticipated move.

The Federal Reserve has raised its key federal funds rate by a quarter percentage point to 2% in light of mounting evidence that the US economy is regaining steam. US companies created twice as many jobs as expected in October while exports hit record levels in September. Analysts said a clear-cut victory for President Bush in last week's election paved the way for a rise. Another rise could be in store for December, some economists warned.

The Fed's Open Market Committee - which sets interest rate policy in the US - voted unanimously in favour of a quarter point rise. The Fed has been gradually easing rates up since the summer, with quarter percentage point rises in June, August and September.

The Central Bank has been acting to restrain inflationary pressures while being careful not to obstruct economic growth. The Fed did not rule out raising rates once again in December but noted that any future increases would take place at a ""measured"" pace. In a statement, the Fed said that long-term inflation pressures remained ""well contained"" while the US economy appeared to be ""growing at a moderate pace despite the rise in energy prices"". Financial analysts broadly welcomed the Fed's move and shares traded largely flat. The Dow Jones Industrial average closed down 0.89 points, or 0.01%, at 10,385.48.

Recent evidence has pointed to an upturn in the US economy. US firms created 337,000 jobs last month, twice the amount expected, while exports reached record levels in September. The economy grew 3.7% in the third quarter, slower than forecast, but an improvement on the 3.3% growth seen in the second quarter. Analysts claimed the Fed's assessment of future economic growth was a positive one but stressed that the jury was still out on the prospect of a further rise in December.

""Let's wait until we see how growth and employment bear up under the fourth quarter's energy price drag before concluding that the Fed has more work to do in 2005,"" said Avery Shenfeld, senior economist at CIBC World Markets.

""I think the Federal Reserve does not want to rock the boat and is using a gradual approach in raising the interest rate,"" said Sung Won Sohn, chief US economist for Wells Fargo Bank. ""The economy is doing a bit better right now but there are still some concerns about geopolitics, employment and the price of oil,"" he added. The further rise in US rates is unlikely to have a direct bearing on UK monetary policy. The Bank of England (BoE) has kept interest rates on hold at 4.75% for the past three months, leading some commentators to argue that rates may have peaked. In a report published on Wednesday, the Bank said that with rates at their current level, inflation would rise to its 2% target within two years. However, BoE governor Mervyn King warned only last month that the era of consistently low inflation and low unemployment may be coming to an end.
"	business
US bank in $515m SEC settlement	"Five Bank of America subsidiaries have agreed to pay a total of $515m (£277m) to settle an investigation into fraudulent trading share practices.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission announced the settlements, the latest in an industry-wide clean-up of US mutual funds. The SEC also said it had brought fraud charges against two ex-senior executives of Columbia Distributor. Columbia Distributor was part of FleetBoston, bought by BOA last year. Three other ex-Columbia executives agreed settlements with the SEC.

The SEC has set itself the task of stamping out the mutual funds' use of market-timing, a form of quick-fire, short-term share trading that harms the interests of small investors, with whom mutual funds are particularly popular. In the last two years, it has imposed penalties totalling nearly $2bn on 15 funds. The SEC unveiled two separate settlements, one covering BOA's direct subsidiaries, and another for businesses that were part of FleetBoston at the time. In both cases, it said there had been secret deals to engage in market timing in mutual fund shares. The SEC agreed a deal totalling $375m with Banc of America Capital Management, BACAP Distributors and Banc of America Securities. It was made up of $250m to pay back gains from market timing, and $125m in penalties. It is to be paid to the damaged funds and their shareholders. Separately, the SEC said it had reached a $140m deal - equally split between penalties and compensation - in its probe into Columbia Management Advisors (CAM) and Columbia Funds Distributor (CFD) and three ex-Columbia executives. These businesses became part of BOA when it snapped up rival bank FleetBoston in a $47bn merger last March.

The SEC filed civil fraud charges in a Boston Federal court against James Tambone, who it says headed CFD's sales operations, and his alleged second in command Robert Hussey. The SEC is pressing for the highest tier of financial penalties against the pair for ""multiple violations"", repayment of any personal gains, and an injunction to prevent future breaches, a spokeswoman for the SEC's Boston office told the BBC. There was no immediate comment from the men's' lawyers. The SEC's settlement with CAM and CFD included agreements with three other ex-managers, Peter Martin, Erik Gustafson and Joseph Palombo, who paid personal financial penalties of between $50-100,000.
"	business
Train strike grips Buenos Aires	"A strike on the Buenos Aires underground has caused traffic chaos and large queues at bus stops in the Argentine capital.

Tube workers walked out last week demanding a 53% pay rise and in protest against the installation of automatic ticket machines. Metrovias, the private firm which runs the five tube lines in the city, has offered an 8% increase in wages. The firm promised no jobs would be lost as a result of new ticket machines. It said it would put this commitment on paper.

Underground staff have warned they will continue with the protests until the management put an acceptable offer on the table. The Argentine Work Ministry has been mediating in the conflict and it could call an ""obligatory conciliation"", which would force both sides to find a solution and put an end to the conflict. Some tube commuters have not hidden their frustration at the ongoing strike and have broken the windows of the underground trains, according to the local press. ""We are taken as hostages. I don't know who is right, but the harm ones are us,"" said accountant Jose Lopez.
"	business
Bargain calls widen Softbank loss	"Japanese communications firm Softbank has widened losses after heavy spending on a new cut-rate phone service.

The service, launched in December and dubbed ""Otoku"" or ""bargain"", has had almost 900,000 orders, Softbank said. The firm, a market leader in high-speed internet, had an operating loss for the three months to December of 7.5bn yen ($71.5m; £38.4m). But without the Otoku marketing spend it would have made a profit - and expects to move into the black in 2006. The firm did not give a figure for the extent of profits it expected to make next year. It was born in the 1990s tech boom, investing widely and becoming a fast-rising star, till the end of the tech bubble hit it hard. Its recent return to a high profile came with the purchase of Japan Telecom, the country's third-biggest fixed-line telecoms firm. The acquisition spurred its broadband internet division to pole position in the Japanese market, with more than 5.1 million subscribers at the end of December.
"	business
WMC profits up amid bid criticism	"Australian mining firm WMC Resources has seen a fivefold rise in profits while continuing to be the target of a hostile takeover bid.

WMC said it made net profits of 1.33bn Australian dollars ($1bn; £550m) in 2004, up from A$246bn the year before. It is currently arguing against an offer from Swiss Xstrata, which the firm raised to A$8.4bn last week after WMC said it was an undervaluation. Now reports say that the Australian government is against the deal.

Trade Minister Mark Vaile has said that the bid may be ""against the national interest"". Mr Vaile, who was quoted in the Australian Financial Review, compared Xstrata's attempt to take over WMC to a similar bid by oil giant Shell for Australia's Woodside Petroleum in 2001. The bid was thrown out by Treasurer Peter Costello on national interest grounds. WMC's interests in uranium deposits were a contributing factor, Mr Vaile said. WMC itself, however, has no objection in principle to being bought out, having spun off its aluminium operations in 2002 to make itself a more tempting target - as long as the price is right. Its stellar performance in 2004 has been built on sky-high prices for metals. Copper and nickel in particular have been in high demand thanks to China's booming economy, which expanded more than 9% in each of the past two years. Nickel prices rose 43% during the year, with copper up 36%.
"	business
Barclays profits hit record level	"Barclays, the UK's third-biggest bank, has seen annual pre-tax profits climb to record levels boosted by a sharp rise in business at its investment arm.

Profits for the year to 31 December rose 20% to £4.6bn ($8.6bn). Barclays' chief John Varley said the bank had ""caught the winds"" of a very strong world economy. Earnings at Barclays Capital investment bank rose 25% to £1.04bn, but investment in branch operations held back growth in its UK retail business.

The group is the first of Britain's five big banks to report 2004 results. According to analysts' forecasts, HSBC, the biggest UK bank by stock market valuation, will report profits of £9.4bn later this month.

Barclays results were in line with market expectations. Its Global Investors wing made £347m, an 82% jump on 2003 figures. Profits at Barclaycard rose by 5% to £801m but were said to have been affected by a series of interest rate rises and investment to grow its customer base. The bank also blamed margins pressure on its mortgage business and spending on its branches over the past year for a 1% fall in profits in its UK retail division to £1.13bn.

""The outlook for 2005 is good as a result of balance sheet growth and investments made in 2004,"" Mr Varley said. Barclays cautioned that growth this year may be slower than in 2004 on the back of softer US and Chinese economies and the impact of interest rate rises on household spending in the UK. It added its bid to acquire a controlling stake in South Africa's leading retail bank Absa, was being considered by regulatory authorities. Speaking on BBC Radio 4, Mr Varley declined to be drawn on reports that Barclays had held merger talks with US bank Wells Fargo. A tie-up between Barclays and California-based Wells Fargo would create the world's fourth biggest bank, valued at $180bn. At 1405 GMT, shares in Barclays were trading down 0.67% at 590 pence. ""The headline numbers are in line, but the story is costs,"" said analyst Alex Potter at Lehman Brothers. ""They are a bit more aggressive than we had expected. The cost overshoot is not in Barclays Capital but in the UK bank.""
"	business
Yukos owner sues Russia for $28bn	"The majority owner of embattled Russian oil firm Yukos has sued the Russian government for $28.3bn (£15.2bn).

The Kremlin last year seized and sold Yukos' main production arm, Yugansk, to state-run oil group Rosneft for $9.3bn to offset a massive back tax bill. Group Menatep, the Gibraltar-based holding company which controls 51% of Yukos, says this was illegal. Menatep has already asked Rosneft to repay a $900m loan that Yugansk had secured on its assets.

The Russian government's argument for selling Yuganskneftegaz - the unit's full name - was that Yukos owed more than $27bn in back taxes for the years from 2000 onwards. It accused the firm of using a web of offshore firms to avoid its tax liabilities, and the courts sent in bailiffs to freeze Yukos accounts and seize Yugansk.

But critics say the sell-off, and the assault on Yukos' finances, are part of an attempt to bring the energy industry back under state control. According to Menatep, the government's actions were contrary to the 1994 Energy Charter Treaty, which was designed to regulate disagreements over energy investments. ""We have warned the Russian government about their continuing attacks against Yukos, its personnel and its shareholders and we have warned any buyer of Yuganskneftegaz that they would face a lifetime of litigation,"" said Tim Osborne, a director of Group Menatep. ""The time for warning is over and actions to recover the value of our losses begin in earnest today.""

Menatep said the value of its Yukos shareholding had gone from $17.8bn to ""virtually nothing"" since 2003 as a result of the Russian government's action, as its shares have fallen 97%. According to its Paris lawyer, Emmanuel Gaillard of Shearman and Sterling, the overall claim is based on that figure, with a 60% addition for the share gains that could have accrued since then. Arbitration of the lawsuit could take place in Stockholm or The Hague, Mr Gaillard said. While Russia has signed the Charter, it has never ratified it - which some experts say could make it difficult for Menatep to press its case. But Mr Gaillard told BBC News that the Charter came into effect on signature, not ratification. ""Russia has said in the past that it is bound by it, so as to attract foreign investors,"" he said.

Yukos is still waiting to see what will happen to its filing in a US court for bankruptcy protection. It took the action to try to prevent the forced sale of Yugansk - first to a little-known shell company, which in turn was bought by Rosneft. Yukos claims its downfall was punishment for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky, currently facing fraud and tax evasion charges of his own, was one of the founders of Menatep. He has since signed over his shareholding to one of his fellow investors.
"	business
Qantas sees profits fly to record	"Australian airline Qantas has posted a record fiscal first-half profit thanks to cost-cutting measures.

Net profit in the six months ending 31 December rose 28% to A$458.4m ($357.6m; £191m) from a year earlier. Analysts expected a figure closer to A$431m. Qantas shares fell almost 3%, however, after it warned that earnings growth would slow in the second half. Sales will dip by at least A$30m after the Indian ocean tsunami devastated many holiday destinations, Qantas said.

""The tsunami affected travel patterns in ways that we were a bit surprised about,"" chief executive Geoff Dixon explained. ""It certainly affected Japanese travel into Australia. As soon as the tsunami hit we saw ... a lessening with bookings for Australia."" Higher fuel costs also are expected to eat into earnings in coming months. ""We don't have as much hedging benefit in the second half as we had in the first,"" said chief financial officer Peter Gregg. Qantas is facing increased pressure from rivals such as low-cost carrier Virgin Blue and the Australian government is in talks about whether to allow Singapore Airlines to fly between the Australia and the US - one of Qantas' key routes.

Even so, the firm is predicting that full-year earnings will increase from the previous 12 months. Analysts have forecast full-year profit will rise about 11% to around A$720 million ($563 million). Qantas boss Mr Dixon also said he would be reviewing the group's cost-cutting measures. During the first six months of the fiscal year, Qantas made savings of A$245m, and is on track to top its target of A$500m for the full year. Last month, the company warned it may transfer as many as 7,000 jobs out Australia, with Mr Dixon quoted as saying that the carrier could no longer afford to remain ""all-Australian"".
"	business
Iraq to invite phone licence bids	"Iraq is to invite bids for two telephone licences, saying it wants to significantly boost nationwide coverage over the next decade.

Bids have been invited from local, Arab and foreign companies, Iraq's Ministry of Communications said. The winner will work in partnership with the Iraqi Telecommunications and Post Company (ITPC). The firms will install and operate a fixed phone network, providing voice, fax and internet services.

The ministry said that it wanted to increase Iraq's ""very low telephone service penetration rate from about 4.5% today to about 25% within 10 years."" It also hopes to develop a ""highly visible and changeable telecommunication sector"". Details of the bidding and tender process will be published on the ministry's website on 9 February. It also is planning a road-show for investors in Amman, Jordan. The ministry said it would base its selection on criteria including the speed of implementation, tariff rates, coverage, and the firm's experience and financial strength.
"	business
Aviation firms eye booming India	"India's defence minister has opened the country's Aero India 2005 air show with an invitation for global aerospace firms to outsource jobs to the nation.

Pranab Mukherjee said such companies could take advantage of India's highly skilled workers and low wages. More than 240 civil and military aerospace firms from 31 countries are attending the show. Analysts said India could spend up to $35bn (£18.8bn) in the aviation market over the next 20 years. Giants such Boeing and Airbus - on the civil aviation front - as well as Lockheed Martin and France's Snecma - on the military side - are some of the firms attending the show. ""There is tremendous scope for outsourcing from India in areas where the companies are competitive,"" said Mr Mukerjee. ""We are keen to welcome international collaborations that are in conformity with our national goals.""

Lockheed said it had signed an agreement with state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) to share information on the P-3 Orion maritime surveillance aircraft.

In fact, the Indian Armed Force is considering the buying of used P-3 Orion as well as F-16 fighter jets from Lockheed. The US military industry has show a strong interest to open a link with India, now that relations between the two countries have improved a lot. In fact, it is the first time the US Air Force will attend the air show since sanctions imposed in 1998 after India's nuclear tests were lifted. But the Indian Air Force is also considering proposals from other foreign firms such as France's Dassault Aviation, Sweden's Saab and Russia's Mikoyan-Gurevich. Meanwhile, France's Snecma has also said it plans a joint venture with HAL to make engine parts, with an initial investment of $6.5m.

On the civilian front, Boeing announced a deal with India's HCL Technologies to develop a platform for the flight test system of its 787 Dreamliner aircraft. The US company also said it had agreed with a new Indian budget airline the sale of 10 737-800 planes for $630m. The airline, SpiceJet, will also have the option to acquire 10 more aircraft. Airbus has also recently signed fresh deals with two Indian airlines - Air Deccan and Kingfisher. In addition, the European company has plans to open a training centre in India. Meanwhile, flag carrier Air India is considering to buy 50 new aircraft from either Boeing or Airbus. ""No other market is going to see the growth that will be seen here in the coming years,"" said Dinesh Keskar, senior vice president Boeing.
"	business
Russian oil merger excludes Yukos	"The merger of Russian gas giant Gazprom and oil firm Rosneft is to go ahead, but will not include Yugansk, which was controversially bought last year.

The merger, backed by Russian authorities, will allow foreigners to trade in Gazprom shares. Gazprom chief Alexei Miller confirmed Rosneft-owned Yugansk was not part of the deal and will instead be spun off. Under the agreement, the state will get a controlling share of Gazprom in exchange for Rosneft. The state wanted to control Gazprom before allowing foreigners to trade. Speaking on NTV television, which is controlled by Gazprom, Mr Miller added that Yugansk, which was swallowed up by Rosneft late last year, will operate as a separate, state-owned oil firm headed by current Rosneft chief Sergei Bogdanchikov. According to reports from Russian News Agency Interfax, the deal should go through in the next two to three months.

""Obtaining majority control over Gazprom is the beginning of the liberalisation of the market in Gazprom shares,"" Mr Miller added. By opening up trading in Gazprom to foreigners, the firm will become a top emerging market play for traders. Currently, foreigners can only trade in Gazprom via a small issue of London-listed proxy shares. ""This is positive news for the international investment community,"" Global Asset Management investment chief David Smith said. ""The majority of investors are going to be happy,"" he added.

However, analysts were disappointed that Yugansk would not be included in the deal. ""Yugansk is a heavy cashflow generator and would have been a much better asset for Gazprom,"" Renaissance Capital energy analyst Adam Landes told Reuters news agency. But he said the latest development was simply an interim step to allow foreigners to trade in Gazprom. ""Ultimately and industrially, Gazprom needs Yugansk,"" he added. Analysts said the deal would give Gazprom control of 8% of Russia's total oil production, an improvement on its current 2.5%, but still far less than the 20% share it would have gained had it also taken over Yugansk. However, the merged group will still remain outside Russia's top five oil producers - led by Lukoil with 11% of the market , followed by TNK-BP which is half owned by BP, and Surgutneftegaz. Instead, the merged Gazprom-Rosneft group will rank alongside Sibneft with 7% of the market. Yugansk was sold to a little-known shell company in a disputed auction in December, following what many thought was a politically-motivated attack on Yukos. The shell company was then snapped up by Rosneft. Yukos unsuccessfully sought to halt the auction by applying for bankruptcy through the US courts. The unit was auctioned by Russian authorities to help pay off a $27.5bn back-tax bill.
"	business
Brazil buy boosts Belgium's Inbev	"Belgian brewing giant Inbev has seen its profits soar thanks to its acquisition of Brazil's biggest beer firm Ambev last year.

Inbev, which makes Stella Artois, said pre-tax profits for 2004 rose 56% to 1.16bn euros ($1.5bn; £800m), and said it expected solid growth in 2005. The performance comes on sales up 21% at 8.6bn euros. The firm, formerly Interbrew, became the world's biggest brewer by volume when it bought Ambev in August 2004. The acquisition meant its sales by volume grew 57% in 2004, with four months of Ambev sales accounting for almost all of the increase. US beermaker Anheuser-Busch sells less beer by volume than Inbev but is bigger in terms of the value of its sales. Continuing demand for Inbev's products in the South American markets where its Brazilian arm is most popular means it expects to keep boosting its turnover. ""It's the Brazil business that's doing it,"" said ING analyst Gerard Rijk of Inbev's strong performance. Ambev boosted its share of Brazil's beer market from 62% at the end of 2003 to more than 68% by December 2004, Inbev reported. In contrast, Inbev's European business saw volume sales fall 2.5%, although Central and Eastern European sales rose 12%. Overall, net profits were up 42% to 719m euros.
"	business
Salary scandal in Cameroon	"Cameroon says widespread corruption in its finance ministry has cost it 1bn CFA francs ($2m; £1m) a month.

About 500 officials are accused of either awarding themselves extra money or claiming salaries for ""non-existent"" workers. Prime Minister Ephraim Inoni, who vowed to tackle corruption when he came to office last year, said those found guilty would face tough punishments. The scam is believed to have begun in 1994.

The prime minister's office said the alleged fraud was uncovered during an investigation into the payroll at the ministry. In certain cases, staff are said to have lied about their rank and delayed their retirement in order to boost their earnings. The prime minister's office said auditors had found ""irregularities in the career structure of certain civil servants"". It added that the staff in question ""appear to have received unearned salaries, boosting the payroll"".

Fidelis Nanga, a journalist based in the Cameroon capital Yaounde, said the government was considering taking criminal action against those found guilty and forcing them to repay any money owed. ""The prime minister has given instructions for exemplary penalties to be meted out against the accused and their accomplices if found guilty,"" he told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

Mr Inoni launched an anti-corruption drive in December after foreign investors criticised a lack of transparency in the country's public finances. In one initiative designed to improve efficiency, civil servants who arrived late for work were locked out of their offices. The government now intends to carry out an audit of payrolls at all other government ministries. In a report compiled by anti-corruption body Transparency International in 2003, graft was said to be ""pervasive"" in Cameroon.
"	business
US adds more jobs than expected	"The US economy added 337,000 jobs in October - a seven-month high and far more than Wall Street expectations.

In a welcome economic boost for newly re-elected President George W Bush, the Labor Department figures come after a slow summer of weak jobs gains. Jobs were created in every sector of the US economy except manufacturing. While the separate unemployment rate went up to 5.5% from 5.4% in September, this was because more people were now actively seeking work.

The 337,000 new jobs added to US payrolls in October was twice the 169,000 figure that Wall Street economists had forecast. In addition, the Labor Department revised up the number of jobs created in the two previous months - to 139,000 in September instead of 96,000, and to 198,000 in August instead of 128,000. The better than expected jobs data had an immediate upward effect on stocks in New York, with the main Dow Jones index gaining 45.4 points to 10,360 by late morning trading. ""It looks like the job situation is improving and that this will support consumer spending going into the holidays, and offset some of the drag caused by high oil prices this year,"" said economist Gary Thayer of AG Edwards & Sons.

Other analysts said the upbeat jobs data made it more likely that the US Federal Reserve would increase interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 2% when it meets next week. ""It should empower the Fed to clearly do something,"" said Robert MacIntosh, chief economist with Eaton Vance Management in Boston. Kathleen Utgoff, commissioner of the Bureau of Labor, said many of the 71,000 new construction jobs added in October were involved in rebuilding and clean-up work in Florida, and neighbouring Deep South states, following four hurricanes in August and September. The dollar rose temporarily on the job creation news before falling back to a new record low against the euro, as investors returned their attention to other economic factors, such as the US's record trade deficit. There is also speculation that President Bush will deliberately try to keep the dollar low in order to assist a growth in exports.
"	business
Feta cheese battle reaches court	"A row over whether only Greece should be allowed to label its cheese feta has reached the European Court of Justice.

The Danish and German governments are challenging a European Commission ruling which said Greece should have sole rights to use the name. The Commission's decision gave the same legal protection to feta as to Italian Parma ham and French Champagne. But critics of the judgement say feta is a generic term, with the cheese produced widely outside Greece.

The Commission's controversial 2002 ruling gave ""protected designation of origin"" status to feta cheese made in Greece, effectively restricting the use of the feta name to producers there.

From 2007 onwards, Greek firms will have the exclusive use of the feta label and producers elsewhere in Europe must find another name to describe their products. The German and Danish governments argue that feta does not relate to a specific geographical area and that their firms have been producing and exporting the cheese for years. ""In our opinion it is a generic designation and we do not have any other name or term for this type of cheese,"" Hans Arne Kristiansen, a spokesman for the Danish Dairy Board, told the BBC. Denmark is Europe's second largest producer of feta after Greece - producing about 30,000 tonnes a year - and exports its products to Greece. It is concerned that the ruling could threaten the production of other cheeses in Denmark such as brie. ""It would cost millions if we wanted to introduce a new designation,"" Mr Kristiansen said. ""That is just one of the costs.""

The case will also have a major impact on Britain's sole feta producer, Yorkshire company Shepherds Purse Cheeses.

Judy Bell, the company's founder, said it would cost a huge amount to rebrand its product. ""If we lose we will have to go through a massive re-merchandising process and reorganisation,"" she said. ""We have never tried to pull the wool over anyone's eyes - it's very clear from the label that it's Yorkshire feta."" The original decision was a victory for Greece, where feta cheese is believed to have been produced for about 6,000 years. Feta is a soft white cheese made from sheep or goat's milk, and is an essential ingredient in Greek cuisine. Greece makes 115,000 tonnes, mainly for domestic consumption. The Court is expected to reach a verdict in the case in the autumn.
"	business
Ukraine revisits state sell-offs	"Ukraine is preparing what could be a wholesale review of the privatisation of thousands of businesses by the previous administration.

The new President, Viktor Yushchenko, has said a ""limited"" list of companies is being drawn up. But on Wednesday Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said the government was planning to renationalise 3,000 firms. The government says many privatised firms were sold to allies of the last administration at rock-bottom prices. More than 90,000 businesses in all, from massive corporations to tiny shopfronts, have been sold off since 1992, as the command economy built up when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union was dismantled.

Ms Tymoshenko said prosecutors had drawn up a list of more than 3,000 businesses which were to be reviewed. ""We will return to the state that which was illegally put into private hands.""

A day earlier, Mr Yushchenko - keen to reassure potential investors - had said only 30 to 40 top firms would be targeted. The list ""will be limited and final, and will not be extended after its completion"", he said. An open-ended list could further damage outside investors' fragile faith in Ukraine, said Stuart Hensel of the Economist Intelligence Unit. But the government seemed keen not to make the review look like the kind of wholesale renationalisation which many fear in Russia, Mr Hensel said. As a result, it was planning to resell rather than keep firms in state hands. ""They're aware of the need not to scare investors, and to be careful of internal divides within Ukraine,"" he said. ""They don't want to be seen to be transferring assets from one set of oligarchs to a new set."" Foreign investment in Ukraine, at about $40 a head in 2004, is one of the lowest among ex-Soviet states.

Mr Yushchenko became president after two elections in December, the first of which was annulled amid allegations of voting irregularities and massive street protests.

His opponent, Viktor Yanukovich, still has huge support in the country's eastern industrial heartland. Mr Yushchenko's administration has accused its predecessor, led by ex-President Leonid Kuchma, of corruption. The privatisation review's number one target is a steel mill sold to a consortium which included Viktor Pinchuk, Mr Kuchma's son-in-law, for $800m (£424m) despite higher bids from several foreign groups. The mill, Krivorizhstal, is one of the world's most profitable. ""We say Krivorizhstal was stolen, and at any cost we will return it to the state,"" Mr Yushchenko told an investors' conference in Kiev.

One of the jilted bidders, Netherlands-based group LNM, said it welcomed the possibility that the mill might be back on the market.

""If the original privatisation is annulled and a new tender issued, then we would look at it with great interest,"" a spokesman told BBC News. A resale of Krivorizhstal could potentially triple the price, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit's Mr Hensel. But he warned that the government could decide to take the easy route of revaluing the company and charging the existing owners the revised price rather than undertaking a fresh sale. ""That way, Mr Yushchenko can go to the public and say he has forced the oligarchs to play by the rules,"" he told BBC News.
"	business
Bank set to leave rates on hold	"UK interest rates are set to remain on hold at 4.75% following the latest meeting of the Bank of England.

The Bank's rate-setting committee has put up rates five times in the past year but rates have been on hold since September amid signs of a slowdown. Economic growth slowed in the previous quarter, as manufacturing output fell, while consumer confidence has slipped. There is also growing evidence that the previously booming UK housing market is now cooling.

House prices fell 0.4% in October, according to the Nationwide, their biggest monthly fall since February 2001. Last month, Bank of England governor Mervyn King said that the economy had hit a ""softer patch"" after rapid economic growth in the first half of 2004. Richard Jeffrey, chief economist at Bridgewell Securities, said it was very unlikely that the Bank of England would put rates up again this time around. ""There have been sufficient signs in the economy of a slowdown to stay the Bank of England's hand,"" he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. However, Mr Jeffrey said he believed the slowdown in economic activity was temporary and it was dangerous to assume that rates had peaked. ""I still think interest rates are going up,"" he said. ""We are not out of the woods.""
"	business
Winter freeze keeps oil above $50	"Oil prices carried on rising on Wednesday after cold weather on both sides of the North Atlantic pushed US crude prices to four-month highs.

Freezing temperatures and heavy snowfalls took crude oil prices past $50 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time since November. Declines in the dollar have also contributed to the rising oil price. US crude was trading at $51.39 at 0710 GMT in Asian electronic trade on Wednesday. A barrel of US crude oil closed up $2.80 at $51.15 in New York on Tuesday. Opec members said on Tuesday that, given such high prices, the cartel saw no reason to cut its output.

Although below last year's peak of $55.67 a barrel, which was reached in October, prices are now well above 2004's average of $41.48. Brent crude also rose in London trading, adding $1.89 to $48.62 at the close.

Much of western Europe and the north east of America has been shivering under unseasonably low temperatures in recent days. The decline in the US dollar to a five-week low against the euro has also served to inflate prices. ""The primary factor is the weak dollar,"" said Victor Shum, a Singapore-based analyst with Purvin and Gertz. Expectations that a rebound in the dollar would halt the oil price rise were not immediately borne out on Wednesday morning, as oil prices carried on upwards as the dollar strengthened against the euro, the pound and the yen.

Several Opec members said on Tuesday that a cut in production was unlikely, citing rising prices and strong demand for oil from Asia. ""I agree that we do not need to cut supply if the prices are as much as this,"" Fathi Bin Shatwan, Libya's oil minister, told Reuters. ""I do not think we need to cut unless the prices are falling below $35 a barrel,"" he added.
"	business
German jobless rate at new record	"More than 5.2 million Germans were out of work in February, new figures show.

The figure of 5.216 million people, or 12.6% of the working-age population, is the highest jobless rate in Europe's biggest economy since the 1930s. The news comes as the head of Germany's panel of government economic advisers predicted growth would again stagnate. Speaking on German TV, Bert Ruerup said the panel's earlier forecast of 1.4% was too optimistic and warned growth would be just 1% in 2005.

The German government is trying to tackle the stubbornly-high levels of joblessness with a range of labour market reforms. At their centre is the ""Hartz-IV"" programme introduced in January to shake up welfare benefits and push people back into work - even if some of the jobs are heavily subsidised. The latest unemployment figures look set to increase the pressure on the government. Widely leaked to the German newspapers a day in advance, they produced screaming headlines criticising Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrat-Green Party administration. Mr Schroeder had originally come into office promising to halve unemployment.

Still, some measures suggest the picture is not quite so bleak. The soaring official unemployment figure follows a change in the methodology which pushed up the jobless rate by more than 500,000 in January. Adjusted for seasonal changes, the overall unemployment rate is 4.875 million people or 11.7%, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous month. Using the most internationally-accepted methodology of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Germany had 3.97 million people out of work in January. And ILO-based figures also suggest that 14,000 new net jobs were created that month, taking the number of people employed to 38.9 million. The ILO defines an unemployed person as someone who in the previous four weeks had actively looked for work they could take up immediately.
"	business
Ore costs hit global steel firms	"Shares in steel firms have dropped worldwide amid concerns that higher iron ore costs will hit profit growth.

Shares in Germany's ThyssenKrupp, the UK's Corus and France's Arcleor fell while Japan's Nippon Steel slid after it agreed to pay 72% more for iron ore. China's Baoshan Iron and Steel Co. said it was delaying a share sale because of weak market conditions, adding it would raise steel prices to offset ore costs. The threat of higher raw material costs also hit industries such as carmakers. France's Peugeot warned that its profits may decline this year as a result of the higher steel, plastic and commodity prices.

Steelmakers have been enjoying record profits as demand for steel has risen, driven by the booming economies of countries such as China and India. Steel prices rose by 8% globally in January alone and by 24% in China.

The boom times are far from over, but analysts say that earnings growth may slow. The share price fall was initially triggered by news that two of the world's biggest iron ore suppliers had negotiated contracts at much-higher prices. Miners Rio Tinto and Cia. Vale Do Rio Dolce (CVRD) this week managed to boost by 72% the price of their iron ore, a key component of steel. Analysts had expected Japan's Nippon to agree to a price rise of between 40% and 50%. Steel analyst Peter Fish, director of Sheffield-based consulting group MEPS, said the extent of CVRD's price rise was ""uncharted territory"", adding that the steel industry ""hasn't seen an increase of this magnitude probably in 50 years"". Analysts now expect other iron ore producers, such as Australia's BHP Billiton, to seek annual price rises of up to 70%.

The news triggered the share price weakness. ""It sparked worries that steel makers might not be able to increase product prices further [ to cover rising ore costs]"" explained Kazuhiro Takahashi of Daiwa Securities SMBC. In Europe, Arcelor shed 2.1% to 17.58 euros in Paris, with ThyssenKrupp dropping 1.7% to 16.87 euros. In London, Corus fell 2.2% to 55.57 pence. Japan's biggest steel company Nippon Steel lost 2.5% to 270 yen, with closest rival JFE Holdings down 3.4%. China's Baoshan, the country's largest steel producer, said that the uncertainty surrounding the industry has prompted it to pull its planned share sale. The firm had been expected to offer 22.5bn yuan ($2.7bn) worth of shares to investors. No date has been given for when the 5 billion shares will come to the market. Baoshan stock climbed on news of the delay and its decision to increase the price of its steel by 10%.
"	business
BMW reveals new models pipeline	"BMW is preparing to enter the market for car-style people carriers, the firm's chief has told BBC News.

Speaking at a BMW event ahead of the Geneva motor show, Helmut Panke predicted demand for such crossover vehicles would soar in Europe. In contrast, he said, the popularity of van-style seven-seat vehicles and traditional saloon cars would fade. ""Customers are moving out of the mini-van (and) traditional concepts are not as attractive anymore,"" he said. ""We have decided that BMW will enter the [crossover] segment,"" he said in the clearest indication yet about the car maker's intentions.

Mr Panke praised the Honda Accura as the ""best execution"" yet of a crossover vehicle. ""We have decided that the BMW brand will enter the segment,"" he said.

A decision on just how BMW will manage its entry into the new market is due in the first half of 2005. Typically it takes about three years from when a decision is taken before a new model hits the streets, Mr Panke said, implying that a BMW crossover could be on the market by 2008. The coming switch is driven in part by the need for successful carmakers to stay aware of trans-Atlantic differences in the car market, Mr Panke insisted. While in the US drivers tend to prefer sports utility vehicles (SUVs), such as the BMW X5 and its sibling X3, in Europe demand for crossover vehicles is likely to be considerable, Mr Panke said. ""There's a growing market here,"" he said. ""We are going to go that way.""
"	business
Asian banks halt dollar's slide	"The dollar regained some lost ground against most major currencies on Wednesday after South Korea and Japan denied they were planning a sell-off.

The dollar suffered its biggest one-day fall in four months on Tuesday on fears that Asian central banks were about to lower their reserves of dollars. Japan is the biggest holder of dollar reserves in the world, with South Korea the fourth largest. The dollar was buying 104.76 yen at 0950 GMT, 0.5% stronger on the day. It also edged higher against both the euro and the pound, with one euro worth $1.3218, and one pound buying $1.9094. Concerns over rising oil prices and the outlook for the dollar pushed down US stock markets on Tuesday; the Dow Jones industrial average closed down 1.6%, while the Nasdaq lost 1.3%.

The dollar's latest slide began after a South Korean parliamentary report suggested the country, which has about $200bn in foreign reserves, had plans to boost holdings of currencies such as the Australian and Canadian dollar. On Wednesday, however, South Korea moved to steady the financial markets. It issued a statement that ""The Bank of Korea will not change the portfolio of currencies in its reserves due to short term market factors"". Japan, too, steadied nerves. A senior Japanese Finance Ministry official told Reuters ""we have no plans to change the composition of currency holdings in the foreign reserves, and we are not thinking about expanding our euro holdings"". Japan has $850bn in foreign exchange reserves. At the start of the year, the US currency, which had lost 7% against the euro in the final three months of 2004 and had fallen to record lows, staged something of a recovery. Analysts, however, pointed to the dollar's inability recently to extend that rally despite positive economic and corporate data, and highlighted the fact that many of the US's economic problems had not disappeared. The focus has been on the country's massive trade and budget deficits, and analysts have predicted more dollar weakness to come.
"	business
Weak dollar trims Cadbury profits	"The world's biggest confectionery firm, Cadbury Schweppes, has reported a modest rise in profits after the weak dollar took a bite out of its results.

Underlying pre-tax profits rose 1% to £933m ($1.78bn) in 2004, but would have been 8% higher if currency movements were stripped out. The owner of brands such as Dairy Milk, Dr Pepper and Snapple generates more than 80% of its sales outside the UK. Cadbury said it was confident it would hit its targets for 2005. ""While the external commercial environment remains competitive, we are confident that we have the strategy, brands and people to deliver within our goal ranges in 2005,"" said chief executive Todd Stitzer.

The modest profit rise had been expected by analysts after the company said in December that the poor summer weather had hit soft drink sales in Europe.

Cadbury said its underlying sales were up by 4% in 2004. Growth was helped by its confectionery brands - including Cadbury, Trident and Halls - which enjoyed a ""successful"" year, with like-for-like sales up 6%. Drinks sales were up 2% with strong growth in US carbonated soft drinks, led by Dr Pepper and diet drinks, offset by the weaker sales in Europe. Cadbury added that its Fuel for Growth cost-cutting programme had saved £75m in 2004, bringing total cost savings to £100m since the scheme began in mid-2003. The programme is set to close 20% of the group's factories and shed 10% of the workforce. Cadbury Schweppes employs more than 50,000 people worldwide, with about 7,000 in the UK.
"	business
Oil prices fall back from highs	"Oil prices retreated from four-month highs in early trading on Tuesday after producers' cartel Opec said it was now unlikely to cut production.

Following the comments by acting Opec secretary general Adnan Shihab-Eldin, US light crude fell 32 cents to $51.43 a barrel. He said that high oil prices meant Opec was unlikely to stick to its plan to cut output in the second quarter. In London, Brent crude fell 32 cents to $49.74 a barrel.

Opec members are next meeting to discuss production levels on 16 March. On Monday, oil prices rose for a sixth straight session, reaching a four-month high as cold weather in the US threatened stocks of heating oil. US demand for heating oil was predicted to be about 14% above normal this week, while stocks were currently about 7.5% below the levels of a year ago. Cold weather across Europe has also put upward pressure on crude prices.
"	business
Winn-Dixie files for bankruptcy	"US supermarket group Winn-Dixie has filed for bankruptcy protection after succumbing to stiff competition in a market dominated by Wal-Mart.

Winn-Dixie, once among the most profitable of US grocers, said Chapter 11 protection would enable it to successfully restructure. It said its 920 stores would remain open, but analysts said it would most likely off-load a number of sites. The Jacksonville, Florida-based firm has total debts of $1.87bn (£980m). In its bankruptcy petition it listed its biggest creditor as US foods giant Kraft Foods, which it owes $15.1m.

Analysts say Winn-Dixie had not kept up with consumers' demands and had also been burdened by a number of stores in need of upgrading. A 10-month restructuring plan was deemed a failure, and following a larger-than-expected quarterly loss earlier this month, Winn-Dixie's slide into bankruptcy was widely expected. The company's new chief executive Peter Lynch said Winn-Dixie would use the Chapter 11 breathing space to take the necessary action to turn itself around. ""This includes achieving significant cost reductions, improving the merchandising and customer service in all locations and generating a sense of excitement in the stores,"" he said. Yet Evan Mann, a senior bond analyst at Gimme Credit, said Mr Lynch's job would not be easy, as the bankruptcy would inevitably put off some customers. ""The real big issue is what's going to happen over the next one or two quarters now that they are in bankruptcy and all their customers see this in their local newspapers,"" he said.
"	business
Why few targets are better than many	"The economic targets set out at the Lisbon summit of European Union leaders in 2000 were meant to help Europe leapfrog its way past the United States to become the world's leading economy by 2010.

But the Lisbon targets are about much more than just economic prestige. For many economists and analysts they are about ensuring Europe doesn't become a global economic laggard. They are also about ensuring Europe can continue to compete as an equal with the growing economic giants of Asia, India and China, as well as with the economic might of the United States. That's why there was a tone of urgency in the report, out on Wednesday, by the former Dutch prime minister Wim Kok. Mr Kok was commissioned by the European Commission in March this year to assess how far the EU has come towards meeting the Lisbon targets, five years on from their inception. His conclusion was simple: too many of the targets will be seriously missed.

Lisbon risks becoming a ""synonym for missed objectives and failed promises"", his report said. ""The status quo is not an option.""

At risk in the medium to long run is nothing less than the sustainability of the society Europe has built, it said. The report comes at a time when Europe's competitive position is waning. The EU's economic growth rate is projected to be 2% this year and 2.4% next. While there has been growth in overall employment rates in Europe, productivity lags behind that of the US. But meeting the Lisbon targets requires a political commitment that no EU member state has volunteered so far. That has in part been due to the state of the global economy in the past few years.

As Mr Kok's report noted: ""The ink had scarcely dried on the [Lisbon] agreement before the worldwide stock market bubble imploded."" ""The US suffered two years of economic slowdown and recession and the European economy followed suit.""

The circumstances weren't conducive to creating the 20 million new jobs promised by EU leaders in Lisbon in 2000. Neither were they conducive to getting governments to spend more on research and development, money needed if the EU was to meet its target of becoming a so-called ""knowledge-based economy"". ""The [Lisbon] vision is a compelling one, but in order to do it society has to change,"" said Paul Hofheinz of the Lisbon Council, a Brussels-based citizen action group. ""What you find is that a lot of people have been fighting change. You find trade unions fighting change. But also the employers' associations. ""Even though they tell you they're in favour of change, many are actually pushing for less competition, more subsidy and less free market activity.""

But part of the problem was also linked to the original targets set out in Lisbon five years ago. Targets have a habit of coming back to haunt you and in the Lisbon case, they covered too much, according to the Wim report. Economic growth and job creation were linked to issues ranging from environmental protection to social inclusion, and even safety at sea. The agenda was just too broad and as a result nothing was prioritised.

""Lisbon is about everything and thus about nothing,"" the Kok report said. ""Everybody is responsible and thus no one."" That's why the Kok report recommends that the Lisbon targets be narrowed down to 14 key indicators, with an emphasis on creating jobs and economic growth. It also recommends that the European Commission draw up a league table which ranks countries according to the steps they're taking towards meeting the targets, effectively ""naming, shaming and faming"". ""Rhetoric and delivery don't necessarily go hand in hand,"" Mr Kok said in a press conference alongside the publication of his report. ""We don't have the luxury anymore just to exchange politeness with one another.""

On one point Mr Kok was very clear: The European Union should not try to emulate the US economy. The European economic and social model needs to change, but not so much so that social and environmental issues take a backseat to economic growth. In that sense, the Lisbon agenda is sailing into unchartered waters. The Kok report tries to do away with a belief that jobs need to be sacrificed at the altar of economic growth. ""It's very ambitious,"" said John Palmer, political director at the European Policy Centre, a Brussels-based think-tank. ""This is something that no advanced economy in the world has tried to do. It's going to require quite new and innovative policies."" But some analysts believe that the Kok report doesn't come up with the sort of innovative policies and thinking needed to make the Lisbon targets a reality. For example, it recommends putting in place policies which encourage women and older people to remain in the workforce. But it doesn't say how companies should be convinced to do this. It will be up to the incoming president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, to adopt Mr Kok's recommendations and press them on EU governments. Mr Barroso has said that the EU's competitiveness will be his top priority. He expects his five-year term in office to be judged on Europe's success in meeting the Lisbon agenda.
"	business
Malaysia lifts Islamic bank limit	"Malaysia's central bank is to relax restrictions on foreign ownership to encourage Islamic banking.

Banks in Malaysia will now be able to sell up to 49% of their Islamic banking units, while the limit on other kinds of bank remains at 30%. RHB, Malaysia's third-biggest lender, is already scouting for a foreign partner for its new Islamic banking unit, the firm told Reuters. The moves put Malaysia ahead of a 2007 deadline to open up the sector. The country's deal to join the World Trade Organisation set that year as a deadline for liberalisation of Islamic banking. Also on Tuesday, the central bank released growth figures showing Malaysia's economy expanded 7.1% in 2004. But growth slowed sharply in the fourth quarter to 5.6%, and the central bank said it expected 6% expansion in 2005.

Malaysia changed the law to allow Islamic banking in 1983. It has granted licences to three Middle Eastern groups, which - along with local players - mean there are eight fully-operational Islamic banking groups in the country. Islamic banks offer services which permit modern banking principles while sticking to Islamic law's ban on the payment of interest. Most of the Malays which make up half the country's population are Muslims.
"	business
Alfa Romeos 'to get GM engines'	"Fiat is to stop making six-cylinder petrol engines for its sporty Alfa Romeo subsidiary, unions at the Italian carmaker have said.

The unions claim Fiat is to close the Fiat Powertrain plant at Arese near Milan and instead source six-cylinder engines from General Motors. Fiat has yet to comment on the matter, but the unions say the new engines will be made by GM in Australia. The news comes a week after GM pulled out of an agreement to buy Fiat. GM had to pay former partner Fiat 1.55bn euros ($2bn; £1.1bn) to get out of a deal which could have forced it to buy the Italian carmaker outright. Fiat and GM also ended their five-year alliance and two joint ventures in engines and purchasing, but did agree to continue buying each other's engines.

""Powertrain told us today that Alfa Romeo engines will no longer be made in Arese,"" said union leader Vincenzo Lilliu, as reported by the Reuters news agency. ""The assembly line will be dismantled and the six-cylinder Alfa Romeo motor will be replaced with an engine GM produces in Australia."" Reuters also said that Mr Lilliu and other union bosses shouted insults at Fiat chairman Luca di Montezemolo, following a meeting on Tuesday regarding the future of the Arese plant. The unions said the end of engine production at the facility would mean the loss of 800 jobs. All Alfa Romeo models can be bought with a six-cylinder engine - the 147, 156, 156 Sportwagon, 166, GTV, GT and Spider.
"	business
Saab to build Cadillacs in Sweden	"General Motors, the world's largest car maker, has confirmed that it will build a new medium-sized Cadillac BLS at its loss-making Saab factory in Sweden.

The car, unveiled at the Geneva motor show, is intended to compete in the medium-sized luxury car market. It will not be sold in the US, said GM Europe president Carl-Peter Forster. As part of its efforts to make the US marque appeal to European drivers, the car will be the first Cadillac with a diesel engine.

GM's announcement should go some way to allay fears of the Saab factory's closure. The factory in Trollhaettan has been at the centre of rumours about GM's planned severe cutbacks in its troubled European operations. But the group's new commitment to the Swedish factory may not be welcomed by the group's Opel workers in Ruesselsheim, Germany. They may now have to face a larger proportion of GM's cuts.

Neither will the announcement be seen as unalloyed good news in Sweden, since it reflects Saab's failure to make significant inroads into the lucrative European luxury car market. For years, Saab has consistently said it is competing head-on with BMW, Mercedes and Jaguar. The segment's leaders do not agree.

GM's plans to build the American marque in Sweden is part of its efforts to push it as an alternative luxury brand for European drivers. In the US, it has long been established as an upmarket brand - even the presidential limousine carries the badge. Yet it could prove tough for Cadillac to steal market share from the majors in Europe. Other luxury car makers, most notably the Toyota subsidiary Lexus, have enjoyed tremendous success in the US without managing to make significant inroads in Europe. There, German marques Mercedes Benz and BMW have retained their stranglehold on the luxury market.

Bringing Cadillac production to Sweden should help introduce desperately-needed scale to the Saab factory, which currently produces fewer than 130,000 cars per year. That is about half of what major car makers consider sufficient numbers for profitable operations, and Saab is losing money fast - albeit with losses halved in 2004 to $200m (£104m; 151m euros) from $500m the previous year. Beyond the 12,000 job cuts announced last year at its European operations, GM is reducing expenditure by building Saabs, Opels - badged as Vauxhalls in the UK - and now Cadillacs on the same framework, and by allowing the different brands to share parts. Another way to further reduce Saab's losses could be to shift some of the production of Saabs to the US, a market where drivers have adopted it as an upmarket European car. Doing so would remove the exposure to the weak US dollar, which is making Saabs more expensive to US consumers. But not everyone in the industry agree that it would be the best way forward. ""We know that in five years the US dollar will be stronger than it is today,"" the chief executive of a leading European car maker told BBC News. The current trend towards US production was ""stupid"", he said.

In a separate announcement, GM unveiled a new scheme to allow European consumers the chance to test drive its Opel and Vauxhall models. It is to deploy a fleet of 35,000 test cars across 40 countries, inviting potential buyers to try out a vehicle for 24-hours. It follows a similar initiative by GM in the US. GM said it wanted to change ""customers' perceptions"" about Opel and Vauxhall cars, showing them that the quality had improved in recent years.
"	business
Shares hit by MS drug suspension	"Shares in Elan and Biogen Idec plunged on Monday as the firms suspended sales of new multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri after a patient's death in the US.

On the New York Stock Exchange, shares in Ireland-based Elan lost 70% while US partner Biogen Idec shed 43%. The firms took action after the death from a central nervous system disease and a suspected case of the condition. The cases cited involved the use of both Tysabri and Avonex, Biogen Idec's existing multiple sclerosis drug. The companies said they have no reports of the rare condition - progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) - in patients taking either Tysabri or Avonex alone. Tysabri was approved for use in the US last November and was widely tipped to become the world's leading multiple sclerosis treatment.

""The companies will work with clinical investigators to evaluate Tysabri-treated patients and will consult with leading experts to better understand the possible risk of PML,"" the two firms said in a statement. ""The outcome of these evaluations will be used to determine possible re-initiation of dosing in clinical trials and future commercial availability.""

Analysts had believed the product would provide a new growth opportunity for Biogen Idec, which had faced increased competition from rivals to Avonex. Elan, once the biggest firm on the Irish stock exchange, was also expected to receive a boost, from the new product. An inquiry into Elan's accounts in 2002 brought the group close to bankruptcy but the firm has been rebuilding itself since, with its share price increasing by almost four-fold last year. ""Most of the value in the company was in Tysabri,"" said Ian Hunter at Goodbody Stockbrokers in Dublin. ""Now there's a question mark over it."" Elan finished down $18.90 at $8, while Biogen fell $28.63 to $38.65.

- Shares in UK pharmaceutical firm Phytopharm closed down 19.84% at 151.5 pence on the London Stock Exchange on Monday, after it said a partner was set to pull out of a deal on an experimental Alzheimer's disease treatment. Phytopharm said Japan's Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical was likely to end a licensing agreement, prompting analysts to raise questions over the level of its future cash reserves.
"	business
Bank voted 8-1 for no rate change	"The decision to keep interest rates on hold at 4.75% earlier this month was passed 8-1 by the Bank of England's rate-setting body, minutes have shown.

One member of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) - Paul Tucker - voted to raise rates to 5%. The news surprised some analysts who had expected the latest minutes to show another unanimous decision. Worries over growth rates and consumer spending were behind the decision to freeze rates, the minutes showed. The Bank's latest inflation report, released last week, had noted that the main reason inflation might fall was weaker consumer spending.

However, MPC member Paul Tucker voted for a quarter point rise in interest rates to 5%. He argued that economic growth was picking up, and that the equity, credit and housing markets had been stronger than expected.

The Bank's minutes said that risks to the inflation forecast were ""sufficiently to the downside"" to keep rates on hold at its latest meeting. However, the minutes added: ""Some members noted that an increase might be warranted in due course if the economy evolved in line with the central projection"". Ross Walker, UK economist at Royal Bank of Scotland, said he was surprised that a dissenting vote had been made so soon. He said the minutes appeared to be ""trying to get the market to focus on the possibility of a rise in rates"". ""If the economy pans out as they expect then they are probably going to have to hike rates."" However, he added, any rate increase is not likely to happen until later this year, with MPC members likely to look for a more sustainable pick up in consumer spending before acting.
"	business
Crude oil prices back above $50	"Cold weather across parts of the United States and much of Europe has pushed US crude oil prices above $50 a barrel for the first time in almost three months.

Freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall have increased demand for heating fuel in the US, where stocks are low. Fresh falls in the value of the dollar helped carry prices above the $50 mark for the first time since November. A barrel of US crude oil closed up $2.80 to $51.15 in New York on Tuesday. Opec members said on Tuesday that it saw no reason to cut its output.

Although below last year's peak of $55.67 a barrel, which was reached in October, prices are now well above 2004's average of $41.48.

Brent crude also rose in London trading, adding $1.89 to $48.62 at the close. Much of western Europe and the north east of America has been shivering under unseasonably low temperatures in recent days. The decline in the US dollar to a five-week low against the euro has also served to inflate prices. ""The dollar moved sharply overnight and oil is following it,"" said Chris Furness, senior market strategist at 4Cast. ""If the dollar continues to weaken, oil will be obviously higher.""

Several Opec members said a cut in production was unlikely, citing rising prices and strong demand for oil from Asia. ""I agree that we do not need to cut supply if the prices are as much as this,"" Fathi Bin Shatwan, Libya's oil minister, told Reuters. ""I do not think we need to cut unless the prices are falling below $35 a barrel,"" he added. Opec closely watches global stocks to ensure that there is not an excessive supply in the market. The arrival of spring in the northern hemisphere will focus attention on stockpiles of US crude and gasoline, which are up to 9% higher than at this time last year. Heavy stockpiles could help force prices lower when demand eases.
"	business
House prices show slight increase	"Prices of homes in the UK rose a seasonally adjusted 0.5% in February, says the Nationwide building society.

The figure means the annual rate of increase in the UK is down to 10.2%, the lowest rate since June 2001. The annual rate has halved since August last year, as interest rises have cooled the housing market. At the same time, the number of mortgage approvals fell in January to a near 10-year low, official Bank of England figures have shown.

Nationwide said that in January house prices went up by 0.4% on the month and by 12.6% on a year earlier. ""We are not seeing the market collapsing in the way some had feared,"" said Nationwide economist Alex Bannister. There have been a number of warnings that the UK housing market may be heading for a downturn after four years of strong growth to 2004. In November, Barclays, which owns former building society the Woolwich, forecast an 8% fall in property prices in 2005, followed by further declines in 2006 and 2007. And last summer, economists at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) warned house prices were overvalued and could fall by between 10% and 15% by 2009.

The price of an average UK property now stands at £152,879. Homeowners now expect house prices to rise by 1% over the next six months, Mr Bannister said. He said if the growth continued at this level then the Bank of England may increase interest rates from their current 4.75%.

""I think the key is what the Bank expects to happen to the housing market. We always thought we would see a small rise, they thought they would see a small decline."" House prices have risen 0.9% this year, Nationwide said, and if this pace of increase persists, prices would rise by just under 6% in the year to December. This is slightly above the 0-5% range Nationwide predicts.

Further evidence of a slowdown in the housing market emerged from Bank of England lending figures released on Tuesday. New mortgage loans in January fell to 79,000 from 82,000 in December, the bank said. The past few months have seen approvals fall to levels last seen in 1995. The Bank revealed that 48,000 fewer mortgages were approved in January than for the same month in 2004. Overall, mortgage lending rose by £7.2bn in January, marginally up on the £7.1bn rise in December.
"	business
Golden rule boost for Chancellor	"Chancellor Gordon Brown has been given a £2.1bn boost in his attempts to meet his golden economic rule, which allows him to borrow only for investment.

The extra leeway came after the Office for National Statistics said it had been measuring road expenditure data wrongly over the past five years. It comes just weeks ahead of the Budget and an expected general election. Shadow chancellor Oliver Letwin said: ""At best the timing of these changes is very convenient for the government.""

A review by the ONS found it had made a mistake by ""double counting"" some spending on roads since 1998/9. Correcting the error would mean reducing current expenditure and increasing net investment, thus helping Mr Brown to meet his ""golden rule"" of borrowing only to invest over the economic cycle. Economists speculated that it might also allow for some vote-catching measures in the Budget.

The changes by the ONS increase the current budget measure for the past five years by £2.1bn in total. Mr Letwin said: ""This is a very murky area... There will inevitably be suspicions that the figures are being fiddled."" The Conservatives also said Mr Brown would still be forced to raise taxes after the general election to fill an annual £10.5bn ""black hole"" in the nation's coffers. But the Treasury said there would be no relaxation of economic discipline and the golden rule would be met even without the data revisions.

In January the independent Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said Mr Brown would need to raise taxes to get public finances onto the track predicted in last year's Budget. It also said the government might narrowly miss its ""golden rule"" if the current economic cycle ended in 2005/06. After the ONS announcement, economists said there could also be a proportionate boost to the current budget in 2004/05 of about £400m. ""None of this changes the big picture of a dramatic deterioration in the overall fiscal position over the last four or five years,"" said Jonathan Loynes, chief UK economist at Capital Economics. ""Accordingly, it seems very likely that some form of fiscal consolidation will be required in due course.""
"	business
Macy's owner buys rival for $11bn	"US retail giant Federated Department Stores is to buy rival May Department Stores for $11bn (£5.7bn).

The deal will bring together famous stores like Macy's, Bloomingdale's and Marshall Field's, creating the largest department store chain in the US. The combined firm will operate about 1,000 stores across the US, with combined annual sales of $30bn. The two companies, facing competition from the likes of Wal-Mart, tried to merge two years ago but talks failed. Sources familiar with the deal said that negotiations between the two companies sped up after May's chairman and chief executive Gene Kahn resigned in January. As part of the deal, Federated - owner of Macy's and Bloomingdale's - will assume $6bn of May's debt, bringing the deal's total value to $17bn. Directors at both companies have approved the deal and it is expected to conclude by the third quarter of this year.

May has struggled to compete against larger department store groups such as Federated and other retailers such as Wal-Mart. Federated expects the merger to boost earnings from 2007 but the deal will cost it $1bn in one-off charges.

""We have taken the first step toward combining two of the best department store companies in America, creating a new retail company with truly national scope and presence,"" said Terry Lundgren, Federated's chairman. Some analysts see the merger as a rescue deal for May. ""Without this deal May would have been, to put it bluntly, washed up,"" said Kurt Barnard, president of Barnard's Retail Consulting Group. Federated has annual sales of $15.6bn, while May's yearly sales are $14.4bn.
"	business
Industrial revival hope for Japan	"Japanese industry is growing faster than expected, boosting hopes that the country's retreat back into recession is over.

Industrial output rose 2.1% - adjusted for the time of year - in January from a month earlier. At the same time, retail sales picked up faster than at any time since 1997. The news sent Tokyo shares to an eight-month high, as investors hoped for a recovery from the three quarters of contraction seen from April 2004 on. The Nikkei 225 index ended the day up 0.7% at 11,740.60 points, with the yen strengthening 0.7% against the dollar to 104.53 yen. Weaker exports, normally the engine for Japan's economy in the face of weak domestic demand, had helped trigger a 0.1% contraction in the final three months of last year after two previous quarters of shrinking GDP. Only an exceptionally strong performance in the early months of 2004 kept the year as a whole from showing a decline. The output figures brought a cautiously optimistic response from economic officials. ""Overall I see a low risk of the economy falling into serious recession,"" said Bank of Japan chief Toshihiko Fukui, despite warning that other indicators - such as the growth numbers - had been worrying.

Within the overall industrial output figure, there were signs of a pullback from the export slowdown. Among the best-performing sectors were key overseas sales areas such as cars, chemicals and electronic goods. With US growth doing better than expected the picture for exports in early 2005 could also be one of sustained demand. Electronics were also one of the keys to the improved domestic market, with products such as flat-screen TVs in high demand during January.
"	business
Khodorkovsky ally denies charges	"A close associate of former Yukos boss Mikhail Khodorkovsky has told a court that fraud charges levelled against him are ""false"".

Platon Lebedev has been on trial alongside Mr Khodorkovsky since June in a case centring around the privatisation of a fertiliser firm. The pair claim they are being punished by the authorities for the political ambitions of Mr Khodorkovsky. Mr Lebedev said there were ""absurd contradictions"" in the case. Opening his defence, he said he could not see the legal basis of the charges he faced, which also include allegations of tax evasion. ""To my embarrassment, I could not understand the file of complaints against me,"" he told a Moscow court. Mr Lebedev headed the Menatep group, the parent company of Yukos.

Mr Lebedev and Mr Khodorkovsky, who each face a possible 10 year jail sentence if convicted, will be questioned by a judge over the next few days. Mr Khodorkovsky began his testimony last week, telling the court that he objected to the way that the ""running of a normal business has been presented as a work of criminal fiction"". The charges are seen by supporters as politically motivated and part of a drive by Russian President Vladimir Putin to rein in the country's super-rich business leaders, the so-called oligarchs. Yukos has been presented with a $27.5bn (£13bn) tax demand by the Russian authorities and its key Yugansk division was auctioned off to part settle the bill. The company's effort to gain bankruptcy protection in the US - in a bid to win damages for the sale - were dismissed by a court in Texas.
"	business
Qatar and Shell in $6bn gas deal	"Shell has signed a $6bn (£3.12bn) deal with the Middle Eastern sheikhdom of Qatar to supply liquid natural gas (LNG) to North America and Europe.

The UK-Dutch group will own 30% of the project, with Qatar's state oil firm owning the rest. The agreement is the latest in a string of deals reached by Qatar, which is trying to make itself a regional leader in natural gas. US oil giant ExxonMobil signed up for a $12.8bn deal earlier on Sunday. France's Total is expected to join the ExxonMobil scheme, dubbed Qatargas-2, on Monday, taking 5 million tonnes of LNG a year. ExxonMobil will be taking some 15 million tonnes each year for 25 years from the end of 2007 under the deal. Shell's agreement, under the name Qatargas-4, foresees the building of new facilities to handle 1.4 billion cubic feet of gas, and 7.8 million tonnes of LNG each year from 2011 onwards.
"	business
India unveils anti-poverty budget	"India is to boost spending on primary schools and health in a budget flagged as a boost for the ordinary citizen.

India's defence budget has also been raised 7.8% to 830bn rupees ($19bn). The priority for Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram is to fight poverty and keep the government's Communist allies onside. But his options are limited by a new law which makes him cut the budget deficit, which he said would be 4.5% of GDP in the year to March 2005. The country's overall deficit is thought to be more than 10%, if the spending of India's 35 states and territories is included. Under the fiscal responsibility law, Mr Chidambaram has to trim the deficit by 0.3 percentage points each year, a target he says he has now met for the current year.

But the heavy spending on poverty reduction means the 2005-6 target for the deficit will be 4.3%, Mr Chidambaram said - falling short of the new law's requirement. ""I was left with no option but to press the pause button vis a vis the act,"" he said. The following year, though, would have to be back on track, he warned.

""I may add that we are perilously close to the limits of fiscal prudence and there is no more room for spending beyond our means,"" he said. The coming year's reduction has meant bringing more of the businesses in India's burgeoning services sector into the tax system and restructuring the personal tax system, although there are numerous corporate tax and duty reductions built into the budget.

Presenting his budget in the lower house of parliament, Mr Chidambaram said the Indian economy was performing strongly and that inflation has been reined in. He said India's economy grew 6.9% in 2004. In his budget Mr Chidambaram has:

- Increased spending on primary education to 71.56bn rupees ($1.6bn) 
 - Increased spending on health to 102.8bn rupees ($2.35bn) 
 - Announced that 80bn rupees ($1.8bn) will be spent on building rural infrastructure 
 - Pledged 102.16bn rupees ($2.3bn) for tsunami victims 
 - Increased flow of funds to agriculture by 30% 
 - Announced a package for the sugar industry

In addition, up to 100bn rupees ($2.3bn) to be spent on infrastructure will be sourced by borrowing against the country's foreign exchange reserves, keeping budgeted spending under control. ""Given the resilience of the Indian economy... it is possible to launch a direct assault on poverty,"" Mr Chidambaram said. ""The whole purpose of democratic government is to eliminate poverty."" The new Indian government, led by the Congress Party, was voted into power last May after it pledged to introduce economic reforms with a ""human face"".

The finance minister says he is committed to continue reforming India's tax system while expanding the tax base. As part of his reforms he has announced:

- Duty cuts on capital goods and raw materials 
 - Expanded service tax net 
 - Raised the income-tax threshold to 100,000 rupees ($2,300) 
 - Reduced income tax for those earning less than 250,000 rupees ($5,700) to 20% 
 - Reduced corporate tax rates to 30%

An annual economic survey released on Friday said India needed to ease limit restriction on foreign investment, reform labour laws and cut duties apart from widening the tax base for long-term economic growth. But Mr Chidambaram is under pressure from the Communist parties to focus on increasing social spending. The Communists are also hostile to measures seeking to increase foreign investment and allow companies to hire and fire employees at will. In recent months, they have expressed their displeasure at the government's economic reform plans including increasing foreign direct investment in telecommunication and aviation. In his last budget, Mr Chidambaram had pledged billions of dollars for improving education and health services for the poor as well as special assistance for farmers.
"	business
GM pays $2bn to evade Fiat buyout	"General Motors of the US is to pay Fiat 1.55bn euros ($2bn; £1.1bn) to get out of a deal which could have forced it to buy the Italian car maker outright.

Fiat had sold GM a stake in 2000, as part of a partnership agreement. But Fiat's heavy losses have convinced GM - whose own European operations are in the red - to back away. The pay-off means the two firms will unwind joint ventures, but Fiat will keep supplying diesel engines and the money will allow it to reduce its debt. Fiat's shares on the Milan stock exchange rose 4.5% by 0900 GMT to 6.2 euros, having shot up more than 7% in early trading. ""We now have absolute freedom to design our own future,"" said Fiat chief executive Sergio Marchionne.

Analysts said Fiat seemed to have done well out of the deal, although some predictions had expected a 2bn euro pay-off. Fiat is to get 1bn euros immediately, with another 550m to follow within 90 days. The firm is Italy's largest private employer, and a failure to reach an agreement could have had severe consequences for thousands of workers and for the Italian economy. For its part, GM was keen to ward off any criticism that the deal had been a mistake.

""We needed scale in Europe to get costs down, and we were able to do that in working with Fiat,"" said GM chief executive Rick Wagoner.

The Fiat-GM alliance came about in 2000 as an alternative to selling Fiat outright. German-US car firm DaimlerChrysler had been willing to buy the firm, but Fiat patriarch Gianni Agnelli did not want to give up control. Instead, GM swapped a 6% stake in itself for 20% of Fiat - and gave Fiat a ""put option"" to sell GM the rest of the car maker between January 2004 and July 2009. But despite the alliance Fiat failed to put itself back on track, continuing to lose money and market share. As a result, the sell-off looked better and better for the Italians - and much worse for GM, which is struggling with its own loss-making European marques Opel and Saab. The relationship soured further after Fiat sold half its finance arm and recapitalised in 2003, halving GM's stake to 10%.
"	business
Ex-Boeing director gets jail term	"An ex-chief financial officer at Boeing has received a four-month jail sentence and a fine of $250,000 (£131,961) for illegally hiring a top Air Force aide.

Michael Sears admitted his guilt in breaking conflict of interest laws by recruiting Darleen Druyun while she still handled military contracts. Ms Druyun is currently serving a nine month sentence for favouring Boeing when awarding lucrative contracts. Boeing lost a $23bn government contract after a Pentagon inquiry into the case. The contract, to provide refuelling tankers for the US Air Force, was cancelled last year.

The Pentagon revealed earlier this week that it would examine eight other contracts worth $3bn which it believes may have been tainted by Ms Druyun's role in the procurement process. Boeing sacked Mr Sears and Ms Druyun in November 2003 after allegations that they had violated company recruitment policy. Ms Druyun had talks with Mr Sears in October 2002 about working for Boeing, while she was still a top procurement official within the Pentagon. She subsequently joined the company in January 2003. Ms Druyun admitted that she had steered multi-billion dollar contracts to Boeing and other favoured companies.

In documents filed in a Virginia court ahead of Mr Sears' sentencing, prosecutors blamed Boeing's senior management for failing to ask key questions about the ""legal and ethical issues"" surrounding Ms Druyun's appointment. Mr Sears told prosecutors that no other Boeing officials were aware that Ms Druyun was still responsible for major procurement decisions at the time she was discussing a job with Boeing. However, analysts believe Boeing may yet face civil charges arising from the scandal. The Pentagon has investigated 400 contracts, dating back to 1993, since the allegations against Ms Druyun came to light.

Boeing's corporate ethics have come under scrutiny on several occasions in recent years. Boeing was sued by Lockheed Martin after its rival accused it of industrial espionage during a 1998 contract competition. Boeing apologised publicly for the affair - although it claimed it did not gain any unfair advantage - and pledged to improve its procedures. The Pentagon subsequently revoked $1bn worth of contracts assigned to Boeing and prohibited the Seattle-based company from future rocket work.
"	business
Verizon 'seals takeover of MCI'	"Verizon has won a takeover battle for US phone firm MCI with a bid worth $6.8bn (£3.6bn), reports say.

The two firms are expected to seal the deal on Monday morning, according to news agency reports, despite what was thought to be a higher bid from Qwest. The US telecoms market is consolidating fast, with former long-distance giant AT&T being bought by former subsidiary SBC earlier this year for $16bn. MCI exited bankruptcy in April, having gone bust under previous name WorldCom. The bankruptcy followed its admission in 2002 that it illegally booked expenses and inflated profits.

Shareholders lost about $180bn when the company collapsed, while 20,000 workers lost their jobs. Former Worldcom boss Bernie Ebbers is currently on trial, accused of overseeing an $11bn fraud. Qwest has itself come under suspicion of sub-standard behaviour, paying the Securities and Exchange Commission $250m in October to settle charges that it manipulated its results to keep Wall Street happy.

MCI is the US's second-biggest long distance firm after AT&T. Consolidation in the US telecommunications industry has picked up in the past few months as companies look to cut costs and boost client bases. A merger between MCI and Verizon would be the fifth billion-dollar telecoms deal since October. Last week, SBC Communications agreed to buy its former parent and phone trailblazer AT&T for about $16bn. Buying MCI would give either Qwest or Verizon access to MCI's global network and business-based subscribers. The rationale is similar to the one underpinning SBC's AT&T deal. Verizon is by far the bigger company and has its own successful mobile arm - factors which may have swung the board in its favour since both suitors are offering a mixture of cash and shares.
"	business
US data sparks inflation worries	"Wholesale prices in the US rose at the fastest rate in more than six years in January, according to government data.

New figures show the Labor Department producer price index (PPI) rose by 0.3% - in line with forecasts. But core producer prices, which exclude food and energy costs, surged by 0.8%, the biggest rise since December 1998, increasing inflationary concerns. In contrast, the University of Michigan barometer of US retail consumer confidence showed a slight dip. The university's index of consumer spending fell to 94.2 in early February from 95.5 in January, which could indicate a fall in retail spending by the US public. The mixed set of data on Friday led to volatile early Wall Street trade, as the Dow Jones, Standard and Poor's 500, and Nasdaq swung between positive and negative territory.

The economic figures come on the back of increased fears that the Federal Reserve chairman may be about to raise interest rates in order to stifle any inflationary pressures. The Fed has been raising interest rates at a gradual pace since June 2004, in an attempt to make sure inflation does not get out of control.

Mr Greenspan told Congress this week that the central bank was on guard against the possibility that a rebounding economy could trigger stronger inflation pressures. ""The PPI would argue for Greenspan to continue to raise rates at a measured pace,"" said Joe Quinlan, chief market stategist at Bank of America Capital Management. ""But this Michigan survey tells you that the consumer might be downshifting a little bit in terms of their confidence and their spending; this could be an indication of that.""

Consumer spending accounts for 66% of US economic activity and is viewed as a gauge of the health of the economy, which is why the Michigan data is closely observed. However on Friday, it was overshadowed by the core PPI core figure, which surged 2.7% during the past 12 months, the biggest year-on-year gain in nine years. ""The concern is that traders might interpret this big jump in the core PPI as an impetus for the Fed to be more aggressive than a measured move in moving rates,"" said Paul Cherney, chief market analyst at Standard & Poor's. But Ian Shepherdson, chief US economist at High Frequency Economics, said the PPI report was ""much less alarming"" than at first glance. One-time increases in alcohol and tobacco prices, which ""are no indication of broad PPI pressure"", were responsible for the increase, he said. Prices for autos and trucks also jumped in January, but Shepherdson said ""it is a good bet these increases won't stick"".
"	business
Yukos sues four firms for $20bn	"Russian oil firm Yukos has sued four companies for their role in last year's forced state auction of its key oil production unit Yuganskneftegas.

Yukos is claiming more than $20bn (£11bn) in damages after Yugansk was sold in December to settle back taxes. The four companies named in the law suit are gas giant Gazprom, its unit Gazpromneft, investment company Baikal, and state oil firm Rosneft. Yukos submitted the suit in Houston, where it filed for bankruptcy. As well as suing for damages, Yukos has asked the US court to send its tax dispute with the Russian government to an international arbitrator. It also has submitted a reorganisation plan as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

The clash between Yukos and the Kremlin came to a head last year when Yukos was hit with a bill of more than $27bn in back taxes and unpaid fines. To settle the bill, Russia forced Yukos to sell off Yuganskneftegas.

Yukos called the sale illegal and has turned to courts in the US in an effort to regain control of the oil production business. It also has vowed to use all legal means at its disposal to go after any firm that tries to buy or take control of its assets. Earlier this month it sued the Russian government for $28.3bn. Analysts have questioned whether a US court has any jurisdiction over Russian companies, while Moscow officials have dismissed Yukos' legal wrangling as meaningless. In Houston, bankruptcy Judge Letitia Clark will start a two-day hearing on 16 February to hear arguments on whether a US court is the proper forum for the case.

The threat of legal action from Yukos and its bankruptcy filing in Houston did have an effect on last year's auction, however. Concerned that it would be caught up in a court battle, Gazprom and Gazpromneft withdrew from the auction, and Yuganskneftegas was sold to little-known investment firm Baikal Finance Group. A few days later, Baikal gave control of the company to state-run oil group Rosneft for $9.3bn. Rosneft, meanwhile, has agreed to merge with Gazprom, bringing a large chunk of Russia's very profitable oil business back under state control. Yukos claims that the rights of its shareholders have been ignored and that is has been punished for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky, once Russia's richest man, is in prison, having been charged with fraud and tax evasion and repeatedly denied bail.
"	business
Consumer spending lifts US growth	"US economic growth accelerated in the third quarter, helped by strong consumer spending, official figures have shown.

The economy expanded at an annual rate of 3.7% in the July to September period, the Commerce Department said. The figure marked an increase on the 3.3% growth recorded in the second quarter, but fell short of the 4.2% rate pencilled in by forecasters. The increase reflected the biggest jump in consumer spending in a year. ""It was a little softer than the consensus, but not a real surprise,"" said Gary Thayer, an economist at AG Edwards & Sons. Friday's growth estimate is one of the last significant pieces of economic data before the 2 November presidential election.

Democrat challenger John Kerry has criticised President George W Bush's handling of the economy, pointing to a net loss of over 800,000 jobs since Mr Bush took office. Analysts said the economy was still not growing fast enough to stimulate large-scale job creation. ""It's a pretty good growth rate, but it may not be good enough to create enough jobs,"" said Robert Brusca, chief economist at Fact and Opinion Economics in New York. However, President Bush is expected to point to Commerce Department figures showing that consumer spending grew at 4.6% in the third quarter, up from just 1.6% in the second, as evidence that his policies are generating solid growth. Consumer spending accounts for about two thirds of all economic activity in the US.

The weaker than expected growth figure makes it less likely that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next month, economists said. ""The economy regained some traction in the third quarter, but the growth is not robust,"" AG Edwards' Thayer. ""I think that means the Fed can take its time raising rates. We'll probably see one more rate hike before the end of the year."" In an effort to pre-empt rising inflation, the Federal Reserve has pushed through three quarter-point rate rises since June this year, taking borrowing costs to 1.75%. On the financial markets, the dollar fell slightly against the euro and the yen, while the Dow Jones index of leading US shares was little changed.
"	business
Crossrail link 'to get go-ahead'	"The £10bn Crossrail transport plan, backed by business groups, is to get the go-ahead this month, according to The Mail on Sunday.

It says the UK Treasury has allocated £7.5bn ($13.99bn) for the project and that talks with business groups on raising the rest will begin shortly. The much delayed Crossrail Link Bill would provide for a fast cross-London rail link. The paper says it will go before the House of Commons on 23 February.

A second reading could follow on 16 or 17 March. ""We've always said we are going to introduce a hybrid Bill for Crossrail in the Spring and this remains the case,"" the Department for Transport said on Sunday. Jeremy de Souza, a spokesman for Crossrail, said on Sunday he could not confirm whether the Treasury was planning to invest £7.5bn or when the bill would go before Parliament.

However, he said some impetus may have been provided by the proximity of an election.

The new line would go out as far as Maidenhead, Berkshire, to the west of London, and link Heathrow to Canary Wharf via the City. Heathrow to the City would take 40 minutes, dramatically cutting journey times for business travellers, and reducing overcrowding on the tube. The line has the support of the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, business groups and the government, but there have been three years of arguments over how it should be funded. The Mail on Sunday's Financial Mail said the £7.5bn of Treasury money was earmarked for spending in £2.5bn instalments in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
"	business
Hariri killing hits Beirut shares	"Shares in Solidere, the Lebanese company founded by assassinated former prime minister Rafik Hariri, fell 15% in renewed trading in Beirut.

The real estate firm, which dominates Lebanon's stock exchange, ended the day down at $8.08. Traders said there was some panic selling during Friday's session, the first since a three-day market closure to mourn the death of Mr Hariri. Beirut's benchmark BLOM stock index closed down 7.9% at 642.80.

Solidere, in which Mr Hariri was a major shareholder, was the major drag on the index. The company owns much of the property in central Beirut, which it restored and redeveloped following the end of Lebanon's bitter 15-year civil war. ""Solidere should be above $10 but because of this disaster it is falling,"" said one trader. ""If Solidere drops much lower I would consider it a buying opportunity. This is a very big company held by many Lebanese."" Critics had accused Mr Hariri of using Lebanon's post-war reconstruction drive for his personal financial gain. But his assassination on Monday sent shudders through Lebanon's business community, which saw the billionaire tycoon as the country's best hope for economic revival. Solidere posted profits of $12.5m in the first half of 2004, and its shares had been gaining in recent months.
"	business
Small firms 'hit by rising costs'	"Rising fuel and materials costs are hitting confidence among the UK's small manufacturers despite a rise in output, business lobby group the CBI says.

A CBI quarterly survey found output had risen by the fastest rate in seven years but many firms were seeing the benefits offset by increasing expenses. The CBI also found spending on innovation, training and retraining is forecast to go up over the next year. However, firms continue to scale back investment in buildings and machinery.

The CBI said companies are looking to the government to lessen the regulatory load and are hoping interest rates will be kept on hold. ""Smaller manufacturers are facing an uphill struggle,"" said Hugh Morgan Williams, chair of the CBI's SME Council. ""The manufacturing sector needs a period of long-term stability in the economy."" The CBI found some firms managed to increase prices for the first time in nine years - but many said increases failed to keep up the rise in costs. Of the companies surveyed, 30% saw orders rise and 27% saw them fall. The positive balance of plus 3 compared with minus 10 in the previous survey. When firms were questioned on output volume, the survey returned a balance of plus 8 - the highest rate of increase for seven years - and rose to plus 11 when looking ahead to the next three months.
"	business
Buyers snap up Jet Airways' shares	"Investors have snapped up shares in Jet Airways, India's biggest airline, following the launch of its much anticipated initial public offer (IPO).

The IPO for 17.3 million shares was fully sold within 10 minutes of opening, on Friday. Analysts expect Jet to raise at least 16.4bn rupees ($375m; £198m) from the offering. Interest in Jet's IPO has been fuelled by hopes for robust growth in India's air travel market.

The share offer, representing about 20% of Jet's equity, was oversubscribed, news agency Reuters reported. Jet, which was founded by London-based travel agent Naresh Goyal, plans to use the cash to buy new planes and cut its debt. The company has grown rapidly since it launched operations in 1993, overtaking state-owned flag carrier Indian Airlines. However, it faces stiff competition from rivals and low-cost carriers. Jet's IPO is the first in a series of expected share offers from Indian companies this year, as they move to raise funds to help them do business in a rapidly-growing economy.
"	business
House prices suffer festive fall	"UK house prices fell 0.7% in December, according to figures from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Nationally, house prices rose at an annual rate of 10.7% in December, less than the 13.7% rise the previous month. The average UK house price fell from £180,126 in November to £178,906, reflecting recent Land Registry figures confirming a slowdown in late 2004. All major UK regions, apart from Northern Ireland, experienced a fall in annual growth during December.

December is traditionally a quiet month for the housing market because of Christmas celebrations. However, recent figures from the Land Registry - showing a big drop in sales between the last quarter of 2004 and the previous year - suggested the slowdown could be more than a seasonal blip. The volume of sales between October and December dropped by nearly a quarter from the same period in 2003, the Land Registry said. Although both the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) and the Land Registry figures point to a slowdown in the market, the most recent surveys from Nationwide and Halifax have indicated the market may be undergoing a revival. After registering falls at the back-end of 2004, Halifax said house prices rose by 0.8% in January and Nationwide reported a rise of 0.4% in the first month of the year.
"	business
Deutsche Boerse boosts dividend	"Deutsche Boerse, the German stock exchange that is trying to buy its London rival, has said it will boost its 2004 dividend payment by 27%.

Analysts said that the move is aimed at winning over investors opposed to its bid for the London Stock Exchange. Critics of the takeover have complained that the money could be better used by returning cash to shareholders. Deutsche Boerse also said profit in the three months to 31 December was 120.7m euros ($158.8m; £83.3m). Sales climbed to 364.4m euros, lifting revenue for the year to a record 1.45bn euros.

Frankfurt-based Deutsche Boerse has offered £1.3bn ($2.48bn; 1.88bn euros) for the London Stock Exchange. Rival pan-European bourse Euronext is working also on a bid. Late on Monday, Deutsche Boerse said it would lift its 2004 dividend payment to 70 euro cents (£0.48; $0.98) from 55 euro cents a year earlier. ""There is a whiff of a sweetener in there,"" Anais Faraj, an analyst at Nomura told the BBC's World Business Report. ""Most of the disgruntled shareholders of Deutsche Boerse are complaining that the money that is being used for the bid could be better placed in their hands, paid out in dividends,"" Mr Faraj continued. Deutsche Boerse is ""trying to buy them off in a sense"", he said.
"	business
Newest EU members underpin growth	"The European Union's newest members will bolster Europe's economic growth in 2005, according to a new report.

The eight central European states which joined the EU last year will see 4.6% growth, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) said. In contrast, the 12 Euro zone countries will put in a ""lacklustre"" performance, generating growth of only 1.8%. The global economy will slow in 2005, the UNECE forecasts, due to widespread weakness in consumer demand.

It warned that growth could also be threatened by attempts to reduce the United States' huge current account deficit which, in turn, might lead to significant volatility in exchange rates.

UNECE is forecasting average economic growth of 2.2% across the European Union in 2005. However, total output across the Euro zone is forecast to fall in 2004 from 1.9% to 1.8%. This is due largely to the faltering German economy, which shrank 0.2% in the last quarter of 2004. On Monday, Germany's BdB private banks association said the German economy would struggle to meet its 1.4% growth target in 2005.

Separately, the Bundesbank warned that Germany's efforts to reduce its budget deficit below 3% of GDP presented ""huge risks"" given that headline economic growth was set to fall below 1% this year. Publishing its 2005 economic survey, the UNECE said central European countries such as the Czech Republic and Slovenia would provide the backbone of the continent's growth. Smaller nations such as Cyprus, Ireland and Malta would also be among the continent's best performing economies this year, it said. The UK economy, on the other hand, is expected to slow in 2005, with growth falling from 3.2% last year to 2.5%.

Consumer demand will remain fragile in many of Europe's largest countries and economies will be mostly driven by growth in exports. ""In view of the fragility of factors of domestic growth and the dampening effects of the stronger euro on domestic economic activity and inflation, monetary policy in the euro area is likely to continue to 'wait and see', the organisation said in its report. Global economic growth is expected to fall from 5% in 2004 to 4.25% despite the continued strength of the Chinese and US economies. The UNECE warned that attempts to bring about a controlled reduction in the US current account deficit could cause difficulties. ""The orderly reversal of the deficit is a major challenge for policy makers in both the United States and other economies,"" it noted.
"	business
Brewers' profits lose their fizz	"Heineken and Carlsberg, two of the world's largest brewers, have reported falling profits after beer sales in western Europe fell flat.

Dutch firm Heineken saw its annual profits drop 33% and warned that earnings in 2005 may also slide. Danish brewer Carlsberg suffered a 3% fall in profits due to waning demand and increased marketing costs. Both are looking to Russia and China to provide future growth as western European markets are largely mature.

Heineken's net income fell to 537m euros ($701m; £371m) during 2004, from 798m euro a year ago. It blamed weak demand in western Europe and currency losses. It had warned in September that the weakening US dollar, which has cut the value of foreign sales, would knock 125m euros off its operating profits. Despite the dip in profits, Heineken's sales have been improving and total revenue for the year was 10bn euros, up 8.1% from 9.26bn euros in 2003. Heineken said it now plans to invest 100m euros in ""aggressive"" and ""high-impact"" marketing in Europe and the US in 2005. Heineken, which also owns the Amstel and Murphy's stout brands, said it would also seek to cut costs. This may involve closing down breweries.

Heineken increased its dividend payment by 25% to 40 euro cents, but warned that the continued impact of a weaker dollar and an increased marketing spend may lead to a drop in 2005 net profit.

Carlsberg, the world's fifth-largest brewer, saw annual pre-tax profits fall to 3.4bn Danish kroner (456m euros). Its beer sales have been affected by the sluggish European economy and by the banning of smoking in pubs in several European countries. Nevertheless, total sales increased 4% to 36bn kroner, thanks to strong sales of Carlsberg lager in Russia and Poland. Carlsberg is more optimistic than Heineken about 2005, projecting a 15% rise in net profits for the year. However, it also plans to cut 200 jobs in Sweden, where sales have been hit by demand for cheap, imported brands. ""We remain cautious about the medium-to-long term outlook for revenue growth across western Europe for a host of economic, social and structural reasons,"" investment bank Merrill Lynch said of Carlsberg.
"	business
Yangtze Electric's profits double	"Yangtze Electric Power, the operator of China's Three Gorges Dam, has said its profits more than doubled in 2004.

The firm has benefited from increased demand for electricity at a time when power shortages have hit cities and provinces across the country. As a hydroelectric-power generator it has not been hurt by higher coal costs. Net income jumped to 3bn yuan in 2004 ($365m; £190m), compared with 1.4bn yuan in 2003. Sales surged to 6.2bn yuan, from 3bn yuan a year earlier. The figures topped analysts expectations, even though the rate of growth has slowed from 2003. Analysts forecast that it is likely to decline further this year to a rate of expansion of closer to 20%.

Yangtze Electric has been expanding its output to meet demand driven by China's booming economy. The government has delayed the building of a number of power plants in an effort to rein in growth amid concerns that the economy may overheat. That has led to an energy crunch, with demand outstripping supply. Earlier this month, work was halted on an underground power station, and a supply unit on the Three Gorges Dam, as well as a power station on its sister Xiluodu dam because of environmental worries. A total of 30 large-scale projects have been halted across the country for similar reasons. The Three Gorges Dam project has led to more than half a million people being relocated and drawn criticism from environmental groups and overseas human rights activists. Its sister project, the Xiluodu Dam, is being built on the Jinshajiang - or ""river of golden sand"" as the upper reaches of the Yangtze are known.
"	business
French consumer spending rising	"French consumers increased their spending by 1.5% in January, a figure which bodes well for the country's economic growth, figures revealed.

The National Statistic Institute (INSEE) added that consumer spending in January rose 3.8% on a year-on-year basis. Rising sales of household equipment were behind the increase. The INSEE also said that French consumer prices fell 0.6% in January, but were up 1.6% on an annual basis.

Despite the general increase in spending in January, French households bought fewer cars in January. According to the INSEE, car sales fell 2.8% in January, following a fall of 0.6% in December. But on a year-on-year basis, the sector still saw a sales increase of 6.5%. Consumer spending fuelled France's economic growth in the last quarter of 2004 and analysts expect that it will continue to support the economy. ""It's a growth that will remain fragile and vulnerable to risks like a strong rise in long-term interest rates, tension in the oil price,"" Emmanuel Ferry, from Exane BNP Paribas told Reuters news agency.

Meanwhile in Italy, consumer confidence rose to its highest level since October 2004. Economic research group ISAE has said that Italian consumer confidence rose to 104.4 from 103.3, despite a slight deterioration in short-term sentiment.
"	business
GSK aims to stop Aids profiteers	"One of the world's largest manufacturers of HIV/Aids drugs has launched an initiative to combat the smuggling of cheaper pills - supplied to poorer African countries - back into Europe for resale at far higher price.

The company, GlaxoSmithKline, is to alter the packaging and change the colour of the pills, currently provided to developing nations under a humanitarian agreement. It is estimated that drugs companies are losing hundreds of millions of dollars each year as a result of the diversion of their products in this way. This is a very sensitive area for the big drugs companies. They want to maintain their profits, but have been put under tremendous pressure to provide cheap anti-Aids drugs to the world's poorest nations.

The result is that drugs supplied to Africa are now more than thirty times cheaper than those sold in Europe; bringing these medicines within the reach of millions of HIV-positive Africans through their government's health care systems.

But the wide difference in price also means that there are big gains to be made from illegally diverting these cheaper drugs back into wealthier countries and re-selling them at a higher price. GlaxoSmithKline believes that by coating the pills destined for Africa in a red dye and adding new identification codes both onto the pills and on the packaging, then this trade can be substantially reduced. The company says that it will then be possible to identify specific distributors in Africa who have re-sold humanitarian drugs for profit, as well as those suppliers in Europe that have also been involved in the trade. Glaxo says distribution of the new-look drugs has already begun and that their chemical content is identical to those currently being sold in Europe.
"	business
Optimism remains over UK housing	"The UK property market remains robust despite the recent slowdown, according to mortgage lender Bradford & Bingley and housebuilder George Wimpey.

B&B said the buy-to-let market - in which the bank is a major player - would continue to grow much faster than the wider mortgage market. The comments came as it reported a 6% rise in profits to £280.2m ($532m). Wimpey reported a 19% rise in profits to £450.7m and said recent new home reservations were better than expected.

Recent housing market surveys have indicated that the UK property market has cooled in recent months after several years of rapid growth. Last week, figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) indicated that the popularity of buy-to-let mortgages - a key phenomenon of the housing boom - could be waning.

But B&B - which has a 22% share of the UK buy-to-let mortgage market - said that while rates of growth were moderating, the sector ""continues to grow at a rate considerably above that of the whole mortgage market"". Overall, B&B said that ""housing market fundamentals remain strong"". ""Interest rates and unemployment are both likely to remain at historically low levels, real household incomes should continue to grow and housing demand is likely to outstrip supply into the medium-term."" Despite the upbeat tone, shares in B&B were down more than 4% at 325.5p in morning trade as analysts worried over future earnings growth.

Wimpey's profit figures came in at the top of expectations, with the numbers helped by buoyant sales in the US offsetting a slight slowdown in the UK. Wimpey said the UK housing market had proved ""challenging"" last year. ""By late summer, the market in general had slowed sharply across the country and showed no real improvement during the autumn,"" it added. However, the first seven weeks of this year had produced promising signs, Wimpey said. ""Visitor levels and interest in this period have been encouraging and reservations have been at the stronger end of our expectations."" Shares in Wimpey were up 6% at 458.5p in morning trade.
"	business
Russia WTO talks 'make progress'	"Talks on Russia's proposed membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) have been ""making good progress"" say those behind the negotiations.

But the chairman of the working party, Ambassador Stefan Johannesson of Iceland, warned that there was ""still a lot of work has to be done"". His comments came as President George W Bush said the US backed Russian entry. But he said for Russia to make progress the government must ""renew a commitment to democracy and the rule of law"". His comments come three days before he is due to meet President Vladimir Putin.

Russia has been waiting for a decade to join the WTO and hopes to finally become a member by early 2006. A decision could be reached in December, when the WTO's 148 current members gather for a summit in Hong Kong. That would allow an earliest date for membership of January 2006, if the Hong Kong summit gave its approval. While pinpointing several areas in which there are difficulties in the bilateral and multilateral work with Russia, the US said the meeting was ""much more efficient than we've seen for some time"". And Australia said it was ""one of the best (meetings) we can recall in terms of substance"". Mr Johannesson also said progress ""on the bilateral market access side is accelerating"". Sticking points to membership have included limits on foreign ownership in the telecommunications and life insurance businesses, as well as issues surrounding counterfeiting, piracy, and data protection. Some WTO members also dislike Russia's energy price subsidies, which competitors say give Russian businesses an unfair advantage.
"	business
Irish duo could block Man Utd bid	"Irishmen JP McManus and John Magnier, who own a 29% stake in Manchester United, will reportedly reject any formal £800m offer for the club.

The Sunday Times and The Sunday Telegraph say they will oppose any formal £800m takeover bid from US tycoon Malcom Glazer. Mr Glazer got permission to look at the club's accounts last week. Irish billionaires Mr McManus and Mr Magnier are said to believe that an £800m bid undervalues club prospects.

Mr Magnier and Mr McManus, who hold their stake through their Cubic Expression investment vehicle have the power to block a bid. Mr Glazer's financial backers, including JP Morgan, the US investment bank have said they won't back a bid unless it receives backing from the owners of at least 75% of the club's shares. However, there has been much speculation that the Irish duo simply do not think the price offered - 300p a share - is high enough. Mr Glazer has been stalking the premier league football club since 2003.

Mr Magnier and Mr McManus issued a statement late on Friday saying that they remained ""long-term investors"" in Man Utd. The Sunday Telegraph says the board of Manchester United also considered a management buyout at just over 300p but did not go ahead with it.
"	business
Dollar drops on reserves concerns	"The US dollar has dropped against major currencies on concerns that central banks may cut the amount of dollars they hold in their foreign reserves.

Comments by South Korea's central bank at the end of last week have sparked the recent round of dollar declines. South Korea, which has about $200bn in foreign reserves, said it plans instead to boost holdings of currencies such as the Australian and Canadian dollar. Analysts reckon that other nations may follow suit and now ditch the dollar. At 1300 GMT, the euro was up 0.9% on the day at 1.3187 euros per US dollar. The British pound had added 0.5% to break through the $1.90 level, while the dollar had fallen by 1.3% against the Japanese yen to trade at 104.16 yen.

At the start of the year, the US currency, which had lost 7% against the euro in the final three months of 2004 and had fallen to record lows, staged something of a recovery.

Analysts, however, pointed to the dollar's inability recently to extend that rally despite positive economic and corporate data, and highlighted the fact that many of the US's economic problems had not disappeared. The focus once again has been on the country's massive trade and budget deficits, with predictions of more dollar weakness to come. ""The comments from Korea came at a time when sentiment towards the dollar was already softening,"" said Ian Gunner, a trader at Mellon Financial. On Tuesday, traders in Asia said that both South Korea and Taiwan had withdrawn their bids to buy dollars at the start of the session. Mansoor Mohi-Uddin, chief currency strategist at UBS, said that there was a sentiment in the market that ""central banks from Asia and the Middle East are buying euros"". A report last month already showed that the dollar was losing its allure as a currency that offered rock-steady returns and stability. Compiled by Central Banking Publications and sponsored by the UK's Royal Bank of Scotland, the survey found 39 nations out of 65 questioned were increasing their euro holdings, with 29 cutting back on the US dollar.
"	business
India and Russia in energy talks	"India and Russia are to work together in a series of energy deals, part of a pact which could see India invest up to $20bn in oil and gas projects.

On the agenda are oil and gas extraction as well as transportation deals, to be led by Russian energy giant Gazprom and India's ONGC. The Indian firm is also expected to hold talks on Tuesday about buying a stake in assets once owned by Yukos. It is reported to be keen on buying a 15% stake in oil unit Yuganskneftegas. The former Yukos subsidiary was controversially sold off last year and eventually acquired by state-owned energy giant Rosneft.

Russian media reported that India and Russia signed a memorandum of understanding on energy co-operation on Tuesday during a meeting between Oil and Natural Gas Corporation chairman Subir Raha, Gazprom chairman Aleksey Miller and India's petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar.

The agreement is likely to see the two companies develop refining facilities in Russia, India and elsewhere and organise delivery of oil, gas and petrochemicals from Russia to India and other countries across Asia. ONGC could invest in gas and oil fields in Sakhalin, in the far east of Russia, and may also take part in joint tender bids for projects in eastern Siberia and the Caspian Sea.

India is urgently searching for fresh energy supplies - particularly liquefied natural gas - as domestic demand is growing at more than 5% a year.

ONGC's Mr Raha said the two could work together on joint bids from next year. ""At current oil and gas prices, our cash flow situation is good,"" he told Reuters. ""What we are saying is - Gazprom has a huge amount of gas and we have the money. ""The investment may go up to $20bn or more for a period of five years or so.""

Russian news agencies reported that India's petroleum minister Mr Aiyar and Russian energy minister Viktor Khristenko would discuss the future of Yugansk at a meeting on Tuesday. ONGC's Mr Raha declined to be drawn on his firm's reported interest in the company. However, he stressed that ONGC was not interested in a 'loan-for-oil deal' in connection to Yugansk, similar to that concluded recently between Rosneft and China's National Petroleum Corporation. ""China's problem is it has immediate demand and they needed the oil for their coastal refineries. We do not. We would like long-term security through equity participation."" It is thought that any decision over Yugansk will be delayed until a US court has decided whether to grant Yukos bankruptcy protection. Yukos is suing a host of companies involved in the sale of Yugansk, auctioned off to pay a huge back-tax bill. It has also threatened legal action against any business which has future commercial dealings with its former subsidiary.
"	business
Weak data buffets French economy	"A batch of downbeat government data has cast doubt over the French economy's future prospects.

Official figures showed on Friday that unemployment was unchanged at 9.9% last month, while consumer confidence fell unexpectedly in October. At the same time, finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy warned that high oil prices posed a threat to French growth. ""[Oil prices] will weigh on consumer spending in the short term, and potentially on confidence,"" he said. World oil prices have risen by more than 60% since the start of the year as production struggles to keep pace with soaring demand.

Analysts said French companies, keen to protect their profit margins at a time of rising energy costs, were reluctant to take on extra staff. ""[The unemployment figures] show the main problem of the French economy: we have growth but without an improvement in employment,"" said Marc Touati, an economist at Natexis Banques Populaires. ""Politicians must have the will and guts to solve structural unemployment with thorough reforms, otherwise in five or ten years, it will be too late."" Obligatory employer contributions to worker welfare programmes mean that it costs more to hire staff in France than in many other European economies. Many economists have urged the government to stimulate employment by reducing non-wage payroll costs, and by scrapping restrictions on working hours. The French statistics agency, INSEE, expects the economy to grow by about 2.4% this year, buoyed by strong consumer spending and business investment. That is above the projected eurozone average of just above 2%.
"	business
Business fears over sluggish EU economy	"As European leaders gather in Rome on Friday to sign the new EU constitution, many companies will be focusing on matters much closer to home - namely how to stay in business.

Lille is a popular tourist destination for Britons who want a taste of France at the weekend. But how many tourists look at the impressively grand Victorian Chambre de Commerce, which stands beside the Opera House, and consider that it was built - like the town halls in many northern English towns - on the wealth created by coal, steel and textiles? Like northern England and industrial Scotland, those industries have been in long term decline - the last coal pit closed in 1990. Beck-Crespel is a specialist steel firm in Armentieres, about 20 miles from Lille. The company has not laid off a worker since 1945. It specialises in making bolts and fixings for power stations and the oil industry, but not many of those are being built in Europe these days.

Director Hugues Charbonnier says he is under pressure because factories in the Far East are able to make some of his output more cheaply, while his key markets are now in China and India. ""In our business the market is absolutely global, you can not imagine living with our size (of business) even within an enlarged European Union, (if we did that) we would need not 350 people but perhaps just 150 or 200,"" he says. It isn't just globalisation that is hurting; the law in France means workers are paid for a 39 hour week even though they work just 35 hours. But at least there is still a steel industry. Coal has now totally vanished and textiles are struggling. New business has been attracted, but not enough to make up the difference.

That is one reason why people here are not great fans of the EU, says Frederic Sawicki, a politics lecturer at the University of Lille.

""In the region today the unemployment rate is 12%, in some areas it is 15%. They don't see what Europe is doing for them, so there is a kind of euro scepticism, especially in the working classes,"" he says. Which is strange because Lille is at the crossroads of Europe - if anywhere should be benefiting from the euro it is here. The euro was designed to increase trade within the eurozone, but the biggest increase in trade has been with the rest of the world. Much of that trade passes through the world's largest port, Rotterdam, in Holland, home to specialist crane maker Huisman Itrec. Its cranes help build oil rigs and lifted the sunken Russian submarine Kursk from the sea bed, but Huisman Itrec is now setting up a factory in China, where costs are cheaper and its main customers are closer.

Boss Henk Addink blames the low growth rate in Europe for the lack of orders closer to home. ""In the US growth is something like 6%, in China they are estimating 15%, and in the EU it is more or less 1%,"" he says. Mr Addink blames the euro for stifling demand. He much preferred the old currencies of Europe, which moved in relation to each country's economic performance. In Germany, industry is exporting more these days, but the economy as a whole is once again mired in slow growth and high unemployment. Growth is likely to peak this year at just under 2%. In Britain that would be a bad year; in Germany it is one of the best in recent years. With Germany making up a third of the eurozone's economy, this is a major problem. If Germany doesn't once again become the powerhouse of Europe, growth across the bloc is never going to be as strong as it could be. However, at one factory near the Dutch border things are changing.

The Siemens plant at Boscholt makes cordless phones and employs 2,000 staff. Staff have started working an extra four hours a week for no extra pay, after Siemens threatened to take the factory and their jobs to Hungary. Factory manager Herbert Stueker says that he now hopes to increase productivity ""by nearly 30%"". But Germany needs much more reform if all its industry is to compete with places such Hungary or China. The Government is reforming the labour market and cutting the generous unemployment system, but the real solution is to cut the wages of low skilled workers, says Helmut Schneider, director of the Institute for the Study of Labour at Bonn University. ""Labour is too costly in Germany, especially for the low skilled labour and this is the main problem. If we could solve that problem we could cut unemployment by half,"" he says. The EU set itself the target of being the most efficient economy in the world by 2010. Four years into that process, and the target seems further away than ever.
"	business
M&S cuts prices by average of 24%	"Marks & Spencer has cut prices in London and the regions by an average of 24%, according to research from a City investment bank.

Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein said: ""In spite of the snow in the UK, it still feels very early to be cutting prices of spring merchandise."" Stuart Rose, head of M&S, said last year its prices were too high. ""We are bringing in ranges at new price points to compete against mid-market retailers like Next,"" said M&S.

Next is one of M&S's biggest competitors and the move may force it to lower prices. DrKW said the cuts are either to clear stock or could indicate a longer term ""step change in pricing in certain areas"" at M&S. ""Either way, this cannot be good news for M&S' margin,"" it added. ""We have brought in quite a lot of new clothing at new price points as part of Stuart Rose's strategy of quality, style -and price,"" said the M&S spokesman. Many analysts believe February is proving to be a difficult month for retailers and British Retail Consortium figures, due in a few weeks, are expected to reflect the tough trading environment. Separately, investment bank Goldman Sachs produced reseach showing that a basket of 35 M&S goods is now 11% above the high-street average, compared with 43% higher last year.

It has been a strange week for M&S, which on Tuesday received a statement from Philip Green, the billionaire Bhs owner, confirming he was not rebidding for the company. This was followed the same day by Mark Paulsmeier, a South African financier, issuing a press release saying his Paulsmeier Group was interested in M&S. A sudden spike in M&S's share price followed. However, an M&S spokesman said on Sunday it had no evidence that Mr Paulsmeier had lined up sufficient finance for a bid. He also said the Takeover Panel and the UK's financial watchdog the Financial Services Authority had been in touch with M&S at the beginning of the week to find out what it knew about the Paulsmeier developments.
"	business
US bank 'loses' customer details	"The Bank of America has revealed it has lost computer tapes containing account details of more than one million customers who are US federal employees.

Several members of the US Senate are among those affected, who could now be vulnerable to identity theft. Senate sources say the missing tapes may have been stolen from a plane by baggage handlers. The bank gave no details of how the records disappeared, but said they had probably not been misused. Customers' accounts were being monitoring and account holders would be notified if any ""unusual activity"" was detected, bank officials said.

Bank of America said the tapes went missing in December while being shipped to a back-up data centre. ""We, with federal law authorities, have done a very robust, thorough investigation on this and neither we nor they would make the statement lightly that we believe those tapes to be lost,"" Alexandra Tower, a spokeswoman for the North Carolina-based bank, told Time magazine. But although there was no evidence of criminal activity, the bank said, the Secret Service - a federal agency whose brief includes investigations of serious financial crime - is said to be looking into the loss. New York Senator Charles Schumer said he was told by the Senate Rules Committee that the tapes were probably stolen from a commercial plane. ""Whether it is identity theft, terrorism, or other theft, in this new complicated world baggage handlers should have background checks and more care should be taken for who is hired for these increasingly sensitive positions,"" the Democrat senator said. Details of his Vermont colleague Pat Leahy's credit card account are among those missing, Senator Leahy's spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler said. About 900,000 military and civilian staff at the defence department are among the 1.2 million affected, according to a Pentagon spokesman.
"	business
Huge rush for Jet Airways shares	"Indian airline Jet Airways' initial public offering was oversubscribed 16.2 times, bankers said on Friday.

Over 85% of the bids were at the higher end of the price range of 1,050-1,125 rupees ($24-$26). Jet Airways, a low-fare airline, was founded by London-based ex-travel agent Naresh Goya, and controls 45% of the Indian domestic airline market. It sold 20% of its equity or 17.2 million shares in a bid to raise up to $443m (£230.8m). The price at which its shares will begin trading will be agreed over the weekend, bankers said. ""The demand for the IPO was impressive. We believe that over the next two years, the domestic aviation sector promises strong growth, even though fuel prices could be high,"" said Hiten Mehta, manager of merchant banking firm, Fortune Financial Services. India began to open up its domestic airline market - previously dominated by state-run carrier Indian Airlines - in the 1990s. Jet began flying in 1993 and now has competitors including Air Deccan and Air Sahara. Budget carriers Kingfisher Airlines and SpiceJet are planning to launch operations in May this year. Jet has 42 aircraft and runs 271 scheduled flights daily within India. It recently won government permission to fly to London, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
"	business
Bank payout to Pinochet victims	"A US bank has said it will donate more than $8m to victims of former Chilean military ruler Augusto Pinochet's regime under a Madrid court settlement.

Riggs Bank will put money in a special fund to be managed by a Madrid-based charity, the Salvador Allende Foundation, which helps abused victims. The bank had been accused of illegally concealing Gen Pinochet's assets. More than 3,000 people were killed for political reasons under Gen Pinochet's regime, an official report says. Last month in a US court, Riggs Bank pleaded guilty to failing to report suspicious activity relating to accounts held by Gen Pinochet and the government of Equatorial Guinea. On that occasion, it was ordered to pay a fine of $16m. Gen Pinochet himself has never been put on trial for human rights violations under his 1973-90 rule, despite several high-profile cases against him. He is now facing charges relating to the murder of one Chilean and the disappearance of nine others. He is also being investigated for tax evasion, tax fraud and embezzlement of state funds.

The general's opponents rejoiced at the settlement, which was agreed in a court in the Spanish capital, Madrid. A lawyer for the victims, Eduardo Contreras, told Reuters news agency: ""This demonstrates that the horrors of the Pinochet dictatorship are not a mystery to anyone and that the whole world knows his victims deserve reparations."" Riggs spokesman Mark Hendrix said the settlement, details of which will be announced next week, was an opportunity to move on. ""This enables the institution to put the matter behind us,"" he told Reuters. The settlement follows a legal complaint filed against the bank by Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon alleging that it had illegally concealed assets. The bank agreed to create a fund for the victims, but the charges were dropped.
"	business
Qwest may spark MCI bidding war	"US phone company Qwest has said it will table a new offer for MCI after losing out to larger rival Verizon, setting the scene for a possible bidding war.

MCI accepted a $6.75bn (£3.6bn) buyout from telecoms giant Verizon on Monday, rejecting a higher offer from Qwest. Qwest chairman Richard Notebaert sent a letter to MCI's board on Thursday saying that it plans to submit a new offer after examining Verizon's bid. Formerly known as Worldcom, MCI is a long-distance and corporate phone firm. Snapping up MCI would give the buyer access to a global telecommunications network and a large number of business-based subscribers. Shares of MCI were up more than 4% in electronic trading after the close of New York markets.

Qwest said on Wednesday that MCI had rejected a deal worth $8bn. ""We would like to advise you that once we have completed our review of the Verizon merger agreement, we do intend to submit a modified offer to acquire MCI,"" the letter from Qwest said. Verizon's offer is made up of cash, shares and dividends, and a number of investors have said that it undervalues MCI. Verizon plans to swap 0.41 of its shares and $1.50 in cash for each MCI share, as well as offering special dividends of $4.50 a share. Both company boards have backed the deal, but regulators will still need to give their approval. As well as trying to lure investors with the promise of better returns, Qwest also reckons that its offer will face less regulatory scrutiny than Verizon's.

The takeover would be the fifth billion-dollar telecoms deal since October as companies look to cut costs and boost client bases. Earlier this month, SBC Communications agreed to buy its former parent and phone trailblazer AT&T for about $16bn. There may be concerns other than cash, however, especially as MCI only emerged from bankruptcy protection last April. Verizon is far bigger than Qwest, has fewer debts and has built a successful mobile division. Also, MCI, while trading under the name Worldcom, became the biggest corporate bankruptcy in US history after admitting that it illegally booked expenses and inflated profits. Former Worldcom boss Bernie Ebbers is currently standing trial, accused of overseeing an $11bn fraud. Qwest, meanwhile, had to pay the Securities and Exchange Commission $250m in October to settle charges that it massaged earnings to keep Wall Street happy.
"	business
Fiat chief takes steering wheel	"The chief executive of the Fiat conglomerate has taken day-to-day control of its struggling car business in an effort to turn it around.

Sergio Marchionne has replaced Herbert Demel as chief executive of Fiat Auto, with Mr Demel leaving the company. Mr Marchionne becomes the fourth head of the business - which is expected to make a 800m euro ($1bn) loss in 2004 - in as many years. Fiat underperformed the market in Europe last year, seeing flat sales.

The car business has made an operating loss in five of the last six years and was forced to push back its break-even target from 2005 to 2006. The management changes are part of a wider shake-up of the business following Fiat's resolution of its dispute with General Motors. As part of a major restructuring, Fiat is to integrate the Maserati car company - currently owned by Ferrari - within its own operations. Ferrari, in which Fiat owns a majority stake, could be separately floated on the stock market in either 2006 or 2007.

Mr Marchionne, who only joined the company last year, said Fiat Auto was now the ""principal focus"" of his attention. ""I have made the decision to take on the post of chief executive of the auto unit to speed up the company's recovery,"" he said. ""A profound cultural transformation is underway following a management reorganisation that has delivered a more agile and efficient structure,"" he added.

Although Mr Marchionne does not have a background in the car industry, he has been playing an increasing role in the group's activities. Last year, he said that a series of new models, launched as part of the group's recovery plan, had not boosted revenues as much as hoped. The car business, best known for its Alfa Romeo marque, is expected to make a loss of about 800m euros in 2004. Sales are expected to fall in 2005, Fiat said this week, as it exits unprofitable areas such as the rental car market. Mr Demel, a car industry veteran, took the helm in November 2003 after being recruited by former Fiat chief executive Giuseppe Morchio. Mr Morchio made a bid last year to become chairman after the death of president Umberto Agnelli. However, this was rejected by the founding Agnelli family and Mr Morchio subsequently resigned. Earlier this week, Fiat reached an agreement with GM to dissolve an alliance which could have obliged GM to buy the Italian firm outright. GM will pay Fiat $2bn as part of the settlement.
"	business
Consumers drive French economy	"France's economic growth accelerated in the last three months of 2004, driven by consumer spending, a report shows.

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 0.8% in the fourth quarter compared with the previous three month period, the statistical office INSEE said. That expansion pushed annual growth to 2.3%, the fastest rate in two years. Consumer spending was up by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, and there also was a rebound in business investment that gave the recovery an extra shove.

Analysts warned that France still was facing challenges and was unlikely to keep expanding at its current pace.

""France still has a strong economic growth,"" said Marc Toutai, an economist at Natexis Banques Populaires. ""But, if we check the figures in detail, there's a problem."" ""Consumer spending is still high. But French households have spent their savings to consume. ""France can't sustain a high growth rate without an improvement in the job market. There's too much of a gap between growth and employment."" Unemployment levels are currently stuck at about 10%, and is proving difficult to bring down despite government efforts. Another worry is that demand in Germany and Italy, two of France's main trading partners, is sluggish.

Despite the concerns, analysts pointed out that France was outperforming the majority of its European counterparts and that its economy was looking more robust than in previous years. As well as strong domestic demand, exports climbed by 1.3% in the fourth quarter - the biggest increase in foreign sales for a year. ""It's an economic growth that seems well balanced,"" said Nicolas Claquin, an analyst at CCF. ""In the beginning of 2004, growth was mainly driven by consumer spending. Here it gets contributions from investment and exports, though household consumption is still strong. ""But we expect overall economic growth to fall to 2.0 percent in 2005.""
"	business
US regulator to rule on pain drug	"US food and drug regulators will decide on Friday whether to recommend the sale of painkillers that have been linked to a high risk of heart attack and stroke.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel will give its verdict after hearing evidence for three days. The painkillers - called COX-2 inhibitors - are sold under brand names such as Celebrex and Vioxx. Vioxx was withdrawn from shops last year but Merck said it would consider selling it if it gets FDA approval. The FDA has been asked to decide if the benefits to patients justify the increased risks.

Putting Vioxx back on the shelves is likely to boost profits at Merck and make easier any legal battles with people who claim to have been injured by the drug, analysts said.

Merck voluntarily stopped sales of Vioxx on 30 September, a move which caused the firm's fourth-quarter earnings to slide to $1.1bn (£581m), from $1.4bn a year earlier. Merck's shares tumbled more than 10% on the news and the company has had to set aside millions of dollars to cover the cost of Vioxx-related litigation. Alarm bells were rung by a research note called Approve which showed that the risk of heart attack and stroke doubled in patients who had been taking the drug for at least 18 months. The Cox-2 inhibitors were developed by drug companies, including Merck and Pfizer, because they cause users fewer stomach problems than other painkillers.

Pfizer is still selling its Celebrex and Bextra products, though investigations have suggested that they may also be harmful to the heart. Merck's announcement of a possible reintroduction of Vioxx caught analysts by surprise. Merck's head of research Peter Kim said that it withdrew Vioxx ""based on the information that was available to us at the time, knowing there were alternative therapies"". He went on to say that things have since changed in the light of new reports. ""Given this new information, its is not clear that the cardiovascular risk observed in Approve makes Vioxx unique in the class of similar drugs marketed in the US,"" Mr Kim explained.

On Thursday, David Graham from the FDA's Office of Drug Safety told the advisory panel that ""there really doesn't appear to be a need for Cox-2"" inhibitors. According to calculations presented to the US Senate by Dr Graham in November, Vioxx may be linked to as many as to 56,000 American deaths. Facing stem criticism for its handling of the Vioxx case, the FDA said on Tuesday that it will create an independent body to oversee the safety of drugs already in the market place. European regulators, meanwhile, ruled on Thursday that patients who have had heart disease or a stroke should not take Cox-2 inhibitors. The European Medicines Agency also said doctors should be ""cautious"" about giving the drugs to patients who have risk factors for heart disease.
"	business
Yukos bankruptcy 'not US matter'	"Russian authorities do not have to abide by any US court decisions taken with regard to troubled oil giant Yukos, a Houston court has been told.

Legal expert William Butler said there was no treaty between the US and Russia to recognise the other's legal rulings. That meant Moscow would not have to adhere to US rulings in the Yukos case. Yukos says a US court was entitled to declare it bankrupt before its Yugansk unit was sold, since it has a US subsidiary and local bank accounts.

Yukos made its surprise Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in Houston in December in an unsuccessful attempt to halt the auction of Yugansk, its main oil producing unit, by Russian authorities. Yugansk was sold to help pay off a $27.5bn (£14.5bn) back tax bill. It was bought for $9.4bn by a previously unknown group, which was in turn bought by state-controlled oil company Rosneft. The US court's jurisdiction has been challenged by Deutsche Bank and Gazpromneft, a former unit of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom which is due to merge with Rosneft. Deutsche Bank maintains the case has no place in a US court because Yukos has no assets in the US, apart from two bank accounts and a house in Houston owned by its chief finance officer Bruce Misamore. Deutsche Bank is involved in the case because it is itself being sued by Yukos. It had agreed to loan Gazpromneft the money to bid for Yugansk. US bankruptcy judge Letitia Clark, who issued an injunction in December to try and prevent the Yugansk sale, has said she will rule ""pretty promptly, however I do not anticipate ruling on it before next Tuesday"".

Yukos has claimed it sought help in the US because other forums - Russian courts and the European Court of Human Rights - were either unfriendly or offered less protection. It has claimed that Russia imposed the huge tax bill and forced the sale of Yugansk as part of a campaign to destroy Yukos and its former owner Mihkail Khodorkovsky, who is facing a 10-year prison term in Russia for fraud and tax evasion. Yukos' parent company, the Gibraltar-based Menatep Group, is suing Russia in Europe for $28.3bn in financial damages. The company is also seeking $20bn in a separate US lawsuit against Rosneft and Gazprom for their role in the sale of Yugansk.
"	business
Borussia Dortmund near bust	"German football club and former European champion Borussia Dortmund has warned it will go bankrupt if rescue talks with creditors fail.

The company's shares tumbled after it said it has ""entered a life-threatening profitability and financial situation"". Borussia Dortmund has posted record losses and missed rent payments on its Westfallen stadium. Chief executive Gerd Niebaum stepped down last week and creditors are now pushing for greater control. Shares in Borussia Dortmund, Germany's only stock-market listed football club, dropped by almost 23% to 2.05 euros during early afternoon trading.

Fund manager Florian Hamm - Borussia Dortmund's largest investor - said he would only invest more money in the company if he got a greater say in how it is run. ""I demand better transparency,"" he is quoted as saying by Germany's Manger Magazin. The club has also faced calls to appoint executives from outside the club.

Borussia Dortmund posted a record loss of 68m euros ($89m; £47m) in the 12 months through June. It made a loss of 27.2m euros in the first half of the current fiscal year and said that total debts will increase to 134.7m euros by the middle of 2006 unless a restructuring plan is pushed through. ""This is the bill for their mismanagement over the past years,"" said HVB analyst Peter-Thilo Halser. The club appointed an auditor, who has recommended a number of steps, including deferring the rent due on the stadium and suspending debt repayments until at least the 2006-2007 fiscal year. Stephen Schechter, a UK investment banker who has held talks with Borussia Dortmund over a possible bond sale, said the club needs a capital injection of 35m euros. ""They need strong people on the board who do not have a history with the club,"" he said.
"	business
'Post-Christmas lull' in lending	"UK mortgage lending showed a ""post-Christmas lull"" in January, indicating a slowing housing market, lenders have said.

Both the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and Building Society Association (BSA) said lending was down sharply. The CML said gross mortgage lending stood at £17.9bn, compared with £21.8bn in January last year. The BSA said mortgage approvals - loans approved but not yet made - were £2bn, down from £2.6bn in January 2004.

At the same time, the British Bankers' Association (BBA) said lending was ""weaker"". Overall, the BBA said mortgage lending rose by £4bn in January, a far smaller increase than the £5.1bn seen in December. This was a return to the ""weaker pattern"" of lending seen in the last months of 2004, the BBA added. However, it is the year-on-year lending comparisons which are the most striking. The CML said lending for house purchases and gross mortgage lending were 29% and 18% lower year-on-year respectively. ""These figures show beyond doubt the recent slowdown in the housing market,"" Peter Williams, CML deputy director, said.
"	business
UK 'risks breaking golden rule'	"The UK government will have to raise taxes or rein in spending if it wants to avoid breaking its ""golden rule"", a report suggests.

The rule states that the government can borrow cash only to invest, and not to finance its spending projects. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) claims that taxes need to rise by about £10bn if state finances are to be put in order. The Treasury said its plans were on track and funded until 2008. According to NIESR, if the government's current economic cycle runs until March 2006 then it is ""unlikely"" the golden rule will be met. Should the cycle end a year earlier, then the chances improve to ""50/50"". Either way, fiscal tightening is needed, NIESR said.

The report is the latest to call into question the viability of government spending projections. Earlier this month, accountancy firm Ernst & Young said that Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown's forecasts for tax revenues were too optimistic.

It claimed revenues were likely to be £6bn below estimates by the end of the tax year despite the economy growing in line with forecasts. A Treasury spokesperson dismissed the latest claims, saying it was ""on track to meeting spending rules and the golden rule in the current cycle and beyond"". ""Spending plans have been set out until 2008 and they are fully affordable."" Other than its warning on possible tax hikes, the NIESR report was optimistic about the state of the UK and global economy.

It said the recent record-busting surge in oil prices would have a limited effect on worldwide expansion, saying that if anything the ""world economy will continue to grow strongly"". Global gross domestic product (GDP) is tipped to be 4.1% this year, dipping to 4% in 2005, before picking up again to 4.2% in 2006. The US will continue to drive expansion until 2006, albeit at a slightly slower rate, as will be the case in Japan. Hinting at better times for UK exporters, NIESR said the euro zone ""is expected to pick up speed"".

Growth in Britain also is set to accelerate, it forecast. ""Despite weak growth in the third quarter, the forces sustaining the upswing remain intact and the economy will expand robustly in 2005 and 2006,"" NIESR said, adding that ""the economy will become better balanced over the next two years as exports stage a recovery"". GDP is expected at 3.2% in 2004, and 2.8% in both 2005 and 2006. The main cloud on the horizon, NIESR said, was the UK's much analysed and fretted over property market.
"	business
Worldcom director ends evidence	"The former chief financial officer at US telecoms firm WorldCom has finished giving evidence at the trial of his ex-boss Bernie Ebbers.

Scott Sullivan admitted to jurors he was willing to commit fraud to meet Wall Street earnings projections. Mr Ebbers is on trial for fraud and conspiracy in relation to WorldCom's collapse in 2002. He pleads not guilty. Mr Sullivan has spent two days being cross-examined by lawyers for former Worldcom chief executive Mr Ebbers.

Attorney Reid Weingarten has attempted to portray Mr Sullivan as a liar and on Thursday quizzed him about his decision to commit fraud to meet analysts' profit estimates. ""At that point in time,"" Mr Sullivan said, referring to the first false entries in late 2000, ""I knew it was wrong and I knew it was against the law, but I thought we would get through it in the short term."" Mr Sullivan, 42, has already pleaded guilty to fraud and will be sentenced following Mr Ebbers' trial, where he is appearing as a prosecution witness. Mr Ebbers, 63, has always insisted that he was unaware of any hidden shortfalls in WorldCom's finances. The former finance officer said Mr Ebbers knew about the improper accounting entries that were made between 2000 and 2002 to conceal soaring expenses and inflate revenue.

Mr Ebbers could face a sentence of 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing. WorldCom's problems appear to have begun with the collapse of the dotcom boom which cut its business from internet companies. Prosecutors allege that the company's top executives responded by orchestrating massive fraud over a two-year period. WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2004, and is now known as MCI. On Monday, MCI agreed to a buyout by Verizon Communications in a deal valued at $6.75bn.
"	business
Ukraine steel sell-off 'illegal'	"The controversial sell-off of a Ukrainian steel mill to a relative of the former president was illegal, a court has ruled.

The mill, Krivorizhstal, was sold in June 2004 for $800m (£424m) - well below other offers. President Viktor Yushchenko, elected in December, is planning to revisit many of Ukraine's recent privatisations. Krivorizhstal is one of dozens of firms which he says were sold cheaply to friends of the previous administration.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said as many as 3,000 firms could be included on the list of firms whose sale was being reviewed.

Mr Yushchenko had previously said the list would be limited to 30-40 enterprises. More than 90,000 businesses in all, from massive corporations to tiny shopfronts, have been sold off since 1992, as the command economy built up when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union was dismantled. Analysts have suggested that the government needs to avoid the impression of an open-ended list, so as to preserve investor confidence.

Thursday's ruling by a district court in Perchesk overturned a previous decision in a lower court permitting the sale. The consortium which won the auction for the mill was created by Viktor Pinchuk, son-in-law of former-President Leonid Kuchma, and Rinat Akhmetov, the country's richest man. The next step is for the supreme court to annul the sale altogether, opening the way for Krivorizhstal to be resold. Mr Yushchenko has suggested a fair valuation could be as much as $3bn. One of the foreign bidders who lost out, steel giant LNM, told BBC News that it would be interested in any renewed sale.
"	business
Cairn shares up on new oil find	"Shares in Cairn Energy have jumped 6% after the firm said an Indian oilfield was larger than previously thought.

Cairn said drilling to the north-west of its development site in Rajasthan had produced ""very strong results"". The company also said it now believed the development area would be able to produce oil for more than 25 years. Cairn's share price rose 300% last year after a number of oil finds, but its shares were hit in December following a disappointing drilling update. December's share fall means that Cairn is still in danger of being relegated from the FTSE 100 when the index is reshuffled next month. Cairn's shares closed up 64 pence, or 6%, at 1130p on Thursday.

Before Christmas, Cairn revealed that drilling to the north of the field in Rajasthan had been disappointing, which caused its shares to lose 18% in one day.

However, on Thursday, the group said its belief that the path of oil in the area actually moved further to the west had proved correct. ""This area does need more appraisal drilling but it looks very strong,"" Dr Mike Watts head of exploration said. Chief executive Bill Gammell added: ""The more we progress in Rajasthan the better we feel about it."" Cairn made the discovery after having been granted an extension to their drilling licence in January by Indian authorities. The firm has applied for a 30-month extension to scout for oil outside its main development area, which includes the Mangala and Aishwariya fields where Cairn has previously announced major discoveries. It also said production at its other fields across the globe was likely to surpass levels seen in 2004.
"	business
Georgia plans hidden asset pardon	"Georgia is offering a one-off 'tax amnesty' to people who hid their earnings under the regime of former president Eduard Shevardnadze.

The country's new president, Mikhail Saakashvili, has said that anyone now willing to disclose their wealth will only have to pay 1% in income tax. The measure is designed to legitimise previously hidden economic activity and boost Georgia's flagging economy. Georgia's black market is estimated to be twice the size of its legal economy.

Mr Saakashvili, elected president in January after Mr Shevardnadze was toppled, has urged the Georgian Parliament to approve the amnesty as soon as possible. It is one of a series of proposals designed to tackle corruption, which was rampant during the Shevardnadze era, and boost Georgia's fragile public finances.

The new government is encouraging companies to pay taxes by scrapping existing corruption investigations and destroying all tax records from before 1 January, three days before President Saakashvili was elected. ""There are people who have money but are afraid to show it,"" the president told a government session. ""Documentation about where this money came from doesn't exist because under the former, entirely warped regime, earning capital honestly was not possible.""

By declaring their assets and paying the one-off tax, people would be able to ""legalise their property"", Mr Saakashvili stressed.

""No one will have the right to check this money's origin. This money must go back into the economy."" The amnesty will not extend to people who made money through drugs trafficking or international money laundering. Criminal investigations in such cases -thought to involve about 5% of Georgian businesses -are to continue. Mr Saakashvili has accused the Shevardnadze regime, which was toppled by a popular uprising in November, of allowing bribery to flourish. Georgia's economy is in a desperate condition. Half the population are living below the poverty line with many surviving on income of less than $4, or three euros, a day. The unemployment rate is around 20% while the country has a $1.7bn public debt.
"	business
Cuba winds back economic clock	"Fidel Castro's decision to ban all cash transactions in US dollars in Cuba has once more turned the spotlight on Cuba's ailing economy.

All conversions between the US dollar and Cuba's ""convertible"" peso will from 8 November be subject to a 10% tax. Cuban citizens, who receive money from overseas, and foreign visitors, who change dollars in Cuba, will be affected. Critics of the measure argue that it is a step backwards, reflecting the Cuban president's desire to increase his control of the economy and to clamp down on private enterprise. In a live television broadcast announcing the measure, President Castro's chief aide said it was necessary because of the United States' increasing ""economic aggression"". ""The ten percent obligation applies exclusively to the dollar by virtue of the situation created by the new measures of the US government to suffocate our country,"" he said.

The Bush administration has taken an increasingly harsh line on Cuba in recent months. President Bush's government, which has been a strong supporter of the 40-year-old trade embargo on Cuba, introduced even tighter restrictions on Cuba in May.

Cubans living in the US are now limited to one visit to Cuba every three years and they can only send money to their immediate relatives. A leading expert on the Cuban economy says that Castro's tax plan smacks more of a desperate economic measure than a political gesture. ""I think it is primarily an effort to raise some cash,"" says Jose Barrionuevo, head of strategy for Latin American emerging markets for Barclays Capital. ""It underscores the fact that the economy is in very bad shape and the government is looking for sources of revenue.""

The tax will hit the families of Cuban exiles hardest as they benefit from the money their displaced relatives send home. This money, known as remittances, can amount to as much as $1bn a year. Those remaining in Cuba will have to pay the tax. Their relatives abroad may choose to send money in other currencies which are not subject to the tax, such as euros, or increase their dollar payments to compensate. However, many of Cuban's poorest citizens could be worse off as a result. The tax will also affect the two million tourists who visit Cuba every year, particularly those Americans who continue to defy a ban on travel there.

Cuba's tourist industry has been one of its few economic success stories over the last ten years and, according to the UN Economic Commission for Latin America, is now worth $3bn to the country.

The tax is designed to provide much-needed revenue for Cuba's cash-strapped economy. Cuba badly needs dollars to pay for essential items such as food, fuel and medicine. Much of Cuba's basic infrastructure is in a state of disrepair. In recent weeks, Cuba has suffered its most serious power cuts in a decade and there have also been water shortages in parts of the island. Cuba's economy had staged a modest recovery during the mid 1990s as the collapse of the Soviet Union forced it to embrace foreign capital, decentralise trade and permit limited private enterprise. However, a decline in foreign tourism since 2002, periodic hurricanes and the increasing costs of importing oil have put a strain on the economy. It has however yet to be seen if the tax will provide a solution to the government's economic problems. The tax could fuel an active black market in currency trading, Mr Barrionuevo said. ""The main impact could be that it will create a black market which you typically see in countries, like Venezuela, which have restrictions on capital,"" he says. Mr Barrioneuvo says the measure could be dropped if it has a damaging effect on economic activity. ""It is intended to be a permanent measure but I am not sure it can last too long.""
"	business
Novartis hits acquisition trail	"Swiss drugmaker Novartis has announced 5.65bn euros ($7.4bn; £3.9bn) of purchases to make its Sandoz unit the world's biggest generic drug producer.

Novartis, which last month forecast record sales for 2005, said it had bought all of Germany's Hexal. It also acquired 67.7% of Hexal's US affiliate Eon Labs, and offered to buy the remaining shares for $31 each. Novartis said that it would be able to make cost savings of about $200m a year following the acquisitions. Novartis' shares rose 1% to 57.85 Swiss francs in early trading.

The deal will see Novartis' Sandoz business overtake Israel's Teva Pharmaceuticals as the world's biggest maker of generics. Based on 2004 figures the newly merged producer would have sales of more than $5bn, the company estimated. Novartis said that it would merge a number of departments, adding that there may be job cuts.

""The strong growth outlook for Sandoz, which will create jobs, is expected to partially compensate for necessary reductions in the work force,"" the firm said in a statement. Generic drugs are chemically identical to their more expensive branded rivals. Producers such as Sandoz can copy the branded products usually after their patent protection expires and can sell them more cheaply as they do not have to pay research and development cost.

There are more than 150 generic drugmakers worldwide and analysts have predicted consolidation in a market that they call fragmented. However, not all analysts were initially convinced about the deal. ""This is a very expensive acquisition,"" Birgit Kuhlhoff, from Sal Oppenheim investment bank, told Reuters. ""I find it strange that they are making acquisitions in exactly those markets where they suffered price pressure.""
"	business
MCI shareholder sues to stop bid	"A shareholder in US phone firm MCI has taken legal action to halt a $6.75bn (£3.6bn) buyout by telecoms giant Verizon, hoping to get a better deal.

The lawsuit was filed on Friday after Qwest Communications, which had an earlier offer for MCI rejected, said it would submit an improved bid. MCI's directors have backed Verizon, despite it tabling less money. They are accused of breaching their fiduciary duties by depriving MCI shareholders ""of maximum value"".

According the legal papers filed in a Delaware court, Verizon is set to pay an """"unconscionable, unfair and grossly inadequate"" sum for MCI, which was formerly known as Worldcom. Qwest said on Wednesday that MCI had rejected a deal worth $8bn. A number of large MCI shareholders expressed unhappiness at the decision, saying that Verizon's offer, made up of cash, shares and dividends, undervalued the company. Friday's lawsuit argues that the Verizon offer makes no provision for future growth prospects and that consolidation in the US phone industry will put a premium on MCI's network, assets and clients. MCI's directors have argued that Verizon is bigger than Qwest, has fewer debts and has built a successful mobile division. Chief executive Michael Capellas spent last week meeting with shareholders in an effort to win their backing.

In 2002, investors in the then-named Worldcom lost millions when the company filed for bankruptcy following an accounting scandal. However, the firm - now renamed MCI - has put its operations in order and emerged from bankruptcy protection last April. It is a long-distance and corporate phone firm, and would provide the buyer with access to a global telecommunications network and a large number of business-based subscribers. MCI shares jumped on Friday, hitting their highest level since April 2004 amid speculation that it would be the focus of a bidding war. A takeover of MCI would be the fifth billion-dollar telecoms deal since October as companies look to cut costs and boost client bases. Earlier this month, SBC Communications agreed to buy its former parent and phone pioneer AT&T for about $16bn.
"	business
'Standoff' on Deutsche's LSE bid	"Deutsche Boerse investors unhappy with its London Stock Exchange bid will have no chance to throw out the exchange's management until May, Reuters says.

The Sunday Times reported that hedge funds TCI and Atticus were planning to demand the removal of the group's chairman and chief executive. But Deutsche Boerse told news agency Reuters such a move would have to wait until May's annual general meeting. Investors want Deutsche to return cash to shareholders rather than bid. ""We are long-term investors and are experienced in removing management. We are not scared to take this to its conclusion this time,"" Atticus' David Slager told the Sunday Times. However, Deutsche Boerse told Reuters: ""TCI's request for the removal of the supervisory board will be considered at the annual general meeting on May 25.""

The Sunday Times reported that TCI had been drawing up a list of heavyweight executives to replace Deutsche's chairman Rolf Breuer and chief executive Werner Seifert. The group owns more than 5% of Deutsche - more than enough to demand an extraordinary general meeting to call on shareholders to oust the German exchange's management. Under German law Deutsche does not need investor backing to make a takeover bid. TCI and Atticus have opposed the LSE bid for some time saying it would destroy shareholder value, and would be better spent on a share buyback. Deutsche is in competition with pan-European bourse Euronext to take over the London exchange. Many commentators have suggested a bidding war between the two could break out. However, any such move would have to wait until March when the Office of Fair Trading completes an investigation into the competition aspects of the pair's takeover proposals.
"	business
Bush to outline 'toughest' budget	"President Bush is to send his toughest budget proposals to date to the US Congress, seeking large cuts in domestic spending to lower the deficit.

About 150 federal programs could be cut or axed altogether as part of a $2.5 trillion (£1.3 trillion) package aimed at curbing the giant US budget deficit. Defence spending will rise, however, while the proposals exclude the cost of continuing military operations in Iraq. Vice-President Dick Cheney said the budget was the ""tightest"" so far.

At the heart of the administration's fifth budget, presented to Congress on Monday, is an austere package of domestic measures. These would see discretionary spending rise below the projected level of inflation.

Such belt-tightening is designed to tackle the massive budget deficit increases of President Bush's first term. Mr Cheney admitted that the budget was the toughest of the Bush Presidency but argued it was ""fair and responsible"". ""It is not something we have done with a meat axe, nor are we suddenly turning our back on the most needy people in our society,"" he said. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, increased expenditure on national security after 9/11 and the 2001 recession wiped out the budget surplus inherited by President Bush in 2001 and turned it into a record deficit. The shortfall is projected to rise to $427bn in 2005.

Education, environmental protection and transport initiatives are set to be scaled back as a first step towards reducing the deficit to $230bn by 2009.

Most controversially, the government is seeking to cut the Medicaid budget, which provides health care to the nation's poorest, by $45bn and to reduce farm subsidies by $587m. Spending on defence and homeland security is set to increase, although not by as much as originally planned. President Bush's proposals would see the Pentagon's budget rise by $19bn to $419.3bn while homeland security would get an extra $2bn.

The budget does not include the cost of running military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, for which the administration in expected to seek an extra $80bn from Congress later this year.

Also not featuring in the proposals is the cost of funding the administration's radical proposed overhaul of social security provision. Some expects believe this could require borrowing of up to $4.5bn trillion over a twenty year period. Despite the Republicans holding a majority in both houses of Congress, the proposals will be fiercely contested over the next few months.

John McCain, a Republican Senator, said he was pleased the administration was prepared to tackle the deficit. ""With the deficits that we are now running, I am glad the president is coming over with a very austere budget,"" he said. However, Democratic Senator Kent Conrad said the proposals exposed the country to huge financial commitments beyond 2009. ""The cost of everything he [President Bush] advocates explodes,"" he said.
"	business
Orange colour clash set for court	"A row over the colour orange could hit the courts after mobile phone giant Orange launched action against a new mobile venture from Easyjet's founder.

Orange said it was starting proceedings against the Easymobile service for trademark infringement. Easymobile uses Easygroup's orange branding. Founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou has pledged to contest the action. The move comes after the two sides failed to come to an agreement after six months of talks. Orange claims the new low-cost mobile service has infringed its rights regarding the use of the colour orange and could confuse customers - known as ""passing off"".

""Our brand, and the rights associated with it are extremely important to us,"" Orange said in a statement. ""In the absence of any firm commitment from Easy, we have been left with no choice but to start an action for trademark infringement and passing off."" However, Mr Haji-Ioannou, who plans to launch Easymobile next month, vowed to fight back, saying: ""We have nothing to be afraid of in this court case. ""It is our right to use our own corporate colour for which we have become famous during the last 10 years."" The Easyjet founder also said he planned to add a disclaimer to the Easygroup website to ensure customers are aware the Easymobile brand has no connection to Orange. The new service is the latest venture from Easygroup, which includes a chain of internet cafes, budget car rentals and an intercity bus service. Easymobile will allow customers to go online to order SIM cards and airtime - which will be rented from T-Mobile - for their existing handsets.
"	business
Standard Life cuts policy bonuses	"Standard Life, Europe's largest mutual life insurer, has cut bonuses for with-profit policyholders.

Annual bonus rates on its with-profits life policies were cut from 2.5% to 2%, while bonuses on pension policies were reduced from 3.25% to 2.5%. It is the sixth time in three years Standard Life has made cuts to bonus rates, despite an 8.7% rise in the value of the with-profits fund in 2004. The insurer blamed the cuts on poor share returns and low interest rates.

With-profits policies are designed to smooth out the peaks and troughs of stock market volatility. Profits made in good years are kept in reserve to pay investors an annual bonus even when the stock market performs badly. Slumping share prices throughout 2001 and 2002 forced most firms to trim bonus rates on their policies. Standard Life came in for criticism for sticking with stock market investments during 2001 and 2002. The insurer argued that shares outperformed other investments over the long term and that policyholders would feel the benefit when the stock market recovered. Recently, Norwich Union and Axa Sun Life both cut their with-profit bonus rates.

John Gill, managing director of the insurer's life and pensions division, said that a strong stock market recovery in the past two years had only ""partly compensated for losses during 2001 and 2002"". In addition, low interest rates meant that ""long-term investment returns are well below historic levels"", Mr Gill added. However, Mr Gill maintained that with-profits continued to perform well over the long term. ""Our payouts continue to stand up well against other types of long-term investments over similar periods,"" he said. Standard Life has an estimated 2.4 million with-profits policyholders. Last year, the company announced that it was looking to float on the stock market in 2006.
"	business
EMI shares hit by profit warning	"Shares in music giant EMI have sunk by more than 16% after the firm issued a profit warning following disappointing sales and delays to two album releases.

EMI said music sales for the year to March will fall 8-9% from the year before, with profits set to be 15% lower than analysts had expected. It blamed poor sales since Christmas and delays to the releases of new albums by Coldplay and Gorillaz. By 1200 GMT on Monday, EMI shares were down 16.2% at 235.75 pence.

EMI said two major albums scheduled for release before the end of the financial year in March - one by Coldplay and one by Gorillaz - have now had their release dates put back.

""EMI Music's sales, particularly re-orders, in January have also been lower than anticipated and this is expected to continue through February and March,"" the company added. ""Therefore, for the full year, at constant currency, EMI Music's sales are now expected to be 8% to 9% lower than the prior year."" The company said it expected profits to be about £138m ($259.8m). Alain Levy, chairman and chief executive of EMI Music, described the performance as ""disappointing"", but added that he remained optimistic over future trends in the industry. ""The physical music market is showing signs of stabilisation in many parts of the world and digital music, in all its forms, continues to develop at a rapid pace,"" he said.

Commenting on the delay to the release of the Coldplay and Gorillaz albums, Mr Levy said that ""creating and marketing music is not an exact science and cannot always coincide with our reporting periods"". ""While this rescheduling and recent softness is disappointing, it does not change my views of the improving health of the global recorded music industry,"" he added. Paul Richards, an analyst at Numis Securities, said the market would be focusing on the slump in music sales rather than the timing of the two albums. ""It's unusual to see this much of a downgrade just because of phasing,"" he said.
"	business
China's Shanda buys stake in Sina	"Chinese online game operator Shanda Interactive Entertainment has bought a 20% stake in Sina, the country's biggest internet portal firm.

The move may be a precursor to a full takeover, with analysts saying that a better-known international firm may also now show an interest in Sina. Shanda said that it may boost its stake in Sina, even buying it outright. A merger would create a firm that offers online role-playing games, news, entertainment and wireless messaging.

Sina said that the purchase of a stake by Shanda would have no impact on its business.

The board of directors said in a statement that it would ""continue to act in the best interests of all the company stakeholders, including shareholders, employees and customers"". Both companies are listed on the New York Stock Exchange's (NYSE) technology-dominated Nasdaq index. In a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Sina said its shares were purchased between 12 January and 10 February for about $230m. Rumours about a possible takeover boosted Sina's shares by more than 10% on Friday. They added an extra 6.4% to $27.24 in electronic trading after the trading session had finished. And there may be more gains amid bid speculation when trading resumes in New York on Tuesday after Monday's public holiday, analysts forecast. ""There could still be some potential parties that could still counter bid,"" said Wallace Cheung, an analyst at DBS Vickers. ""Even though Shanda has 20% of Sina, they still have quite a long way to take full control."" However, Mr Cheung noted that a foreign company trying to take control of a Chinese internet portal firm, with its ability to filter and pass on news, may not be viewed very favourably by Beijing.
"	business
Mixed reaction to Man Utd offer	"Shares in Manchester United were up over 5% by noon on Monday following a new offer from Malcolm Glazer.

The board of Man Utd is expected to meet early this week to discuss the latest proposal from the US tycoon that values the club at £800m ($1.5bn). Manchester United revealed on Sunday that it had received a detailed proposal from Mr Glazer. A senior source at the club told the BBC: ""This time it's different"". The board is obliged to consider this deal. But the Man Utd supporters club urged the club to reject the new deal. Manchester United past and present footballers Eric Cantona and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and club manager Sir Alex Ferguson, have lent their backing to the supporters' group, Shareholders United. They have all spoken out against the bid.

A spokesman for the supporters club said: ""I can't see any difference (compared to Mr Glazer's previous proposals) other than £200m less debt. ""He isn't bringing any money into the club; he'll use our money to buy it.""

Mr Glazer's latest move is being led by Mr Glazer's two sons, Avi and Joel, according to the Financial Times. A proposal was received by David Gill, United's chief executive, at the end of last week, pitched at about 300p a share. David Cummings, head of UK equities for Standard Life Investments, said he believed a ""well funded"" 300p a share bid would be enough for Mr Glazer to take control of the club. ""I do not think there is anything that Manchester United fans can do about it,"" he told the BBC. ""They can complain about it but it is curtains for them. They may not want him but they are going to get him."" The US tycoon, who has been wooing the club for the last 12 months, has approached the United board with ""detailed proposals"", it has confirmed.

Mr Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, hopes this will lead to a formal bid being accepted. He is believed to have increased the amount of equity in the new proposal, though it is not clear by how much. For his proposal to succeed, he needs the support of United's largest shareholders, the Irish horseracing tycoons JP McManus and John Magnier. They own 29% of United through their Cubic Expression investment vehicle. Mr Glazer and his family hold a stake of 28.1%. But it is not yet known whether Mr McManus and Mr Magnier would support a Glazer bid. NM Rothschild, the investment bank, is advising Mr Glazer, according to the Financial Times. His previous adviser, JPMorgan, quit last year when Mr Glazer went ahead and voted against the appointment of three United directors to the board, against its advice. But the FT said it thought JP Morgan may still have had some role in financing Mr Glazer's latest financial proposal.
"	business
Gold falls on IMF sale concerns	"The price of gold has fallen after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it will look at ways of using its gold reserves to provide debt relief.

By revaluing its holdings, the IMF may be able to sell billions of dollars of gold and use the cash to cancel debts owed by the world's poorest nations. The plan was put forward by G7 finance ministers over the weekend. The price of gold fell to $413.50 an ounce in Asia, before rebounding slightly in early European trading.

IMF boss Rodrigo Rato was asked by G7 ministers to carry out a study into the feasibility of revaluing and selling gold reserves.

He is expected to present his conclusions at an IMF meeting in Washington during April. ""Whatever happens the market is going to be disconcerted and on the back foot until the April IMF meetings,"" said John Reade, an analyst at UBS. The IMF values its gold reserves at between $40 and $50 an ounce, a price that was fixed in the 1970s and is about a tenth of the metal's current market value. The IMF has 3,217 tonnes of gold, or about 113.5m ounces. Bringing the book price of the gold in line with market value would boost the IMF's balance sheet, giving it more money to distribute.

This idea has been put forward before, but there now seems to be a more committed political drive to address the issue of global poverty. ""This is the first time there has been a mention of the use of gold in a G7 communiqué for achieving debt relief,"" said UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown. At their meeting in London, G7 finance ministers backed plans to write off up to 100% of the debts owed by some of the world's poorest countries. Mr Brown said the meeting would be remembered as ""the 100% debt relief summit"". While debt relief seems to have jumped to the top of the global agenda, not everyone is convinced that selling IMF gold is the best way forward. The US, which can veto any plan to sell IMF gold should it so choose, said it is looking at other ways of solving the problem. ""The US is not convinced that's the necessary way to do it,"" said Treasury Under Secretary John Taylor. Canada, a key gold producer, also expressed reservations.
"	business
Electronics firms eye plasma deal	"Consumer electronics giants Hitachi and Matshushita Electric are joining forces to share and develop technology for flat screen televisions.

The tie-up comes as the world's top producers are having to contend with falling prices and intense competition. The two Japanese companies will collaborate in research & development, production, marketing and licensing. They said the agreement would enable the two companies to expand the plasma display TV market globally.

Plasma display panels are used for large, thin TVs which are replacing old-style televisions. The display market for high-definition televisions is split between models using plasma display panels and others - manufactured by the likes of Sony and Samsung - using liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). The deal will enable Hitachi and Matsushita, which makes Panasonic brand products, to develop new technology and improve their competitiveness. Hitachi recently announced a deal to buy plasma display technology from rival Fujitsu in an effort to strengthen its presence in the market.

Separately, Fujitsu announced on Monday that it is quitting the LCD panel market by transferring its operations in the area to Japanese manufacturer Sharp. Sharp will inherit staff, manufacturing facilities and intellectual property from Fujitsu. The plasma panel market has seen rapid consolidation in recent months as the price of consumer electronic goods and components has fallen. Samsung Electronics and Sony are among other companies working together to reduce costs and speed up new product development.
"	business
MG Rover China tie-up 'delayed'	"MG Rover's proposed tie-up with China's top carmaker has been delayed due to concerns by Chinese regulators, according to the Financial Times.

The paper said Chinese officials had been irritated by Rover's disclosure of its talks with Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp in October. The proposed deal was seen as crucial to safeguarding the future of Rover's Longbridge plant in the West Midlands. However, there are growing fears that the deal could result in job losses. The Observer reported on Sunday that nearly half the workforce at Longbridge could be under threat if the deal goes ahead.

Shanghai Automotive's proposed £1bn investment in Rover is awaiting approval by its owner, the Shanghai city government and by the National Development and Reform Commission, which oversees foreign investment by Chinese firms. According to the FT, the regulator has been annoyed by Rover's decision to talk publicly about the deal and the intense speculation which has ensued about what it will mean for Rover's future. As a result, hopes that approval of the deal may be fast-tracked have disappeared, the paper said. There has been continued speculation about the viability of Rover's Longbridge plant because of falling sales and unfashionable models.

According to the Observer, 3,000 jobs - out of a total workforce of 6,500 - could be lost if the deal goes ahead. The paper said that Chinese officials believe cutbacks will be required to keep the MG Rover's costs in line with revenues. It also said that the production of new models through the joint venture would take at least eighteen months. Neither Rover nor Shanghai Automotive commented on the reports.
"	business
US bank boss hails 'genius' Smith	"US Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan has given a speech at a Scottish church in honour of the pioneering economist, Adam Smith.

He delivered the 14th Adam Smith Lecture in Kirkcaldy, Fife. The Adam Smith Lecture celebrates the author of 1776's Wealth of Nations, which became a bible of capitalism. Dr Greenspan was invited by Chancellor Gordon Brown, whose minister father John used to preach at the St Bryce Kirk church. Mr Brown introduced Dr Greenspan to the 400 invited guests as the ""the world's greatest economist"". Dr Greenspan, 79, who has been in the UK to attend the G7 meeting in London, said the world could never repay the debt of gratitude it owed to Smith, whose genius he compared to that of Mozart.

He said the philosopher was a ""towering contributor to the modern world"". ""Kirkcaldy, the birthplace in 1723 of Adam Smith and, by extension, of modern economics, is also of course, where your chancellor was reared. ""I am led to ponder to what extent the chancellor's renowned economic and financial skills are the result of exposure to the subliminal intellect-enhancing emanation in this area."" He continued: ""Smith reached far beyond the insights of his predecessors to frame a global view of how market economics, just then emerging, worked. ""In so doing he supported changes in societal organisation that were to measurably enhance standards of living.""

Dr Greenspan said Smith's revolutionary philosophy on human self-interest, laissez-faire economics and competition had been a force for good in the world. ""The incredible insights of a handful of intellectuals of the Enlightenment - especially with Smith toiling in the environs of Kirkcaldy - created the modern vision of people free to choose and to act according to their individual self-interest,"" he said. Following his lecture, Dr Greenspan - who received an honorary knighthood from the Queen at Balmoral in 2002 - was awarded an honorary fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He later opened an exhibition dedicated to Smith in the atrium of Fife College of Further and Higher Education. Joyce Johnston, principal of the college, said: ""It is very fitting that the world's premier economist delivered this lecture in tribute to the world's first economist."" Dr Greenspan - who became chairman of the Federal Reserve for an unprecedented fifth term in June 2004 - will step down in January next year. He has served under Presidents George W Bush, Bill Clinton, George Bush, and Ronald Reagan. He was also chairman of the council of economic advisors to Gerald Ford.
"	business
Economy 'strong' in election year	"UK businesses are set to prosper during the next few months - but this could trigger more interest rate rises, according to a report.

Optimism is at its highest since 1997 and business will reap the benefits of a continuing rise in public spending, say researchers at BDO Stoy Hayward. The Bank of England is expected to keep rates on hold this week - but they could go up later in the year. Rates are likely to rise after the anticipated general election in May. The BDO optimism index - a leading indicator of GDP growth two quarters ahead edged up in January to 102.5, from 102.2 in October. The rise is due, in part, to an increase in public spending and increased merger and acquisition activity.

The only thing blighting business optimism this year will be uncertainties associated with the general election, BDO said. Its BDO's output index - which predicts GDP movements a quarter in advance - remained at 100.8 for January, implying GDP growth at 2.9% in the second quarter of 2005. However, the output index is being held back by recent interest rate rises, sterling's strength against the dollar and high oil prices, the group noted. Its inflation index, which has risen continuously over the last 8 months, climbed to 110.0 in January from 108.0 in October last year. ""The UK is looking strong going into the general election, but businesses need to prepare themselves for a jolt ahead as the Bank of England reacts to growth and inflationary pressures,"" said Peter Hemington, partner at BDO Stoy Hayward. ""Growth will probably slow by the end of 2005 and it is likely that we will see higher interest rates or a sharp drop in demand for products and services.""
"	business
SEC to rethink post-Enron rules	"The US stock market watchdog's chairman has said he is willing to soften tough new US corporate governance rules to ease the burden on foreign firms.

In a speech at the London School of Economics, William Donaldson promised ""several initiatives"". European firms have protested that US laws introduced after the Enron scandal make Wall Street listings too costly. The US regulator said foreign firms may get extra time to comply with a key clause in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

The Act comes into force in mid-2005. It obliges all firms with US stock market listings to make declarations, which, critics say, will add substantially to the cost of preparing their annual accounts.

Firms that break the new law could face huge fines, while senior executives risk jail terms of up to 20 years. Mr Donaldson said that although the Act does not provide exemptions for foreign firms, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would ""continue to be sensitive to the need to accomodate foreign structures and requirements"". There are few, if any, who disagree with the intentions of the Act, which obliges chief executives to sign a statement taking responsibility for the accuracy of the accounts. But European firms with secondary listings in New York have objected - arguing that the compliance costs outweigh the benefits of a dual listing. The Act also applies to firms with more than 300 US shareholders, a situation many firms without US listings could find themselves in.

The 300-shareholder threshold has drawn anger as it effectively blocks the most obvious remedy, a delisting. Mr Donaldson said the SEC would ""consider whether there should be a new approach to the deregistration process"" for foreign firms unwilling to meet US requirements.

""We should seek a solution that will preserve investor protections"" without turning the US market into ""one with no exit"", he said. He revealed that his staff were already weighing up the merits of delaying the implementation of the Act's least popular measure - Section 404 - for foreign firms. Seen as particularly costly to implement, Section 404 obliges chief executives to take responsibility for the firm's internal controls by signing a compliance statement in the annual accounts. The SEC has already delayed implementation of this clause for smaller firms - including US ones - with market capitalisations below $700m (£374m).

A delegation of European firms visited the SEC in December to press for change, the Financial Times reported.

It was led by Digby Jones, director general of the UK's Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and included representatives of BASF, Siemens and Cadbury Schweppes. Compliance costs are already believed to be making firms wary of US listings. Air China picked the London Stock Exchange for its secondary listing in its $1.07bn (£558m) stock market debut last month. There are also rumours that two Chinese state-run banks - China Construction Bank and Bank of China - have abandoned plans for multi-billion dollar listings in New York later this year. Instead, the cost of Sarbanes-Oxley has persuaded them to stick to a single listing in Hong Kong, according to press reports in China.
"	business
Nissan names successor to Ghosn	"Nissan has named a lifetime employee to run its operations after Carlos Ghosn, its highly successful boss, takes charge at Renault.

As chief operating officer, Toshiyuki Shiga will run Nissan on a daily basis, although Mr Ghosn, who masterminded its recovery, will remain chief executive. Mr Ghosn is to become chairman and chief executive of Renault, which owns 44% of the Japanese carmaker, in April. Mr Ghosn transformed Nissan into a fast-growing and profitable business.

Mr Shiga will nominally serve as Mr Ghosn's deputy. However, he will be Nissan's most senior Japan-based executive and will be in charge of the firm's global sales and marketing.

He is currently in charge of Nissan's operations across Asia and Australasia and is credited with significantly improving its sales in China. He will inherit a strong legacy from Mr Ghosn, who has overseen a dramatic turnaround in Nissan's fortunes in the past five years. Dubbed 'le cost killer' for pushing through huge cost cuts in previous jobs, Mr Ghosn reduced Nissan's overheads by 20% and trimmed its workforce by about 200,000 after taking charge in 1999. These actions helped Nissan turn a 684bn yen ($6.4bn) loss in 2000 into a 331bn yen ($2.7bn) profit the following year. During his tenure, Nissan has increased its market share and made significant strides in key export markets. Nissan aims to increase vehicle sales to more than four million by 2008, launching 28 new models in the process.

In his new job as Renault chief executive, Mr Ghosn will devote 40% of his time to Renault, 40% to Nissan and the rest to the group's activities in North America and other key markets.

Mr Ghosn said Mr Shiga's appointment would ensure a ""seamless"" transition in management. ""I need a leadership team capable of accelerating the performance and delivery of results that has characterized Nissan over the past six years,"" Mr Ghosn said. ""I have full confidence in Toshiyuki Shiga and the new leadership team to help me implement the next chapter of Nissan's growth."" Nissan also announced a number of other management appointments with promotions for several younger executives.
"	business
Ukraine trims privatisation check	"Ukraine is to review ""dozens"" of state asset sales as the country's new administration tackles corruption.

The figure announced by President Viktor Yushchenko is less than the 3,000 cases mentioned last week, but will cover many of the biggest deals. Ukraine recently ousted long-serving leader Leonid Kuchma and has said it wants closer European Union links. In a separate statement, the EU said that the US should back Ukraine's entry into the World Trade Organisation. The comments came as Viktor Yushchenko prepared to head to Brussels to meet with US President George W Bush and other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) leaders. He is the only non-Nato member leader invited to attend the summit.

Mr Yushchenko recently defeated Moscow-backed presidential candidate and Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych at the polls, and has made no secret of his wish to fight corruption and make Ukraine more transparent.

Earlier this month, new Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said as many as 3,000 firms may have their privatisations put under the spotlight. Her comments raised concerns among a number of investors and Mr Yushchenko was seen on Monday as trying to soothe their frayed nerves. ""We acknowledge that business in Ukraine is now shaped and 98% of privatisations were carried out according to the law,"" Mr Yushchenko said on Monday. ""We have trust in this business and want to defend it by law,"" he continued, adding that any review would focus on ""dozens of companies, not hundreds or thousands"". He cited last year's sale of Ukrainian steel producer Krivorizhstal as one that had raised concerns. It was sold in June 2004 to a consortium that included Viktor Pinchuk, son-in-law of former-President Kuchma, and Rinat Akhmetov, the country's richest man, for $800m (£424m) - despite other higher offers.

Vice-Prime Minister Oleg Rybachuk called on the EU to recognise the steps that Ukraine was taking, fearing that should the country not be rewarded for its efforts there may be a backlash against closer relations with Brussels. He said that while he understood that Ukraine was not ready for EU membership, the country needed to see progress on topics such as trade and visa requirements. ""We deserve an honest response,"" Mr Rybachuk told the Associated Press in an interview. ""We understand the difficulties. We refuse to understand double standards."" Ukraine may find it has a sympathetic ear in Brussels ""The EU has reiterated that we support (Ukraine's) fast accession to the WTO and if possible we would like that to happen some time during the year,"" said Claude Veron-Reville, a spokesman for EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson. ""We have said as much to the Americans. We feel that it is important for us all to pull together for Ukraine to be allowed into the WTO. Mr Yushchenko was careful not to turn his back on Russia, which borders the country to the east, saying it was important to maintain 'pragmatic' ties with Moscow. ""Russia is Ukraine's eternal strategic partner,"" Mr Yushchenko said.
"	business
Absa and Barclays talks continue	"South Africa biggest retail bank Absa has said it is still in talks with UK bank Barclays over the sale of majority stake in the group.

In November, Absa said it was close to striking a deal with Barclays. But the group said Barclays is still waiting for the approval of South Africa's banking and competition authorities to make a formal offer. Absa also announced that it expects to see earnings grow by 20-25% in its current financial year.

""Discussions with Barclays are continuing, but shareholders are advised that no agreement has been reached as to any offer being made by Barclays to acquire a majority stake in Absa,"" Absa said in a statement. If Barclays buys a stake in Absa it will be one of the largest foreign investments in South Africa in recent years. Absa currently has a market value of about $8.5bn (£4.4bn). Analysts said Absa's earnings forecast was better than expected. However, the company warned that headline earnings growth would be trimmed by about four percentage points because of share options for a black economic empowerment transaction and a staff share incentive scheme. The South African group will release its results for the year to 31 March on 30 May.
"	business
Rescue hope for Borussia Dortmund	"Shares in struggling German football club Borussia Dortmund slipped on Monday despite the club agreeing a rescue plan with creditors on Friday.

The club, which has posted record losses and racked up debts, said last week that it was in ""a life-threatening profitability and financial situation"". Creditors agreed on Friday to suspend interest payments until 2007. News of the deal had boosted shares in the club on Friday, but the stock slipped back 7% during Monday morning.

In addition to the interest-payment freeze, Borussia Dortmund also will get short-term loans to help pay salaries. It estimated that it needs almost 30m euros ($39m; £21m) until the end of June if it is to pay its bills. The football club is hoping that all its creditors will agree to defer rent payments on its Westfalen stadium. Borussia officials met with almost all the banks involved in its financing on Friday and over the weekend. Three creditors have yet to agree to the deal struck last week. On 14 March, one of these creditors - property investment fund Molsiris which owns the club's stadium - holds its AGM at which it will discuss the rescue plan. Chief executive Gerd Niebaum stepped down last week and creditors have been pushing for a greater say in how the club is run. Borussia Dortmund also is facing calls to appoint executives from outside the club. The club posted a record loss of 68m euros in the 12 months through June. Adding to its woes, Borussia Dortmund was beaten 5-0 by Bayern Munich on Saturday.
"	business
Standard Life concern at LSE bid	"Standard Life is the latest shareholder in Deutsche Boerse to express concern at the German stock market operator's plans to buy the London Stock Exchange.

It said Deutsche Boerse had to show why its planned £1.35bn ($2.5bn) offer for the LSE was good for shareholder value. Reports say Standard Life, which owns a 1% stake in Deutsche Boerse, may seek a shareholder vote on the issue. Fellow shareholders US-based hedge fund Atticus Capital and UK-based TCI Fund Management have also expressed doubts.

Deutsche Boerse's supervisory board has approved the possible takeover of the LSE despite the signs of opposition from investors. ""The onus is on Deutsche Boerse's management to demonstrate why the purchase of the LSE creates more value for shareholders than other strategies, such as a buyback,"" said Richard Moffat, investment director of UK Equities at Standard Life Investments. Atticus Capital, holding 2% of Deutsche Boerse, wants it to buy back its own shares rather than buy the LSE. And TCI which holds about 5%, has made a request for an extraordinary shareholders meeting to be held to vote on replacing the company's entire supervisory board. It has also demanded that shareholders be consulted about the proposed acquisition, and whether the operator of the Frankfurt stock exchange should return $500m (£266m) to shareholders instead.

In December, Deutsche Boerse, which also owns the derivatives market Eurex and the clearing firm Clearstream, put an informal offer of 530 pence per LSE share on the table. However, the LSE said the cash offer ""undervalued"" both its own business and the benefits of such a tie-up. Since then an improved offer from Deutsche Boerse has been anticipated as its management has continued talks with LSE chief executive Clara Furse. But the London exchange is also holding talks with Deutsche Boerse's rival Euronext, which operates the Amsterdam, Brussels, Lisbon and Paris exchanges, as well as London-based international derivatives market Liffe.
"	business
BP surges ahead on high oil price	"Oil giant BP has announced a 26% rise in annual profits to $16.2bn (£8.7bn) on the back of record oil prices.

Last week, rival Shell reported an annual profit of $17.5bn - a record profit for a UK-listed company. BP added that it was increasing its fourth-quarter dividend by 26% to 8.5 cents, and that it would continue with share buybacks. BP chief executive Lord Browne said the results were strong ""both operationally and financially.""

The company is earning about $1.8m an hour.

Despite the record annual profits figure, BP's performance was below the expectations of some City analysts. However, BP's share price rose 4p or nearly 1% in morning trading to 548p. Its profit rise for the year included profits of $3.65bn (£1.97bn) for the final three months of 2004 - up from $2.89bn a year ago but below its third quarter.

Speaking on the BBC's Today programme on Tuesday, Lord Browne said the profits were not solely down to the high oil price alone.

""The profits are up more than the price of oil is up,"" he said. Lord Browne pointed out that BP was reaping the benefits of its investment in oil exploration. ""We have spent many years buying (assets) when the price is low,"" he said. The company has made new discoveries in Egypt, the Gulf of Mexico and Angola.

However, Lord Browne rejected calls for a windfall tax on his company's huge profits, saying that in the North Sea it paid progressively more tax, the more profits it made. Lord Browne believes oil prices will remain quite high. Currently above $40 a barrel, he said: ""The price of oil will be well supported above $30 a barrel for the medium term."" BP put production for the year at 3.997 billion barrels of oil, up 10% on 2003, but slightly lower than the four billion barrels it had initially aimed for.
"	business
Oil companies get Russian setback	"International oil and mining companies have reacted cautiously to Russia's decision to bar foreign firms from natural resource tenders in 2005.

US oil giant Exxon said it did not plan to take part in a new tender on a project for which it had previously signed a preliminary agreement. Miner Highland Gold said it regretted any limit on privatisation while BP, a big investor, declined to comment. Only firms at least 51% Russian-owned will be permitted to bid.

The Federal Natural Resources Agency said ""the government is interested in letting Russian companies develop strategic resources"". The foreign ownership issue will be dealt with according to Russia's competition law, natural resources minister Yuri Trutnev was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. No further details were given, with Mr Trutnev suggesting that Russia may decide on a case-by-case basis. Observers said that the move may represent a shift in policy, as the administration of Vladimir Putin puts the protection of national interests above free market dynamics. Russia recently wrested back control of a large chunk of its oil industry from stock-market listed company Yukos, a move that prompted calls of outrage from many investors.

Analysts warned that it was still too early to draw too many conclusions from this new set of proposals.

Companies echoed this sentiment, saying that they would require more information before ringing the alarm bells. ""It's not good. But it is very understandable,"" said Al Breach, an economist at UBS Brunswick. ""But if the investment climate is stable - that's much more important. ""Foreigners of course would like to have free entry but... this is not the end of the world."" A number of other nations, including Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, protect their national resources from foreign firms. What has surprised observers is that since the collapse of communism Russia has been courting foreign investment.

BP spent $7.5bn to create Russian-registered oil company TNK-BP, and has a partnership to develop the Sakhalin 5 petroleum field with state-owned Rosneft. Exxon, the world's largest oil company, has signed preliminary agreements to develop the Sakhalin 3 field. Company spokesman Glenn Waller said Exxon still considered the deal valid, despite Russia inviting new offers for the land block. According to Mr Waller, Exxon ""were not planning to bid at a new tender anyway"". ""We regret the ministry has taken such a decision,"" said Ivan Kulakov, deputy chairman of Highland Gold - a mining firm that has the motto ""Bringing Russia's Gold to Market"". ""It would be a shame if that has a negative impact on the investment climate."" Other firms that have been linked with investment in Russia include France's Total, the US-based ChevronTexaco, and miner Barrick Gold.
"	business
Gaming firm to sell UK dog tracks	"Six UK greyhound tracks have been put up for sale by gaming group Wembley as part of a move which will lead to the break-up of the group.

Wembley announced the planned sale as it revealed it was to offload its US gaming division to BLB Investors. US gaming consortium BLB will pay $339m (£182.5m) for the US unit, although the deal is subject to certain conditions. BLB holds a 22% stake in Wembley and last year came close to buying the whole firm in a £308m takeover deal. Shares in Wembley were up 56 pence, or 7.6%, at 797p by mid-morning.

The sale of the US gaming unit will leave Wembley with its UK business. This includes greyhound tracks at Wimbledon in London, Belle Vue in Manchester, Perry Barr and Hall Green in Birmingham, Oxford and Portsmouth. Analysts have valued the six tracks at between £40m-£50m. The US business accounts for about 90% of Wembley's operating profit and consists of operations in Rhode Island and Colorado. BLB's purchase of the US unit is subject to the agreement of a revenue-sharing deal being struck with Rhode Island authorities. Wembley said that, once the deal was completed, it anticipated returning surplus cash to shareholders. ""Whilst the completion of the sale of the US Gaming Division remains subject to a number of conditions, we believe this development is a positive step towards the maximisation of value for shareholders,"" said Wembley chairman Claes Hultman. Wembley sold the English national football stadium in 1999 to concentrate on its gaming operations.
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Man Utd to open books to Glazer	"Manchester United's board has agreed to give US tycoon Malcolm Glazer access to its books.

Earlier this month, Mr Glazer presented the board with detailed proposals on an offer to buy the football club. In a statement, the club said it would allow Mr Glazer ""limited due diligence"" to give him the opportunity to take the proposal on to a formal bid. But it said it continued to oppose Mr Glazer's plans, calling his assumptions ""aggressive"" and his plan ""damaging"". Many of Manchester United's supporters own shares in the club, and the fan-based group Shareholders United is strongly opposed to any takeover by Mr Glazer. About 300 fans protested outside the Old Trafford ground two days ago.

Rival local club Manchester City has pleaded with visiting fans not to protest inside its ground when the two teams play a televised match on Sunday.

Manchester United's response comes as little surprise, as the board made clear. ""Any board has a responsibility to consider a bona fide offer proposal,"" the club said in its statement. Should it become a firm offer, it should be at a price that ""the board is likely to regard as fair"" and on terms which ""may be deliverable"". But it also stressed that it stayed opposed to Mr Glazer's proposal. ""The board continues to believe that Mr Glazer's business plan assumptions are aggressive,"" the statement said, ""and the direct and indirect financial strain on the business could be damaging."" Whether or not the bid is attractive in monetary terms, in the case of Manchester United many investors hold the stock for sentimental rather than financial reasons. At present, Mr Glazer and his family hold a 28.1% stake, making them Manchester United's second biggest shareholders. They own the successful Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football team based in Florida. If the family makes a formal offer, they will need the support of the club's biggest shareholders.

Irish horse racing millionaires JP McManus and John Magnier own 29% of United through their investment vehicle Cubic Expression, and have yet to express a view on the bid approach.

A group of five MPs are calling on the Department of Trade and Industry to block any takeover of the club by the US football magnate on public interest grounds. They have signed a House of Commons motion, and Tony Lloyd, the Manchester Central MP, whose constituency includes the club's Old Trafford ground, has pledged to take the matter ""to Tony Blair if necessary"". The Commons motion says ""any takeover designed to transform the club into a private company would be against the interests of those supporters and football"". However, the DTI has dismissed the proposal. A spokesman said the department did not believe there was a case for changing the Enterprise Act so that takeovers of football clubs could be looked at on non-competition grounds. Mr Glazer's offer values the club at £800m ($1.5bn). Pitched at 300p per share, it also relies less on debt to finance it than an earlier approach from the US tycoon, which was rejected out of hand. Manchester United shares closed at 270.25p on Friday, down 3.75p on the day.
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Sales 'fail to boost High Street'	"The January sales have failed to help the UK High Street recover from a poor Christmas season, a survey has found.

Stores received a boost from bargain hunters but trading then reverted to December levels, the British Retail Consortium and accountants KPMG said. Sales in what is traditionally a strong month rose by 0.5% on a like-for-like basis, compared with a year earlier. Consumers remain cautious over buying big-ticket items like furniture, said BRC director general Kevin Hawkins. Higher interest rates and uncertainty over the housing market continue to take their toll on the retail sector, the BRC said. But clothing and footwear sales were said to be generally better than December, while department stores also had a good month.

In the three-months to January, like-for-like sales showed a growth rate of -0.1%, the same as in the three months to December, the BRC said. ""Following a relatively strong New Year's bank holiday, trading then took a downward turn,"" said Mr Hawkins. ""Even extending some promotions and discounts and the pay-day boost later in the month could not tempt customers."" The previous BRC survey found Christmas 2004 was the worst for 10 years for retailers. And according to Office for National Statistics data, sales in December failed to meet expectations and by some counts were the worst since 1981.
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McDonald's to sponsor MTV show	"McDonald's, the world's largest restaurant chain, is to sponsor a programme on music channel MTV as part of its latest youth market promotion.

The show Advance Warning highlights new talent and MTV reckons it will give McDonald's access to nearly 400 million homes in 162 countries. McDonald's golden arches, name and ""I'm loving it"" catchphrase will be used throughout the half-hour programme. The move comes amid growing concerns about obesity in Europe and the US.

The European Union has called on the food industry to reduce the number of adverts aimed at young children, warning that legislation would be introduced. unless voluntary steps were taken. In the US, food group Kraft is among firms that already have cut back on promoting sugar and fattening products to the young. McDonalds has also been taking steps to improve its junk food reputation, revamping its menu and providing clients with health-related products such as pedometers. As well as burgers like the Big Mac and Quarter Pounder with Cheese, the company now sells healthier options such as salads and fresh fruit. Chief executive Jim Skinner attributed an 8.3% increase in January worldwide sales to the ""vitality of our menu"", among other things.

Hooking up with MTV is expected to add extra momentum to McDonald's recent revival. MTV, which played a key role in the emergence of the music video, is to show Advance Warning on all 25 of its channels across the world. The programme can at present only been seen in the US, where it has featured artists like British stars Joss Stone and Franz Ferdinand. McDonald's has targeted the youth market in the past with its advertisements, signing up stars like jelly-legged dancer Justin Timberlake and all-woman singing group Destiny's Child.
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Call to save manufacturing jobs	"The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is calling on the government to stem job losses in manufacturing firms by reviewing the help it gives companies.

The TUC said in its submission before the Budget that action is needed because of 105,000 jobs lost from the sector over the last year. It calls for better pensions, child care provision and decent wages. The 36-page submission also urges the government to examine support other European countries provide to industry. TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber called for ""a commitment to policies that will make a real difference to the lives of working people.""

""Greater investment in childcare strategies and the people delivering that childcare will increases the options available to working parents,"" he said. ""A commitment to our public services and manufacturing sector ensures that we can continue to compete on a global level and deliver the frontline services that this country needs."" He also called for ""practical measures"" to help pensioners, especially women who he said ""are most likely to retire in poverty"". The submission also calls for decent wages and training for people working in the manufacturing sector.
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Tsunami 'to hit Sri Lanka banks'	"Sri Lanka's banks face hard times following December's tsunami disaster, officials have warned.

The Sri Lanka Banks Association said the waves which killed more than 30,000 people also washed away huge amounts of property which was securing loans. According to its estimate, as much as 13.6% of the loans made by private banks to clients in the disaster zone has been written off or damaged. State-owned lenders may be even worse hit, it said.

The association estimates that the private banking sector has 25bn rupees ($250m; £135m) of loans outstanding in the disaster zone. On one hand, banks are dealing with the death of their customers, along with damaged or destroyed collateral. On the other, most are extending cheap loans for rebuilding and recovery, as well as giving their clients more time to repay existing borrowing. The combination means a revenue shortfall during 2005, SLBA chairman - and Commercial Bank managing director - AL Gooneratne told a news conference. ""Most banks have given moratoriums and will not be collecting interest, at least in this quarter,"" he said. In the public sector, more than one in ten of the state-owned People's Bank's customers in the south of Sri Lanka were affected, a bank spokesman told Reuters. He estimated the bank's loss at 3bn rupees.
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Shares rise on new Man Utd offer	"Shares in Manchester United closed up 4.75% on Monday following a new offer from US tycoon Malcolm Glazer.

The board of the football club is expected to meet early this week to discuss the latest proposal, which values the club at £800m ($1.5bn). Manchester United revealed on Sunday that it had received a detailed proposal from Mr Glazer, which looks set to receive more serious scrutiny. The club has previously rejected Mr Glazer's approaches out of hand. But a senior source at the club told the BBC: ""This time it's different."" Supporters' group Shareholders United, however, urged the club to reject the new deal.

A spokesman for the Shareholders United said: ""I can't see any difference (compared to Mr Glazer's previous proposals) other than £200m less debt. ""He isn't bringing any money into the club; he'll use our money to buy it.""

Mr Glazer's latest move is being led by Mr Glazer's two sons, Avi and Joel, according to the Financial Times. A proposal was received by David Gill, United's chief executive, at the end of last week, pitched at about 300p a share. David Cummings, head of UK equities for Standard Life Investments, said he believed a ""well funded"" 300p a share bid would be enough for Mr Glazer to take control of the club.

""I do not think there is anything that Manchester United fans can do about it,"" he told the BBC. ""They can complain about it but it is curtains for them. They may not want him but they are going to get him."" The US tycoon, who has been wooing the club for the last 12 months, has approached the United board with ""detailed proposals"", it has confirmed.

Mr Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, hopes this will lead to a formal bid being accepted. He is believed to have increased the amount of equity in the new proposal, though it is not clear by how much. For his proposal to succeed, he needs the support of United's largest shareholders, the Irish horseracing tycoons JP McManus and John Magnier. They own 29% of United through their Cubic Expression investment vehicle. Mr Glazer and his family hold a stake of 28.1%. But it is not yet known whether Mr McManus and Mr Magnier would support a Glazer bid. NM Rothschild, the investment bank, is advising Mr Glazer, according to the Financial Times. His previous adviser, JPMorgan, quit last year when Mr Glazer went ahead and voted against the appointment of three United directors to the board, against its advice. But the FT said it thought JP Morgan may still have had some role in financing Mr Glazer's latest financial proposal.
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Yukos drops banks from court bid	"Russian oil company Yukos has dropped the threat of legal action against five banks it had accused of involvement in the sale of its key Yugansk unit.

State-owned Rosneft bought the unit for $9.3bn (£5bn) after Yukos was forced to sell assets to meet a $27.5bn tax bill. Yukos says the sale was illegal and is pursuing damages in a US court. Its lawyers now accept ABN Amro, BNP Paribas, Calyon, JP Morgan Chase Bank, and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein were not involved in the sale financing. However, Yukos still has an outstanding complaint against Deutsche Bank, which it alleges to be the leader of a consortium that was behind a bid for Yugansk by state gas monopoly Gazprom. The company has also accused Gazprom, the Russian Federation and two other Russian firms.

Gazprom had been expected to win the December auction, but ended up not bidding. Yugansk was sold to a little-known shell company, which in turn was bought by Rosneft. Yukos claims its downfall was punishment for the political ambitions of its founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. The firm, whose finance chief is now based in the US, filed for bankruptcy in Houston, Texas, and sought a court injunction against the sale. But Deutsche Bank has suggested Yukos artificially manufactured a legal case to stop the sale of its main asset. A hearing scheduled for February 16 and 17 will rule on whether the US court has jurisdiction in the case.
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Venezuela reviews foreign deals	"Venezuela is to review all foreign investment in its mining industries in an effort to strengthen its indigenous industrial output.

President Hugo Chavez has ordered all existing contracts with foreign firms to be examined to see if they provide maximum benefits to the country. The review will cover production of gold, aluminium and iron ore although it excludes the country's oil sector. Chavez has sought to extend the state's role in all sectors of the economy.

The left-wing president is conducting a controversial review of land ownership in the country while also seeking to create a state-run telecoms firm to compete with foreign-owned businesses.

He has argued that major economic reforms are vital to improve the lives of Venezuela's poorest citizens. Announcing the review of raw material production, minister Victor Alvarez said the government would seek to transfer technology, training capability and content from projects with foreign partners. ""We are defending our national sovereignty over the use of our national resources which must serve the endogenous development of the nation,"" Mr Alvarez said. ""For this reason we are reviewing all memorandums of understanding, all letters of intent, all agreements that have been signed, all contracts, to check which of these comply with these directives. ""Everything, absolutely everything, has to be reviewed.""

Venezuela has previously assured foreign companies with operations in the mineral rich country that it respects existing contracts. However, the government insisted that it needed to develop its own industrial infrastructure in order to create new jobs and lessen its reliance on foreign partners. ""If we don't do this, we are just going to carry on being slaves, suppliers of raw materials, all our lives and we will never develop our own productive capacity,"" Mr Alvarez added. Companies from the United States, Canada, France and Switzerland all have substantial investments in Venezuela's mining sector.
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Lloyd's of London head chides FSA	"The head of Lloyd's of London, the insurance market, has criticised Britain's financial watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

In a speech on Monday, Mr Prettejohn urged the FSA to force brokers to disclose the size of their commissions. ""The FSA should change, and change now"" said Mr Prettejohn, who wants it to move from ""disclosure on request"" to mandatory disclosure. The call came in a speech on improving the London insurance market.

""The FSA should not bide their time and 'wait and see'. They should seize the moment,"" Mr Prettejohn, Lloyd's chief executive said. The FSA took over regulation of the general insurance sector in January, but it sidestepped calls to require brokers to disclose the commissions they earn from insurers to their clients. Last week, the City watchdog gave brokers and insurers guidance on managing conflicts of interest. Brokers must give information on their commissions if, and only if, their customers request it, the FSA said.

In the US, lack of transparency about brokers' commissions has led to problems. The world's biggest insurance broker Marsh & McLennan said last week it would pay $850m to settle charges, raised by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer in October, that it sought to rig bids in conjunction with insurers. The probe centred around so-called contingent commissions, whereby brokers were rewarded according to how much business they brought to an insurer, an arrangement that did not always benefit brokers' customers. All of the insurance business written in the Lloyd's market is placed via brokers.
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Bat spit drug firm goes to market	"A German firm whose main product is derived from the saliva of the vampire bat is looking to raise more than 70m euros ($91m; £49m) on the stock market.

The firm, Paion, said that it hoped to sell 5 million shares - a third of the firm - for 11-14 euros a share. Its main drug, desmoteplase, is based on a protein in the bat's saliva. The protein stops blood from clotting - which helps the bat to drink from its victims, but could also be used to help stroke sufferers. The company's shares go on sale later this week, and are scheduled to start trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on 10 February. If the final price is at the top of the range, the company could be valued at as much as 200m euros. The money raised will be spent largely on developing the company's other drugs, since desmoteplase has already been licensed to one manufacturer, Forest Laboratories.
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Vodafone appoints new Japan boss	"Vodafone has drafted in its UK chief executive William Morrow to take charge of its troubled Japanese operation.

Mr Morrow will succeed Shiro Tsuda as president of Vodafone KK, Japan's number three mobile operator, in April. Mr Tsuda, who will become chairman, was appointed president only two months ago but the business has struggled since then, losing customers in January. Vodafone had pinned its hopes on the launch of its 3G phones in November but demand for them has been slow.

While it has more than 15 million customers in Japan, Vodafone has found it difficult to satisfy Japan's technologically demanding mobile users. It suffered a net loss of more than 58,000 customers in January, its second monthly reverse in the last year. ""Vodafone is going to need to put a lot of money into Japan if it wants to rebuild the business,"" Tetsuro Tsusaka, a telecoms analyst with Deutsche Bank, told Reuters. ""I do not know if it will be worth it for them to spend that kind of money just for Japan.""
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Pension hitch for long-living men	"Male life expectancy is much higher than originally estimated, leading pension researchers have said.

The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) said life expectancy for unskilled and professional men has been understated. Life expectancy at birth is 71 years for a manual worker and 79 years for a professional - a gap of eight years. But if measured at age 65 instead, the PPI said, a manual worker will live to 81 years and a professional worker to 86 years - a gap of just five years. The PPI's estimate is higher because it excludes people who have died before they reach 65 years of age and also takes into account ongoing improvements in life expectancy.

The government has ruled out raising the state pension age, because it says it would penalise lower-skilled workers who generally have lower life expectancies. Chris Curry, PPI research director, said its calculations suggested there could be more pressure on state pension spending than originally envisaged. ""Even people in social class V [unskilled manual workers] who are widely likely to have the lowest life expectancy can still expect to live 16 years after state pension age,"" he said. Researchers have not updated life expectancy projections for women, who on average live longer than men.
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Card fraudsters 'targeting web'	"New safeguards on credit and debit card payments in shops has led fraudsters to focus on internet and phone payments, an anti-fraud agency has said.

Anti-fraud consultancy Retail Decisions says 'card-not-present' fraud, where goods are paid for online or by phone, has risen since the start of 2005. The introduction of 'chip and pin' cards has tightened security for transactions on the High Street. But the clampdown has caused fraudsters to change tack, Retail Decisions said.

The introduction of chip and pin cards aimed to cut down on credit card fraud in stores by asking shoppers to verify their identity with a confidential personal pin number, instead of a signature. Retail Decisions chief executive Carl Clump told the BBC that there was ""no doubt"" that chip and pin would ""reduce card fraud in the card-present environment"". ""However, it is important to monitor what happens in the card-not-present environment as fraudsters will turn their attention to the internet, mail order, telephone order and interactive TV,"" he said. ""We have seen a 22% uplift in card-not-present fraud here in the UK... since the start of the year. ""Fraud doesn't just disappear, it mutates to the next weakest link in the chain,"" he said.

Retail Decisions' survey on the implementation of chip and pin found that shoppers had adapted easily to the new system, but that banks' performance in distributing the new cards had been patchy, at best. ""The main issue is that not everyone has the pins they need,"" said Mr Clump. Nearly two thirds - 65% - of the 1,000 people interviewed said they had used chip and pin to make payments. Of these, 83% were happy with the experience, though nearly a quarter said they struggled to remember their pin number. However, only 34% said they had received replacement cards with the necessary 'chip' technology from all their card providers. Furthermore, 16% said that none of their cards had been replaced, while 30% said only some had. UK shoppers spent £5.3bn on plastic cards in 2003, the last full year for which figures are available from the Association of Payment Clearing Services (Apacs). Altogether, card scams on UK-issued cards totalled £402.4m in 2003. Card-not-present fraud rose an annual 6% to £116.4m, making it the biggest category even then. Within this, internet fraud totalled £43m, Apacs' figures show.
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Britannia members' £42m windfall	"More than 800,000 Britannia Building Society members are to receive a profit share worth on average £52 each.

Members of the UK's second largest building society will share £42m, with 100,000 receiving a windfall of more than £100. Depending on how much they borrow or invest, members earn ""reward"" points which entitle them to a share of the society's profits. The payouts are bigger than last year, because of stricter eligibility rules. Last year, Britannia members shared £42m, but the average payment was only £38.

To qualify for this year's payment, customers must have been members for at least two years on 31 December 2004. Britannia has also stopped making payments to members if they are worth less than £5.

To qualify for the profit share, members must have either a mortgage, or an investment account other than a deposit account. Customers can also qualify if they have Permanent Interest Bearing Shares (PIBS). The profit share scheme was introduced in 1997 and has paid out more than £370m. Britannia will unveil its results on Wednesday.
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Firms pump billions into pensions	"Employers have spent billions of pounds propping up their final salary pensions over the past year, research suggests.

A survey of 280 schemes by Incomes Data Services' (IDS) said employer contributions had increased from £5.5bn to £8.2bn a year, a rise of 49.7%. Companies facing the biggest deficits had raised their pension contributions by 100% or more, IDS said. Many firms are struggling to keep this type of scheme open, because of rising costs and increased liabilities. A final salary scheme, also known as a defined benefit scheme, promises to pay a pension related to the salary the scheme member is earning when they retire.

The rising cost of maintaining such schemes has led many employers to replace final salary schemes with money purchase, or defined contribution, schemes. These are less risky for employers. Under money purchase schemes, employees pay into a pension fund which is used to buy an annuity - a policy which pays out an income until death - on retirement.

IDS said there were some schemes in good health.

But, in many cases, firms had been forced to top up funds to tackle ""yawning deficits"". The level of contributions paid by employers has increased gradually since the late 1990s. In 1998/99, for example, contributions rose by 4.7% and in 2002/03 by 8.6%. In contrast, between 1996 and 1998, some employers cut their contribution levels. Helen Sudell, editor of the IDS Pensions Service, said the rise in contributions was ""staggering"" and the highest ever recorded by IDS. ""We have warned before that the widespread closure of final salary schemes to new entrants is just the beginning of a much bigger movement away from paternalistic provision,"" said Ms Sudell. ""With figures like this there can be little doubt that many employers will have to reduce future benefits at some point for those staff still in these schemes.""
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UK homes hit £3.3 trillion total	"The value of the UK's housing stock reached the £3.3 trillion mark in 2004 - triple the value 10 years earlier, a report indicates.

Research from Halifax, the country's biggest mortgage lender, suggests the value of private housing stock is continuing to rise steadily. All regions saw at least a doubling in their assets during the past decade. But Northern Ireland led the way with a 262% rise, while Scotland saw the smallest increase of just 112%.

The core retail price index rose by just 28% in the same period, underlining how effective an investment in housing has been for most people during the past decade. More than a third of the UK's private housing assets - representing more than a trillion pounds in value - are concentrated in London and the South East, the Halifax's figures indicate. Tim Crawford, Group Economist at Halifax, said: ""The value of the private housing stock continues to grow and the family home remains, by a large margin, the most valuable asset of the majority of households in the UK."" Halifax's own monthly figures on house sales - issued on Thursday - suggest the average price of a British property now stands at £163,748 after a 0.8% rise in January. Housing experts are split on prospects for the market, with some saying price growth will slow but not fall, while others predict a sharp drop in values.
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Economy 'strong' in election year	"UK businesses are set to prosper during the next few months - but this could trigger more interest rate rises, according to a report.

Optimism is at its highest since 1997 and business will reap the benefits of a continuing rise in public spending, say researchers at BDO Stoy Hayward. The Bank of England is expected to keep rates on hold this week - but they could go up later in the year. Rates are likely to rise after the anticipated general election in May. The BDO optimism index - a leading indicator of GDP growth two quarters ahead edged up in January to 102.5, from 102.2 in October. The rise is due, in part, to an increase in public spending and increased merger and acquisition activity.

The only thing blighting business optimism this year will be uncertainties associated with the general election, BDO said. Its BDO's output index - which predicts GDP movements a quarter in advance - remained at 100.8 for January, implying GDP growth at 2.9% in the second quarter of 2005. However, the output index is being held back by recent interest rate rises, sterling's strength against the dollar and high oil prices, the group noted. Its inflation index, which has risen continuously over the last 8 months, climbed to 110.0 in January from 108.0 in October last year. ""The UK is looking strong going into the general election, but businesses need to prepare themselves for a jolt ahead as the Bank of England reacts to growth and inflationary pressures,"" said Peter Hemington, partner at BDO Stoy Hayward. ""Growth will probably slow by the end of 2005 and it is likely that we will see higher interest rates or a sharp drop in demand for products and services.""
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G7 backs Africa debt relief plan	"G7 finance ministers have backed plans to write off up to 100% of the debts of some of the world's poorest countries.

UK chancellor Gordon Brown said the London meeting of the world's seven richest nations would be remembered as ""the 100% debt relief summit"". Some 37 countries could benefit after a case-by-case review by bodies including the World Bank and the IMF, he said. But the US says it cannot support Mr Brown's International Finance Facility to boost aid to developing countries. BBC correspondents said the meeting had produced some movement towards the UK's ambitions, but much work was needed. Mr Brown said it was a major breakthrough for the international organisations to offer up to 100% multilateral debt relief - ""the vast bulk"" of money owed by the poorest countries.

""We could be at the beginning of the final stage of the process where the debts that were owed by the poorest countries, built up over 20 or 30 years, debts that are simply unpayable in the real world, are finally taken care of,"" he said. He added: ""It is the richest countries hearing the voices of the poor."" But he said they would insist on government reforms and the need for transparency, tackling corruption and openness from both the poorest and richest nations. BBC correspondent Patrick Bartlett said while it was an agreement in principle, the organisations involved now have to look at how it would work in practice. Oxfam senior policy adviser Max Lawson welcomed the statement and said G7 ministers had ""passed the first hurdle of 2005"".

But he added: ""They need to move quickly to turn their proposals into real change for the world's poorest. ""Two million children will die needlessly between now and the next meeting in April. If rich countries are going to keep their promises to tackle obscene poverty they need deliver - and deliver quickly."" Talks are continuing on how to finance increased overseas development assistance. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is to look at a proposal to use its gold supplies to help the debt relief effort when it meets in April. Mr Brown said G7 ministers had agreed to defer debt interest payments and repayments for some countries affected by the tsunami until the end of 2005. But UK plans for an International Finance Facility (IFF) to help deal with debt in the developing world have not been agreed. Mr Brown wanted to provide $10bn (£5.38bn) a year over a decade, using G7 backing so the money could be borrowed up front on financial markets.

It is a key element of his proposals for a modern version of the Marshall Plan, which brought US aid to rebuild Europe after World War II, for the developing world. Mr Brown said it was ""winning support every day"" and said a programme had been agreed to draw up more details in time for the G8 summit in July. But US Treasury Under-Secretary John Taylor said the US could not support the IFF because of its ""legislative process"". ""The US is completely committed to poverty reduction and providing financing to do that,"" he said. ""But this particular mechanism does not work for the United States. It works for other countries, and that is fine."" Earlier, he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the US had increased support for Africa in the past four years from $1.1bn per year to $4.6bn per year. But South Africa Finance Minister Trevor Manuel told the BBC's Talking Point programme what was needed was one approach, with all wealthy nations on board. He said much of the money pledged by the US had not yet been dispensed.

The UK has made poverty in the poorest nations a key theme for its 2005 presidency of the Group of Eight (G8), which comprises the G7 and Russia. The G8 countries will meet at Gleneagles in Scotland. At a dinner on Friday night, former South African president Nelson Mandela backed Mr Brown's plan when he urged the finance chiefs to write-off African debt and provide an extra $50bn (£26.69bn) a year in aid for the next decade. Talks also centred on the impact of the rising economies of China and India, the US budget and trade deficits, how the US, Europe and Japan can act to boost global economic growth, and HIV/Aids. G7 ministers called for more flexibility in international exchange rates and said ""excess volatility"" would impede economic growth. Representatives from China, India, Russia, South Africa and Brazil were invited to attend some of the sessions. A G8 summit is set to take place in July.
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Q&A: Malcolm Glazer and Man Utd	"The battle for control of Manchester United has taken another turn after the club confirmed it had received a fresh takeover approach from US business tycoon Malcolm Glazer.

No formal offer has been made yet, but Manchester United have confirmed they have received a ""detailed proposal"" from the US entrepreneur which could lead to a bid. Reports have put the offer at 300p per share, which would value Manchester United at about £800m ($1.5bn). The approach by the 76-year-old owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football team is reportedly being led by his two sons, Avi and Joel. A previous approach to the United board by Mr Glazer in October last year was turned down. However, the BBC has learnt that the club is unlikely to reject the latest plan out of hand.

Mr Glazer's previous offer involved borrowing large amounts of money to finance any takeover. That would have left the club with debt levels which were deemed ""not... in the best interests of the company"" by Manchester United's board when they rejected his approach last year. However, Mr Glazer's latest offer is reported to have cut the amount of borrowing needed by £200m.

While United's board may be casting a serious eye over Mr Glazer's latest proposals, supporters remain fiercely opposed to any deal.

Supporters' group Shareholders United - which has proved adept in rallying opposition to Mr Glazer's campaign - said it would fight any move. ""Manchester United are a debt-free company. We don't want to fall into debt and we don't need to fall into debt,"" Shareholders United's Sean Bones told the BBC. United's players also appear unhappy at the prospect of a takeover. ""A lot of people want the club's interest to be with people who have grown up with the club and got its interests at heart,"" Rio Ferdinand told BBC Radio Five Live. ""No-one knows what this guy will be bringing to the table.""

The key to any successful bid will be attracting the support of United's largest shareholders, the Irish horse racing tycoons John Magnier and JP McManus. Through their Cubic Expression vehicle they own 28.9% of the club. Mr Glazer owns 28.1%. Joe McLean, a football specialist at accountancy firm Grant Thornton, said the support of Mr Magnier and Mr McManus was ""utterly crucial"". ""Mr Glazer's bid will not proceed without their support and they have previously indicated that they are holding their stake as an investment. ""If that's the case, the shares will therefore need a price attachment of about 300 pence, maybe 305. ""If that's the case then Mr Glazer might well secure their support - if he does, this bid could well go ahead.""

Indeed it is. Malcolm Glazer was little-known in the UK until he started to build up his stake in Manchester United in late 2003. In February 2004 he said he was ""considering"" whether to bid for the club. No bid emerged, but Mr Glazer continued to increase his holding in the club. In October 2004, Manchester United said they had received a ""preliminary approach"", which turned out to have come from Mr Glazer. However, the board rejected the move because of the amount of debt it would involve. At the club's annual general meeting in November, Mr Glazer took revenge by using his hefty stake in the club to oust three directors from the board. Legal adviser Maurice Watkins, commercial director Andy Anson and non-executive director Philip Yea were voted out, against the wishes of chief executive David Gill. But the move led to bankers JP Morgan and public relations firm Brunswick withdrawing from the Glazer bid team.
"	business
Making your office work for you	"Our mission to brighten up your working lives continues - and this time, we're taking a long hard look at your offices.

Over the next few months, our panel of experts will be listening to your gripes about where you work, and suggesting ways to make your workspace more efficient, more congenial or simply prettier. This week, we're hearing from Marianne Petersen, who is planning to convert a barn in Sweden into a base for her freelance writing work. Click on the link under her photograph to read her story, and then scroll down to see what the panel have to say. And if you want to take part in the series, go to the bottom of the story to find out how to get in touch.

Working from home presents a multitude of challenges. Understanding your work personality allows you to work in terms of your own style. Do you feel confident about your work output without conferring with others? Are you able to retain discipline and self motivate to get the job done? Do you build on the ideas of others - or are you a more introspective problem solver?. In order for a virtual office to succeed, keeping the boundary between work and home life is essential. It may be useful to be quite rigid about who is allowed to visit, and to keep strict office hours. Referring to the space as work will give those around you a clear message that this is professional space. It is imperative to consider how to bring the outside world into yours, keeping up to date with developments and maintaining a network. Isolated work environments mean this has to be carefully thought out, and a strategy has to be developed that suits both your personality and your industry. Joining professional groups or forming a loose association of like-minded people may assist. It is useful to structure these meetings in advance as often they get relegated to less important status when times are busy - with the danger that when the workload eases, they have to be resurrected.



Prior to any interior work being undertaken it is essential to ensure that the roof and walls are made water-and-weather-tight, and the structure is checked for stability. It appears that the roof trusses may need repairs and additional bracing.

Ideally, the roof should be replaced with an outer material in keeping with the character and location of the barn. This would also allow for a well-insulated inner skin to be provided which should be light coloured. It is likely that the most efficient way of heating the building is with electricity. In order to provide this the owner will need to have an electrical engineer calculate the potential heating, power and lighting load to make sure the mains supply and distribution capacity are adequate. Ideally, it would be good to have a mains water supply and some means of drainage for toilet and washing facilities. The walls should be dry lined with a single skin of plasterboard laid over rockwool slab which will allow good wall insulation and the power and lighting circuits to be concealed, and the walls should be painted in a light colour. The owner mentions she might lay a new floor over the existing planks; this will improve the insulation and offer a level surface. I would suggest laying new oak veneer planks which can work in with the character of the barn. As for lighting, consider a combination of floor mounted uplights, wall lights (wall washers) and selected downlights. Use a combination of mains voltage fluorescent fittings and dimmable units which can vary the light levels and the feel of the interior.



Please click on the link to the right here to see my ideas for Marianne's barn.

The layout of this office reflects the need to have a working area and a more relaxed meeting space. Large desk space and extensive storage would combine with tub chairs to maximise the space available. The finishes chosen for the furniture will need to reflect the unusual setting, while the lighting and temperature control mechanisms used will further influence the workplace.



Regarding accessing the internet via the connection in the main house, your plan of going wireless is sensible. A wireless router/access point in the house with a wireless LAN card in the PC in the renovated area may be sufficient. However, important points to consider are the distance between the two buildings and the nature of the materials through which the signals have to pass, which could result in a weak signal strength. You may require an additional wireless access point in the renovated area. Your local IT supplier will be able to advise on this. If you haven't already invested in robust firewall and anti-virus software, it is essential to do so, to protect your investment. To really take advantage of wireless technology, you might consider a laptop computer and a docking station with external mouse and monitor. Or you could use one of the new Tablet computers, which allow you to write directly on the screen and convert into text with built-in hand recognition software. And finally, you will save money and space by considering a multi-function product for print, scan, copy and fax.
"	business
Market unfazed by Aurora setback	"As the Aurora limped back to its dock on 20 January, a blizzard of photos and interviews seemed to add up to an unambiguous tale of woe.

The ship had another slice of bad luck to add to its history of health scares and technical trouble. And its owner, P&O Cruises - now part of the huge US Carnival Corporation - was looking at a significant slice chopped off this year's profits and a potential PR fiasco. No-one, however, seems to have told the stock markets. The warning of a five-cent hit to 2005 earnings came just 24 hours after one of the world's biggest investment banks had upped its target for Carnival's share price, from £35 to £36.20. Other investors barely blinked, and by 1300 GMT Carnival's shares in London were down a single penny, or 0.03%, at £32.26.

Why the mismatch between the public perception and the market's response? ""The Aurora issue had been an ongoing one for some time,"" says Deutsche Bank's Simon Champion. ""It was clearly a source of uncertainty for the company - it was a long cruise, after all. But the stock market is very good at treating these issues as one-off events.""

Despite its string of bad luck, he pointed out, Aurora is just one vessel in a large Carnival fleet, the UK's P&O Princess group having been merged into the much larger US firm in 2003. And generally speaking, Carnival has a reputation for keeping its ships pretty much on schedule. ""Carnival has an incredibly strong track record,"" Mr Champion.

Similarly, analysts expect the impact on the rest of the cruise business to be limited. The hundreds of disappointed passengers who have now had to give up the opportunity to spend the next three months on the Aurora have got both a refund and a credit for another cruise. That should mitigate some of the PR risk, both for Carnival and its main competitor, Royal Caribbean. ""While not common, cancellations for technical reasons are not entirely unusual in the industry,"" wrote analysts from Citigroup Smith Barney in a note to clients on Friday. ""Moreover, such events typically have a limited impact on bookings and pricing for future cruises."" After all, the Aurora incident may be big news in the UK - but for Carnival customers elsewhere it's unlikely to make too much of a splash.

Assuming that Citigroup is right, and demand stays solid, the structure of the industry also works in Carnival's favour. In the wake of P&O Princess's takeover by Carnival, the business is now to a great extent a duopoly. Given the expense of building, outfitting and running a cruise ship, ""slowing supply growth"" is a certainty, said David Anders at Merrill Lynch on Thursday. In other words, if you do want a cruise, your options are limited. And with Carnival remaining the market leader, it looks set to keep selling the tickets - no matter what happens to the ill-fated Aurora in the future.
"	business
The 'ticking budget' facing the US	"The budget proposals laid out by the administration of US President George W Bush are highly controversial. The Washington-based Economic Policy Institute, which tends to be critical of the President, looks at possible fault lines. US politicians and citizens of all political persuasions are in for a dose of shock therapy. Without major changes in current policies and political prejudices, the federal budget simply cannot hold together. News coverage of the Bush budget will be dominated by debates about spending cuts, but the fact is these will be large cuts in small programs. From the standpoint of the big fiscal trends, the cuts are gratuitous and the big budget train wreck is yet to come. Under direct threat will be the federal government's ability to make good on its debts to the Social Security Trust Fund. As soon as 2018, the fund will begin to require some cash returns on its bond holdings in order to finance all promised benefits.

The trigger for the coming shock will be rising federal debt, which will grow in 10 years, by conservative estimates, to more than half the nation's total annual output.

This upward trend will force increased borrowing by the federal government, putting upward pressure on interest rates faced by consumers and business. Even now, a growing share of US borrowing is from abroad. The US Government cannot finance its operations without heavy borrowing from the central banks of Japan and China, among other nations. This does not bode well for US influence in the world. The decline of the dollar is a warning sign that current economic trends cannot continue. The dollar is already sinking. Before too long, credit markets are likely to react, and interest rates will creep upwards. That will be the shock.

Interest-sensitive industries will feel pain immediately - sectors such as housing, automobiles, other consumer durables, agriculture, and small business. Some will recall the news footage of angry farmers driving their heavy equipment around the US Capitol in the late 1970s. There will be no need for constitutional amendments to balance the budget. The public outcry will force Congress to act. Whether it will act wisely is another matter. How did this happen?

By definition, the deficit means too little revenue and too much spending - but this neutral description doesn't adequately capture the current situation. Federal revenues are at 1950s levels, while spending remains where it has been in recent decades - much higher. In addition, the United States has two significant military missions. The Bush administration's chosen remedy is the least feasible one. Reducing domestic spending, or eliminating ""waste, fraud and abuse"" is toothless because this slice of the budget is too small to solve the problem. Indeed, if Congress were rash enough to balance the budget in this way, there would hardly be any such spending left. Law enforcement, space exploration, environmental clean-up, economic development, the Small Business Administration, housing, veterans' benefits, aid to state and local governments would all but disappear. It's fantasy to think these routine government functions could be slashed. The biggest spending growth areas are defence (including homeland security), and health care for the elderly and the poor. To some extent, increases in these areas are inevitable. The US population is aging, and the nation does face genuine threats in the world. But serious savings can only be found where the big money is. Savings in health care spending that do not come at the expense of health can only be achieved with wholesale reform of the entire system, public and private. Brute force budget cuts or spending caps would ill-serve the nation's elderly and indigent.

On the revenue side, the lion's share of revenue lost to tax cuts enacted since 2000 will have to be replaced.

Some rearranging could hold many people harmless and focus most of the pain on those with relatively high incomes. Finally, blind allegiance to a balanced budget will have to be abandoned. There is no good reason to fixate on it, anyway. Moderate deficits and slowly rising federal debt can be sustained indefinitely. Borrowing for investments in education and infrastructure that pay off in future years makes sense. The sooner we face that reality, the sooner workable reforms can be pursued. First on the list should be tax reform to raise revenue, simplify the tax code, and restore some fairness eroded by the Bush tax cuts. Second should be a dispassionate re-evaluation of the huge increase in defence spending over the past three years, much of it unrelated to Afghanistan, Iraq, or terrorism. Third must be the start of a serious debate on large-scale health care reform. One thing is certain - destroying the budget in order to save it is not going to equip the US economy and government for the challenges of this new century.
"	business
Ebbers 'aware' of WorldCom fraud	"Former WorldCom boss Bernie Ebbers was directly involved in the $11bn financial fraud at the firm, his closest associate has told a US court.

Giving evidence in the criminal trial of Mr Ebbers, ex-finance chief Scott Sullivan implicated his colleague in the accounting scandal at the firm. Mr Sullivan, WorldCom's former number two, is the government's chief witness in its case against Mr Ebbers. Mr Ebbers has denied multiple charges of conspiracy and fraud.

Senior WorldCom executives are accused of orchestrating a huge fraud at the former telecoms company in which they exaggerated revenues and hid the cost of expenses. The firm was forced into bankruptcy, the largest in US history. Mr Sullivan, 42, pleaded guilty to fraud last year and agreed to assist the government with its case against Mr Ebbers.

Prosecutors have alleged that Mr Ebbers, 63, directed Mr Sullivan to hide the true state of the company's finances by providing false information to the firm's accountants. Mr Ebbers has denied all the charges, saying he was unaware of the fraud. His lawyers claim that their client was unfamiliar with detailed accounting practices and left that side of the business to Mr Sullivan.

However, on Monday Mr Sullivan named Mr Ebbers as one of five executives who participated in the accounting fraud. ""He [Ebbers] has got a hands-on grasp of financial information,"" Mr Sullivan told a New York court. On his first day of questioning, Mr Sullivan admitted to falsifying the company's financial statements.

""We did not disclose these adjustments,"" he said. ""We did not talk about these adjustments and the information was false."" Mr Sullivan said his former boss knew more about accounting matters than many chief financial officers and described him as ""detail-oriented"".

He portrayed Mr Ebbers, a charismatic businessman who built up WorldCom from a small regional operator into one of America's largest telecoms firms, as obsessed with costs. ""He would talk about that there were more coffee filters than coffee bags and that means employees are taking coffee home,"" he said. ""We needed to cut expenses. We needed to cut a lot more than coffee expenses."" Mr Sullivan is at the centre of the government's case against Mr Ebbers. Mr Ebbers could face a sentence of 85 years if convicted of all the charges he is facing.
"	business
Renault boss hails 'great year'	"Strong sales outside western Europe helped Renault boost its profits by more than 40% in 2004 although the firm warned of lower margins this year.

France's second largest carmaker enjoyed a healthy 43% rise in net profits to 2.4bn euros ($3.1bn; £2.9bn) as sales rose 8% to 40.7bn euros. The firm said strong demand outside western Europe and the good performance of its Megane range lifted its results. Chairman Louis Schweitzer said 2004 had been a ""great year"" for the firm.

Renault sold more than 2.4 million vehicles in 2004, an increase of 4% on the previous year. Growth came mainly from outside western Europe, with particularly strong sales in Turkey, Russia and North Africa.

In total, sales outside western Europe - Renault's core market - rose 16.5%. Japanese carmaker Nissan - in which Renault owns a 44% stake - contributed 1.7bn euros in net income over the year. Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn is to succeed Mr Schweitzer at the head of Renault later this year.

Renault said the outlook for the industry in Europe this year was ""stable"", with small growth forecast in other regions. The firm will benefit from the launch of a new Clio model in the coming year and the roll-out of the Logan in many markets. However, the firm said it expected operating margins to be lower in 2005, at 4% of sales as opposed to 5%. ""In a sluggish market and an environment impacted by the rise in raw material prices, Renault intends to continue to grow its global sales,"" the company said in a statement.
"	business
Survey confirms property slowdown	"Government figures have confirmed a widely reported slowdown of the UK's housing market in late 2004.

House prices were 11.8% higher on the year in the last quarter of 2004, down from 16.3% in the July-to-September quarter, the Land Registry said. The average house price in England and Wales was £182,920, down from £187,971 in July-September. The volume of sales between October and December dropped by nearly a quarter from the same period in 2003. The government figures are the first official confirmation of falls in the market at the end of 2004. Land Registry figures are less up to date than those of banks and building societies, since they record completions not mortgage approvals. However, the figures are viewed as the most accurate measure of house prices as they include all property transactions, including cash sales.

The cost of buying a home fell in seven out of 10 regions between the third and fourth quarters of 2004.

The biggest annual gains were made in Wales, where house prices were up by 23% in the fourth quarter. House prices rose the slowest in Greater London, being up by 6%. In the capital, the volume of sales fell by 23% from 36,185 in 2003 to 28,041 for the same period in 2004. There was also a decline in the number of million-pound properties sold in the capital, with 436 properties over £1m sold compared to 469 for the same period in 2003. Although the figures point to a slowdown in the market, the most recent surveys from Nationwide and Halifax have indicated the market may be undergoing a revival. After registering falls at the back end of 2004, Halifax said house prices rose by 0.8% in January and Nationwide reported a rise of 0.4% in the first month of the year. Members of the Bank of England's rate-setting committee will make their latest decision on interest rates on Thursday.
"	business
Bush budget seeks deep cutbacks	"President Bush has presented his 2006 budget, cutting domestic spending in a bid to lower a record deficit projected to peak at $427bn (£230bn) this year.

The $2.58 trillion (£1.38 trillion) budget submitted to Congress affects 150 domestic programmes from farming to the environment, education and health. But foreign aid is due to rise by 10%, with more money to treat HIV/Aids and reward economic and political reform. Military spending is also set to rise by 4.8%, to reach $419.3bn. The budget does not include the cost of running military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, for which the administration is expected to seek an extra $80bn from Congress later this year.

Congress will spend several months debating George W Bush's proposal.

The state department's planned budget would rise to just under $23bn - a fraction of the defence department's request - including almost $6bn to assist US allies in the ""war on terror"". However, the administration is keen to highlight its global effort to tackle HIV/Aids, the BBC's Jonathan Beale reports, and planned spending would almost double to $3bn, with much of that money going to African nations. Mr Bush also wants to increase the amount given to poorer countries through his Millennium Challenge Corporation. The scheme has been set up to reward developing countries that embrace what the US considers to be good governance and sound policies. Yet Mr Bush's proposed spending of $3bn on that project is well below his initial promise of $5bn.

A key spending line missing from proposals is the cost of funding the administration's proposed radical overhaul of Social Security, the pensions programme on which many Americans rely for their retirement income.

Some experts believe this could require borrowing of up to $4.5 trillion over a 20-year period. Neither does the budget include any cash to purchase crude oil for the US emergency petroleum stockpile. Concern over the level of the reserve, created in 1970s, has led to rises in oil prices over the past year. The Bush administration will instead continue to fill the reserve by taking oil - rather than cash - from energy companies that drill under federal leases.

The outline proposes reductions in budgets at 12 out of 23 government agencies including cuts of 9.6% at Agriculture and 5.6% at the Environmental Protection Agency. The spending plan for the year beginning 1 October is banking on a healthy US economy to boost government income by 6.1% to $2.18 trillion. Spending is forecast to grow by 3.5% to $2.57 trillion. But the budget is still the tightest yet under Mr Bush's presidency. ""In order to sustain our economic expansion, we must continue pro-growth policies and enforce even greater spending restraint across federal government,"" Mr Bush said in his budget message to Congress. Mr Bush has promised to halve the US's massive budget deficit within five years. The deficit, partly the result of massive tax cuts early in Mr Bush's presidency, has been a key factor in pushing the US dollar lower. The independent Congressional Budget Office estimates that the shortfall could shrink to little more than $200bn by 2009, returning to the surpluses seen in the late 1990s by 2012. But its estimates depend on the tax cuts not being made permanent, in line with the promise when they were passed that they would ""sunset"", or disappear, in 2010. Most Republicans, however, want them to stay in place. And the figures also rely on the ""Social Security trust fund"" - the money set aside to cover the swelling costs of retirement pensions - being offset against the main budget deficit.
"	business
Profits stall at China's Lenovo	"Profits at Chinese computer firm Lenovo have stood still amid slowing demand at home and stiffening competition.

The firm is in the international spotlight after last year signing a deal to buy the PC division of personal computer pioneer IBM. Lenovo's profit for the three months to December was HK$327m (US$42m; £22m), less than 1% up on the year before. Chinese PC sales have risen by a fifth in each of the past two years, but are now growing more slowly. The company is still by far the biggest player in China, with more than a quarter of the market. But Western firms such as Dell and Hewlett-Packard are also mounting a more solid fight for market share in China, and Lenovo's sales were down 3.7% by revenue to HK$6.31bn.

If the $1.75bn agreement Lenovo signed with IBM on 8 December goes through, it will mark the end of an era. IBM pioneered the desktop PC market in the early 1980s, although strategic mis-steps helped lose it its early dominance. In any case, margins in PC market are now wafer thin, and profits have been hard to come by for most vendors except direct-sales giant Dell. But investors have been less than impressed with Lenovo's move, designed to take it out of China and further onto the world stage. Its shares are down 20% since the announcement two months ago, largely because of the unprofitability of the unit it is buying. There have been rumours that the deal could be in trouble because US government agencies fear it could offer China opportunities for industrial espionage. The reports of the possibility of an investigation into the risk sent Lenovo's shares up 6% in late January.
"	business
MCI shares climb on takeover bid	"Shares in US phone company MCI have risen on speculation that it is in takeover talks.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Qwest has bid $6.3bn (£3.4bn) for MCI. Other firms have also expressed an interest in MCI, the second-largest US long-distance phone firm, and may now table rival bids, analysts said. Shares in MCI, which changed its name from Worldcom when it emerged from bankruptcy, were up 2.4% at $20.15. Press reports suggest that Qwest and MCI may reach an agreement as early as next week, although rival bids may muddy the waters. The largest US telephone company Verizon has previously held preliminary merger discussions with MCI, Reuters quoted sources as saying.

Consolidation in the US telecommunications industry has picked up in the past few months as companies look to cut costs and boost client bases. A merger between MCI and Qwest would be the fifth billion-dollar telecoms deal since October. Last week, SBC Communications agreed to buy its former parent and phone trailblazer AT&T for about $16bn. Competition has intensified and fixed-line phone providers such as MCI and AT&T have seen themselves overtaken by rivals. Buying MCI would give Qwest, a local phone service provider, access to MCI's global network and business-based subscribers. MCI also offers internet services.

MCI was renamed after it emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April last year. It hit the headlines as Worldcom in 2002 after admitting it illegally booked expenses and inflated profits. The scandal was a key factor in a global slide in share prices and the reverberations are still being felt today. Shareholders lost about $180bn when the company collapsed, while 20,000 workers lost their jobs. Former Worldcom boss Bernie Ebbers is currently on trial, accused of overseeing an $11bn fraud.
"	business
BT offers equal access to rivals	"BT has moved to pre-empt a possible break-up of its business by offering to cut wholesale broadband prices and open its network to rivals.

The move comes after telecom regulator Ofcom said in November that the firm must offer competitors ""real equality of access to its phone lines"". At the time, Ofcom offered BT the choice of change or splitting into two. Ofcom is carrying out a strategic review aimed at promoting greater competition in the UK telecom sector. BT's competitors have frequently accused it of misusing its status as the former telecoms monopoly and controller of access to many customers to favour its own retail arm.

This latest submission was delivered to the watchdog ahead of a deadline for the second phase of its review.

""Central to the proposals are plans by BT to offer operators lower wholesale prices, faster broadband services and transparent, highly-regulated access to BT's local network,"" the former monopoly said in a statement. ""The United Kingdom has the opportunity to create the most exciting and innovative telecoms market in the world,"" BT chief executive Ben Verwaayen said. ""BT has a critical role to play, and today we are making a set of far-reaching proposals towards that framework,"" he said. BT wants lighter regulation in exchange for the changes, as well as the removal of the break-up threat.

The group is to set up a new Access Services division - with a separate board which would include independent members - to ensure equal access for rivals to the ""local loop"", the copper wires that run between telephone exchanges and households. The company also unveiled plans to cut the wholesale prices of its most popular broadband product by about 8% from April in areas of high customer demand.

It added that it plans to invest £10bn in the next five years to create a ""21st Century network"". To meet the growing demand for greater bandwidth, BT said it would begin trials in April with a view to launching higher-speed services nationally from the autumn.

Telecom analysts Ovum welcomed the move, saying BT had ""given a lot of ground"".

""The big question now is whether the industry, and particularly Ofcom feels BT's proposals go far enough ...Now the real negotiation begins,"" director of telecoms research Tony Lavender said. Internet service provider (ISP) Plus.net also backed the proposals saying ""we will be entirely happy if Ofcom accepts them"". ""BT has been challenged to play fair and its plans will introduce a level playing field. The scenario now is how well people execute their business plans as a service provider,"" chief executive Lee Strafford said. Chris Panayis, managing director of ISP Freedom2surf said that it would make the situation clearer for business. ""I think it's the first productive thing we've had from BT,"" he said.

AOL backed the price cuts but said regulation was still needed to ensure a level playing field. ""This is a reminder to Ofcom that as long as BT can change the dynamics of the whole broadband market at will, the process of opening up the UK's local telephone network to infrastructure investment and competition remains fragile,"" a spokesman said. ""Ofcom needs to return to regulation of the wholesale broadband service [IPStream] and provide more robust rules for local loop unbundling if consumers are to see the benefits of increased competition and infrastructure investment."" More than 100 telecom firms, consumer groups and other interested parties are expected to make submissions to the regulator during this consultation phase. Ofcom is expected to spend the next few weeks examining the proposals before making an announcement within the next few months.
"	business
Jobs growth still slow in the US	"The US created fewer jobs than expected in January, but a fall in jobseekers pushed the unemployment rate to its lowest level in three years.

According to Labor Department figures, US firms added only 146,000 jobs in January. The gain in non-farm payrolls was below market expectations of 190,000 new jobs. Nevertheless it was enough to push down the unemployment rate to 5.2%, its lowest level since September 2001. The job gains mean that President Bush can celebrate - albeit by a very fine margin - a net growth in jobs in the US economy in his first term in office. He presided over a net fall in jobs up to last November's Presidential election - the first President to do so since Herbert Hoover. As a result, job creation became a key issue in last year's election. However, when adding December and January's figures, the administration's first term jobs record ended in positive territory.

The Labor Department also said it had revised down the jobs gains in December 2004, from 157,000 to 133,000.

Analysts said the growth in new jobs was not as strong as could be expected given the favourable economic conditions. ""It suggests that employment is continuing to expand at a moderate pace,"" said Rick Egelton, deputy chief economist at BMO Financial Group. ""We are not getting the boost to employment that we would have got given the low value of the dollar and the still relatively low interest rate environment."" ""The economy is producing a moderate but not a satisfying amount of job growth,"" said Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics. ""That means there are a limited number of new opportunities for workers.""
"	business
News Corp eyes video games market	"News Corp, the media company controlled by Australian billionaire Rupert Murdoch, is eyeing a move into the video games market.

According to the Financial Times, chief operating officer Peter Chernin said that News Corp is ""kicking the tyres of pretty much all video games companies"". Santa Monica-based Activison is said to be one firm on its takeover list. Video games are ""big business"", the paper quoted Mr Chernin as saying. We ""would like to get into it"".

The success of products such as Sony's Playstation, Microsoft's X-Box and Nintendo's Game Cube have boosted demand for video games. The days of arcade classics such as Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong are long gone. Today, games often have budgets big enough for feature films and look to give gamers as real an experience as possible. And with their price tags reflecting the heavy investment by development companies, video games are proving almost as profitable as they are fun.

Mr Chernin, however, told the FT that News Corp was finding it difficult to identify a suitable target. ""We are struggling with the gap between companies like Electronic Arts (EA), which comes with a high price tag, and the next tier of companies,"" he explained during a conference in Phoenix, Arizona. ""These may be too focused on one or two product lines."" Activision has a stock market capitalisation of about $2.95bn (£1.57bn), compared to EA's $17.8bn. Some of the games industry's main players have recently been looking to consolidate their position by making acquisitions. France's Ubisoft, one of Europe's biggest video game publishers, has been trying to remain independent since Electronic Arts announced plans to buy 19.9% of the firm. Analysts have said that industry mergers are likely in the future.
"	business
Call to overhaul UK state pension	"The UK pension system has been branded inadequate and too complex by a leading retirement think-tank.

The Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) said replacing the state pension with a ""citizen's pension"" would help tackle inequality and complexity. The change would see pensions being calculated on length of residency in the UK rather than National Insurance (NI) contributions. Reform could reduce poverty by aiding people with broken employment records.

The PPI added that once the state system was reformed the government should look at options to overhaul private and workplace pensions. The think tank's proposals were made in response to the recent publication of the Pensions Commission's initial report into UK retirement savings. According to the Pensions Commission's report 12 million working people are not saving enough for their retirement. As a result, living standards could fall for the next generation of UK pensioners. The report added that a combination of higher taxes, higher savings and/or a higher average retirement age was needed to solve the UK pension crisis.
"	business
Singapore growth at 8.1% in 2004	"Singapore's economy grew by 8.1% in 2004, its best performance since 2000, figures from the trade ministry show.

The advance, the second-fastest in Asia after China, was led by growth of 13.1% in the key manufacturing sector. However, a slower-than-expected fourth quarter points to more modest growth for the trade-driven economy in 2005 as global technology demand falls back. Slowdowns in the US and China could hit electronics exports, while the tsunami disaster may effect the service sector.

Economic growth is set to halve in Singapore this year to between 3% and 5%. In the fourth quarter, the city state's gross domestic product (GDP) rose at an annual rate of 2.4%. That was up from the third quarter, when it fell 3.0%, but was well below analyst forecasts. ""I am surprised at the weak fourth quarter number. The main drag came from electronics,"" said Lian Chia Liang, economist at JP Morgan Chase. Singapore's economy had contracted over the summer, weighed down by soaring oil prices. The economy's poor performance in the July to September period followed four consecutive quarters of double-digit growth as Singapore bounced back strongly from the effects of the deadly Sars virus in 2003.
"	business
Turkey knocks six zeros off lira	"Turkey is to relaunch its currency on Saturday, knocking six zeros off the lira in the hope of boosting trade and powering its growing economy.

The change will see the end of such dizzyingly-high denominations as five million lira - enough for a short taxi ride - and the 20m note, worth $15. These valuations were the product of decades of inflation which, as recently as 2001, was as high as 70%. Inflation has since been tamed and economic prospects are improving.

The currency - officially to be known as the new lira - will be launched at midnight on 1 January. From that point, the one-million lira note will become the new one-lira coin. The government hopes the change will be seen as a promise of growing economic stability as Turkey embarks on the long process of trying to join the European Union.

On an everyday level, it is hoped the change will stimulate more international trade and end confusion among foreign investors and Turks alike. ""The transition to the new Turkish lira shows clearly that our economy has broken the vicious circle that it was imprisoned in for long years,"" said Sureyya Serdengecti, head of the Turkish Central Bank. ""The new lira is also the symbol of the stable economy that we dreamed of for long years.""

The Turkish economy teetered on the brink of collapse in 2001 when the lira plunged in value and two million people lost their jobs.

Turkey had to turn to the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance, accepting a $18bn loan in return for pushing through a wide-ranging austerity programme. These tough measures have borne fruit. Inflation fell below 10% earlier this year for the first time in decades while exports are up 30% this year. Meanwhile, the economy is expanding at a healthy rate, with 7.9% growth expected in 2004. The government hopes that the new currency will cement the country's economic progress, two weeks after EU leaders set a date for the start of Turkey's accession talks.

The slimmed-down lira is likely to be widely welcomed by the business community.

""The Turkish lira has been like funny money,"" Tevfik Aksoy, chief Turkish economist for Deutsche Bank, told Associated Press. ""Now at least in cosmetic terms it will look like real currency."" However, some do not feel quite so happy about seeing the nominal value of their investments reduced. ""If a person has 10 billion lira in investments this will suddenly decrease,"" shop owner Hayriye Evren, told Associated Press. ""This will definitely affect people psychologically.""
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S Korea spending boost to economy	"South Korea will boost state spending next year in an effort to create jobs and kick start its sputtering economy.

It has earmarked 100 trillion won ($96bn) for the first six months of 2005, 60% of its total annual budget. The government's main problems are ""slumping consumption and a contraction in the construction industry"". It aims to create 400,000 jobs and will focus on infrastructure and home building, as well as providing public firms with money to hire new workers.

The government has set an economic growth rate target of 5% for next year and hinted that would be in danger unless it took action. ""Internal and external economic conditions are likely to remain unfavourable in 2005,"" the Finance and Economy Ministry said in a statement.

It blamed ""continuing uncertainties such as fluctuating oil prices and foreign exchange rates and stagnant domestic demand that has shown few signs of a quick rebound"". In 2004, growth will be between 4.7% and 4.8%, the ministry said. Not everyone is convinced the plan will work. ""Our primary worry centres on the what we believe is the government's overly optimistic view that its front loading of the budget will be enough to turn the economy around,"" consultancy 4Cast said in a report.

The problem facing South Korea is that many consumers are reeling from the effects of a credit bubble that only recently burst. Millions of South Koreans are defaulting on their credit card bills, and the country's biggest card lender has been hovering on the verge of bankruptcy for months. As part of its spending plans, the government said it will ask firms to ""roll over mortgage loans that come due in the first half of 2005"" . It also pledged to look at ways of helping families on low incomes.

The government voiced concern about the effect of redundancies in the building trade. ""Given the economic spill over and employment effect in the construction sector, a sharp downturn in the construction industry could have other adverse effects,"" the ministry said.

As a result, South Korea will give private companies also will be given the chance to build schools, hospitals, houses and other public buildings. It also will look at real estate tax system. Other plans on the table include promoting new industries such as bio-technology and nano-technology, as well as offering increased support to small and medium sized businesses. ""The focus will be on job creation and economic recovery, given that unfavourable domestic and global conditions are likely to dog the Korean economy in 2005,"" the ministry said.
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Latin America sees strong growth	"Latin America's economy grew by 5.5% in 2004, its best performance since 1980, while exports registered their best performance in two decades.

The United Nations' Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean said the region grew by 5.5% this year. The Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) said regional exports reached $445.1bn (£227bn;331bn euros) in 2004. Doubts about the strength of the US recovery and overheating of the Chinese economy do however pose risks for 2005. Both organisations also warned that high oil prices raise the risk of either inflation or recession.

Nevertheless, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) still forecasts growth of 4% for 2005. Strong recovery in some countries, such as Venezuela and Uruguay, boosted the overall performance of the region. ECLAC also said that the six largest Latin American economies (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela) grew by more than 3% for only the second time in 20 years. Chinese and US economic strength helped boost exports, as did strong demand for agricultural and mining products. In fact, Latin American exports to China grew 34%, to $14bn. Higher oil prices also helped boost exports, as Mexico and Venezuela are important oil exporters. Regional blocs as well as free trade agreements with the US contributed to the region's strong performance, the IADB said.
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Asia shares defy post-quake gloom	"Indonesian, Indian and Hong Kong stock markets reached record highs.

Investors seemed to feel that some of the worst-affected areas were so under-developed that the tragedy would have little impact on Asia's listed firms. ""Obviously with a lot of loss of life, a lot of time is needed to clean up the mess, bury the people and find the missing,"" said ABN Amro's Eddie Wong. ""[But] it's not necessarily a really big thing in the economic sense.""

India's Bombay Stock Exchange inched slightly above its previous record close on Wednesday. Expectations of strong corporate earnings in 2005 drove the Indonesian stock exchange in Jakarta to a record high on Wednesday. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index may be benefiting in part from the potential for its listed property companies to gain from rebuilding contracts in the tsunami-affected regions of South East Asia. In Sri Lanka, some economists have said that as much as 1% of annual growth may be lost. Sri Lanka's stock market has fallen about 5% since the weekend, but it is still 40% higher than at the start of 2004.

Thailand may lose 30bn baht (£398m; $768m) in earnings from tourism over the next three months, according to tourism minister Sontaya Kunplome.

In the affected provinces, he expects the loss of tourism revenue to be offset by government reconstruction spending. Thailand intends to spend a similar sum - around 30bn baht - on the rebuilding work. ""It will take until the fourth quarter of next year before tourist visitors in Phuket and five other provinces return to their normal level,"" said Naris Chaiyasoot, director general at the ministry's fiscal policy office. In the Maldives the cost of reconstruction could wipe out economic growth, according to a government spokesman. ""Our nation is in peril here,"" said Ahmed Shaheed, the chief government spokesman. He estimated the economic cost of the disaster at hundreds of millions of dollars. The Maldives has gross domestic product of $660m. ""It won't be surprising if the cost exceeds our GDP,"" he said. ""In the last few years, we made great progress in our standard of living - the United Nations recognised this. Now we see this can disappear in a few days, a few minutes."" Shaheed noted that investment in a single tourist resort - the economic mainstay - could run to $40m. Between 10 and 12 of the 80-odd resorts have been severely damaged, and a similar number have suffered significant damage.

However, many experts, including the World Bank, have pointed out that it is still difficult to assess the magnitude of the disaster and its likely economic impact. In part, this is because of its scale, and because delivering aid and recovering the dead remain priorities. ""Calculators will have to wait,"" said an IMF official in a briefing on Wednesday. ""The financial and world community will be turning toward reconstruction efforts and at that point people will begin to have a sense of the financial impact.""
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Booming markets shed few tears	"The market, former British government minister Michael Heseltine once said, has no morality.

And indeed, stock exchange traders around Asia have wasted little time regretting the victims of this week's disaster. Stock markets in Indonesia and India have hit all-time highs this week; even in Sri Lanka, more comprehensively affected, the main index has lost only 5% since the waves hit. Bigger markets further afield have barely twitched. The MSCI World share index, a measure of global stock market performance, hit its highest level this week since early 2001; the BBC Global 30 has risen by 3% in the past week. And this at a time when - all sentiment aside - insurance costs are already estimated in the tens of billions of dollars, and countries around the region are looking at trimming their growth forecasts.

In fact, the markets are being perfectly rational.

For a start, the notional insurance cost of the disaster will have little bearing on corporate bottom lines. The overwhelming majority of the victims will have had no insurance: according to estimates from India, only one-quarter of those affected there were wealthy enough to afford insurance, and only one-quarter of that group at most will have taken out policies. Indonesia is likely to have even lower take-up rates. And where insurance certainly is in place - in, for example, the many tourist complexes affected - the costs will be borne in far-away corners of the global reinsurance market, rather than landing locally.

Second, stock markets do not trade the sort of companies likely to have been damaged. Most of the biggest companies traded on the soaring Jakarta Stock Exchange are in oil, technology and financial services - none of which have been hit by the flooding. Tourist businesses, the most likely sufferers, are either foreign-owned or too small to have their shares listed. Those that are listed have suffered: Confifi Hotel Holdings, a small Sri Lankan tourism firm, has halved in value this week. But there are winners as well as losers. Asian stock markets are heavily inclined towards property and construction companies, many of which will be rubbing their hands over the reconstruction opportunities. In Indonesia, shares in state construction companies Adhi Karya and Semen Gresik have jumped sharply this week.

More broadly, the academic consensus is that major disasters are largely neutral in their longer-term economic impact.

According to the Natural Hazards Research and Applications Information Center at Colorado State University, there is little evidence that disasters are inevitably followed by a depression. The need to find money to replace lost and damaged property is balanced by the beneficial effect of reconstruction activity; there is rarely, the centre says, any sort of rebuilding boom, but in most cases sizeable indirect losses are avoided. A study of the 1993 Des Moines floods, from the Disaster Research Center at the University of Delaware*, found that 70% of local businesses were no worse off after the disaster, and another 18% felt themselves better off. ""Although it is commonly assumed on the basis of anecdotal evidence that disasters result in business failures and bankruptcies on a large scale, our research indicates that most businesses, even those that are especially hard-hit, do indeed recover,"" the authors concluded.

But disasters have a vast psychological impact, and markets are driven by psychological factors.

In particular, many analysts warn of panic spreading unchecked through the global financial system, as investors seek to cover themselves against the unforeseeable effects of unguessable events. In fact, again, the risks here are lower than they seem. Even the costliest natural disaster is rendered minuscule by the global capital market - currently $30 trillion and rising. A series of recent shocks, the Colorado centre has argued, have demonstrated that this seamless global contagion hardly ever happens: market tremors rarely translate into economic slumps, and economic woes rarely seriously undermine markets. The trillion-dollar debts of Japan's banks, for example, have had no effect on stock markets further afield than Tokyo. And the US stock market was on its way down long before 11 September, 2001; it rose by 20% during the six months following the attacks. ""It is not that the broking community is indifferent to disasters or feelings,"" one Bombay trader said this week. ""But the reaction would have been seen if business had been affected. Business sense probably tends to overrule everything else.""
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Asian quake hits European shares	"Shares in Europe's leading reinsurers and travel firms have fallen as the scale of the damage wrought by tsunamis across south Asia has become apparent.

More than 23,000 people have been killed following a massive underwater earthquake and many of the worst hit areas are popular tourist destinations. Reisurance firms such as Swiss Re and Munich Re lost value as investors worried about rebuilding costs. But the disaster has little impact on stock markets in the US and Asia.

Currencies including the Thai baht and Indonesian rupiah weakened as analysts warned that economic growth may slow. ""It came at the worst possible time,"" said Hans Goetti, a Singapore-based fund manager. ""The impact on the tourist industry is pretty devastating, especially in Thailand."" Travel-related shares dropped in Europe, with companies such as Germany's TUI and Lufthansa and France's Club Mediterranne sliding. Insurers and reinsurance firms were also under pressure in Europe.

Shares in Munich Re and Swiss Re - the world's two biggest reinsurers - both fell 1.7% as the market speculated about the cost of rebuilding in Asia. Zurich Financial, Allianz and Axa also suffered a decline in value.

However, their losses were much smaller, reflecting the market's view that reinsurers were likely to pick up the bulk of the costs. Worries about the size of insurance liabilities dragged European shares down, although the impact was exacerbated by light post-Christmas trading. Germany's benchmark Dax index closed the day 16.29 points lower at 3.817.69 while France's Cac index of leading shares fell 5.07 points to 3.817.69. Investors pointed out, however, that declines probably would be industry specific, with the travel and insurance firms hit hardest. ""It's still too early for concrete damage figures,"" Swiss Re's spokesman Floiran Woest told Associated Press. ""That also has to do with the fact that the damage is very widely spread geographically.""

The unfolding scale of the disaster in south Asia had little immediate impact on US shares, however. The Dow Jones index had risen 20.54 points, or 0.2%, to 10,847.66 by late morning as analsyts were cheered by more encouraging reports from retailers about post-Christmas sales. In Asian markets, adjustments were made quickly to account for lower earnings and the cost of repairs. Thai Airways shed almost 4%. The country relies on tourism for about 6% of its total economy. Singapore Airlines dropped 2.6%. About 5% of Singapore's annual gross domestic product (GDP) comes from tourism. Malaysia's budget airline, AirAsia fell 2.9%. Resort operator Tanco Holdings slumped 5%.

Travel companies also took a hit, with Japan's Kinki Nippon sliding 1.5% and HIS dropping 3.3%. However, the overall impact on Asia's largest stock market, Japan's Nikkei, was slight. Shares fell just 0.03%. Concerns about the strength of economic growth going forward weighed on the currency markets. The Indonesian rupiah lost as much as 0.6% against the US dollar, before bouncing back slightly to trade at 9,300. The Thai baht lost 0.3% against the US currency, trading at 39.10. In India, where more than 2,000 people are thought to have died, the rupee shed 0.1% against the dollar Analysts said that it was difficult to predict the total cost of the disaster and warned that share prices and currencies would come under increasing pressure as the bills mounted.
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Split-caps pay £194m compensation	"Investors who lost money following the split-capital investment trust scandal are to receive £194m compensation, the UK's financial watchdog has announced.

Eighteen investment firms involved in the sale of the investments agreed the compensation package with the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Splits were marketed as a low-risk way to benefit from rising share prices. But when the stock market collapsed in 2000, the products left thousands of investors out of pocket. An estimated 50,000 people took out split-capital funds, some investing their life savings in the schemes. The paying of compensation will be overseen by an independent company, the FSA said.

Further details of how investors will be able to claim their share of the compensation package will be announced in the new year. ""This should save investors from having to take their case to the Financial Ombudsman Service, something, no doubt, that will be very welcome,"" Rob McIvor, FSA spokesman, told BBC News. Agreeing to pay compensation did not mean that the eighteen firms involved were admitting any guilt, the FSA added. Any investor accepting the compensation will have to waive the right to take their case to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

The FSA has been investigating whether investors were misled about the risks posed by split-capital investment trusts. The FSA's 60 strong investigation team looked into whether fund managers colluded in a so-called ""magic circle"", in the hope of propping up one another's share prices.

Firms involved were presented with 780 files of evidence detailing 27,000 taped conversations and over 70 interviews. In May, the FSA was widely reported as having asked firms to pay up to £350m in compensation. Mr McIvor told the BBC that the final settlement figure was smaller because two unnamed firms had pulled out of the compensation negotiations. Investors in these two firms may now have to take any compensation claim to the Financial Ombudsman Service or the courts.
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French suitor holds LSE meeting	"European stock market Euronext has met with the London Stock Exchange (LSE) amid speculation that it may be ready to launch a cash bid.

Euronext chief Jean-Francois Theodore held talks with LSE boss Clara Furse the day after rival Deutsche Boerse put forward its own bid case. The German exchange said it had held ""constructive, professional and friendly"" talks with the LSE. But Euronext declined to comment after the talks ended on Friday. Speculation is mounting that the Germans may raise their bid to £1.5bn. Deutsche Boerse previously offered £1.3bn, which was rejected by the LSE, while Euronext is rumoured to have facilities in place to fund a £1.4bn cash bid. So far, however, neither have tabled a formal bid. But a deal with either bidder would create the biggest stock market operator in Europe and the second biggest in the world after the New York Stock Exchange.

There was speculation Euronext would use Friday's meeting as an opportunity to take advantage of growing disquiet over Deutsche Boerse's own plans for dominance over the London market. Unions for Deutsche Boerse staff in Frankfurt has reportedly expressed fears that up to 300 jobs would be moved to London if the takeover is successful. ""The works council has expressed concerns that the equities and derivatives trade could be managed from London in the future,"" Reuters news agency reports a union source as saying. German politicians are also said to be angry over the market operator's promise to move its headquarters to London if a bid were successful.

Meanwhile, LSE shareholders fear that Deutsche Boerse's control over its Clearstream unit - the clearing house that processes securities transactions - would create a monopoly situation. This would weaken the position of shareholders when negotiating lower transaction fees for share dealings. LSE and Euronext do not have control over their clearing and settlement operations, a situation which critics say is more transparent and competitive. The German group's ownership of Clearstream has been seen as the main stumbling block to a London-Frankfurt merger. Commentators believe Deutsche Boerse, which has now formally asked German authorities to approve its plan to buy the LSE, may offer to sell Clearstream to gain shareholder approval. Euronext, so far, has given little away as to what sweeteners it will offer the LSE - Europe's biggest equity market - into a deal.
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Troubled Marsh under SEC scrutiny	"The US stock market regulator is investigating troubled insurance broker Marsh & McLennan's shareholder transactions, the firm has said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked for information about transactions involving holders of 5% or more of the firm's shares. Marsh has said it is co-operating fully with the SEC investigation. Marsh is also the focus of an inquiry the New York attorney-general into whether insurers rigged the market. Since that inquiry was launched in October, Marsh has replaced its chief executive and held a boardroom shake-out to meet criticism by lessening the number of company executives on the board. Prosecutors allege that Marsh - the world's biggest insurance broker - and other US insurance firms may have fixed bids for corporate cover. This is the issue at the heart of the inquiry by New York's top law officer, Eliot Spitzer, and a separate prosecution of five insurers by the State of California. The SEC's investigation into so-called related party transactions includes dealings in the Trident Funds, managed by MMC Capital, the company's private equity firm. Marsh's new chief executive, Michael Cherkasky, is trying to negotiate a settlement with Mr Spitzer. Mr Spitzer has built up a reputation as a fierce critic and campaigner against corporate America's misdeeds.

The uncertainty unleashed by the scandal has prompted three credit rating agencies - Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch - to downgrade Marsh in recent weeks. According to the Financial Times, insurance analysts are now questioning whether Marsh will be able to maintain its strong record of earning growth as they draw up forecasts for the first quarter of next year. Doubts also exist over how much the company may have to pay regulators and lawyers to put the scandal behind.
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Could Yukos be a blessing in disguise?	"Other things being equal, the notion of entrepreneurs languishing in jail while their companies are sold off for a song ought to be bad for business.

But in the looking-glass world of modern Russia, the opposite might just be true, a new report* has argued. The study, from the Centre for Economic Policy Research, does not praise the rough handling of oil company Yukos. But it argues that more rigorous tax policing has benefited all Russian firms, even targets of the tax police. ""An increase in tax enforcement can increase the amount [of dividends and other income] outside shareholders will receive, even accounting for increased levels of taxation,"" the authors say.

The paper's reasoning is complex, and is based on a sophisticated model of the relationship between tax regimes and corporate governance - in particular, the propensity of management to steal from the company. The calculations demonstrated what many Russian analysts already knew: that increasing the tax rate increases the amount that managers steal, since undeclared income becomes relatively more valuable. In the West, meanwhile, higher tax rates translate far more smoothly into higher government revenues. On the other hand, increasing the rigour with which taxes are collected encourages companies to become more transparent, forcing them to be able to demonstrate their financial position far more accurately. The net result, the authors say, is that the extra amount companies pay in tax is more than compensated for by greater efficiency and financial soundness.

After Vladimir Putin became president in 2000, he did not raise taxes, but put a lot of effort - too much, critics argue - into enforcement.

Since then, the Russian stock market has more than trebled in value, a rise the authors attribute at least in part to the newly tough approach. The report highlights the case of Sibneft, a Russian oil company that came close to merging with Yukos last year. After Mr Putin came to power, the company's overall effective tax rate rose from 2.6% to 10.4%, and Sibneft was the target of a series of aggressive raids by fiscal police. But shareholders benefited hugely: Sibneft started to pay dividends - $53m in 2000 and almost $1bn in 2001 - and closed down the network of opaque subsidiaries it had previously used for siphoning off unofficial funds. According to the authors, although a variety of changes were sweeping through Russian industry at the time, the increase in tax enforcement is the only likely explanation for the change of fortunes at Sibneft and many of its peers.

Does this analysis make sense? In part, certainly. For all its faults, corporate Russia has become far more orderly and law-abiding since 2000. Companies have rushed to list their shares on international stock exchanges - something unthinkable in the wilder days of the 1990s - and most large firms now produce their accounts to international standards. Foreign direct investment, long negligible, is starting to flow in serious amounts - $7bn in 2003 - and stock market returns have been among the healthiest in Europe. But the authors' model does not quite cover all the complexities. For a start, the model assumes that the various parties have clearly-defined motivation: companies want to maximise profit, governments want to maximise tax revenue. In fact, the alarmingly close connections between big business and government in Russia - connections often greased by bribery - blur the apparently antagonistic relationship. Companies can, for example, persuade officials to overlook non-payment of taxes.

And the authors' definition of tax enforcement seems unrealistically Western. Genuine, disinterested tax collection might well work wonders in Russia; the problem with recent examples has been the erratic and unpredictable way laws are enforced. The case against Yukos, for example, has moved in fits and starts, with little clarity from the government about its intentions, and little faith from investors that the letter of the law would be followed. As far as most commentators are concerned, the state is pursuing Yukos out of a political vendetta, rather than simply to enforce fiscal rectitude. Since Yukos' founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was arrested a year ago, the Russian market has dropped by 10% - an indication that few investors feel optimistic about the salutary effect on corporate performance.
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Nasdaq planning $100m share sale	"The owner of the technology-dominated Nasdaq stock index plans to sell shares to the public and list itself on the market it operates.

According to a registration document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nasdaq Stock Market plans to raise $100m (£52m) from the sale. Some observers see this as another step closer to a full public listing. However Nasdaq, an icon of the 1990s technology boom, recently poured cold water on those suggestions.

The company first sold shares in private placements during 2000 and 2001. It technically went public in 2002 when the stock started trading on the OTC Bulletin Board, which lists equities that trade only occasionally. Nasdaq will not make money from the sale, only investors who bought shares in the private placings, the filing documents said. The Nasdaq is made up shares in technology firms and other companies with high growth potential. It was the most potent symbol of the 1990s internet and telecoms boom, nose-diving after the bubble burst. A recovery in the fortunes of tech giants such as Intel, and dot.com survivors such as Amazon has helped revive its fortunes.
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Giving financial gifts to children	"Your child or grandchild may want the latest toy this Christmas, but how about giving them a present that will help their financial future?

Gifts of the financial variety might have a longer lasting impact. It may encourage children to save or start a fund which could count towards university costs, for example.

The government is trying to encourage saving at an early age, through its new Child Trust Fund. The first vouchers, worth £250 or £500 for low-income families, will be distributed from January. All children born after 1st September 2002 will be eligible. Parents will need to decide which financial institution will manage this gift in time for the start of the scheme in April 2005.

Parents and relatives will be able to top up the fund with up to £1,200 a year, which will grow free of income and capital gains tax. As the Child Trust Fund will not be in force in time for Christmas, relatives could invest their gifts in a higher rate children's deposit account, and use this as a feeder fund.

There are accounts designed to start children off in the savings habit and they often pay a higher rate of interest. Some of the best instant-access accounts currently available include the Ladybird account from the Saffron Walden Building Society, paying 5.35% for a minimum balance of £1 and the Alliance & Leicester FirstSaver which pays 5.25%, also starting at £1.

Interest earned by children is subject to income tax. However, children, like adults, have a personal income tax allowance (£4,745 for the current tax year).

If the account holds money gifted by friends and relatives - but not parents - any interest earned from the savings account may be set against the allowance. As long as the total amount of interest falls within the allowance, then no tax will be payable. When the account is opened a form ""R85"", available from the bank or building society, should be completed. This confirms that the account holder is a non-taxpayer and allows interest to be received without the deduction of income tax.

The tax rules are different for parents who save on behalf of a child. Only £100 of interest (per parent) can be tax-free. Where interest exceeds this level, the whole of the interest will be taxed on the parent. This is to prevent parents from holding their own cash savings in their children's names and taking advantage of the tax allowances. Where both parents and other relatives are saving on behalf of a child, consideration should be given to opening separate accounts - one for parents' gifts and one for gifts from other relatives. Therefore, it may be preferable for parents to contribute to the Child Trust Fund which is tax free, with any gifts from relatives that take the total above the annual £1,200 limit being directed to a deposit account.

Another favourite solution is Premium Bonds. With the promise of riches far greater than a mere deposit account, they make great presents. The parent or guardian will be responsible for the Bonds and will receive notification of the purchase. Any prizes will be sent to the parent or child's guardian. The minimum for each purchase is £100 and Bonds are sold in multiples of £10.

There are gift opportunities beyond cash accounts and these should not be ignored.

Over the longer term, stock market funds have outperformed other types of investment, although in the shorter term they can be volatile. One of the benefits of investing for children is that investment is generally for the longer term - more than ten years - which helps to reduce the risks associated with investing in shares. One way to spread the risk is to invest in the stock market through a unit or investment trust. These are pooled investment funds which give access to a wide range of shares. These funds may be actively managed, where a fund manager picks individual stocks based on a view of their future potential, or passive, where a manager invests in all the shares that comprise a stock market index, for example, the FTSE 100. Exchange Traded Funds offer an alternative way to track a stock market. These are single shares that give the return of an underlying index (so are really another form of tracker). The difference is that the charges are quite low. The only drawback with all financial gifts is that the children gain an absolute right to the money at age 18, and parents will have no control over how it is spent. For larger gifts it may be worthwhile taking professional advice on the establishment of a suitable trust that will allow ongoing control over the capital and income.
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Air China in $1bn London listing	"China's national airline is to make its overseas stock market debut with a dual listing in London and Hong Kong, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) has said.

Air China plans to raise $1bn (£514m) from the flotation. Share trading will begin on 15 December, the LSE said. For China's aviation authorities, the listing is part of the modernisation of its airline sector to cope with soaring demand for air travel. No further details of the share price or number of shares were given.

The LSE has been working hard to woo Chinese companies to choose London, rather than New York for their listings. It opened an Asia-Pacific office in Hong Kong last month. ""We are delighted that Air China has chosen London for its listing outside China,"" said LSE chief executive Clara Furse. ""The London Stock Exchange offers ambitious Chinese companies access to the world's most international equity market combined with high regulatory and corporate governance standards,"" she said. A spokesman for the LSE said: ""We've been engaged with them (Air China) for about 18 months, two years now."" As part of its pitch to bring listings to London, the LSE is thought to be highlighting the extra costs and red-tape imposed by new US laws passed since the Enron scandal, whilst stressing London's strong regulatory environment.

Germany's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder began a three-day visit to Beijing on Monday by signing a deal worth 1bn euros ($1.3bn; £690m) for Airbus to sell 23 new planes to Air China, the Deutsche Welle radio station reported. China's booming economy has created huge demand for air travel among middle-class Chinese, turning the country into a sales battleground between rival plane makers Airbus and Boeing. Air China's long-awaited flotation is part of a strategy to modernise a dozen state-owned carriers, which have been reorganised into three groups under Air China, China Southern and China Eastern. Merrill Lynch are sole bookrunners for Air China's flotation, which will take the form of a share placing with institutional investors in London, though retail investors may be able to buy Air China shares in Hong Kong. Air China's primary listing will be in Hong Kong, with a secondary listing in London. The shares will be denominated in Hong Kong dollars. However, investors may be wary of Chinese stocks. The collapse last week of China Aviation Oil, the Singapore-listed arm of a Chinese jet fuel trader, has cast the spotlight on corporate governance shortcomings at Chinese firms.
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Oil prices reach three-month low	"Oil prices have fallen heavily for a second day, closing at three-month lows after news that US crude stocks have improved ahead of winter.

London Brent crude closed at $40.15 on Thursday - a drop of 5.1% - having dived below $40 a barrel for the first time since mid-September. US light crude traded in New York lost more than $2 to $43.25, its lowest close since 10 September. The price of both benchmark crudes has dropped 12% in two days. The falls were triggered when the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday that US crude stocks were 3.5% higher than a year ago. The news calmed worries about winter shortages. Weak US fuel and heating oil stocks have been a persistent factor in pushing up oil prices. ""It's amazing how quickly sentiment changed,"" said Rick Mueller, an analyst at Energy Security Analysis. Analysts also attributed the fall to mild early-winter weather, which has tempered demand for heating oil.

The stronger fuel inventories helped boost US stock markets to nine-month highs on Wednesday, though only the Nasdaq index had hung onto those gains by the end of Thursday.

In London, the FTSE 100 index closed 15 points higher at 4,751. The long-awaited drop in oil prices helped to ease persistent investor jitters over the impact of energy costs on company profits and economic growth. However, traders warned that the fall could be short-lived if there is a cold snap in North America this winter or any major supply problems in other parts of the world.

The price of crude is still up about 30% on the start of 2004, but has fallen from the record of $55.67 set in late October. Opec nations have increased production to 25-year highs to meet global demand and this has helped rebuild US stocks hit by supply disruptions after Hurricane Ivan in September. Traders were also encouraged by comments on Wednesday from the energy minister of Opec member Algeria. Chakib Khelil said the cartel was likely to keep output unchanged when it meets next week. However, some analysts believe the sharp fall in crude prices may harden Opec's attitude to over-production, leading to a scaling back of oil output.

Fears still remain over the level of US heating oil stocks, which are rising but remain down on 2004 levels. A cold spell in north America would start to deplete supplies and could spark further price rises. Analysts, however, say prices will fall further if inventories continue to rise. ""Mother Nature is going to be huge in the next several weeks,"" said Kyle Cooper, at Citigroup Global Markets. ""Long term I think we're headed to $30-35 but I don't think we're doing that yet. We have a lot of winter left."" John Person, president of National Futures Advisory Services, said the EIA data indicated there should be adequate supplies for the next three months in the US. .
"	business
Arsenal 'may seek full share listing'	"Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein has said the club may consider seeking a full listing for its shares on the London Stock Exchange.

Speaking at the Soccerex football business forum in Dubai, he said a full listing was ""one of the options"" for funding after the club moves to its new stadium. The club - which is currently listed on the smaller Ofex share exchange - is due to move into its new 60,000-seater Emirates Stadium at Ashburton Grove for the start of the 2006/07 season. Mr Dein also warned the current level of TV coverage of the Premiership may be reaching saturation level, with signs that match attendances have been dropping off in the first few months of this season.

When Arsenal moves to its new stadium it will see its proportion of turnover from media earnings drop from 52% this season to 34% in two years' time. The club is hoping to increase matchday earnings from 29% to 40% of turnover, and has not ruled out other money-earning means, including a full share listing. ""When the new stadium opens we will go through a thorough financial review,"" Mr Dein said.

""Listing would be one option, but we are flexible and no decisions have been made on that issue yet. ""We want to be in the best financial health - maybe clubs can do it (listing), Manchester United have been a success.""

Mr Dein said that, although television money and coverage had driven the English game forward in the past 10 years, he feared there might now be too many games being shown. Since the formation of the Premier League in season 1992/93, Premiership clubs have seen their income from television soar. ""Television has been the driving force over the past 10 years... but we must constantly improve if we want to remain as the world's leading league competition. ""We must monitor the quality of the product and ensure attendances do not decline, and we must balance that with the quantity of exposure on TV too. ""I think we have practically reached saturation point... sometimes I think less is more.""

The club is funding its move to Ashburton Grove through a number of sources, including debt from banks, from money it already has and will receive in coming years from sponsors, and from the sale of surplus property, including its Highbury Stadium. It is also looking to create new revenue streams from overseas markets, including Asia. ""We have two executives travelling round Japan and China at the moment building relationships with organisations and clubs, and we know our supporters clubs are growing there too, as they are around the world. ""We have got a very good product, so it is very important we go and look at these markets, and make sure we are on the case.""
"	business
Markets signal Brazilian recovery	"The Brazilian stock market has risen to a record high as investors display growing confidence in the durability of the country's economic recovery.

The main Bovespa index on the Sao Paolo Stock Exchange closed at 24,997 points on Friday, topping the previous record market close reached the previous day. The market's buoyancy reflects optimism about the Brazilian economy, which could grow by as much as 4.5% in 2004. Brazil is recovering from last year's recession - its worst in a decade.

Economic output declined 0.2% in 2003 and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - elected as Brazil's first working-class president in 2002 - was strongly criticised for pursuing a hardline economic policy.

Investors have praised his handling of the economy as foreign investment has risen, unemployment has fallen and inflation has been brought under control. Analysts believe the stock market will rise above the 25,000 mark for the first time before too long. ""There should be more space for gains until the end of the year, somewhere up to 27,000 points,"" said Paschoal Tadeu Buonomo, head of equities trading at brokers TOV. Brazil's currency, the real, also rose to its highest level against the dollar in more than two years on Friday. Although interest rates still stand at a punitive 17.25%, inflation has fallen from 9% to 7% while exports are booming, particularly of agricultural products. ""For the first time in decades, we have all three economic policy pillars in line during a recovery,"" Finance Minister Antonio Palocci told the Associated Press news agency. ""Government accounts are in surplus, we have a current account surplus and inflation is under control.""

Investors were deeply suspicious of President da Silva, a former trade union leader who campaigned on a programme of extensive land redistribution and a large rise in the minimum wage. However, Mr da Silva has stuck to an orthodox monetary policy inherited from his predecessor even in the face of last year's economic crisis. This has earned him the disapproval of rural farm workers, thousands of whom who took to the streets of Brasilia on Thursday to protest against government policies. President da Silva has defended his policies, arguing that Brazil cannot afford to continue the cycle of boom and bust which afflicted it in recent decades.
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Markets fall on weak dollar fears	"Rising oil prices and the sinking dollar hit shares on Monday after a finance ministers' meeting and stern words from Fed chief Alan Greenspan.

The London FTSE fell 0.8% while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 dropped 2.11%, its steepest fall in three months. G20 finance ministers said nothing about supporting the dollar, whose slide could further jeopardise growth in Japan and Europe. And Mr Greenspan warned Asian states could soon stop funding the US deficit.

On Monday afternoon, the euro was close to an all-time high against the dollar at above $1.30. Oil pushed higher too on Monday, as investors fretted about cold weather in the US and Europe and a potential output cut from oil producers' group Opec, although prices had cooled by the end of the day. In London, the benchmark Brent crude price closed down 51 cents at $44.38 a barrel, while New York light sweet crude closed down 25 cents at $48.64 a barrel. The slide comes as the US has been attempting to talk up the traditional ""strong dollar"" policy.

The latest to pitch in has been President George W Bush himself, who told the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (Apec) summit in Chile that he remained committed to halving the budget deficit. Together with a $500bn trade gap, the red ink spreading across America's public finances is widely seen as a key factor driving the dollar lower. And last week US Treasury Secretary John Snow told an audience in the UK that the policy remained unaltered. But he also said that the rate was entirely up to the markets - a signal which traders took as advice to sell the dollar. Some had looked to the G20 meeting for direction. But Mr Snow made clear exchange rates had not been on the agenda.

For the US government, letting the dollar drift is a useful short-term fix.

US exports get more affordable, helping perhaps to close the trade gap. In the meantime, the debt keeps getting bigger, with Congress authorising an $800bn rise in what the US can owe - taking the total to $8.2 trillion. But in a speech on Friday, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan warned that in the longer term things are likely to get tricky. At present, much of gap in both public debt is covered by selling bonds to Asian states such as Japan and China, since the dollar is seen as the world's reserve currency. Similarly, Asian investment helps bridge the gap in the current account - the deficit between what the US as a whole spends and what it earns. But already they are turning more cautious - an auction of debt in August found few takers. And Mr Greenspan said that could turn into a trend, if the fall of the dollar kept eating into the value of those investments. ""It seems persuasive that, given the size of the US current account deficit, a diminished appetite for adding to dollar balances must occur at some point,"" he said.
"	business
Google shares fall as staff sell	"Shares in Google have fallen 6.7% after employees and early investors in the web search took advantage of the first chance to sell their holdings.

Restrictions were imposed ahead of its flotation in August, to prevent shares being dumped quickly onto the market. In one of the most closely-watched initial public offerings in stock market history, the US-based company sold 19.6 million shares at $85 each. Google shares have risen since but fell $12.33 on Tuesday to close at $172.55. The restriction - known as a lockup - is being eased piecemeal: in all, some 227 million additional shares will become free to trade by February 2005. Selling the shares could turn many of Google's workers into millionaires.

There were fears that the potential increase of shares in circulation from Tuesday would ease demand for stock. However, analysts say they expected most shareholders would be holding back from selling all their shares immediately, as Google's good performance and future growth potential means demand will hold.

In its first earnings report since floating on the stock market, Google said it made a net profit of $52m in the three months ending 30 September. Sales surged to $805.9m in the third quarter, up from $393.9m a year earlier. Google's main service - its internet search - is free to users, so the firm makes much of its money from selling advertising space linked to the words for which its users search. It also sells the use of its technology to companies who need to make either their websites, or their internal information systems, searchable.
"	business
Five million Germans out of work	"Germany's unemployment figure rose above the psychologically important level of five million last month.

On Wednesday, the German Federal Labour Agency said the jobless total had reached 5.037 million in January, which takes the jobless rate to 12.1%. ""Yes, we have effectively more than five million people unemployed,"" a government minister said earlier on ZDF public television. Unemployment has not been this high in Germany since the 1930s.

Changes to the way the statistics are compiled partly explain the jump of 572,900 in the numbers. But the figures are embarrassing for the government. ""With the figures apparently the worst we've seen in the post-war period, these numbers are very charged politically,"" said Christian Jasperneite, an economist with MM Warburg. ""They could well put an end to the recent renaissance we've seen by the SPD [the ruling Social Democrats] in the polls, and with state elections due in Schleswig-Holstein and North Rhine-Westphalia, they may have an adverse effect on the government's chances there.""

The opposition also made political capital from the figures. It said there are a further 1.5 million-2 million people on subsidised employment schemes who are, in fact, looking for real jobs. It added that government reforms, including unpopular benefit cuts, do not go far enough. Under the government's controversial ""Hartz IV"" reforms, which came into effect at the beginning of the year, both those on unemployment benefits and welfare support and those who are long-term unemployed are officially classified as looking for work. The bad winter weather also took its toll, as key sectors such as the construction sector laid off workers. Adjusted for the seasonal factors, the German jobless total rose by 227,000 in January from December.
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India power shares jump on debut	"Shares in India's largest power producer, National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC) have risen 13% on their stock market debut.

The government's partial sell-off of NTPC is part of a controversial programme to privatise state-run firms. The 865 million share offer, a mix of new shares and sales by the government, raised 54bn rupees($1.2bn). It was India's second $1bn stock debut in three months, coming after the flotation by software firm Tata. The share offer was eleven times oversubscribed. ""It is a good investment bet,"" said Suhas Naik, an investment analyst from ING Mutual Fund. ""Power needs in India are set to rise and NTPC will benefit from that."" Analysts say the success of the NTPC flotation would encourage the government to reduce stakes in more power companies. NTPC has said it will use the money from the share sale to feed the growing needs of the country's energy-starved economy. The firm is the largest utility company in India, and the sixth largest power producer in the world.
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Turkey turns on the economic charm	"Three years after a gruelling economic crisis, Turkey has dressed its economy to impress.

As part of a charm offensive - ahead of 17 December, when the European Union will decide whether to start entry talks - Turkey's economic leaders have been banging the drum to draw attention to recent achievements. The economy is growing fast, they insist. Education levels among its young and large population are rising. Unemployment levels, in percentage terms, are heading fast towards single digits. Inflation is under control. A new law to govern its turbulent banking system is on the cards. The tourism industry is booming and revenues from visitors should more than double to $21bn (£10.8bn) in three years.

Moreover, government spending is set to be frozen and a burdensome social security deficit is being tackled. Income and corporate taxes will be cut next year in order to attract $15bn of foreign investment over the next three years. A loan restructuring deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is pretty much in the can. And following recent macroeconomic restructuring efforts, its currency is floating freely and its central bank is independent.

The point of all this has been to convince Europe's decision makers that rather than being a phenomenally costly exercise for the EU, allowing Turkey in would in fact bring masses of economic benefits.

""The cake will be bigger for everybody,"" said Deputy Prime Minister Abdullatif Sener earlier this month. ""Turkey will not be a burden for the EU budget."" If admitted into the EU, Turkey would contribute almost 6bn euros ($8bn; £6bn) to its budget by 2014, according to a recent impact study by the country's State Planning Organisation. As Turkey's gross domestic output (GDP) is set to grow by 6% per year on average, its contribution would rise from less than 5bn euros in 2014 to almost 9bn euros by 2020. Turkey could also help alleviate a labour shortage in ""Old Europe"" once its population comes of age. By 2014, one in four Turks - or about 18 million people - will be aged 14 or less. ""A literate and qualified Turkish population,"" insisted Mr Sener, ""will make a positive impact on the EU.""

This runs contrary to the popular view that Turkey is getting ready to dig deep into EU taxpayers' wallets. However, Turkey's assertions are confirmed by Brussels' own impact studies, which indeed say that Turkish membership would be good news for the EU economy. But only over time. Costs are projected to be vast during the early years of Turkey's membership, with subsidies alone estimated to exceed 16.5bn euros and, according to some predictions, balloon to 33.5bn euros. This would include vast agricultural subsidies and regional aid, though such payments should decline as the country's farm sector, which currently employs one in three Turks, would employ just one in five by 2020.

Such high initial expenses would be coupled with risks that the benefits flagged up by Turkey's government would never be delivered, say those who feel the Turkish project should be shunned.

Some fear that rather than providing an educated, sophisticated labour force for Europe at large, the people who will leave Turkey to seek work abroad will be poor, uneducated - and plentiful. More recently, less palatable concerns - at least in liberal European circles - have been voiced, with senior EU or member state officials talking darkly of a ""river of Islam"", an ""oriental"" culture and a threat to Europe's ""cultural richness"". Of course, many opponents are politically motivated - their views ranging from xenophobic prejudices about the country's Muslim traditions to well-documented concerns about the government's human rights record. Yet their economic arguments should not be dismissed out of hand.

Critics insist that much of the optimism about Turkey's economic roadmap has been over-egged - an argument amplified by a 134% rise in the country's current account deficit to $10.7bn during the first 10 months of this year.

The country's massive debt - which includes $23bn owed to the IMF and billions borrowed via the international bond markets - also remains a major obstacle to its ambition of joining the EU. ""In the new member states of the European Union, gross public debt is typically about 40% of gross domestic product,"" says Reza Moghadam, assistant director of the IMF's European Department. ""At about 80% of GDP, Turkey's gross debt is double that figure."" Turkey's debts have largely arisen from its efforts to push through banking reform after a run on the banks in 2001 caused the country's devastating recession. ""There is no question that although Turkey is doing much better than in the past, it remains quite vulnerable,"" says Michael Deppler, director of the IMF's European Department. ""Its debt is far too high for an emerging economy."" A key factor for EU decision makers should be whether or not Turkey has met its economic criteria. But economics is not a science. And although the state of Turkey's economy is important, as is its pace of reform, the final decision on 17 December will be taken by politicians who will, of course, be guided by their political instincts.
"	business
SBC plans post-takeover job cuts	"US phone company SBC Communications said it expects to cut around 12,800 jobs following its $16bn (£8.5bn) takeover of former parent AT&T.

SBC said 5,125 positions would go as a result of network efficiencies. Another 1,700 will go from its sales department, 3,400 from business operations and 2,600 across legal, advertising and public relations. SBC currently employs 163,000 people while AT&T employs 47,000. The takeover was announced on Monday. The deal will be financed with $15bn of shares as well as a $1bn special dividend paid to AT&T shareholders.

It effectively marks the end of AT&T, which was founded in 1875 by telephone pioneer Alexander Graham Bell and is one of the US's best-known companies. SBC and AT&T said estimated cost savings of at least $2bn from 2008 were a main driver for the merger. AT&T is a long-distance telecoms firm, while SBC is mainly focused on the local market in the western US. Both also have data network businesses. The takeover is subject to approval by AT&T's shareholders and regulators. The companies said they expected to complete the agreement during the first half of 2006.
"	business
German bidder in talks with LSE	"Deutsche Boerse bosses have held ""constructive, professional and friendly"" talks with the London Stock Exchange (LSE), its chief has said.

Werner Seifert met LSE chief executive Clara Furse amid rumours the German group may raise its bid to £1.5bn ($2.9bn) from its initial £1.3bn offer. However, rival suitor Euronext also upped the ante in the bid battle. Ahead of talks with the LSE on Friday, the pan-European bourse said it may be prepared to make its offer in cash. The Paris-based exchange, owner of Liffe in London, is reported to be ready to raise £1.4bn to fund a bid.

The news came as Deutsche Boerse held its third meeting with the LSE since its bid approach in December which was turned down by the London exchange for undervaluing the business. However, the LSE did agree to leave the door open for talks to find out whether a ""significantly-improved proposal"" would be in the interests of LSE's shareholders and customers. In the meantime, Euronext, which combines the Paris, Amsterdam and Lisbon stock exchanges, also began talks with the LSE. In a statement on Thursday, Euronext said any offer was likely to be solely in cash, but added that: ""There can be no assurances at this stage that any offer will be made."" A deal with either bidder would create the biggest stock market operator in Europe and the second biggest in the world after the New York Stock Exchange. However, neither side has made a formal offer for the LSE, with sources claiming such a step may still be weeks away.

Deutsche Boerse could also face mounting opposition to a bid at home. Among sweeteners reported to have been discussed by Mr Seifert with Ms Furse were plans to move the management of its cash and Eurex derivatives market to London, as well as two members of its executive board. But, Hans Reckers, a board member of Germany's central bank, the Bundesbank, said that cash trading should also remain in Frankfurt, something Deutsche Boerse could move to the UK. ""It is not just the headquarters of the Boerse but also important market segments that must stay permanently in Frankfurt. This has special importance for the business activities of the banks and the consultants,"" he said. Local government officials in Frankfurt's state of Hessen have also spoken out against the move. ""It is our wish that the headquarters stay here to maintain Frankfurt's standing as the number one financial centre in continental Europe,"" Alois Rhiel, its minister for economic affairs added.
"	business
Amex shares up on spin-off news	"Shares in American Express surged more than 8% on Tuesday after it said it was to spin off its less profitable financial advisory subsidiary.

The US credit card to travel services giant said off-loading American Express Financial Advisors (AEFA) would boost its profitability. AEFA has more than 12,000 advisers selling financial advice, funds and insurance to 2.5 million customers. Over the years it has delivered poor profits and even some losses.

""This is an excellent move by American Express to focus on its core businesses, and sell off a laggard division, which has been a problem for quite some time,"" said Marquis Investment Research analyst Phil Kain. Analysts estimate that a stand-alone AEFA could have a market value of $10bn (£5.3bn). The unit was acquired by American Express 20 years ago as Investors Diversified Service, of Minneapolis, at a time when firms were amassing one-stop financial empires. However, the business of selling investments was never integrated with the rest of the group.
"	business
Axa Sun Life cuts bonus payments	"Life insurer Axa Sun Life has lowered annual bonus payouts for up to 50,000 with-profits investors.

Regular annual bonus rates on former Axa Equity & Law with-profits policies are to be cut from 2% to 1% for 2004. Axa blamed a poor stock market performance for the cut, adding that recent gains have not yet offset the market falls seen in 2001 and 2002. The cut will hit an estimated 3% of Axa's policyholders. The rest will know their fate in March.

The cuts on Axa's policies will mean a policyholder who had invested £50 a month into an endowment policy for the past 25 years would see a final maturity payout of £46,998. This equated to a annual investment growth rate of 8% Axa said. With-profits policies are designed to smooth out the peaks and troughs of stock market volatility. However, heavy stock market falls throughout 2001 and 2002 forced most firms to trim bonus rates on their policies. ""The stock market has grown over the past 18 months, however not enough to undo the damage that occurred during 2001 and 2002,"" Axa spokesman Mark Hamilton, Axa spokesman, told BBC News. Axa cut payouts for the same investors last January.
"	business
Chinese dam firm 'defies Beijing'	"The China Three Gorges Project Corp is refusing to obey a government order to stop construction of one of its giant dams, the Chinese state press has said.

The builder of the Three Gorges Dam is continuing work on the sister Xiluodu dam, said the Beijing News. The Xiluodu dam is one of 30 such large-scale construction projects called to a halt because of a lack of proper environmental checks. The Beijing News said the company may instead choose to pay a fine. The firm has also ignored orders to stop construction at two of its other projects - the Three Gorges Underground Power Plant and the Three Gorges Project Electrical Power Supply Plant.

So far, only 22 of the 30 construction projects targeted by China's State Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) for having not carried out mandatory environmental impact assessments have complied with its shutdown order. The China Three Gorges Project Corp could now face a fine up to 200,000 yuan ($24,000; £12,700). Last week, it denied that its projects violated regulations. ""The Three Gorges Corporation has all along abided by the law and have built our projects in accordance with the law,"" it said.

The Sepa order comes as the Chinese government appears to be trying to cool the country's booming economy. Previously it has encouraged construction of new electricity generating capacity to solve chronic energy shortages, which forced many factories into part-time working last year. In 2004, China increased its generating capacity by 12.6% to 440,700 megawatts (MW). The Xiluodu Dam is designed to produce 12,600 MW of electricity, and is being built on the Jinshajiang - or ""river of golden sand"" as the upper reaches of the Yangtze are known. It is a sister project to the main Three Gorges Dam downstream where more than half a million people have had to be relocated, drawing criticism from environmental groups and overseas human rights activists.
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Stock market eyes Japan recovery	"Japanese shares have ended the year at their highest level since 13 July amidst hopes of an economic recovery during 2005.

The Nikkei index of leading shares gained 7.6% during the year to close at 11,488.76 points. In 2005 it ""will rise toward 13,000"", predicted Morgan Stanley equity strategist Naoki Kamiyama. The optimism in the financial markets contrast sharply with pessimism in the Japanese business community. Earlier this month, the quarterly Tankan survey of Japanese manufacturers found that business confidence had weakened for the first time since March 2003.

Slower economic growth, rising oil prices, a stronger yen and weaker exports were blamed for the fall in confidence. Despite this, traders expect strength in the global economy to benefit Japan, which has been close to sliding into recession in recent months. Structural reform within Japan and an anticipated end to the banking sector's bad debt problems should also help, they say.
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Iraqi voters turn to economic issues	"Beyond the desperate security situation in Iraq lies an economy in tatters.

A vicious cycle of unemployment, poor social services and poverty has been made worse by a lack of investment. So there is much hope that an elected government will break the deadlock. ""First rule of law, then the economy,"" says Radwan Hadi, deputy managing director of Aberdeen-based oil and gas consultancy Blackwatch Petroleum Services, which entered Iraq in 2003. Mr Hadi's view about what the new government's priorities should be is shared by many Iraqis. The economy has become the second-most dominant issue for many political parties ahead of Sunday's election, according to Bristol University political scientist Anne Alexander, who is working on a project that looks at governance and security in post-war Iraq.

Job creation ranks high both on election manifestos and on the Iraqi people's wish list. Nobody knows exactly how many Iraqis are out of work, but it is clear that the situation is dire. ""Estimates of Iraq's unemployment rate vary, but we estimate it to be between 30-40%,"" the Washington-based independent think-tank The Brookings Institution says in its Iraq Index. But some progress has been made, largely thanks to the country's oil revenues which have exceeded $22bn since June 2003.

Iraq's infrastructure is on the mend, with notable improvements having been made in areas such as electricity supply, irrigation, telephone networks and the re-opening of hospitals. But serious problems remain and the growing divide between haves and have-nots is angering voters. One Iraqi woman told Ms Alexander about her frustration as she watched TV adverts for private hospitals soon after having failed to track down basic medicines from Baghdad's pharmacies. Observes Mr Hadi: ""The economy at present marks a big divide; the rich get richer, the poor get poorer."" An indication of this can be seen in the world of finance where, in contrast with the daily plight of ordinary people, 19 private banks operate, only one of which is run in accordance with Islamic banking principles. Hopes are high for the future of finance, so foreign banks have been buying into the sector. National Bank of Kuwait has bought a majority stake in Credit Bank of Iraq, the Jordanian investment bank Export & Finance Bank has bought 49% of National Bank of Iraq.

Foreign firms also hope to cash in on the reconstruction effort. Bechtel's efforts to rebuild schools and restore power have attracted controversy as well as boosting its bottom line while Halliburton has enjoyed a wealth of military contracts. But the involvement of foreign firms in the health and banking sectors and beyond sits uneasily with many Iraqis who are accustomed to the state taking responsibility for functions that are essential to making society work, observes Ms Alexander. ""It is seen as a selling off of Iraq's assets and bringing in multinationals at the expense of Iraqi businesses and Iraqi workers,"" she says. Consequently, the transitional government has been forced to backtrack in recent months over its proposal to allow 100% foreign ownership of Iraqi assets, she explains. In the West, it is easy to forget that the otherwise brutal Baathist regime used to look after the majority of Iraq's citizens rather well in terms of job creation, social security and healthcare. Opinion polls suggest that ""people still want the state to take a leading role in providing these things"", Ms Alexander says.

Yet in some areas of the economy, investment from abroad is still warmly welcomed, insists Mr Hadi, an Iraqi who left the country three decades ago. ""I think the private sector will evolve incredibly fast,"" Mr Hadi says. ""Iraq's vast natural resources can support any magnitude of economic growth.""

Many foreign companies say they are keen to get in on the act, yet few are actually entering the country in any meaningful way. But there are exceptions. Mr Hadi's Blackwatch is just one of many small operators preparing for a much bigger future. Blackwatch's Baghdad-based affiliate Falcon Group has dozens of people working for it across the country in Kirkuk and Baghdad, and its engineers and geo-scientists work with the Iraqi oil ministry to hammer out technology transfer issues, Mr Hadi points out. ""These guys are trying to work. The Iraqi business people will do business at all times. ""Life goes on in Iraq, the people take responsibility, they want to live normal lives.""
"	business
EU 'too slow' on economic reforms	"Most EU countries have failed to put in place policies aimed at making Europe the world's most competitive economy by the end of the decade, a report says.

The study, undertaken by the European Commission, sought to assess how far the EU has moved towards meeting its economic targets. In 2000, EU leaders at a summit in Lisbon pledged the European economy would outstrip that of the US by 2010. Their economic targets became known as the Lisbon Agenda. But the Commission report says that, in most EU countries, the pace of economic reform has been too slow, and fulfilling the Lisbon ambitions will be difficult - if not impossible.

Only the UK, Finland, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands have actually followed up policy recommendations. Among the biggest laggards, according to the report, are Greece and Italy. The Lisbon Agenda set out to increase the number of people employed in Europe by encouraging more older people and women to stay in the workforce. It also set out to raise the amount the private sector spends on research and development, while bringing about greater discipline over public spending and debt levels. Combined with high environmental standards and efforts to level the playing field for businesses throughout the EU, the plan was for Europe to become the world's most dynamic economy by 2010. Next week, the Commission will present revised proposals to meet the Lisbon goals. Many people expect the 2010 target to be quietly dropped.
"	business
China continues breakneck growth	"China's economy has expanded by a breakneck 9.5% during 2004, faster than predicted and well above 2003's 9.1%.

The news may mean more limits on investment and lending as Beijing tries to take the economy off the boil. China has sucked in raw materials and energy to feed its expansion, which could have knock-on effects on the rest of the world if it overheats. But officials pointed out that industrial growth had slowed, with services providing much of the impetus. Growth in industrial output - the main target of government efforts to impose curbs on credit and investments - was 11.5% in 2004, down from 17% the previous year.

Still, consumer prices - at 2.4% - rose faster than in 2004, adding to concern that a sharp rise in producer prices of 7.1% could stoke inflation. And overall investment in fixed assets was still high, up 21.3% from the previous year - although some way off the peak of 43% seen in the first quarter of 2004. The result could be higher interest rates. China raised rates by 0.27 percentage points to 5.8% - its first hike in nine years - in October 2004.

Despite the apparent rebalancing of the economy the overall growth picture remains strong, economists said. ""There is no sign of a slowdown in 2005,"" said Tim Congdon, economist at ING Barings.

China's economy is not only gathering speed thanks to domestic demand, but also from soaring sales overseas. Figures released earlier this year showed exports at a six-year high in 2004, up 35%. Part of the impetus comes from the relative cheapness of the yuan, China's currency. The government keeps it pegged close to a rate of 8.28 to the US dollar, - much to the chagrin of many US lawmakers who blame China for lost jobs and competitiveness. Despite urging to ease the peg, officials insist they are a long way from ready to make a shift to a more market-set rate. ""We need a good and feasible plan and formulating such a plan also needs time,"" National Bureau of Statistics chief Li Deshui told Reuters. ""Those who hope to make a fortune by speculating on a renminbi revaluation will not succeed in making a profit.""
"	business
Japan's ageing workforce: built to last	"In his twenties he battled tuberculosis for eight years, then went on to run his own clothing business before marrying in his late thirties. And the 101-year-old Torao Toshitsune has eaten raw fish pretty much every day throughout his life.

Mr Toshitsune is one of Japan's 23,000 centenarians - a club that is growing by 13% annually, and where the oldest member is 114. At his neat Osaka detached house, where he lives with one of his sexagenarian daughters, Mr Toshitsune keeps a regular routine of copying out Buddhist sutras and preparing the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Between tasks, this remarkably active senior citizen reveals what his next goal is: ""Well, what's most important for me is to be Japan's number one."" Mr Toshitsune wants to outlive everyone. And when it comes to longevity, Japan, as a country, appears to be doing just that. Women can expect to live until 85, men until 78, four years longer than Americans and Europeans.

On the outskirts of Kyoto, 83-year-old Yuji Shimizu contemplates this phenomenon during a round of golf with his younger friends, who are in their seventies.

""I think this is because the food industry and the environment have improved,"" he remarks. ""On average, we can live longer."" Whether it's the diet, or the traditional family structure where roles were clearly defined, or just something in the genes, Japan's elderly are remarkable. But while life may be a game of golf for Mr Shimizu, his grandchildren have huge problems ahead. Japan is the world's least fertile nation with childbirth rates of just two thirds of that in the US.

By 2007, Japan's population is expected to peak at 127 million, then shrink to under 100 million by the middle of the century. This means 30 million fewer workers at a time when the number of elderly will have almost doubled.

""In the year 2050, if the birth rate remains the same people over 60 will make up over 30% of the population,"" explains Shigeo Morioka of the International Longevity Centre in Tokyo. So how will Japan's finances stay on track? After a decade of economic stagnation and huge deficit spending, the public sector debt is already about 140% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), the highest rate among industrialised countries. The International Monetary Fund predicts that as the falling birth rate takes grip from 2010, the cost of running Japan's welfare state will double to more than 5% of GDP, while current account balances will deteriorate by over 2%. But unfortunately, Japan appears poorly prepared both financially and politically. Glen Wood, Vice President of Deutsche Securities Japan, asks; ""Who's going to fund the pension fund for the next generation and indeed who are going to be the new Japanese worker? ""Who is going to build the economy, who are going to be the leaders? Who are going to be the producers of the GDP going forward?"" One option is further welfare reform. Another is immigration, possibly from the Philippines and Indonesia. But so far, any emerging policy appears restricted to a limited number of nursing staff.

Standing next to Tokyo harbour is a version of New York's Statue of Liberty. But, as yet, Japan is not ready for an Ellis Island.

""Japan has never really liked that option in its history and I think it's an option that's becoming more and more plausible and necessary,"" insists Mr Wood. In Japan, as in Europe which also faces a workforce decline, immigration is a very sensitive subject. But for the Japanese economy, facing 8% fewer consumers by 2050 means slumping domestic sales of cars, hi-tech kit and home appliances, perhaps even another property crash.

Of course the Japanese could always have more children. The government is currently considering financial rewards for procreative couples similar to those in operation in Australia. But there would be no pay back until 2030, when today's babies are taxpayers, and the demographic crisis, like in Europe, starts to unfold in 2010. In contrast to Japan - and of course the European Union - the US population is expected to increase by 46% to 420 million by the middle of the century. Although President Bush must re-devise Social Security to take account of a 130% rise in America's over 65s, the IMF foresees a positive contribution to the US current account balance from the combined forces of fertility and immigration.

Some voices in Japanese industry are calling for radical changes to the nature of the Japanese labour market. They want a shift towards financial services, though doubts persist over the country's ability, let alone willingness, to move away from manufacturing. ""Japan still has problems getting a viable banking system, let alone shifting their auto business or their semi-conductor business or the broad based tech manufacturing business overseas,"" says Mr Wood. Japan can either drive some radical reforms or else run the risk of a vicious ageing recession. Falling demand and a lower tax take could result in soaring budget pressures and a basket case currency. Come 2020, Japan could be more dependent on a shrinking workforce than any other industrialised power. There are fears that the world's number two economy is doomed to a permanent recession. But none of this is Mr Toshitsune's concern anymore. At 101, he chuckles that, he feels fine.
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GE sees 'excellent' world economy	"US behemoth General Electric has posted an 18% jump in quarterly sales, and in profits, and declared itself ""in great shape"".

""We are benefiting from our growth initiatives and an excellent global economy,"" said GE's chief executive Jeff Immelt. GE is the US' biggest firm based on stock market valuation. GE's net profits were $5.37bn (£2.86bn) for the final three months of 2004, while sales came in at $43.7bn. The group, whose businesses range from jet engines to the NBC television channel, forecast sustained growth at between 10-15% for this year and next. GE's shares rose 1% on the news before ending Friday 0.24% lower.

""The industries GE is in are doing very well. The materials, financial and industrial sectors are all picking up,"" said Steve Roukis, an analyst at fund manager Matrix Asset Advisors, which has shares in GE. GE said orders in the fourth quarter were 15% higher than in the same period of 2003, ""with growth across the board"". ""In the fourth quarter, nine of our 11 businesses delivered at least double-digit earnings growth,"" said Mr Immelt. Full year 2004 gains were less spectacular, but still respectable. Net profit was up 6% at $16.6bn. Last year, GE bought Vivendi Universal, merging it with NBC to form NBC Universal. The success of Universal Studio's film 'Ray', a portrait of jazz musician Ray Charles, has helped boost earnings at the unit.
"	business
UK economy facing 'major risks'	"The UK manufacturing sector will continue to face ""serious challenges"" over the next two years, the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) has said.

The group's quarterly survey of companies found exports had picked up in the last three months of 2004 to their best levels in eight years. The rise came despite exchange rates being cited as a major concern. However, the BCC found the whole UK economy still faced ""major risks"" and warned that growth is set to slow. It recently forecast economic growth will slow from more than 3% in 2004 to a little below 2.5% in both 2005 and 2006.

Manufacturers' domestic sales growth fell back slightly in the quarter, the survey of 5,196 firms found. Employment in manufacturing also fell and job expectations were at their lowest level for a year.

""Despite some positive news for the export sector, there are worrying signs for manufacturing,"" the BCC said. ""These results reinforce our concern over the sector's persistent inability to sustain recovery."" The outlook for the service sector was ""uncertain"" despite an increase in exports and orders over the quarter, the BCC noted.

The BCC found confidence increased in the quarter across both the manufacturing and service sectors although overall it failed to reach the levels at the start of 2004. The reduced threat of interest rate increases had contributed to improved confidence, it said. The Bank of England raised interest rates five times between November 2003 and August last year. But rates have been kept on hold since then amid signs of falling consumer confidence and a slowdown in output. ""The pressure on costs and margins, the relentless increase in regulations, and the threat of higher taxes remain serious problems,"" BCC director general David Frost said. ""While consumer spending is set to decelerate significantly over the next 12-18 months, it is unlikely that investment and exports will rise sufficiently strongly to pick up the slack.""
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Bank holds interest rate at 4.75%	"The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold again at 4.75%, in a widely-predicted move.

Rates went up five times from November 2003 - as the bank sought to cool the housing market and consumer debt - but have remained unchanged since August. Recent data has indicated a slowdown in manufacturing and consumer spending, as well as in mortgage approvals. And retail sales disappointed over Christmas, with analysts putting the drop down to less consumer confidence.

Rising interest rates and the accompanying slowdown in the housing market have knocked consumers' optimism, causing a sharp fall in demand for expensive goods, according to a report earlier this week from the British Retail Consortium. The BRC said Britain's retailers had endured their worst Christmas in a decade.

""Today's no change decision is correct,"" said David Frost, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). ""But, if there are clear signs that the economy slows, the MPC should be ready to take quick corrective action and cut rates. ""Dismal reports from the retail trade about Christmas sales are worrying, if they indicate a more general weakening in consumer spending.""

Mr Frost added: ""The housing market outlook remains highly uncertain. ""It is widely accepted that, if house prices start falling more sharply, the risks facing the economy will worsen considerably."" CBI chief economist Ian McCafferty said the economy had ""slowed in recent months in response to rate rises"" but that it was difficult to gauge from the Christmas period the likely pace of activity through the summer. ""The Bank is having to juggle the emergence of inflationary pressures, driven by a tight labour market and buoyant commodity prices, against the risk of an over-abrupt slowdown in consumer activity,"" he said. ""Interest rates are likely to remain on hold for some time.""

On Thursday there was more gloomy news on the manufacturing front, as the Office for National (ONS) statistics revealed British manufacturing output unexpectedly fell in November - for the fifth month in the past six. The ONS said manufacturing output dropped 0.1% in November, matching a similar unrevised fall in October and confounding economists' expectations of a 0.3% rise. Manufacturers' organisation, the EEF, said it expected the hold in interest rates to continue in the near future. It also said there was evidence that manufacturers' confidence may be waning as the outlook for the world economy becomes more uncertain.

""So far the evidence suggests that last year's rate increases have helped to rebalance the economy without damaging the recovery in manufacturing,"" said EEF chief economist, Steve Radley. ""However, should the business outlook start to deteriorate, the Bank should stand ready to cut rates."" Some economists have predicted rates will drop later in the year, although others feel the Bank may still think there is a need for a rise to 5% before that happens. The Bank remains concerned about the long-term risks posed by personal debt - which is rising at 15% a year - if economic conditions worsen.
"	business
Tobacco giants hail court ruling	"US tobacco companies have welcomed an appeal court's decision to reject the government's $280bn (£155bn) claim for alleged deceit about smoking dangers.

Tobacco stocks rose sharply on Wall Street after the 2-1 decision. The court in Washington found the case - filed by the Clinton administration in 1999 - could not be brought under federal anti-racketeering laws. Anti-smoking groups urge the government to fight on, but the Justice Department has not said if it will appeal. Among the accused were Altria Group, RJ Reynolds Tobacco, Lorillard Tobacco, Liggett Group and Brown and Williamson. They were delighted by the decision, which sent Reynolds shares up 4.5% and Altria shares up 5.11%.

Charles A Blixt, executive vice-president of RJ Reynolds Tobacco, said the ruling ""dramatically transforms"" the government's lawsuit. Altria Group said, in a statement, the government now ""must not only prove that the companies have engaged in fraudulent behaviour in the past, but that they are likely to do so in the future.""

The government had claimed tobacco firms


 - manipulated nicotine levels to increase addiction 
 - targeted teenagers with multi-billion dollar advertising campaigns 
 - lied about the dangers of smoking and ignored research to the contrary. 
 

Prosecutors wanted the cigarette firms to ""disgorge"" $280bn in profits accumulated over the past 50 years and impose tougher rules on marketing their products. They brought the case under racketeering laws, which were passed to deny mafia gangs the profits of their crimes. But the tobacco companies denied that they illegally conspired to promote smoking and defraud the public. They also said they had already met many of the government's demands in a landmark $206bn settlement reached with 46 states in 1998. The three-judge panel in the District of Columbia's Court of Appeals ruled on Friday that the US government could not sue the firms under the anti-racketeering laws. Judge David Sentelle, in his ruling, said such laws were aimed at putting an end to illegal conduct going forward. ""We hold that the language of (the law) and the comprehensive remedial scheme of (the law) preclude disgorgement as a possible remedy in this case,"" he wrote. The Justice Department refused to say if it would appeal. ""All we're saying today is that we have received the ruling and are reviewing it,"" a spokeswoman said on Friday. But William Corr of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids urged the government to continue pressing its case. ""Today's ruling should not be an excuse for this administration to seek a weak settlement that lets the tobacco industry off the hook,"" he said.
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Steady job growth continues in US	"The US created fewer jobs than expected in December, but analysts said that the dip in hiring was not enough to derail the world's biggest economy.

According to Labor Department figures, 157,000 new jobs were added last month. That took 2004's total to 2.2 million, the best showing in five years. Job creation was one of last year's main concerns for the US economy. While worries still remain, the conditions are set for steady growth in 2005, analysts said. The unemployment rate stayed at 5.4% in December, and about 200,000 jobs will need to be created each month if that figure is to drop.

""It was a respectable report,"" said Michael Moran, analyst at Daiwa Securities.

""Payroll growth in December was a little lighter than the consensus forecast, but we had upward revisions to the prior two months and an increase in manufacturing employment."" ""Manufacturing is a cyclical area of the economy and if it's showing job growth, it's a good indication that the economy is on a solid growth track."" That means that the Federal Reserve is likely to continue its policy of raising interest rates. The Fed lifted borrowing costs five times last year to 2.25%, citing evidence the US economic recovery was becoming more robust.

Job creation was one of last year's main concerns for the US economy, and proved to be a main topic of debate in the US presidential election. While demand for workers is far from booming, the conditions are set for steady growth. ""Overall, compared to the previous year it looks great, it just keeps going stronger and stronger and I expect that to be the case"" in 2005, said Kurt Karl, economist at Swiss Re in New York. Meanwhile, economists cautioned against reading too much into data from the Federal Reserve showing an unexpected $8.7bn drop in consumer debt in November. A fall in consumer spending, which makes up about two-thirds of all US economic activity, could help limit the extent of any future interest rate rises. But economists said there could be a number of reasons for a fall in the borrowing, which include credit cards and personal loans, while noting that such figures can vary on a month-to-month basis.
"	business
Glazer makes new Man Utd approach	"Malcolm Glazer has made a fresh approach to buy Manchester United, which could lead to a bid valuing the Premiership club at £800m.

The US tycoon, who has been wooing the club for the last 12 months, has approached the United board with ""detailed proposals"", it has confirmed. Mr Glazer, who owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, hopes this will lead to a formal bid being accepted. His new offer is expected to contain substantially less debt. Mr Glazer has already had one takeover attempt turned down by the Red Devils and responded by using his 28.1% shareholding to vote off three board members last November.

Man United had turned down the bid because it was based on a high level of borrowing. But newspapers have speculated recently that the tycoon had gained the support of leading banks to come up with a stronger and less debt-laden bid. Last week, however, Mr Glazer issued a statement to the Stock Exchange distancing himself from a new bid.

Meanwhile, United's chief executive David Gill said in December that talks would not resume unless Glazer came up with ""definitive proposals"". Now the board has confirmed that the US bidder is back, with a statement issued on Sunday reading: ""The board can confirm it has now received a detailed proposal subject to various preconditions which may form the basis of an offer. ""A further announcement will be made in due course.""

To succeed Malcolm Glazer will still need the approval of major shareholders John Magnier and JP McManus, who own 28.9% of the club. But the Irish duo have cut off talks with Glazer over the proposed sale of their stake and have so far made no comment on his latest approach. United fans have reacted with anger at the announcement. They have vehemently opposed any proposed takeover by Glazer since he first showed interest in the club in September 2003 and after Sunday's announcement they vowed to fight on. ""We will fight tooth and nail to stop him whatever his offer says. We do not want him or anybody else taking over United,"" said Mark Longden of the Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association. ""The campaign against this proposed takeover will continue as it has done since Glazer first showed interest in the club.""
"	business
Wall Street cheers Bush victory	"The US stock market has closed higher in response to George W Bush's victory in the presidential elections.

The benchmark Dow Jones share index closed more than 1% higher at 10,137, while the Nasdaq rose 0.9% to 2,004. Many investors believe that Mr Bush's policies are more business-friendly than those of his Democrat challenger, John Kerry. The higher share prices also reflect relief that a clear winner has emerged from what proved to be a tight poll.

Investors had worried that the outcome of the poll would be inconclusive, paving the way for a repeat of the legal wrangling that marred the 2000 election.

The Dow lost 5% of its value in the three weeks immediately after that election, when it was unclear who would occupy the White House. Mr Kerry conceded defeat on Wednesday, abandoning last-ditch hopes of carrying the vote in the swing state of Ohio. ""The relief for the markets may be that we have a decision and can move forward,"" said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer of Solaris Asset Management. Some analysts predicted that the jump in share prices would be short-lived, saying investors would quickly focus once again on the health of the US economy. ""I would look at the stock market rally for Bush as kind of a one-day event,"" said Ken Mayland at Clearview Economics. The US' recent economic performance has been mixed, with solid growth offset by disappointingly low job creation figures, and mounting worries over a record budget deficit. Elsewhere in the financial markets on Wednesday, the dollar dipped slightly against the euro and climbed against the yen, while US oil prices closed up $1.26 at $50.88 a barrel in New York. The rise in oil prices partly reflects the view that President Bush is less likely than Mr Kerry to release supplies from the US' strategic oil reserve. Share prices in London, Frankfurt and Paris also closed higher.

Successive polls in the run-up to Tuesday's election had shown the two candidates running neck and neck.

Economic issues, as well as the war in Iraq, were the forefront of the campaign. In key swing states such as Ohio, which has suffered substantial job losses in the past four years, President Bush's handling of the economy became a crucial election issue. Senator Kerry attacked President Bush's economic record during his campaign, hammering home the fact that a net 800,000 jobs were lost during his term in office. President Bush focused on the fact that two million jobs have been created in the past year, claiming that it has vindicated his tax-cutting agenda. As for future policies, both candidates pledged to bring America's $422bn federal budget deficit under control. Senator Kerry planned to increase taxes on those earning more than $200,000 a year. President Bush has placed reform of the pensions system at the heart of his economic agenda for a second term. However, economists have said both candidates' economic programmes rested on questionable assumptions about future growth.
"	business
Business confidence dips in Japan	"Business confidence among Japanese manufacturers has weakened for the first time since March 2003, the quarterly Tankan survey has found.

Slower economic growth, rising oil prices, a stronger yen and weaker exports were blamed for the fall. December's confidence level was below that seen in September, the Bank of Japan said. However, September's reading was the strongest for 13 years. ""The economy is at a pause but unlikely to fall"", the economy minister said. ""It will feel a bit slower (next year) than this year, and growth may be a bit more gentle but the situation is that the recovery will continue,"" said economy minister Heizo Takenaka. In the Bank of Japan's December survey, the balance of big manufacturers saying business conditions are better, minus those saying they are worse, was 22, down from 26 in September.

Japan's economy grew by just 0.1% in the three months to September, according revised data issued this month. With the recovery slowing, the world's second biggest economy is now expected grow by 0.2% in 2004. The Tankan index is based on a survey of 10,227 firms. Big manufacturers were even more pessimistic about the first quarter of 2005; their views suggest the March reading could go as low as 15 - still in positive territory, but weaker. The dollar's decline has strengthened the yen, making Japanese exports more expensive in the US. China's attempts to cool down its fast-growing economy have also hit Japanese industry's sales abroad. Confidence among non-manufacturers was unchanged in the final quarter of 2004, but it is forecast to drop one point in the March survey. Nonetheless, Japanese firms have been stepping up capital investment, and the survey found the pace is quickening. Companies reported they expect to invest 7.7% more in the year to March 2005 than the previous year - up from expectations of 6.1% increase in the September Tankan.
"	business
Millions 'to lose textile jobs'	"Millions of the world's poorest textile trade workers will lose their jobs under new trade rules to be introduced in the new year, a charity has warned.

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is to end its Multi-Fibre Agreement (MFA) on midnight of 31 December. Christian Aid condemned the move, saying it would see almost a million jobs in Bangladesh alone being axed. However, supporters of the change claim it will mean increased efficiency and lower costs for Western consumers.

It will also see more jobs created in India and China, advocates argue. The WTO said that many developing countries support the end of quotas and stressed that funding was available to countries such as Bangladesh to help them make the transition to a fully liberalised market. ""There will be a period of adjustment required,"" said WTO spokesman Keith Rockwell. ""Some countries will do better than others but there is no one who is suggesting that no developing country will do well out of this. ""Some countries where it may appear that orders will dry up have seen orders surging and there are many companies who will continue with existing trading relationships.""

Christian Aid has called on British firms not to simply ""cut and run"" but look after their workers, in a new report called Rags To Riches To Rags.

It added that with few employment alternatives available many sacked garment workers could end up in far worse jobs - with some of the mainly female workers forced into the sex trade. The WTO itself has warned that as many as 27 million jobs could be lost as a result of liberalisation in the textile industry. Some of the world's fastest developing countries which rely on textile exports to build growth - for example in Bangladesh textiles account for almost 85% of the country's exports and the industry employs around 1.5 million people. The MFA pact has helped developing countries get a bigger share of the world market. ""The losers in this new trade landscape will be some of the most vulnerable workers in countries such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Nepal,"" Andrew Pendleton, Christian Aid's head of Trade Policy, said. ""They will be hard-pressed to cope when garment industries there lose their protection. ""We are deeply concerned that the New Year will spell misery for huge numbers of garment workers."" The WTO said there was no consenus among its members to retain the quotas and emphasised that funding was available to countries such as Bangladesh to help them adjust to the liberalised market.

It added that the impact of the changes for workers most affected by the shake-up had not been considered, adding such seismic changes to policy should ""put the interests of poor people first - rather than simply aiming to liberalise markets at any cost"". While the current MFA was not perfect, its did allow Third World countries like Bangladesh to get onto the first rung of industrial development, Christian Aid said. ""International trade must not be governed by a 'race to the bottom' that pitches one set of poor people against another,"" Mr Pendleton added.
"	business
Dutch bank to lay off 2,850 staff	"ABN Amro, the Netherlands' largest bank, is to cut 2,850 jobs as a result of falling profits.

The cuts - amounting to 3% of the bank's workforce - will result in a one-off charge of 790m euros ($1.1bn). About 1,100 jobs will go in investment banking while 1,200 and 550 will go in IT and human resources respectively. ABN Amro is the third large European bank to announce cutbacks in the past month following Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse Group.

Its profitability has been hit by a fall in mortgage lending in the United States - the bank's largest single market - following recent interest rate rises. ABN Amro's operations in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom will be hardest hit. Jobs will also be lost in the US - which accounted for 46% of profit in the first half of 2004 - and across its operations in the Americas and Asia-Pacific regions.

The restructuring is designed to improve efficiency by reducing administrative costs and increasing focus on client service. The bank said it was on course for a 10% rise in net income this year but operating profits are set to fall because of a fall in US revenues. ABN Amro currently has more than 100,000 staff. ""To get any profit growth in the coming years, they will have to lower costs, so shedding jobs makes total sense,"" Ivo Geijsen, an analyst with Bank Oyens & Van Eeghen, told Bloomberg. Europe's leading banks seem set for a period of retrenchment. Deutsche Bank said earlier this month it would reduce its German workforce by 1,920 while as many as 300 jobs will be lost at Credit Suisse First Boston.
"	business
Fannie Mae 'should restate books'	"US mortgage company Fannie Mae should restate its earnings, a move that is likely to put a billion-dollar dent in its accounts, watchdogs have said.

The Securities & Exchange Commission accused Fannie Mae of using techniques that ""did not comply in material respects"" with accounting standards. Fannie Mae last month warned that some records were incorrect. The other main US mortgage firm Freddie Mac restated earnings by $5bn (£2.6bn) last year after a probe of its books. The SEC's comments are likely to increase pressure on Congress to strengthen supervision of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The two firms are key parts of the US financial system and effectively underwrite the mortgage market, financing nearly half of all American house purchases and dealing actively in bonds and other financial instruments. The investigation of Freddie Mac in June 2003 sparked concerns about the wider health of the industry and raised questionsmarks over the role of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), the industry's main regulator. Having been pricked into action, the OFHEO turned its attention to Fannie May and in September this year said that the firm had tweaked its books to spread earnings more smoothly across quarters and play down the amount of risk it had taken on. The SEC found similar problems. The watchdog's chief accountant Donald Nicolaisen said that ""Fannie Mae's methodology of assessing, measuring and documenting hedge ineffectiveness was inadequate and was not supported"" by generally accepted accounting principles.
"	business
US to rule on Yukos refuge call	"Yukos has said a US bankruptcy court will decide whether to block Russia's impending auction of its main production arm on Thursday.

The Russian oil firm has filed for bankruptcy protection in the US in an attempt to halt the forced sale. However, Judge Letitia Clark said the hearing would continue on Thursday when arguments in the case would be heard. Russian authorities are due to auction off Yuganskneftegas on 19 December to pay a huge tax bill sent to Yukos.

Russian prosecutors are forcing the sale of the firm's most lucrative asset Yuganskneftegas to help pay a $27bn (£14bn) back tax bill, which they claim is owed by Yukos.

Filing for bankruptcy protection in the US was ""a last resort to preserve the rights of our shareholders, employees and customers,"" said Yukos chief executive Steven Theede. The company added it had opted to take action through American courts as US bankruptcy law gives worldwide jurisdiction over a debtor company's property and because it was seeking a judiciary willing to protect the value of shareholders' investments. However, as the firm is based in Russia and has no significant US assets, lawyers are unsure of the outcome of the case. ""We are here to stop 60% of our body from being cut off on Sunday,"" Zack Clement, a lawyer for Yukos, told Judge Clark in an emergency hearing in Houston, Texas, on Wednesday. As well as the bid to get Chapter 11 bankruptcy - which protects firms from creditors, allowing them to continue trading as they restructure their finances - the group also made a claim for damages against the Russian government. Yukos asked the Houston court to order Russia to arbitration so that it can press claims for billions of dollars in damages over a ""campaign of illegal, discriminatory and disproportionate"" tax claims. Mr Clement said that under Russian law, the Russian government was obliged to enter into arbitration as set out in international law.

He added that the opening bid for the firm's Yuganskneftgas unit was $8bn - less than half of the $20bn that Yukos advisers say it is worth. ""We believe the only significant bidder at the auction on Sunday is Gazprom,"" he said, referring to Russia's natural gas giant. Yukos maintains that the forced auction is illegal and ""will cause the company to suffer immediate and irreparable harm."" Many commentators believe the Russian government's aggressive pursuit of Yukos is a politically-motivated response to the political ambitions of its former chief executive, Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky, who had funded liberal opposition groups, was arrested in October last year on fraud and tax evasion charges and is still in jail Analysts believe that if its production unit is auctioned off, it is likely to be bought up by a government-backed firm, like Gazprom, effectively bringing a large chunk of Russia's lucrative oil and gas industry back under state control.
"	business
J&J agrees $25bn Guidant deal	"Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson has agreed to buy medical technology firm Guidant for $25.4bn (£13bn).

Guidant is a key producer of equipment that combats heart problems such as implant defibrillators and pacemakers. Analysts said that the deal is aimed at offsetting Johnson & Johnson's reliance on a slowing drug business. They also pointed out that more mergers are likely because the drug and healthcare industries are fragmented and are under pressure to cut costs. A number of Johnson & Johnson's products are facing patent expirations, while the company is also battling fierce competition from generic products. Meanwhile, demand for defibrillators, which give the heart a small electric shock when an irregular heartbeat or rhythm is detected, is expected to increase, analysts said. The move by Johnson & Johnson has been widely expected and the firm will pay $76 for each Guidant share, 6% more than Wednesday's closing price. Analysts say that US antitrust regulators could force the firms to shed some overlapping stent operations. Stents are tubes that are used to keep an artery open after it has been unblocked.
"	business
Libya takes $1bn in unfrozen funds	"Libya has withdrawn $1bn in assets from the US, assets which had previously been frozen for almost 20 years, the Libyan central bank has said.

The move came after the US lifted a trade ban to reward Tripoli for giving up weapons of mass destruction and vowing to compensate Lockerbie victims. The original size of Libya's funds was $400m, the central bank told Reuters. However, the withdrawal did not mean that Libya had cut its ties with the US, he added.

""We are in the process of opening accounts in banks in the United States,"" the central bank's vice president Farhat Omar Ben Gadaravice said. The previously frozen assets had been invested in various countries and are believed to have included equity holdings in banks. The US ban on trade and economic activity with Tripoli - imposed by then president Ronald Regan in 1986 after a series of what the US deemed terrorist acts, including the 1988 Lockerbie air crash - was suspended in April. Bankers from the two country's had been working on how to unfreeze Libya's assets.
"	business
Cactus diet deal for Phytopharm	"A slimming aid made from a southern African cactus is set to be developed by UK firm Phytopharm and Unilever.

Anglo-Dutch food giant Unilever will help the pharmaceutical firm develop the snacks containing Hoodia extract. Phytopharm shares jumped 10.7% on the news, with analysts saying sales of $600m (£309m) a year were possible. The plant, licensed to Phytopharm in 1997, has been used for thousands of years by the Sans bushmen of the Kalahari desert to stave off hunger. Studies have reportedly shown the plant curbs appetite instead of reducing calorific intake like many existing products.

Phytopharm will receive an initial fee of £6.5m from Unilever - out of a potential total of £21m - as well as future royalties on product sales. Under the deal, production of the Hoodia cactus at Phytopharm's nursery in South Africa will also rise from eight million plants to potentially hundreds of millions, said Phytopharm chief executive Richard Dixey. The firm had initially hoped to market a slimming drug from Hoodia with Pfizer. But the research collaboration came to an end in 2003. Analysts said Unilever could launch the new products in 2007. ""This deal goes a long way to restoring the market faith in Phytopharm's pipeline after the Pfizer exit,"" said analyst Erling Refsum at Nomura.
"	business
Brazil plays down Varig rescue	"The Brazilian government has played down claims that it could step in to save the country's biggest airline.

Brazil's airport authority chief Carlos Wilson had claimed the government was on the brink of stepping in to save Varig, Brazil's flagship airline. However, the country's vice president Jose Alencar has said the government still is looking for a solution. Varig is struggling under a huge debt burden of an estimated debt of 6.5 billion reais ($2.3bn or £1.2bn). Asked whether a rescue was on the cards following a meeting of the country's Congress to discuss the airline's crisis, Mr Alencar replied: ""No, I don't think so. We will see.""

Earlier, Mr Wilson had said that president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has decided to step in and a decree of some kind of intervention could be signed this week. ""In practice, it will be an intervention, although this is not the technical name used"", he said. An intervention means that the government would take administrative control of the company and its finances. For that to happen Varig's main shareholder, the non-profit Ruben Berta Foundation which represents the airline's employees, would have to be removed, Mr Wilson said. However, no jobs would be lost and the airline would keep on flying, he added. Varig, which operates in 18 countries apart from Brazil, has been driven to the brink of collapse because of the country's economic downturn.

The depreciation of Brazil's currency has had a direct impact on the airline's dollar debt as well as some of its costs. Business has improved recently with demand for air travel increasing and a recovery in the Brazilian economy. The airline could also win a sizeable windfall from a compensation claim against the government. On Tuesday the courts awarded Varig 2bn reais ($725m), after ruling in favour of its compensation claim against the government for freezing tariffs from 1985 to 1992. But the government can appeal the decision.
"	business
Bombardier chief to leave company	"Shares in train and plane-making giant Bombardier have fallen to a 10-year low following the departure of its chief executive and two members of the board.

Paul Tellier, who was also Bombardier's president, left the company amid an ongoing restructuring. Laurent Beaudoin, part of the family that controls the Montreal-based firm, will take on the role of CEO under a newly created management structure. Analysts said the resignations seem to have stemmed from a boardroom dispute. Under Mr Tellier's tenure at the company, which began in January 2003, plans to cut the worldwide workforce of 75,000 by almost a third by 2006 were announced. The firm's snowmobile division and defence services unit were also sold and Bombardier started the development of a new aircraft seating 110 to 135 passengers.

Mr Tellier had indicated he wanted to stay at the world's top train maker and third largest manufacturer of civil aircraft until the restructuring was complete. But Bombardier has been faced with a declining share price and profits. Earlier this month the firm said it earned $10m (£19.2m) in the third quarter, down from a profit of $133m a year ago. ""I understand the board's concern that I would not be there for the long-term and the need to develop and execute strategies, and the need to reshape the management structure at this time,"" Mr Tellier said in a statement on Monday. Bombardier said restructuring plans drawn up by Mr Tellier's would continue to be implemented. Shares in Bombardier lost 65 Canadian cents or 25% on the news to 1.90 Canadian dollars before rallying to 2.20 Canadian dollars.
"	business
Brazil approves bankruptcy reform	"A major reform of Brazil's bankruptcy laws has been approved by the country's Congress, in a move which it is hoped will cut the cost of borrowing.

The bill, proposed in 1993, has finally been approved by the leadership of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The old law, dating from 1945, gave priority first to workers, second to tax revenue and finally to creditors. The new legislation changes this, giving priority to creditors and limiting payments to workers. The new regulations will limit payments to workers to 150 times the minimum monthly salary, which is currently $94. The law also makes it more difficult for a company to declare bankruptcy. However, when a firm is declared bankrupt it will gain protection from creditors for 180 days while a recovery plan is worked out.

The proposals were opposed in the past by leftist parties, including Mr Lula's Worker Party. They considered that they undermined workers' rights. But President Lula became a defender of the reforms, arguing that the country's bank lending margins were among the highest in the world and were damaging the economy. According to Andreas Adriano of Latin Trade Magazine, the new bankruptcy law will help in reducing the spread - difference between the interest rates of the banks and federal bonds. Nevertheless, Mr Adriano said to reduce the basic interest rate the Central Bank needs to change its policy, focusing not only on inflation but also on economic growth.
"	business
Retail sales show festive fervour	"UK retail sales were better than expected in November as Christmas shoppers began their seasonal flock to the High Street, figures show.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said retail sales rose 0.6% on the month and 6.1% on the year. But the figures, along with this week's inflation report, could trigger another interest rate rise in the New Year. However, recent data from the British Retail Consortium showed a 0.2% slip in High Street sales during November.

The ONS data confounded analyst expectations. Many had expected sales to fall slightly in November as shoppers put off buying Christmas presents until December. However, retailers' attempts to draw in the crowds may be behind November's unexpected rise in sales, they say. Aggressive tactics, such as one-day discount sales adopted by stores such as Marks & Spencer, appear to have paid off. ""Price discounting has certainly accounted for much of this because the value of retail sales hasn't grown as much as volumes,"" said Investec economist David Page. The figures sparked a rally for sterling as the data supported the view that it is too early to assume that base rates have peaked.
"	business
Cairn shares slump on oil setback	"Shares in Cairn Energy, a UK oil firm, have closed down 18% after a disappointing drilling update and a warning over possible tax demands.

The company said tests had shown no significant finds in one of its Indian oil fields, but was upbeat about the potential of other areas. It also said the Indian government had told it to pay a production tax, for which Cairn argues it is not liable. Cairn's shares have jumped by almost 400% this year. Investors had piled into Cairn after the company announced significant oil finds in India this year. Chief executive Bill Gammell said on Friday he was ""disappointed"" with exploration in the so-called N-C extension area in Rajasthan. Investors had held high hopes of major oil finds in this area. But Cairn said estimates had been revised in what was a ""significant downgrade of the initial expectation"".

Cairn also said that the government believed the company was liable to pay taxes under its production-sharing contract. The company said the rate would be about 900 rupees ($20.40; £10.50) per tonne, or seven barrels, of oil. A spokesman for the firm said that the tax would wipe 5% of the field's current value.

""Cairn refutes the government's position,"" Mr Gammell said. He insisted that the contract made it clear that the tax should be shouldered by the licensee - India's state-run Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) - and not the contractor. ""We have a pretty strong legal case here,"" he added, saying it would only become an issue once the firm started production. Investors took a dim view of the statements though. The shares closed down 247p, or 18%, at 1115 pence. ""I think people were slightly over-ambitious for how quickly Cairn would be able to develop and potentially offload these reserves,"" said analyst Jason Kenney at ING.

The disappointments overshadowed increased production targets for Cairn's existing oilfields. The company raised targets for its Mangala and Aishwariya fields in India from 60,000 barrels a day to between 80,000 and 100,000 barrels a day. Its Mangala field, thought to contain a billion barrels, is its biggest find to date. ""These two fields will provide the core of the future developments in Rajasthan,"" Mr Gammell said. Cairn added that it would be appraising another field early next year. Mr Gammell set up the company in the 1980s and has successfully switched its focus to South Asia from interests in the US and Europe. Cairn, which also operates in Nepal and Bangladesh, was catapulted into the FTSE 100 index of leading UK shares earlier this year after the sharp rise in its share price.
"	business
French boss to leave EADS	"The French co-head of European defence and aerospace group EADS Philippe Camus is to leave his post.

Mr Camus said in a statement that he has accepted the invitation to return full-time to the Lagardere group, which owns 30% of EADS. ""I will give up my role as soon as the board of directors asks me to do so,"" he said. Airbus head Noel Forgeard is now set to replace Mr Camus, bringing the company's power struggle to an end. Fighting between Mr Camus and Mr Forgeard has hit the headlines in France and analysts feared that this fighting could destabilise the defence and aerospace group. French finance minister Herve Gaymard is on record as saying that he ""deplored"" the infighting at the company. The company should now be able put this dispute behind it, with the departure of Mr Camus and with the clear support given to Mr Forgeard by the Lagardere group, the main French shareholder of EADS. The other main shareholders of EADS are the French government (15%) , who also support Mr Forgeard, and Germany's DaimlerChrysler (30%). Rainer Hertrich, the German co-head of EADS will also step down when his contract expires next year.

Mr Camus recently came under pressure as it became clear that the A380 superjumbo was running over budget. EADS - Airbus' majority owner - admitted earlier this week that the project was running 1.45bn euros (£1bn; $1.9bn) over budget. But Mr Forgeard has denied this, telling French media that there is no current overrun in the budget. ""But for the sake of transparency, we told our shareholders last week that if we look at the forecast for total costs of the project up to 2010, there is a risk that we will go over by around 10%, which is about 1bn euros (£686m; $1.32bn),"" he told France's LCI Television. Due to enter service in 2006, the A380 will replace the Boeing 747 jumbo as the world's biggest passenger aircraft.
"	business
AstraZeneca hit by drug failure	"Shares in Anglo-Swedish drug have closed down 8% in UK trade after the failure of its Iressa drug in a major clinical trial.

The lung cancer drug did not significantly prolong survival in patients with the disease. This setback for the group follows the rejection by the US in October of its anti-coagulant pill Exanta. Meanwhile, another of its major money spinners - cholesterol drug Crestor - is facing mounting safety concerns. ""This would be two of the three blockbuster drugs that were meant to power the company forward failing... and we've got risks on Crestor,"" said Nick Turner, analyst at brokers Jefferies.

AstraZeneca had hoped to pitch its Iressa drug against rival medicine Tarceva. But Iressa proved no better than a placebo in extending lives in the trial involving 1,692 patients. Tarceva - made by OSI Pharmaceuticals, Genentech and Roche - has already proved to be successful in helping prolong the life of lung cancer patients. AztraZeneca has now appointed a new executive director to the board. John Patterson will be in charge of drug development. The company said Mr Patterson would make ""substantial changes to the clinical organisation and its processes"". ""I am determined to improve our development and regulatory performance, restore confidence in the company and value to shareholders,"" said chief executive Tom McKillop.
"	business
Strong quarterly growth for Nike	"Nike has reported its best second-quarter earnings, helped by strong demand for its athletic shoes and Converse sneakers.

The global sports giant said it posted a profit of $261.9m (£135.6m), for the three months to 30 November, up from $179.1m in the same period last year. Revenues increased 11% to $3.1bn, from $2.8bn for the same period in 2003. Nike, whose products are endorsed by Tiger Woods among other sports stars, said ""demand continues to grow"". The results came after a strong first quarter of the year for the firm based in Beaverton, Oregon.

Philip Knight, chairman and chief executive, said: ""Nike's second-quarter revenues and earnings per share reached all-time high levels as a result of solid performance across our global portfolio. ""Our businesses in the United States and emerging markets such as China, Russia and Turkey, combined with favourable European exchange rates, helped drive much of this growth."" He added: ""With the first half of our fiscal year in the books, we remain confident that our business strategy and consistent execution will allow us to deliver on our goals of healthy, profitable growth."" The firm reported worldwide futures orders for athletic footwear and gear, scheduled for delivery from December 2004 to April 2005, of $4.9bn. That is 9.1% higher than such orders reported for the same period last year.
"	business
Stormy year for property insurers	"A string of storms, typhoons and earthquakes has made 2004 the most expensive year on record for property insurers, according to Swiss Re.

The world's second biggest insurer said disasters around the globe have seen property claims reach $42bn (£21.5bn). ""2004 reinforces the trend towards higher losses,"" said Swiss Re. Tightly packed populations in the areas involved in natural and man-made disasters were to partly to blame for the rise in claims, it said. Some 95% of insurance claims were for natural catastrophes, with the rest attributed to made-made events.

The largest claims came from the US, which was struck by four hurricanes, and Japan, which suffered the highest concentration of typhoons for decades plus a major earthquake.

Europe suffered fewer natural disasters, but 191 people were killed and more than 2,000 injured in March after the terrorist attack on train stations in Madrid. The damages claimed in 2004 eclipsed previous years, including 2001 when the 11 September attacks pushed claims up to $37bn. Swiss Re said it had registered about 300 natural and man-made disasters around the world in 2004. Twenty-one thousand people lost their lives in the catastrophes with a cost to the global economy of around $105bn (£54bn).
"	business
Parmalat sues 45 banks over crash	"Parmalat has sued 45 banks as it tries to reclaim money paid to banks before the scandal-hit Italian dairy company went bust last year.

The firm collapsed with debts of about 14bn euros ($19bn; £10bn) and new boss Enrico Bondi has already taken legal action against a number of lenders. He claims the banks were aware of the problems but continued to work with the company so they could earn commissions. Parmalat has not identified which banks it has gone after this time. Under Italian law, administrators can seek to get back money paid to financial institutions prior to insolvency, if there is a suspicion that the institutions knew that the company was in financial trouble. The firm also said it is preparing further law suits.

According to the Reuters news agency, 35 of the companies sued on Thursday are Italian while the remaining 10 are international. The unidentified Parmalat source also told Reuters that the company was planning to take action against a total of 80 financial institutions. Among those already targeted are Bank of America, UBS, Credit Suisse First Boston, Deutsche Bank and Citigroup. It has also gone after auditors Grant Thornton. They have all denied any wrongdoing. Parmalat was declared insolvent in December 2003 after it emerged that 4bn euros thought to be held in an offshore account did not in fact exist. In the investigation that followed it became apparent that the company, among other things, had been billing clients twice in order to boost sales and bolster the balance sheet. That enabled Parmalat to borrow heavily and expand overseas, allowing it to become a darling of the Italian stock exchange.
"	business
Irish company hit by Iraqi report	"Shares in Irish oil company Petrel Resources have lost more than 50% of their value on a report that the firm has failed to win a contract in Iraq.

Reuters news agency reported that Iraq's Oil Ministry has awarded the first post-war oilfield contracts to a Canadian and a Turkish company. By 1700 GMT, Petrel's shares fell from 97p ($1.87) to 44p ($0.85). Petrel said that it has not received any information from Iraqi authorities to confirm or deny the report.

Iraq is seeking to award contracts for three projects, valued at $500m (£258.5m). Turkey's Everasia is reported by Reuters to have won a contract to develop the Khurmala Dome field in the north of the country. A Canadian company, named IOG, is reported to have won the contract to run the Himrin field. Ironhorse Oil and Gas has denied to Reuters that it is the company in question. These two projects aim to develop Khurmala field to produce 100,000 barrels per day and raise the output of Himrin. The winners of the contract are to build new flow lines and build gas separation stations. The contract to develop the Suba-Luhais field has not yet been awarded as Iraq's Oil Ministry is studying the offers. If Iraq's cabinet approves the oil ministry's choice of companies, then this will be the first deal that Iraq has signed with a foreign oil company. Iraq is still trying to boost its production capacity to match levels last seen in the eighties, before the war with Iran. Oil officials hope to double Iraq's output by the end of the decade.
"	business
Yukos unit fetches $9bn at auction	"A little-known Russian company has bought the main production unit of oil giant Yukos at auction in Moscow.

Baikal Finance Group outbid favourite Gazprom, the state-controlled gas monopoly, to buy Yuganskneftegas. Baikal paid 260.75bn roubles ($9.37bn: £4.8bn) for Yugansk - nowhere near the $27bn Russia says Yukos owes in taxes. Yukos reacted immediately by repeating its view that the auction was illegal in international and Russian law, and said Baikal had bought itself trouble.

""The company considers that the victor of today's auction has bought itself a serious $9bn headache,"" said Yukos spokesman Alexander Shadrin. He said the company would continue to make ""every lawful move"" to protect tens of thousands of shareholders in Yukos from ""this forcible and illegitimate removal of their property"". Meanwhile, Tim Osborne, head of Yukos main shareholders' group Menatep, said that Yukos may have to declare itself bankrupt, and that legal action would be taken, outside Russia, against the auction winners. Reports from Russia say Baikal has paid a deposit of nearly $1.7bn from a Sberbank (Savings Bank) account to the Russian Federal Property Fund, for Yugansk.

The sale came despite a restraining order issued by a US court dealing with the firm's bankruptcy application for Chapter 11 protection. Yukos has always insisted the auction was state-sponsored theft but Russian authorities argued they were imposing the law, trying to recover billions in unpaid taxes. There were originally four registered bidders, and with its close ties to the Kremlin, state-backed gas monopoly Gazprom had been seen as favourite. But just two companies turned up for the auction, Gazprom and the unknown Baikal Finance Group, named after a large freshwater lake in Siberia. And, according to Tass news agency, Gazprom did not make a single bid, leaving the way open for Baikal, which paid above the auction start price of 246.75bn roubles.

Mystery firm Baikal Finance Group is officially registered in the central Russian region of Tver, but many analysts believe it may be linked to Gazprom. Kaha Kiknavelidze, analyst at Troika Dialog, said: ""I think a decision that Yugansk should end up with Gazprom was taken a long time ago. So the main question was how to structure this transaction.

""I would not exclude that the structure of the deal has slightly changed and Gazprom now has a partner. ""I would also not exclude that Baikal will decline to pay in 14 days, that are given by law, and Gazprom is then recognised as the winner. This would give Gazprom an extra 14 days to accumulate the needed funds. ""Another surprise was that the winner paid a significant premium above the starting price."" However, Gazprom has announced it is not linked to Baikal in any way. And Paul Collison, chief analyst at Brunswick UBS, said: ""I see no plausible explanation for the theory that Baikal was representing competing interests. ""Yugansk will most likely end up with Gazprom but could still end up with the government. There is still potential for surprises."" Yugansk is at the heart of Yukos - pumping close to a million barrels of oil a day. The unit was seized by the government which claims the oil giant owes more than $27bn in taxes and fines. Yukos says those tax demands are exorbitant, and had sought refuge in US courts.

The US bankruptcy court's initial order on Thursday - to temporarily block the sale - in response to Yukos filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, was upheld in a second ruling on Saturday. The protection, if recognised by the Russian authorities, would have allowed Yukos' current management to retain control of the business and block the sale of any company assets. Yukos has said the sale amounts to expropriation - punishment for the political ambitions of its founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky is now in jail, on separate fraud charges. But President Vladimir Putin has described the affair as a crackdown on corruption - and the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Moscow says most Russians believe the destruction of Yukos is now inevitable. Hours before the auction lawyers for Menatep, a group through which Mr Khodorkovsky and his associates control Yukos, said they would take legal action in other countries. Menatep lawyers, who were excluded from observing the auction, said they would retaliate by seeking injunctions in foreign courts to impound Russian oil and gas exports.
"	business
S&N extends Indian beer venture	"The UK's biggest brewer, Scottish and Newcastle (S&N), is to buy 37.5% of India's United Breweries in a deal worth 4.66bn rupees ($106m:£54.6m).

S&N will buy a 17.5% equity stake in United, maker of the well-known Kingfisher lager brand, and make a public offer to buy another 20% stake. A similar holding will be controlled by Vijay Mallya, chair of the Indian firm. The deal was a ""natural development"" of its joint venture with United, said Tony Froggatt, S&N's chief executive.

Its top brands include Newcastle Brown Ale, Foster's, John Smith's, Strongbow and Kronenbourg. In 2002 S&N and United agreed to form a strategic partnership, one that would include a joint venture business and a UK investment in the Indian brewer. The joint venture was established in May 2003. with both parties having a 40% stake in the venture - Millennium Alcobev. Millennium Alcobev will now be merged with United, which expects post-merger to have about half of India's beer market.

India, with a population of more than one billion, consumes about 1.2 billion bottles of beer every year. Kingfisher has market share of about 29%. In addition to the equity stake S&N is to invest 2.47bn rupees in United through non-convertible redeemable preference shares. Meanwhile, United's budget airline, Kingfisher Airlines, is to buy 10 A320 aircraft from Airbus and has the option to buy 20 more aircraft in a deal worth up to $1.8bn. The airline, the brainchild of Mr Mallya, expects to start its operations by the end of April. The new airline would break even in the very first year of operation, Mr Mallya said.
"	business
Euronext 'poised to make LSE bid'	"Pan-European group Euronext is poised to launch a bid for the London Stock Exchange, UK media reports say.

Last week, the LSE rejected a takeover proposal from German rival Deutsche Boerse - the 530 pence-a-share offer valued the exchange at about £1.35bn. The LSE, which saw its shares rise 25%, said the bid undervalued the business. Euronext - formed after the Brussels, Paris and Amsterdam exchanges merged - is reportedly working with three investment banks on a possible offer. The LSE, Europe's biggest stock market, is a key prize, listing stocks with a total capitalisation of £1.4 trillion.

Euronext already has a presence in London due to its 2001 acquisition of London-based options and futures exchange Liffe. Trades on the LSE are cleared via Clearnet, in which Euronext has a quarter stake.

Euronext, which also operates an exchange in Lisbon, last week appointed UBS and ABN Amro as additional advisors. It is also working with Morgan Stanley. Despite the rejection of the Deutsche Boerse bid last week, Werner Seifert, chief executive of the Frankfurt-based exchange, may well come back with an improved offer. It has long wanted to link up with London, and the two tried and failed to seal a merger in 2000. Responding to the LSE's rebuff, Deutsche Boerse - whose market capitalisation is more than £3bn - said it believed it could show its proposal offered benefits, and that it still hoped to make a cash bid.

Last week the LSE said not only was the bid undervalued, but that it had ""been advised that there can be no assurance that any transaction could be successfully implemented"". However, it has indicated it is open for further talks. Meanwhile, German magazine Der Spiegel said part of Mr Seifert's negotiations with the LSE were about where to base the future board of any merged exchange. While Mr Seifert has suggested a merged company would be run out of London, the mayor of Frankfurt has raised concerns that such a move could cost German jobs. Many analysts believe German Boerse has more financial firepower than Euronext if it came to a bidding war.
"	business
Christmas shoppers flock to tills	"Shops all over the UK reported strong sales on the last Saturday before Christmas with some claiming record-breaking numbers of festive shoppers.

A spokesman for Manchester's Trafford Centre said it was ""the biggest Christmas to date"" with sales up 5%. And the Regent Street Association said shops in central London were also expecting the ""best Christmas ever"". That picture comes despite reports of disappointing festive sales in the last couple of weeks.

The Trafford Centre spokeswoman said about 8,500 thousand vehicles had arrived at the centre on Saturday before 1130 GMT. ""We predict that the next week will continue the same trend,"" she added.

It was a similar story at Bluewater in Kent. Spokesman Alan Jones said he expected 150,000 shoppers to have visited by the end of Saturday and a further 100,000 on Sunday. ""Our sales so far have been 2% up on the same time last year,"" he said. ""We're very busy, it's really strong and people will be shopping right up until Christmas. ""Over the Christmas period we're expecting people to spend in excess of £200m at the centre.""

On Saturday afternoon, a spokeswoman for the St David's Shopping Centre in Cardiff said it looked like being its busiest day of the year with about 200,000 shoppers expected to have visited by the close of play. At the St Enoch's Shopping Centre in Glasgow, more than 140,000 shoppers - an all-time record - were expected to have passed through the doors by its closing time of 1900 GMT. Senior business manager Jon Walton said: ""It has been phenomenal - absolutely mobbed. ""Every week footfall has been showing strong growth and at the weekends it has been going mad."" Regent Street Association director Annie Walker said on Saturday: ""The stores were heaving today and a lot of people are going to be doing last minute shopping as many people finished work on Friday and can go in the week.""

She said reports of a slump in pre-Christmas sales were related to the growing popularity of internet sales. ""I do think this has had a lot to do with reports of lower sales figures,"" she said. ""Internet shopping has gone up enormously and not all stores have websites.""
"	business
Mystery surrounds new Yukos owner	"The fate of Russia's Yuganskneftegas - the oil firm sold to a little-known buyer on Sunday - is the subject of frantic speculation in Moscow.

Baikal Finance Group emerged as the auction winner, agreeing to pay 260.75bn roubles (£4.8bn; $9.4bn). Russia's newspapers claimed that Baikal was a front for gas monopoly Gazprom, which had been expected to win. The sale has destroyed Yukos, once the owner of Yuganskneftegas, said founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. ""Yuganskneftegas has been sold in the best traditions of the 90s. The authorities have made themselves a wonderful Christmas present - Russia's most efficient oil company has been destroyed,"" the Interfax news agency quoted Mr Khodorkovsky as saying via his lawyers.

Gazprom had been expected to win the auction but is thought to have failed to get finance for the deal after a US court injunction barred it from taking part. Last week, Yukos filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US in a last-ditch attempt to hang on to Yuganskneftegas, which accounts for 60% of its output. A US judge banned Gazprom from taking part in the auction and barred international banks from providing the firm with cash. ""They screwed up the financing,"" said Ronald Smith, an analyst at Renaissance Capital in Moscow. ""And Gazprom doesn't have this sort of money lying around.""

Gazprom has denied that it is behind the purchase. ""It is a front for somebody but not necessarily for Gazprom,"" said Oleg Maximov, an analyst at Troika Dialog in Moscow. ""We don't know if this company is linked 100% to Gazprom.

""We tried to find it, but we couldn't and as far as I know, the papers had the same result."" The sale has however bought time for Gazprom to raise the money needed for the purchase, analysts said. One scenario is that Baikal will not pay when it is supposed to in two weeks time, putting Yuganskneftegas back in the hands of bailiffs and back within the reach of Gazprom. Yukos is not planning on letting go of its unit without a fight and has threatened legal action against any buyer. Menatep, Yukos main shareholders' group, has also threatened legal action. Yukos claims that it is being punished for the political ambitions of its founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is now in jail facing separate fraud charges. It has been hit with more than $27bn in taxes and fines and many observers now say that the break up of the firm that accounts for 20% of Russia's oil output is inevitable.
"	business
Euronext joins bid battle for LSE	"Pan-European stock market Euronext has approached the London Stock Exchange (LSE) about a possible takeover bid.

""The approach is at an early stage and therefore does not require a response at this point,"" LSE said. Talks with the European stock market and with rival bidder Deutsche Boerse will continue, the LSE said. Last week, the group rejected a £1.3bn ($2.5bn) takeover offer from Deutsche Boerse, claiming that it undervalued the business. LSE saw its shares surge 4.9% to a new high of 583p in early trade, following the announcement on Monday.

The offer follows widespread media speculation that Euronext would make an offer for LSE. Experts now widely expect a bidding war for Europe's biggest stock market, which lists stocks with a total capitalisation of £1.4 trillion, to break out. Commentators say that a deal with Euronext, which owns the Liffe derivatives exchange in London and combines the Paris, Amsterdam and Lisbon stock exchanges, could potentially offer the LSE more cost savings than a deal with Deutsche Boerse.

A weekend report in the Telegraph had quoted an unnamed executive at Euronext as saying the group would make a cash bid to trump Deutsche Boerse's offer. ""Because we already own Liffe in London, the cost savings available to us from a merger are far greater than for Deutsche Boerse,"" the newspaper quoted the executive as saying. Euronext chief executive Jean-Francois Theodore is reported to have already held private talks with LSE's chief executive Clara Furse. Further reports had suggested that Euronext could make an offer in excess of the LSE's 533p a share closing price on Friday. However, Euronext said it could not guarantee ""at this stage"" that a firm offer would be made for LSE. There has been extensive speculation about a possible takeover of the company since an attempted merger with Deutsche Boerse failed in 2000.
"	business
Iraq and Afghanistan in WTO talks	"The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is to hold membership talks with both Iraq and Afghanistan.

But Iran's bid to join the trade body has been refused after the US blocked its application for the 21st time. The countries stand to reap huge benefits from membership of the group, whose purpose is to promote free trade. Joining, however, is a lengthy process. China's admission in 2001 took 15 years and talks with Russia and Saudi Arabia have been taking place for 10 years. Membership of the Geneva-based WTO helps guarantee a country's goods receives equal treatment in the markets of other member states - a policy which has seen it become closely associated with globalisation.

Iraq's Trade Minister Mohammed Mustafa al-Jibouri welcomed the move, describing it as significant as November's decision by the Paris Club of creditor nations to write off 80% of the country's debts. Assad Omar, Afghanistan's envoy to the United Nations in Geneva, said accession would contribute to ""regional prosperity and global security"". There are now 27 countries seeking membership of the WTO. Prospective members need to enter into negotiations with potential trading countries and change domestic laws to bring them in line with WTO regulations. Before the process gets under way, all 148 WTO members must give their backing to applicant countries. The US said it could not approve Iran's application because it is currently reviewing relations. But several nations criticised the approach, and European Union ambassador to the WTO, Carlo Trojan, said Iran's application ""must be treated independently of political issues"".
"	business
Diageo to buy US wine firm	"Diageo, the world's biggest spirits company, has agreed to buy Californian wine company Chalone for $260m (£134m) in an all-cash deal.

Although Diageo's best-known brands include Smirnoff vodka and Guinness stout, it already has a US winemaking arm - Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines. Diageo said it expects to get US regulatory approval for the deal during the first quarter of 2005. It said Chalone would be integrated into its existing US wine business.

""The US wine market represents a growth opportunity for Diageo, with favourable demographic and consumption trends,"" said Diageo North America president Ivan Menezes. In July, Diageo, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange, reported an annual turnover of £8.89bn, down from £9.28bn a year earlier. It blamed a weaker dollar for its lower turnover. In the year ending 31 December 2003, Chalone reported revenues of $69.4m.
"	business
Tokyo says deflation 'controlled'	"The Japanese government has forecast that the country's economic growth will slow to 1.6% in the next fiscal year starting in April 2005.

While it predicts this fall from the current 2.1% level, it said it was making progress on ending deflation. The figures were given by economics minister Heizo Takenaka who said the economy would grow by 2% in 2006/07. He said the consumer price index (CPI) would rise 0.1% in the next fiscal year, the first gain since 2000/01. ""We are attempting to make real economic conditions better and to overcome deflation. I think we are on track,"" said Mr Takenaka. Deflation - or falling consumer prices - has plagued Japan for more than five years. To ease the problem the Bank of Japan has regularly flooded the money market with excess cash to keep short term interest rates at 0% in an attempt to spur economic activity.
"	business
No seasonal lift for house market	"A swathe of figures have provided further evidence of a slowdown in the UK property market.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), British Bankers Association (BBA) and Building Societies Association (BSA) all said mortgage lending was slowing. CML figures showed gross lending fell by 4% in November as the number of people buying new homes fell. Elsewhere, the BBA added underlying mortgage lending rose by £4m in November, compared to October's £4.29m. The CML said that loans for new property purchases fell 25% year-on-year to 85,000 - the lowest total seen since February 2003.

Data from the CML showed lending fell to just over £25bn in November, from £25.5bn a year earlier. Separate figures from the Building Societies Association showed the value of mortgage approvals -- loans agreed but not yet made -- stood 32% lower than at the same time last year, at a seasonally-adjusted £2.98bn. The figures come hot on the heels of new data from property website Rightmove which suggested owners must indulge in a ""winter sale"" and slash prices by up to 8%. Miles Shipside, commercial director at Rightmove, said sellers would have to be ""more realistic with their asking prices"" to tempt buyers. The average asking price of a home fell by more than £600 from £190,329 in November to £189,733 in December, while the length of time it takes to sell a home rose to 81 days from 53 in the summer.

Rightmove said estate agents were set to enter 2005 with a third more properties on their books than a year ago. ""Even once the quieter holiday period is over, sellers will find themselves competing with a lot of other properties on the market. In any business, excess supply and low demand means one thing - cut prices,"" Mr Shipside said.

""The proof is that some properties that have been appropriately discounted are selling, even in the current market."" Overall, asking prices have fallen 3.3% from their July peaks as the equivalent of £6,500 has been cut from an average property. A host of mortgage lenders and economists have predicted that property prices will either fall or stagnate in 2005. ""What is apparent is a picture of a slowing market, but one that should remain stable as we return to more normal volumes of lending over 2005 as a whole,"" CML director general Michael Coogan said. ""It's a fairly consistent picture, showing that mortgage demand has fallen back again, which is consistent with a continuing correction in the housing market,"" Investec economist Philip Shaw said. ""However, the figures do suggest only a modest weakening, and we stand by our view that the property market will remain in the doldrums for some time, though a collapse is still unlikely.""
"	business
Yukos seeks court action on sale	"Yukos will return to a US court on Wednesday to seek sanctions against Baikal Finance Group, the little-known firm which has bought its main asset.

Yukos has said it will sue Baikal and others involved in the sale of Yuganskneftegas for $20bn in damages. Yukos' US lawyers will attempt to have Baikal assets frozen after the Russian government ignored a US court order last week blocking the sale. Baikal's background and its motives for buying the unit are still unclear.

Russian newspapers have claimed that Baikal - which bought the Yuganskneftegas production unit for $9.4bn (261bn roubles, £4.8bn) on Sunday at a state provoked auction - has strong links with Surgutneftegas, Russia's fourth-biggest oil producer. Many observers believe that the unit, which produces 60% of Yukos' oil output, could ultimately fall into the hands of Surgutneftegas or even Gazprom, the state gas firm which opted out of the auction.

The Russian government forced the sale of Yukos' most lucrative asset as part of its action to enforce a $27bn back tax bill it says the company owes. Yukos' US lawyers claim the auction was illegal because the firm had filed for bankruptcy and therefore its assets were now under the protection of US bankruptcy law which has worldwide jurisdiction. On Wednesday, Yukos will also seek further legal remedies to prevent the break-up of the group. ""We believe the auction was illegal and we intend to pursue all legal recourses available to us,"" Yukos spokesman Mike Lake told Agence France Press. ""If it exports that oil, it will be marketing a stolen product,"" he added. The future ownership of Yuganksneftegas remains unclear amid widespread suggestions that Baikal was established as a front for other interests.

Speaking on Tuesday, President Putin said Baikal was owned by individual investors who planned to build relationships with other Russian energy firms interested in the development of Yuganskneftegas. President Putin also suggested that China's National Petroleum Corporation could play a role in the unit's future after signing a commercial agreement with Gazprom to work on joint energy projects. Yukos has claimed that the sale of its main asset will lead to the collapse of the company. Commentators and Yukos itself claim the firm is the target of a government campaign to destroy it because of the political ambitions of its founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
"	business
Indy buys into India paper	"Irish publishing group Independent News & Media is buying up a 26% stake in Indian newspaper company Jagran in a deal worth 25m euros ($34.1m).

Jagran publishes India's top-selling daily newspaper, the Hindi-language Dainik Jagran, which has been in circulation for 62 years. News of the deal came as the group announced that its results would meet market forecasts. The company reported strong revenue growth across all its major markets.

Group advertising revenues were up over 10% year-on-year, the group said, with overall circulation revenues are expected to increase almost 10% year-on-year. This was helped by the positive impact of ""compact"" newspaper editions in Ireland and the UK, it said. ""2004 has proven to be an important year for Independent News & Media,"" said chief executive Sir Anthony O'Reilly. ""Our simple aim at Independent is to be the low cost producer in every region in which we operate. I am confident that we will show a meaningful increase in earnings for 2005.""

Meanwhile, the group made no comment about the future of the Independent newspaper despite recent speculation that Sir Anthony had held talks with potential buyers over a stake in the daily publication. He has consistently denied suggestions that the Independent and the Independent on Sunday are up for sale. Buy it is understood that the recent success of the smaller edition of the Independent, which has pushed circulation up by 20% to 260,000, has prompted interest from industry rivals, with Daily Mail & General Trust tipped as the most likely suitor. The loss-making newspaper is not expected to reach break-even until 2006.
"	business
Senior Fannie Mae bosses resign	"The two most senior executives at US mortgage giant Fannie Mae have resigned after accounting irregularities were uncovered at the company.

Chief executive Franklin Raines, a former senior official in the Clinton administration, and chief financial officer Tim Howard have left the firm. Fannie Mae was criticised by financial regulators and could have to restate its earnings by up to $9bn (£4.6bn). It is America's second largest financial institution.

Recent investigations have exposed extensive accounting errors at Fannie Mae, which supplies funds to America's $8 trillion mortgage market. Last week, the firm was admonished by the Securities and Exchange Commission which said it had made major errors in its financial reporting.

The financial regulator said Fannie Mae would have to raise substantial new capital to restore its balance sheet. Analysts said the SEC's criticism made it impossible for Fannie Mae's senior executives to remain. Mr Raines, head of the Office of Management and Budget under President Clinton, has taken early retirement while Mr Howard has also stepped down, the company said on Tuesday. KPMG, Fannie Mae's independent auditor, will also be replaced. ""By my early retirement, I have held myself accountable,"" Mr Raines said in a statement.

Fannie Mae was found to have violated accounting rules relating to derivatives - financial instruments used to hedge against fluctuations in interest rates - and some pre-paid loans. As a result, it could be forced to restate $9bn in earnings over the past four years, effectively wiping out a third of the company's profits since 2001. Although not making loans directly to buyers, Fannie Mae is the largest single player in the mortgage market, underwriting half of all US house purchases. The firm operates under charter from the US Congress. It has faced stinging criticism from Congressional leaders who held hearings into its finances earlier this year and from government regulator, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO). ""We are encouraged that the board's announcement signals a new culture and a new direction for Fannie Mae,"" Armando Falcon, OFHEO director said. The problems afflicting Fannie Mae are just the latest to hit the US mortgage industry. Freddie Mac, the country's other largest mortgage firm, was forced to restate its earnings by $4.4bn last year and pay a $125m fine after an investigation of its books.
"	business
Cannabis hopes for drug firm	"A prescription cannabis drug made by UK biotech firm GW Pharmaceuticals is set to be approved in Canada.

The drug is used to treat the central nervous system and alleviate the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). A few weeks ago, shares in GW Pharma lost a third of their value after UK regulators said they wanted more evidence about the drug's benefits. But now Canadian authorities have said the Sativex drug will be considered for approval.

Approximately 50,000 people in Canada have been diagnosed with MS and 85,000 people are suffering from the condition in the UK. Many patients already smoke cannabis to relieve their symptoms.

Now, GW Pharma's Sativex mouth spray could be legally available to MS sufferers in Canada within the next few months. This will be the first time a cannabis-based drug has been approved anywhere in the world, representing a landmark for GW Pharma and for patients with MS. Final approval in Canada should now be little more than a formality, analysts said, and the company expects full approval for Sativex early in 2005. ""We are delighted to receive this qualifying notice from Health Canada and look forward to receiving regulatory approval for Sativex in Canada in the early part of 2005,"" said GW Pharma executive chairman Dr Geoffrey Guy.

The UK government granted GW Pharma a licence to grow the cannabis plant for medical research purposes. Satifex consists of a cannabis extract containing tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol, a cocktail that has also proved effective in treating patients with arthritis. Thousands of plants are grown at a secret location somewhere in the English countryside. Despite hopes of regulatory approval last year, a series of delays has put back Sativex's launch in the UK. The latest news sent shares in GW Pharma up 8.5p, or 8.1%, to 113.5p.
"	business
Bush to get 'tough' on deficit	"US president George W Bush has pledged to introduce a ""tough"" federal budget next February in a bid to halve the country's deficit in five years.

The US budget and its trade deficit are both deep in the red, helping to push the dollar to lows against the euro and fuelling fears about the economy. Mr Bush indicated there would be ""strict discipline"" on non-defence spending in the budget. The vow to cut the deficit had been one of his re-election declarations. The federal budget deficit hit a record $412bn (£211.6bn) in the 12 months to 30 September and $377bn in the previous year.

""We will submit a budget that fits the times,"" Mr Bush said. ""It will provide every tool and resource to the military, will protect the homeland, and meet other priorities of the government."" The US has said it is committed to a strong dollar. But the dollar's weakness has hit European and Asian exporters and lead to calls for US intervention to boost the currency. Mr Bush, however, has said the best way to halt the dollar's slide is to deal with the US deficit. ""It's a budget that I think will send the right signal to the financial markets and to those concerned about our short-term deficits,"" Mr Bush added. ""As well, we've got to deal with the long-term deficit issues.""
"	business
House prices drop as sales slow	"House prices fell further in November and property sale times lengthened as rate rises took their toll, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors found.

A total of 48% of chartered surveyor estate agents reported lower prices in the three months to November - the highest level in 12 years. Meanwhile the number of sales dropped 32% to an average of 22 per surveyor. The amount of unsold properties on their books rose for the sixth month in a row to an average of 67 properties. ""The slowdown occurring in the market has given buyers more power to negotiate, but this time of year is traditionally a quiet one,"" RICS housing spokesman Ian Perry said. ""The decision by the Bank of England not to increase interest rates further and the healthy economy is allowing confidence to consolidate.""

The figures support recent data from the government and other bodies which all point to a slowdown in the housing market. On Monday, the Council of Mortgage Lenders, British Bankers Association and Building Societies Association all said mortgage lending was slowing. The figures were published as another survey by property website Rightmove said the average asking price of a home fell by more than £600 from £190,329 in November to £189,733 in December. Around the UK, the Midlands and South saw the biggest price falls, while London prices fell but at less than the national rate. In Scotland, where prices have remained on an upward path, increases were more ""moderate"", RICS added. But the news failed to dent confidence that sales will recover in future, with surveyors at their most optimistic in a year - as new purchase inquiries stabilised despite holding at lower levels. ""Sales usually pick up in the New Year and I am confident this year will be no exception,"" Mr Perry added. Looking ahead, the group is anticipating a quiet start to 2005 with the market picking up in the second half - prompting a 3% rise in prices over the coming 12 months.
"	business
Fresh hope after Argentine crisis	"Three years after Argentina was hit by a deadly economic crisis, there is fresh hope.

The country's economy is set to grow about 8% this year after seeing 9% growth last year, a sharp turnaround from 2002 when output fell 11%. The unemployment rate is improving, too: It is set to slip below 13% by the end of the year, down from 20% in May 2002. True, problems remain, but the overall picture is one of vast improvement. Even the International Monetary Fund (IMF) admits this. ""The Argentine authorities are proud, should be proud, of the strong performance of the economy,"" Thomas Dawson, an IMF director, said earlier this month.

Argentina has made a remarkable recovery from a hideous and lengthy recession which in 2001 culminated in the government halting debt repayments to its private creditors. The debt default sparked a deep and prolonged economic crisis which, at least initially, was made worse by the government's decisions. Pension payments were halted and bank accounts frozen as part of austerity measures introduced by the government to deal with the country's massive debts. In response, angry crowds of ordinary Argentines took to the streets where dozens of lives were lost in clashes with the police. Two presidents and at least three finance minister resigned in less than a month. Argentina was on the brink of collapse. The fix was found in the currency markets with the abandonment of the peso's decade-long peg to the US dollar in February 2002. The subsequent devaluation saw thousands of people's life savings disappear. Scathes of companies went bust. ""Three years ago, every sector [of the economy] was hit by the crisis,"" said entrepreneur Drayton Valentine. It really was dire.

But since then, the general mood on the ground has improved dramatically, in part because the devaluation helped attract fresh direct investment from abroad and stimulate business within Brazil. ""Agriculture and tourism are helping,"" said entrepreneur Drayton Valentine.

Mr Valentine, who was born in the United States but grew up in Argentina, was fortunate: At the time of the crisis, his savings were held in dollar accounts abroad. But now he is using his money to help with the start-up a trading company. He explained that initially, his firm is going to export building materials to Spain and United States. Then, he would like to diversify to other areas, depending on the market. ""Locally there is a sense of recovery, many companies are exporting now,"" he said, noting that a lot of firms, which were closed during the crisis, are re-opening.

But not all that shines is gold. Argentina is still burdened by its failure to pay private creditors at the end of 2001. President Nestor Kirchner's administration is still trying to hammer out an agreement with the creditors, but with the debts' nominal value standing at around $100bn it is not proving easy. Debt defaults make further lending agreements both difficult and expensive to negotiate. Argentina's current offer implies that the creditors would get just 25 cents for each dollar they are owed, according to the creditors. Understandably, they want more and until they do, both they and others are loath to continue lending. For President Kirchner, this proves a hopeless challenge. Real losses have been suffered and somebody has to pay, observed Jack Boorman, adviser to IMF's managing director, Rodrigo Rato. ""Everyone needs to keep in mind the enormous cost on the part of both creditors and the Argentine society and people that will have been endured by the time a settlement is reached,"" he said. ""The cost is enormous, and continues to be paid, and will not be reversed by any restructuring.""

With the international negotiations being troubled, it is of little help to President Kirchner that the domestic situation remains strained as well.

This is partly because there are still bank account holders who are waiting to recover some of their deposits. ""The situation is bad for those who had previously chosen to save in Argentina, "" said Carlos Baez Silva, president of AARA, an association that represents bank account and bond holders. Few people have recovered more than about half their savings, Mr Baez Silva estimated, pointing out that many of the savers who have lost out are pensioners or others who once trusted the government, people who set aside money for the future in the belief that their investment would be safe. ""A lot of them invested in good faith,"" he said. ""The Argentine state responded by taking most of their investments."" The affair has made Mr Baez Silva disillusioned with the country's legal system. On occasion, the Supreme Court has ruled against the interests of the people he represents, he says, insisting that the system cannot be trusted. ""People have to deposit their money in the banks, not necessarily because they trust them but because crime is so high that people cannot have their money in their homes beneath their mattresses."" Mr Valentine, who was born in the United States but grew up in Argentina, agreed. ""If I have to save pesos [the local currency] there is not much problem, but I will think twice before I deposit dollars in a bank"".
"	business
Disney settles disclosure charges	"Walt Disney has settled charges from US federal regulators that it failed to disclose how family members of directors were employed by the company.

The media giant was not fined by the Securities and Exchange Commission, but has agreed to refrain from any future violations of securities law. Disney failed to tell investors that between 1999 and 2001 it employed three adult children of three then directors. The firm has neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing in the settlement.

The three Disney directors in question in the central matter of the SEC's investigation - Reveta Bowers, Stanley Gold and Raymond Watson - have all since left the company, with Ms Bowers and Mr Watson both retiring, and Mr Gold quitting in 2003. Their children were paid between $60,000 (£30,800) and $150,000 a year, with shareholders not being informed. The SEC also found that Disney did not disclose that a 50% Disney-owned subsidiary company - Lifetime - employed the wife of current Disney director John Bryson, and that she earned more than $1m a year. Louise Bryson remains with Lifetime.

Disney also failed to disclose payments to Air Shamrock, an airline owned by Mr Gold and fellow former Disney directors Roy Disney. Finally, Disney also did not reveal that it provided more than $200,000 annually for office space, secretarial services, and a leased car and driver to former director Thomas Murphy. ""Shareholders have a significant interest in information regarding relationships between the company and its directors,"" said SEC deputy enforcement director Linda Thomsen. ""Failure to comply with the SEC's disclosure rules in this area impedes shareholders' ability to evaluate the objectivity and independence of directors.""
"	business
Putin backs state grab for Yukos	"Russia's president has defended the purchase of Yukos' key production unit by state-owned oil firm Rosneft, saying it followed free market principles.

Vladimir Putin said it was quite within the rights of a state-owned company to ensure its interests were met. Rosneft bought 100% of Baikal Finance Group, in a move that amounts to the renationalisation of a major chunk of Russia's booming oil industry. Rosneft will now control about 16% of Russia's total crude oil output. Yukos share jumped in Moscow, climbing as much as 50% before being suspended.

Rosneft is already in the process of merging with Gazprom, the world's biggest gas company, a move that will see Gazprom return to majority state-ownership.

Baikal was the surprise buyer of oil and gas giant Yukos's main production division at a forced auction on Sunday. ""Everything was done by market methods,"" Mr Putin said at his year-end press conference in Moscow. Shedding some light on the Kremlin's motivation, Mr Putin referred to a period of so-called ""cowboy capitalism"" that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union.

He said privatisations carried out in the early 1990s had involved trickery, including law breaking, by people seeking to acquire valuable state property. ""Now the state, using market methods, is safeguarding its interests. I think this is quite normal,"" the Russian president said. A Rosneft spokesman has said the acquisition is part of its plan to build a ""balanced, national energy corporation.""

The latest announcement comes after more than a year of wrangling that has pushed Yukos, one of Russia's biggest companies to the brink of collapse. The Russian government put Yukos's Yuganskneftegas subsidiary up for sale last week after hitting the company with a $27bn (£14bn) bill for back taxes and fines.

Analysts say that Yukos's legal attempts to block the auction by filing for bankruptcy protection in the US are probably what caused this week's cloak-and-dagger dealings. Gazprom, the company originally tipped to buy Yuganskneftegas, was banned from taking part in the auction by a US court injunction. By selling the Yukos unit to little-known Baikal and then to Rosneft, Russia is able to circumvent a host of tricky legal landmines, analysts said. ""You cannot sue the Russian government,"" said Eric Kraus, a strategist at Moscow's Sovlink Securities. ""The Russian government has sovereign immunity."" ""The government is renationalising Yuganskneftegas.""

Even so, analysts reckon that the saga still has a long way to go. The Rosneft announcement came just hours after Yukos accused Gazprom of illegally taking part in Sunday's auction. It has said it will be seeking damages of $20bn. The claim was made at the latest hearing in the US bankruptcy court in Houston, Texas, where Yukos, had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. If found in contempt of the US court order blocking the auction, Gazprom could face having foreign assets seized. Yukos' lawyers had also been expected to try to have Baikal's assets frozen. Lawyers claimed the auction was illegal because Yukos - with an office in Houston - had filed for bankruptcy and therefore its assets were under the protection of US law which has worldwide jurisdiction. Further muddying the waters is a merger between Rosneft and Gazprom which authorities have said will go ahead as planned.
"	business
Troubled Marsh under SEC scrutiny	"The US stock market regulator is investigating troubled insurance broker Marsh & McLennan's shareholder transactions, the firm has said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked for information about transactions involving holders of 5% or more of the firm's shares. Marsh has said it is co-operating fully with the SEC investigation. Marsh is also the focus of an inquiry the New York attorney-general into whether insurers rigged the market. Since that inquiry was launched in October, Marsh has replaced its chief executive and held a boardroom shake-out to meet criticism by lessening the number of company executives on the board. Prosecutors allege that Marsh - the world's biggest insurance broker - and other US insurance firms may have fixed bids for corporate cover. This is the issue at the heart of the inquiry by New York's top law officer, Eliot Spitzer, and a separate prosecution of five insurers by the State of California. The SEC's investigation into so-called related party transactions includes dealings in the Trident Funds, managed by MMC Capital, the company's private equity firm. Marsh's new chief executive, Michael Cherkasky, is trying to negotiate a settlement with Mr Spitzer. Mr Spitzer has built up a reputation as a fierce critic and campaigner against corporate America's misdeeds.

The uncertainty unleashed by the scandal has prompted three credit rating agencies - Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch - to downgrade Marsh in recent weeks. According to the Financial Times, insurance analysts are now questioning whether Marsh will be able to maintain its strong record of earning growth as they draw up forecasts for the first quarter of next year. Doubts also exist over how much the company may have to pay regulators and lawyers to put the scandal behind.
"	business
US firm pulls out of Iraq	"A US company has pulled out of a major contract to rebuild Iraq's transport system after attacks on reconstruction efforts, Pentagon officials have said.

Contrack International, of Arlington, Virginia, heads a coalition of firms working on a series of schemes. Its withdrawal from the $325m (£170m) contract in November is thought to be the largest cancellation to date. Contrack said ""the original scope of work that was envisioned could not be executed in a cost-effective manner"". But the firm denied reports it was withdrawing completely from Iraq. ""Members of the joint venture including Contrack are committed to the ongoing reconstruction efforts, are actively working in Iraq and continue to look for new construction opportunities in the country,"" it said in a statement. The Pentagon's Project and Contract Office (PCO) in Baghdad said it had taken over Contrack's management of the subcontractors working on the transportation projects.

US firms and their workers have been targets of attacks, and security concerns are said to be a major reason for the slow pace of reconstruction in Iraq. Of the $18.4bn in reconstruction funds approved by Congress, less than $2bn has been spent. Lt Col Eric Schnaible of the PCO told the Associated Press news agency Contrack's withdrawal from the transportation contract was a ""mutually agreed-to separation"" and did not indicate a movement by US companies to leave Iraq. ""Some parts of the country are a whole lot more permissive than others,"" he added. ""Where we can get the work done, good things are happening.""
"	business
Boeing secures giant Japan order	"Boeing is to supply Japan Airlines with up to 50 of its forthcoming 7E7 planes in a deal that could be worth as much as $6bn (£3.1bn) for the US giant.

Japan Airlines has made a firm order for 30 of the aircraft, at $120m each, with the option to buy 20 more. Asia's biggest airline joins Japanese rival All Nippon as one of the first carriers to order the mid-size 7E7, which Boeing says is super-economical. Airbus this week announced the first pre-sale of its 7E7 rival - the A350. Boeing's great European competitor is to sell 10 of its forthcoming A350 to Spanish carrier Air Europe, which has the option to buy two more in a deal that could be worth more than $1.8bn. Both the 7E7 and the A350 are being designed to be as fuel-efficient as possible in the 200- to 300-seat sector, and each will be available in both short and long range versions.

Japan Airlines said it had looked at both aircraft before choosing the 7E7, also known as the Dreamliner. ""We chose the 7E7 after carefully considering both it and Airbus' aircraft,"" said a Japan Airlines spokesman. ""The 7E7 fits better for what we needed and it could be delivered when we hoped to get it."" Boeing continues to enjoy a dominance over Airbus in Japan, and Japanese companies are taking key roles in building the 7E7. The first 7E7s will be delivered to Japan Airlines in April 2008. Boeing has set itself a target of getting 200 firm commitments for the 7E7 by the end of this year, and has orders for 56 so far. Airbus hopes to have 50 orders in place for the A350 by mid-2005.
"	business
Banker loses sexism claim	"A former executive at the London offices of Merrill Lynch has lost her £7.5m ($14.6m) sex discrimination case against the US investment bank.

An employment tribunal dismissed Stephanie Villalba's allegations of sexual discrimination and unequal pay. But the 42-year-old won her claim of unfair dismissal, resulting from her sacking in August 2003. Her partial victory is likely to cap her compensation to about £55,000, a tiny fraction of what she asked for. The extent of damages will be assessed in the New Year. The action - the biggest claim heard by an employment tribunal in the UK - had been viewed as something of a test case.

The tribunal decided that Ms Villalba had been unfairly dismissed because, having been removed from a senior post, she was entitled to wait to see if a suitable alternative position could be found in the organisation. Ms Villalba, the former head of Merrill's private client business in Europe, has made no decision on whether to appeal.

A spokesman for her lawyers described the decision as ""very disappointing"", but pointed to some criticism of Merrill's procedures within the lengthy judgement. The tribunal upheld Ms Villalba's claim of victimisation on certain specific issues, including bullying e-mails in connection with a contract, but said it found no evidence of ""laddish culture"" at the bank. ""We said from the start that this case was about performance not gender,"" Merrill said in a statement. ""Ms Villalba was removed by the very same person who had promoted her into the position and who then replaced her with another woman. ""Merrill Lynch is dedicated to creating a true meritocracy where every employee has the opportunity to advance based on their skills and hard work.""

Based in London's financial district, Ms Villalba worked for Merrill's global private client business in Europe, investing funds for some of Merrill's most important customers. But in 2003 her employers told her she had no future after 17 years with the company, and she was made redundant. Merrill Lynch denied Ms Villalba's claims and said she was removed from her post because of the extensive losses the firm was suffering on the continent. The firm had told the tribunal that Ms Villalba's division had been losing about $1m a week. Merrill said Ms Villalba lacked the leadership skills to turn around the unit.
"	business
Building giant in asbestos payout	"Australian building products group James Hardie has agreed to pay $1.1bn (£568m) to victims of asbestos-related diseases.

The landmark deal could see thousands of people suffering from lung diseases - caused by asbestos the company once made - receive compensation. The move follows angry protests after the firm said a previous compensation fund was running out of money. A subsequent New South Wales state inquiry criticised Hardie's actions. In September, the inquiry found that the company had misled the public about the amount of money set aside to cover its asbestos-related liabilities, sparking the resignation of its then chief executive, Peter MacDonald.

Campaigners welcomed news of the preliminary agreement. ""This is a momentous day in the fight for victims and their families,"" said asbestosis sufferer Bernie Banton, who leads a victims' association. ""There is still a long way to go, but we are getting there."" James Hardie chairwoman, Meredith Hellicar, said the deal provided for a funding arrangement ""that is affordable, sensible and workable"". ""At the end of the day we are dealing with compensation for people who are terminally ill. We don't know exactly how many of them there will be, we don't know over what exact period they will fall ill,"" she said. However, the deal still has to receive the approval of Hardie's shareholders.

Hardie, which currently makes more than 80% of its revenues in the US, was once Australia's biggest supplier of asbestos building materials. In 2001, the company set up a fund to compensate asbestos victims, but it later admitted the fund was running short of money. A decision by Hardie to move its headquarters to the Netherlands - while remaining a listed company in Australia - provoked a damaging public outcry. Victims groups accusing it of trying to escape its responsibilities by moving abroad, a charge the company denies. Australia's securities watchdog is currently investigating Hardie's former chief executive and former chief financial officer over allegations of misleading investors and the general public.
"	business
Police detain Chinese milk bosses	"Chinese police have detained three top executives at milk firm Yili, with reports suggesting that they are being investigated for embezzlement.

Yili - full name Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial - confirmed its chairman, chief financial officer and securities representative were all in custody. The company, China's third-largest milk producer, is to hold an emergency meeting to debate the issue. A Yili spokesman said it may now move to oust chairman Zheng Junhuai. The spokesman did not say why the three had been detained by the police. The official Xinhua News Agency said the arrest was linked to alleged embezzlement.

Yili has recently been the subject of intense media speculation over its financial operations. Executives are suspected of wrongly using 417m yuan ($50.4m; £26m) of company funds to support a management buyout back in July 2003. Yili's shares were suspended on Tuesday, having fallen by 10% on Monday. The company and its two main rivals - market leader Mengniu Dairy and second place Bright Dairy - dominate a Chinese milk market that has grown by almost 30% over the past five years. Analysts wondered if the scandal at Yili - the latest to befall Chinese companies this year - could be followed by further revelations of corporate wrongdoing. ""Investors wonder if Yili's scandal, one of a slew to be uncovered this year, isn't just the tip of the iceberg,"" said Chen Huiqin, an analyst at Huatai Securities.
"	business
India's Deccan seals $1.8bn deal	"Air Deccan has ordered 30 Airbus A320 planes in a $1.8bn (£931m) deal as India's first low-cost airline expands in the fast-growing domestic market.

Air Deccan was set up last year and wants to lure travellers away from the railway network and pricier rivals. The potential of the Indian market has attracted attention at home and abroad. Beer magnate Vijay Mallya recently set up Kingfisher Airlines, while UK entrepreneur Richard Branson has said he is keen to start a local operation.

The country has a population of more than a billion people and many observers feel that it is underserved by airlines. Recently however, the booming economy has boosted personal spending power and helped swell the middle classes and the corporate sector. India's government has given its backing to cheaper and more accessible air travel. ""The days of flying being a symbol of only maharajas or the rich are over,"" the minister for civil aviation Praful Patel said earlier. Infrastructure is being built to handle the expected increase in demand and on Tuesday, Agence France Presse reported that a group led by Germany's Siemens won the contract to build a private airport near Bangalore. India's airports authority and the state government will own 13% each of the finished transport hub. For its part, Air Deccan, set up by army officer and silk farmer Gorur Gopinath, plans to increase its fleet to 60 aircraft within five years. To help finance the expansion the company may sell a 25% stake to an investor for about $50m. When it was set up the firm offered tickets that were 50% cheaper than other Indian airlines. It said it was basing its business model on European firms such as Ireland's Ryanair.
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Venezuela and China sign oil deal	"Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has offered China wide-ranging access to the country's oil reserves.

The offer, made as part of a trade deal between the two countries, will allow China to operate oil fields in Venezuela and invest in new refineries. Venezuela has also offered to supply 120,000 barrels of fuel oil a month to China. Venezuela - the world's fifth largest oil exporter - sells about 60% of its output to the United States. Mr Chavez's administration, which has a strained relationship with the US, is trying to diversify sales to reduce its dependence on its largest export market.

China's quick-growing economy's need for oil has contributed to record-high oil prices this year, along with political unrest in the Middle East and supply bottlenecks. Oil prices are finishing the year roughly 30% higher than they were in January 2004.

In 2004, according to forecasts from the Ministry of Commerce, China's oil imports will be 110m tons, up 21% on the previous year. China has been a net importer of oil since the mid 1990's with more than a third of the oil and gas it consumes coming from abroad. A lack of sufficient domestic production and the need to lessen its dependence on imports from the Middle East has meant that China is looking to invest in other potential markets such as Latin America. Mr Chavez, who is visiting China, said his country would put its many of its oil facilities at the disposal of China. Chinese firms would be allowed to operate 15 mature oil fields in the east of Venezuela, which could produce more than one billion barrels, he confirmed. The two countries will also continue a joint venture agreement to produce stocks of the boiler fuel orimulsion. Mr Chavez has also invited Chinese firms to bid for gas exploration contracts which his government will offer next year in the western Gulf of Venezuela. The two countries also signed a number of other agreements covering other industries including mining.
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Jarvis sells Tube stake to Spain	"Shares in engineering group Jarvis have soared more than 16% on news that it is offloading its stake in London underground consortium Tube Lines.

The sale of the 33% stake to Spain's Ferrovial for £146m ($281m) is a lifeline to Jarvis, which was weighed down by debts of more than £230m. The company recently warned it could go under if it did not secure a refinancing deal by mid-January 2005. But now its banks have agreed to extend its credit facilities until March 2006.

The company also said it had agreed terms over the completion of 14 of its biggest construction projects under the government's Private Finance Initiative (PFI).

Jarvis wants to scale back the division, which has proved too costly and has been blamed for many of its problems. Instead, it plans to focus on UK rail renewal, roads and plant hire work. Madrid-based Ferrovial already holds a 33% stake in Tube Lines, which maintains the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines. The Spanish group has been keen to snap up more UK infrastructure assets, having bought Amey in 2003. Jarvis said the sale, which raked in more than the £100m analysts had expected, would ""substantially"" enhance its financial position. ""I am now confident that we can now move forward in 2005 towards rebuilding Jarvis and return it to growth as a profitable business,"" said chief executive Alan Lovell. Shares in Jarvis were up more than 16% to 18 pence by the close of trade on Friday.
"	business
Honda wins China copyright ruling	"Japan's Honda has won a copyright case in Beijing, further evidence that China is taking a tougher line on protecting intellectual property rights.

A court ruled that Chongqing Lifan Industry Group must stop selling Honda brand motorbikes and said it must pay 1.47m yuan ($177,600) in compensation. Internationally recognized regulation is now a key part of China's plans for developing its economy, analysts said. Beijing also has been threatened with sanctions if it fails to clamp down.

Chinese firms copy products ranging from computer software and spark plugs to baby milk and compact discs. Despite the fact that product piracy is a major problem, foreign companies have only occasionally won cases and the compensation awarded has usually been small. Still, recent rulings and announcements will have boosted optimism that attitudes are changing. Earlier this week China said that in future it will punish violators of intellectual property rights with up to seven years in jail. And on Tuesday, Paws Incorporated - the owner of the rights to Garfield the cat - won a court battle against a publishing house that violated its copyright. Other firms that have taken legal action in China, with varying degrees of success, include Yamaha, General Motors and Toyota.

The problem of piracy is not limited to China, however, and the potential for profit is huge. The European Union estimates that the global trade in pirated wares is worth more than 200bn euros a year (£140bn; $258bn), or about 5% of total world trade. And it is growing. Between 1998 and 2002, the number of counterfeit or pirated goods intercepted at the EU's external borders increased by more than 800%, it said. Last month the EU said it will start monitoring China, Ukraine and Russia to ensure they are going after pirated goods. Other countries on the EU's hit list include Thailand, Brazil, South Korea and Indonesia. Any countries that are not making enough of an effort could be dragged to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a step that could trigger economic sanctions, the EU warned.
"	business
Air Jamaica back in state control	"The Jamaican government is regaining control of Air Jamaica in an bid to help the ailing company out of its financial difficulties.

The firm has failed to make money since the state sold a majority stake to hotel tycoon Gordon Stewart in 1994. In common with many carriers, Air Jamaica, with debts of $560m (£291m), has been hit by high fuel costs and the impact of the 11 September attacks. The company will be restructured with the aim of finding a new buyer. ""The administration is committed to a viable national airline that will serve as a major catalyst for our economy,"" said Finance Minister Omar Davies. The 35-year-old airline transports about 55% of all passengers to the island and its pilots are reportedly among the best paid in the industry, with senior members of staff earning in excess of $234,000 a year.
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Battered dollar hits another low	"The dollar has fallen to a new record low against the euro after data fuelled fresh concerns about the US economy.

The greenback hit $1.3516 in thin New York trade, before rallying to $1.3509. The dollar has weakened sharply since September when it traded about $1.20, amid continuing worries over the levels of the US trade and budget deficits. Meanwhile, France's finance minister has said the world faced ""economic catastrophe"" unless the US worked with Europe and Asia on currency controls. Herve Gaymard said he would seek action on the issue at the next meeting of G7 countries in February. Ministers from European and Asian governments have recently called on the US to strengthen the dollar, saying the excessively high value of the euro was starting to hurt their export-driven economies. ""It's absolutely essential that at the meeting of the G7 our American friends understand that we need coordinated management at the world level,"" said Mr Gaymard.

Thursday's new low for the dollar came after data was released showing year-on-year sales of new homes in the US had fallen 12% in November - with some analysts saying this could indicate problems ahead for consumer activity.

Commerce Department data also showed consumer spending - which drives two thirds of the US economy - grew just 0.2% last month. The figure was weaker than forecast - and fell short of the 0.8% rise in October. The official US policy is that it supports a strong dollar but many market observers believe it is happy to let the dollar fall because of the boost to its exporters.

The US government has faced pressure from exporter organisations which have publicly stated the currency still has further to fall from ""abnormal and dangerous heights"" set in 2002. The US says it will let market forces determine the dollar's strength rather than intervene directly. Statements from President Bush in recent weeks highlighting his aim to cut the twin US deficits have prompted slight upturns in the currency. But while some observers said the quiet trade on Thursday had exacerbated small moves in the market, most agree the underlying trend remains downwards. The dollar has now fallen for a third consecutive year and analysts are forecasting a further, albeit less dramatic weakening, in 2005. ""I can see it finishing the year around $1.35 and we can see that it's going to be a steady track upward for the euro/dollar in 2005, finishing the year around $1.40,"" said Adrian Hughes, currency strategist with HSBC in London.
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Quake's economic costs emerging	"Asian governments and international agencies are reeling at the potential economic devastation left by the Asian tsunami and floods.

World Bank president James Wolfensohn has said his agency is ""only beginning to grasp the magnitude of the disaster"" and its economic impact. The tragedy has left at least 25,000 people dead, with Sri Lanka, Thailand, India and Indonesia worst hit. Some early estimates of reconstruction costs are starting to emerge. Millions have been left homeless, while businesses and infrastructure have been washed away.

Economists believe several of the 10 countries hit by the giant waves could see a slowdown in growth.

In Sri Lanka, some observers have said that as much as 1% of annual growth may be lost. For Thailand, that figure is much lower at 0.1%. Governments are expected to take steps, such as cutting taxes and increasing spending, to facilitate a recovery.

""With the enormous displacement of people...there will be a serious relaxation of fiscal policy,"" Glenn Maguire, chief economist for the region at Societe Generale, told Agence France Presse. ""The economic impact of it will certainly be large, but it should not be enough to derail the momentum of the region in 2005,"" he said. ""First and foremost this is a human tragedy."" India's economy, however, is less likely to slow because the areas hit are some of the least developed. The regional giant has enjoyed strong growth in 2004. But India now faces other problems, with aid workers under pressure to ensure a clean supply of water and sanitation to prevent an outbreak of disease.

Thailand's Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has estimated the destruction at 20bn baht ($510m). Analysts said that figure is likely to rise and the country's tourist industry is likely to be hardest hit. Thailand's fishing and real estate sectors also will be affected by Sunday's 9.0 magnitude earthquake, which sent huge waves from Malaysia to Africa. Malaysia said as many as 1,000 fishermen will be affected and that damage to the industry will be ""significant"", Agence France Presse reported. Rapid rebuilding will be key to limiting the impact of the tragedy. ""In three months, we should rebuild 70% of the damage in the three worst hit provinces,"" said Juthamas Siriwan, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. The outlook for Sri Lanka is less optimistic, with analysts predicting that the country's tourist industry will struggle to recovery quickly. Tourism is a vital to many developing countries, providing jobs for 19 million people in the south east Asian region, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).
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Disaster claims 'less than $10bn'	"Insurers have sought to calm fears that they face huge losses after an earthquake and giant waves killed at least 38,000 people in southern Asia.

Munich Re and Swiss Re, the world's two biggest reinsurers, have said exposure will be less than for other disasters. Rebuilding costs are likely to be cheaper than in developed countries, and many of those affected will not have insurance, analysts said. Swiss Re has said total claims are likely to be less than $10bn (£5.17bn). Swiss Re believes that the cost would be substantial but that it is unlikely to be in double-digit billions, the Financial Times reported. Munich Re, the world's largest reinsurance company, said that its exposure is less than 100m euros (£70m; $136m).

At least 10 countries have been affected, with Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India and Thailand among the worst hit. The region's resorts and Western tourists are expected to be among the main claimants.

Lloyds of London told the Financial Times it expected its exposure to be limited to ""holiday resorts, personal accident, travel insurance and marine risks"". A spokeswoman for Hanover Re, Europe's fifth-largest reinsurance firm, estimated tsunami-related damage claims would be in the low double-digit millions of euros. The company has paid out about 300 million euros (£281m; $400m) to cover damage caused recently by four major hurricanes in the US.

But insurers have not had long to assess the economic impact of the damage and reports of more casualties and destruction are still coming through.

""So many things are unclear, it is just too early to tell,"" said Serge Troeber, deputy head of Swiss Re's natural disasters department. ""You need very complicated processes to estimate damages. Unlike the hurricanes, you can't just run a model."" He anticipated that his own company's total claims would be less then those from the hurricanes, which the company put at $640m. Allianz, a leading German insurer, said it did not know yet what its exposure would be. However, it said the tidal waves were unlikely to have a ""significant"" impact on its business. Zurich Financial said they could not yet assess the cost of the disaster.

The impact on US insurance companies is not expected to be heavy, analysts said.

Most US insurers have relatively little exposure to Asia and those that do, pass on a lot of the risk to reinsurance companies or special catastrophe funds. Insured damage could be a fraction of the ""billions of dollars worth of destruction in Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Indonesia, the Maldive Islands and Malaysia,"" said Prudential Equity Group insurance analyst Jay Gelb. ""US insurers are likely to have only minimal to no exposure. It's more likely the Bermuda-based reinsurance [companies] might have some exposure,"" said Paul Newsome, an insurance analyst at AG Edwards & Co.

Many of the affected countries, such as Indonesia, Sri Lanka or the Maldives, do not usually buy insurance for these kinds of disasters, said a US-based insurance expert. Early estimates from the World Bank put the amount of aid needed for the worst affected countries including Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia and Thailand, at about $5bn (£2.6bn), similar to the cash offered to Central America after Hurricane Mitch.

Mitch killed about 10,000 people and caused damage of about $10bn in 1998. But the cost of the tsunamis on the individuals involved is incalculable. ""We cannot fathom the cost of these poor societies and the nameless fishermen and fishing villages ... that have just been wiped out. Hundreds of thousands of livelihoods have gone,"" said Jan Egeland, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Tourists cutting short their holidays in affected areas may suffer a financial impact too. The Association of British insurers warned that travel insurance does not normally cover cutting short a holiday. It said loss of possessions will usually be covered, but the Association stressed the importance of checking the wording of travel policies.
"	business
India-Pakistan peace boosts trade	"Calmer relations between India and Pakistan are paying economic dividends, with new figures showing bilateral trade up threefold in the summer.

The value of trade in April-July rose to $186.3m (£97m) from $64.4m in the same period in 2003, the Indian Government said. Nonethless, the figures represent less than 1% of India's overall exports. But business is expected to be boosted further from 2006 when the South Asian Free Trade Area Agreement starts. Both countries eased travel and other restrictions as part of the peace process aimed at ending nearly six decades of hostilities.

Sugar, plastics, pharmaceutical products and tea are among the major exports from India to its neighbour, while firms in Pakistani have been selling fabrics, fruit and spices. ""If the positive trend continues, two-way trade could well cross half a billion dollars this fiscal year,"" India's federal commerce Minister Kamal Nath said. According to official data, the value of India's overall exports in the current fiscal year is expected to reach more than $60bn, while in Pakistan's case it is set to hit more than $12bn. Meanwhile, the Indian Government said the prospects for the country's booming economy remained ""very bright"" despite a ""temporary aberration"" this year. Its mid-year economic review forecasts growth of 6-6.5% in 2004, compared with 8.2% in 2003. Higher oil prices, the level of tax collections, and an unfavourable monsoon season affecting the farm sector had hurt the economy in April-September, it said.
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US to probe airline travel chaos	"The US government is to investigate two airlines- US Airways and Delta Air Lines' Comair subsidiary - after travel chaos over the Christmas weekend.

Staff calling in sick at US Airways and computer failures at Comair left 30,000 passengers stranded and 10,000 pieces of baggage undelivered. US Airways is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in two years, and battling to cut costs. It is currently trying to negotiate pay cuts with flight and baggage staff.

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said he was ""deeply concerned"" at the disruption to passengers, and ordered a thorough investigation. Comair's computer breakdown plunged its flight-crew scheduling system into disarray. Altogether, some 1,100 flights were cancelled over the holiday long weekend. Mr Mineta said it was important to understand ""what happened, why it happened and whether the carriers properly planned for the holiday travel period and responded appropriately to consumer needs in the aftermath"".

Adding to the atmosphere of chaos were mountains of luggage left to pile up when a third of US Airways' baggage handling staff called in sick. There was also a shortage of US Airways flight attendants, with nearly a fifth saying they were too sick to work, leading to many flight cancellations. However, union officials denied there had been a deliberate ""sickout"". They said that many people have flu at this time of year and that the airline is chronically understaffed.

US Airways ended up cancelling over 100 flights on Christmas Day, stranding passengers in as many as 119 airports. Ground crews at US Airways, the seventh-largest US airline, which is now in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, face a court-imposed pay cut next month. The airline needs to negotiate other paycuts if it is to find a route out of bankruptcy. It is looking for paycuts totalling $800m.

""US Airways has a full-scale employee mutiny on its hands,"" commented Michael Boyd, an industry consultant. Disruptions to flight schedules could discourage customers from flying with US Airways, reducing revenues. US Airways had to cancel approximately 65 flights on Thursday, 180 on Friday, 140 on Saturday, 43 on Sunday and 15 on Monday, said industry officials. The airline said it was ""embarrassed by the situation"" and ""deeply regrets any inconvenience caused to customers,"" The probe will focus on the industry's compliance with a 1999 agreement aimed at improving the quality of passenger service that has so far allowed airlines to avoid congressionally-mandated standards. Analysts said the Christmas chaos cast doubt on US Airway's ability to emerge from bankruptcy - and was likely to worsen the finances of troubled Delta, parent of Comair. Comair ""deeply regrets the inconvenience to all of our customers caused by the severe winter storm in the Ohio River Valley during the busy holiday season, exacerbated by problems with the airline's crew scheduling system, causing additional flight delays and cancellations,"" the Delta subsidiary said in a statement.
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S Korean lender faces liquidation	"Creditors of South Korea's top credit card firm have said they will put the company into liquidation if its ex-parent firm fails to back a bail-out.

LG Card's creditors have given LG group until Wednesday to sign up to a $1.1bn rescue package. The firm avoided bankruptcy thanks to a $4.5bn bail-out in January 2004, which gave control to the creditors. LG Group has said any package should reflect the firm's new ownership, and it will not accept an unfair burden. At least seven million people in South Korea use LG Card's plastic for purchases.

LG Card's creditors have threatened parent group LG Group with penalties if it fails to respond to their demands.

""Creditors would seek strong financial sanctions against LG Group if LG Card is liquidated,"" said Yoo Ji-chang, governor of Korean Development Bank (KDB) - one of the card firm's major creditors. LG Group has said providing further help to the credit card issuer could hurt its corporate credibility and could spark shareholder lawsuits. It says it wants ""fair and reasonable guidelines"" on splitting the financial burden with the creditors, who now own 99.3% of LG Card. The creditors have asked the government to mediate to avoid any risk to the stability of financial markets, KDB said. Analysts believe a compromise is likely. ""LG Group knows the impact on consumer demand and the national economy from a liquidation of LG Card,"" said Kim Yungmin, an equity strategist at Dongwon Investment Trust Management.

LG Card almost collapsed in 2003 due to an increase in overdue credit card bills after the bursting of a credit bubble. The firm returned to profit in September 2004, but now needs a capital injection to avoid being delisted from the Korea Stock Exchange. The exchange can delist a company if its debt exceeds its assets for two years running. LG card's creditors fear that such a move would triggered massive debt redemption requests that could bankrupt the firm, which owes about $12.05bn. ""Eventually, LG Group will have to participate, but they have been stalling to try to earn better concessions,"" said Mr Kim.
"	business
Dollar hits new low versus euro	"The US dollar has continued its record-breaking slide and has tumbled to a new low against the euro.

Investors are betting that the European Central Bank (ECB) will not do anything to weaken the euro, while the US is thought to favour a declining dollar. The US is struggling with a ballooning trade deficit and analysts said one of the easiest ways to fund it was by allowing a depreciation of the dollar. They have predicted that the dollar is likely to fall even further.

The US currency was trading at $1.364 per euro at 1800 GMT on Monday. This compares with $1.354 to the euro in late trading in New York on Friday, which was then a record low.

The dollar has weakened sharply since September when it traded about $1.20 against the euro. It has lost 7% this year, while against the Japanese yen it is down 3.2%. Traders said that thin trading levels had amplified Monday's move. ""It's not going to take much to push [the dollar] one way or the other,"" said Grant Wilson of Mellon Bank. Liquidity - a measure of the number of parties willing to trade in the market - was about half that of a normal working day, traders said.
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Mild winter drives US oil down 6%	"US oil prices have fallen by 6%, driven down by forecasts of a mild winter in the densely populated northeast.

Light crude oil futures fell $2.86 to $41.32 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), and have now lost $4 in five days. Nonetheless, US crude is still 30% more expensive than at the beginning of 2004, boosted by growing demand and bottlenecks at refineries. Traders ignored the possible effects of Asia's tidal waves on global supplies.

Instead, the focus is now on US consumption, which is heavily influenced in the short term by the weather. ""With the revised milder temperatures... I'm more inclined to think we'll push lower and test the $40-40.25 range,"" said John Brady of ABN AMRO. ""The market definitely feels to be on the defensive."" Statistics released last week showed that stockpiles of oil products in the US had risen, an indication that severe supply disruptions may not arise this winter, barring any serious incident. Oil prices have broken records in 2004, topping $50 a barrel at one point, driven up by a welter of worries about unrest in Iraq and Saudi Arabia, rising demand and supply bottlenecks. London's International Petroleum Exchange remained closed for the Christmas holiday.
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Share boost for feud-hit Reliance	"The board of Indian conglomerate Reliance has agreed a share buy-back, to counter the effects of a power struggle in the controlling family.

The buy-back is a victory for chairman Mukesh Ambani, whose idea it was. His brother Anil, the vice-chairman, said had not been consulted and that the buy-back was ""completely inappropriate and unnecessary"". The board hopes the move will reverse a 13% fall in Reliance's shares since the feud became public last month. The company has been fractious since founder Dhirubhai Ambani died in 2002, leaving no will. ""Today's round has gone to [Mukesh], there is no doubt about it,"" said Nanik Rupani, president of the Indian Merchants Chamber, a Bombay-based traders' body. The company plans to buy back 52 million shares at 570 rupees (£6.80; $13) apiece, a premium of more than 10% to its current market price.
"	business
Giant waves damage S Asia economy	"Governments, aid agencies, insurers and travel firms are among those counting the cost of the massive earthquake and waves that hammered southern Asia.

The worst-hit areas are Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia and Thailand, with at least 23,000 people killed. Early estimates from the World Bank put the amount of aid needed at about $5bn (£2.6bn), similar to the cash offered Central America after Hurricane Mitch. Mitch killed about 10,000 people and caused damage of about $10bn in 1998. World Bank spokesman Damien Milverton told the Wall Street Journal that he expected an aid package of financing and debt relief.

Tourism is a vital part of the economies of the stricken countries, providing jobs for 19 million people in the south east Asian region, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). In the Maldives islands, in the Indian ocean, two-thirds of all jobs depend on tourism.

But the damage covers fishing, farming and businesses too, with hundreds of thousands of buildings and small boats destroyed by the waves. International agencies have pledged their support; most say it is impossible to gauge the extent of the damage yet. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has promised rapid action to help the governments of the stricken countries cope.

""The IMF stands ready to do its part to assist these nations with appropriate support in their time of need,"" said managing director Rodrigo Rato. Only Sri Lanka and Bangladesh currently receive IMF support, while Indonesia, the quake's epicentre, has recently graduated from IMF assistance. It is up to governments to decide if they want IMF help. Other agencies, such as the Asian Development Bank, have said that it is too early to comment on the amount of aid needed. There is no underestimating the size of the problem, however. The United Nations' emergency relief coordinator, Jan Egeland, said that ""this may be the worst national disaster in recent history because it is affecting so many heavily populated coastal areas... so many vulnerable communities. ""Many people will have [had] their livelihoods, their whole future destroyed in a few seconds."" He warned that ""the longer term effects many be as devastating as the tidal wave or the tsunami itself"" because of the risks of epidemics from polluted drinking water.

Insurers are also struggling to assess the cost of the damage, but several big players believe the final bill is likely to be less than the $27bn cost of the hurricanes that battered the US earlier this year.

""The region that's affected is very big so we have to check country-by-country what the situation is"", said Serge Troeber, deputy head of the natural disasters department at Swiss Re, the world's second biggest reinsurance firm. ""I should assume, however, that the overall dimension of insured damages is below the storm damages of the US,"" he said. Munich Re, the world's biggest reinsurer, said: ""This is primarily a human tragedy. It is too early for us to state what our financial burden will be."" Allianz has said it sees no significant impact on its profitability. However, a low insurance bill may simply reflect the general poverty of much of the region, rather than the level of economic devastation for those who live there.

The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies told the Reuters news agency that it was seeking $6.5m for emergency aid.

""The biggest health challenges we face is the spread of waterborne diseases, particularly malaria and diarrhoea,"" the aid agency was quoted as saying. The European Union has said it will deliver 3m euros (£2.1m; $4.1m) of aid, according to the Wall Street Journal. The EU's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner, Louis Michel, was quoted as saying that it was key to bring aid ""in those vital hours and days immediately after the disaster"". Other countries also are reported to have pledged cash, while the US State Department said it was examining what aid was needed in the region. Getting companies and business up and running also may play a vital role in helping communities recover from the weekend's events.

Many of the worst-hit areas, such as Sri Lanka, Thailand's Phuket island and the Maldives, are popular tourist resorts that are key to local economies.

December and January are two of the busiest months for the travel in southern Asia and the damage will be even more keenly felt as the industry was only just beginning to emerge from a post 9/11 slump. Growth has been rapid in southeast Asia, with the World Tourism Organisation figures showing a 45% increase in tourist revenues in the region during the first 10 months of 2004. In southern Asia that expansion is 23%. ""India continues to post excellent results thanks to increased promotion and product development, but also to the upsurge in business travel driven by the rapid economic development of the country,"" the WTO said. ""Arrivals to other destinations such as... Maldives and Sri Lanka also thrived."" In Thailand, tourism accounts for about 6% of the country's annual gross domestic product, or about $8bn. In Singapore the figure is close to 5%. Tourism also brings in much needed foreign currency. In the short-term, however, travel companies are cancelling flights and trips. That has hit shares across Asia and Europe, with investors saying that earnings and economic growth are likely to slow.
"	business
Asia shares defy post-quake gloom	"Thailand has become the first of the 10 southern Asian nations battered by giant waves at the weekend to cut its economic forecast.

Thailand's economy is now expected to grow by 5.7% in 2005, rather than 6% as forecast before tsunamis hit six tourist provinces. The full economic costs of the disaster remain unclear. In part, this is because of its scale, and because delivering aid and recovering the dead remain priorities. But Indonesian, Indian and Hong Kong stock markets reached record highs on Wednesday, suggesting that investors do not fear a major economic impact.

The highs showed the gap in outlook between investors in large firms and individuals who have lost their livelihoods.

Investors seemed to feel that some of the worst-affected areas - such as Aceh in Indonesia - were so under-developed that the tragedy would little impact on Asia's listed companies, according to analysts. ""Obviously with a lot of loss of life, a lot of time is needed to clean up the mess, bury the people and find the missing. But it's not necessarily a really big thing in the economic sense,"" said ABN Amro chief Asian strategist Eddie Wong. India's Bombay Stock Exchange inched slightly above its previous record close on Wednesday. Expectations of strong corporate earnings in 2005 drove the Indonesian stock exchange in Jakarta to a record high on Wednesday. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index may be benefiting in part from the potential for its listed property companies to gain from rebuilding contracts in the tsunami-affected regions of South East Asia. In Sri Lanka, some economists have said that as much as 1% of annual growth may be lost. Sri Lanka's stock market has fallen about 5% since the weekend, but it is still 40% higher than at the start of 2004.

Thailand may lose 30bn baht (£398m; $768m) in earnings from tourism over the next three months, according to tourism minister Sontaya Kunplome.

In the affected provinces, he expects the loss of tourism revenue to be offset by government reconstruction spending. Thailand intends to spend a similar sum - around 30bn baht - on the rebuilding work. ""It will take until the fourth quarter of next year before tourist visitors in Phuket and five other provinces return to their normal level,"" said Naris Chaiyasoot, director general at the ministry's fiscal policy office. In the Maldives the cost of reconstruction could wipe out economic growth, according to a government spokesman. ""Our nation is in peril here,"" said Ahmed Shaheed, the chief government spokesman. He estimated the economic cost of the disaster at hundreds of millions of dollars. The Maldives has gross domestic product of $660m. ""It won't be surprising if the cost exceeds our GDP,"" he said. ""In the last few years, we made great progress in our standard of living - the United Nations recognised this. Now we see this can disappear in a few days, a few minutes."" Shaheed noted that investment in a single tourist resort - the economic mainstay - could run to $40m. Between 10 and 12 of the 80-odd resorts have been severely damaged, and a similar number have suffered significant damage. However, many experts, including the World Bank, have pointed out that it is still difficult to assess the magnitude of the disaster and its likely economic impact.
"	business
Israeli economy picking up pace	"Israel's economy is forecast to grow by 4.2% in 2004 as it continues to emerge from a three-year recession.

The main driver of the faster-than-expected expansion has been exports, with tourism seeing a strong rebound, the statistical office said. The economy is benefiting from a quieter period in Palestinian-Israeli violence and a pick-up in global demand for technology products. The outlook is better than it has been for a number of years, analysts said.

Many companies have focused on cost cutting and greater efficiency, while the government has been trying to trim public spending and push through reforms. The growth figures come about despite a strike earlier this year by about 400,000 public sector worker which closed banks, hospitals, postal services and transport facilities. Growth did slow in the second half, but only slightly. Exports for the year rose by 14%, while tourist revenues were up by 30%. Imports gained by 13%, signalling that domestic demand has picked up again. In 2003, imports declined by 1.8%. In 2003, the economy expanded by 1.3%
"	business
S Korea spending boost to economy	"South Korea will boost state spending next year in an effort to create jobs and kick start its sputtering economy.

It has earmarked 100 trillion won ($96bn) for the first six months of 2005, 60% of its total annual budget. The government's main problems are ""slumping consumption and a contraction in the construction industry"". It aims to create 400,000 jobs and will focus on infrastructure and home building, as well as providing public firms with money to hire new workers.

The government has set an economic growth rate target of 5% for next year and hinted that would be in danger unless it took action. ""Internal and external economic conditions are likely to remain unfavourable in 2005,"" the Finance and Economy Ministry said in a statement.

It blamed ""continuing uncertainties such as fluctuating oil prices and foreign exchange rates and stagnant domestic demand that has shown few signs of a quick rebound"". In 2004, growth will be between 4.7% and 4.8%, the ministry said. Not everyone is convinced the plan will work. ""Our primary worry centres on the what we believe is the government's overly optimistic view that its front loading of the budget will be enough to turn the economy around,"" consultancy 4Cast said in a report.

The problem facing South Korea is that many consumers are reeling from the effects of a credit bubble that only recently burst. Millions of South Koreans are defaulting on their credit card bills, and the country's biggest card lender has been hovering on the verge of bankruptcy for months. As part of its spending plans, the government said it will ask firms to ""roll over mortgage loans that come due in the first half of 2005"" . It also pledged to look at ways of helping families on low incomes.

The government voiced concern about the effect of redundancies in the building trade. ""Given the economic spill over and employment effect in the construction sector, a sharp downturn in the construction industry could have other adverse effects,"" the ministry said.

As a result, South Korea will give private companies also will be given the chance to build schools, hospitals, houses and other public buildings. It also will look at real estate tax system. Other plans on the table include promoting new industries such as bio-technology and nano-technology, as well as offering increased support to small and medium sized businesses. ""The focus will be on job creation and economic recovery, given that unfavourable domestic and global conditions are likely to dog the Korean economy in 2005,"" the ministry said.
"	business
Soros group warns of Kazakh close	"The Open Society Institute (OSI), financed by billionaire George Soros, has accused Kazakhstan officials of trying to close down its local office.

A demand for unpaid taxes and fines of $600,000 (£425,000) is politically motivated, the OSI claimed, adding that it paid the money in October. The organisation has found itself in trouble after being accused of helping to topple Georgia's former president. It denies having any role, but offices have had to close across the region.

The OSI shut its office in Moscow last year and has withdrawn from Uzbekistan and Belarus. In the Ukraine earlier this year, Mr Soros - who took on the Bank of England in the 1990s - and won, was pelted by protestors. ""This legal prosecution can be considered an attempt by the government to force Soros Foundation-Kazakhstan to cease its activities in Kazakhstan and shut its doors for Kazakh citizens and organisations,"" the OSI said.

The OSI aims to promote democratic and open, market-based societies. Since the break up of the Soviet Union in 1991, Kazakhstan has been dominated by its president Nursultan Abish-uly Nazarbayev. He has powers for life, while insulting the president and officials has been made a criminal offence. The government controls the printing presses and most radio and TV transmission facilities. It operates the country's national radio and TV networks. Recent elections were criticised as flawed and the opposition claimed there was widespread vote rigging. Supporters, however, say he brings much needed stability to a region where Islamic militancy is on the rise. They also credit him with promoting inter-ethnic accord and pushing through harsh reforms.
"	business
Deutsche attacks Yukos case	"German investment bank Deutsche Bank has challenged the right of Yukos to claim bankruptcy protection in the US.

In a court filing on Tuesday, it said the Russian oil giant has few Texas ties beyond bank accounts and a Texas-based finance chief. Deutsche Bank claimed Yukos had artificially manufactured a legal case to stop the sale of its main asset. It had wanted to help fund Gazprom's plans for a $10bn (£5.18bn) bid for Yukos unit Yuganskneftegas.

Deutsche Bank would have earned large fees from the deal, which could not be carried out because US chapter 11 bankruptcy rules made the Kremlin's auction of Yuganskneftegas on 19 December illegal under US law.

But the US bankruptcy court judge in Texas granted Yukos an injunction that barred Gazprom and its lenders from taking part. Yuganskneftegas will ultimately end up with Gazprom. The winning bidder at the auction was a previously unknown firm, Baikal Finance Group, which was snapped up days later by Rosneft, a Russian oil firm that is in the process of merging with Gazprom. The effect of these transactions is to renationalise Yuganskneftegas. Deutsche Bank contends Yukos filed for bankruptcy earlier this month in Texas in a desperate and unsuccessful bid to stave off the 19 December auction of its top unit by the Russian government, which was in a tax dispute with Yukos.

""This blatant attempt to artificially manufacture a basis for jurisdiction constitutes cause to dismiss this case,"" Deutsche Bank said in its court filing. Mike Lake, a spokesman for Yukos' lawyers, said on Tuesday that the company stands by its legal action. Yukos is confident of its right to US bankruptcy protection, and ""we are prepared to be back in court defending that position again,"" he said. Yukos has said it intends to seek $20bn in damages from the buyer of Yuganskneftegas once the sale finally goes through. In its filing, Deutsche Bank said Houston was ""a jurisdiction in which Yukos owns no real or personal property and conducts no business operations.""

It also said the US bankruptcy court should not become involved in ""a tax dispute between the Federation and one of its corporate citizens"". It suggested the European Court or an international arbitration tribunal were more appropriate jurisdictions for the legal fight between Russia and Yukos. The next hearing in the bankruptcy is expected on 6 January. Analysts believe the tax dispute between the Russian government and Yukos is partly driven by Russian president Vladimir Putin's hostility hostility to the political ambitions of ex-Yukos boss Mikhail Khordokovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky is in jail, and on trial for fraud and tax evasion.
"	business
GM in crunch talks on Fiat future	"Fiat will meet car giant General Motors (GM) on Tuesday in an attempt to reach agreement over the future of the Italian firm's loss-making auto group.

Fiat claims that GM is legally obliged to buy the 90% of the car unit it does not already own; GM says the contract, signed in 2000, is no longer valid. Press reports have speculated that Fiat may be willing to accept a cash payment in return for dropping its claim. Both companies want to cut costs as the car industry adjusts to waning demand.

The meeting between Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne and GM's Rick Wagoner is due to take place at 1330 GMT in Zurich, according to the Reuters news agency.

Mr Marchionne is confident of his firm's legal position, saying in an interview with the Financial Times that GM's argument ""has no legs"". The agreement in question dates back to GM's decision to buy 20% of Fiat's auto division in 2000. At the time, it gave the Italian firm the right, via a 'put option', to sell the remaining stake to GM. In recent weeks, Fiat has reiterated its claims that this 'put' is still valid and legally binding. However, GM argues that a Fiat share sale made last year, which cut GM's holding to 10%, together with asset sales made by Fiat have terminated the agreement.

Selling the Fiat's car-making unit may not prove so simple, analysts say, especially as it is a company that is so closely linked to Italy's industrial heritage. Political and public pressure may well push the two firms to reach a compromise. ""We are not expecting Fiat to exercise its put of the auto business against an unwilling GM at this point,"" brokerage Merrill Lynch said in a note to investors, adding that any legal battle would be protracted and damaging to the business. ""As far as we are aware, the Agnelli family, which indirectly controls at least 30% of Fiat, has not given a firm public indication that it wants to sell the auto business. ""Fiat may be willing to cancel the 'put' in exchange for money.""
"	business
Record year for Chilean copper	"Chile's copper industry has registered record earnings of $14.2bn in 2004, the governmental Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) has reported.

Strong demand from China's fast-growing economy and high prices have fuelled production, said Cochilco vice president Patricio Cartagena. He added that the boom has allowed the government to collect $950m in taxes. Mr Cartagena said the industry expects to see investment worth $10bn over the next three years.

""With these investments, clearly we are going to continue being the principle actor in the mining of copper. It's a consolidation of the industry with new projects and expansions that will support greater production."" Australia's BHP Billiton - which operates La Escondida, the world's largest open pit copper mine - is planning to invest $1.9bn between now and 2007, while state-owned Codelco will spend about $1bn on various projects. Chile, the biggest copper producer in the world, is now analyzing ways of to keep prices stable at their current high levels, without killing off demand or leading customers to look for substitutes for copper. The copper price reached a 16-year high in October 2004. Production in Chile is expected rise 3.5% in 2005 to 5.5 million tonnes, said Mr Cartagena. Cochilco expects for 2005 a slight reduction on copper prices and forecasts export earnings will fall 10.7%.
"	business
US consumer confidence up	"Consumers' confidence in the state of the US economy is at its highest for five months and they are optimistic about 2005, an influential survey says.

The feel-good factor among US consumers rose in December for the first time since July according to new data. The Conference Board survey of 5,000 households pointed to renewed optimism about job creation and economic growth. US retailers have reported strong sales over the past 10 days after a slow start to the crucial festive season.

According to figures also released on Tuesday, sales in shopping malls in the week to 25 December were 4.3% higher than in 2003 following a last minute rush. Wal-Mart, the largest US retailer, has said its December sales are expected to be better than previously forecast because of strong post-Christmas sales.

It is expecting annual sales growth of between 1% and 3% for the month. Consumer confidence figures are considered a key economic indicator because consumer spending accounts for about two thirds of all economic activity in the United States. ""The continuing economic expansion, combined with job growth, has consumers ending this year on a high note,"" said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board's consumer research centre. ""And consumers' outlook suggests that the economy will continue to expand in the first half of next year."" The overall US economy has performed strongly in recent months, prompting the Federal Reserve to increase interest rates five times since June.
"	business
Cash gives way to flexible friend	"Spending on credit and debit cards has overtaken cash spending in the UK for the first time.

The moment that plastic finally toppled cash happened at 10.38am on Wednesday, according to the Association for Payment Clearing Services (Apacs) Apacs chose school teacher Helen Carroll, from Portsmouth, to make the historic transaction. The switch over took place as she paid for her groceries in the supermarket chain Tesco's Cromwell Road branch.

Mrs Carroll was born in the same year that plastic cards first appeared in the UK. ""I pay for most things with my debit card, with occasional purchases on one of my credit cards,"" said Mrs Carroll, who teaches at Peel Common Infants School in Gosport.

Spending patterns for the year and estimates for December led Apacs to conclude that 10.38am was the time that plastic would finally rule the roost. Shoppers in the UK are expected to put £269bn on plastic cards during the whole of 2004, compared with £268bn paid with cash, Apacs said. When the first plastic cards appeared in the UK in June 1966, issued by Barclaycard, but only a handful of retailers accepted them and very few customers held them. ""But in less than 40 years, plastic has become our most popular way to pay, due to the added security and flexibility it offers,"" said Apacs spokeswoman Jemma Smith. ""The key driver has been the introduction of debit cards, which now account for two-thirds of plastic card transactions and are used by millions of us every day.""
"	business
Go-ahead for Balkan oil pipeline	"Albania, Bulgaria and Macedonia has given the go ahead for the construction of a $1.2bn oil pipeline that will pass through the Balkan peninsula.

The project aims to allow alternative ports for the shipping of Russian and Caspian oil, that normally goes through Turkish ports. It aims to transport 750,000 daily barrels of oil. The pipeline will be built by the US-registered Albanian Macedonian Bulgarian Oil Corporation (AMBO). The 912km pipeline will run from the Bulgarian port of Burgas, over the Black Sea to the Albanian city of Vlore on the Adriatic coast, crossing Macedonia.

The project was conceived in 1994 but it was delayed because of the lack of political support. By signing the agreement on Tuesday, the prime ministers of Bulgaria, Albania and Macedonia have overcome the problem. ""This is one of the most important infrastructure projects for regional, EU, and Euro-Atlantic integration for the western Balkans,"" said Albanian Prime Minister Fatos Nano. According to Pat Ferguson, President of AMBO, work on the pipeline will begin in 2005 and it is expected to be ready in three or four years. He added that the company had already raised about $900m from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) - a US development agency - the Eximbank and Credit Suisse First Boston, among others. The project has also the support of the European Union. Analysts have said that oil companies like ChevronTexaco, Exxon Mobil and British Petroleum would be happy to find alternative routes to the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits.
"	business
Durex maker SSL awaits firm bid	"UK condom maker SSL International has refused to comment on reports it may be subject to a takeover early in 2005.

A Financial Times report said business intelligence firm GPW was understood to be starting due diligence work on SSL International, for a corporate client. An spokesman for SSL, which makes the famous Durex brand of condom, would not to comment on ""market speculation"". However the news sent shares in SSL, which also makes Scholl footwear, up more than 6%, or 16.75 pence to 293.5p.

The FT said most the high-profile firm that might woo SSL was Anglo-Dutch household products group Reckitt Benckiser. Eighteen months ago Reckitt Benckiser was at the centre of a rumoured takeover bid for SSL - but that came to nothing. Other firms that have been seen as would-be suitors include Kimberly-Clark, Johnson & Johnson, and private equity investors. Analysts have seen SSL as a takeover target for years. It sold off its surgical gloves and antiseptics businesses for £173m to a management team in May. SSL was formed by a three-way merger between Seton Healthcare, footwear specialists Scholl and condom-maker London International Group. Its other brands include Syndol analgesic, Meltus cough medicine, Sauber compression hosiery and deodorant products, and Mister Baby.
"	business
Nasdaq planning $100m-share sale	"The owner of the technology-dominated Nasdaq stock index plans to sell shares to the public and list itself on the market it operates.

According to a registration document filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Nasdaq Stock Market plans to raise $100m (£52m) from the sale. Some observers see this as another step closer to a full public listing. However Nasdaq, an icon of the 1990s technology boom, recently poured cold water on those suggestions.

The company first sold shares in private placements during 2000 and 2001. It technically went public in 2002 when the stock started trading on the OTC Bulletin Board, which lists equities that trade only occasionally. Nasdaq will not make money from the sale, only investors who bought shares in the private placings, the filing documents said. The Nasdaq is made up shares in technology firms and other companies with high growth potential. It was the most potent symbol of the 1990s internet and telecoms boom, nose-diving after the bubble burst. A recovery in the fortunes of tech giants such as Intel, and dot.com survivors such as Amazon has helped revive its fortunes.
"	business
WMC says Xstrata bid is too low	"Australian mining firm WMC Resources has said it is worth up to 30% more than a hostile 7.4bn Australian dollar ($5.8bn; £3bn) bid by rival Xstrata.

There is now pressure on Swiss-based Xstrata to increase its takeover offer. A report from investment firm Grant Samuel in WMC defence documents values WMC shares at A$7.17 to A$8.24, against Xstrata's bid of A$6.35 a share. Analysts said the defence documents provided more details on WMC, and may trigger a possible rival bid. ""If a bid is going to emerge it is probably likely in the next one to two weeks,"" said Daiwa Securities analyst Mark Pervan. He said the valuation would put increased pressure on Xstrata to look at ""sweetening"" its offer. Marc Gonsalves, an executive at Xstrata, said: ""We will review the information contained in the target's statement over the next week or so."" He added: ""While we will review the assumptions made by Grant Samuel in detail, we are extremely sceptical of their conclusion, and suggest that WMC shareholders take extreme care in presuming that these optimistic assumptions are capable of being realised.""

Last month Australia's competition watchdog said it would not oppose the purchase of WMC by Zurich and London-based Xstrata. On Tuesday, WMC chairman Tommie Bergman said in a statement the directors believed it was in shareholders' best interest to reject the offer. He said WMC would pursue ""value-creating options"" provided by a portfolio of ""world class assets"". And WMC chief executive Andrew Michelmore claimed the Xstrata offer was aimed at creating value for Xstrata's shareholders, and was not being made for the benefit of WMC's shareholders. Grant Samuel said its valuation of WMC was based on lower average prices for nickel, copper and uranium than current market levels. ""Any longer term commodity price improvements would only improve our outlook,"" Mr Michelmore said.

In 2003 Xstrata acquired Australia's largest copper miner - MIM Holdings. WMC Resources is the world's third-largest producer of concentrated nickel, and also a miner of copper and uranium. It owns the Olympic Dam mine in South Australia, which contains about one-third of the world's known uranium resources and is also the world's fourth largest copper mine. Xstrata is a global mining giant with operations in Australia, South Africa, Spain, Germany, Argentina and the UK. Its core products are copper, coking coal, thermal coal, ferrochrome, vanadium and zinc. It also has growing businesses in gold, lead and silver.
"	business
Takeover offer for Sunderland FC	"Bob Murray, chairman of Sunderland FC, has launched a £1.5m ($2.8m) bid for the club after buying broadcaster BSkyB's stake in the business.

Mr Murray is already Sunderland's leading shareholder, holding a 37.6% stake, and now hopes to take full control of the Championship side. Mr Murray said the club would find it easier to attract more investment by having a single majority owner. Sunderland delisted its shares from the stock market in August.

A lifetime Sunderland supporter and board director since 1984, Mr Murray agreed to buy BSkyB's 4.76% holding in the Wearside club on Tuesday - taking his stake to 42.3%. Under stock market rules, Mr Murray is required to make an offer for the remaining shares that he does not already own at the same price paid for the BSkyB holding of 31p a share.

Should the offer be fully accepted, Mr Murray said he expected to pay a maximum of £1.53m for the remaining shares. He also stressed that fans who wanted to keep in touch with the club's financial affairs could retain a small number of shares, enabling them to attend annual meetings. ""The football sector is experiencing significant changes and uncertainty,"" Mr Murray said in a statement. ""The recent speculation surrounding Malcolm Glazer and Manchester United has shown the unsettling effect possible where there are a number of disparate interests,"" he added. ""I believe that this offer will strengthen the company and remove the potential for that type of uncertainty.""

Sunderland were relegated from the Premiership in 2003 but are currently pushing for promotion. The club managed to reduce its losses last year from £20.6m to £1.2m after selling a host of leading players. However, the club's turnover dropped sharply from £42.5m to £28.5m over the same period, because of a fall in broadcast revenues. BSkyB bought its stake in Sunderland in 1999 as part of a five year media partnership deal. The deal expired last month.
"	business
Warning over US pensions deficit	"Taxpayers may have to bail out the US agency that protects workers' pension funds, leading economists have warned.

With the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) some £23bn (£12m) in deficit, the Financial Economists Roundtable (FER) wants Congress to act. Instead of taxpayers having to pick up the bill, the FER wants Congressmen to change the PBGC's funding rules. The FER says firms should not have been allowed to reduce the insurance premiums they pay into the PBGC fund. The FER blames this on a 2004 law, in a statement signed by several members, who include Nobel economics laureate William Sharpe. It said it was ""dismayed"" at the situation and wants Congress to overturn the legislation.

Cash-strapped US companies, including those in the airline, car-making and steel industries, had argued in favour of the 2004 rule change, claiming that funding the insurance premiums adequately would force them to have to cut jobs. ""With a little firmer hand on the pensions issues in the US, I think that Congress could avoid having to turn to the taxpayer and instead turn the obligations back onto the companies that deserve to pay them,"" said Professor Dennis Logue, dean of Price College of Business at the University of Oklahoma. The PBGC was founded in 1974 to protect workers' retirement rights. Its most recent action came last week when it took control of the pilots' pension scheme at United Airlines. With United battling bankruptcy, the carrier had wanted to use the money set aside for pensions to finance running costs. The company has an estimated $2.9bn hole in its pilots' pension scheme, which the PBGC will now guarantee.
"	business
Beer giant swallows Russian firm	"Brewing giant Inbev has agreed to buy Alfa-Eco's stake in Sun Interbrew, Russia's second-largest brewer, for up to 259.7m euros ($353.3m; £183.75m).

Alfa-Eco, the venture capital arm of Russian conglomerate Alfa Group, has a one-fifth stake in Sun Interbrew. The deal gives Inbev, the world's biggest beermaker, near-total control over the Russian brewer. Inbev bought out another partner in August 2004. Inbev brands include Bass, Stella Artois, Hoegaarden and Staropramen. It employs 77,000 people, running operations in over 30 countries across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific.

The Leuven-based brewery said it would own 97.3% of the voting shares and 98.8% of the non-voting shares of Sun Interbrew. The deal is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2005. Inbev was formed in August 2004 when Belgium's Interbrew bought Brazilian brewer Ambev. Sun Interbrew, which employs 8,000 staff, owns breweries in eight Russian cities - Klin, Ivanovo, Saransk, Kursk, Volzhsky, Omsk, Perm and Novocheboksarsk. There are also three breweries in Ukraine, in the cities of Chernigov, Nikolaev and Kharkov.
"	business
US manufacturing expands	"US industrial production increased in December, according to the latest survey from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM).

Its index of national manufacturing activity rose to 58.6 last month from 57.8 in November. A reading above 50 indicates a level of growth. The result for December was slightly better than analysts' expectations and the 19th consecutive expansion. The ISM said the growth was driven by a ""significant"" rise in the new orders. ""This completes a strong year for manufacturing based on the ISM data,"" said chairman of the ISM's survey committee. ""While there is continuing upward pressure on prices, the rate of increase is slowing and definitely trending in the right direction.""

The ISM's index of national manufacturing activity is compiled from monthly responses of purchasing executives at more than 400 industrial companies, ranging from textiles to chemicals to paper, and has now been above 50 since June 2003. Analysts expected December's figure to come in at 58.1. The ISM manufacturing index's main sister survey - the employment index - eased to 52.7 in December from 57.6 in November, while its ""prices paid"" index, measuring the cost to businesses of their inputs, also eased to 72.0 from 74.0. The ISM's ""new orders"" index rose to 67.4 from 61.5.
"	business
Singapore growth at 8.1% in 2004	"Singapore's economy grew by 8.1% in 2004, its best performance since 2000, figures from the trade ministry show.

The advance, the second-fastest in Asia after China, was led by growth of 13.1% in the key manufacturing sector. However, a slower-than-expected fourth quarter points to more modest growth for the trade-driven economy in 2005 as global technology demand falls back. Slowdowns in the US and China could hit electronics exports, while the tsunami disaster may effect the service sector.

Economic growth is set to halve in Singapore this year to between 3% and 5%. In the fourth quarter, the city state's gross domestic product (GDP) rose at an annual rate of 2.4%. That was up from the third quarter, when it fell 3.0%, but was well below analyst forecasts. ""I am surprised at the weak fourth quarter number. The main drag came from electronics,"" said Lian Chia Liang, economist at JP Morgan Chase. Singapore's economy had contracted over the summer, weighed down by soaring oil prices. The economy's poor performance in the July to September period followed four consecutive quarters of double-digit growth as Singapore bounced back strongly from the effects of the deadly Sars virus in 2003.
"	business
Madagascar completes currency switch	"Madagascar has completed the replacement of its Malagasy franc with a new currency, the ariary.

From Monday, all prices and contracts will have to be quoted in the ariary, which was trading at 1,893 to the US dollar. The Malagasy franc, which lost almost half its value in 2004, is no longer legal tender but will remain exchangeable at banks until 2009. The phasing out of the franc, begun in July 2003, was intended to distance the country from its past under French colonial rule and address the problem of the large amount of counterfeit francs in circulation. ""It's above all a question of sovereignty,"" Reuters quoted a central bank official as saying. ""It is symbolic of our independence from the old colonial ways. Since we left the French monetary zone in 1973 we should have our own currency with its own name."" The ariary was the name of a pre-colonial currency in the Indian Ocean island state.
"	business
Quiksilver moves for Rossignol	"Shares of Skis Rossignol, the world's largest ski-maker, have jumped as much as 15% on speculation that it will be bought by US surfwear firm Quiksilver.

The owners of Rossignol, the Boix-Vives family, are said to be considering an offer from Quiksilver. Analysts believe other sporting goods companies may now take a closer look at Rossignol, prompting an auction and pushing the sale price higher. Nike and K2 have previously been mentioned as possible suitors.

Rossignol shares touched 17.70 euros, before falling back to trade 7.8% higher at 16.60 euros. European sporting goods companies have seen foreign revenues squeezed by a slump in the value of the US dollar, making a takeover more attractive, analysts said. Companies such as Quiksilver would be able to cut costs by selling Rossignol skis through their shops, they added. The Boix-Vives family is thought to have spent the past couple of years sounding out possible suitors for Rossignol, which also makes golf equipment, snowboards and sports clothing.
"	business
Dollar hovers around record lows	"The US dollar hovered close to record lows against the euro on Friday as concern grows about the size of the US budget deficit.

Analysts predict that the dollar will remain weak in 2005 as investors worry about the state of the US economy. The Bush administration's apparent unwillingness to intervene to support the dollar has caused further concern. However, trading has been volatile over the past week because of technical and automated trading and light demand. This has amplified reactions to news, analysts said, adding that they expect markets to become less jumpy in January.

The dollar was trading at $1.3652 versus the euro on Friday morning after hitting a fresh record low of $1.3667 on Thursday. One dollar bought 102.55 yen.

Disappointing business figures from Chicago triggered the US currency's weakness on Thursday. The National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said its manufacturing index dropped to 61.2, a bigger fall than expected. ""There are no dollar buyers now, especially after the Chicago data yesterday,"" said ABN Amro's Paul Mackel. At the same time, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi voiced concerns about the strength of the euro. Mr Berlusconi said the euro's strength was ""absolutely worrying"" for Italian exports. Mr Schroeder said in a newspaper article that stability in foreign exchange markets required a correction of global economic imbalances. Investors will now look towards February's meeting of finance ministers from the G7 industrialised nations in London for clues as to whether central banks will combine forces to stem the dollar's decline.
"	business
S Korean credit card firm rescued	"South Korea's largest credit card firm has averted liquidation following a one trillion won ($960m; £499m) bail-out.

LG Card had been threatened with collapse because of its huge debts but the firm's creditors and its former parent have stepped in to rescue it. A consortium of creditors and LG Group, a family owned conglomerate, have each put up $480m to stabilise the firm. LG Card has seven million customers and its collapse would have sent shockwaves through the country's economy.

The firm's creditors - which own 99% of LG Card - have been trying to agree a deal to secure its future for several weeks. They took control of the company in January when it avoided bankruptcy only through a $4.5bn bail-out.

They had threatened to delist the company, a move which would have triggered massive debt redemptions and forced the company into bankruptcy, unless agreement was reached on its future funding. ""LG Card will not need any more financial aid after this,"" Laah Chong-gyu, executive director of Korea Development Bank - one of the firm's creditors - said.

The agreement will see some 12 trillion won of debt converted into equity. ""The purpose of the capital injection is to avoid delisting and the goal will be met,"" David Kim, an analyst at Sejong Securities, told Reuters. South Korea's consumer credit market has been slowly recovering from a crisis in 2002 when a credit bubble burst and millions of consumers fell behind on their debt repayments. LG Card returned to profit in September but needed further capital to avoid being thrown off the market. South Korea's stock exchange can delist any firm if its debt exceeds its assets two years running.
"	business
Dollar slides ahead of New Year	"The US dollar has hit a new record low against the euro and analysts predict that more declines are likely in 2005.

Disappointing economic reports dented the currency, which had been rallying after European policy makers said they were worried about the euro's strength. Earlier on Thursday, the Japanese yen touched its lowest versus the euro on concerns about economic growth in Asia. Currency markets have been volatile over the past week because of technical and automated trading and light demand. This has amplified reactions, analysts said, adding that they expect markets to become less jumpy in January.

""People want to go into the weekend and the New Year positioned for a weaker buck,"" said Tim Mazanec, director of foreign exchange at Investors Bank and Trust. The dollar slid to a record $1.3666 versus the euro on Thursday, before bouncing back to $1.3636. Against the yen the dollar was trading down at $103.05.

The yen, meanwhile, dropped to 141.60 per euro in afternoon trading. It later strengthened to 140.55. Investors are concerned about the size of the US trade and budget deficits and are betting that George W Bush's administration will allow the dollar to weaken despite saying they favour a strong currency. Also playing on investors' minds are mixed reports about the state of the US economy. On Thursday, disappointing business figures from Chicago brought a sudden end to a rally in the value of the dollar. The National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago said its index dropped to 61.2, more than analysts had expected. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi voiced concerns about the strength of the euro. Mr Berlusconi said the euro's strength was ""absolutely worrying"" for Italian exports. Mr Schroeder said in a newspaper article that stability in foreign exchange markets required a correction of global economic imbalances.
"	business
VW considers opening Indian plant	"Volkswagen is considering building a car factory in India, but said it had yet to make a final decision.

The German giant said it was studying the possibility of opening an assembly plant in the country, but that it remained only a ""potential"" idea. Its comments came after the industry minister of India's Andhra Pradesh state said a team of VW officials were due to visit to discuss the plans. B. Satyanarayana said he expected VW to co-sign a memorandum of agreement. Several foreign carmakers, including Hyundai, Toyota, Suzuki and Ford, already have Indian production facilities to meet demand for automobiles in Asia's fourth-largest economy. VW's proposed plant would be set up in the port city of Visakhapatnam on India's eastern coast. An Andhra Pradesh official added that VW had already approved a factory site measuring 250 acres.
"	business
Ukraine strikes Turkmen gas deal	"Ukraine has agreed to pay 30% more for natural gas supplied by Turkmenistan.

The deal was sealed three days after Turkmenistan cut off gas supplies in a price dispute that threatened the Ukrainian economy. Supplies from Turkmenistan account for 45% of all natural gas imported by Ukraine, which has large coal deposits but no gas fields. Turkmenistan is also trying to strike a similar deal with Russia, which is not so dependent on its gas. Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov, who signed the contract, said the Turkmen side agreed to lower the price demanded by $2 per 1,000 cubic metres, bringing it down to $58. But the new price is still $14 higher than the price fixed in the contract for 2004. The head of the Ukrainian state-owned Naftohaz company, Yury Boyko, said he was ""fully happy"" with the deal. On Friday, Turkmenistan acted on a threat and shut off gas supplies to Ukraine in attempt to bring the price dispute to a head. Mr Niyazov said that his government would insist on the same price for supplies to Russia. Analysts say thay may not happen as Russia, the world's leading gas producer, needs the cheap Turkmen gas only to relieve is state-owned Gazprom from costly investment in the exploration of oil fields in Siberia. Turkmenistan is the second-largest gas producer in the world.
"	business
Reliance unit loses Anil Ambani	"Anil Ambani, the younger of the two brothers in charge of India's largest private company, has resigned from running its petrochemicals subsidiary.

The move is likely to be seen as the latest twist in a feud between Mr Ambani and his brother Mukesh. Anil, 45, has stepped down as director and vice-chairman of Indian Petrochemicals Corporation (IPC). The company was not available for comment. IPC is 46%-owned by Reliance Industries which in turn is run by Mukesh. Mukesh has spoken of ownership issues between the two brothers, who took over control of the Reliance empire following the death of their father in July, 2002.

Reliance's operations have massive reach, covering textiles, telecommunications, petrochemicals, petroleum refining and marketing, as well as oil and gas exploration, insurance and financial services. The brothers' spat has hogged headlines in India during recent weeks, despite a denial from the family that there was anything wrong. Speculation has been rife about what has triggered the stand-off, with some observers blaming Anil's political ambitions, others the heavy investment by Mukesh and Reliance in a mobile phone venture. Shares of IPC dipped on the news in Mumbai, but recovered to trade almost 6% higher. Reliance shares added 1.7%, while Reliance Energy, headed by Anil, jumped 7%.
"	business
India opens skies to competition	"India will allow domestic commercial airlines to fly long haul international routes, a move it hopes will stoke competition and drive down prices.

However, only state controlled carriers will be able to fly the lucrative Gulf routes, to countries such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, for at least three years. Jet Airways and Air Sahara are the two companies that will benefit initially. India is looking to develop its airline industry as booming economic growth drives demand for travel.

Monica Chadha, BBC Delhi reporter, said air travel in India had increased by almost 20% from the previous year and was expected to rise even further. Infrastructure development is lagging demand, however, and will have to improve. ""Most international airports in the country are shabby and ill-equipped to handle heavy air traffic,"" Ms Chada said, adding that while the Civil Aviation minister has promised to modernise and privatise airports little progress has been made. Steps have been take to move things forward and the government recently changed legislation that limited foreign investment in domestic airlines. It raised the maximum stake holding allowed to 49% from 40%. Local press, meanwhile, have reported that the US and India will start negotiations about adding more routes in January. Jet Airways is India's premier private domestic carrier; Air Sahara is ranked third in the category.
"	business
Oil rebounds from weather effect	"Oil prices recovered in Asian trade on Tuesday, after falling in New York on milder winter weather across the US.

With winter temperatures staying relatively high in the northern US, a barrel of light crude ended Monday down $1.33 to $42.12. However crude prices have rebounded in Asia, rising to $42.30 a barrel for February delivery. In London, trading of Brent crude was suspended for a public holiday, but the price fell to $39.20 in the Far East.

With milder temperatures expected to continue in the northern parts of the US over the next few days at least, analysts have said the price of oil may fall further - even if the decline was only temporary. ""Weather has been the Achilles' heel of this market,"" said ABN AMRO analyst John Brady. ""But it is winter in the northeast. Eventually we'll get another cold blast."" Despite a fall of more than $12 a barrel from the record highs reached in late October, the price of crude oil remains almost 30% higher than year-ago levels. Prices rose last week after militant attacks in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, briefly renewed fears that the supply chain might be broken in the world's leading crude exporter. ""The market was panicked but fears essentially evaporated... since there was no follow-up,"" said Deborah White, senior economist for energy at SG Securities in Paris.
"	business
Ban on forced retirement under 65	"Employers will no longer be able to force workers to retire before 65, unless they can justify it.

The government has announced that firms will be barred from 2006 from imposing arbitrary retirement ages. Under new European age discrimination rules, a default retirement age of 65 will be introduced. Workers will be permitted to request staying on beyond this compulsory retirement age, although employers will have the right to refuse. Trade and Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt said people would not be forced to work longer than they wanted, saying the default age was not a statutory, compulsory retirement age. She said employers would be free to continue employing people for as long as they were competent.

Under age discrimination proposals from the Department of Trade and Industry last year workers were to be allowed to work on till 70 if they wished.

Business leaders had opposed the plan as they said it would be too costly and cumbersome. The British Chambers of Commerce welcomed the latest proposal. ""This move today is the best of both worlds,"" it said. ""Employers have the ability to define the end point of the employer-employee relationship and employees have flexibility with a right to request to work past the age of 65."" But Age Concern said imposing a retirement age of 65 was ""cowardly"" and a ""complete u-turn"". ""This makes a mockery of the Government's so-called commitment to outlawing ageism, leaving the incoming age discrimination law to unravel,"" said Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern England . ""It is now inevitable that older people will mount legal challenges to the decision using European law."" The decision will have no impact on the age at which workers can collect their state pension, the government has said.
"	business
Fed warns of more US rate rises	"The US looks set for a continued boost to interest rates in 2005, according to the Federal Reserve.

Minutes of the December meeting which pushed rates up to 2.25% showed that policy-makers at the Fed are worried about accelerating inflation. The clear signal pushed the dollar up to $1.3270 to the euro by 0400 GMT on Wednesday, but depressed US shares. ""The markets are starting to fear a more aggressive Fed in 2005,"" said Richard Yamarone of Argus Research. The Dow Jones index dropped almost 100 points on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq also falling as key tech stocks were hit by broker downgrades. The dollar also gained ground against sterling on Tuesday, reaching $1.8832 to the pound before slipping slightly on Wednesday morning.

The release of the minutes just three weeks after the 14 December meeting was much faster than usual, indicating the Fed wants to keep markets more apprised of its thinking. This, too, is being taken in some quarters as a sign of aggressive moves on interest rates to come. The key Fed funds rate has risen 1.25 percentage points during 2004 from the 46-year low of 1% reached not long after the 9/11 attacks in 2001. That long trough ""might be contributing to signs of potentially excessive risk-taking in financial markets"", said the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC), which sets interest rates. The odds now favour a further boost to rates at the next meeting in early February, economists said. But the respite for the dollar, which spent late 2003 being pushed lower against other major currencies by worries about massive US trade and budget deficits, may be short-lived. ""You can't rule out a further correction... but we don't think it's a change in direction in the dollar,"" said Jason Daw at Merrill Lynch. ""Nothing fundamental has changed.""
"	business
Weak end-of-year sales hit Next	"Next has said its annual profit will be £5m lower than previously expected because its end-of-year clearance sale has proved disappointing.

""Clearance rates in our end-of-season sale have been below our expectations,"" the company said. The High Street retailer said it now expected to report annual profits of between £415m and £425m ($779m-798m). Next's shares fell more than 3% following the release of the trading statement.

Next chief executive Simon Wolfson admitted that festive sales were ""below where we would expect a normal Christmas to be"", but said sales should still top analyst expectations.

Among areas where Next could have done better, Mr Wolfson said menswear ranges were ""a little bit too similar to the previous year"". Mr Wolfson also said that disappointing pre-Christmas sales were ""more to do with the fact that we went in with too much stock rather than (the fact that) demand wasn't there for the stock"". Next's like-for-like store sales in the five months from 3 August to 24 December were up 2.9% on a year earlier. This figure is for existing Next stores, which were unaffected by new Next store openings. Like-for-like sales growth at the 49 Next stores directly affected by new store openings in their locality was 0.5%.

Overall sales across both its retail and mail order divisions were up 12.4%, Next said. Its Next Directory mail order division saw sales rise 13.4% during the five-month period. ""In terms of all the worries about their trading pre-Christmas, it's a result,"" said Nick Bubb, an analyst at Evolution Securities. ""Profits of around £420m would be well within the comfort zone."" However, one dealer, who asked not to be named, told Reuters the seasonal sales performance was ""not what people had hoped for"". ""Christmas has been tough for the whole sector, and this is one of the best retailers,"" he said. Next's trading statement comes a day after House of Fraser and Woolworths disappointed investors with their figures.
"	business
Tate & Lyle boss bags top award	"Tate & Lyle's chief executive has been named European Businessman of the Year by a leading business magazine.

Iain Ferguson was awarded the title by US publication Forbes for returning one of the UK's ""venerable"" manufacturers to the country's top 100 companies. The sugar group had been absent from the FTSE 100 for seven years until Mr Ferguson helped it return to growth. Tate's shares have leapt 55% this year, boosted by firming sugar prices and sales of its artificial sweeteners.

""After years of a sagging stock price and a seven-year hiatus from the FTSE 100, one of Britain's venerable manufacturers has returned to the vaunted index,"" Forbes said. Mr Ferguson took the helm at the company in 2003, after spending most of his career at consumer goods giant Unilever. Tate & Lyle, which was an original member of the historic FT-30 index in 1935, operates more than 41 factories and 20 more additional production facilities in 28 countries. Previous winners of the Forbes award include Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Fred Goodwin and former Vodafone boss Chris Gent.
"	business
Krispy Kreme shares hit	"Shares in Krispy Kreme Doughnuts have taken a dunking on Wall Street after the firm revealed it would have to restate its 2004 financial reports.

The company warned the move would cut its profits by $3.8m to $4.9m (£2m to £2.6m) - or between 6.6% and 8.6%. Krispy Kreme said accounting errors had forced the move, adding that its board of directors made the decision to restate its accounts on 28 December. However, the company was unavailable to comment on why it had delayed the news.

It also warned it might have to further restate results for 2004 and 2005.

Shares in Krispy Kreme sank 14.87% - or $1.83 - to close at $10.48 on the news. The revelation comes just a month after the firm warned earnings would be cut by as much as 7.6% as a result of accounting errors. Krispy Kreme said the latest adjustments involved the way it accounted for the repurchase of three franchise restaurants. It added it would now be reviewing how it accounts for its leases. In a further blow, the firm said it had been advised that some of its franchise owners were not in compliance with their loan agreements, and warned it might need to borrow extra money if it was required to honour agreements on franchisee debts or operating leases.

Krispy Kreme added that it had enough cash to fund its current operations, but it could not borrow any more under its existing agreements. ""There are many more questions than answers, especially given increased concerns regarding company liquidity,"" JP Morgan Securities analyst John Ivankoe said in a research note on the firm. The announcement is the latest blow for the one-time darling of Wall Street, which has lost 80% of its stock value in just over a year. The firm is currently facing Securities and Exchange Commission investigation of its accounts. Shareholders have also launched lawsuits against the group, claiming it made false statements and inflated sales.
"	business
Germany nears 1990 jobless level	"German unemployment rose for the 11th consecutive month in December - making the year's average jobless total the highest since reunification.

The seasonally adjusted jobless total rose a higher than expected 17,000 to 4.483 million, the Bundesbank said. Allowing for changes in calculating statistics, the average number of people out of work was the highest since 1990 - or a rate of 10.8%. Bad weather and a sluggish economy were blamed for the rise. The increase ""was due primarily to the onstart of winter"", labour office chief Frank-Juergen Weise said.

Unadjusted, the figures showed unemployment rose 206,900 to 4.64 million - with many sectors such as construction laying off workers amid bad weather. ""The three years of stagnation in the German economy came to an end in 2004. But the upturn is still not strong enough"" to boost the labour market, Mr Weise added. News of the rise came as government welfare reforms came into force, a move that is expected to see unemployment swell still further in coming months. Under the Hartz IV changes, the previous two tier system of benefits and support for the long term unemployed has been replaced with one flat-rate payout. In turn, that means more people will be classified as looking for work, driving official figures higher.

""Be prepared for a nasty figure for January 2005, about five million unemployed on a non-seasonally adjusted basis,"" warned HVB Group economist Andreas Rees. But he did add that the numbers should ""subside"" throughout the year, to remain near 2004's level of 4.4 million jobless. ""I don't expect a strong and lasting turnaround until 2006,"" German Economy minister Wolfgang Clement said. By 2010, however, the Hartz IV reforms should help cut the average jobless rate to between 3% and 5%, he added. Europe's biggest economy has been too weak to create work as it struggles to shake off three years of economic stagnation. In recent months companies such as Adam Opel - the German arm of US carmaker General Motors - and retailer KarstadtQuelle have slashed jobs.
"	business
Venezuela identifies 'idle' farms	"Venezuelan authorities have identified more than 500 farms, including 56 large estates, as idle as it continues with its controversial land reform policy.

Under a 2001 land law, the government can tax or seize unused farm sites. A further 40,000 farms are yet to be inspected, the state's National Land Institute has told Associated Press. Vice president Jose Vicente Rangel has said farmers and ranchers with their titles in order and their lands productive have ""nothing to fear."" Critics of the land reform policy claim president Hugo Chavez is trying to enforce a communist-style economic programme that ignores property rights and will damage the country. Land owners claim the National Land Institute has made mistakes in classifying lands as public or private.

But the government - Venezuela's largest land owner - say they are proceeding cautiously to prevent conflicts. In a statement, Mr Rangel said the land reform is not against the constitution, which permits private property, while stressing the efforts are to ""vindicate social and economically"" years of inequality in the country.

One property in conflict with the government is the El Charcote cattle ranch, run by Agroflora, a subsidiary of the UK food group Vestey. Agriculture minister Arnoldo Marquez told Reuters news agency the site's documents ""do not guarantee that this is a private land"". Administrators of the ranch, however, have complained that pro-Chavez squatters have taken over 80% of the property in the last four years, and the UK government has asked Venezuelan authorities to resolve the conflict. ""You should ask the company when they are going to put their papers in order and hand over the land that is not theirs,"" said Mr Marquez.
"	business
Egypt to sell off state-owned bank	"The Egyptian government is reportedly planning to privatise one of the country's big public banks.

An Investment Ministry official has told the Reuters news agency that the Bank of Alexandria will be sold sometime in 2005. The move is seen as evidence of a new commitment by the government to reduce the size of public sector. The official said the government has not yet decided whether the sale will take the form of a public flotation. ""The most important thing to decide now is the method - whether by selling shares to the public or to a strategic investor from abroad,"" he said.

Analysts say the public-sector banks have suited the government's monetary, credit and exchange policies. Nevertheless, the Egyptian government has spoken for years about privatising one of the big four state banks - Banque Misr, National Bank of Egypt, Banque du Caire and Bank of Alexandria. It had been expected one of the smallest of the four big public banks - Bank of Alexandria or Banque du Caire - would be sold first. The announcement reinforces the hopes of investors and international financial bodies for a revival of Egypt's privatisation programme. About 190 state-run companies and facilities were sold off from the early 1990s to 1997. The appointment of Mahmoud Mohieldin, a reform-minded technocrat, to the new post of investment minister in July was taken as a sign that more sell-offs were on the way. Both the IMF and World Bank have urged Egypt to remove obstacles to the development of the private sector which they say has a vital role to play in reducing poverty by expanding the economy.
"	business
Wal-Mart to pay $14m in gun suit	"The world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, has agreed to pay a total of $14.5m (£7.74m) to settle a lawsuit over gun sales violations in California.

The lawsuit alleged Wal-Mart committed thousands of gun sales violations in California between 2000 and 2003. The total payment includes $5m in fines and more than $4m to fund state compliance checks with gun laws and prevent ammunition sales to minors. Wal-Mart agreed to suspend firearms sales in its California stores in 2003,

The alleged violations included the sale of guns to 23 people who were not allowed to possess them, and delivering 36 guns to customers who acquired them for people not allowed to own firearms. Although Wal-Mart has suspended firearms sales in the state, California attorney general Bill Lockyer said he wanted to be sure the giant supermarket chain would follow state rules in future. ""Wal-Mart's failure to comply with gun safety laws put the lives of all Californians at risk by placing guns in the hands of criminals and other prohibited persons,"" said Mr Lockyer. ""Although Wal-Mart has suspended gun sales in California, this settlement will ensure that it follows state law if it renews sales and will also provide valuable public education about the importance of gun safety."" The world's largest retailer has not yet decided whether to resume firearms sales in California, company spokesman Gus Whitcomb said.
"	business
Yukos heading back to US courts	"Russian oil and gas company Yukos is due in a US court on Thursday as it continues to fight for its survival.

The firm is in the process of being broken up by Russian authorities in order to pay a $27bn (£14bn) tax bill. Yukos filed for bankruptcy in the US, hoping to use international business law to halt the forced sale of its key oil production unit, Yuganskneftegas. The unit was however sold for $9.4bn to state oil firm Rosneft but only after the state auction had been disrupted.

Yukos lawyers now say the auction violated US bankruptcy law. The company and its main shareholders have vowed to go after any company that buys its assets, using all and every legal means. The company wants damages of $20bn, claiming Yuganskneftegas was sold at less than market value. Judge Letitia Clark will hear different motions, including one from Deutsche Bank to throw out the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. The German lender is one of six banks that were barred from providing financing to Gazprom, the Russian state-owned company that was expected to win the auction for Yuganskneftegas. Deutsche Bank, which is also an advisor to Gazprom, has called on the US court to overturn its decision to provide Yukos with bankruptcy protection.

Lifting the injunction would remove the uncertainty that surrounds the court case and clarify Deutsche Bank's business position, analysts said.

Analysts are not optimistic about Yukos' chances in court. Russian President Vladimir Putin and the country's legal authorities have repeatedly said that the US has no jurisdiction over Yukos and its legal wranglings. On top of that, the firm only has limited assets in the US. Yukos has won small victories, however, and is bullish about its chances in court. ""Do we have an ability to influence what happens? We think we do,"" said Mike Lake, a Yukos spokesman. ""The litigation risks are real,"" said Credit Suisse First Boston analyst Vadim Mitroshin The dispute with the Russian authorities is partly driven by President Putin's clampdown on the political ambitions of ex-Yukos boss Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr Khodorkovsky is in jail on charges of fraud and tax evasion.
"	business
Deutsche Boerse set to 'woo' LSE	"Bosses of Deutsche Boerse and the London Stock Exchange are to meet amid talk that a takeover bid for the LSE will be raised to £1.5bn ($2.9bn).

Last month, the German exchange tabled a 530 pence-per-share offer for LSE, valuing it at £1.3bn. Paris-based Euronext, owner of Liffe in London, has also said it is interested in bidding for LSE. Euronext is due to hold talks with LSE this week and it is reported to be ready to raise £1.4bn to fund a bid. Euronext chief Jean-Francois Theodore is scheduled to meet his LSE counterpart Clara Furse on Friday. Deutsche Boerse chief Werner Seifert is meeting Ms Furse on Thursday, in the third meeting between the two exchanges since the bid approach in December.

The LSE rejected Deutsche Boerse's proposed £1.3bn offer in December, saying it undervalued the business.

But it agreed to leave the door open for talks to find out whether a ""significantly-improved proposal"" would be in the interests of LSE's shareholders and customers. In the meantime, Euronext, which combines the Paris, Amsterdam and Lisbon stock exchanges, also began talks with the LSE. In a statement on Thursday, Euronext said any offer was likely to be solely in cash, but added that: ""There can be no assurances at this stage that any offer will be made."" A deal with either bidder would create the biggest stock market operator in Europe and the second biggest in the world after the New York Stock Exchange.

According to the FT, in its latest meeting Deutsche Boerse will adopt a charm offensive to woo the London exchange. The newspaper said the German suitor will offer to manage a combined cash and equities market out of London and let Ms Furse take the helm. Other reports this week said the Deutsche Boerse might even consider selling its Luxembourg-based Clearstream unit - the clearing house that processes securities transactions. Its ownership of Clearstream was seen as the main stumbling block to a London-Frankfurt merger. LSE shareholders feared a Deutsche Boerse takeover would force them to use Clearstream, making it difficult for them to negotiate for lower transaction fees.
"	business
Laura Ashley chief stepping down	"Laura Ashley is parting company with its chief executive Ainum Mohd-Saaid.

The clothing and home furnishing retailer said Ms Mohd-Saaid had resigned for personal reasons. Her departure will come into effect on 1 February and follows the departure of co-chief executive Rebecca Navarednam on 1 January. Ms Mohd-Saaid is to be replaced by Lillian Tan, presently a non-executive director of the company and head of a Malaysian retailer.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Laura Ashley thanked Ms Mohd-Saaid for her services to the company. Its shares were down 8.51% to 10.75p in late Thursday morning trading on the London Stock Exchange.

Since 2002, Ms Tan has been managing director and chief executive of Metrojaya, one of the largest retail groups in Malaysia. Laura Ashley, which is due to issue its next trading statement in the next few weeks, has in recent months been hit by reports of poor sales. In October last year, it announced the closure of one of its two Welsh factories. In September, the company had said that its half-year clothing sales had been ""below expectations"". In recent times, it has put renewed focus on home furnishings rather than clothing, but last September it reported that interim six month losses had risen from £1m to £1.2m, while sales had fallen from £138m to £118m.

Laura Ashley, which floated on the London Stock Exchange for £200m ($376m) in 1995, is majority-owned by Malaysia entrepreneur Dr Khoo Kay Peng. In 1996, its share price was more than 200p. It has long been reported that Dr Khoo intends to take the company private, but he has always denied this. ""Laura Ashley is a bit of a shrivelled husk of a company,"" said retail analyst Nick Bubb of Evolution Securities. ""It is all pretty odd with its Malaysian owners seemingly just shuffling the deckchairs."" Laura Ashley was founded by its late namesake in Kent in 1955, before moving to Mid Wales in 1961 where it still has its main UK factory.
"	business
US Airways staff agree to pay cut	"A union representing 5,200 flight attendants at bankrupt US Airways have agreed to a new contract that cuts pay by nearly 10%.

The deal will help the carrier, trying to survive by cutting costs by nearly $1bn (£530m) a year, save about $94m. More than two thirds of its 28,000 staff have now accepted wage cuts. But talks are still continuing with a union representing mechanics, baggage handlers and cleaners, which has so far failed to negotiate a new contract. The seventh largest carrier in the US sought bankruptcy protection for a second time in two years last September. It had been one of the quickest to deal with difficulties faced by the aviation industry after the 9/11 attacks in 2001. But it emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2003 to face competition from low-cost carriers and higher fuel costs. US Airways management has said it may need to start liquidating assets if it does not receive concessions from all staff by the middle of this month.
"	business
Delta cuts fares in survival plan	"Delta Air Lines is cutting domestic fares by as much as 50% as part of a plan to ensure its financial survival.

Other US carriers, including United, have sought bankruptcy protection, amid high fuel costs and competition from discount carriers. Delta is restructuring in a bid to fight off insolvency. This latest move to boost business has prompted speculation other firms will be forced to match their fares, hurting revenues in the sector. Delta's new SimpliFares were trialled from August last year on tickets from Cincinnati, its second-largest hub.

The airline says no one-way economy fare will now be priced higher than $499 (£264), and no first-class fare will be priced higher than $599. It is also eliminating a Saturday-night stay requirement on discount fares and will give further reductions to customers opting for non-refundable tickets, booking in advance and online. Delta, which lost $646m in the three months to September, was forced to cut 6,900 jobs worldwide as part of its aim to slash $5bn from its costs. In October, it reached a crucial agreement with pilots on pay and conditions and it has also issued new shares to staff in return for wage cuts. Airline shares closed lower on the announcement, with Delta, Continental and American Airlines all falling by more than 7%. ""We believe the whole airline industry will now have to move in this direction; this will likely hurt revenue in the short run but could be beneficial in the long run,"" said analyst Ray Neidl at Calyon Securities.
"	business
Profits jump at China's top bank	"Industrial and Commercial Bank (ICBC), China's biggest lender, has seen an 18% jump in profits during 2004.

The increase in earnings has allowed the firm to write off bad loans and pave the way for a state bailout and eventual stock-market listing. China is trying to clean up its banking system, which is weighed down by billions of dollars of unpaid loans. It has already pumped $45bn (£24bn) into two of its largest banks, and has identified ICBC as a recipient of aid. ICBC's profits were 74.7bn yuan ($9bn; £4.8bn) in 2004, the bank said in a statement. The percentage of non-performing loans dropped to 19.1%, down about 2 percentage points. ICBC was founded in 1984 and had total assets of 5.3 trillion yuan at the end of 2003. China committed to gradually opening up its banking sector when it joined the World Trade Organisation in 2002.
"	business
Green reports shun supply chain	"Nearly 20% more UK top 250 firms produced non-financial reports on social and environment issues than last year.

But of the 145 companies reporting, 76% didn't examine their supply chains, says the annual Directions survey. Green groups say putting pressure on supply chains is a major way companies can reduce their environmental impact. The survey is published by corporate social responsibility firm Context and branding firm SalterBaxter.

Blake Lee-Harwood, campaigns director at Greenpeace in the UK, said: ""It's fairly meaningless to talk about your company's direction in terms of sustainability without having detailed knowledge of your supply chain. ""It's also important to get some kind of independent assessment of your reporting.""

Less than a quarter of companies (24%) get their corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports independently verified to provide assurances they are accurate and complete, says the survey. To date there are no set standards for non-financial reporting, although the Global Reporting Initiative, an independent pro-sustainability institution, is planning to establish some. The reports surveyed by Directions are published voluntarily. They are usually called corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports, sustainability reports, or social and environmental reports.

Peter Knight, director of Context, says 24 UK top 250 companies reported for the first time this year and, in general, the quality of reports has improved. ""The corporate lexicon of homilies, generalities and soft assurances - fluff - is on its way out. There are less pictures of smiling children and butterflies."" The UK government will soon require all quoted companies to report their social and environmental risks in a chapter in their annual reports, called the Operating and Financial Review. The regulation is not expected until 2005 and the first reports under this scheme will not be published before 2006. The US seems to lag Europe in producing corporate social responsibility reports. The majority of European top 50 companies (44) publish them and only 27 of the US top 50.
"	business
Tsunami to cost Sri Lanka $1.3bn	"Sri Lanka faces a $1.3bn (£691m) bill in 2005 for reconstruction after the tsunami which killed more than 30,000 of its people, its central bank says.

This estimate is preliminary, bank governor Sunil Mendis told reporters, and could rise in 2006. The island state is asking for about $320m from the International Monetary Fund to help pay for relief, he said. The bank has 5bn rupees ($50m; £27m) set aside to lend at a lower interest rate to those who lost property. According to Mr Mendis, half the IMF support could come from a freeze on debt repayments, which would free up resources immediately. The rest could come from a five-year emergency loan. Sri Lanka is hoping for a wider freeze from other creditors.

The Paris Club of 19 creditors meets on 12 January to discuss a debt moratorium for the nations hit by the tsunami, which ravaged south and east Asia on 26 December.

Some 150,000 people across the region are feared to be dead and millions have been left homeless and destitute. A full reckoning of the economic cost to Sri Lanka of the tsunami will not be clear for some time to come. But already it looks likely that growth in the first half of 2005 will slow, Mr Mendis told reporters, although he would not say by how much. One side-effect of the disaster has been that the value of the rupee has risen as foreign funds have flooded into the country. The currency has strengthened 4% since late December, coming close to 100 rupees to the US dollar for the first time in more than six months.
"	business
Indian oil firm eyes Yukos assets	"India's biggest oil exploration firm, Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), says it is in talks to buy the former assets of troubled Russian crude producer Yukos.

""We are in touch with the concerned Russian entities about the Yukos assets and other opportunities in Russia,"" said ONGC chairman Subir Raha. Local press had reported that ONGC was looking to buy 15% of Yukos' former key oil production unit for $2bn (£1bn). Yukos is being broken up by Russian authorities to pay a massive tax bill.

It was forced to sell its key production unit Yuganskneftegas (Yugansk) last month after being hit with a bill of $27bn in unpaid taxes and fines.

State-owned Rosneft now owns Yugansk and Russia has said it will turn the oil producer into a stand-alone firm. Indian oil minister Mani Shankar Aiyar discussed ONGC's plans during a trip to Moscow last year, and the topic came up again during Russian president Vladimir Putin's recent visit to New Delhi. ""It would make great sense for us to build on that,"" said Mr Aiyar. India's oil production has stagnated over recent years, and it is having to look abroad to secure future supplies. India imports about 70% of its total oil consumption. At the same time, India's economy is booming and the country's thirst for oil is so strong that it has helped pushed up the price of crude worldwide.

India produces about 793,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), little changed since the start of the 1990s, according to oil industry analysts Douglas-Westwood. Consumption, meanwhile, has jumped to 2.4 million bpd, compared with 474,000 bpd in 1973.

""For countries to develop, they have to have access to energy,"" said John Westwood, managing director of oil industry analysts Douglas-Westwood. India is a ""dramatically growing economy that must have access to oil"". By buying into Yugansk, ONGC would be able to reduce its dependence on Gulf states for oil imports, Mr Westwood explained, especially as the chances of finding and exploiting resources within India are slim. ""We forecast that Indian production will go into significant decline,"" Mr Westwood said. ""By 2020, production may only be at half of today's levels."" ONGC, which is majority-owned by the Indian state, already has bought petroleum assets in countries including Vietnam, Sudan and Russia. The company is a partner with Rosneft in the Sakhalin-1 oil field off Russia's Siberian coast.

ONGC is, however, not the only firm interested in Yugansk.

Chinese crude company China National Petroleum has also been mentioned as a possible investor, while on Thursday, Italy refused to rule out an interest. ONGC's interest is the latest twist in a saga that has seen one of the world's biggest oil producers brought to its knees. The dispute is partly driven by President Putin's clampdown on the political ambitions of ex-Yukos boss Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who is currently in jail on charges of fraud and tax evasion. Yukos has been battling the Russian authorities for more than a year and has filed for bankruptcy protection in the US. Analysts have questioned how long it can continue to survive without Yugansk. On Thursday, a US court said it will hear arguments for Yukos' bankruptcy claim to be thrown out on 16 February. Should that happen, Yukos will have little chance of clawing back its assets, analysts said.
"	business
Monsanto fined $1.5m for bribery	"The US agrochemical giant Monsanto has agreed to pay a $1.5m (£799,000) fine for bribing an Indonesian official.

Monsanto admitted one of its employees paid the senior official two years ago in a bid to avoid environmental impact studies being conducted on its cotton. In addition to the penalty, Monsanto also agreed to three years' close monitoring of its business practices by the American authorities. It said it accepted full responsibility for what it called improper activities.

A former senior manager at Monsanto directed an Indonesian consulting firm to give a $50,000 bribe to a high-level official in Indonesia's environment ministry in 2002. The manager told the company to disguise an invoice for the bribe as ""consulting fees"".

Monsanto was facing stiff opposition from activists and farmers who were campaigning against its plans to introduce genetically-modified cotton in Indonesia. Despite the bribe, the official did not authorise the waiving of the environmental study requirement. Monsanto also has admitted to paying bribes to a number of other high-ranking officials between 1997 and 2002.

The chemicals-and-crops firm said it became aware of irregularities at a Jakarta-based subsidiary in 2001 and launched an internal investigation before informing the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Monsanto faced both criminal and civil charges from the Department of Justice and the SEC. ""Companies cannot bribe their way into favourable treatment by foreign officials,"" said Christopher Wray, assistant US attorney general. Monsanto has agreed to pay $1m to the Department of Justice, adopt internal compliance measures, and co-operate with continuing civil and criminal investigations. It is also paying $500,000 to the SEC to settle the bribe charge and other related violations. Monsanto said it accepted full responsibility for its employees' actions, adding that it had taken ""remedial actions to address the activities in Indonesia"" and had been ""fully co-operative"" throughout the investigative process.
"	business
Marsh executive in guilty plea	"An executive at US insurance firm Marsh & McLennan has pleaded guilty to criminal charges in connection with an ongoing fraud and bid-rigging probe.

New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer said senior vice president Robert Stearns had pleaded guilty to scheming to defraud. The offence carries a sentence of 16 months to four years in state prison. Mr Spitzer's office added Mr Stearns had also agreed to testify in future cases during the industry inquiry. ""We are saddened by the development,"" Marsh said in a statement. The company added it would continue to co-operate in the case, adding it was ""committed to resolving the company's legal issues and to serving our clients with the highest standards of transparency and ethics"".

According to a statement from Mr Spitzer's office, the Marsh executive admitted he instructed insurance companies to submit non-competitive bids for insurance business between 2002 and 2004. Those bids were then ""conveyed to Marsh clients under false and fraudulent pretences"". Through the practice, Marsh was allowed to determine which insurers won business from clients, and so control the insurance market, Mr Spitzer's office added. It also protected incumbent insurers when their business was up for renewal and helped Marsh to maximise its fees, a statement said. In one case, an email showed Mr Stearns had instructed a colleague to solicit a non-competitive - or ""B"" - quote from AIG that was ""higher in premium and more restrictive in coverage"" and so fixed the bids in a way that would support the present provider Chubb. The company is also still being examined by US stock market regulator the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Late last month the SEC asked for information about transactions involving holders of 5% or more of the firm's shares.
"	business
US interest rate rise expected	"US interest rates are expected to rise for the fifth time since June following the US Federal Reserve's latest rate-setting meeting later on Tuesday.

Borrowing costs are tipped to rise by a quarter of a percentage point to 2.25%. The move comes as a recovery in the US economy, the world's biggest, shows signs of robustness and sustainability. The dollar's record-breaking decline, meanwhile, has spooked markets and along with high oil prices has raised concerns about the pace of inflation. ""We are seeing evidence that inflation is moving higher,"" said Ken Kim, an analyst at Stone & McCarthy Research. ""It's not a risk, it's actually happening."" Mr Kim added that borrowing costs could rise further.

The Fed has said that it will move in a ""measured"" way to combat price growth and lift interest rates from their 40-year lows that were prompted by sluggish US and global growth.

With the economic picture now looking more rosy, the Fed has implemented quarter percentage point rises in June, August, September and November. Although the US economy grew at an annual rate of 3.9% in the three months to September, analysts warn that Fed has to be careful not to move too aggressively and take the wind out of the recovery's sails. Earlier this month figures showed that job creation is still weak, while consumer confidence is subdued. ""I think the Fed feels it has a fair amount of flexibility,"" said David Berson, chief economist at Fannie Mae. ""While inflation has moved up, it hasn't moved up a lot."" ""If economic growth should subside... the Fed would feel it has the flexibility to pause in its tightening. ""But if economic growth picked up and caused core inflation to rise a little more quickly, I think the Fed would be prepared to tighten more quickly as well.""
"	business
WorldCom bosses' $54m payout	"Ten former directors at WorldCom have agreed to pay $54m (£28.85m), including $18m from their own pockets, to settle a class action lawsuit, reports say.

James Wareham, a lawyer representing one of the directors, told Reuters the 10 had agreed to pay those who lost billions when the firm collapsed. The remaining $36m will be paid by the directors' insurers. But, a spokesman for the prosecutor, New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi, said no formal agreement had been made.

Corporate governance experts said that if the directors do dip into their own pockets for the settlement, it will set a new standard for the accountability of bosses, when the firms they oversee face problems.

""Directors very rarely pay,"" said Charles Elson, chairman of the Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware. He added that the settlement ""sends a pretty strong shockwave through the director world"". A formal agreement on the payout is expected to be signed on Thursday in a US district court in Manhattan. Earlier, the New York Times had reported that the personal payments were required as part of any deal at the start of negotiations. The ten former outside directors are James Allen, Judith Areen, Carl Aycock, Max Bobbitt, Clifford Alexander, Stiles Kellett, Gordon Macklin, John Porter, Lawrence Tucker and the estate of John Sidgmore, who died last year. It has not yet been determined how much each director will have to pay. ""None of the 10 former directors was a direct participant in the accounting machinations of the WorldCom fraud,"" said the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Two other outside former directors, Bert Roberts and Francesco Galesi, remain defendants in the lawsuit, said the newspaper. According to the WSJ, which cites people familiar to the case, the settling directors are expected to deny wrongdoing and state they are settling the case to eliminate the uncertainties and expense of further litigations. The second-largest US long-distance telecoms operator filed for bankruptcy in 2002 when an $11bn accounting scandal was unearthed. The company emerged from Chapter 11 protection last year and changed its name to MCI Inc. Former WorldCom chief executive Bernard Ebbers is to face trial this month on criminal charges that he oversaw the fraud.
"	business
Continental 'may run out of cash'	"Shares in Continental Airlines have tumbled after the firm warned it could run out of cash.

In a filing to US regulators the airline warned of ""inadequate liquidity"" if it fails to reduce wage costs by $500m by the end of February. Continental also said that, if it did not make any cuts, it expects to lose ""hundreds of millions of dollars"" in 2005 in current market conditions. Failure to make cutbacks may also push it to reduce its fleet, the group said. Shares in the fifth biggest US carrier had fallen 6.87% on the news to $10.44 by 1830 GMT. ""Without the reduction in wage and benefit costs and a reasonable prospect of future profitability, we believe that our ability to raise additional money through financings would be uncertain,"" Continental said in its filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Airlines have faced tough conditions in recent years, amid terrorism fears since the 11 September World Trade Centre attack in 2001. But despite passengers returning to the skies, record-high fuel costs and fare wars prompted by competition from low cost carriers have taken their toll. Houston-based Continental now has debt and pension payments of nearly $984m which it must pay off this year. The company has been working to streamline its operations - and has managed to save $1.1bn in costs without cutting jobs. Two weeks' ago the group also announced it would be able to shave a further $48m a year from its costs with changes to wage and benefits for most of its US-based management and clerical staff.
"	business
House prices rebound says Halifax	"UK house prices increased by 1.1% in December, the first monthly rise since September, the Halifax has said.

The UK's biggest mortgage lender said prices rose 15.1% over the whole of 2004, but by only 2.8% in the second half of the year. The average price of a house in the UK now stands at £162,086, Halifax said. The survey seems to fly in the face of recent evidence that the UK housing market has been slowing substantially in response to interest rate rises.

Last week, the Nationwide said that house prices fell 0.2% in December, with annual inflation running at a three year low.

On Tuesday, figures from the Bank of England showed that the number of mortgages approved in the UK has fallen to the lowest level for nearly a decade. New loans in November fell to 77,000, from 85,000 in October, the lowest rate since September 1995, the Bank of England said. Growth in unsecured lending, such as personal loans and credit cards, also slowed last month. Capital Economics, which has in the past predicted a sharp fall in UK house prices, branded Halifax's findings a ""temporary surprise,"" which would be reversed over the coming months. ""The month by month volatility of the Halifax house price data should not distract from the fact that there is a clear downward trend in house prices,"" a Capital Economics statement said.

Experts believe five interest rate rises since November 2003 are cutting borrowers' appetite for debt.

Despite recording a price rise in December, the Halifax survey concluded that there was ""continuing signs of a genuine slowdown in the housing market."" Martin Ellis, Halifax chief economist, said that there was no need to revise the bank's prediction, made last month, that prices would fall by 2% in 2005. ""Sound housing market fundamentals will continue to underpin the market in 2005, ensuring that the market remains healthy and that house prices fall only slightly,"" Mr Ellis said. If the bank's prediction of a 2% price drop comes true, it will be the first annual fall in nine years.

The bank said that the recent pattern of house prices rising the fastest in the north of England continued in December. In the North West and Yorkshire and the Humber, Halifax said prices rose by 3% and 1.2% in the two regions respectively during the month. At the other send of the scale, prices in the South East and London fell by 1.6% and 0.5% respectively. The biggest decline was seen in Wales where prices fell by 6.2%, an area that had experienced strong house price growth during most of 2004. Overall, Halifax said prices in the final quarter of 2004 were 0.1% higher than in the previous quarter. This was the smallest quarterly rise since the second quarter of 2000, the bank said. As a result, annual house price inflation dipped below 20% during the final few months of 2004.
"	business
Mixed Christmas for US retailers	"US retailers posted mixed results for December - with luxury retailers faring well while many others were forced to slash prices to lift sales.

Upscale department store Nordstrom said same store sales were 9.3% higher than during the same period last year. Trendy youth labels also sold well, with sales jumping 28% at young women's clothing retailer Bebe Stores and 32.2% at American Eagle Outfitters. But Wal-Mart only saw its sales rise after it cut prices. The company saw a 3% rise in December sales, less than the 4.3% rise seen a year earlier.

Customers at the world's biggest retailer are generally seen to be the most vulnerable to America's economic woes.

Commentators claim many have cut back on spending amid uncertainty over job security, while low and middle-income Americans have reined in spending in the face of higher gasoline prices. Analysts said Wal-Mart faced a ""stand-off"" with shoppers, stepping up its discounts as the festive season wore on, as consumers waited longer to get the best bargains. However, experts added that if prices had not been cut across the sector, Christmas sales - which account for nearly 23% of annual retail sales - would have been far worse. ""So far, we are faring better than expected, but the results are still split,"" Ken Perkins, an analyst at research firm RetailMetrics LLC, told Associated Press. ""Stores that have been struggling over the last couple of months appear to be continuing that trend. And for stores that have been doing well over the last several months, December was a good month."" Overall, December sales are forecast to rise by 4.5% to $220bn - less than the 5.1% increase seen a year earlier.

One discount retailer to fare well in December was Costco Wholesale, which continued a recent run of upbeat results with a better-than-expected 8% jump in same store sales. However, the losers were many and varied. Home furnishings store Pier 1 Imports saw its same store sales sink by a larger-than-forecast 8.8% as it battled fierce competition. Leading electronics chain Best Buy, meanwhile, missed its sales target of a 3-5% rise in sales, turning in a 2.5% increase over the Christmas period. Accessory vendor Claire's Stores also suffered as an expected last minute shopping rush never materialised, leaving its same store sales 5% higher, compared to a 6% rise last year. Jeweller Zale also felt little Christmas cheer with December sales down 0.7% on the same month last year. ""This was not a good period for retailers or shoppers. We saw a dearth of exciting, new items,"" Kurt Barnard, president of industry forecaster Retail Consulting Group, said. However, one beneficiary of the desertion of the High Street is expected to be online stores. According to a survey by Goldman Sachs & Co, Harris Interactive and Neilsen/Net Ratings sales surged 25% over the holiday season to $23.2bn.
"	business
India's Deccan gets more planes	"Air Deccan has signed a deal to acquire 36 planes from Avions de Transport Regional (ATR).

The value of the deal has not been revealed, because of a confidentiality clause in the agreement. But Air Deccan's managing director Gorur Gopinath has said the price agreed was less than the catalogue price of $17.6m (£9.49m) per plane. Recently, India's first low-cost airline ordered 30 Airbus A320 planes for $1.8bn.

Under the agreement, Air Deccan will buy 15 new ATR 72-500 and lease another 15. ATR will also provide six second hand airplanes. In a statement, ATR has said deliveries of the aircraft will begin in 2005 and will continue over a five-year period.

Mr Gopinath said the planes will connect regional Indian cities. ""After an evaluation of both ATR and Bombardier aircraft, we have chosen the ATR aircraft as we find it most suitable for our operations and for the Indian market for short haul routes."" Filippo Bagnato, ATR's chief executive, has said that his firm will also work with Air Deccan to create a training centre in Bangalore.

The potential of the Indian budget market has attracted attention from businesses at home and abroad. Air Deccan has said it will base its business model on European firms such as Ireland's Ryanair. Beer magnate Vijay Mallya recently set up Kingfisher Airlines, while UK entrepreneur Richard Branson has said he is keen to start a local operation. India's government has given its backing to cheaper and more accessible air travel.
"	business
South African car demand surges	"Car manufacturers with plants in South Africa, including BMW, General Motors, Toyota and Volkswagen, have seen a surge in demand during 2004.

New vehicle sales jumped 22% to 449,603 from a year earlier, the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA) said. Strong economic growth and low interest rates have driven demand, and analysts expect the trend to continue. NAAMSA said it expects sales to top 500,000 in 2005. During 2004 ""South Africa was one of the best performing markets internationally"" for car sales, NAAMSA said. While domestic demand is set to continue to enjoy rapid growth, foreign sales could come under pressure, analysts said. The vehicle industry accounts for about 13% of South Africa's total exports. However, the world auto market has its problems and analysts warn that overcapacity and the strength of the rand could hit exports.
"	business
UK bank seals South Korean deal	"UK-based bank Standard Chartered said it would spend $3.3bn (£1.8bn) to buy one of South Korea's main retail banks.

Standard Chartered said acquiring Korea First Bank (KFB) fulfilled a strategic objective of building a bigger presence in Asia's third largest economy. Its shares fell nearly 3% in London as the bank raised funds for the deal by selling new stocks worth £1bn ($1.8bn), equal to 10% of its share capital. Standard Chartered expects about 16% of future group revenue to come from KFB.

The South Korean bank will also make up 22% of the group's total assets. The move, a year after Citigroup beat Standard Chartered to buy Koram bank, would be the South Korean financial sector's biggest foreign takeover. This time around, Standard Chartered is thought to have beaten HSBC to the deal. KFB is South Korea's seventh largest bank, with 3 million retail customers, 6% of the country's banking market and an extensive branch network.

The country's banking market is three times the size of Hong Kong's with annual revenues of $44bn. Standard Chartered has its headquarters in London but does two thirds of its business in Asia, and much of the rest in Africa. ""We're comfortable with the price paid...the key here has been speed and decisiveness in making sure that we won,"" said Standard Chartered chief executive Mervyn Davies at a London press conference. Standard Chartered said KFB was a ""well-managed, conservatively run bank with a highly skilled workforce"" and represented a ""significant acquisition in a growth market"". In London, Standard Chartered's sale of 118 million new shares to institutional investors pushed its share price down, and contributing to the FTSE 100's 0.3% decline. Standard Chartered's shares were 28 pence lower at 925p by midday. Some analysts also queried whether Standard Chartered had overpaid for KFB. The deal, which requires regulatory approval, is expected to be completed by April 2005 and to be earnings accretive in 2006, Standard Chartered said.

Rival banking giant HSBC, which is based in London and Hong Kong, was also in the running. Standard Chartered is believed to have gained the initiative by putting together a bid during the Christmas break. ""They were able to move so quickly it caught HSBC by surprise,"" the Financial Times newspaper quoted an insider in the talks as saying. HSBC will now have to wait for the next South Korean bank in line to be sold off - thought likely to be Korea Exchange Bank, also currently in the hands of a US group. Standard Chartered said it was buying 100% of KFB, an agreement that would bring an end to the bank's complex dual ownership. The South Korean government owns 51.4% of KFB, while the remaining shareholding, and operational control, are in the hands of US private equity group Newbridge Capital. Newbridge bought its stake during the government's nationalisation of several banks in the wake of the 1997 Asia-wide currency crisis which crippled South Korea's financial institutions.

South Korea's economy is expected to grow by 4.5% this year. Although often thought of an export-driven economy, South Korea's service sector has overtaken manufacturing in the last decade or so. Services now make up roughly 40% of the economy, and consumer spending and retail banking have become increasingly important. In the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis, the government encouraged the growth of consumer credit. Bad loan problems followed; LG Card, the country's biggest credit card provider, has been struggling to avoid bankruptcy for months, for instance. But analysts believe South Korea's financial services industry is still in its infancy, offering plenty of scope for new products. Standard Chartered sees ""the opportunity to create value by the introduction of more sophisticated banking products"". Since 1999, KFB has been restructured from a wholesale bank into a retail bank focused on mortgage lending, which makes up 45% of its loans.
"	business
DaimlerChrysler's 2004 sales rise	"US-German carmaker DaimlerChrysler has sold 2.1% more cars in 2004 than in the previous year, as solid Chrysler sales offset a weak showing for Mercedes.

Sales totalled 3.9 million units worldwide during 2004, the company said at the Detroit Motor Show. A switch to new models hit luxury marque Mercedes-Benz, with sales down 3.1% at 1.06 million. Chrysler avoided the fate of US rivals Ford and General Motors, both of whom lost ground to Japanese firms. Its sales rose 3.5% to 2.7 million units.

Similarly on the up was the Smart brand of compact cars, with the division's sales jumping by 21.1% during 2004 to 136,000. The future of the brand - which is controlled by the Mercedes group within DaimlerChrysler - remains in question, however. Smart has consistently lost money since it started trading in 1998, and new model launches are now ""on hold"", said Mercedes chief executive Eckhard Cordes. In Europe, the Smart will now go on sale through regular Mercedes dealerships as well as its own dealer network, Mr Cordes said.
"	business
Tsunami cost hits Jakarta shares	"The stock market in Jakarta has seen its biggest slide in a month, after the country doubled the likely cost of rebuilding from the Asian tsunami.

The fall came as Indonesia said it expected debt repayments of up to 30 trillion rupiah ($3.2bn; £1.7bn) to be frozen to help pay for the recovery. By Monday's close, the Jakarta Stock Exchange was down 2.1% at 1,011.15. Bar a slight dip at the New Year, The JSE had risen steadily by 4.7% since the tsunami hit on 26 December. Construction and property companies in particular have gained ground, although banks were among the main fallers on Monday.

So far, more than 100,000 people are believed to have been killed in Indonesia, the country closest to the earthquake which triggered the great wave.

On Friday, the government said its five-year estimate of rebuilding costs for Banda Aceh province - much of which was flattened by the quake and the tsunami - was 20 trillion rupiah ($2.2bn; £1.1bn), twice what it had previously estimated. That cost could be defrayed by temporary debt relief. On Monday, Indonesian economy minister Aburizal Bakrie told reporters that the Paris Club group of creditor countries was expected to freeze 20-30bn rupiah in payments due in 2005 and 2006. ""We hope we can resume the repayments at least from 2007,"" Mr Bakrie said. French finance minister Herve Gaymard said on Sunday that the Paris Club had already agreed to a moratorium on repayments for tsunami-hit countries ahead of its meeting on 12 January.
"	business
Iran budget seeks state sell-offs	"Iran's president, Mohammad Khatami, has unveiled a budget designed to expand public spending by 30% but loosen the Islamic republic's dependence on oil.

The budget for the fiscal year starting on 21 March calls for the sell-off of 20% of the state's corporate holdings. Mr Khatami's second term as president ends on 1 August, making this his last budget. But opposition from members of parliament who have attacked previous privatisations could block his plans. Elections in May 2004 ousted many of Mr Khatami's supporters in parliament in favour of more hard-line religious conservatives. Late last year, they backed a law which would give parliament a veto over foreign investment. The ruling was a response to the involvement in telecoms and airport projects by Turkish companies, which hardliners accused of doing business with Israel. It came not long after the Expediency Council - Iran's ultimate decision-maker - blessed Mr Khatami's policy of selling stakes in sectors protected by the constitution such as energy, transport, telecoms and banking. Continued obstruction of foreign investment could get in the way not only of privatisation plans, but also of Mr Khatami's hope of modestly reducing the government's reliance on oil revenues.

In an address to the Majlis, Mr Khatami predicted economic growth of 7.1% in 2005-6, up from 6.7% in the current year. He said he wanted to increase the 2005-6 budget to 1,546 trillion rials ($175.6bn; £93.6bn) from the previous year's 1,070 trillion. Within that figure, taxation would rise to $14.3bn, a rise of over 40% from what is expected from the current year. In contrast, oil revenues were expected to fall to $14.1bn from $16bn in the year to March 2005. ""Current government expenditure should come from tax revenues,"" Mr Khatami said. ""Oil revenues should be used for productive investment."" Mr Khatami has already been blocked by parliament from reducing the subsidies on many products including bread and petrol, reducing his room to manoeuvre.
"	business
EC calls truce in deficit battle	"The European Commission (EC) has called a truce in its battle with France and Germany over breaching deficit limits.

The move came after France and Germany vowed to run their budget deficits below the EU cap in 2005 - for the first time in four years. But, the EC did warn the two were under close scrutiny and it would act if their fiscal situations deteriorated. Under EU rules, member countries must keep their deficits below 3%. France and Germany will breach that this year. It will be the third year in a row that the two countries have broken the European Union's Stability and Growth Pact rules.

The eurozone's two biggest economies left the pact in tatters in November 2003 when they persuaded fellow EU members to put the threat of penalties for deficit breaches on hold.

The commission then took the pair to the European Court of Human Justice - which ruled EU countries could not put the pact ""in abeyance"", and confirmed the EC's right to launch ""excessive debt procedures"". After announcing its decision to erase France and Germany from its list of deficit rule breakers, the EU said that the time lag created by the ruling meant that 2005 should be the target year for the pair to bring their budget's below 3%. ""The commission concludes that the two countries appear to be on track to correct their excessive deficits by 2005,"" it said in a statement. The EU expects the German deficit to fall to fall to 2.9% of GDP next year from 3.9% this year, while France's is forecast to drop to 3% from an expected 3.7% this year. The forecasts are based on EC predictions of GDP growth of 1.5% in Germany next year and 2.2% in France.

Berlin welcomed the decision, with finance minister Hans Eichel saying it showed that the EC recognised Germany's fiscal policy was ""on the right track even amid very difficult economic conditions"". However Paris was more subdued, with finance minister Herve Gaymard telling parliament: ""We must continue along this path of saving money."" However, the move still had its critics, with the European People's Party (EPP) attacking the EC for backing down from punitive action. ""The Commission is buckling under the pressure from Germany and France, "" EPP spokesman Alexander Radwan said. ""The scary fact is that budget sinners, despite having repeatedly exceeded the 3% deficit limit, do not have to fear any sanctions."" Despite the commission delivering its decision on the two biggest eurozone economies, it refused to comment on similar action against Greece which has also broken the 3% deficit ceiling. Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said that it was a matter for next week.
"	business
Enron bosses in $168m payout	"Eighteen former Enron directors have agreed a $168m (£89m) settlement deal in a shareholder lawsuit over the collapse of the energy firm.

Leading plaintiff, the University of California, announced the news, adding that 10 of the former directors will pay $13m from their own pockets. The settlement will be put to the courts for approval next week. Enron went bankrupt in 2001 after it emerged it had hidden hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.

Before its collapse, the firm was the seventh biggest public US company by revenue. Its demise sent shockwaves through financial markets and dented investor confidence in corporate America.

""The settlement is very significant in holding these outside directors at least partially personally responsible,"" William Lerach, the lawyer leading the class action suit against Enron, said. ""Hopefully, this will help send a message to corporate boardrooms of the importance of directors performing their legal duties,"" he added. Under the terms of the $168m settlement - $155m of which will be covered by insurance - none of the 18 former directors will admit any wrongdoing. The deal is the fourth major settlement negotiated by lawyers who filed a class action on behalf of Enron's shareholders almost three years ago. So far, including the latest deal, just under $500m (£378.8m) has been retrieved for investors.

However, the latest deal does not include former Enron chief executives Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling. Both men are facing criminal charges for their alleged misconduct in the run up to the firm's collapse. Neither does it cover Andrew Fastow, who has pleaded guilty to taking part in an illegal conspiracy while he was chief financial officer at the group. Enron's shareholders are still seeking damages from a long list of other big name defendants including the financial institutions JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse First Boston. The University of California said the trial in the case is scheduled to begin in October 2006. It joined the lawsuit in December 2001alleging ""massive insider trading"" and fraud, claiming it had lost $145m on its investments in the company.
"	business
UK house prices dip in November	"UK house prices dipped slightly in November, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) has said.

The average house price fell marginally to £180,226, from £180,444 in October. Recent evidence has suggested that the UK housing market is slowing after interest rate increases, and economists forecast a drop in prices during 2005. But while the monthly figures may hint at a cooling of the market, annual house price inflation is still strong, up 13.8% in the year to November. Economists, however, forecast that ODPM figures are likely to show a weakening in annual house price growth in coming months. ""Overall, the housing market activity is slowing down and that is backed up by the mortgage lending and the mortgage approvals data,"" said Mark Miller, at HBOS Treasury Services. ""The ODPM data is a fairly lagging indicator.""

The figures come after the Bank of England said the number of mortgages approved in the UK has fallen to the lowest level for nearly a decade. The Halifax, meanwhile, said last week that house prices increased by 1.1% in December - the first monthly rise since September.

The UK's biggest mortgage lender said prices rose 15.1% over the whole of 2004, but by only 2.8% in the second half of the year. It is predicting a 2% fall in overall prices in 2005 as the market stabilises after large gains in recent years. The ODPM attributed the monthly fall of prices in November to a drop in the value of detached houses and flats. It said annual inflation rose between October and November because prices had fallen by 1.1% in the same period in 2003.

The ODPM data showed the average house price was £192,713 in England; £139,544 in Wales; £116,542 in Scotland, and £111,314 in Northern Ireland.

All areas saw a rise in annual house price inflation in November except for Northern Ireland and the West Midlands, where the rate was unchanged, the ODPM said. The North East showed the highest rate of inflation at 26.2%, followed by Yorkshire and the Humber on 21.7%, and the North West on 21.1%. The East Midlands, the West Midlands and the South West all had an annual inflation rate of more than 15%. In London, the area with the highest average house price at £262,825, annual inflation rose only slightly in November to 7.1% from 7% the previous month.
"	business
Steady job growth continues in US	"The US created fewer jobs than expected in December, but analysts said that the dip in hiring was not enough to derail the world's biggest economy.

According to Labor Department figures, 157,000 new jobs were added last month. That took 2004's total to 2.2 million, the best showing in five years. Job creation was one of last year's main concerns for the US economy. While worries still remain, the conditions are set for steady growth in 2005, analysts said. The unemployment rate stayed at 5.4% in December, and about 200,000 jobs will need to be created each month if that figure is to drop.

""It was a respectable report,"" said Michael Moran, analyst at Daiwa Securities.

""Payroll growth in December was a little lighter than the consensus forecast, but we had upward revisions to the prior two months and an increase in manufacturing employment."" ""Manufacturing is a cyclical area of the economy and if it's showing job growth, it's a good indication that the economy is on a solid growth track."" That means that the Federal Reserve is likely to continue its policy of raising interest rates. The Fed lifted borrowing costs five times last year to 2.25%, citing evidence the US economic recovery was becoming more robust.

Job creation was one of last year's main concerns for the US economy, and proved to be a main topic of debate in the US presidential election. While demand for workers is far from booming, the conditions are set for steady growth. ""Overall, compared to the previous year it looks great, it just keeps going stronger and stronger and I expect that to be the case"" in 2005, said Kurt Karl, economist at Swiss Re in New York. Meanwhile, economists cautioned against reading too much into data from the Federal Reserve showing an unexpected $8.7bn drop in consumer debt in November. A fall in consumer spending, which makes up about two-thirds of all US economic activity, could help limit the extent of any future interest rate rises. But economists said there could be a number of reasons for a fall in the borrowing, which include credit cards and personal loans, while noting that such figures can vary on a month-to-month basis.
"	business
Barclays shares up on merger talk	"Shares in UK banking group Barclays have risen on Monday following a weekend press report that it had held merger talks with US bank Wells Fargo.

A tie-up between Barclays and California-based Wells Fargo would create the world's fourth biggest bank, valued at $180bn (£96bn). Barclays has declined to comment on the report in the Sunday Express, saying it does not respond to market speculation. The two banks reportedly held talks in October and November 2004.

Barclays shares were up 8 pence, or 1.3%, at 605 pence by late morning in London on Monday, making it the second biggest gainer in the FTSE 100 index. UK banking icon Barclays was founded more than 300 years ago; it has operations in over 60 countries and employs 76,200 staff worldwide. Its North American divisions focus on business banking, whereas Wells Fargo operates retail and business banking services from 6,000 branches. In 2003, Barclays reported a 20% rise in pre-tax profits to £3.8bn, and it has recently forecast similar gains in 2004, predicting that full year pre-tax profits would rise 18% to £4.5bn. Wells Fargo had net income of $6.2bn in its last financial year, a 9% increase on the previous year, and revenues of $28.4bn. Barclays was the focus of takeover speculation in August, when it was linked to Citigroup, though no bid has ever materialised. Stock market traders were sceptical that the latest reports heralded a deal. ""The chief executive would be abandoning his duty if he didn't talk to rivals, but a deal doesn't seem likely,"" Reuters quoted one trader as saying.
"	business
US firm 'bids for Lacroix label'	"A US firm has said it is in final negotiations with luxury goods group LVMH to buy the loss-making Christian Lacroix haute-couture house.

Paris-based LVMH has been selling non-core businesses and focusing on its most profitable labels including Moet & Chandon champagne and Louis Vuitton. Privately-held Falic Group bought two cosmetics brands, Hard Candy and Urban Decay, from LVMH in early 2003. The Florida company also own a chain of 90 duty free stores in the US. LVMH refused to comment on the reports. But one of the three brothers behind the Falic Group said the firm had also held talks with the designer Christian Lacroix, and wished to retain him. ""We are buying his name,"" Simon Falic told the Reuters news agency. ""We have plans to increase the exposure of the brand and increase the volume of business.""
"	business
$1m payoff for former Shell boss	"Shell is to pay $1m (£522,000) to the ex-finance chief who stepped down from her post in April 2004 after the firm over-stated its reserves.

Judy Boynton finally left the firm on 31 December, having spent the intervening time as a special advisor to chief executive Jeroen van der Veer. In January 2004, Shell told shocked investors that its reserves were 20% smaller than previously thought. Shell said the pay-off was in line with Ms Boynton's contract. She was leaving ""by mutual agreement to pursue other career opportunities"", the firm said in a statement. The severance package means she keeps long-term share options, but fails to collect on a 2003 incentive plan since the firm has failed to meet the targets included in it.

The revelation that Shell had inflated its reserves led to the resignation of its chairman, Sir Phil Watts, and production chief Walter van der Vijver.

An investigation commissioned by Shell found that Ms Boynton had to share responsibility for the company's behaviour. Despite receiving an email from Mr Van de Vijver which said the firm had ""fooled"" the market about its reserves, the investigation said, she did nothing to inquire further. In all, Shell restated its reserves four times during 2003. In September, it paid £82.7m in fines to regulators on both sides of the Atlantic for violating market rules in its reporting of its reserves.
"	business
India and Iran in gas export deal	"India has signed a $40bn (£21bn) deal to import millions of tonnes of liquefied natural gas from Iran.

Firms led by the Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will also assist in the development of Iranian oil fields. Ministers, eager to gain access to energy supplies to meet the demands of a booming economy, secured a similar deal to one between Iran and China. The announcement comes as ONGC said it was in talks to buy former assets of troubled Russian oil firm Yukos. The agreements with Iran were sealed after talks in New Delhi between Middle East producers and Asia's biggest energy consumers - China, India, Japan and South Korea.

Iran - Opec's second-biggest oil producer and one of the world's top gas producers - has been pursuing a series of deals, rewarding LNG buyers with participation in development of its oil fields. Under the agreement, it will supply India with 7.5 million tonnes of LPG annually over a 25 year period from 2009. ONGC and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) reached a preliminary deal for Indian firms to take part in the development of the Yadavaran and Jufeyr oilfields, both countries said in a statement. India's oil production has stagnated over recent years, and it is having to look abroad to secure future supplies. India imports about 70% of its total oil consumption. Consumption has jumped to 2.4 million barrels per day, compared with 474,000 bpd in 1973.
"	business
LSE 'sets date for takeover deal'	"The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is planning to announce a preferred takeover by the end of the month, newspaper reports claim.

The Sunday Telegraph said the LSE's plan was further evidence it wants to retain tight control over its destiny. Both Deutsche Boerse and rival Euronext held talks with the London market last week over a possible offer. A £1.3bn offer from Deutsche Boerse has already been rejected, while Euronext has said it will make an all cash bid. Speculation suggests that Paris-based Euronext has the facilities in place to make a bid of £1.4bn, while its German rival may up its bid to the £1.5bn mark. Neither has yet tabled a formal bid, but the LSE is expected to hold further talks with the two parties later this week. However, the Sunday Telegraph report added that there are signs that Deutsche Boerse chief executive Werner Seifert is becoming increasingly impatient with the LSE's managed bid process.

Despite insisting he wants to agree a recommended deal with the LSE's board, the newspaper suggested he may pull out of the process and put an offer directly to shareholders instead. The newspaper also claimed Mr Seifert was becoming ""increasingly frustrated"" with the pace of negotiations since Deutsche Boerse's £1.3bn offer was rejected in mid-December, in particular the LSE's decision to suspend talks over the Christmas period. Meanwhile, the German exchange's offer has come under fire recently. Unions for Deutsche Boerse staff in Frankfurt have reportedly expressed fears that up to 300 jobs would be moved to London if the takeover is successful. Others claim it will weaken the city's status as Europe's financial centre, while German politicians are also said to be angry over the market operator's promise to move its headquarters to London if a bid is successful. A further stumbling block is Deutsche Boerse's control over its Clearstream unit, the clearing house that processes securities transactions. LSE shareholders fear it would create a monopoly situation, weakening the position of shareholders when negotiating lower transaction fees for share dealings. LSE and Euronext do not have control over their clearing and settlement operations, a situation which critics say is more transparent and competitive.
"	business
News Corp makes $5.4bn Fox offer	"News Corporation is seeking to buy out minority investors in Fox Entertainment Group, its broadcasting subsidiary, for about $5.4bn (£3.7bn).

The media giant, run by Rupert Murdoch, owns 82% of the shares in the company, home to the Fox television network and the 20th Century Fox film studio. The move follows News Corp's decision to register its business in the US. 20th Century Fox's recent film releases include I Heart Huckabees and I, Robot, while Fox puts out hit TV series 24.

Under the terms of the offer, minority Fox shareholders will receive 1.90 News Corp shares in return for each Fox share they hold. Analysts said the decision to list News Corp in the US - which will result in the firm's shares trading in New York rather than Sydney- nullified the need to retain a separate stock market listing for Fox Entertainment shares. News Corp investors voted in October to approve the transfer of the company's corporate domicile from Australia to the US state of Delaware. The move is designed to help News Corp attract more investment from the largest US financial institutions, and make it easier to raise capital. Fox Entertainment Group generated revenues of $12bn last year. News Corp shares fell 25 cents to $17.65 after the share offer was announced while Fox shares were up 19 cents at $31.22.
"	business
Israel looks to US for bank chief	"Israel has asked a US banker and former International Monetary Fund director to run its central bank.

Stanley Fischer, vice chairman of banking giant Citigroup, has agreed to take the Bank of Israel job subject to approval from parliament and cabinet. His nomination by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon came as a surprise, and led to gains on the Tel Aviv stock market. Mr Fischer, who speaks fluent Hebrew, will have to become an Israeli citizen to take the job. The US says he will not have to give up US citizenship to do so.

Previous incumbent David Klein, who often argued with the Finance Ministry, steps down on 16 January. Mr Fischer will face a delicate balancing act - both in political and economic terms - between Mr Sharon and finance minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who also backed his nomination. But his appointment has also raised hopes that it could bring in fresh investment - and perhaps even an improvement in the country's credit rating Mr Fischer first went to Israel for six months in 1973, and almost emigrated there before deciding finally to return to the US. While teaching at the Massachussetts Institute of Technology he spent a month seconded to the Bank of Israel in 1979, beginning a long-time involvement in studying Israel's economy. In 1983 Mr Fischer became adviser on Israel's economy to then-US secretary of state George Shultz. At the World Bank in 1985, he participated in drawing up an economic stabilisation package for Israel.
"	business
EU-US seeking deal on air dispute	"The EU and US have agreed to begin talks on ending subsidies given to aircraft makers, EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson has announced.

Both sides hope to reach a negotiated deal over state aid received by European aircraft maker Airbus and its US rival Boeing, Mr Mandelson said. Airbus and Boeing accuse each other of benefiting from illegal subsidies. Mr Mandelson said the EU and US hoped to avoid having to resolve the dispute at the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

""With this agreement the EU and US have confirmed their willingness to resolve the dispute which has arisen between them,"" Mr Mandelson said. ""I hope our negotiations in the next three months will lead to an agreement ending subsidies to development and production of large civil aircraft."" Last year, the US terminated an agreement with the EU, reached in 1992, which limits the subsidies countries can hand over to civil aircraft makers. The US filed a complaint against Brussels with the WTO over state aid to Airbus, prompting a retaliatory EU complaint over US support for Boeing. However, both sides agreed to suspend their requests for WTO arbitration at the beginning of December, to allow bilateral talks to continue. EADS and BAE Systems, the European defence and aerospace firms which own Airbus, welcomed Mr Mandelson's announcement. ""It has always been preferable that any differences between the US and Europe on this matter be overcome through constructive discussion rather than through legal recourse,"" the companies said in a joint statement.

Separately, the world's largest package delivery company, UPS, said it had placed an order for 10 Airbus A380 superjumbo freight-carrying jets, with an option to buy 10 more of the triple-decker aircraft. The US company said it needed to expand its air freight capacity following strong international growth, and would begin receiving deliveries of the A380s from 2009. However, UPS said it was cutting a previous order for smaller Airbus A300s from 90 planes to 53. So far, Airbus has delivered 40 A300s to UPS. Airbus overtook Boeing as the world's largest manufacturer of commercial airliners in 2003.
"	business
Nortel in $300m profit revision	"Telecoms equipment maker Nortel Networks has sharply revised downwards its profits for the 2003 fiscal year.

In a long-awaited filing, Nortel said it had made $434m (£231m), compared to the previously reported $732m. But the figures - revised after an audit which led to the sacking of the Canadian firm's chief - showed revenue was about 4% higher than first thought. Nortel shares, which have lost nearly 50% of their value since last year, climbed 1.46% in Toronto on Tuesday. Nortel's head Frank Dunn and two other executives were fired in January last year after the company announced it had conducted the internal audit. Securities and police authorities in both the US and Canada are still conducting inquiries into the accounts.

Nortel also issued new figures for the 2001-2002 period, which they had previously indicated had understated losses. ""With the completion of our restatements we have a solid foundation on which to move forward with our business,"" said Nortel president and chief executive Bill Owens. ""The restatement has been a monumental task, both complex and demanding."" The company also said 12 senior executives - none of whom were involved directly in the accounting of the revised figures - have voluntarily agreed to repay to bonuses awarded in 2003 totalling $8.6m. Nortel added: ""these members of the core executive team share the board's deep disappointment over the circumstances that led to the restatement.""
"	business
Minister hits out at Yukos sale	"Russia's renationalisation of its energy industry needs to be reversed, a senior government figure has warned.

Economy minister German Gref told the Kommersant newspaper that direct state involvement in oil was ""unjustified"". His comments follow the sale of much of oil giant Yukos to cover back taxes - a deal which effectively took most of the firm's assets into public ownership. On 28 December, another senior economic adviser called the sale ""the swindle of the century"". Yuganskneftegaz, the unit which produced 60% of Yukos' output, had been seized and sold in December for less than $10bn to a previously unknown firm called Baikal.

Baikal promptly passed into the hands of state-controlled firm Rosneft, itself shortly to merge with state gas giant Gazprom. ""We used to see street hustlers do this kind of thing,"" Andrei Illarionov - then economic adviser to President Vladimir Putin - told a press conference. ""Now officials are doing it."" Within days, he was stripped of most of his responsibilities.

Mr Gref, a well-known opponent of nationalisation in competitive parts of the market, was keen to distance himself from Mr Iliaronov's comments. The privatisation of companies such as Yukos in the 1990s had been badly handled, he said. But he stressed that the government needed to get out of oil. ""I think that Rosneft and Yuganskneftegaz, should it become a state-owned company, must be privatized,"" he said.

""Today our government is ineffective and state companies, as a result, are for the overwhelming part ineffective as well."" And he warned that using back taxes to deal with firms like Yukos - a technique now being applied by the Kremlin to several other firms - was a mistake. ""If we follow that logic, we should nationalise all businesses,"" he said. Many large Russian companies, particularly in the energy sector, use complex webs of offshore companies to avoid taxes.

Mr Gref also poured cold water on President Putin's promises of doubled economic growth within a decade. The assault on Yukos' assets has been widely blamed for a slowdown in economic growth in recent months. ""The task is not simply to double GDP; instead it is to use GDP to qualitatively improve people's lives,"" Mr Gref told Kommersant. ""We don't need simply to increase GDP, but to improve its structure."" Instead of focusing on headline growth figures, Russia needed to focus on better institutions, such as a more efficient - and less corrupt - court system.
"	business
Chinese exports rise 25% in 2004	"Exports from China leapt during 2004 over the previous year as the country continued to show breakneck growth.

The spurt put China's trade surplus - a sore point with some of its trading partners - at a six-year high. It may also increase pressure on China to relax the peg joining its currency, the yuan, with the weakening dollar. The figures released by the Ministry of Commerce come as China's tax chief confirmed that growth had topped 9% in 2004 for the second year in a row. State Administration of Taxation head Xie Xuren said a tightening of controls on tax evasion had combined with the rapid expansion to produce a 25.7% rise in tax revenues to 2.572 trillion yuan ($311bn; £165bn).

According to the Ministry of Commerce, China's exports totalled $63.8bn in December, taking the annual total up 35.4% to $593.4bn. With imports rising a similar amount, the deficit rose to $43.4bn. The increased tax take comes despite healthy tax rebates for many exporters totalling 420bn yuan in 2004, according to Mr Xie. China's exporting success has made the trade deficit of the United States soar even further and made trade with China a sensitive political issue in Washington. The peg keeping the yuan around 8.30 to the dollar is often blamed by US lawmakers for job losses at home. A US report issued on Tuesday on behalf of a Congressionally-mandated panel said almost 1.5 million posts disappeared between 1989 and 2003. The pace accelerated in the final three years of the period, said the report for the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, moving out of labour-intensive industries and into more hi-tech sectors. The US's overall trade deficit with China was $124bn in 2003, and is expected to rise to about $150bn for 2004.
"	business
Karachi stocks hit historic high	"The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) has recorded its largest single day gain, surging 3.5% to a new high.

The index rose 225.79 points in four hours of furious trading, with many investors optimistic that political stability could bring an economic boom. The KSE index closed at 6709.93 - an overall gain of nearly 400 points in the first two trading days of the week. Energy and telecommunication stocks performed particularly well, recording an 8%-10% rise since Monday morning.

In 2002, the KSE was the world's best performing stock market, with the index rising 112%.

Pakistani investors are expecting the KSE to repeat, if not improve on, its 2002 performance. Jubilant investors danced on the streets as the market closed for the day on Tuesday, confident that the boom will continue at least until the public holiday on 22 January. Others, however, who had stayed out fearing an imminent collapse because of prices overheating, continued to warn that the ""bubble may burst any time"". ""That's rubbish,"" KSE chairman Yaseen Lakhani told the BBC News website. ""Whenever the market reflects Pakistan's true economic reality, it is described as a bubble."" Mr Lakhani feels that the market has risen on the basis of solid economic growth and its current level rests on sound foundations.

Market analysts are inclined to agree with Mr Lakhani, arguing that there are a number of major factors behind the KSE's performance. Analysts argue that a steady improvement in Pakistan's credit ratings by international credit rating agencies has finally begun to register in the market. Standard & Poor's upgraded Pakistan a few weeks ago. There are indications of yet another upgrade by the end of February.

Then, say analysts, there is corporate profitability in the current fiscal year, which has gone up by 27% from last year. ""Coupled with the 7% GDP growth expected by June this year, I am least surprised at the market's performance,"" says Mr Lakhani. One leading Karachi broker said the real reasons may be political. ""If you file a $1.3 trillion case against Saudi money after 9/11, Arab money will not go to the US any more."" A lot of Arab money, he says, has already gone to Malaysia and Indonesia. Pakistanis are now hoping that energy and telecoms, two of the strongest sectors in Pakistan, draw some of the Arab money to the KSE.

Locally, too, say analysts, recent political developments have worked to the market's advantage.

An anti-Musharraf campaign threatened by the MMA, a countrywide alliance of religious parties, has fizzled out. The release of Asif Zardari, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's husband, has eased political tensions between the military-backed government and the opposition Pakistan People's Party. Most importantly, say analysts, the failure of talks between India and Pakistan on the Baglihar dam in Indian-administered Kashmir has not automatically led to heightened tensions. This, they say, indicates that neither country is interested in raising the temperature at this stage, irrespective of the state of their disagreements. The market is abuzz with speculation that substantial investment may now start to flow in from the US, a country seen locally as deeply interested in defusing tensions between the South Asian neighbours. ""You can call it a peace dividend,"" smiles one broker. ""Let us see how long one can reap its benefits.""
"	business
US trade gap ballooned in October	"The US trade deficit widened by more than expected in October, hitting record levels after higher oil prices raised import costs, figures have shown

The trade shortfall was $55.5bn (£29bn), up 9% from September, the Commerce Department said. That pushed the 10 month deficit to $500.5bn. Imports rose by 3.4%, while exports increased by only 0.6%. A weaker dollar also increased the cost of imports, though this should help drive export demand in coming months. ""Things are getting worse, but that's to be expected,"" said David Wyss of Standard & Poor's in New York. ""The first thing is that when the dollar goes down, it increases the price of imports. ""We are seeing improved export orders. Things seem to be going in the right direction.""

Despite this optimism, significant concerns remain as to how the US will fund its trade and budget deficits should they continue to widen. Another problem highlighted by analysts was the growing trade gap with China, which has been accused of keeping its currency artificially weak in order to boost exports. The US imported almost $20bn worth of goods from China during October, exporting a little under $3bn. ""It seems the key worry that has existed in the currency market still remains,"" said Anthony Crescenzi, a bond strategist at Miller Tabak in New York. The trade deficit and the shortfall with China ""are big issues going forward"". The Commerce Department figures caused the dollar to weaken further despite widespread expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates for a fifth time this year. Borrowing costs are tipped to rise by a quarter of a percentage point to 2.25% at a Fed meeting later on Tuesday.
"	business
US prepares for hybrid onslaught	"Sales of hybrid cars in the US are set to double in 2005, research suggests.

Research group JD Power estimates sales will hit 200,000 in 2005, despite higher prices and customer scepticism. Carmakers are starting to build hybrid sports utility vehicles (SUVs), the four-wheel-drive vehicles which now dominate the US car market. Hybrids cut both petrol consumption and emissions by combining a petrol engine with an electric motor constantly kept charged by extra engine power. Several jurisdictions, notably the state of California, mandate low emissions for new cars. Equally, the rise in oil prices over the past year has sparked hopes that consumers may be tempted by potential savings of a few hundred dollars a year on fuel.

At the Detroit Motor Show, a range of manufacturers are prominently displaying their hybrid credentials. Toyota has led the market to date with the Prius, popularised by a number of celebrities keen to burnish their ""green"" credentials. In April it will launch a hybrid version of its Highlander SUV, with an SUV from its luxury Lexus marque due later in the year.

Honda has three hybrids on the market, and between them the two Japanese carmakers sold more than 80,000 units last year. Ford, which has sold 4,000 of its first hybrid since its launch in August, is bringing a hybrid SUV - the Mariner - to market a year ahead of schedule, with plans for three more models by 2008. GM has a hybrid pickup on the market and is showing two concept SUVs in Detroit. Even sports car maker Porsche may join the race, although it insists it is still considering whether to hybridise its Cayenne SUV.

Others remain more sceptical. Nissan has bought Toyota's hybrid technology, but plans to bring out its first model only in 2006. ""We want to make sure we are not concentrating on one technology,"" Nissan chief executive Carlos Ghosn said. ""We will not be surprised by any acceleration or deceleration in the hybrid market."" Volkswagen, meanwhile, says it will focus on clean-burning diesel engines instead. And some watchers point out that the price tag on a hybrid - upwards of $3,000 above that of an equivalent normal-engined car, and suspicion of the technology - may still cool its attraction. ""The average consumers aren't willing to pay that premium for a car they won't drive more than six years,"" said Anthony Pratt from JD Power.
"	business
Mitsubishi in Peugeot link talks	"Trouble-hit Mitsubishi Motors is in talks with French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen about a possible alliance.

On Tuesday Mitsubishi, the only major Japanese car firm in the red, confirmed earlier reports of negotiations. But a spokesman refused to comment on speculation that Mitsubishi could end up building cars for PSA and perhaps its Japanese rival Nissan. Mitsubishi has been hit by a recall scandal and the withdrawal of support from shareholder DaimlerChrysler. The US-German firm, once a majority shareholder, decided last April to stop providing financial backing. Mitsubishi's sales have slid 41% in the past year, catalysed by the revelation that the company had systematically been hiding records of faults and then secretly repairing vehicles. Mitsubishi is due to unveil a recovery plan later in January. Analysts said that alliances with other carmakers would be a necessary part of whatever it came up with, not least because its own slow sales have left its manufacturing capacity under-used.
"	business
BA to suspend two Saudi services	"British Airways is to halt its flights from London Heathrow to Jeddah and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia from 27 March.

The airline said the decision was a commercial one due to reduced passenger demand for the services. BA currently operates four flights per week from Heathrow to Jeddah, and three weekly journeys to Riyadh. It suspended flights to Saudi Arabia for three weeks in autumn 2003 after a government warning about a ""threat to UK aviation interests in Saudi Arabia"".

BA will now suspend the Saudi flights - which it says will remain ""under constant review"" - from 27 March. ""The decision to suspend flights between the UK and Saudi Arabia is a difficult one to make as we have enjoyed a long history of flying between the two countries,"" said BA director of commercial planning, Robert Boyle. ""However, the routes don't currently make a profitable contribution to our business and we are unable to sustain them while this remains the case."" Passengers with flights booked after the suspension date will be contacted by BA for alternative arrangements to be made.
"	business
Cairn Energy in Indian gas find	"Shares in Cairn Energy rose 3.8% to 1,088 pence on Tuesday after the UK firm announced a fresh gas discovery in northern India.

The firm, which last year made a number of other new finds in the Rajasthan area, said the latest discovery could lead to large gas volumes. However, chief executive Bill Gammell cautioned that additional evalution was first needed at the site. Cairn has also been granted approval to extend its Rajasthan exploration area. This approval has come from the Indian government.

A spokesman said the company's decision to carry out further investigations at the new find showed that it believed there was significant gas. But he added: ""It's still too early to say what the extent of it is."" Cairn's string of finds in Rajasthan last year saw it elevated to the FTSE 100 index of the UK's leading listed companies. The company had bought the rights to explore in the area from oil giant Shell. Mr Gammell is a former Scottish international rugby player.
"	business
Asia quake increases poverty risk	"Nearly two million people across Asia could be thrown into poverty because of the Indian Ocean tsunami, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said.

In its first overview of the disaster, the ADB said the impact on economic growth would be slight because major cities and factories escaped damage. But the blow to many low-income people could be ""enormous"". The Paris Club of rich creditor nations on Wednesday offered to freeze debts owed by tsunami-hit countries.

The move was aimed at helping South Asian governments find budgets to rebuild devastated coastal areas, though so far only Sri Lanka, Indonesia and the Seychelles have indicated that they will take it up.

Other countries believe their economies are strong enough to cope or wish to avoid being viewed as credit risks. ""Poverty is potentially the most important impact of this natural disaster,"" said ADB chief economist Ifzal Ali. Donor nations have promised to give $717m (£379m) in disaster relief over the next six months, according to the United Nations.

Mr Ali added his voice to those warning that aid pledges must be promptly delivered, saying the number of people at risk of poverty hinged on ""concerns over sanitation and health conditions, and other basic needs"" being ""properly and quickly addressed"".

There are 1.9 billion people in Asia living on less than $2 a day. The ADB fears that 1 million Indonesians could join them, while in India just over half a million people - 645,000 - are at risk of falling into poverty. A quarter of a million Sri Lankans and 23,500 people in the Maldives are also facing poverty. In the Maldives, where 43% of the population already lives on less than $2 a day, this could rise to half. Sri Lanka and the Maldives are the two countries the ADB fears are most at risk of suffering lasting economic damage from the tsunami. Sri Lanka's government has estimated reconstruction costs at nearly $3bn. A government task force held meetings to discuss an emergency rebuilding plan with the ADB, World Bank and Japanese aid agencies on Wednesday, and promised to publish the plan within 10 days.

Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and India have enjoyed strong economic growth in recent years, which should cushion them against reconstruction costs. Although Indonesia's northern province of Aceh suffered the worst death toll, the region's oil and natural gas production facilities ""have survived intact"", the report said. However, it remains too soon to asses the damage to poor people's livelihoods in Aceh because it would depend on how much farm land had been flooded by seawater. ""This is a profoundly tragic event for the region and for the millions who are suffering. But the economies of the affected countries except Sri Lanka and the Maldives should emerge with minimal damage,"" the ADB report said. Some businesses may even gain from the reconstruction efforts, thereby creating jobs. At a meeting in Thailand, ABD president Thadao Chino said he was confident of the country's ""own capabilities to restore normalcy to the affected areas and meet the rehabilitation requirements"". Thailand has said it does not wish to opt for a debt repayment freeze, while India has also rejected international aid, saying it can cope on its own resources. Debt repayment holidays carry the risk of credit ratings downgrades, making it more expensive to borrow money in future. Indonesia, however, is pressing for greater help with its debts than the current freeze would bring. It is one of the world's most indebted countries.
"	business
Fosters buys stake in winemaker	"Australian brewer Fosters has bought a large stake in Australian winemaker Southcorp, sparking rumours of a possible takeover.

Fosters bought 18.8% of Southcorp, the global winemaker behind the Penfolds, Lindemans and Rosemount brands, for 4.17 Australian dollars per share. A bid at that price would value the company at A$3.1bn ($2.4bn; £1.25bn ). Fosters said it was currently in discussions ""which may lead to a major corporate announcement"".

In a separate statement, Southcorp confirmed the brewer had asked for talks. Both firms asked the Sydney stock market to suspend trading in their shares until Monday. Southcorp's shares were suspended at A$4.25.

Fosters bought the 18.8% stake from Reline Investments, the family investment firm for the Oatleys, who founded the Rosemount Estates label and sold it to Southcorp in 2001. Robert Oatley and his son Sandy Oatley have both resigned from Southcorp's board following the share deal. Southcorp employs 2,700 people and is the largest single investor in rural Australia, according to its website. The prospect of Fosters launching a major acquisition startled investors, as the brewer said last summer that it was not looking to expand through a big buy in the near future. It has cash available, after getting A$846m from selling property business Lensworth, but it has been widely expected to return cash to shareholders.

""People will scratching their heads over this one. Fosters has done a back-flip"", said Shawn Burns, a fund manger at Deutsche Asset Management. Southcorp's shares have risen in recent months on speculation that it could become a takeover target. It spent two years in the red, returning to profit in 2004. Consolidation in the wine industry is being driven by Constellation, the world's biggest winemaker. It seized the top spot when it bought Australian firm BRL Hardy for just over $1bn in 2003. Since then, it has paid $1bn for US wine maker Robert Mondavi, bought last month. Fosters' main wine business is Beringer Blass Wine Estate. Its best known brand is Fosters lager, though it makes a clutch of beer brands, and spirits. Analysts were divided on Thursday about whether Fosters was more likely to go for a takeover or merely wanted to take a big enough chunk of Southcorp to prevent it falling to a rival. ""Currently, I think the strategic position is more sensible rather than an outright takeover,"" said one analyst quoted by the Agence France Presse news agency. However, Matt Williams, a fund manager at Perpetual Trustees said taking the stake ""is definitely a precursor to a takeover"".
"	business
ECB holds rates amid growth fears	"The European Central Bank has left its key interest rate unchanged at 2% for the 19th month in succession.

Borrowing costs have remained on hold amid concerns about the strength of economic growth in the 12 nations sharing the euro, analysts said. Despite signs of pick-up, labour markets and consumer demand remain sluggish, while firms are eyeing cost cutting measures such as redundancies. High oil prices, meanwhile, have put upward pressure on the inflation rate.

Surveys of economists have shown that the majority expect borrowing costs to stay at 2% in coming months, with an increase of a quarter of a percentage point predicted some time in the second half of the year. If anything, there may be greater calls for an interest rate cut, especially with the euro continuing to strengthen against the dollar. ""The euro land economy is still struggling with this recovery,"" said economist Dirk Schumacher. The ECB ""may sound rather hawkish but once the data allows them to cut again, they will."" Data coming out of Germany on Thursday underlined the problems facing European policy makers. While Germany's economy expanded by 1.7% in 2004, growth was driven by export sales and lost some of its momentum in the last three months of the year.

The strength of the euro is threatening to dampen that foreign demand in 2005, and domestic consumption currently is not strong enough to take up the slack. Inflation in the eurozone, however, is estimated at about 2.3% in December, above ECB guidelines of 2%. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has remained upbeat about prospects for the region, and inflation is expected to drop below 2% later in 2005. The ECB has forecast economic growth in the eurozone of 1.9% in 2005.
"	business
China bans new tobacco factories	"The world's biggest tobacco consumer, China, has said it will not allow any new tobacco factories to be built.

China already has more than enough cigarette-making capacity, according to a spokesman for the tobacco industry regulator quoted in China Daily. The ban threatens to reignite tensions between the regulator and British American Tobacco, which plans to become China's first foreign cigarette maker. A spokeswoman for Bat declined to comment on the report.

""China won't allow any new tobacco factories to be built, including joint ventures"", said Xing Wangli, a spokesman for the State Tobacco Administration Monopoly quoted in China Daily. He also said that the state would retain its monopoly on cigarette distribution. China has 350 million smokers who consumer 1.7 trillion cigarettes a year. Smoking is fashionable in China, where it is seen as an essential - and manly - sociable touch for some jobs, such as salesmen. More young, urban woman are taking up smoking too. In July 2004, Bat announced it had won approval for to build a $1.5bn (£800m) joint venture factory in China which would make it the first foreign cigarette maker to manufacture there.

The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration said a week later that it had not approved the deal, leading to an embarrassing public row. Bat told the BBC at that time that it had not negotiated with the STMC, and secured approval from ""the highest levels of government"". Since then, the row has flared occasionally, most recently at a forum in November. Bat consistently declines to comment. ""Xing's statement comes as especially bad news for British American Tobacco"", the China Daily newspaper said of the latest development. The Bat spokeswoman said: ""There is nothing for us to add...since our announcement in July last year. The central government of China is the authority that approved our strategic investment."" The decision to ban further tobacco factories does not apply to deals made before 2005, according to the French news agency AFP. The joint venture factory was expected to take till 2006 to build. The Bat spokeswoman would not comment on its progress. However, if the STMA continues to take a tough stance, expansion opportunities could be limited.

China's tobacco market is increasingly valuable as anti-smoking campaigners target public smoking in the West. China Daily said the market was currently enjoying steady growth, making more than 210bn yuan ($25.4bn) in pre-tax profits last year, almost double the figure in 2000. The paper made no mention of health concerns. The STMA is trying to restructure the domestic tobacco industry, closing some factories, though such moves can be unpopular with local governments.
"	business
UK interest rates held at 4.75%	"The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold again at 4.75%, in a widely-predicted move.

Rates went up five times from November 2003 - as the bank sought to cool the housing market and consumer debt - but have remained unchanged since August. Recent data has indicated a slowdown in manufacturing and consumer spending, as well as in mortgage approvals. And retail sales disappointed over Christmas, with analysts putting the drop down to less consumer confidence.

Rising interest rates and the accompanying slowdown in the housing market have knocked consumers' optimism, causing a sharp fall in demand for expensive goods, according to a report earlier this week from the British Retail Consortium. The BRC said Britain's retailers had endured their worst Christmas in a decade.

""Today's no change decision is correct,"" said David Frost, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). ""But, if there are clear signs that the economy slows, the MPC should be ready to take quick corrective action and cut rates. ""Dismal reports from the retail trade about Christmas sales are worrying, if they indicate a more general weakening in consumer spending.""

Mr Frost added: ""The housing market outlook remains highly uncertain. ""It is widely accepted that, if house prices start falling more sharply, the risks facing the economy will worsen considerably."" CBI chief economist Ian McCafferty said the economy had ""slowed in recent months in response to rate rises"" but that it was difficult to gauge from the Christmas period the likely pace of activity through the summer. ""The Bank is having to juggle the emergence of inflationary pressures, driven by a tight labour market and buoyant commodity prices, against the risk of an over-abrupt slowdown in consumer activity,"" he said. ""Interest rates are likely to remain on hold for some time.""

On Thursday there was more gloomy news on the manufacturing front, as the Office for National (ONS) statistics revealed British manufacturing output unexpectedly fell in November - for the fifth month in the past six. The ONS said manufacturing output dropped 0.1% in November, matching a similar unrevised fall in October and confounding economists' expectations of a 0.3% rise. Manufacturers' organisation, the EEF, said it expected the hold in interest rates to continue in the near future. It also said there was evidence that manufacturers' confidence may be waning as the outlook for the world economy becomes more uncertain.

""So far the evidence suggests that last year's rate increases have helped to rebalance the economy without damaging the recovery in manufacturing,"" said EEF chief economist, Steve Radley. ""However, should the business outlook start to deteriorate, the Bank should stand ready to cut rates."" Some economists have predicted rates will drop later in the year, although others feel the Bank may still think there is a need for a rise to 5% before that happens. The Bank remains concerned about the long-term risks posed by personal debt - which is rising at 15% a year - if economic conditions worsen.
"	business
German economy rebounds	"Germany's economy, the biggest among the 12 countries sharing the euro, grew at its fastest rate in four years during 2004, driven by strong exports.

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 1.7% last year, the statistical office said. The economy contracted in 2003. Foreign sales increased by 8.2% last year, compared with a 0.3% slide in private consumption. Concerns remain, however, over the strength of the euro, weak domestic demand and a sluggish labour market. The European Central Bank (ECB) left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2% on Thursday. It is the nineteenth month in a row that the ECB has not moved borrowing costs. Economists predict that an increase is unlikely to come until the second half of 2005, with growth set to sputter rather than ignite.

""During 2004 we profited from the fact that the world economy was strong,"" said Stefan Schilbe, analyst at HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt. ""If exports weaken and domestic growth remains poor, we cannot expect much from 2005."" Many German consumers have been spooked and unsettled by government attempts to reform the welfare state and corporate environment. Major companies including Volkswagen, DaimlerChrysler and Siemens have spent much of 2004 in tough talks with unions about trimming jobs and costs. They have also warned there are more cost cutting measures on the horizon.
"	business
US trade deficit widens sharply	"The gap between US exports and imports has widened to more than $60bn (£31.7bn), an all-time record.

Figures from the Commerce Department for November showed exports down 2.3% to $95.6bn, while imports grew 1.3% to $155.8bn on rising consumer demand. Part of the expanding deficit came from high prices for oil imports. But the numbers suggested the sliding dollar - which makes exports less expensive - has had little impact, and could indicate slowing economic growth.

The trade deficit - far bigger than the $54bn widely expected on Wall Street - prompted a rapid response from the currency markets.

By 1650 GMT, the dollar was trading against the euro at $1.3280, almost a cent and a half weaker than before the announcement. Against the pound, the dollar was down about 0.7% at $1,8923. ""The dollar's fall has been sudden, violent and appropriate given this number,"" said Brian Taylor of Wells Fargo in Minneapolis. ""Recent exchange rate movements certainly haven't had any impact yet."" Treasury Secretary John Snow put a brave face on the news, saying it was a sign of strong economic expansion. ""The economy is growing at such a fast rate that it is generating lots of disposable income... some of which is used to buy goods from our trading partners.""

Although the White House officially still backs the US's traditional ""strong dollar"" policy, it has tacitly indicated that it would be happy if the slide continued. The dollar has fallen by 50% against the euro - as well as by 30% against the yen - in the past three years. The main catalyst, most economists accept, is the large budget deficit on the one hand, and the current account deficit - the difference between the flow of money in and out of the US - on the other. The trade deficit is a large part of the latter. In November, the fall in exports was largely due to a decline in sales of industrial supplies and materials such as chemicals, as well as of cars, consumer goods and food. One small bright spot for US policy-makers was a slight decline in the deficit with China, often blamed for job losses and other economic woes. Although China's overall trade surplus is expanding, according to Chinese government figures, the Commerce Department revealed the US's deficit with China was $19.6bn in November, down from $19.7bn the month before. But the deficit with Japan was at its worst in more than four years.
"	business
Trade gap narrows as exports rise	"The UK's trade gap narrowed in November, helped by a 7.5% rise in exports outside the European Union.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the difference between what the UK exported and imported was £3.1bn ($5.8bn), down from October's £3.6bn. Overall UK exports - including both goods and services - rose by more than 3.2% to £24.8bn, although total imports rose again to a new record of £27.9bn. The deficit for goods alone was £4.6bn, down from October's £5bn. During November the UK exported £16.9bn worth of goods, but imported £21.5bn. The cumulative deficit for the first eleven months of 2004 now stands at £36.3bn, £4.5bn higher than the same period in 2003.

November saw an improvement in export levels to both the European Union and the rest of the world, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. EU exports rose 2%, fuelled by an increase in sales of chemicals. Non-EU exports shot up 7.5%, with growth seen across a range of manufacturing sectors including cars, consumer durables and chemicals. The export boost offset a 1% rise in imports. Non-EU imports rose 3%, but the growth in goods entering the UK from the EU slowed to 0.5%.

The UK's deficit with the EU fell to £1.9bn from £2.1bn, while its non-EU shortfall dropped to £2.7bn from £2.9bn in October.

The country's surplus on trade-in-services remained steady at £1.5bn for the fifth month in a row. Paul Dales, UK economist for Capital Economics, said the figures represented an improvement on recent months. However, he stressed that the long-term prognosis for exports was still uncertain. ""The figures are a lot better than expected but the trend still remains poor,"" he said. ""There have been some very encouraging signs that the UK export recovery is starting to take hold. But there is a danger that this could be held back by the ongoing weakness of domestic demand on the continent.""
"	business
Lesotho textile workers lose jobs	"Six foreign-owned textile factories have closed in Lesotho, leaving 6,650 garment workers jobless, union officers told the AP news agency.

Factory Workers Union secretary general Billy Macaefa blamed the closures on the end of worldwide textile quotas. The quotas for developing nations, ended on 1 January, gave them a set share of the rich countries' markets. They also limited the amount countries like China could export to the big markets of the United States and EU.

""We understand that some (owners)... were complaining that the South African rand was strong against the US dollar, and they were losing when exporting textiles and clothing to the United States,"" Mr Macaefa said at a news briefing in the capital, Maseru. Lesotho's currency, the maloti, is fixed to the rand. ""But we suspect that they left the country unceremoniously because of the end of quotas introduced by the World Trade Organization."" He said the six factories were Leisure Garments, Modern Garments, Precious Six Garments, TW Garments, Lesotho Hats and Vogue Landmark. The owners - two from Taiwan, two from China, one from Mauritius and one from Malaysia - left over the December holiday period without informing or paying their employees, he said.

Union leaders and trade campaigners have been warning that developing nations such as Lesotho, Sri Lanka, and Bangaldesh could lose thousands of jobs once the quotas were lifted. In the mountainous country surrounded by South Africa, it is feared as many as 50,000 textile workers could lose their jobs, and Mr Mafeca said he expected more companies to leave. The assistance of a US law had given Lesotho's textiles duty-free access to North American markets. The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), gave sub-Saharan countries preferential access to the US market for apparel and textile products as well as a wide range of other goods. A Lesotho government news briefing is expected on Wednesday.
"	business
Kraft cuts snack ads for children	"Kraft plans to cut back on advertising of products like Oreo cookies and sugary Kool-Aid drinks as part of an effort to promote healthy eating.

The largest US food maker will also add a label to its more nutritional and low-fat brands to promote the benefits. Kraft rival PepsiCo began a similar labelling initiative last year. The moves come as the firms face criticism from consumer groups concerned at rising levels of obesity in US children. Major food manufacturers have recently been reformulating the content of some calorie-heavy products.

Kraft's new advertising policy, which covers advertising on TV, radio and in print publications, is aimed at children between the ages of six and 11. It means commercials for some of its most famous snacks and cereals shown during early morning cartoon shows on TV will now be replaced by food and drink qualifying for Kraft's new ""Sensible Solution"" label. But the firm said it would continue to advertise all its products in media seen by parents and ""all family"" audiences. ""We're working on ways to encourage both adults and children to eat wisely by selecting more nutritionally balanced diets,"" said Lance Friedmann, Kraft senior vice president.
"	business
Khodorkovsky quits Yukos shares	"Jailed tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky has transferred his controlling stake in oil giant Yukos to a business partner.

Mr Khodorkovsky handed over his entire 59.5% stake in holding company Group Menatep - which controls Yukos - to Leonid Nevzlin. A close ally of the ex-Yukos boss, Mr Nevzlin is currently based in Israel. Mr Khodorkovsky handed over his stake after the forced sale of Yukos' core oil production unit, Yuganskneftegaz to pay a giant tax bill.

Yuganskneftegaz was sold off at auction in December last year, eventually falling into the hands of state oil firm Rosneft in a deal worth $9.4bn (£5bn). ""Since the sale of Yuganskneftegaz, I have been delivered of (all) responsibility for the business that remains and the group's money as a whole,"" Mr Khodorkovsky said. ""It is all over. As before, I see my future in public activity to build a civil society in Russia."" Mr Nevzlin is Yukos' largest shareholder but is living in self-imposed exile in Israel. Yuganskneftegaz pumps around 1 million barrels of oil a day. It was sold by the Russian authorities to recover government tax claims against Yukos totalling over $27bn. Previously considered to be Russia's richest man, with an estimated fortune of $15bn, Mr Khodorkovsky is currently on trial for fraud and tax evasion following his arrest in October 2003. However, the charges are widely seen as politically motivated and part of a drive by Russian President Vladimir Putin to rein in the country's super-rich business leaders, the so-called oligarchs. It is also believed that Mr Khodorkovsky was particularly targeted because he had started to bankroll political opponents of Mr Putin.
"	business
Executive trio leave Aer Lingus	"Three senior executives of Ireland's state-owned airline, Aer Lingus, are set to leave early on 28 January after accusations of a conflict of interest.

The trio are chief executive Willie Walsh, chief financial officer Brian Dunne and chief operations officer Seamus Kearney. The three have refused to confirm reports they plan to launch a private airline in competition with Aer Lingus. They announced in November they would quit in May, but did not give a reason. That decision had followed an announcement by Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern - who is still considering the future of the airline - which ruled out a proposed management buy-out of Aer Lingus. Mr Walsh denied they had been forced out early because of the reports claiming they were set to launch a competitor airline.

""What I do after I leave Aer Lingus is still too early to say,"" Mr Walsh told AP news agency on Wednesday. ""I have opportunities open to me. Brian and Seamus are in the equally fortunate position."" He said he had received more than 40 business proposals, mostly aviation-related, since the trio announced their resignations two months ago. Mr Walsh said there was no conflict of interest, and, if he was to launch a rival airline or join an existing competitor, ""this thing happens in every business"". ""There's absolutely no question of a conflict of interest. I've been completely focused on my responsibilities at Aer Lingus,"" he told AP.

This week opposition politicians had called on the Irish government to make an urgent decision on the future of the airline. On Wednesday Irish Transport Minister Martin Cullen said in a statement: ""A conflict of interest cannot, should not and will not be allowed to arise between their current roles at Aer Lingus and their future career intentions."" Last Friday the minister had announced he was to advertise for three senior executives for Aer Lingus. Mr Walsh, who took charge in 2000, and his team have earned praise for turning Aer Lingus around, by cutting air fares and staff, and re-positioning it as a low-fare airline to rival Ryanair. The company is 85% owned by the government and 15% by its staff.
"	business
US in EU tariff chaos trade row	"The US has asked the World Trade Organisation to investigate European Union customs tariffs, which it says are inconsistent and hamper trade.

The EU's own institutions have noted the uneven way EU customs rules are applied but failed to act, the US Trade Representative's Office said. Small and mid-sized US firms were worst-hit, it added. The EU expanded from 15 to 25 member states in May. The US said it filed the complaint after talks failed to find a solution.

The move came in the same week that the US and EU stepped back from confrontation in a tense dispute over aircraft subsidies to European manufacturer Airbus and US firm Boeing. New EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson said on Tuesday that the two sides had agreed to reopen talks in the aircraft subsidies row, which led to tit-for-tat WTO filings in last autumn.

Explaining why it has asked the WTO to set up a dispute settlement panel on customs barriers, the US Trade Representative's Office said that it wants to tackle the issue ""early in the EU's process of dealing with the problems of enlargement"". Ten countries, mostly in Eastern Europe, joined the EU in May. The US said its trade with the 25 EU member countries was worth $155.2bn (£82.8bn) in 2003. ""Although the EU is a customs union, there is no single EU customs administration,"" a statement issued on behalf of Robert Zoellick, US Trade Representative, said. Lack of uniformity, coupled with lack of procedures for prompt EU-wide review can hinder US exports, especially for small to mid-sized businesses"", An EU spokesman in Washington dismissed the US complaint. ""We think the US case is very weak. They haven't come up with any evidence that US companies are being harmed,"" said Anthony Gooch. It could take several months for the WTO's dispute settlement panel to report its findings.
"	business
News Corp eyes video games market	"News Corp, the media company controlled by Australian billionaire Rupert Murdoch, is eyeing a move into the video games market.

According to the Financial Times, chief operating officer Peter Chernin said that News Corp is ""kicking the tires of pretty much all video games companies"". Santa Monica-based Activison is said to be one firm on its takeover list. Video games are ""big business"", the paper quoted Mr Chernin as saying. We ""would like to get into it"".

The success of products such as Sony's Playstation, Microsoft's X-Box and Nintendo's Game Cube have boosted demand for video games.

The days of arcade classics such as Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong are long gone. Today, games often have budgets big enough for feature films and look to give gamers as real an experience as possible. And with their price tags reflecting the heavy investment by development companies, video games are proving almost as profitable as they are fun. Mr Chernin, however, told the FT that News Corp was finding it difficult to identify a suitable target. ""We are struggling with the gap between companies like Electronic Arts, which comes with a high price tag, and the next tier of companies,"" he explained during a conference in Phoenix, Arizona. ""These may be too focused on one or two product lines.""
"	business
US Ahold suppliers face charges	"US prosecutors have charged nine food suppliers with helping Dutch retailer Ahold inflate earnings by more than $800m (£428m).

The charges have been brought against individuals as well as companies, alleging they created false accounts. Ahold hit the headlines in February 2003 after it emerged that there were accounting irregularities at its US subsidiary Foodservice. Three former Ahold top executives last year agreed to settle fraud charges.

Ahold has admitted that it fraudulently inflated promotional allowances at Foodservice, improperly consolidated joint ventures and also committed other accounting errors and irregularities.

The nine now charged, who worked as suppliers to Ahold, are accused of signing false documents relating to the amount of money they paid the retailer for promoting their products in its stores. Food companies pay supermarkets and retailers for prime shelf space. The suppliers in question are said to have inflated the amount of money they paid, providing auditors with signed letters that allowed Ahold to inflate its earnings. US Attorney David Kelley said he expects the nine vendors will plead guilty to the charges. He added that there may be more court actions in the future. ""I don't want to leave you with the impression that these were the only ones involved,"" he said. Among those facing charges are John Nettle, a former employee of General Mills; Mark Bailin of Rymer International Seafood; Tim Daly of Michael Foods and Kenneth Bowman, who worked as an independent contractor for Total Foods.

Others include Michael Hannigan of Sugar Foods; Peter Marion of Maritime Seafood Processors and First Choice Foods; Gordon Redgate of Commodity Manager and Private Label Distribution; Bruce Robinson of Basic American Foods and Michael Rogers, formerly of Tyson Foods. Pasquale D'Amuro of the FBI called the nine vendors the key ingredients in ""the process of cooking the books"" at Ahold. At the time of the scandal, Ahold was seen by many as Europe's Enron. Ahold shares tumbled on the news and many market observers predicted that the fall out could damage investor confidence across Europe. It was less severe than many had envisaged, however, and since then Ahold has worked hard at rebuilding its reputation and investor confidence. Ahold is the world's fourth-largest supermarket chain. Its other US businesses include Stop & Shop, and Giant Food.
"	business
Wal-Mart fights back at accusers	"Two big US names have launched advertising campaigns to ""set the record straight"" about their products and corporate behaviour.

The world's biggest retailer Wal-Mart took out more than 100 full page adverts in national newspapers. The group is trying to see off criticism over it pay deals, benefits package and promotion strategy. Meanwhile, drugs group Eli Lilly is planning a campaign against ""false"" claims about its product Prozac. Wal-Mart kicked off the battle with adverts in newspapers like the Wall Street Journal, using an open letter from company president Lee Scott saying it was time for the public to hear the ""unfiltered truth"".

""There are lots of 'urban legends' going around these days about Wal-Mart, but facts are facts. Wal-Mart is good for consumers, good for communities and good for the US economy,"" Mr Scott said in a separate statement.

Its adverts - and a new website - outlined the group's plans to create more than 10,000 US jobs in 2005. Wal-Mart's average pay is almost twice the national minimum wage of $5.15 (£3.90) an hour, while employees are offered health and life insurance, company stock and a retirement plan, the adverts say. Unions accuse Wal-Mart of paying staff less than its rivals do, with fewer benefits. In California, the company is fighting opposition to new stores amid allegations it forces local competitors out of business. Lawmakers in the state are also examining allegations that the firm burdens the state with an unfair proportion of employee health care costs. ""I think they are going to have a tough time suddenly overcoming the perceptions of some people,"" said Larry Bevington, chairman of Save Our Community - a group fighting to prevent Wal-Mart opening a store in Rosemead, California. Wal-Mart is also fighting two lawsuits - one accusing it of discriminating against women and another alleging it discriminates against black employees.

Meanwhile Eli Lilly is launching a series of adverts in a dozen major newspapers, to present what is says are the true facts about its anti-depressant drug Prozac.

The move is in response to a British Medical Journal article that claimed ""missing"" Lilly documents linked Prozac to suicide and violent behaviour. In the averts, entitled An Open Letter from chief executive Sidney Taurel, the company says the article continues to ""needlessly spread fear among patients who take Prozac"". ""It was simply wrong to suggest that information on Prozac was missing, or that important research data on the benefits and possible side effects of the drug were not available to doctors and regulators,"" the letter added. Eli Lilly's chief medical officer Alan Breier said that the article was ""false and misleading"" as the documents it referred to were actually created by officials at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and presented to an FDA meeting in 1991. Later, FDA medical advisors agreed the claims were based on faulty data and there was no increased risk of suicide.
"	business
US retail sales surge in December	"US retail sales ended the year on a high note with solid gains in December, boosted by strong car sales.

Seasonally adjusted sales rose 1.2% in the month, compared to 0.1% a month earlier, boosted by a surge in shopping just before and after Christmas. Sales climbed 8% for the year, the best performance since an 8.5% rise in 1999, the Commerce Department added. The gains were led by a 4.3% jump in auto sales as dealers used enhanced offers to get cars out of showrooms. Dealers were forced to cut prices in December to maintain sales growth in a tough quarter when the usual end-of-year holiday sales boom was slow to get started.

The increase in sales during December pushed total spending for the month to $349.4bn (£265.9bn). Sales for the year also broke through the $4 trillion mark for the first time - with annual sales coming in at $4.06 trillion However, if automotives are excluded from December's data, retail sales rose just 0.3% on the month. Home furnishings and furniture stores also performed well, rising 2.2%. But as well as hitting the shops, more US consumers were going online or using mail order for their purchases - with non-store retailers seeing sales rise by 1.9%. However, analysts said that the strong figures were unlikely to put the Federal Reserve Bank off its current policy of measured interest rate rises. ""Consumers for now remain willing to spend freely, sustaining the US expansion. Given that attitude, the Fed remains likely to continue boosting the Fed funds rate at upcoming meetings,"" UBS economist Maury Harris told Reuters.

Retail sales are seen as a major part of consumer spending - which in turn makes up two-thirds of economic output in the US. Consumer spending has been picking up in recent years after slumping during 2001 and 2002 as the country battled to recover from its first recession of the decade and the World Trade Centre attacks. During that time, sales grew a lacklustre 2.9% in 2001 and 2.5% a year later. Looking ahead, analysts now expect improvement in jobs growth to feed through to the High Street with consumer spending remaining strong. The belief comes despite the latest labor department report showing a surprise rise in unemployment. The number of Americans filing initial jobless claims jumped to 367,000, the highest rate since September. However, long-term claims slipped to their lowest level since 2001.
"	business
Winemaker rejects Foster's offer	"Australian winemaker Southcorp has rejected a takeover offer worth 3.1bn Australian dollars ($2.3bn; £1.8bn) from brewing giant Foster's Group.

Southcorp, whose brands include Penfolds, Rosemount and Lindemans, dismissed the offer as inadequate. The two companies held four days of talks after Foster's bought an 18.8% stake in Southcorp on 13 January. A merger would create a global player with worldwide annual sales of 39m cases and revenues of A$2.6bn.

Southcorp said Foster's A$4.17-a-share takeover proposal offered a ""excellent strategic fit"" but undervalued the company. ""Southcorp's board has informed Foster's that it is not prepared to recommend the offer as it does not adequately reflect the strategic value of the company,"" said Southcorp chairman Brian Finn.

Southcorp said Foster's takeover offer was ""opportunistic"". However, it said that the offer may represent an 'opening bid', opening up the possibility of Foster's returning with an improved offer.

Foster's said a combination of the two companies would create a global player with an ""unrivalled"" collection of premium wine brands. Despite being best known for brewing Foster's Lager, Foster's is already one of Australia's largest wine producers, owning the Beringer and Wolf Blass brands among others. ""The combination of Foster's and Southcorp will transform the global wine industry and significantly enhance Australia's competitive position on the global stage,"" said Trevor O'Hoy, Foster's chief executive officer. Foster's spent A$584m on buying an 18.8% stake in Southcorp from the Oatley family, which founded the Rosemount Estates business and later merged it into Southcorp. Shares in both companies were suspended while the two held talks about a deal. Southcorp's shares rose 12% to A$4.76 on news of the offer but Foster's shares fell 3.7% to A$5.44.
"	business
McDonald's boss Bell dies aged 44	"Charlie Bell, the straight-talking former head of fast-food giant McDonald's, has died of cancer aged 44.

Mr Bell was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in May last year, a month after taking over the top job. He resigned in November to fight the illness. Joining the company as a 15-year-old part-time worker, Mr Bell quickly moved through its ranks, becoming Australia's youngest store manager at 19. A popular go-getter, he is credited with helping revive McDonald's sales. Mr Bell leaves a wife and daughter. ""As we mourn his passing, I ask you to keep Charlie's family in your hearts and prayers,"" chief executive James Skinner said in a statement. ""And remember that in his abbreviated time on this earth, Charlie lived life to the fullest."" ""No matter what cards life dealt, Charlie stayed centred on his love for his family and for McDonald's.""

After running the company's Australian business in the 1990s, Mr Bell moved to the US in 1999 to run operations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. In 2001, he took over the reins in Europe, McDonald's second most important market. He became chief operating officer and president in 2002. Mr Bell took over as chief executive after his predecessor as CEO, Jim Cantalupo, died suddenly of a heart attack in April. Having worked closely with Mr Cantalupo, who came out of retirement to turn McDonald's around, Mr Bell focused on boosting demand at existing restaurants rather than follow a policy of rapid expansion. He had promised not to let the company get ""fat, dumb and happy,"" and, according to Reuters, once told analysts that he would shove a fire hose down the throat of competitors if he saw them drowning. Mr Bell oversaw McDonald's ""I'm lovin' it"" advertising campaign and introduced successes such as McCafe, now the biggest coffee shop brand in Australia and New Zealand. Colleagues said that Mr Bell was proud of his humble beginnings, helping out behind cash tills and clearing tables when visiting restaurants.
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US industrial output growth eases	"US industrial production continued to rise in November, albeit at a slower pace than the previous month.

The US Federal Reserve said output from factories, mines and utilities rose 0.3% - in line with forecasts - from a revised 0.6% increase in October. Analysts added that if the carmaking sector - which saw production fall 0.5% - had been excluded the data would have been more impressive. The latest increase means industrial output has grown 4.2% in the past year. Many analysts were upbeat about the prospects for the US economy, with the increase in production coming on the heels of news of a recovery in retail sales. ""This is very consistent with an economy growing at 3.5 to 4.0%. It is congruent with job growth and consumer optimism,"" Comerica chief economist David Littman said of the figures.

The US economy grew at a respectable annual rate of 3.7% in the three months between July and September, while jobs growth averaged 178,000 during the same period. While the employment figures are not spectacular, experts believe they are enough to whittle away at America's 5.4% jobless rate. A breakdown of the latest production figures shows mining output drove the increase, surging 2.1%, while factory output rose 0.3%. But utility output dropped 1.4%. Meanwhile, the amount of factory capacity in use during the month rose to 77.6% - its highest level since May 2001. ""Many investors think that product market inflation won't be a problem until the utilisation rates are at 80% or higher,"" Cary Leahy, senior US economist at Deutsche Bank Securities, said. ""So there is still a lot of inflation-fighting slack in the manufacturing sector,"" ""Overall I'd say manufacturing at least away from autos continues to improve and I would bet that it improves at a faster rate in coming months given how lean inventories are,"" Citigroup senior economist Steven Wieting added.
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LSE doubts boost bidders' shares	"Shares in Deutsche Boerse have risen more than 3% after a shareholder fund voiced opposition to the firm's planned takeover of the London Stock Exchange.

TCI, which claims to represent owners of 5% of Deutsche Boerse's (DB) shares, has complained that the £1.35bn ($2.5bn) offer for the LSE is too high. Opposition from TCI has fuelled speculation that the proposed takeover could fail. Rival exchange operator Euronext has also said it may bid for the LSE. Euronext operates the Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels and Lisbon bourses, while Deutsche Boerse runs the Frankfurt exchange.

BBC News spoke to a number of analysts on Monday morning about shareholder worries over Deutsche Boerse's bid for LSE. Although none were prepared to speak on the record, most thought it was unlikely that TCI's opposition would halt the deal

""Obviously we'll have to wait and see, but I don't think it will make much difference. Deutsche Boerse appears very committed,"" said one London-based broker. He forecast the takeover bid would succeed and was more concerned to see improvements in the daily running of the LSE. In voicing its opposition to the planned takeover, TCI said it would prefer to see Deutsche Boerse return $500m (£350m) to shareholders. The Deutsche Boerse was prepared to pay for the LSE ""exceeds the potential benefits of this acquisition"", said TCI.

Another Deutsche Boerse shareholder on Monday also appeared to back TCI's call. Another investor in Deutsche Boerse has supported the view that a payout to shareholders would be preferable to Deutsche Boerse overpaying for the LSE, Reuters news agency reported. ""We prefer a sensible entrepreneurial solution at a price that is not too high,"" said Rolf Dress, a spokesman for Union Investment. ""If that cannot be achieved, then we would wish for a distribution of liquid assets to shareholders."" The Financial Times also reported a third Deutsche Boerse shareholder as opposed to the deal. It quoted a spokesman for US-based hedge fund Atticus Capital complaining that the planned takeover appeared to be motivated by ""empire-building"" rather than the best interests of shareholders.

TCI has called for Deutsche Boerse to hold an emergency general meeting to discuss the bid for LSE. Yet under German business law, DB does not have to gain shareholder approval before making a significant acquisition. Deutsche Boerse said TCI's opposition would not change its bid approach. ""Deutsche Boerse is convinced that its contemplated cash acquisition of the London Stock Exchange is in the best interests of its shareholders and the company,"" it said. DB's shares were up 3.4% to 45.25 euros by 1030 GMT, the highest gainer in Frankfurt.
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Qantas considers offshore option	"Australian airline Qantas could transfer as many as 7,000 jobs out of its home country as it seeks to save costs, according to newspaper reports.

Chief executive Geoff Dixon was quoted by The Australian newspaper as saying the carrier could no longer afford to remain ""all-Australian"". Unions criticised the possible move - which may affect cabin and maintenance staff - saying Qantas was profitable. More than 90% of the airline's staff are based in Australia.

Qantas confirmed it was looking at whether it might recruit and source products overseas - potentially through joint ventures - but said it would continue to create jobs in Australia.

Despite making a record Australian dollars 648m ($492m) profit last year, Qantas has argued that it needs to make considerable savings if it is to remain competitive. ""We're going to have to get the lowest cost structure we can and that willmean sourcing things more and more from overseas,"" the newspaper quoted Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon as saying. Early this year, Qantas increased the number of flight attendants based in London from 370 to 870. If Qantas were to follow the lead of other airlines moving staff 'offshore' 7,000 jobs could shift overseas, the newspaper reported. In a statement, Qantas said it was looking to build its operations overseas. However, it stressed this would not result in large scale redundancies in its home market, where most of its 35,000 staff are employed. ""We are totally committed to continuing to grow jobs in Australia,"" Mr Dixon said. ""We are, however, operating in a global market and there is no room for complacency simply because we are currently profitable and successful.""

Unions reacted angrily to the reported disclosure, arguing that Qantas was profitable and did not need to take such action. ""We could understand if Qantas was a struggling airline about to go under,"" Michael Mijatov, international division secretary of the Flight Attendants Association, told Agence France Presse. ""Qantas announced a record profit last year and is on course this year for an even greater profit so it is totally unnecessary."" In an effort to meet the challenge posed by low cost carriers, Qantas sought a tie-up with Air New Zealand last year However, the deal was thrown out by the New Zealand High Court on competition grounds.
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Gazprom 'in $36m back-tax claim'	"The nuclear unit of Russian energy giant Gazprom is reportedly facing a 1bn rouble ($35.7m; £19.1m) back-tax claim for the 2001-2003 period.

Vedomosti newspaper reported that Russian authorities made the demand at the end of last year. The paper added that most of the taxes claimed are linked to the company's export activity. Gazprom, the biggest gas company in the world, took over nuclear fuel giant Atomstroieksport in October 2004. The main project of Atomstroieksport is the building of a nuclear plant in Iran, which has been a source of tension between Russia and the US.

Gazprom is one of the key players in the complex Russian energy market, where the government of Vladimir Putin has made moves to regain state influence over the sector. Gazprom is set to merge with state oil firm Rosneft, the company that eventually acquired Yuganskneftegas, the main unit of embattled oil giant Yukos. Claims for back-taxes was a tool used against Yukos, and led to the enforced sale Yuganskneftegas. Some analysts fear the Kremlin will continue to use these sort of moves to boost the efforts of the state to regain control over strategically important sectors such as oil.
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Germany calls for EU reform	"German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has called for radical reform of the EU's stability pact to grant countries more flexibility over their budget deficits.

Mr Schroeder said existing fiscal rules should be loosened to allow countries to run deficits above the current 3% limit if they met certain criteria. Writing in the Financial Times, Mr Schroeder also said heads of government should have a greater say in reforms. Changes to the pact are due to be agreed at an economic summit in March.

The current EU rules limit the size of a eurozone country's deficit to 3% of GDP. Countries which exceed the threshold are liable to heavy fines by the European Commission, although several countries, including Germany, have breached the rules consistently since 2002 without facing punishment. The European Commission acknowledged last month that it would not impose sanctions on countries who break the rules.

Mr Schroeder - a staunch supporter of the pact when it was set up in the 1990s - said exemptions were now needed to take into account the cost of domestic reform programmes and changing economic conditions. ""The stability pact will work better if intervention by European institutions in the budgetary sovereignty of national parliaments is only permitted under very limited conditions,"" he wrote. ""Only if their competences are respected will the member states be willing to align their policies more consistently with the economic goals of the EU.""

Deficits should be allowed to rise above 3%, Mr Schroeder argued, if countries meet several ""mandatory criteria"". These include governments which are adopting costly structural reforms, countries which are suffering economic stagnation and nations which are shouldering ""special economic burdens"". The proposed changes would make it harder for the European Commission to launch infringement action against any state which breaches the pact's rules. Mr Schroeder's intervention comes ahead of a meeting of the 12 Eurozone finance ministers on Monday to discuss the pact. The issue will also be discussed at Tuesday's Ecofin meeting of the finance ministers of all 25 EU members. Mr Schroeder also called for heads of government to play a larger role in shaping reforms to the pact. A number of EU finance ministers are believed to favour only limited changes to the eurozone's rules.
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Parmalat founder offers apology	"The founder and former boss of Parmalat has apologised to investors who lost money as a result of the Italian dairy firm's collapse.

Calisto Tanzi said he would co-operate fully with prosecutors investigating the background to one of Europe's largest financial scandals. Parmalat was placed into bankruptcy protection in 2003 after a 14bn euro black hole was found in its accounts. More than 130,000 people lost money following the firm's collapse. Mr Tanzi, 66, issued a statement through his lawyer after five hours of questioning by prosecutors in Parma on 15 January.

Prosecutors are seeking indictments against Mr Tanzi and 28 others - including several members of his family and former Parmalat chief financial officer Fausto Tonna - for alleged manipulation of stock market prices and making misleading statements to accountants and Italy's financial watchdog. Two former Parmalat auditors will stand trial later this month for their role in the firm's collapse.

""I apologise to all who have suffered so much damage as a result of my schemes to make my dream of an industrial project come true,"" Mr Tanzi's statement said. ""It is my duty to collaborate fully with prosecutors to reconstruct the causes of Parmalat's sudden default and who is responsible."" Mr Tanzi spent several months in jail in the wake of Parmalat's collapse and was kept under house arrest until last September. Parmalat is now being run by a state appointed administrator, Enrico Bondi, who has launched lawsuits against 80 banks in an effort to recover money for the bankrupt company and its shareholders. He has alleged that these companies were aware of the true state of Parmalat's finances but continued to lend money to the company. The companies insist they were the victims of fraudulent book-keeping. Parmalat was declared insolvent after it emerged that 4 billion euros (£2.8bn; $4.8bn) it supposedly held in an offshore account did not in fact exist. The firm's demise sent shock waves through Italy, where its portfolio of top-selling food brands and its position as the owner of leading football club Parma had turned it into a household name.
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'Golden economic period' to end	"Ten years of ""golden"" economic performance may come to an end in 2005 with growth slowing markedly, City consultancy Deloitte has warned.

The UK economy could suffer a backlash from the slowdown in the housing market, triggering a fall in consumer spending and a rise in unemployment. Deloitte is forecasting economic growth of 2% this year, below Chancellor Gordon Brown's forecast of 3% to 3.5%. It also believes that interest rates will fall to 4% by the end of the year.

In its quarterly economic review, Deloitte said the UK economy had enjoyed a ""golden period"" during the past decade with unemployment falling to a near 30 year low and inflation at its lowest since the 1960s.

But it warned that this growth had been achieved at the expense of creating major ""imbalances"" in the economy. Deloitte's chief economic advisor Roger Bootle said: ""The biggest hit of all is set to come from the housing market which has already embarked on a major slowdown. ""Whereas the main driver of the economy in recent years has been robust household spending growth, this is likely to suffer as the housing market slowdown gathers pace.""

Economic growth is likely to be constrained during the next few years by increased pressure on household budgets and rising taxes, Deloitte believes. Gordon Brown will need to raise about $10bn a year in order to sustain the public finances in the short term, the firm claims. This will result in a marked slowdown in growth in 2005 and 2006 compared to last year, when the economy expanded by 3.25%. However, Deloitte stressed that the slowdown was unlikely to have any major impact on retail prices while it expected the Bank of England to respond quickly to signs of the economy faltering. It expects a series of ""aggressive"" interest rate cuts over the next two years, with the cost of borrowing falling from its current 4.75% mark to 3.5% by the end of 2006. ""Although 2005 may not be the year when things go completely wrong, it will probably mark the start of a more difficult period for the UK economy,"" Mr Bootle.
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Jobs go at Oracle after takeover	"Oracle has announced it is cutting about 5,000 jobs following the completion of its $10.3bn takeover of its smaller rival Peoplesoft last week.

The company said it would retain more than 90% of Peoplesoft product development and product support staff. The cuts will affect about 9% of the 55,000 staff of the combined companies. Oracle's 18-month fight to acquire Peoplesoft was one of the most drawn-out and hard-fought US takeover battles of recent times. The merged companies are set to be a major force in the enterprise software market, second only in size to Germany's SAP.

In a statement, Oracle said it began notifying staff of redundancies on Friday and the process would continue over the next 10 days. ""By retaining the vast majority of Peoplesoft technical staff, Oracle will have the resources to deliver on the development and support commitments we have made to Peoplesoft customers over the last 18 months,"" Oracle's chief executive Larry Ellison said in a statement.

Correspondents say 6,000 job losses had been expected - and some suggest more cuts may be announced in future. They say Mr Ellison may be trying to placate Peoplesoft customers riled by Oracle's determined takeover strategy. Hours before Friday's announcement, there was a funereal air at Peoplesoft's headquarters, reported AP news agency. A Peoplesoft sign had been turned into shrine to the company, with flowers, candles and company memorabilia. ""We're mourning the passing of a great company,"" the agency quoted Peoplesoft worker David Ogden as saying. Other employees said they would rather be sacked than work for Oracle. ""The new company is going to be totally different,"" said Anil Aggarwal, Peoplesoft's director of database markets. ""Peoplesoft had an easygoing, relaxed atmosphere. Oracle has an edgy, aggressive atmosphere that's not conducive to innovative production."" On the news, Oracle shares rose 15 cents - 1.1% - on Nasdaq. In after-hours trading the shares did not move.
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Beijingers fume over parking fees	"Choking traffic jams in Beijing are prompting officials to look at reorganising car parking charges.

Car ownership has risen fast in recent years, and there are now two and a half million cars on the city's roads. The trouble is that the high status of car ownership is matched by expensive fees at indoor car parks, making motorists reluctant to use them. Instead roads are being clogged by drivers circling in search of a cheaper outdoor option. ""The price differences between indoor and outdoor lots are unreasonable,"" said Wang Yan, an official from the Beijing Municipal Commission for Development and Reform quoted in the state-run China Daily newspaper. Mr Wang, who is in charge of collecting car parking fees, said his team would be looking at adjusting parking prices to close the gap. Indoor parking bays can cost up to 250% more than outdoor ones.

Sports fans who drive to matches may also find themselves the target of the commission's road rage. It wants them to use public transport, and is considering jacking up the prices of car parks near sports grounds. Mr Wang said his review team may scrap the relatively cheap hourly fee near such places and impose a higher flat rate during matches. Indoor parking may be costly, but it is not always secure. Mr Wang's team are also going to look into complaints from residents about poor service received in exchange for compulsory monthly fees of up to 400 yuan ($48; £26). The Beijing authorities decided two years ago that visiting foreign dignitaries' motorcades should not longer get motorcycle outriders as they blocked the traffic. Unclogging Beijing's increasingly impassable streets is a major concern for the Chinese authorities, who are building dozens of new roads to create a showcase modern city ahead of the 2008 Olympic Games.
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GM issues 2005 profits warning	"General Motors has warned that it expects earnings this year be lower than in 2004.

The world's biggest car maker is grappling with losses in its European business, and weak US sales. GM said higher healthcare costs in North America, and lower profits at its financial services subsidiary would hurt its performance in 2005. GM said it expects to meet its 2004 earnings targets ""despite a tough competitive environment"".

GM, whose brands include Buick, Cadillac and Chevrolet in the US and Opel, Saab and Vauxhall in Europe, is due to reveal 2004 earnings on 19 January.

It said it would deliver a shareholder payout of $6.0-$6.5 per share this year, as promised, but that next year's earnings per share would be lower, at between $4.0-$5.0. ""We're following a roadmap that we believe will deliver strong results,"" said GM chief executive Rick Waggoner. GM said it was expecting ""reduced financial losses"" in Europe in 2005. It is in the midst of cutting 12,000 jobs - one fifth of the European total - in a bid to cut costs. The biggest job losses are in Germany. Its vehicle businesses have gained market share in three out of four regions in 2004, achieving record profitability in Asia Pacific and returning to profit in Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. The car maker has diversified into financial services, and is extending the reach of General Motors Acceptance Corp (GMAC), which has said it may enter the home loans market. GMAC has been a strong contributor to profits in 2004 but GM said it will do less well this year, delivering net income of $2.5bn. ""Attaining earnings of $10 a share remains GM's goal,"" the company said, adding it believes it can achieve this in 2007.
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US economy still growing says Fed	"Most areas of the US saw their economy continue to expand in December and early January, the US Federal Reserve said in its latest Beige Book report.

Of the 12 US regions it identifies for the study, 11 showed stronger economic growth, with only the Cleveland area falling behind with a ""mixed"" rating. Consumer spending was higher in December than November, and festive sales were also up on 2003. The employment picture also improved, the Fed said.

""Labour markets firmed in a number of districts, but wage pressures generally remained modest,"" the Beige Book said. ""Several districts reported higher prices for building materials and manufacturing inputs, but most reported steady or only slightly higher overall price levels."" The report added that residential real estate activity remained strong and that commercial real estate activity strengthened in most districts. ""Office leasing was especially brisk in Washington DC, and New York City, two of the nation's strongest commercial markets,"" the Fed said.
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Wall Street cool to eBay's profit	"Shares in online auction house eBay fell 9.8% in after-hours trade on Wednesday, after its quarterly profits failed to meet market expectations.

Despite seeing net profits rise by 44% to $205.4m (£110m) during October to December, from $142m a year earlier, Wall Street had expected more. EBay stock fell to $92.9 in after-hours trade, from a $103.05 end on Nasdaq. EBay's net revenue for the quarter rose to $935.8m from $648.4m, boosted by growth at its PayPal payment service.

Excluding special items, eBay's profit was 33 cents a share, but analysts had expected 34 cents.

""I think Wall Street has gotten a bit ahead of eBay this quarter and for the 2005 year."" said Janco Partners analyst Martin Pyykkonen. For 2004 as a whole, eBay earned $778.2m on sales of $3.27bn. EBay president and chief executive Meg Whitman called 2004 an ""outstanding success"" that generated ""tremendous momentum"" for 2005. ""I'm more confident than ever that the decisions and investments we're making today will ensure a bright future for the company and our community of users around the world,"" she said. EBay now forecasts 2005 revenue of $4.2bn to $4.35bn and earnings excluding items of $1.48 to $1.52 per share. Analysts had previously estimated that eBay would achieve 2005 revenues of $4.37bn and earnings of $1.62 per share, excluding items.
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WorldCom trial starts in New York	"The trial of Bernie Ebbers, former chief executive of bankrupt US phone company WorldCom, has started in New York with the selection of the jury.

Mr Ebbers, 63, is accused of being the mastermind behind an $11bn (£6bn) accounting fraud that eventually saw the firm collapse in July 2002. His indictment includes charges of securities fraud, conspiracy and filing false reports with regulators. If found guilty, Mr Ebbers could face a substantial jail sentence. He has firmly declared his innocence.

Under Mr Ebbers' leadership, WorldCom emerged from Mississippi obscurity to become a $160bn telecoms giant and the darling of late 1990s investors. Yet as competition intensified and the telecoms boom petered out, WorldCom found itself under growing financial stress. When WorldCom finally collapsed, shareholders lost about $180bn and 20,000 workers lost their jobs. Mr Ebbers' trial, which is expected to last two months, is the latest in a series of attempts by US prosecutors to pursue senior executives for fraud. It will coincide with the retrial of former Tyco International chief Dennis Kozlowski and his top lieutenant, accused of looting the industrial conglomerate to the tune of $600m. Trail preparations are also preparing for former executives of shamed US energy firm Enron.
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High fuel costs hit US airlines	"Two of the largest airlines in the US - American and Southwest - have blamed record fuel prices for their disappointing quarterly results.

American Airlines' parent AMR reported a loss of $387m (£206m) for the fourth quarter of 2004, against a $111m loss for the same period a year earlier. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines saw its fourth-quarter 2004 profits fall 15% to $56m, against $66m a year earlier. Both said high fuel bills would continue to pressure revenues in 2005. American, the world's biggest airline by some measures, said it expected to report a loss for the first quarter of 2005. Southwest, which has the highest market value of any US carrier, said it would remain profitable despite high fuel prices.

AMR's shares were flat in Wednesday morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange, as the results were slightly better than analysts had anticipated. AMR's chief executive Gerard Arpey said the airline's difficulties reflected the situation within the industry. ""AMR's results for the fourth quarter of 2004 reflect the economic woes that plagued the airline industry throughout 2004 - in particular, high fuel prices and a tough revenue environment,"" he said. For the full year, AMR posted a loss of $761m, lower than 2003's $1.2bn loss and an indication that the airline has successfully cut costs. AMR added that as part of its cost cutting measures, it is postponing the delivery of 54 Boeing jets. Shares in Southwest fell 65 cents to $14.35 as analysts voiced their disappointment. ""The results came in below our already conservative estimate for the quarter,"" said Ray Neidl, an analyst at Calyon Securities. Both American and Southwest have been squeezed by cut-throat competition in the US airline industry, as a glut of available seats has led to fierce price reductions.
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European losses hit GM's profits	"General Motors (GM) saw its net profits fall 37% in the last quarter of 2004, as it continued to be hit by losses at its European operations.

The US giant earned $630m (£481.5m) in the October-to-December period, down from $1bn in the fourth quarter of 2003. GM's revenues rose 4.7% to $51.2bn from $48.8bn a year earlier. The fourth-quarter losses at General Motors Europe totalled $345m, up from $66m during the same period in 2003. GM's main European brands are Opel and Vauxhall.

Excluding special items, GM's global income from continuing operations totalled $569m during the quarter, down from $838m a year earlier. The results were in line with Wall Street expectations and shares in GM rose by about 1% in pre-market trade. For the whole of 2004, GM earned $3.7bn, down from $3.8bn in 2003, while its annual revenue rose 4.5% to $193bn. GM said its profits were also hit by higher healthcare costs in the US. ""GM reported solid overall results in 2004, despite challenging competitive conditions in many markets around the globe,"" GM chairman and chief executive Rick Wagoner said in a statement. The company recently announced that it expected profits in 2005 to be lower than in 2004.
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EU to probe Alitalia 'state aid'	"The European Commission has officially launched an in-depth investigation into whether Italian airline Alitalia is receiving illegal state aid.

Commission officials are to look at Rome's provision of a 400m euro ($495m; £275m) loan to the carrier. Both the Italian government and Alitalia have repeatedly denied that the money - part of a vital restructuring plan - is state aid. The investigation could take up to 18 months. However, Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot said he wanted it to be carried out as swiftly as possible. ""The Italian authorities have presented a serious industrial plan,"" said Mr Barot. ""We now have to verify certain aspects to confirm that this plan contains no state aid. I would like our analysis to be completed swiftly.""

The matter of possible state aid was brought to the Commission's attention by eight of Alitalia's rivals, including Germany's Lufthansa, British Airways and Spain's Iberia. While Alitalia needs to restructure to bring itself back to profitability, the rival carriers say it has both violated state aid rules and threatened competition. Alitalia lost 330m euros in 2003 as it struggled to get to grips with high costs, spiralling oil prices, competition from budget carriers and reduced demand. It plans to split into AZ Fly and AZ Services, which will handle air and ground services respectively. Alitalia already enjoyed state aid in 1997. EU rules prevent that from happening again in what is known as the ""one time, last time"" rule for airlines. Otherwise, EU regulations on state aid stipulate that governments may help companies financially, but only on the same terms as a commercial investor. The airline declined to comment on the Commission decision.
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IMF agrees fresh Turkey funding	"Turkey has agreed a draft proposal with the International Monetary Fund to borrow $10bn (£5.19bn), extending its ongoing financial support until 2007.

Turkey's current $18.6bn loan agreement with the IMF expires in February and the new deal would see it receive added support between 2005 and 2007. In return for the funding, Turkey would be expected to keep inflation under control and introduce market reforms. Turkey's economy has steadily recovered from a severe crisis in 2001.

Economic growth has average 6-7% in the past three years, ahead of IMF forecasts, while inflation fell below 10% this year for the first time in 30 years. However, Turkey has a huge debt burden - already owing $23bn to the IMF - while its current account deficit has swelled to $10.7bn this year.

The Turkish economics minister, Ali Babacan, said the two sides had reached general agreement on a new three year funding program. Rodrigo de Rato, the IMF's managing director, said the loan agreement would help to improve Turkish economic prospects by cutting its debt and stimulating growth. ""I believe the new programme, if implemented successfully, will help Turkey create the conditions for sustained growth and employment creation, reduce inflation toward European level and enhance the economy's resilience,"" he said. The agreement must still be ratified by IMF directors at a meeting expected to take place next month.

The agreement would also enable Turkey to defer payments on previous loans worth $3.7m until 2006.

As part of the draft agreement, Turkey has signed a ""letter of intent"" stating its determination to push through far-reaching reforms to its tax and benefits system and its banking sector. Such reforms are considered vital for Turkey if it is to fulfil its ambition of joining the European Union. The EU will decide on 17 December whether to begin entry talks with Turkey. The US, the largest of the IMF's 184 members, is a strong supporter of continued financial support for Turkey.
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Saudi investor picks up the Savoy	"London's famous Savoy hotel has been sold to a group combining Saudi billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and a unit of HBOS bank.

Financial details of the deal, which includes the nearby Simpson's in the Strand restaurant, were not disclosed. The seller - Irish-based property firm Quinlan Private - bought the Savoy along with the Berkeley, Claridge's and the Connaught for £750m last year. Prince Alwaleed's hotel investments include the luxury George V in Paris. He also has substantial stakes in Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, which will manage the Savoy and Simpson's in the Strand, and Four Seasons. Fairmont said it planned to invest $48m (£26m) in renovating parts of the Savoy including the River Room and suites with views over the River Thames. Work was expected to be completed by summer 2006, Fairmont said.
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Tsunami slows Sri Lanka's growth	"Sri Lanka's president has launched a reconstruction drive worth $3.5bn (£1.8bn) by appealing for peace and national unity.

President Kumaratunga said it was now important to find a peaceful solution to years of internal conflict. Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said damage from the tsunami would cut one percentage point from Sri Lanka's economic growth this year. It estimated the wave left physical damage equal to 6.5% of the economy.

Separately, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said that at least one million people have lost their livelihoods in Sri Lanka and Indonesia alone. It called for action to create jobs. President Kumaratunga attended a ceremony in the southern town of Hambantota. She was joined by government and opposition politicians, together with Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and Christian clergy.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse laid the foundation stone on a new housing project intended to provide 6,000 homes for survivors of the tsunami. Mrs Kumaratunga called for the tragedy to be ""the start of a new beginning to rebuild our nation"". ""We are a country blessed with so many natural resources and we have not made use of them fully. Instead we have been squabbling, fighting,"" she added. Norway's peace negotiator Erik Solheim is due to arrive on Wednesday to try to revive peace talks in the decades-long conflict between government forces and the Tamil Tigers, who want a separate state in the north east of the country. Reconstruction efforts in eastern Sri Lanka have been hampered by tensions between the two sides.

The IMF said that the Sri Lankan authorities' initial estimates have put the physical damage at $1.3 to $1.5bn, but added that the implications for the economy were much wider than this. ""The broader macroeconomic impact will clearly be substantial but the details are difficult to assess at this early stage,"" the IMF said. Growth, inflation, the balance of payments and foreign exchange reserves are all expected to show the effects of lost businesses and reconstruction costs. ""The fishing industry has been devastated, agricultural production may be affected and tourism will suffer, especially in the short term,"" the report said. The ILO estimated that 400,000 Sri Lankans have lost their jobs, mostly in these three industries. Earnings from tourism this year are expected to be 15% lower than last year. Economic growth this year is expected to be 4%, which is about 1% less than previously forecast. Inflation could climb to 14% compared to a previous estimate of 12%. Although major exports have not suffered, the IMF expects the reconstruction effort will require higher imports which could damage the balance of payments. Foreign exchange reserves may become strained as ""Sri Lanka will be hard pressed to keep international reserves at the pre-tsunami level"" which totalled more than two months worth of imports. Last week, the IMF approved Sri Lanka's request for a freeze on loan repayments.
"	business
China suspends 26 power projects	"China has ordered a halt to construction work on 26 big power stations, including two at the Three Gorges Dam, on environmental grounds.

The move is a surprising one because China is struggling to increase energy supplies for its booming economy. Last year 24 provinces suffered black outs. The State Environmental Protection Agency said the 26 projects had failed to do proper environmental assessments. Topping the list was a controversial dam on the scenic upper Yangtze River. ""Construction of these projects has started without approval of the assessment of their environmental impact... they are typical illegal projects of construction first, approval next,"" said SEPA vice-director Pan Yue, in a statement on the agency's website.

Some of the projects may be allowed to start work again with the proper permits, but others would be cancelled, he said. Altogether, the agency ordered 30 projects halted. Other projects included a petrochemicals plant and a port in Fujian. The bulk of the list was made up of new power plants, with some extensions to existing ones. The stoppages would appear to be another step in the central government's battle to control projects licensed by local officials. However, previous crackdowns have tended to focus on projects for which the government argued there was overcapacity, such as steel and cement. The government has encouraged construction of new electricity generating capacity to solve chronic energy shortages which forced many factories onto part-time working last year. In 2004, China increased its generating capacity by 12.6%, or 440,700 megawatts (MW). The biggest single project to be halted was the Xiluodi Dam project, designed to produce 12,600 MW of electricity. It is being built on the Jinshajiang - or 'river of golden sand' as the upper reaches of the Yangtze are known. Second and third on the agency's list were two power stations being built at the $22bn Three Gorges Dam project on the central Yangtze - an underground 4,200 MW power plant and a 100 MW plant.

The Three Gorges Dam has proved controversial in China - where more than half a million people have been relocated to make way for it - and abroad. It has drawn criticism from environmental groups and overseas human rights activists. The damming of the Upper Yangtze has also begun to attract criticism from environmentalists in China. In April 2004, central government officials ordered a halt to work on the nearby Nu River, which is part of a United Nations world heritage site, the Three Parallel Rivers site which covers the Yangtze, Mekong and Nu (also known as the Salween), according to the UK-published China Review. That move reportedly followed a protest from the Thai government about the downstream impact of the dams, and a critical documentary made by Chinese journalists. China's energy shortage influenced global prices for oil, coal and shipping last year.
"	business
Two Nigerian banks set to merge	"Nigerian banks United Bank of Africa and Standard Trust Bank have agreed plans to merge and create the biggest bank in West Africa.

The deal is also in line with a 2004 directive from the Nigerian central bank that called for more consolidation in the nation's crowded banking sector. The merger was announced in a statement on Standard Trust's website on Tuesday, but no financial details were revealed. United Bank is the third biggest in Nigeria in terms of number of branches. Standard Trust is smaller but more profitable. ""The boards of United Bank and Standard Trust, at separate meetings yesterday, approved arrangements to merge both institutions,"" Standard Trust said. Standard Trust is 100% Nigerian-owned, but United Bank has some foreign investors, including New York-based Global Depository Receipts (32.8%), and Banca Nazionale del Lavoro and Monte del Paschi di Siena, both from Italy, who each have a 2.4% stake.
"	business
Virgin Blue shares plummet 20%	"Shares in Australian budget airline Virgin Blue plunged 20% after it warned of a steep fall in full year profits.

Virgin Blue said profits after tax for the year to March would be between 10% to 15% lower than the previous year. ""Sluggish demand reported previously for November and now December 2004 continues,"" said Virgin Blue chief executive Brett Godfrey. Virgin Blue, which is 25% owned by Richard Branson, has been struggling to fend off pressure from rival Jetstar. It cut its full year passenger number forecast by ""approximately 2.5%"". Virgin Blue reported a 22% fall in first quarter profits in August 2004 due to tough competition. In November, first half profits were down due to slack demand and rising fuel costs. Virgin Blue was launched four years ago and now has roughly one third of Australia's domestic airline market. But the national carrier, Qantas, has fought back with its own budget airline, Jetstar, which took to the skies in May 2004. Sydney-listed Virgin Blue's shares recovered slightly to close 12% down on Wednesday. Shares in its major shareholder, Patrick Corporation - which owns 46% of Virgin Blue - had dropped 31% by the close.
"	business
Watchdog probes Vivendi bond sale	"French stock market regulator AMF has filed complaints against media giant Vivendi Universal, its boss and another top executive.

It believes the prospectus for a bond issue was unclear and that executives may have had privileged information. AMF has begun proceedings against Vivendi, its chief executive Jean-Rene Fourtou and chief operating officer Jean-Bernard Levy. Vivendi advisor Deutsche Bank was also the subject of a complaint filing. Deutsche Bank, which was responsible for selling the convertible bonds to investors, could face penalties if the complaint is upheld.

Vivendi has said it believes there is ""no legal basis"" for the complaints. The watchdog is said to believe the executive pair were party to ""privileged information"" surrounding the issue of the bonds. Both men bought some of the bonds, the Associated Press news agency reported. AMF is investigating claims that the duo were aware of an interest in Vivendi's US assets from investor Marvin Davis, at the time of the bond sale. Vivendi, however, has said that the information was public knowledge as Mr Davis' offer for the US assets had already been rejected by Vivendi's board. AMF is also looking into whether the executives knew that Vivendi was considering exercising its right to buy British Telecom's shares in Cegetel. Vivendi has rejected the charge, saying the decision to buy the Cegetel shares was ""no more than a possibility, of which the public was perfectly aware"" at the time of the bond issue. Back in December, Vivendi and its former chief executive Jean-Marie Messier were each fined 1m euros ($1.3m; £690,000) by AMF. The fines came after a 15-month probe into allegations that the media giant misled investors after a costly acquisition programme went wrong.
"	business
Saudi NCCI's shares soar	"Shares in Saudi Arabia's National Company for Cooperative Insurance (NCCI) soared on their first day of trading in Riyadh.

They were trading 84% above the offer price on Monday, changing hands at 372 riyals ($99; £53) after topping 400 early in the day. Demand for the insurer's debut shares was strong - 12 times what was on sale. The listing was part of the country's plans to open up its insurance market and boost demand in the sector. Deregulation is expected to boost demand for accident and damage cover.

Previously, only NCCI has been legally allowed to offer insurance products within Saudi Arabia. However, the authorities have turned a blind eye to the many other firms selling insurance. Saudi Arabia now wants a fully functioning insurance industry and is introducing legislation that will clamp down on unauthorised companies. Policy-makers also want to make having insurance more of a requirement, but first have to take steps to boost public confidence in the system, analysts said. As a result, NCCI is being developed as the industry's flagship firm - publicly-listed, with audited accounts. Saudi Arabia sold 7 million NCCI shares, or about 70% of the company's total capital last month. More than 800,000 applicants got 9 shares each for 205 riyals apiece.
"	business
JP Morgan admits US slavery links	"Thousands of slaves were accepted as collateral for loans by two banks that later became part of JP Morgan Chase.

The admission is part of an apology sent to JP Morgan staff after the bank researched its links to slavery in order to meet legislation in Chicago. Citizens Bank and Canal Bank are the two lenders that were identified. They are now closed, but were linked to Bank One, which JP Morgan bought last year. About 13,000 slaves were used as loan collateral between 1831 and 1865.

Because of defaults by plantation owners, Citizens and Canal ended up owning about 1,250 slaves. ""We all know slavery existed in our country, but it is quite different to see how our history and the institution of slavery were intertwined,"" JP Morgan chief executive William Harrison and chief operating officer James Dimon said in the letter. ""Slavery was tragically ingrained in American society, but that is no excuse."" ""We apologise to the African-American community, particularly those who are descendants of slaves, and to the rest of the American public for the role that Citizens Bank and Canal Bank played."" ""The slavery era was a tragic time in US history and in our company's history."" JP Morgan said that it was setting up a $5m scholarship programme for students living in Louisiana, the state where the events took place. The bank said that it is a ""very different company than the Citizens and Canal Banks of the 1800s"".
"	business
Egypt and Israel seal trade deal	"In a sign of a thaw in relations between Egypt and Israel, the two countries have signed a trade protocol with the US, allowing Egyptian goods made in partnership with Israeli firms free access to American markets.

The protocol, signed in Cairo, will establish what are called ""qualified industrial zones"" in Egypt. Products from these zones will enjoy duty free access to the US, provided that 35% of their components are the product of Israeli-Egyptian cooperation. The US describes this as the most important economic agreement between Egypt and Israel in two decades.

The protocol establishing the zones has been stalled for years. There has been deep sensitivity in Egypt about any form of co-operation with Israel as long as its peace process with the Palestinians remains blocked. But in recent weeks an unusual warmth has crept into relations between the two countries. Both exchanged prisoners earlier this month, with Egypt handing back an Israeli who has served eight years in prison after being convicted for spying.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has described Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as the best chance for the Palestinians to achieve peace. The government in Cairo now believes Mr Sharon is moving towards the centre and away from the positions of right wing groups. It also believes the US, pressed by Europe, is now more willing to engage seriously in the search for a settlement. But there are also pressing economic reasons for Egypt's decision to enter into the trade agreement. It will give a huge boost to Egyptian textile exports, which are about to suffer a drop after new regulations come into force in the US at the beginning of the year.
"	business
Ford gains from finance not cars	"Ford, the US car company, reported higher fourth quarter and full-year profits on Thursday boosted by a buoyant period for its car loans unit.

Net income for 2004 was $3.5bn (£1.87bn) - up nearly $3bn from 2003 - while turnover rose $7.2bn to $170.8bn. In the fourth quarter alone Ford reported net income of $104m, compared with a loss of $793m a year ago. But its auto unit made a loss. Fourth quarter turnover was $44.7bn, compared to $45.9bn a year ago.

Though car and truck loan profits saved the day, Ford's auto unit made a pre-tax loss of $470m in the fourth quarter (compared to a profit of £13m in the year-ago period) and its US sales dipped 3.8%.

Yesterday General Motor's results also showed its finance unit was a strong contributor to profits. However, Ford is working hard to revitalise its product portfolio, unveiling the Fusion and Zephyr models at the International Motor Show in Detroit. It also brought out a number of new models in the second half of 2004. ""In 2004, our company gained momentum, delivering...more new products, and more innovative breakthroughs, such as the Escape Hybrid, the industry's first full-hybrid sport utility vehicle,"" said chairman and chief executive officer Bill Ford.""

""We also confronted operating challenges with our Jaguar brand and high industry marketing costs,"" he added. But Ford declined to provide guidance for first quarter 2005. It will do so at a presentation in New York on 26 January. In addition, the company said 2004 net income was affected by a fourth-quarter pre-tax charge taken to reduce the value of a receivable owed to Ford by Visteon, a former subsidiary. Recent new models introduced by Ford include the Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego sedans, the Ford Freestyle crossover, the Ford Mustang, the Land Rover LR3/Discovery, and Volvo S40 and V50 in North America and Europe. Total company vehicle unit sales in 2004 were 6,798,000, an increase of 62,000 units from 2003. Fourth-quarter vehicle unit sales totalled 1,751,000, a decline of 133,000 units. For the full year, Ford's worldwide automotive division earned a pre-tax profit of $850m, a $697m improvement from $153m a year ago.
"	business
Wipro beats forecasts once again	"Wipro, India's third-biggest software firm, has reported a 60% rise in profit, topping market expectations.

Net income in the last quarter was 4.3bn rupees ($98m; £52m), against 2.7bn a year earlier. Profit had been forecast to be 4.1bn rupees. Wipro offers services such as call centres to foreign clients and has worked for more than half of the companies on the Fortune 500 list. Wipro said demand was strong, allowing it to increase the prices it charged.

""On the face of it, the results don't look very exciting,"" said Apurva Shah, an analyst at ASK-Raymond James. ""But the guidance is positive and pricing going up is good news."" Third-quarter sales rose 34% to 20.9bn rupees. One problem identified by Wipro was the high turnover of its staff. It said that 90% of employees at its business process outsourcing operations had had to be replaced. ""We have to get that under control,"" said vice-chairman Vivek Paul. Wipro is majority owned by India's richest man Azim Premji.
"	business
Christmas sales worst since 1981	"UK retail sales fell in December, failing to meet expectations and making it by some counts the worst Christmas since 1981.

Retail sales dropped by 1% on the month in December, after a 0.6% rise in November, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. The ONS revised the annual 2004 rate of growth down from the 5.9% estimated in November to 3.2%. A number of retailers have already reported poor figures for December. Clothing retailers and non-specialist stores were the worst hit with only internet retailers showing any significant growth, according to the ONS.

The last time retailers endured a tougher Christmas was 23 years previously, when sales plunged 1.7%.

The ONS echoed an earlier caution from Bank of England governor Mervyn King not to read too much into the poor December figures. Some analysts put a positive gloss on the figures, pointing out that the non-seasonally-adjusted figures showed a performance comparable with 2003. The November-December jump last year was roughly comparable with recent averages, although some way below the serious booms seen in the 1990s. And figures for retail volume outperformed measures of actual spending, an indication that consumers are looking for bargains, and retailers are cutting their prices.

However, reports from some High Street retailers highlight the weakness of the sector. Morrisons, Woolworths, House of Fraser, Marks & Spencer and Big Food all said that the festive period was disappointing.

And a British Retail Consortium survey found that Christmas 2004 was the worst for 10 years. Yet, other retailers - including HMV, Monsoon, Jessops, Body Shop and Tesco - reported that festive sales were well up on last year. Investec chief economist Philip Shaw said he did not expect the poor retail figures to have any immediate effect on interest rates. ""The retail sales figures are very weak, but as Bank of England governor Mervyn King indicated last night, you don't really get an accurate impression of Christmas trading until about Easter,"" said Mr Shaw. ""Our view is the Bank of England will keep its powder dry and wait to see the big picture.""
"	business
Businesses fail to plan for HIV	"Companies fail to draw up plans to cope with HIV/Aids until it affects 20% of people in a country, new research says.

The finding comes in a report published on Thursday by the World Economic Forum, Harvard and the UN aids agency. ""Too few companies are responding proactively to the social and business threats,"" said Dr Kate Taylor, head of the WEF's global Health Initiative. Nearly 9,000 business leaders in 104 countries were surveyed for Business and HIV/AIDS: Commitment and Action?

Dr Taylor described the level of action taken by businesses as revealed by the report as ""too little, too late"". The issue will be highlighted to business and world leaders at the World Economic Forum, which meets in Davos, Switzerland, next week. The WEF report shows that despite the fact that 14,000 people contract HIV/Aids every day, concern among businesses has dropped by 23% in the last 12 months. Most (71%) have no policies in place to address the disease. Nor could over 65% of the business leaders surveyed say or estimate the prevalence of HIV among their staff. The UN programme tackling Aids, UNAIDS, pointed out that having a clear strategy for dealing with HIV/Aids was a good investment as well as being socially responsible.

One company that does have a plan is Anglo-American, the international mining company, which estimates an HIV prevalence of 24% among its 130,000-strong Southern African workforce.

Over the last two years the company has implemented extensive voluntary counselling and testing for HIV infection, coupled with anti-retroviral therapy for employees progressing to Aids. Over 90% of the 2,200 employees who have accessed and remained on treatment are well and have returned to normal work. ""Effective action on HIV/Aids is synonymous with good business management and leads to more profitable and sustainable operations,"" said Brian Brink, senior vice-president, health, at Anglo-American.

""Companies should encourage all workers to know their HIV status, making it as routine as monitoring blood pressure or cholesterol,"" he said. ""Providing access to treatment is a critical part of this."" Across sub-Saharan Africa, even in countries with an HIV prevalence of 10-19%, only around 7% of companies have formal HIV/Aids policies in place, according to the report. The gap is even wider in China, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria and Russia, the so-called ""next wave"" countries, which are predicted to experience the highest numbers of new HIV/Aids cases worldwide by 2010. The report adds ""an important building block to our understanding of how the business community is experiencing the HIV/Aids epidemic and to whether and how it is reacting,"" said David Bloom, professor of economics and demography at the Harvard School of Public Health.

The WEF report concludes that businesses need to understand their exposure to HIV/Aids risks and come up with good local practices to manage them. A key priority, in both high and low-prevalence settings, said the WEF is to establish a policy based on non-discrimination and confidentiality.
"	business
Ailing EuroDisney vows turnaround	"EuroDisney, the European home of Mickey Mouse and friends, has said it will sell 253m euros (£175m; $328m) of new shares as it looks to avoid insolvency.

The sale is the last part of a plan to restructure 2.4bn euros-worth of debts. Despite struggling since it was opened in 1992, EuroDisney has recently made progress in turning its business around and ticket sales have picked up. However, analysts still question whether it attracts enough visitors to stay open, even with the restructuring.

EuroDisney remains Europe's largest single tourist attraction, attracting some 12.4 million visitors annually. A new attraction - Walt Disney Studios - has recently opened its site near Paris. The company's currently traded stock tumbled in Paris on the latest news, shedding 15% to 22 euro cents. EuroDisney will sell the new shares priced at 9 euros cents each. The US Disney Corporation and Saudi Arabian prince Al-Walid bin Talal, the firm's two main shareholders, will buy the new stock. The restructuring deal is the second in the firm's troubled financial history; its finances were first reorganised in 1994.
"	business
UK young top Euro earnings league	"British children enjoy the highest average annual income in Europe - more than double that of Spanish or Italian youngsters, a report suggests.

Children in the UK between the ages of 10 and 17 had an annual income of £775, said market analyst Datamonitor. They use ""pester power"" to get their parents to stump up nearly a third of this income, the report said. As for how they spend their cash, the bulk goes on personal care, soft drinks and food, Datamonitor said.

Datamonitor adds that British teenagers are keen on personal care because it helps them combine two seemingly contradictory emotional needs - the desire to fit in and the desire to express their individuality.

British teenage girls, compared to their counterparts in seven European countries, are the most keen to use make-up products. Nearly three out of four girls said they used make-up. According to the Datamonitor report the trend marked British teenagers out as ""particularly important to cosmetics manufacturers as they are likely to experiment more with brands and products and form long-term beauty routines"". And the good times are likely to keep rolling for British children, as the report predicts that they will still be topping the earnings table in 2008.
"	business
Swiss cement firm in buying spree	"Swiss cement firm Holcim has bid $800m (£429m) to buy two Indian cement firms and a holding company in the country.

It plans to buy Associated Cement Companies (ACC), Ambuja Cement Eastern and the holding firm, Ambuja Cement India Ltd, a Holcim statement said. Shares in ACC fell 5.5% as investors, who thought the offer was underpriced, decided to sell. Meanwhile, UK-based firm Aggregate Industries said it had agreed a £1.8bn takeover by Holcim.

The deal with Aggregates will give Holcim, the world's second-biggest cement maker, an entry into the UK market and boost its presence in the US. Peter Tom, who will remain as Aggregate chief executive, said the 138p a share offer provided ""significant value"" for shareholders. The Markfield, Leicestershire-based company runs 142 quarries in the UK and the US. It also has 164 ready-mixed concrete plants, 90 asphalt plants and 32 pre-cast concrete factories.

If the Indian deals go ahead, it will give Holcim a major presence in the world's fastest-growing market behind China. ACC is India's second-largest cement maker with an annual capacity of 18.2 million tonnes and a market share of 13%. ""Holcim is looking to buy it (ACC) very cheap,"" said KK Mittal, a fund manager with Escorts Mutual Fund in New Delhi. ""The market is not impressed. If they want a substantial chunk, then they should be paying a premium over the market price."" Shares in Holcim rose by 2.3% on Thursday following news of the takeover.
"	business
India's Reliance family feud heats up	"The ongoing public spat between the two heirs of India's biggest conglomerate, Reliance Group, has spilled over to the board meeting of a leading company within the group.

Anil Ambani, vice-chairman of India Petrochemicals Limited (IPCL), stayed away from a gathering of senior managers on Thursday. The move follows a decision earlier this month by Anil - the younger brother of Reliance Group president Mukesh Ambani - to resign from his post. His resignation was not accepted by his brother, who is also the boss of IPCL. The IPCL board met in Mumbai to discuss the company's results for the October-to-December quarter.

It is understood that the board also considered Anil's resignation and asked him to reconsider his decision. However, Anil's demand that Anand Jain - another IPCL board member accused by Anil of creating a rift in the Ambani family - be thrown out, was not met. Anil has accused Anand Jain, a confidant of his brother Mukesh, of playing a negative role in the Ambani family, and being responsible for the trouble between the brothers. On Wednesday, the board of Reliance Energy, another Reliance Group company, reaffirmed its faith in Anil, who is the company's chief. Reliance Group acquired the government's 26% stake in IPCL - India's second-largest petrochemicals company - in 2002, as part of the privatisation drive. Meanwhile, the group's flagship company, Reliance Industries, has its board meeting on Friday to consider its financial results. Mukesh is the company's chairman and Anil its deputy, and it is expected that both brothers will come face to face in the meeting. The Ambani family controls 48% of the group, which is worth $17bn (£9.1bn; 745bn Indian rupees). It was founded by their father, Dhiru Bhai Ambani, who died two years ago.
"	business
World leaders gather to face uncertainty	"More than 2,000 business and political leaders from around the globe are arriving in the Swiss mountain resort Davos for the annual World Economic Forum (WEF). For five days, they will discuss issues ranging from China's economic power to Iraq's future after this Sunday's elections. UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and South African President Thabo Mbeki are among the more than 20 government leaders and heads of state leaders attending the meeting. Unlike previous years, protests against the WEF are expected to be muted. Anti-globalisation campaigners have called off a demonstration planned for the weekend.

The Brazilian city of Porto Alegre will host the rival World Social Forum, timed to run in parallel with the WEF's ritzier event in Davos.

The organisers of the Brazilian gathering, which brings together thousands of campaigners against globalisation, for fair trade, and many other causes, have promised to set an alternative agenda to that of the Swiss summit. However, many of the issues discussed in Porto Alegre are Davos talking points as well. ""Global warming"" features particularly high. WEF participants are being asked to offset the carbon emissions they cause by travelling to the event. Davos itself is in deep frost. The snow is piled high across the mountain village, and at night the wind chill takes temperatures down to minus 20C and less.

Ultimately, the forum will be dominated by business issues - from outsourcing to corporate leadership - with bosses of more than a fifth of the world's 500 largest companies scheduled to attend.

But much of the media focus will be on the political leaders coming to Davos, not least because the agenda of this year's forum seems to lack an overarching theme. ""Taking responsibility for tough choices"" is this year's official talking point, hinting at a welter of knotty problems. One thing seems sure, though: transatlantic disagreements over how to deal with Iran, Iraq and China are set to dominate discussions. Pointedly, only one senior official from President Bush's new administration is scheduled to attend. The US government may still make a conciliatory gesture, just as happened a year ago when Vice President Dick Cheney made a surprise appearance in Davos.

Ukraine's new president, Viktor Yushchenko, is to speak, just days after his inauguration, an event that crowned the civil protests against the rigged first election that had tried to keep him from power.

The European Union's top leaders, among them German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and European Commission President Manuel Barosso, will be here too. Mr Blair will formally open the proceedings, although his speech will be pre-empted by French President Jacques Chirac, who announced his attendance at the last minute and secured a slot for a ""special message"" two hours before Mr Blair speaks. The organisers also hope that the new Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, will use the opportunity for talks with at least one of the three Israeli deputy prime ministers coming to the event, a list that includes Shimon Peres. Davos fans still hark back to 1994, when talks between Yassir Arafat and Mr Peres came close to a peace deal. Mr Blair's appearance will be keenly watched too, as political observers in the UK claim it is a calculated snub against political rival Chancellor Gordon Brown, who was supposed to lead the UK government delegation.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, the world's richest man and a regular at Davos, will focus on campaigning for good causes, though business interests will not be wholly absent either. Having already donated billions of dollars to the fight against Aids and Malaria, Mr Gates will call on world leaders to support a global vaccination campaign to protect children in developing countries from easily preventable diseases. On Tuesday, Mr Gates pledged $750m (£400m) of his own money to support the cause. Mr Gates' company, software giant Microsoft, also hopes to use Davos to shore up its defences against open source software like Linux, which threaten Microsoft's near monopoly on computer desktops. Mr Gates is said to be trying to arrange a meeting with Brazil's President Lula da Silva. The Brazilian government has plans to switch all government computers from Microsoft to Linux. At Davos, global problem solving and networking are never far apart.
"	business
US budget deficit to reach $368bn	"The US budget deficit is set to hit a worse-than-expected $368bn (£197bn) this year, officials said on Tuesday.

The cost of military operations still needs to be factored in, with analysts saying the deficit could end up a further $100bn in the red. Past Congressional Budget Office (CBO) forecasts said there would be a $348bn shortfall in the 2005 fiscal year. In recent months, the dollar has weakened amid market jitters about the size of the budget and trade deficits. In November, the gap between US exports and imports widened to more than $60bn, a record figure. The CBO says it envisages a further ""orderly"" decline in the greenback over the next two years as the twin deficit drives dollar investors away. But the non-partisan fiscal watchdog notes the declines will help exporters and boost US economic growth.

The budget deficit hit a record $412bn in the 12 months to 30 September 2004, after reaching $377bn in the previous fiscal year. The CBO also forecast a total shortfall of $855bn for the years from 2006 to 2015, an improvement on previous projections. However, analysts say the new figures fail to take into account the potential $2-$3.8 trillion costs of the president's plan to revamp state pensions and extend tax cuts. The figure could also be worsened by any further military costs. Republicans have blamed the size of the deficit on slow economic conditions after the 11 September attacks and ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of President George W Bush's election pledges was to halve the budget deficit within five years. But Democrats have accused the president of excluding Iraq-related costs from previous budgets to meet the aim of reducing the deficit, a charge which the administration denies. On Tuesday, the US administration asked Congress for additional funds for military operations.
"	business
Criminal probe on Citigroup deals	"Traders at US banking giant Citigroup are facing a criminal investigation in Germany over a controversial bond deal.

The deal saw the sale of 11bn euros ($14.4bn; £7.6bn) of government bonds in a few minutes on 2 August, with 4bn euros-worth then bought back later. The move was widely criticised at the time, and now the German regulator has said it has found evidence of possible market manipulation. Citigroup said it would continue to co-operate fully with the authorities. ""We are disappointed that the BaFin has referred to the prosecutor the question of whether action should be brought against individuals involved,"" Citigroup said. If the traders are found guilty, they could face a five-year jail term or a fine, Reuters reported BaFin as saying. However, under German criminal law, prosecutors cannot pursue Citigroup itself.

Germany's financial watchdog BaFin told BBC News it had now transferred the investigation to the public prosecutor. ""I can confirm that BaFin has passed through the case to the public prosecutor,"" a BaFin spokeswoman said. ""It is now a criminal investigation."" ""We found clues of possible market manipulation,"" the spokeswoman said, which included signs of linked bond trading ahead of the main trades on 2 August. ""Germany's Securities Trading Act says that if BaFin finds such clues, it has to put the case in the hands of the prosecutor."" Regulatory investigations are still going on in France, the UK and elsewhere. Some Citigroup operations elsewhere in the world came under regulatory criticism in 2004. Its private banking operation in Japan was closed down by regulators in Tokyo after an ""aggressive sales culture"" led the bank to flout anti-money laundering rules.
"	business
Brazil jobless rate hits new low	"Brazil's unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in three years in December, according to the government.

The Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE) said it fell to 9.6% in December from 10.6% in November and 10.9% in December 2003. IBGE also said that average monthly salaries grew 1.9% in December 2004 from December 2003. However, average monthly wages fell 1.8% in December to 895.4 reais ($332; £179.3) from November. Tuesday's figures represent the first time that the unemployment rate has fallen to a single digit since new measurement rules were introduced in 2001. The unemployment rate has been falling gradually since April 2004 when it reached a peak of 13.1%. The jobless rate average for the whole of 2004 was 11.5%, down from 12.3% in 2003, the IBGE said.

This improvement can be attributed to the country's strong economic growth, with the economy registering growth of 5.2% in 2004, the government said. The economy is expected to grow by about 4% this year. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva promised to reduce unemployment when he was elected two years ago. Nevertheless, some analysts say that unemployment could increase in the next months. ""The data is favourable, but a lot of jobs are temporary for the (Christmas) holiday season, so we may see slightly higher joblessness in January and February,"" Julio Hegedus, chief economist with Lopes Filho & Associates consultancy in Rio de Janeir, told Reuters news agency. Despite his leftist background, President Lula has pursued a surprisingly conservative economic policy, arguing that in order to meet its social promises, the government needs to first reach a sustained economic growth. The unemployment rate is measured in the six main metropolitan areas of Brazil (Sao Paolo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, Recife, Salvador and Porto Alegre), where most of the population is concentrated.
"	business
Indonesia 'declines debt freeze'	"Indonesia no longer needs the debt freeze offered by the Paris Club group of creditors, Economics Minister Aburizal Bakrie has reportedly said.

Indonesia, which originally accepted the debt moratorium offer, owes the Paris Club about $48bn (£25.5bn). Mr Bakrie told the Bisnis Indonesia newspaper that a $1.7bn donors' aid package meant that the debt moratorium was unnecessary. This aid comes on top of a previously-pledged $3.4bn package. Most of this 'normal aid' would be used to finance the country's budget deficit. The Indonesian Economics Minister explained that the money - $1.2bn in grants and $500m in soft loans - was for the rebuilding of Aceh province, which was badly hit by the tsunami of 26 December. Nevertheless, one of Mr Bakrie's deputies, Mahendra Siregar, told AFP news agency that Indonesia was still considering the offer by the Paris Club of rich creditor nations to temporarily suspend its debt payments. ""What is true is that we are still discussing... the Paris Club decision to find out more details such as how much of our debt will be subject to a moratorium. That's how far we are at this stage,"" said Mr Siregar.

The 19 member countries of the Paris Club are owed about $5bn this year in debt repayments by nations affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami. Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Seychelles accepted the Paris Club offer, which was criticised by some aid groups as being too little. Thailand and India have however declined the offer, with Thailand prefering to keep up with its payments while India said it would prefer to rely on its own resources rather than on international aid. Putting off payments may lower a country's rating among financial organisations, making it more expensive and more difficult for them to borrow money in the future, analysts said. Separately, the Indonesian government has said it will announce monthly how much it has received in foreign donations and how it has spent the money. Welfare Minister Alwi Shihab told AP news agency that this announcement should allay suspicion of official corruption in relief operations.
"	business
Parmalat bank barred from suing	"Bank of America has been banned from suing Parmalat, the food group which went bust in 2003 after an accounting scandal.

The bank - along with investors, auditors and the group's managers - wants damages for being a victim of fraud at the hands of the Italian firm. But a judge has barred Bank of America and two auditors from the case. The bank, and Italaudit - formerly the Italian arm of auditor Grant Thornton - face lawsuits and possible prosecution. A second auditor, Deloitte & Touche, has also been banned from the case. Grant Thornton - now rid of the Italian unit at the centre of the case - is still being permitted to sue, as are Consob, Italy's stock market regulator, hundreds of small investors and Parmalat's new managers. Parmalat collapsed in December 2003 after it emerged that the 4bn euros ($5.2bn; £2.8bn) it supposedly held in a Bank of American offshore account did not in fact exist.
"	business
China continues rapid growth	"China's economy has expanded by a breakneck 9.5% during 2004, faster than predicted and well above 2003's 9.1%.

The news may mean more limits on investment and lending as Beijing tries to take the economy off the boil. China has sucked in raw materials and energy to feed its expansion, which could have knock-on effects on the rest of the world if it overheats. But officials pointed out that industrial growth had slowed, with services providing much of the impetus. Growth in industrial output - the main target of government efforts to impose curbs on credit and investments - was 11.5% in 2004, down from 17% the previous year.

Still, consumer prices - at 2.4% - rose faster than in 2004, adding to concern that a sharp rise in producer prices of 7.1% could stoke inflation. And overall investment in fixed assets was still high, up 21.3% from the previous year - although some way off the peak of 43% seen in the first quarter of 2004. The result could be higher interest rates. China raised rates by 0.27 percentage points to 5.8% - its first hike in nine years - in October 2004.

Despite the apparent rebalancing of the economy the overall growth picture remains strong, economists said. ""There is no sign of a slowdown in 2005,"" said Tim Congdon, economist at ING Barings.

China's economy is not only gathering speed thanks to domestic demand, but also from soaring sales overseas. Figures released earlier this year showed exports at a six-year high in 2004, up 35%. Part of the impetus comes from the relative cheapness of the yuan, China's currency. The government keeps it pegged close to a rate of 8.28 to the US dollar, - much to the chagrin of many US lawmakers who blame China for lost jobs and competitiveness. Despite urging to ease the peg, officials insist they are a long way from ready to make a shift to a more market-set rate. ""We need a good and feasible plan and formulating such a plan also needs time,"" National Bureau of Statistics chief Li Deshui told Reuters. ""Those who hope to make a fortune by speculating on a renminbi revaluation will not succeed in making a profit.""
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SEC to rethink post-Enron rules	"The US stock market watchdog's chairman has said he is willing to soften tough new US corporate governance rules to ease the burden on foreign firms.

In a speech at the London School of Economics, William Donaldson promised ""several initiatives"". European firms have protested that US laws introduced after the Enron scandal make Wall Street listings too costly. The US regulator said foreign firms may get extra time to comply with a key clause in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

The Act comes into force in mid-2005. It obliges all firms with US stock market listings to make declarations, which, critics say, will add substantially to the cost of preparing their annual accounts.

Firms that break the new law could face huge fines, while senior executives risk jail terms of up to 20 years. Mr Donaldson said that although the Act does not provide exemptions for foreign firms, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would ""continue to be sensitive to the need to accomodate foreign structures and requirements"". There are few, if any, who disagree with the intentions of the Act, which obliges chief executives to sign a statement taking responsibility for the accuracy of the accounts. But European firms with secondary listings in New York have objected - arguing that the compliance costs outweigh the benefits of a dual listing. The Act also applies to firms with more than 300 US shareholders, a situation many firms without US listings could find themselves in.

The 300-shareholder threshold has drawn anger as it effectively blocks the most obvious remedy, a delisting. Mr Donaldson said the SEC would ""consider whether there should be a new approach to the deregistration process"" for foreign firms unwilling to meet US requirements.

""We should seek a solution that will preserve investor protections"" without turning the US market into ""one with no exit"", he said. He revealed that his staff were already weighing up the merits of delaying the implementation of the Act's least popular measure - Section 404 - for foreign firms. Seen as particularly costly to implement, Section 404 obliges chief executives to take responsibility for the firm's internal controls by signing a compliance statement in the annual accounts. The SEC has already delayed implementation of this clause for smaller firms - including US ones - with market capitalisations below $700m (£374m).

A delegation of European firms visited the SEC in December to press for change, the Financial Times reported.

It was led by Digby Jones, director general of the UK's Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and included representatives of BASF, Siemens and Cadbury Schweppes. Compliance costs are already believed to be making firms wary of US listings. Air China picked the London Stock Exchange for its secondary listing in its $1.07bn (£558m) stock market debut last month. There are also rumours that two Chinese state-run banks - China Construction Bank and Bank of China - have abandoned plans for multi-billion dollar listings in New York later this year. Instead, the cost of Sarbanes-Oxley has persuaded them to stick to a single listing in Hong Kong, according to press reports in China.
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BBC poll indicates economic gloom	"Citizens in a majority of nations surveyed in a BBC World Service poll believe the world economy is worsening.

Most respondents also said their national economy was getting worse. But when asked about their own family's financial outlook, a majority in 14 countries said they were positive about the future. Almost 23,000 people in 22 countries were questioned for the poll, which was mostly conducted before the Asian tsunami disaster. The poll found that a majority or plurality of people in 13 countries believed the economy was going downhill, compared with respondents in nine countries who believed it was improving. Those surveyed in three countries were split. In percentage terms, an average of 44% of respondents in each country said the world economy was getting worse, compared to 34% who said it was improving. Similarly, 48% were pessimistic about their national economy, while 41% were optimistic. And 47% saw their family's economic conditions improving, as against 36% who said they were getting worse.

The poll of 22,953 people was conducted by the international polling firm GlobeScan, together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes (Pipa) at the University of Maryland. ""While the world economy has picked up from difficult times just a few years ago, people seem to not have fully absorbed this development, though they are personally experiencing its effects,"" said Pipa director Steven Kull. ""People around the world are saying: 'I'm OK, but the world isn't'."" There may be a perception that war, terrorism and religious and political divisions are making the world a worse place, even though that has not so far been reflected in global economic performance, says the BBC's Elizabeth Blunt.

The countries where people were most optimistic, both for the world and for their own families, were two fast-growing developing economies, China and India, followed by Indonesia. China has seen two decades of blistering economic growth, which has led to wealth creation on a huge scale, says the BBC's Louisa Lim in Beijing. But the results also may reflect the untrammelled confidence of people who are subject to endless government propaganda about their country's rosy economic future, our correspondent says. South Korea was the most pessimistic, while respondents in Italy and Mexico were also quite gloomy. The BBC's David Willey in Rome says one reason for that result is the changeover from the lira to the euro in 2001, which is widely viewed as the biggest reason why their wages and salaries are worth less than they used to be. The Philippines was among the most upbeat countries on prospects for respondents' families, but one of the most pessimistic about the world economy. Pipa conducted the poll from 15 November 2004 to 3 January 2005 across 22 countries in face-to-face or telephone interviews. The interviews took place between 15 November 2004 and 5 January 2005. The margin of error is between 2.5 and 4 points, depending on the country. In eight of the countries, the sample was limited to major metropolitan areas.
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Europe asks Asia for euro help	"European leaders say Asian states must let their currencies rise against the US dollar to ease pressure on the euro.

The European single currency has shot up to successive all-time highs against the dollar over the past few months. Tacit approval from the White House for the weaker greenback, which could help counteract huge deficits, has helped trigger the move. But now Europe says the euro has had enough, and Asia must now share some of the burden.

China is seen as the main culprit, with exports soaring up 35% in 2004 partly on the back of a currency pegged to the dollar. ""Asia should engage in greater currency flexibility,"" said French finance minister Herve Gaymard, after a meeting with his German counterpart Hans Eichel. Markets responded by pushing the euro lower, in the expectation that the rhetoric - and the pressure - is unlikely to ease ahead of a meeting of the G7 industrialised countries next week. Early on Tuesday morning, the dollar had edged higher to 1.3040 euros. The yen, meanwhile, had strengthened to 102.975 against the dollar by 0730 GMT.
"	business
FBI agent colludes with analyst	"A former FBI agent and an internet stock picker have been found guilty of using confidential US government information to manipulate stock prices.

A New York court ruled that former FBI man Jeffrey Royer, 41, fed damaging information to Anthony Elgindy, 36. Mr Elgindy then drove share prices lower by spreading negative publicity via his newsletter. The Egyptian-born analyst would extort money from his targets in return for stopping the attacks, prosecutors said. ""Under the guise of protecting investors from fraud, Royer and Elgindy used the FBI's crime-fighting tools and resources actually to defraud the public,"" said US Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf.

Mr Royer was convicted of racketeering, securities fraud, obstruction of justice and witness tampering. Mr Elgindy was convicted of racketeering, securities fraud and extortion.

The charges carry sentences of up to 20 years. When the guilty verdict was announced by the jury foreman, Mr Elgindy dropped his face into his hands and sobbed, the Associated Press news agency reported. He was led weeping from the court room by US marshals, AP said. Defense lawyers contended that Mr Royer had been feeding information to Mr Elgindy and another trader in an attempt to expose corporate fraud. Mr Elgindy's team claimed that he also was fighting against corporate wrongdoing. ""Elgindy's conviction marks the end of his public charade as a crusader against fraud in the market,"" said Ms Mauskopf. One of the more bizarre aspects of the trial focused on the claims that Mr Elgindy may have had foreknowledge of the 11 September terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Mr Elgindy had been trying to sell stock prior to the attack and had predicted a slump in the market. No charges were brought in relation to these allegations.
"	business
Millions go missing at China bank	"Two senior officials at one of China's top commercial banks have reportedly disappeared after funds worth up to $120m (£64m) went missing.

The pair both worked at Bank of China in the northern city of Harbin, the South China Morning Post reported. The latest scandal at Bank of China will do nothing to reassure foreign investors that China's big four banks are ready for international listings. Government policy sees the bank listings as vital economic reforms. Bank of China is one of two frontrunners in the race to list overseas. The other is China Construction Bank. Both are expected to list abroad during 2005.

They shared a $45bn state bailout in 2003, to help clean up their balance sheets in preparation for a foreign stock market debut.

However, a report in the China-published Economic Observer said on Monday that the two banks may have scrapped plans to list in New York because of the cost of meeting regulatory requirements imposed since the Enron scandal. Bank of China is the country's biggest foreign exchange dealer, while China Construction Bank is the largest deposit holder. China's banking sector is burdened with at least $190bn of bad debt according to official data, though most observers believe the true figure is far higher. Officially, one in five loans is not being repaid. Attempts to strengthen internal controls and tighten lending policies have uncovered a succession of scandals involving embezzlement by bank officials and loans-for-favours. The most high-profile case involved the ex-president of Bank of China, Wang Xuebing, jailed for 12 years in 2003. Although, he committed the offences whilst running Bank of China in New York, Mr Wang was head of China Construction Bank when the scandal broke. Earlier this month, a China Construction Bank branch manager was jailed for life in a separate case.

China's banks used to act as cash offices for state enterprises and did not require checks on credit worthiness. The introduction of market reforms has been accompanied by attempts to modernise the banking sector, but links between banks and local government remain strong. Last year, China's premier, Wen Jiabao, targeted bank lending practices in a series of speeches, and regulators ordered all big loans to be scrutinised, in an attempt to cool down irresponsible lending. China's leaders see reforming the top four banks as vital to distribute capital to profitable companies and protect the health of China's economic boom. But two problems persist. First, inefficient state enterprises continue to receive protection from bankruptcy because they employ large numbers of people. Second, many questionable loans come not from the big four, but from smaller banks. Another high profile financial firm, China Life, is facing shareholder lawsuits and a probe by the US Securities and Exchange Commission following its 2004 New York listing over its failure to disclose accounting irregularities at its parent company.
"	business
China Aviation seeks rescue deal	"Scandal-hit jet fuel supplier China Aviation Oil has offered to repay its creditors $220m (£117m) of the $550m it lost on trading in oil futures.

The firm said it hoped to pay $100m now and another $120m over eight years. With assets of $200m and liabilities totalling $648m, it needs creditors' backing for the offer to avoid going into bankruptcy. The trading scandal is the biggest to hit Singapore since the $1.2bn collapse of Barings Bank in 1995. Chen Jiulin, chief executive of China Aviation Oil (CAO), was arrested by at Changi Airport by Singapore police on 8 December. He was returning from China, where he had headed when CAO announced its trading debacle in late-November. The firm had been betting heavily on a fall in the price of oil during October, but prices rose sharply instead.

Among the creditors whose backing CAO needs for its restructuring plan are banking giants such as Barclay's Capital and Sumitomo Mitsui, as well as South Korean firm SK Energy. Of the immediate payment, the firm - China's biggest jet fuel supplier - said it would be paying $30m out of its own resources. The rest would come from its parent company, China Aviation Oil Holding Company in Beijing. The holding company, owned by the Chinese government, holds most of CAO's Singapore-listed shares. It cut its holding from 75% to 60% on 20 October.
"	business
Low-cost airlines hit Eurotunnel	"Channel Tunnel operator Eurotunnel has seen sales fall in the face of the upsurge in European low-cost airlines.

The firm said sales were down 4% in 2004 to 789m euros ($1.03bn; £548m). ""The impact of the development of no-frills airlines is being felt ever more strongly,"" said chief executive Jean-Louis Raymond. Income from its vehicle-carrying shuttle services fell 7%, although 15% more passengers meant a 2% rise in railway revenue.

The cross-Channel truck market is improving, Eurotunnel said, but warned that it was not benefiting since much of the traffic was in containers destined for ports. The passenger-only trains which use the tunnel are run by a separate company, Eurostar.

Eurotunnel is still struggling with debts of more than 6bn euros. The company is currently kept afloat by the 200-plus banks to whom it owes the money. A shareholder revolt threw out the old board in 2004. But the BBC's business editor, Jeff Randall, said the banks could yet step in and take over altogether. ""At the moment it can't even service the interest on its debt,"" he said. ""This is a company in the departure lounge of life.""
"	business
Water firm Suez in Argentina row	"A conflict between the Argentine State and water firm Aguas Argentinas, controlled by France's Suez, is casting doubt on the firm's future.

The firm, which serves the province of Buenos Aires, wants a tariff rise of 60% to fund water-supply improvements. The government has rejected the 60% rise and wants Aguas Argentinas to make an annual investment of 400m pesos ($136m; £72.3m) in improvements. Planning Minister Julio De Vido has offered State help but not for ""free"".

Mr De Vido said that the Argentine state would not make a contribution ""in the form of a subsidy"".

He has said a contribution could be made in return for a seat on the company's board. He added that the government is in discussions with Aguas Argentinas about what role it might take in the event that a State contribution is agreed. However, Aguas Argentinas told the Argentine newspaper Clarin it would not accept any change to its legal structure and, in practice, this rules out State participation on its board. The Planning Minister didn't rule out the possibility of cancelling Aguas Argentinas water concession. Yet he added that he didn't like to do ""futurology"". But last week, Argentine Economic Minister, Roberto Lavagna, told the French media in Paris that the government was considering allowing a 16% increase in tariffs and the possibility of a State contribution to Aguas Argentinas infrastructure investments. Speaking in Buenos Aires, Mr De Vido later denied the possibility of any tariff increase and insisted that the annual investment in water infrastructure was at the centre of the discussions. He added that in the coming weeks the future of Aguas Argentinas would be decided. Suez owns 40% of Aguas Argentinas (39.9%), while Spain's Aguas de Barcelona is its second biggest shareholder with 25.01%. Recently, Suez lost a water concession in Bolivia after mass protests in the city of El Alto (the poorest in the country), with citizens complaining of unfair water charges. This forced the government to cancel the contract.

In Argentina, Suez's subsidiary, which has been fined for cutting the supply of water during a recent heat wave and allegedly failing to keep up investment to meet the demand for water, has maintained a tense relationship with the Argentine government. During the last financial crisis in Argentina, the firm sued the state alleging that converting its tariffs from US dollars to pesos, and then freezing them during devaluation, had affected the company and made it difficult for it to meet its contractual obligations. When President Nestor Kirchner of Argentina arrived in power he began to negotiate a solution to the disagreements with international utilities operating in Argentina. But he has rejected any tariff increases, alleging this will impoverish citizens further. He has also asked for more investments to meet the growing demand for water. On May 2004, Aguas Argentinas and the government signed an agreement to renegotiate its Buenos Aires water-concession contract. The firm agreed to invest 242m pesos. The issue has attracted European interest. Last week in Paris, President Kirchner discussed this problem and other issues with French president Jacques Chirac. The Argentine government is also under pressure from European Union countries and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to raise utilities tariffs, because most of the utilities operating in Argentina are European.
"	business
Algeria hit by further gas riots	"Algeria suffered a weekend of violent protests against government plans to raise gas prices, local press reports.

Demonstrators in a number of regions blocked roads, attacked public buildings and overturned vehicles, newspapers including El Watan reported. The price of butane gas, a vital fuel for cooking, has risen to 200 dinars ($2.77) per canister from 170 dinars. Even before the hike, failing economic conditions had been fanning resentment in some of Algeria's poorest regions.

Demonstrators took to the streets last week when the cost change was first announced, but police seemed to have restored order. According to local press reports, trouble flared up again on Saturday and carried on into Sunday. El Watan said that a number of hot spots centred on the villages and towns close to Bouira, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of the capital Algiers. Among the other main areas affected were the western Tiaret region and Sidi Ammar in the east of the country, Agence France Presse (AFP) reported. Riots also flared up in the Maghnia region close to the border with Morocco in the west, AFP said. Butane gas and fuel oil are used as the main source of fuel to heat homes and cook food in Algeria's remote mountain areas.
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India's Maruti sees profits jump	"India's biggest carmaker Maruti has reported a sharp increase in quarterly profit after a booming economy and low interest rates boosted demand.

Net profit surged 70% to 2.39bn rupees ($54.98m; £29.32m) in the last three months of 2004 compared with 1.41bn rupees a year earlier. Total sales were 30.1bn rupees, up 27% from the same 2004 period. Maruti accounts for half of India's domestic car sales, luring consumers with cheap, fuel-efficient vehicles.

Demand in India also has been driven by the poor state of public transport and the very low level of car ownership, analysts said.

Figures show that only eight people per thousand are car owners. Maruti beat market expectations despite an increase in raw materials costs. The company, majority-owned by Japan's Suzuki, said an increase in steel and other raw material prices was partially offset by cost cutting. Sales in the fiscal third quarter, including vans and utility vehicles, rose by 17.8% to 136.069 units. Maruti is not the only company benefiting as Indian's economic growth gives consumer greater spending power. Utility vehicle and tractor maker Mahindra has reported a 52% rise in net profit during the last three months of 2004. Profit was 1.33bn rupees compared with 874.2m rupees a year earlier.
"	business
Aids and climate top Davos agenda	"Climate change and the fight against Aids are leading the list of concerns for the first day of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.

Some 2,000 business and political leaders from around the globe will listen to UK Prime Minister Tony Blair's opening speech on Wednesday. Mr Blair will focus on Africa's development plans and global warming. Earlier in the day came an update on efforts to have 3 million people on anti-Aids drugs by the end of 2005. The World Health Organisation (WHO) said 700,000 people in poor countries were on life-extending drugs - up from 440,000 six months earlier but amounting to only 12% of the 5.8 million who needed them. A $2bn ""funding gap"" still stood in the way of hitting the 2005 target, the WHO said.

The themes to be stressed by Mr Blair - whose attendance was announced at the last minute - are those he wants to dominate the UK's chairmanship of the G8 group of industrialised states. Other issues to be discussed at the five-day conference range from China's

economic power to Iraq's future after this Sunday's elections. Aside from Mr Blair, more than 20 other world leaders are expected to attend including French President Jacques Chirac - due to speak by video link after bad weather delayed his helicopter - and South African President Thabo Mbeki, whose arrival has been delayed by Ivory Coast peace talks. The Ukraine's new president, Viktor Yushchenko, will also be there - as will newly elected Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Showbiz figures will also put in an appearance, from U2 frontman Bono - a well-known campaigner on trade and development issues - to Angelina Jolie, a goodwill campaigner for the UN on refugees.

Unlike previous years, protests against the WEF are expected to be muted. Anti-globalisation campaigners have called off a demonstration planned for the weekend. At the same time, about 100,000 people are expected to converge on the Brazilian resort of Porto Alegre for the World Social Forum - the so-called ""anti-Davos"" for campaigners against globalisation, for fair trade, and many other causes.

In contrast, the Davos forum is dominated by business issues - from outsourcing to corporate leadership - with bosses of more than a fifth of the world's 500 largest companies scheduled to attend. A survey published on the eve of the conference by PricewaterhouseCoopers said four in ten business leaders were ""very confident"" that their companies would see sales rise in 2005. Asian and American executives, however, were much more confident than their European counterparts. But the political discussions, focusing on Iran, Iraq and China, are likely to dominate media attention.
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China now top trader with Japan	"China overtook the US to become Japan's biggest trading partner in 2004, according to numbers released by Japan's Finance Ministry on Wednesday.

China accounted for 20.1% of Japan's trade in 2004, compared with 18.6% for the US. In 2003, the US was ahead with 20.5% and China came second with 19.2%. The change highlights China's growing importance as an economic powerhouse. In 2004, Japan's imports from and exports to China (and Hong Kong) added up to 22,201bn yen ($214.6bn;£114.5bn). This is the highest figure for Japanese trade with China since records began in 1947. It compares with 20,479.5bn yen in trade with the US.

Trade with the US during 2004 was hurt by one-off factors, including a 13-month ban on US beef imports following the discovery of a cow infected with mad cow disease (BSE) in the US. However, economists predict China will become an even more important Japanese trading partner in the coming years. On Tuesday, figures showed China's economy grew by 9.5% in 2004 and experts say the overall growth picture remains strong. Analysts see two spurs to future growth as being China's membership of the World Trade Organisation and lower trade tariffs. During 2004, Japan's trade surplus grew 17.9% to 12.011 trillion yen, with more than half the surplus, 6.962 trillion yen, accounted for by its trade with the US. In December, the surplus grew 1.8% on a year ago to 1.14 trillion yen thanks to stronger-than-expected exports.
"	business
Trial begins of Spain's top banker	"The trial of Emilio Botin, the chairman of Spain's most powerful bank, Santander Central Hispano, has started in Madrid.

Mr Botin is accused of misusing the bank's funds after he approved the payment of 160m euros ($208m; £111m) in bonus and pension payouts to two former executives. However, the trial was suspended when Mr Botin's lawyer introduced a new set of documents on the day testimony was set to begin. A three-judge panel gave prosecution lawyers until Monday to study the documents, when the trial will be reconvened.

The high-profile case began after two Santander shareholders filed a criminal complaint about the payments to Jose Maria Amusategui and Angel Corcostegui, who stepped down in 2001. Both executives helped Mr Botin orchestrate Spain's biggest bank merger, between Santander and Banco Central Hispano, in 1999. As he arrived at Spain's High Court earlier on Wednesday, Mr Botin greeted the waiting media, saying: ""I have full faith in justice."" Santander's board of governors strongly reject the charges against their chairman, saying the payouts were legal and made with their unanimous support. But if convicted, Mr Botin could face a prison term of up to six years. Mr Corcostegui, a former CEO at Santander, also asked the court for new evidence to be admitted. In spite of the allegations against him, Mr Botin continues to lead Santander, and was instrumental in the £8.5bn takeover last November of the British bank Abbey National. Since taking over the chairmanship in 1986, he has turned Santander into one of the top ten biggest banks in the world.
"	business
UK economy ends year with spurt	"The UK economy grew by an estimated 3.1% in 2004 after accelerating in the last quarter of the year, says the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The figure is in line with Treasury and Bank of England forecasts. The ONS says gross domestic product (GDP) rose by a strong 0.7% in the three months to 31 December, compared with 0.5% in the previous quarter. The rise came despite a further decline in production output and the worst Christmas for retailers in decades.

The annual figure marked out the best year since 2000, and was also well ahead of the 2.2% recorded in 2003. Growth in the final three months of 2004 marked the 50th consecutive quarter of expansion. ""On the basis of the latest information the UK has entered 2005 on course to continue its record period of growth,"" said Paul Boateng, chief secretary to the Treasury in a statement.

The ONS said the services sector, which accounts for nearly three-quarters of the UK economy, grew 1.0% in the quarter. The strong services figure was welcomed by analysts, given lacklustre retail sales in December and across the Christmas holiday period. ""The fact that other services components are doing so well suggests to me that we are back to trend (growth) and I am not particularly concerned about any further slowdown,"" said Ross Walker, UK economist at RBS Financial Markets.

However, output in the production sector contracted 0.5%, the second quarterly fall in row and a state of affairs that some economists classify as a recession. However the ONS would not comment on the definition of a recession and whether the manufacturing recovery was over. But Steve Radley, chief economist at the manufacturers' organisation EEF, said: ""These figures remain at odds with what is actually happening on the ground. ""Whilst companies may be experiencing tougher conditions this year, 'recession' is not a word that manufacturers would currently recognise."" The ONS said a sharp fall in mining and quarrying, which was driven by oil and gas extraction, was primarily responsible for the overall contraction in manufacturing production figures.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at Gerrard, said: ""This outturn (of 0.7%) was well ahead of the market expectations and cast doubt on the scare stories doing the rounds surrounding the current state of the UK economy."" And he said the GDP figures may help to ""push interest rate expectations a little higher along the curve"". ""The suggestion from the money markets is that the next move is now more likely to be in an upward rather than a downward direction. This is consistent with our own thinking,"" said Mr Rubinsohn. The Bank of England's nine-strong rate-setting committee voted unanimously earlier this month to keep interest rates steady at 4.75%, minutes of the meeting showed on Wednesday.
"	business
HealthSouth ex-boss goes on trial	"The former head of US medical services firm HealthSouth overstated earnings and assets to boost the company's share price, it was claimed in court.

Richard Scrushy, 52, is accused of ""directing"" a $2.7bn (£1.4bn) accounting fraud at the company he co-founded in Alabama in 1984. Prosecutors said he was motivated by wealth - spending about $200m between 1996 and 2002 while earning much less. Defence lawyers said Mr Scrushy had been deceived by other executives. Several former HealthSouth employees have already pleaded guilty to fraud and are expected to give evidence against Mr Scrushy.

""We will present evidence that Richard Scrushy knew about the conspiracy, that he participated in the conspiracy and that he profited,"" prosecutor Alice Martin told the court. Mr Scrushy is the first chief executive to be tried for breaching the Sarbanes Oxley Act - a law introduced in the wake of the Enron and WorldCom frauds which obliges corporate bosses to vouch for the accuracy of their companies' results. Among the charges he faces are conspiracy to commit fraud, filing false statements and money laundering. After federal agents raided HealthSouth's offices in March 2003, the company said none of its past financial statements could be relied on. The firm has since reorganised its board and management team and currently operates about 1,400 health clinics.
"	business
Euro firms miss out on optimism	"More than 90% of large companies around the world are highly optimistic about their economic prospects, a survey of 1,300 bosses suggests.

Their biggest worries are not terror threats, but over-regulation, low-cost competition and the wild ups and downs of oil prices. There is one exception: Firms in Western Europe - but not the UK - are lacking confidence after years of slow growth. When business advisers PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) conducted the same survey two years ago, nearly 30% of bosses were gloomy about their prospects.

Global business leaders say that they are facing a two-pronged regulatory assault. After a string of corporate scandals in the United States - from Enron to WorldCom - the Sarbanes-Oxley act forces companies to be much more transparent, but doing all the paperwork costs a lot of time and money. Across Europe, meanwhile, all stock exchange-listed companies are currently in the process of moving to new and complex accounting standards called IFRS. Hacking through the red tape can hardly be avoided, but many chief executives around the world appear to have decided on how to deal with low-cost competitors.

Already, about 28% of the bosses polled for the survey say that they have moved parts of their business into low-wage countries, and another 11% plan to do so in the future. Possibly as a result, the worry about low-cost competition has slightly fallen from last year, with just 54% of companies calling it a ""significant threat"" or ""one of the biggest threats"". But PwC's global chief executive, Samuel DiPiazza, said a growing number of companies were also concerned that moves to outsource work to cheaper countries could both hurt their reputation in their home markets and harm the quality of service they provide to their customers.

According to Frank Brown, global advisory leader at PwC , the trend of large companies to have global operations has one clear upside: ""One risk in one region - for example the Middle East - won't kill your business anymore."" Surprisingly, the survey suggests that the rapid decline of the US dollar is not seen as a huge threat anymore, unlike even a year ago, when it was cited as the third-largest problem. Mr DiPiazza said the interviews with chief executives suggested that companies had ""adjusted"" to the new reality of a euro that buys $1.30 and more, while others had successfully hedged their positions and locked in more favourable exchange rates.


 - For the survey, PricewaterhouseCoopers interviewed 1,324 chief executives throughout the world during the last three months of 2004.
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Lacroix label bought by US firm	"Luxury goods group LVMH has sold its loss-making Christian Lacroix clothing label to a US investment group.

The Paris-based firm has been shedding non-core businesses and focusing on its most profitable brands including Moet & Chandon champagne and Louis Vuitton. LVMH said the French designer's haute couture and ready-to-wear labels had been purchased by the Falic Group for an unspecified sum. The Falic Group bought two cosmetics labels from LVMH in 2003. The sale of the Lacroix label comes as many fashion houses are struggling to make money from their expensive haute couture ranges. The Florida-based Falic group, which also runs a chain of 90 duty free stores in the US, said it planned to expand the brand by opening new stores. Mr Lacroix said he planned to stay at the label he founded in 1987 although exact details are still to be confirmed.
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Gallery unveils interactive tree	"A Christmas tree that can receive text messages has been unveiled at London's Tate Britain art gallery.

The spruce has an antenna which can receive Bluetooth texts sent by visitors to the Tate. The messages will be ""unwrapped"" by sculptor Richard Wentworth, who is responsible for decorating the tree with broken plates and light bulbs. It is the 17th year that the gallery has invited an artist to dress their Christmas tree. Artists who have decorated the Tate tree in previous years include Tracey Emin in 2002.

The plain green Norway spruce is displayed in the gallery's foyer. Its light bulb adornments are dimmed, ordinary domestic ones joined together with string. The plates decorating the branches will be auctioned off for the children's charity ArtWorks. Wentworth worked as an assistant to sculptor Henry Moore in the late 1960s. His reputation as a sculptor grew in the 1980s, while he has been one of the most influential teachers during the last two decades. Wentworth is also known for his photography of mundane, everyday subjects such as a cigarette packet jammed under the wonky leg of a table.
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Jarre joins fairytale celebration	"French musician Jean-Michel Jarre is to perform at a concert in Copenhagen to mark the bicentennial of the birth of writer Hans Christian Andersen.

Denmark is holding a three-day celebration of the life of the fairy-tale author, with a concert at Parken stadium on 2 April. Other stars are expected to join the line-up in the coming months, and the Danish royal family will attend. ""Christian Andersen's fairy tales are timeless and universal,"" said Jarre. ""For all of us, at any age there is always - beyond the pure enjoyment of the tale - a message to learn."" There are year-long celebrations planned across the world to celebrate Andersen and his work, which includes The Emperor's New Clothes and The Little Mermaid. Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary visited New York on Monday to help promote the festivities. The pair were at a Manhattan library to honour US literary critic Harold Bloom ""the international icon we thought we knew so well"".

""Bloom recognizes the darker aspects of Andersen's authorship,"" Prince Frederik said. Bloom is to be formally presented with the Hans Christian Andersen Award this spring in Anderson's hometown of Odense. The royal couple also visited the Hans Christian Anderson School complex, where Queen Mary read The Ugly Duckling to the young audience. Later at a gala dinner, Danish supermodel Helena Christensen was named a Hans Christian Andersen ambassador. Other ambassadors include actors Harvey Keitel and Sir Roger Moore, athlete Cathy Freeman and Brazilian soccer legend Pele.
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Musical treatment for Capra film	"The classic film It's A Wonderful Life is to be turned into a musical by the producer of the controversial hit show Jerry Springer - The Opera.

Frank Capra's 1946 movie starring James Stewart, is being turned into a £7m musical by producer Jon Thoday. He is working with Steve Brown, who wrote the award-winning musical Spend Spend Spend. A spokeswoman said the plans were in the ""very early stages"", with no cast, opening date or theatre announced.

A series of workshops have been held in London, and on Wednesday a cast of singers unveiled the musical to a select group of potential investors. Mr Thoday said the idea of turning the film into a musical had been an ambition of his for almost 20 years. It's a Wonderful Life was based on a short story, The Greatest Gift, by Philip van Doren Stern. Mr Thoday managed to buy the rights to the story from Van Doren Stern's family in 1999, following Mr Brown's success with Spend Spend Spend. He later secured the film rights from Paramount, enabling them to use the title It's A Wonderful Life.
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Richard and Judy choose top books	"The 10 authors shortlisted for a Richard and Judy book award in 2005 are hoping for a boost in sales following the success of this year's winner.

The TV couple's interest in the book world coined the term ""the Richard & Judy effect"" and created the top two best-selling paperbacks of 2004 so far. The finalists for 2005 include Andrew Taylor's The American Boy and Robbie Williams' autobiography Feel. This year's winner, Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones, sold over one million. Joseph O'Connor's Star of the Sea came second and saw sales increase by 350%. The best read award, on Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan's Channel 4 show, is part of the British Book Awards. David Mitchell's Booker-shortlisted novel, Cloud Atlas, makes it into this year's top 10 along with several lesser known works.

""There's no doubt that this year's selection of book club entries is the best yet. If anything, the choice is even wider than last time,"" said Madeley. ""It was very hard to follow last year's extremely successful list, but we think this year's books will do even better,"" said Richard and Judy executive producer Amanda Ross. ""We were spoiled for choice and it was tough getting down to only 10 from the 301 submitted.""
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Poppins musical gets flying start	"The stage adaptation of children's film Mary Poppins has had its opening night in London's West End.

Sir Cameron Mackintosh's lavish production, which has cost £9m to bring to the stage, was given a 10-minute standing ovation. Lead actress Laura Michelle Kelly soared over the heads of the audience holding the nanny's trademark umbrella. Technical hitches had prevented Mary Poppins' flight into the auditorium during preview performances. A number of celebrities turned out for the musical's premiere, including actress Barbara Windsor, comic Graham Norton and Sir Richard Attenborough.

The show's director Richard Eyre issued a warning earlier in the week that the show was unsuitable for children under seven, while under-threes are barred. Mary Poppins was originally created by author Pamela Travers, who is said to have cried when she saw Disney's 1964 film starring Julie Andrews. Travers had intended the story to be a lot darker than the perennial family favourite. Theatre impresario Sir Cameron Mackintosh has said he hopes the musical is a blend of the sweet-natured film and the original book.
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Bennett play takes theatre prizes	"The History Boys by Alan Bennett has been named best new play in the Critics' Circle Theatre Awards.

Set in a grammar school, the play also earned a best actor prize for star Richard Griffiths as teacher Hector. The Producers was named best musical, Victoria Hamilton was best actress for Suddenly Last Summer and Festen's Rufus Norris was named best director. The History Boys also won the best new comedy title at the Theatregoers' Choice Awards.

Partly based upon Alan Bennett's experience as a teacher, The History Boys has been at London's National Theatre since last May. The Critics' Circle named Rebecca Lenkiewicz its most promising playwright for The Night Season, and Eddie Redmayne most promising newcomer for The Goat or, Who is Sylvia?

Paul Rhys was its best Shakespearean performer for Measure for Measure at the National Theatre and Christopher Oram won the design award for Suddenly Last Summer. Both the Critics' Circle and Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice award winners were announced on Tuesday. Chosen by more than 11,000 theatre fans, the Theatregoers' Choice Awards named US actor Christian Slater best actor for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Diana Rigg was best actress for Suddenly Last Summer, Dame Judi Dench was best supporting actress for the RSC's All's Well That Ends Well and The History Boys' Samuel Barnett was best supporting actor.
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Levy tipped for Whitbread prize	"Novelist Andrea Levy is favourite to win the main Whitbread Prize book of the year award, after winning novel of the year with her book Small Island.

The book has already won the Orange Prize for fiction, and is now 5/4 favourite for the £25,000 Whitbread. Second favourite is a biography of Mary Queen of Scots, by John Guy. A panel of judges including Sir Trevor McDonald, actor Hugh Grant and writer Joanne Harris will decide the overall winner on Tuesday.

The five writers in line for the award won their respective categories - first novel, novel, biography, poetry and children's book - on 6 January. Small Island, Levy's fourth novel, is set in post-war London and centres on a landlady and her lodgers. One is a Jamaican who joined British troops to fight Hitler but finds life difficult out of uniform when he settles in the UK. ""What could have been a didactic or preachy prospect turns out to hilarious, moving humane and eye-popping. It's hard to think of anybody not enjoying it,"" wrote the judges. The judges called Guy's My Heart is My Own: The Life of Mary Queen of Scots ""an impressive and readable piece of scholarship, which cannot fail but leave the reader moved and intrigued by this most tragic and likeable of queens"". Guy has published many histories, including one of Tudor England. He is a fellow at Clare College, Cambridge and became a honorary research professor of the University of St Andrews in 2003.

The other contenders include Susan Fletcher for Eve Green, which won the first novel prize. Fletcher has recently graduated from the University of East Anglia's creative writing course. The fourth book in the running is Corpus, Michael Symmons Roberts' fourth collection of poems. As well as writing poetry, Symmons Roberts also makes documentary films. Geraldine McCaughrean is the final contender, having won the children's fiction category for the third time for Not the End of the World. McCaughrean, who went into magazine publishing after studying teaching, previously won the category in 1987 with A Little Lower than Angels and in 1994 with Gold Dust.
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West End to honour finest shows	"The West End is honouring its finest stars and shows at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards in London on Monday.

The Producers, starring Nathan Lane and Lee Evans, is up for best musical at the ceremony at the National Theatre. It is competing against Sweeney Todd and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum for the award. The Goat or Who is Sylvia? by Edward Albee, The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh and Alan Bennett's The History Boys are shortlisted in the best play category.

Pam Ferris, Victoria Hamilton and Kelly Reilly are nominated for best actress. Ferris - best known for her television roles in programmes such as The Darling Buds of May - has made the shortlist for her role in Notes on Falling Leaves, at the Royal Court Theatre. Meanwhile, Richard Griffiths, who plays Hector in The History Boys at the National Theatre, will battle it out for the best actor award with Douglas Hodge (Dumb Show) and Stanley Townsend (Shining City). The best director shortlist includes Luc Bondy for Cruel and Tender, Simon McBurney for Measure for Measure, and Rufus Norris for Festen.

Festen is also shortlisted in the best designer category where Ian MacNeil, Jean Kalman and Paul Arditti will be up against Hildegard Bechtler, for Iphigenia at Aulis, and Paul Brown, for False Servant. The Milton Shulman Award for outstanding newcomer will be presented to Dominic Cooper (His Dark Materials and The History Boys), Romola Garai (Calico), Eddie Redmayne (The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?) or Ben Wishaw (Hamlet). And playwrights David Eldridge, Rebecca Lenkiewicz and Owen McCafferty will fight it out for The Charles Wintour Award and a £30,000 bursary. Three 50th Anniversary Special Awards will also be presented to an institution, a playwright and an individual.
"	entertainment
Da Vinci Code is 'lousy history'	"The plot of an international bestseller that thousands of readers are likely to receive as a Christmas present is 'laughable', a clergyman has said.

The Da Vinci Code claims Jesus was not crucified, but married Mary Magdalene and died a normal death. It claims this was later covered up by the Church. The Bishop of Durham, the Rt Rev Dr Tom Wright, described the novel as a ""great thriller"" but ""lousy history"". The book has sold more than seven million copies worldwide. Despite enjoying Dan Brown's conspiracy theory, the Bishop said there was a lack of evidence to back up its claims.

Writing his Christmas message in the Northern Echo, the Bishop said: ""Conspiracy theories are always fun - fun to invent, fun to read, fun to fantasise about. ""Dan Brown is the best writer I've come across in the genre, but anyone who knows anything about 1st century history will see that this underlying material is laughable."" A great deal of credible evidence proves the Biblical version of Jesus' life was true, according to the Bishop. ""The evidence for Jesus and the origins of Christianity is astonishingly good,"" he said. ""We have literally a hundred times more early manuscripts for the gospels and letters in the New Testament than we have for the main classical authors like Cicero, Virgil and Tacitus.

""Historical research shows that they present a coherent and thoroughly credible picture of Jesus, with all sorts of incidental details that fit the time when he lived, and don't fit the world of later legend."" Brown's book has become a publishing phenomenon, consistently topping book charts in the UK and US. The Da Vinci Code has been translated into 42 languages and has spawned its own cottage industry of publications, including guides on to how to read the book, rebuttals and counter claims. The book, which has become an international best-seller in little over two years, is set to be made into a film starring Tom Hanks.
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Uganda bans Vagina Monologues	"Uganda's authorities have banned the play The Vagina Monologues, due to open in the capital, Kampala this weekend.

The Ugandan Media Council said the performance would not be put on as it promoted and glorified acts such as lesbianism and homosexuality. It said the production could go ahead if the organisers ""expunge all the offending parts"". But the organisers of the play say it raises awareness of sexual abuse against women. ""The play promotes illegal, unnatural sexual acts, homosexuality and prostitution, it should be and is hereby banned,"" the council's ruling said.

The show, which has been a controversial sell-out around the world, explores female sexuality and strength through individual women telling their stories through monologues. Some parliamentarians and church leaders are also siding with the Media Council, Uganda's New Vision newspaper reports. ""The play is obscene and pornographic although it was under the guise of women's liberation,"" MP Kefa Ssempgani told parliament.

But the work's author, US playwright Eve Ensler, says it is all about women's empowerment. ""There is obviously some fear of the vagina and saying the word vagina,"" Ms Ensler told the BBC. ""It's not a slang word or dirty word it's a biological, anatomical word."" She said the play is being produced and performed by Ugandan women and it is not being forced on them. The four Ugandan NGOs organising the play intended to raise money to campaign to stop violence against women and to raise funds for the war-torn north of the country. ""I'm extremely outraged at the hypocrisy,"" the play's organiser in Uganda, Sarah Mukasa, told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme. ""I'm amazed that this country Uganda gives the impression that it is progressive and supports women's rights and the notions of free speech; yet when women want to share their stories the government uses the apparatus of state to shut us up.""
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Artists' secret postcards on sale	"Postcards by artists including Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin have sold just hours after the opening of the Royal Academy of Arts annual Secrets sale.

The identity of the artist remains unknown until each work is bought and the signature is revealed on the back. ""There are still some big names left, such as Mario Testino,"" said RCA spokeswoman Sue Bradburn. All postcards are priced at £35. The sale opened at 8am on Friday and will close at 6pm on Saturday. Ms Bradburn said there was a big queue at the start of the sale but it had now gone down.

She said the people that had bought the famous name postcards had arrived early and had spent time studying each work. ""They would have known what to look for."" The exhibition has been open for viewing since 19 November. Film director Ken Loach, fashion designer Hussein Chalayan and former Blur guitarist Graham Coxon have all designed postcards for the sale. Some of the contributing artists are students or recent graduates of the Royal College of Art and other leading art colleges. Money raised from the sale will go towards the RCA's Fine Art Student Award Fund which supports students with grants and bursaries. The famous sale is now in its 11th year.
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Neeson in bid to revive theatre	"Hollywood film star Liam Neeson has held a dinner party in New York to promote Belfast's Lyric Theatre.

The Ballymena-born actor said that the theatre on Ridgeway Street was in a ""very dilapidated condition"". Lyric chairman David Johnston has said that rebuilding the theatre, at a cost of £8m is the only answer. Mr Neeson said that the idea was to get a bunch of ""healthy, wealthy Irish Americans"" in one room and ask them to help with fundraising.

The Oscar-nominated actor, whose films include Schindler's List, Michael Collins and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, said: ""The Lyric is too important to the cultural and social life of Northern Ireland for this building to crumble and fall apart. ""It gave me a start professionally. Mary O'Malley, the founder of the theatre, gave me my future. ""In those days, in the mid-70s, when I was there, we were doing a play every four weeks. ""Belfast was not a pretty town to be living in. ""There was serious trouble, as you know, but this theatre was like a Belisha beacon of light and hope six nights a week, doing everything from Shakespeare to Yeats to O'Casey with a group of actors and actresses that affected me very deeply and still do."" The Lyric began 50 years ago but the doors opened at its present site on the Stranmillis embankment overlooking the River Lagan in 1968.

As well as Liam Neeson, it also launched the careers of Adrian Dunbar and Stephen Rea and playwrights such as Martin Lynch and Gary Mitchell. Speaking to BBC Northern Ireland before the event at New York's SoHo House, Mr Neeson said that his spirit belonged to the Glens of Antrim. And he said that there was one figure from his childhood that he would love to portray on the big screen - Ian Paisley. He said that the DUP leader and preacher was a ""very dynamic, extraordinary figure"". Neeson used to listen to his sermons on a Friday night in Ballymena. He said: ""What an orator. He was from that old school of bible-thumping righteousness. But it was so dramatic. I found him very powerful. ""I'd love to get a chance to play him some time.""
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Levy takes Whitbread novel prize	"Orange Prize winner Andrea Levy has seen her book Small Island win the Whitbread Novel of the Year Award.

She is now favourite to win the overall prize after beating Booker winner Alan Hollinghurst's The Line of Beauty. Geraldine McCaughrean has picked up the children's fiction award for the third time for Not the End of the World. All the category winners go through to compete for the Whitbread Book of the Year title, which carries with it a £25,000 prize. A panel of judges including Sir Trevor McDonald, actor Hugh Grant and writer Joanne Harris will meet up on 25 January to decide the overall winner, with the announcement being made later that evening.

Bookmaker William Hill has placed London-based Levy's novel as the 6/4 favourite to win.

Small Island, Levy's fourth novel, is set in post-war England and centres on a landlady and her lodgers. One is a Jamaican who joined British troops to fight Hitler but finds life difficult out of uniform when he settles in London. The judges, who included authors Jenny Colgan and Amanda Craig, were full of praise for her writing. ""What could have been a didactic or preachy prospect turns out to hilarious, moving humane and eye-popping. It's hard to think of anybody not enjoying it,"" wrote the judges. The first novel section was won by Susan Fletcher for Eve Green, beating the favourite Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke. Fletcher has recently graduated from graduated from the University of East Anglia creative writing course. Waterstone's fiction writer buyer Suzie Doore said: ""It is great to see Susan Fletcher win in the first novel category. As a relatively unknown author this award will give her exposure to a wider and mass audience that she may not have reached and is a perfect example of the influence of the Whitbread. ""Fresh out of university she is certainly one to watch.""

In the biography category it was John Guy's The Life of Mary Queen of Scots that was picked as winner. The judges called it ""an impressive and readable piece of scholarship, which cannot fail but leave the reader moved and intrigued by this most tragic and likeable of queens"". Guy has published many histories, including Tudor England. He is a fellow at Clare College, Cambridge and became a honorary research professor of the University of St Andrews in 2003. Michael Symmons Roberts' fourth collection of poems scooped the poetry award. His works mixes mysticism, erotica and philosophy through life, death and resurrection. As well as writing poetry, Symmons Roberts also makes documentary films. Children's winner McCaughrean, who went into magazine publishing after studying teaching, previously won the Whitbread Prize in 1987 with A Little Lower than Angels and in 1994 with Gold Dust. She has previously been the winner of the Blue Peter Book of the Year.
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Adventure tale tops awards	"Young book fans have voted Fergus Crane, a story about a boy who is taken on an adventure by a flying horse, the winner of two Smarties Book Prizes.

Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell's book came top in the category for six- to eight-year-olds and won the award chosen by after-school club members. Sally Grindley's Spilled Water, about a Chinese girl sold as a servant, was top in vote of readers aged nine to 11. Biscuit Bear by Mini Grey took the top award in the under-five category. Winners were voted for by about 6,000 children from a shortlist picked by an adult panel.

The prize, which is celebrating its 20th year, is billed as ""the UK's biggest children's book award"". Fergus Crane includes text by Stewart and illustrations by Riddell, who also created The Edge Chronicles together. As well as the six to eights prize, it won the 4Children Special Award voted for by after-school club members. Julia Eccleshare, chair of the adult judging panel, said children's literature had ""never looked stronger"" in the prize's 20 years. ""This award counts because the final choice of winners is made by children, who are the toughest critics of all,"" she said. ""This year's young judges chose the winners from an exceptionally strong and varied shortlist which showcases the very best in children's books today."" Previous winners have included JK Rowling, Jacqueline Wilson and Dick King-Smith.
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Mutant book wins Guardian prize	"A book about the evolution of mutants and the science of abnormality has won the Guardian First Book Award 2004.

Armand Marie Leroi, a lecturer at London's Imperial College, scooped the £10,000 prize for Mutants: On the form, varieties and errors of the human body. ""It is profoundly cultured and beautifully written in the very best tradition of popular science writing today,"" said judge Claire Armistead. The award recognises and rewards new writing across fiction and non-fiction. A panel of literary experts, including novelists Hari Kunzru and Ali Smith, director Sir Richard Eyre and comedian Alexei Sayle chose the winner from a five-strong shortlist.

The shortlist included Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, a novel about the magic arts at the turn of the 19th Century and The Places In Between, Rory Stewart's account of his trek, on foot, across Afghanistan. ""What we found so impressive about Armand Marie Leroi's book was the scope of its reference, its elegance and its inquisitiveness,"" said Ms Armistead, chair of the judges and the Guardian literary editor. ""While the subject matter of Mutants unsettled some involved in the judging process, the overwhelming majority found it fascinating,"" she added. Her words were echoed by Iris director Sir Richard Eyre who called Marie Leroi's work ""extraordinarily thought provoking"". The award, for first time authors, is open to books from genres including fiction, poetry, biography, memoir, history, politics, science and current affairs. Previous winners include White Teeth by Zadie Smith, in 2000, which went on to become a bestseller.
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Arthur Hailey: King of the bestsellers	"Novelist Arthur Hailey, who has died at the age of 84, was known for his bestselling page-turners exploring the inner workings of various industries, from the hotels to high finance.

Born in Luton, Bedfordshire, on 5 April 1920, Hailey was the only child of working class parents, They could not afford to keep him in school beyond the age of 14. He served as a pilot with the Royal Air Force during World War II, flying fighter planes to the Middle East. It was an occupation that was later to feature in his authorial debut, the television screenplay Flight into Danger. Hailey emigrated to Canada in 1947, where he eventually became a citizen. He wanted to be a writer from an early age, but did not take it up professionally until his mid-thirties, when he was inspired to write his first screenplay while on a return flight to Toronto.

""I fell to daydreaming. I visualised the pilots at the controls and wondered what would happen if they both got sick. Could I fly the airplane? I was a rusty wartime pilot who hadn't flown for nine years... "" Hailey later recalled. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation bought Flight into Danger for $600 (£318) and it was shown on TV in April 1956. It was later memorably spoofed in the 1980 comedy Airplane!, starring Leslie Nielsen. Hailey worked as a screenwriter for a couple of years, before turning to novels. He went on to produce 11 best-selling books, which were published into 38 languages in 40 countries. Flight into Danger was adapted to become Hailey's first novel, Runaway Zero-Eight in 1958. The Final Diagnosis and In High Places followed, both achieving a popular following. But it was not until Hotel, in 1965, that Hollywood came calling. The hit novel took four years to write, and stayed on national best-seller lists for a full year. It was turned into a movie in 1967 and later adapted into a glossy soap in the 1980s, starring James Brolin. Airport (1968) arguably remains Hailey's best-loved work and prompted the disaster movie genre. The thriller follows events in the sky, and on the ground at a snow-logged airport, when a terrorist boards an airplane with a bomb.

The book was adapted into a hit film in 1970, starring Burt Lancaster as the harassed aiport manager and Dean Martin as a womanising pilot, alongside Jean Seberg and Jacqueline Bisset. In a testament to the popularity of the fledgling disaster genre - three sequels followed. The writer was known for his painstaking research into the professions around which each novel was centred, drawing his characters ""from real life"" and taking up to three years to produce each book. ""I have never been able to write quickly or easily. I am too self-critical for that. I am never satisfied,"" he once said. In 1969, he moved to Nassau in the Bahamas, with his wife Sheila. Wheels (1971), The Moneychangers (1975) and Overload (1979) followed. Despite a lukewarm response from critics, and few literary accolades, Hailey was at the height of his fame in the seventies and continued to attract the attention of Hollywood producers. Strong Medicine, Hailey's blockbuster focusing on the pharmaceutical industry, was turned into a film in 1986, starring Sam Neill, Douglas Fairbanks Jr and a panoply of former soap stars. The 1997 novel Detective proved to be Hailey's final book, when at the age of 77 he decided to retire. Hailey's health began to deteriorate in recent years, twice undergoing heart surgery. He suffered a stroke just two months ago. He died in his sleep on Wednesday, after dinner with his wife and two of his six children at his home in New Providence island. ""He had a wonderful life. His greatest ambition was to see his name on a book and he certainly achieved that,"" said his wife, Sheila.
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Spark heads world Booker list	"Dame Muriel Spark is among three British authors who have made the shortlist for the inaugural international Booker Prize.

Doris Lessing and Ian McEwan have also been nominated. McEwan and Margaret Atwood are the only nominees to have previously won the main Booker Prize. The new £60,000 award is open to writers of all nationalities who write in English or are widely translated. The prize commends an author for their body of work instead of one book.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Saul Bellow, Milan Kundera and John Updike also feature on the 18-strong list of world literary figures.

But other past winners of the regular Booker Prize, such as Salman Rushdie, JM Coetzee and Kazuo Ishiguro have failed to make the shortlist. The prize, which will be awarded in London in June, will be given once every two years. It will reward an author - who must be living - for ""continued creativity, development and overall contribution to fiction on the world stage"". An author can only win once. The international award was started in response to criticisms that the Booker Prize is only open to British and Commonwealth authors.



Margaret Atwood (Canada) Saul Bellow (Canada) Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Colombia) Gunter Grass (Germany) Ismail Kadare (Albania) Milan Kundera (Czech Republic) Stanislaw Lem (Poland) Doris Lessing (UK) Ian McEwan (UK) Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt) Tomas Eloy Martinez (Argentina) Kenzaburo Oe (Japan) Cynthia Ozick (US) Philip Roth (US) Muriel Spark (UK) Antonio Tabucchi (Italy) John Updike (US) Abraham B Yehoshua (Israel)
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Versace art portfolio up for sale	"The art collection of murdered fashion designer Gianni Versace could fetch up to £9m ($17m) when it is auctioned in New York and London later this year.

Among the pictures for sale are works by Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and Henri Matisse. The collection was housed at Versace's six-storey New York townhouse. The 51-year-old designer was shot outside his Florida home in 1997 by suspected serial killer Andrew Cunanan, who later killed himself. The auction, at Sotheby's, will feature 45 contemporary, impressionist and 19th Century paintings. One of the highlights of the sale is Roy Lichtenstein's Blue Nude which has been given an estimate of £1.8m ($3.4m).

Tobias Meyer, Sotheby's worldwide head of contemporary art, said: ""This collection reflects Mr Versace's wide-ranging taste and impeccable eye, and many of the works were commissioned directly from the artists. ""Outstanding later examples from champions of the Pop movement, such as Roy Lichtenstein, are juxtaposed with masterpieces from the most visible artists of the 1980's, including Jean-Michel Basquiat and the collaborative genius of Basquiat and Warhol, as well as Francesco Clemente."" Much of the collection will be offered for sale at three auctions in New York in June, with smaller contemporary paintings going under the hammer in London on 22 and 23 June. A sale of Versace's furniture and artworks sold in 2001fetched £5.5m ($10.3m).
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Slater to star in Broadway play	"Actor Christian Slater is stepping into the role of Tom in the Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie.

Slater, 35, is replacing actor Dallas Roberts in the Tennessee Williams drama, which opens next month. No reason was given for Roberts' departure. The role will be played by understudy Joey Collins until Slater joins the show. Slater won rave reviews for his recent performance in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in London's West End.

He has also starred in a number of films, including Heathers, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and more recently Churchill: The Hollywood Years. Preview performances of The Glass Menagerie will begin at New York's Ethel Barrymore Theatre on Thursday. Philip Rinaldi, a spokesman for the show, said the play's 15 March opening date remains unchanged. The revival, directed by David Leveaux, will also star Jessica Lange as the domineering mother, Amanda Wingfield.
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Public show for Reynolds portrait	"Sir Joshua Reynolds' Portrait of Omai will get a public airing following fears it would stay hidden because of an export wrangle.

The Tate Gallery unsuccessfully tried to buy the picture from its anonymous owner after a ban was issued preventing the painting from leaving the UK. The 18th Century painting has remained in storage but the owner has agreed to allow it to be part of an exhibition. The exhibition of Reynolds' work will be shown at Tate Britain from May. Joshua Reynolds: The Creation of Celebrity will feature prints, caricatures, and sculpture by the 18th Century artist, who painted some of the most famous personalities of his day. Portrait of Omai fetched the second highest amount for a British painting when it was sold at auction for £10.3m in 2001. It was bought by a London dealer who sold it on to a collector. The unnamed collector wanted to take it out of the country, but was barred from doing so by the government because of its historical significance.

In March 2004, the Tate managed to raise £12.5m funding to buy the portrait but the owner refused to sell and it has been held in storage since. The portrait is of a young man who was dubbed ""the noble savage"" when he arrived in London from Polynesia. He became a darling of London society and was invited to all the best parties by people who were fascinated by such an exotic character. Sir Joshua painted him after his arrival in 1774, and it became the artist's most famous work after it was first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1776.
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Obituary: Dame Alicia Markova	"Dame Alicia Markova, who has died in Bath aged 94, was the UK's first prima ballerina of the modern age, and, in her heyday, the greatest in the western world.

She was born Lilian Alicia Marks in London in 1910. Her parents were comfortably off - her father, a mining engineer, drove a Rolls Royce. When she was eight, her mother took a decision which changed her life. Fearing that she had flat feet and weak legs, she arranged for her to have ballet lessons. Very quickly it became apparent that she was something special. She was spotted by the Russian artistic impresario, Sergei Diaghilev, who wanted her to dance for his company, Ballets Russes. She became ill with diphtheria but kept in touch, and, eventually, with a governess in tow, joined Diaghilev in Monte Carlo when she was 14.

From here, she toured Europe, playing in all the top venues. It was Diaghilev who changed her name without even consulting her. Her life was one of great excitement. People such as Matisse and Stravinsky became like uncles to her, the latter put in charge of her musical education. Soon after Diaghilev's death in 1929, Alicia Markova returned to England and became Britain's first international ballerina. She helped launch the Ballet Club at the Mercury Theatre (later the Ballet Rambert), the Vic Wells Ballet, and then, with Anton Dolin, the Markova-Dolin Ballet of 1935-37. She also began working with young choreographers such as Anthony Tudor and Frederick Ashton who became huge influences on the direction of ballet in the west.

Her version of Giselle, all lightness and grace, is still considered to be among the finest ever. She was also outstanding in The Dying Swan. She was one of the first British ballerinas to take a major part in Les Sylphides. She, above all, helped popularise ballet both in Britain and in America.

Alicia Markova spent World War II in the United States where, in a re-formed Ballets Russes, she played to huge audiences. She even appeared in Hollywood movies. In 1950, back in England, she and Anton Dolin jointly established the Festival Ballet. She retired in 1963, an ""instant decision"" she said, ""largely because of a leg injury"". Created a Dame, she made a new career for herself as a teacher. She also travelled the world directing ballet companies and putting on shows. She became director of ballet for the Metropolitan Opera Ballet in New York, and for some years was full-time Professor of Ballet and Performing Arts in the University of Cincinnati. A critic once said of Dame Alicia Markova's dancing: ""She gave the illusion of moving as if she had no weight to get off the ground.""
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Fears raised over ballet future	"Fewer children in the UK are following in the dainty footsteps of dancers like Darcey Bussell, and carving out potential careers as ballet dancers.

New research from the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) has found fewer children over the age of 10 are attending ballet classes and taking exams in the discipline. The organisation blames the growing popularity of computer games and other changes in lifestyle. And there are fears that if the trend is not reversed, there could be fewer British ballet stars in the future. The RAD found that the number of youngsters taking their ballet exams drops by almost 70% after the age of 10 or 11. Dance teacher Eve Trew, who has taught ballet for over 48 years, told BBC News she had seen a ""vast"" change over the years. She blamed modern lifestyles for the fall in ballet attendance. ""I think the children of many years ago did not have as many hobbies,"" she said. ""The trouble now is that they are wide open to computers, Gameboys and everything else children have got. ""As a result, there is less time being spent on ballet lessons.""

Hazel Gilbert, 23, an information manager from Newcastle, gave up ballet at the age of 10 and is typical of the problem. ""It's not a very cool thing to do when you go to 'big' school and I think you have to be very focused on ballet to want to carry on doing it,"" she said. ""I used to love it, but after a certain age it becomes much more disciplined and I didn't want that. ""I started getting into other things, like swimming and kickboxing, and ballet just wasn't something I wanted to do any more."" Ms Trew, who runs a dance school in Gateshead, admitted it would be ""very difficult"" to reverse the trend and said many young ballet dancers were no longer willing to make the sacrifices to succeed. ""You have to be very dedicated and you have to be very disciplined. ""It is a career that you have got to really want to do because it is such hard work. ""Children these days have not got the time to spend perfecting it... that is very sad.""

Currently, only two out of 16 principal dancers at the Royal Ballet - Darcey Bussell and Jonathan Cope - are British, compared to 16 of the 21 principals in 1985. But a spokesman for the English National Ballet told BBC News that although only two out of their 12 principal dancers were British, around a quarter of the company's dancers were from the UK. He said competition at open auditions in London was ""fierce"" between talented dancers from all over the world. The RAD have launched a new competition to try and reverse the decline in British ballet. Dame Antoinette Sibley, president of the RAD, launched the Fonteyn Nureyev Young Dancers competition earlier this week.

Aimed at children aged 10 to 13, it is hoped the contest will help keep British ballet evolving. A spokeswoman for the RAD said: ""It is our responsibility to re-ignite the passion and nurture young dancers for the long-term future of ballet. ""We need to provide them with a framework and a goal to work towards, with constant support and coaching in an environment where they can work with their peers and possibly leading artists and choreographers. ""Perhaps more importantly provide them with the opportunity to experience 'performance' themselves. ""What better way to reignite a passion for ballet than to let them experience the thrill of performance?""
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Famed music director Viotti dies	"Conductor Marcello Viotti, director of Venice's famous La Fenice Theatre, has died in Germany at 50.

Viotti, director of La Fenice since 2002, conducted at renowned opera houses worldwide including Milan's La Scala and the Vienna State Opera. His time at La Fenice coincided with its reopening in 2003 after it was destroyed by fire in 1996. He fell into a coma after suffering a stroke during rehearsals for Jules Massenet's Manon last week.

He conducted some of the best orchestras in the world including the Berlin Philharmonic and the English Chamber Orchestra. Viotti was born in Switzerland and studied the piano, cello and singing at the Lausanne Conservatory. His career breakthrough came in 1982 when he won first prize at the Gino Marinuzzi conducting competition in Italy. Viotti established himself as chief conductor of the Turin Opera and went on to become chief conductor of Munich's Radio Orchestra. At La Fenice Viotti was widely acclaimed for his production of the French composer Massenet's Thais and some of his other productions included Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata and Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos.

The last opera he directed at La Fenice was Massenet's Le Roi de Lahore. Viotti's debut at the New York's Metropolitan Opera came in 2000 with Giacomo Puccini's Madame Butterfly, followed by La Boheme, La Traviata and Fromental Halevy's La Juive. Giampaolo Vianello, superintendent of the Fenice Theatre Foundation, said: ""I am filled with extreme sadness because, other than a great artist, he is missed as a friend - a main character in the latest joyous times, during the rebirth of our theatre."" Viotti's last public performance was on 5 February when he conducted Vincenzo Bellini's Norma at the Vienna State Opera.
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Paraguay novel wins US book prize	"A novel set in 19th century Paraguay has won the $10,000 (£5,390) fiction prize at the US National Book Awards.

Lily Tuck's The News From Paraguay is a fictionalised tale about Paraguayan leader Francisco Solano Lopez and his Irish mistress. But the annual awards, which were presented in New York on Wednesday, were not without controversy. Children's author Judy Blume, who was given an honourary medal, used the ceremony to speak out over censorship.

Sales of Blume's books have exceeded 75 million, but her work - which features frank narratives about families, religion and sexuality - is closely watched by the censors. Blume said: ""The urge to ban is contagious. It spreads like wildfire from community to community. Please speak out. Censors hate publicity."" Her medal marks the second year in a row the honourary prize went to someone as notable for popular success as literary greatness. Last year's honorary winner, Stephen King, accused the industry during the 2003 ceremony of snobbery against popular writers. But his argument that the award should help sell books instead of honouring excellence is not shared by everyone.

This year's fiction panel overlooked high-profile works such as Philip Roth's The Plot Against America and instead chose five little-known books, all by New York-based women. One fiction judge, Stewart O'Nan, carried around a note written on a napkin that said: ""I would hope that our caring more for the quality of a work than its sales figures make us a friend of books, not an enemy."" The National Book Awards non-fiction prize was awarded to Kevin Boyle's for Arc of Justice, which focuses on a black family's fight to live in a white Detroit neighbourhood in the 1920s. The award had created a lot of interest this year after the surprise inclusion of the of the 9-11 Commission Report looking into the events of the 11 September terrorist attacks on the US. Pete Hautman won the young people's literature prize for his novel Godless. The winner in the poetry category was Jean Valentine for Door in the Mountain: New and Collected Poems, 1965-2003.
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New Harry Potter tops book chart	"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has topped Amazon's book chart less than 24 hours after its release date - 16 July - was announced.

Thousands of customers placed pre-orders on the amazon.co.uk website for the sixth book in the series. Rowling revealed she had completed the novel on Tuesday, ahead of the scheduled announcement on 25 December. It will be published simultaneously in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. JK Rowling's fifth book in the wizard series, Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix was Amazon's largest pre-ordered item ever, with 420,000 copies pre-ordered prior to its release in June 2003. Customers who pre-order Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince avoid standing in long queues at bookshops on the day of the book's release next July. ""The fact that the book has already hit number one in our Hot 100 books chart shows how incredibly excited customers are about the sixth Harry Potter,"" said Amazon's Robin Terrell.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince takes up the story of Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as Lord Voldemort grows stronger. Rowling has already revealed that the Half-Blood Prince is neither Harry nor Voldemort. And she added that the opening chapter of the book had been brewing in her mind for 13 years. Rowling said she had plenty of time while pregnant ""to tinker with the manuscript to my satisfaction and I am as happy as I have ever been with the end result"". She also previously revealed that a character will be killed in the sixth book, but she has given no hints as to who it might be. Following publication of the sixth book, just one novel remains to complete the series.
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UK's National Gallery in the pink	"The National Gallery, home to some of the UK's greatest artworks, has seen a big jump in visitor numbers.

Five million visitors made the London gallery - which houses treasures like Raphael's Madonna of the Pinks - the UK's most visited museum in 2004. It recorded a 13.8% rise in numbers and was the country's second most visited tourist attraction, behind Blackpool Pleasure Beach. Charles Saumarez Smith, the gallery's director, said he was ""delighted"". He said the number of visitors through the doors had boosted figures to pre-11 September 2001 levels. Mr Saumarez Smith added that the pedestrianisation of Trafalgar Square, where the gallery is located, and strong temporary collections throughout 2004 had led to the strong performance.

""Our 2004 exhibition programme of El Greco, Russian Landscape in the Age of Tolstoy and Raphael: From Urbino to Rome was particularly strong and exceeded all targets,"" he said. ""The exceptional quality of the paintings in our permanent collection is also huge draw for the public. ""The expectations of today's visitors are higher than ever and we have kept pace with their demands."" Mr Saumarez Smith said he was confident the gallery could maintain the attendance. ""With important exhibitions of the work of Caravaggio, Stubbs and Rubens in place for 2005, I am confident that the gallery is set for another highly successful year,"" he added. The figures were prepared by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (Alva).

It found that the figures had been boosted by an increase in Europeans travelling to the UK on budget airlines. Popular cultural tourist spots such as the Tate Modern and the Natural History Museum all recorded increases of more than 10% in visitor numbers compared with 2003. But for legal or confidentiality reasons some Alva members did not submit figures for 2004, including Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Madame Tussauds and Alton Towers. Alva director Robin Broke said: ""Visits from Western Europe were up by 10% and from North America by some 9% compared to 2003, while numbers from the rest of the world rose 20%. ""European figures were helped by the rapid growth of low-cost flights to Britain from Europe, especially from new EU countries.""
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Lit Idol begins search for author	"The second Pop Idol-style search for literary talent has begun with the help of the brother of Simon Cowell.

Writer Tony Cowell is among the judges who will hear aspiring writers read their work aloud. The winner gets a deal with literary agency Curtis Brown. ""I'm not going to be the Mr Nasty of books,"" said Cowell, 54, in reference to his brother's caustic remarks on TV shows Pop Idol and The X-Factor. The 2004 winner, Paul Cavanagh, went on to sign a deal with Harper Collins.

This year, the competition is specifically looking for a crime writer. Writers must submit up to 10,000 words from the opening chapters of their novels and a synopsis. Professional readers will choose a shortlist of five following the competition closing date on 14 January.

The final five will then have to read their work in front of judging panel. A public vote will also take place, which will account for 25% of the final decision. The winner will be announced at the London Book Fair on 14 March next year and could be screened on TV. ""It's very, very hard to find an agent and extremely difficult, without an agent, to get a publisher to look at your work,"" said Cowell. ""People do fall by the wayside and the more avenues we can provide for aspiring authors, the better,"" he added. Paul Cavanagh, a former university professor and health care consultant from Ontario in Canada, was one of 1,466 aspiring novelists to enter the first contest. He lifted the inaugural Lit Idol prize after reading aloud an excerpt of his work Northwest Passage. Three film studios are said to be interested in buying film rights for the book, even though it is not finished yet.
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Potter director signs Warner deal	"Harry Potter director Alfonso Cuaron has signed a three-year deal with Hollywood studio Warner Brothers, according to Variety trade magazine.

The Mexican film-maker, who directed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, will produce mainstream movies and smaller Spanish-language films. ""We had a wonderful experience with Alfonso on Harry Potter,"" Warner producer Jeff Robinov told Variety. Cuaron's other films include Mexican movie Y Tu Mama Tambien.

The 2001 rites-of-passage drama about two teenage boys who embark on a relationship with an older woman, brought Cuaron international attention - and box office glory.

It also won him and his brother Carlos, with whom he co-wrote the screenplay, an Oscar nomination for best original screenplay. Warner will distribute Cuaron's films in several languages outside the US. ""This deal will give us the opportunity to collaborate with Alfonso on movies that make the most of his artistry and vision, and continue to offer him the mainstream worldwide audiences that our studio provides so successfully,"" said Mr Robinov.

His first film for Warner Brothers was 1995's family fantasy movie A Little Princess. Based on the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, A Little Princess tells the story of a young girl who is sent to live in a New York boarding school when her widowed father enlists for war. After the erotic nature of Y Tu Mama Tambien, Cuaron was a surprise choice to direct the third Harry Potter film but his dark interpretation was received well by the public and critics alike.
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Baghdad Blogger on big screen	"A film based on the internet musings of the ""Baghdad Blogger"" has been shown at the Rotterdam Film Festival.

The film has been directed by the man who calls himself Salam Pax, the author of the weblog about Iraqi life during and after the war. The movie version comes in the form of a series of shorts made by Pax on a hand-held camera. Baghdad Blogger is among a number of films about Iraq showcased at the Dutch festival, which runs until Sunday. Following the fascination with the writing of Salam Pax - not his real name - he began a regular column in The Guardian newspaper and was given a crash course in documentary film-making. For the film he travelled Iraq to document the changing landscape of the country and the problems it has faced since the invasion, speaking to ordinary Iraqis about their experiences. The festival will also see the screening of Underexposure, one of Iraq's first features to emerge since the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

Director Oday Rasheed made the film on discarded 1980s Kodak film taken from the remains for the former Ministry of Culture building. It centres on the lives of families and strangers going about their everyday business as Baghdad is under siege. Rasheed said the title was refers to the isolation felt by Iraqis under Saddam's regime and the difficult time the country is now experiencing. ""Saddam's regime was hell, but now I think the hell has doubled,"" Rasheed said. The festival was also due to screen murdered Dutch film-maker Theo Van Gogh's film about the treatment of woman under Islam, but it was withdrawn due to safety fears. Van Gogh was shot and stabbed in November 2004, following death threats he received about his film Submission.
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US critics laud comedy Sideways	"Road trip comedy Sideways has had more praise heaped on it by two US critics' associations, adding to honours it has already picked up.

The Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA) named it winner in five categories including best film and best actor for Paul Giamatti. But the director award went to Clint Eastwood for Million Dollar Baby. The Southeastern Film Critics also awarded Sideways its best film of the year accolade. Director Alexander Payne was named best director, and he also won best screenplay shared with Jim Taylor. The CFCA awarded Thomas Haden Church the best supporting actor prize and Virginia Madsen the best supporting actress award for their roles in the film.

Sideways has already been voted best film by critics associations in New York and Los Angeles and has been nominated for a Golden Globe. British actress Imelda Staunton won the CFCA best actress for the gritty abortion drama Vera Drake, adding to a growing list of awards she has won for her performance in the Mike Leigh film. Scrubs star Zach Braff was named best new director for his debut Garden State. Michael Moore's controversial documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 won the best documentary, while A Very Long Engagement won best foreign film. The Chicago critics have yet to name a date for when their awards ceremony will be held.
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Dirty Den's demise seen by 14m	"More than 14 million people saw ""Dirty"" Den Watts killed off on Friday, marking EastEnders' 20th anniversary, according to unofficial figures.

Den's death came 16 years after he was supposedly shot in 1989. But he came back to the show in September 2003. The audience for BBC One's one-hour special averaged 13.7 million and peaked at 14.2 million in the last 15 minutes, overnight figures showed. Den died after being confronted by Zoe, Chrissie and Sam in the Queen Vic.

If the ratings are confirmed, the episode will have given the soap its highest audience for a year. The overnight figures showed almost 60% of the viewing public tuned into EastEnders between 2000 and 2100 GMT, leaving ITV1 with about 13%. ""We are very pleased with the figures,"" a BBC spokesman said. ""It shows viewers have really enjoyed the story of Den's demise."" The show's highest audience came at Christmas 1986, when more than 30 million tuned in to see Den, played by Leslie Grantham, hand divorce papers to wife Angie.

Two years later, 24 million saw him apparently shot by a man with a bunch of daffodils by a canal. More than 16 million viewers watched his return in 2003. The show's ratings have since settled down to about 12 million per episode. Grantham hit the headlines in May after a newspaper printed photographs of him apparently exposing himself via a webcam from his dressing room. He also allegedly insulted four co-stars. He apologised for his ""deplorable actions"" and ""a moment's stupidity"".
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Redford's vision of Sundance	"Despite sporting a corduroy cap pulled low over his face plus a pair of dark glasses, Robert Redford cuts an unmistakable figure through the star-struck crowds at Sundance.

It's a rare downtown appearance for the man who started the annual festival in Park City, Utah back in the 1980s. Now in its twenty-first year, Sundance continues to grow. Some 45,000 people are estimated to have descended on this small ski town with nothing but movies on the mind. It's an opportunity to meet and make deals. Redford wanted Sundance to be a platform for independent film-makers, but the commercial success of many showcased films have led to criticism that the festival is becoming too mainstream.

Smaller festivals like Slamdance and XDance, which take place during the same week in Park City, are competing for Sundance's limelight. But Redford is not worried. ""The more the merrier,"" he says. ""The point was to create opportunities for people who may not have them. ""Once independent film had a place where the work could be seen, suddenly the merchants came. With them the celebrities came, then the paparazzi - and suddenly it began to take on a whole new tone,"" explains Redford.

""People started to say we had gone mainstream and Hollywood, but actually Hollywood came to us because suddenly there was good business in independent film,"" he adds. International film-makers have always been celebrated here, but 2005 is the first year a dedicated World Dramatic and Documentary competition is being held.

Redford wants the festival to encompass viewpoints he believes the American media fails to reflect, particularly how the US is perceived internationally. He has never hidden the fact that he is a Democrat. But he reserves particular disdain for the current Republican administration. ""It's the ability to maintain the importance of dissent in a democratic system which right now is under threat with the attitude of this administration,"" he says. ""I think many voices are being shut down or accused of being unpatriotic if they want to express another point of view. That's very unhealthy and very dangerous.

""If we take that policy into the world, there will be the same victims and the same consequences."" Sundance isn't just one big screening. There are discussion panels and Q&A sessions with directors tackling controversial topics like America's ""culture wars"" and the Iraq war. While Redford wishes the festival to be a forum for dissent, the profile of the audience is fairly monolithic. Educated, middle class and predominantly white Americans comes Sundance, with views from the same end of the political spectrum - anti-war and socially liberal. But Redford knows this and started the Sundance TV Channel in an effort to reach a wider audience. ""When you look at the films here, what we are presenting is very much egalitarian. And it's about good films and good story-telling be it African America, Asian, women, gay, lesbian. ""Sooner or later we will do away with those stereotypical labels and people will say 'it's just a film by so-and so'.""
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DVD review: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban	"This third Harry Potter film brought a change of director and a dramatic visual shake-up that really shines on DVD.

Gone are the warm, bright colours found in the two earlier films, Alfonso Cuaron brings in a bleak and cold feel that is simply gorgeous - and looks even better here than in the cinema. It is all part of the progression of Harry's story into darker areas, but you'll spend time just marvelling at the beautiful Hogwarts landscape.

This is the first Potter film where you get so lost in the screen adaptation that you forget the book. It is the third year at Hogwarts and studies are interrupted, as they always are, by a calamity that only Harry, Ron and Hermione can put right.

It sounds corny. But Harry is no longer the winsome hero, he is a moody teenager and Daniel Radcliffe pulls it off very well. Emma Watson is ever better as Hermione, and the young stars are joined by the usual myriad famous actors including Gary Oldman and Emma Thompson. The film itself is the reason to buy this DVD. But it is laden with behind-the-scenes extras, including funny, if shallow, interviews with all the main cast. But what seems like a long list of features can be swiftly whittled down to the few that you are going to watch. Younger viewers will go for the games which include a Magic You May Have Missed memory test, and Crookshanks chasing off after Scabbers. Adult viewers will ignore those and go straight to the deleted scenes. You will understand why they were deleted but it is fun to see more footage - and not have to hunt through endless menus to find it, as we did on the first Harry Potter DVD. The most interesting pieces are an interview with JK Rowling in Creating The Vision and Conjuring A Scene, a short featurette about the making of the film's big moments.
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Vera Drake scoops film award	"Oscar hopefuls Mike Leigh and Imelda Staunton were both winners at the 2004 Evening Standard British Film Awards.

Vera Drake - Leigh's 1950s drama about a backstreet abortionist - was named best film and Staunton, who played the title role, was named best actress. Other winners included Paddy Considine, who was crowned best actor for his role in Dead Man's Shoes. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason was named Evening Standard Readers' Film of 2004 at the central London ceremony.

Leigh was presented with his winner's statuette by Timothy Spall and Staunton's award was announced by Patrick Stewart, during the glittering ceremony at The Savoy on Sunday night. Evening Standard film critic Derek Malcolm said: ""He [Leigh] has never made a film that is better controlled and technically more secure... If this isn't one of the films of the year, I don't know what is."" The Alexander Walker Special Award - which honours those who have made a supreme contribution to British film - went to Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, the co-chairmen of Working Title films. The production company is behind films such as My Beautiful Laundrette, Billy Elliot, About A Boy, Shaun of The Dead and Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.

Simon Pegg, who stars in and co-wrote Shaun of the Dead, won the 2004 Peter Sellers Award For Comedy. Other winners included Emily Blunt and Nathalie Press who were jointly named ITV London Most Promising Newcomer Award for their performances in Pawel Pawlikowski's rites-of-passage story, My Summer of Love. Pawlikowski won the best screenplay statuette, while Roger Deakins won the Technical Achievement Award for his cinematography on The Village and The Ladykillers. Guests at the ceremony included Dame Judi Dench, Kim Cattrall, Charles Dance, Bill Nighy and Colin Firth. The awards, which were hosted by Jack Dee, are to be screened on ITV London on Tuesday at 2300 GMT.
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Hundreds vie for best film Oscar	"A total of 267 films are eligible for the best film Oscar but only five will be chosen to go forward as nominees.

The Academy of Motion Picture, Arts and Sciences has sent out the first ballot papers with the full list of films vying for recognition. Among those expected to receive nominations are The Aviator, Million Dollar Baby and Sideways. Academy members will now vote for their favourites before the final nominees are announced on 25 January.

To be eligible for nomination a film must have been shown in a commercial theatre for seven consecutive days before the deadline of 31 December. Director Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio went on general release on Christmas Day in the US, ensuring it just made the deadline. Studios have already begun lobbying voters, taking out full page adverts in trade publications such as Variety urging them to remember particular films when it comes to choosing what to back. Other movies tipped for possible success include Closer, starring Jude Law and Julia Roberts, Finding Neverland, with Johnny Depp as author JM Barry and Kinsey starring Liam Neeson as the famed sex scientist Alfred Kinsey. Meanwhile, design engineer Takuo Miyagishima will be awarded an Oscar at the Scientific and Technical Awards Dinner on 12 February 2005. Miyagishima is the 18th recipient of the Sawyer Award, which is ""presented to an individual in the motion picture industry whose technological contributions have brought credit to the industry."" The main Oscar ceremony will be held in Los Angeles on 27 February.
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Hanks greeted at wintry premiere	"Hollywood star Tom Hanks was in London's Leicester Square for the UK premiere of Polar Express.

The West End landmark was turned into a festive landscape complete with snow and carol singers to celebrate the arrival of the animated film. ""This is Leicester Square like you've never seen it before,"" said Hanks, who plays five roles in the movie. Polar Express is based on a children's book which tells the story of a young boy's journey to meet Santa Claus. The 48-year-old actor crossed a three-metre high bridge built in the square, which he said was ""almost impossible to get across"". Hundreds of fans greeted the star, all wearing Santa hats, and mince pies were on offer. Hanks said that the new film has an ""elegant message"". ""Christmas is a special time of the year and you get out of it what you put into it,"" added the two-time Academy Award winner.

""I believe in the spirit of Christmas and I think that's embodied in Santa Claus,"" he said. Polar Express uses technology similar to that used in Lord of the Rings to bring Gollum to life. The ""performance capture"" technique enables Hanks to play a number of roles, including the eight-year-old boy who is at the centre of the story, and Father Christmas. It is directed by Robert Zemeckis, who has previously worked with Hanks on Forrest Gump and Castaway.
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Film row over Pirates 'cannibals'	"Plans to portray Dominica's Carib Indians as cannibals in the sequel to hit film Pirates of the Caribbean have been criticised by the group's chief.

Carib Chief Charles Williams said talks with Disney's producers revealed there was ""a strong element of cannibalism in the script which cannot be removed"". The Caribbean island's government said Disney planned to film in Dominica. The Caribs have long denied their ancestors practised cannibalism. Disney was unavailable for comment. ""Our ancestors stood up against early European conquerors and because they stood up...we were labelled savages and cannibals up to today,"" said Mr Williams.

""This cannot be perpetuated in movies."" Shooting on the sequel is expected to begin in April, with hundreds of Dominicans applying to be extras in the movie.

About 3,000 Caribs live on the island of Dominica, which has a population of 70,000. Many Caribs were killed by disease and war during colonisation up to the 1600s. Mr Williams said he had received support from indigenous groups around the world in his efforts to have cannibalism references removed from the film. But he admitted there were some members of the Carib council who did not support the campaign. He said some did not ""understand our history, they are weak and are not committed to the cause of the Carib people"". The first Pirates of the Caribbean film took $305m (£162m) at the box office in the US alone. The cast and crew are to work on two sequels back-to-back, with the first to be released in 2006.
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Stars gear up for Bafta ceremony	"Film stars from across the globe are preparing to walk the red carpet at this year's Bafta award ceremony.

The 2005 Orange British Academy Film Awards are being held at The Odeon in London's Leicester Square. A host of Hollywood stars, including Cate Blanchett, Leonardo DiCaprio, Keanu Reeves and Richard Gere, are expected to attend Saturday's ceremony. Hosted by Stephen Fry, the glittering ceremony will be broadcast on BBC One at 2010 GMT.

Other actors expected to add to the glamour of the biggest night in UK film are Gael Garcia Bernal, Imelda Staunton, Diane Kruger, Christian Slater, Anjelica Huston, Helen Mirren and former James Bond star Pierce Brosnan. Hollywood blockbuster The Aviator, starring DiCaprio, leads the field with 14 nominations, including best film.

It is up against Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Finding Neverland, The Motorcycle Diaries and British film Vera Drake, which has 11 nominations. British hope Imelda Staunton is one of the favourites to land the best actress award for her gritty role as a backstreet abortionist in the small-budget film. Other nominees in the best actress category include Charlize Theron for Monster, Ziyi Zhang for House of Flying Daggers and UK star Kate Winslet, who has two nods for her roles in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Finding Neverland.

DiCaprio faces competition from Bernal, Jamie Foxx, Jim Carrey and Johnny Depp in the best actor category. And British actor Clive Owen is hoping to repeat his Golden Globe success with a best supporting actor award for his role in Closer. His co-star Natalie Portman is up against Blanchett, Heather Craney, Julie Cristie and Meryl Streep in the best supporting actress category. Mike Leigh is up for the best director award for Vera Drake, alongside Martin Scorsese for The Aviator, Michael Mann for Collateral, Michel Gondry for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Marc Forster for Finding Neverland.
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Aviator 'creator' in Oscars snub	"The man who said he got Oscar-nominated movie The Aviator off the ground and signed up Leonardo DiCaprio has been shut out of the Academy Awards race.

Charles Evans Jr battled over his role with the people who eventually made the film, and won a producer's credit. But he is not on the list of producers who can win a best film Oscar due to a limit on the number of nominees. The Oscars organisers have picked two of The Aviator's four producers to be nominated for best film.

Up to three producers can be named per film but the studios behind The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby failed to trim their credits - so the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (Ampas) has done it for them. The Aviator's nominated producers are Michael Mann and Graham King - with Mr Evans and Sandy Climan, Mr Mann's former deputy, left off. Mr Evans sued Mr Mann in 2001, claiming he came up with the idea, spent years developing it and persuaded DiCaprio to play Hughes - but said he was later excluded from the project. The two sides settled out of court in a deal that has remained secret apart from the fact Mr Evans' name has appeared as a producer when the film's credits roll. At the Golden Globes, Mr Evans - who was named among the winners when the film won best drama film - evaded a security guard to have his photo taken with DiCaprio, director Martin Scorsese, Mr Mann and Mr King.

Ampas decided to limit the number of producers who could be nominated after Shakespeare in Love's victory in 1999 saw five producers collect awards. The eligible names for The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby were decided by Ampas' producers branch executive committee on Wednesday. The decision also saw Clint Eastwood get his third personal nomination for Million Dollar Baby. He is now named in the best film category as well as being nominated for best director and best lead actor. The Academy Awards ceremony will be held in Hollywood on 27 February. Chinese actress Ziyi Zhang, star of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero and House of Flying Daggers, is the latest name to be added to the list of presenters on the night.
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Wine comedy up for six film gongs	"Sideways, a wine-tasting comedy starring Paul Giamatti, is up for six Independent Spirit Awards, the art-house version of the Oscars.

The awards are held on 26 February, the day before the Oscars. Spanish drama Maria Full of Grace, about a Colombian woman who becomes a drug courier, got five nominations. Controversial biopic Kinsey, starring Liam Neeson as sex researcher Alfred Kinsey, was one of four films to get four nominations. The awards, now in their 20th year, honour quirky low-budget films, all of which must have a degree of independent financing. Sideways is written and directed by Alexander Payne, who directed the 2002 hit About Schmidt, winning Jack Nicholson his 12th Academy Award nomination.

""These awards, for better or worse, mean everything,"" said Sideways producer Michael London, adding they were a ""huge first step"" toward getting recognition from other awards. Among the other films receiving four nominations apiece were Brother to Brother, a drama about a young gay black man forced to live on the streets, Robbing Peter and Primer. Primer, a $7,000 (£3,650) tale of discovery, won top prize at the Sundance film festival earlier this year. Walter Salles critically acclaimed The Motorcycle Diaries and the forthcoming thriller The Woodsman, starring Kevin Bacon, received three nominations each. Also in the running, with two nominations, are high school comedy Napoleon Dynamite, The Door in the Floor and Garden State - written, directed and starring Scrubs star Zach Braff alongside Natalie Portman. The awards were announced by actors Selma Blair and Dennis Quaid in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
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No ads for Passion Oscar campaign	"Producer Mel Gibson will not be using paid advertisements to promote The Passion of the Christ to voters in next year's Academy Awards.

Gibson and his Icon Productions partner Bruce Davey said they would not be campaigning in print, radio or TV for success at the Oscars in February. ""This film should be judged on its artistic merit, not who spends more money on advertising,"" Davey said. But DVDs will be sent to Oscar voters, who will be invited to screenings. Icon spent very little on advertising the film, which deals with the last hours of Jesus Christ's life, when it was released earlier this year - instead, it made the film available for special screenings at churches. It went on to gross over $600m (£322m) in ticket sales worldwide. Over recent years, marketing films to the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has become a multi-million dollar industry. Last year, the academy formed a committee to tighten the rules after the campaigns spilled over into personal attacks between studios. Academy president Frank Pierson praised Gibson's move for working to restore the Oscars as a ""celebration and appreciation of excellence,"" and resisting the ""crass commercialisation that was threatening the integrity of the award"".
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Berlin honours S Korean director	"South Korean film director Im Kwon-Taek has received an honorary Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.

Im, who has made more than 100 films in a 40-year career, was hailed for his ""remarkable visual beauty, technical innovation, and intellectual depth"". Twenty of his films are screening in a special retrospective during the festival, which runs until 20 February. The veteran film-maker, 68, won the best director prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2002 for Chihwaseon. ""Although his films vary in style, they all bear his unmistakable stamp: they are forceful and charged cinematographically, as well as reticent, stylised and musical,"" organisers said in a statement. Meanwhile, a film version of Bizet's opera Carmen - translated into the South African language Xhosa - has received a warm reception at the festival. U-Carmen eKhayelitsha (Carmen in Khayelitsha), which is one of 21 films up for Berlin's top prize, the Golden Bear, is British director Mark Dornford-May's first feature film. ""It's the first time any opera has been translated into a black South African language. Xhosa works brilliantly, it's such a musical language,"" said music director Charles Hazlewood.
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Stars pay tribute to actor Davis	"Hollywood stars including Spike Lee, Burt Reynolds and Oscar nominee Alan Alda have paid tribute to actor Ossie Davis at a funeral in New York.

Veteran star Ossie Davis, a well-known civil rights activist, died in Miami at the age of 87 on 4 February 2005. Friends and family, including actress Ruby Dee his wife of 56 years, gathered at the Riverside Church on Saturday. Also present at the service was former US president Bill Clinton and singer Harry Belafonte, who gave the eulogy. ""He would have been a very good president of the United States,"" said Mr Clinton. ""Like most of you here, he gave more to me than I gave to him.""

The 87-year-old was found dead last weekend in his hotel room in Florida, where he was making a film. Police said that he appeared to have died of natural causes. Davis made his acting debut in 1950 in No Way Out starring Sidney Poiter. He frequently collaborated with director Spike Lee, starring in seven Lee films including Jungle Fever, Do The Right Thing and Malcolm X. Attallah Shabazz, the daughter of activist Malcolm X, recalled the famous eulogy delivered by Davis at her father's funeral. ""Harlem has come to bid farewell to one of its finest hopes,"" she said, quoting the man she knew as Uncle Ossie. ""Ditto."" ""Ossie was my hero, and he still is,"" said Aviator star Alan Alda, a family friend for over forty years. ""Ossie was a thing of beauty.""

""I want so badly someday to have his dignity - a little of it anyway,"" added Burt Reynolds, Davis's co-star in the 90s TV comedy Evening Shade. Before the midday funeral, scores of Harlem residents formed a queue outside the church to pay their respects to Davis. ""It is hard to fathom that we will no longer be able to call on his wisdom, his humour, his loyalty and his moral strength to guide us in the choices that are yet to be made and the battles that are yet to be fought,"" said Belafonte, himself an ardent civil rights activist who had been friends with Davis for over 60 years. ""But how fortunate we were to have him as long as we did.""
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US actor Ossie Davis found dead	"US actor Ossie Davis has been found dead at the age of 87.

Davis, who was married to actress Ruby Dee, was found dead on Friday in his hotel room in Miami Beach, Florida, where he was making a film. Davis, whose 65-year career included credits as a producer, director, actor and writer for stage and screen, was also a civil rights activist. Miami Beach police spokesman Bobby Hernandez said the cause of death appeared to be natural.

Davis's body was discovered by his grandson and paramedics at the Shore Club hotel in Miami Beach, where the actor had been shooting the film Retirement. Mr Hernandez said: ""After gaining entry, they found Mr Davis had passed away. ""The cause of death appears to be natural. According to his grandson he was suffering from heart disease."" Some of Davis's best known roles included The Joe Louis Story and Gone Are the Days - a film he adapted from his own play, Purlie Victorious. He also appeared in 7 Spike Lee movies, including School Daze, Do the Right Thing and Jungle Fever.

His film debut, in 1950, was in the film No Way Out, starring Sydney Poitier and Ruby Dee. Davis and Dee were married for more than 56 years and together received Kennedy Center honours in 2004 for their body of work. The Actors' Equity Association issued a statement calling Davis ""an icon in the American theatre"" and he and Dee ""American treasures"". Davis was also a prominent figure in the civil rights movement and was a voice for racial equality. He was a featured speaker at the funerals of both Martin Luther King Jnr and Malcolm X. Besides Dee, Davis is survived by three children Nora, Hasna and Guy, a blues artist, and seven grandchildren.
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Jugnot 'tops French actor league'	"Actor Gerard Jugnot - star of the Oscar-nominated film The Chorus - has beaten Gerard Depardieu to become France's best-paid actor of 2004.

Jugnot made 5.45m Euros (£3.77m) last year, according to a table drawn up by France's Le Figaro newspaper. In The Chorus (Les Choristes), Jugnot plays an inspiring music teacher at a school for troubled boys in 1949. Despite starring in five films in 2004, Depardieu made 3.35m Euros (£2.31m) putting him third place in the chart. ""His name [Depardieu] is no longer sufficient to guarantee the success of a film,"" said Le Figaro newspaper. The Chorus, which Jugnot also co-produced, has drawn an audience of nearly nine million people since its release last year.

Godzilla star Jean Reno was France's second best-paid actor in 2004, earning 3.55m Euros (£2.45m) . His roles include a recent uncredited cameo in the Oscar-nominated Hotel Rwanda. The highest-ranking woman on Le Figaro's list was Audrey Tautou in 10th place, earning 885,000 Euros (£611,000). She starred in Jean-Pierre Jeunet's A Very Long Engagement (Un Long Dimanche de Fiancailles) and is also lined up to co-star with Tom Hanks in Ron Howard's The Da Vinci Code. The Chorus is nominated for best foreign film at Sunday's Oscar ceremony. On Saturday, it will compete for the title of best film against fellow nominee A Very Long Engagement in France's Cesar film awards.
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Howl helps boost Japan's cinemas	"Japan's box office received a 3.8% boost last year, with ticket sales worth 211bn yen (£1.08bn).

The surge was led by animated movie Howl's Moving Castle, which took 20bn yen (£102m) to become the biggest film in Japan in 2004. It is expected to match the 30.7bn yen (£157m) record of Hayao Miyazaki's previous film Spirited Away. Japan Motion Picture Producers figures showed that 170 million cinema admissions were made in Japan in 2004. The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise, was the biggest foreign movie hit in Japan last year, taking 13.8bn yen (£70.7m).

It was followed by Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Finding Nemo and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The second highest-grossing Japanese film was romantic drama Crying Out Love in the Centre of the World, followed by Be With You and Pocket Monsters Advanced Generation. Japanese films accounted for 37.5% of Japan's box office total last year, with foreign films taking the remaining 62.5%. This represented a 4.5% gain for the proportion of Japanese films in 2004 compared to 2003. The number of Japanese films released rose to 310 in 2004 from 287 the previous year. Sales of movies on DVD and video amounted to 497bn yen (£2.54bn) for the year.
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Berlin applauds Hotel Rwanda	"Political thriller Hotel Rwanda was given a rousing reception by spectators at the Berlin Film Festival on Saturday.

The movie's star Don Cheadle also received a standing ovation when he stepped onto the stage after the show. The film is the true story of the hotel manager who saved 1,200 Tutsis from death during the Rwandan genocide. The film, showing out of competition in Berlin, is nominated for three Oscars, including best actor for Cheadle. Sophie Okonedo, who plays Cheadle's wife Tatiana, is nominated for best supporting actress. The film is also in the running for best original screenplay. Cheadle, was joined on stage at Berlin by Paul Rusesabagina, the hotel manager he plays in the film, Mr Rusesabagina's wife and his extended family, who fled Rwanda and now live in Belgium. Mr Rusesabagina used his influence as a prominent Hutu businessman to shelter potential victims of the Rwandan genocide, contacting dignitaries including Bill Clinton, the King of Belgium as well as the French foreign ministry. Hotel Rwanda is one of two films addressing the genocide at the 55th Berlin Film Festival, which runs until 20 February. Sometimes in April is a feature by Raoul Peck competing for the festival's coveted Golden and Silver Bear awards. The film was made exclusively in Rwanda whereas Hotel Rwanda was shot mostly in South Africa, with some scenes made in Kigali.
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'Landmark movies' of 2004 hailed	"US film professionals have declared Fahrenheit 9/11 and The Passion of the Christ as two of the most significant cultural milestones of 2004.

The American Film Institute (AFI) hailed Mel Gibson's biblical epic and Michael Moore's political documentary as inspiring national debate. It claimed both film-makers ""tossed Hollywood convention out the window"". The Institute also cited the death of actor Marlon Brando and the changing landscape of TV news in the US. In referring to Marlon Brando's death on 1 July at the age of 80, the 13-strong AFI jury concluded ""the art of screen acting has two chapters - 'Before Brando' and 'After Brando'.

It credited the screen legend's ""raw hypnotic energy"" and his ability to create characters like Stanley Kowalski and Terry Malloy ""that will live forever in the annals of film history"". The list also acknowledges key influences and trends in the world of film and broadcasting. Among current trends, it highlighted the final broadcasts of veteran newscasters Tom Brokaw, Barbara Walters and the impending retirement of CBS news anchor Dan Rather. It its place, the AFI fears, is a news landscape where ""newscasters are more personalities than journalists"" and balance and integrity are increasingly ignored.

The AFI also questioned ""the long-term viability of evening news broadcasts"", in the light of 24-hour news channels and the internet. The list also draws attention to the growing influence of US broadcasting regulator, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

The institute concluded the threat of regulation, which went into freefall following Janet Jackson's 'wardrobe malfunction' during a live Super Bowl performance in February, ""had a profound effect on television"". ""Unsure of how the FCC will rule on an issue, the creative community has begun to self-censor their shows, a disturbing trend in a country founded on free expression,"" the AFI jury declared. To illustrate their point, the AFI cited ABC affiliates refusal to air Steven Spielberg's film Saving Private Ryan in an unedited form over fears of possible fines.
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De Niro film leads US box office	"Film star Robert De Niro has returned to the top of the North American box office with his film Hide and Seek.

The thriller shot straight to the number one spot after taking $22m (£11.7m) at the box office. De Niro recently spent three weeks at the top with comedy Meet The Fockers, which was at number five this week. Oscar hopefuls The Aviator, Million Dollar Baby and Sideways all cashed in on their multiple nominations with stronger ticket sales.

In Hide and Seek, De Niro plays a widower whose daughter has a creepy imaginary friend. Despite lukewarm reviews from critics, the film took more than the expected $18m (£9.5m). ""The element of a real actor in a psychological thriller certainly elevated it,"" said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic distribution at 20th Century Fox. Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby led the Oscar hopefuls with $11.8m (£6.3m), coming in at number three during its first weekend of wide release. The Aviator, a film biography of Howard Hughes that leads the Oscar field with 11 nominations, was at number six for the weekend with $7.5m (£4m). Oscar best-picture nominee Sideways entered the top ten for the first time in its 15th week of release. It came in seventh $6.3 (£3.35m). Last week's top film, Ice Cube's road-trip comedy Are We There Yet?, slipped to second place with $17m (£9m), while Coach Carter fell two places to number four, taking $8m (£4.25m) in its third week. Rounding out the top ten were In Good Company - starring Dennis Quaid and Scarlett Johansson - Racing Stripes and Assault on Precinct 13.
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Willis sues over movie 'injury'	"Actor Bruce Willis is suing Revolution Studios over an injury he said he suffered while making Tears of the Sun.

Willis is seeking medical expenses after he said he was hit in the head by a firework during the filming of the 2002 movie, produced by the firm. The lawsuit said the star has endured mental and physical injuries as a result of the alleged incident. ""We are not able to comment on pending litigation,"" Revolution Studios spokesman Sean Dudas said.

In Tears of the Sun Willis plays a US military commander who disobeys orders to try and help save a doctor and patients trapped in the Nigerian jungle. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film was poorly received by critics and did not perform strongly at the box office. According to the lawsuit, the injury was suffered during the firing of explosions as part of a special effect. The explosions, known as squibs, were intended to ""simulate the appearance of bullets striking the ground"". The lawsuit said Willis has endured ""extreme mental, physical and emotional pain and suffering."" There were no specific details on the injuries. While Willis does not seek specific monetary damages, the lawsuit noted that the star ""was required to and did employ physicians and other medical personnel"". It stated he will incur additional future medical expenses. The lawsuit said Revolution Studios and special effects foreman Joe Pancake ""had a duty to Willis to ensure that the squibs were inspected, set up, placed and detonated in a safe manner, and to employ technicians who were trained and competent in their use"".
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Foxx and Swank win US awards	"Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank have won the Screen Actors Guild Awards for best male and female film actors, boosting their Oscars hopes this month.

Foxx's portrayal of late soul-singer Ray Charles in Ray had already earned him a prestigious Golden Globe award. Swank triumphed for playing a gutsy female boxer in Million Dollar Baby. Modest wine country comedy Sideways knocked out favourites Million Dollar Baby and The Aviator by taking the top prize for best cast performance.

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) represents US film and TV actors. Its winners often go on to win Oscars. In other nominations, Cate Blanchett triumphed as the best supporting actress for her role as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator. Veteran actor Morgan Freeman took the best supporting actor award for playing a prize-fighter turned gym manager in Million Dollar Baby.

""Thank you for Ray Charles for just living so complex and so interesting, and making us all just come together,"" said Foxx, accepting his award in Los Angeles on Saturday.

He also praised the film director: ""Thank you for Taylor Hackford for taking a chance with an African-American film. Taylor, you're my director of the year."" Swank, too, was full of praise for her director and co-star Clint Eastwood. ""I bow down to you,"" Swank said to the 74-year-old Eastwood. ""You are a talent beyond compare. If I'm half the person you are and half the talent you are when I'm 74, I will know that I've accomplished something great.""

Both Foxx and Swank are now considered to be among the favourites to get Oscars - the Hollywood's ultimate prize. However, Swank has to overcome a strong challenge from Annette Bening, a nominee for the theatre farce Being Julia. Meanwhile, ballots for Oscars - the Hollywood's top honours - were mailed earlier this week to members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The voting is due to end on 22 February - five days before the ceremony.
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Spike Lee backs student directors	"Film-maker Spike Lee says black representation is stronger than ever in cinema and TV but the true power in entertainment lies behind the camera.

The She Hate Me director urged students at his old Atlanta university, Morehouse College, to seek ""gatekeeper positions"" behind the scenes. Lee told them to ""work up the corporate ladder because everybody can't be an actor, everybody can't make a record"". He spoke as part of a discussion panel, then led a retrospective of his films.

Returning to his old university, which educates only African American students, Lee discussed the challenges facing black people in the entertainment industry. ""Even Denzel (Washington), he's getting $20m a movie. But when it comes time to do a movie, he has to go to one of those gatekeepers,"" Lee said. He told aspiring young film-makers in the audience not to ignore non-traditional routes to getting a movie made, including raising funds independently and releasing films straight to DVD. ""It's a huge market,"" the 47-year-old director said. ""It's not something that should be looked upon as a stepchild."" Lee has made more than 25 films, including Jungle Fever, Do the Right Thing, Summer of Sam and 1986 hit She's Gotta Have It.
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Horror film heads US box office	"A low-budget horror film produced by Evil Dead director Sam Raimi has topped the North American box office.

Boogeyman, which focuses on a man who returns to his childhood home to confront his traumatic past, took $19.5m (£14.9m) in three days. Last week's chart-topper, the Robert de Niro thriller Hide and Seek, fell to number four. Other new entries included The Wedding Date, a comedy starring Will and Grace's Debra Messing, at number two.

The road-trip comedy Are We There Yet? and multiple Oscar nominee Million Dollar Baby completed the top five. Other Oscar contenders, including The Aviator and Sideways, continued to perform strongly at the box office. The Aviator has taken $75m (£40m) so far, while Sideways has taken $46.8m (£24.8m) in a more limited release.

Boogeyman, which cost just $7m (£3.5m) to make, performed well even though it was not screened to critics before release - normally a sign that a film will get bad reviews or perform poorly at the box office. ""I certainly believe it's a genre where people are going to be more moved by the marketing materials for the movie than by what the critics say,"" said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony Pictures, which released the film in the US. Overall the weekend box office was strong despite the fact that it was American football's Super Bowl weekend - a time when cinema admissions generally fall. This year, the top 12 films grossed around $91m (£48.3m), compared to 2004's Super Bowl weekend when the total box office was $73.4m (£38.9m).
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Mumbai bombs movie postponed	"The release of a film about the Mumbai (Bombay) blasts in 1993 has been postponed following protests by those on trial for the bombings.

Investigating the blasts which killed more than 250 people and wounded 1,000, the film Black Friday had been due to open across India on Friday. But 36 people accused in connection with the blasts said it should not be screened until the trial is over. Mumbai High Court postponed the film's launch until 3 February.

Black Friday is based upon the novel of the same name written by journalist S Hussain Zaidi, which looks at the 15 explosions which rocked Mumbai on 12 March 1993. Director Anurag Kashyap said the film's release should not be delayed as the book has already been on sale for two years. ""If you have not gone against the book, then how can you go against the movie?"" Mr Kashyap's lawyer Mihir Desai said. This is the second time that those accused in connection with the blasts have sought legal intervention regarding the film.

They previously asked that a line from the movie's poster, which claimed the film portrayed ""the true story of the Bombay bomb blasts"", be removed. Their lawyer, Majeed Memon, said: ""We had argued that how can a film say it is telling the true story when the court itself is struggling to find the truth? ""So we said they should remove the line from their promotional posters and they did give us an assurance that they would do so."" The Mumbai bombings case is one of India's longest-running trials. A special court was set up to hear the case and regular hearings have taken place there for the last nine years, with more than six hundred witnesses questioned.
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DVD review: I, Robot	"Only one man recognises that robots are a threat to humanity - but that's fine because it only takes one man to save the day in the thriller I, Robot.

Will Smith co-stars alongside more CGI robots than you can count and as a thrill-a-minute kind of action film, it's perfectly adequate. You'll have forgotten it all tomorrow but you'll have a fun night with the film and all the extras. There is a one-disc version that has commentaries and a Making Of but the two-disc adds more. Unusually for this kind of film, the extras don't solely concentrate on the special effects. They're covered but there's also a general Production Diary and a Post-Production feature.

Remember the National Lottery's draw machines Arthur and Guinevere? They were more accurate than this glossy Hollywood version of the tale.

But as long as you're not expecting a documentary, live with it: King Arthur is a fun, exciting, totally shallow experience and looks excellent. Clive Owen is the brooding king, Keira Knightly rises above her costume and Ray Winstone gives it all some grit. It's at its best in its battle scenes which are well done and are also the best part of the Making Of extra.

Less flashy than a David Attenborough show and less detailed than a Simon Schama one, the BBC series British Isles nevertheless turned out to be quite engrossing. Admit it, the fact that this is one of the shows Alan Titchmarsh left Ground Force to present did mean that you expected something equally frothy. But Titchmarsh turns out to know his subject and the sight of our present-day landscape being peeled back to reveal the past was fascinating. He's now written an accompanying book, too.
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Brando 'rejected Godfather role'	"Late film star Marlon Brando is said to have repeatedly turned down his Oscar-winning role in The Godfather.

The actor's friend Budd Schulberg told Vanity Fair magazine that Brando's assistant suggested he read the novel. The actor repeatedly refused, throwing the book at her and saying: ""For the last time, I won't glorify the mafia"". But Brando, who died last July at the age of 80, eventually took the role of Don Corleone, winning him an Oscar in 1973 which he notoriously refused. The actor sent a young woman dressed in Native American costume to refuse the award on his behalf and to draw attention to the plight of Native Americans.

Schulberg told the magazine that Brando's assistant realised the film star had warmed to the idea of The Godfather role when he sported a drawn-on pencil moustache and asked: ""How do I look?"" His assistant, Alice Marchak, said that he looked like George Raft, an actor famed for playing gangsters on the silver screen. Every time she went to see Brando from then on, she added, he was wearing a different gangster-style moustache. Brando was asked to screen test for the role in The Godfather, as studio executives were said to be reluctant for the actor to play the part following problems on the set of Brando's previous film Mutiny on the Bounty . In fact Brando's Academy Award triumph revived his career. The actor was nominated for an Oscar the following year for his role in Bernardo Bertolucci's Last Tango in Paris. Before his death, Brando granted gaming company Electronic Arts the rights to use his voice and image in a video game based on the Godfather film and book and recorded voice-overs which closely resembled his role as Don Corleone. Brando's co-stars from The Godfather, James Caan and Robert Duvall, will also reprise their roles for the video game, it was confirmed on Wednesday.
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Dutch watch Van Gogh's last film	"The last film to be made by the slain Dutch director Theo van Gogh, called 06/05, has been premiered in The Hague.

Members of Van Gogh's family and celebrities attended the screening of 06/05, based on the murder of the anti-immigration politician Pim Fortuyn. Van Gogh was shot and stabbed to death in Amsterdam six weeks ago. A Dutch-Moroccan man suspected of radical Islamist links has been charged. The killing, and Fortuyn's death in 2002, convulsed the Netherlands. Many Dutch people have questioned their country's self-image as a peaceful, tolerant nation in the wake of the murders, which triggered heated debate about immigration.

An animal rights activist was sentenced to 18 years in prison last year for killing Fortuyn. Earlier this year, Van Gogh made a film accusing Islam of promoting violence against women. It caused outrage among Muslims and death threats were made against him. The film 06/05 will become available on the internet on Wednesday and go on general release in Dutch cinemas in January. Van Gogh's movie mixes real images of the day of Fortuyn's murder with a fictional plot about Dutch intelligence services conspiring to silence the politician. The story unfolds through the eyes of a freelance photographer who unwittingly takes pictures revealing the involvement of Dutch authorities in Fortuyn's murder. Photographer Jim de Booy then goes on the run from secret service agents who burgle his home and threaten his family.
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Berlin hails European cinema	"Organisers say this year's Berlin Film Festival, which opens on Thursday with period epic Man to Man, will celebrate a revitalised European cinema.

Of the 21 films in competition for the Golden and Silver Bear awards, more than half are from Europe with France particularly well represented. Festival director Dieter Kosslick says this strong showing signals ""a new consciousness for European films"". ""They're on an incredible winning streak,"" he told the Reuters agency. ""This isn't to say there aren't any good American films,"" he continued. ""It's just that there are more good European films.""

However, Mr Kosslick refused to accept that widespread opposition to the Iraq war had turned audiences against Hollywood imports. ""There is no anti-American mood,"" he said. Some 350 films will be screened at this year's festival, with a further 300 shown at the European Film Market that runs alongside it. More than a dozen celebrities are scheduled to attend, among them Will Smith, Kevin Spacey and Keanu Reeves. But Mr Kosslick says more would be coming had the Academy Awards not been brought forward to 27 February. ""I'm not worried that we won't be able to fill the red carpet with stars,"" he said, though he admitted the festival may be moved to January next year to avoid a similar clash. The 10-day Berlinale runs until 20 February.
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Sky takes over Oscar night mantle	"Sky has signed a major new deal to broadcast this year's Academy Awards, taking over from three years of live Oscar coverage on the BBC.

Sky said it was ""honoured to have won exclusive broadcasting rights"" and promised to cover the event ""in a way no other broadcaster could"". The BBC denied it had lost a bidding war, saying it had ""decided to pass the mantle to another broadcaster"". The ceremony, hosted by newcomer Chris Rock, takes place on 27 February 2005.

Sky's coverage will launch with the nominations on 25 January and will include themed programming across Sky channels including Sky News, Sky Travel and the Biography Channel. There will also be a month-long season of Oscar-winning films on Sky Movies in the run up to the event and live uninterrupted coverage on the night. ""We are honoured to have won the live and exclusive broadcasting rights for The Academy Awards,"" said Sky Networks' Sophie Turner Laing. ""Sky is the natural place to see the biggest and most prestigious film event of the year, and will cover the event in a way that no other broadcaster could.""

Sky first scooped Oscar rights from the BBC in 1999, but the BBC won them back in 2001 when Sky was forced to pull out of a bidding war due to financial constraints. ""BBC viewers will of course be able to watch quality coverage of the 2005 Academy Awards on the BBC's bulletins and news programmes,"" a spokesman said. Among the films tipped to do well at this year's Academy Awards are Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, Jean-Pierre Jeunet's A Very Long Engagement and the Ray Charles biopic, Ray.
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Snicket tops US box office chart	"The film adaptation of Lemony Snicket novels has topped the North America box office chart, displacing Ocean's 12.

A Series of Unfortunate Events, starring Jim Carrey, took $30.2m (£15.5m) in its debut weekend. Ocean's 12 fell to number two while new entry Spanglish entered the chart at number three, taking $9m (£4.6m). A Series of Unfortunate Events also stars Scottish comedian Billy Connelly, while Carrey takes on a number of different roles in the surreal film. The only other new entry in the top 10 was re-make, Flight of the Phoenix, at number eight, starring Dennis Quaid. Carrey entertained crowds at the UK premiere of Lemony Snicket in London on Friday. The actor grabbed co-star Meryl Streep and whisked her around Leicester Square. Based on the cult children's books by author Daniel Handler, the film follows three children who are orphaned when their parents die in a fire. They are taken in by their wicked uncle Count Olaf, played by Carrey, who schemes to get his hands on their fortune.
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Director Nair's Vanity project	"Indian film director Mira Nair has said she was thrilled to be given the chance to make William Makepeace Thackeray's novel Vanity Fair - as the book has been a favourite through her life.

The book is one of the classics of English literature - the story of scheming 19th Century social climber Becky Sharp, played in the film by Reese Witherspoon. Nair said that she jumped at the chance to work on the film, which she has - controversially - made in a Bollywood style, including two song-and-dance routines in the film's second half. ""It was serendipity really - I was offered Vanity Fair by the studio Focus Features, who had distributed Monsoon Wedding,"" Nair told BBC World Service's Masterpiece programme. ""They offered me their next-best thing, not realising that Vanity Fair had actually been one of my favourite novels since I was 16 years old in an Irish Catholic boarding school in India.""

Since her 1988 debut feature Salaam Bombay! - nominated for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and winner of Best First Feature at Cannes - Nair has become one of India's most famous and respected directors. She is not restricted to Bollywood, however - she followed Salaam Bombay! with Mississippi Masala, starring Denzel Washington, and The Perez Family, her first Hollywood film.

Her career peaked with Monsoon Wedding in 2001, which won the Golden Lion award at Venice. Nair's Indian-style adaptation of Vanity Fair, however, has been attacked by critics in the US - where it only reached number eight at the box office in its opening week - who described the Bollywood elements as ""jarring."" The film has a new ending, with Becky Sharp running off for a new life in India. But Nair said that her film had picked up on the way Thackeray - who was born in India but moved to England as a young man - had seen the world. ""First, when I was 16, it was Becky Sharp, who is a completely memorable character, because I recognised myself in her - I recognised all the ladies who did not want to be ladies, who wanted to buck the system that they were in,"" she said. ""But it was the sort of novel I somehow kept at the side of my bed for many years, and I would dip into every now and then and suddenly get completely mesmerised again. ""As I got older and read it, I think it was Thackeray's clarity - his clear-sightedness about his own society, the fact that he was born in India but came to England as a young man - that gave him the eyes of an outsider, and yet he was an insider. ""That perspective was something I really loved.""

Nair also defended her decision to cast an American actress - Reese Witherspoon - as Becky Sharp, despite the fact that all the rest of the cast are British or Irish. ""I cast intuitively - in my films I cast as many non-actors as I cast actors,"" she said. ""For me, it is intuition - I have to fall in love with an actor. It is a visceral response.

""Thackeray describes Becky Sharp as a minx. Also she's described as someone who's tiny, red-headed and thin. Reese had that completely minx-like irresistibility about her."" Having won the role because she seemed physically perfectly suited to the part, however, Witherspoon then became pregnant. But Nair said that, though this had created the need for some filming tricks, it had in fact also helped the film. ""It was a self-fulfilling prophesy - when I first met her husband [actor Ryan Philippe], I said 'knock her up, won't you, I need some flesh on the girl',"" she joked. ""I'm not a fan of the underfed Los Angeles actor at all. This was, for me, about Becky Sharp being, eventually, a full-blown woman through the course of the film. ""I love the luminosity that pregnancy brings, I love the fleshiness, I love the ample bosom - it gave me much more to play with."" Nair explained how camera tricks had been used to disguise Witherspoon's ""bump"" in various scenes - including hiring a number of young boys in costumes to stand in front of her. ""She runs, she gets off coal carts, she jumps off horses - she does everything,"" Nair said. ""But there's also a certain carriage with horses that is going to wipe the screen at a certain moment, because of the bump.""
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Spirit awards hail Sideways	"The comedy Sideways has dominated this year's Independent Spirit Awards, winning all six of the awards for which it was nominated.

It was named best film while Alexander Payne won best director and best screenplay, along with writing partner Jim Taylor. It also won acting awards for stars Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen. Sideways is tipped to do well at Sunday's Oscars, with five nominations.

The awards, now in their 20th year, are given to films made outside the traditional studio system, and are traditionally held the day before the Oscars. Other winners included Catalina Sandino Moreno, who took best actress for her role as a drug smuggler in the Colombian drama Maria Full of Grace. Moreno is also nominated for best actress at the Oscars. The best first screenplay award went to Joshua Marston for Maria Full of Grace. Scrubs star Zach Braff won the award for best first feature for Garden State, which he wrote, directed and starred in. Oscar-nominated euthanasia film The Sea Inside from Spain won best foreign film, while Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster was awarded best documentary. Actor Rodrigo de la Serna took the best debut performance prize for The Motorcycle Diaries. The awards are voted for by the 9,000 members of the Independent Feature Project/Los Angeles, which includes actors, directors, writers and other industry professionals. Last year's big winner, Lost In Translation, went on to win the Oscar for best original screenplay, for writer-director Sofia Coppola.
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Tautou film tops Cesar prize nods	"French film A Very Long Engagement has received 12 nominations for France's Cesar film awards, despite a recent ruling it was ""not French enough"".

The World War I romantic drama starring Audrey Tautou, was recently ruled ""too American"" by a Paris court as it was partially backed by Warner Bros. But the Cesar organisers modified their rules to allow the film to compete. The film, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, received best actress, picture and director nominations.

Last November a court judged the film was too American to compete in French film festivals. Two associations of French producers challenged Jeunet's right to French government subsidies, because Warner Bros was a backer. The ruling meant the movie - which was filmed in France and used French actors and technicians - was not eligible to compete for French prizes. But Alain Terzian, president of Cesar organisers, the Academie des Arts et Techniques du Cinema, said the changes in eligibility rules, which allow films ""of French expression"", were made three months prior to the court decision. Other films in the best film category include Police drama 36, Quai Des Orfevres, Arnaud Desplechin's Kings And Queen, Abdellatif Kechiche's L'Esquive and France's number one film at the 2004 box-office The Chorus.

Best actors are Daniel Auteuil for 36, Mathieu Amalric for Kings And Queen, Gerard Jugnot for The Chorus, Philippe Torreton for L'Equipier and Benoit Poelvoorde for Podium. Tautou will compete against Maggie Cheung , Emmanuelle Devos, Yolande Moreau and Karin Viard for best actress. Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11, The Motorcycle Diaries, Lost in Translation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and 21 Grams are all vying in the best foreign film prize. The awards ceremony will be held on 26 February. This year, Will Smith, star of I, Robot, Independence Day and Men In Black, will be given an honorary Cesar, along with French singer/actor, Jacques Dutronc.
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Hollywood ready for Oscars night	"Hollywood is preparing for the biggest night in the film world's calendar, the 77th Academy Awards, on Sunday.

A host of stars are expected to grace the red carpet outside Los Angeles' Kodak Theatre, including Johnny Depp, Cate Blanchett and Leonardo DiCaprio. British actors in attendance include nominees Clive Owen, Imelda Staunton, Kate Winslet and director Mike Leigh. The Aviator leads the shortlist, but critics believe the night may belong to Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby. A recent poll of US pundits found Eastwood's boxing drama had become the new favourite to win best film over the Howard Hughes biopic.

If the 74-year-old does win, he will become the oldest person ever to be named best director at the ceremony. UK critics still favour The Aviator for best film, but believe the best director title will generate a close fought battle between Eastwood and Martin Scorsese.

Scorsese has never won the best director prize, despite four previous nominations for films including Raging Bull, Goodfellas and Gangs of New York. Eastwood has won best director once before, for Unforgiven in 1993. Most experts predict the twice-nominated Jamie Foxx will win best actor for his portrayal of singer Ray Charles, while Vera Drake star Imelda Staunton looks likely to lose out in the best actress field to Hilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby. The UK's highest hopes remain with Clive Owen, who has scooped both the Golden Globe and the Bafta for his supporting role in Closer. Actor and comedian Chris Rock will host the event, which will be broadcast with a seven-second time delay to allow censors to cut out any unsuitable content.

""We have the bleep machine ready, but bleeps will be used as needed,"" producer Gil Cates told reporters. However, he added that he strongly disapproved of the growing tendency to censor live broadcasts on US TV.

He also played down fears that Rock, who is known for using strong language in his stand-up routines, might cause controversy on the night. The 40-year-old comic has already promised not to swear live on air during the show. ""Chris has a sense of humour and everything he says is really said humorously,"" Cates said. ""You need a movie star and someone who is a stand-up comic so they can deal with the vicissitudes of the show."" Security will also be tight, with police employing a system to detect sarin nerve gas. ""We are pulling out all the stops,"" said John Miller, chief of counterterrorism at the Los Angeles Police Department. The show is ""a symbol of American culture and has the potential to be a high-visibility target,"" he added. Meanwhile, organisers have erected a canopy over the red carpet following an outbreak of torrential rain in Los Angeles over the past week. Cates said the covers would be removed if the threat of wet weather receded. Details have also emerged of the contents of this year's gift bags, which are given to nominees and presenters on the night. This year's bags will include a gift certificate for a luxury beach resort, a pair of mink eyelashes and a kitchen set with a year's supply of tea and coffee. The event will be televised by the ABC network from 1700 local time (0100 GMT), and on Sky Movies in the UK from 0130 GMT.
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Animation charms Japan box office	"Oscar-winning director Hayao Miyazaki's latest film has set a new Japanese box office record, with 1.5bn yen ($14.3m) in two days, according to reports.

Howl's Moving Castle is the follow-up to Miyazaki's Spirited Away, which won best animation at last year's Oscars. It is based on the children's book by English writer Diana Wynne Jones. It has registered the highest opening weekend takings of any Japanese film in the country, according to trade publication Screen Daily.

The film is about an 18-year-old girl who is trapped in an old woman's body after being put under a spell by a witch. Its two-day takings represented 1.1 million cinema admissions, Screen Daily said. The film's distributor Toho expects 40 million people to see it in total - almost one third of the country's population - it added. The film won the Golden Osella for outstanding technical contribution at this year's Venice Film Festival.
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US box office set for record high	"Ticket sales at the US box office are predicted to break records this year, with figures expected to reach $9.4 billion, beating 2002's all-time high.

Overall figures could be dampened by the lack of a Christmas hit like last year's Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings. Traditionally, ticket sales during the festive season account for 20% of the annual total. Although admissions have actually fallen this year, the predicted high is down to increasing ticket prices. According to Exhibitor Relations President Paul Dergarabedian, the average cost of a cinema ticket could be as high as $6.25 in 2004, compared to $5.80 in 2002. This year some of the biggest hits such as The Passion of the Christ and Fahrenheit 9/11 came from outside the major studios which are usually responsible for the key blockbusters.

""Many of the films that did well (with audiences) are not necessarily the films that made a lot of money,"" said Mr Dergarabedian. He added that surprise hits had come from some of the more art-house offerings such as Napoleon Dynamite and critical hit Sideways. Sony Pictures, responsible for hits like Spiderman 2 and The Grudge, are expected to top domestic market share for the second time in three years, with $1 billion-plus in sales for the third consecutive year. Sony Pictures Entertainment vice chairman. Jeff Blake said: ""We had a really diverse slate this year, and... certainly we pulled off one of the surprises with Grudge."" Horror movie The Grudge cost Sony $10 million to make but brought in $110 million. It's the latest in a recent trend for Hollywood studios to back the upper and lower ends of the market, whilst ignoring the middle. Warner Inc are likely to end the year in second place on market share with around $1.25 billion, with Disney at number three.
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Low-budget film wins Cesar	"A film that follows a group of alienated youth in a Paris suburb as they prepare to perform an 18th Century play has won France's top cinema award.

L'Esquive earned a Cesar prize for its director, Tunisian-born Abdellatif Kechiche, and its young star, the 18-year-old actress Sara Forestier. It saw off competition from big-budget French epic, A Very Long Engagement, and the box-office hit, The Chorus. US film Lost in Translation won the award for best foreign feature. The wistful romantic comedy directed by Sofia Coppola has already won several awards, including an Oscar for best screenplay in 2004. Its late release in France made it a contender for this year's Cesars.

The low-budget L'Esquive depicts the travails of a group of youth getting ready to perform a school play by the 18th-Century dramatist, Marivaux. The actors are mostly amateurs and the action is set in the impoverished suburbs of Paris, home to thousands of immigrants from North Africa and their children. Kechiche said he made the film because he ""wanted to show people we don't normally see at the cinema"". A Very Long Engagement, a World War I drama featuring Audrey Tautou, won five Cesar awards. The Chorus, a film about a schoolteacher who introduces an unruly classroom to the pleasures of classical singing, won two awards - for best music and best sound. US actor Will Smith, who won an honorary award at the ceremony, thanked his family and his ""hero"", Nelson Mandela, in his speech.
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Tautou 'to star in Da Vinci film'	"French actress Audrey Tautou, star of hit film Amelie, will play the female lead in the film adaptation of The Da Vinci Code, it has been reported.

The movie version of Dan Brown's best-selling novel is being directed by Ron Howard and also stars Tom Hanks. Tautou will play Hanks' code-cracking partner, according to various newspapers. She is currently starring in A Very Long Engagement, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Jeunet was also responsible for directing Tautou in Amelie in 2001, which launched the actress into the mainstream.

She also starred as the lead role in critically-acclaimed film Dirty Pretty Things in 2002. Oscar-winning director Ron Howard chose Tautou for the part, preferring a French actress to a big name Hollywood star. UK actress Kate Beckinsale had been widely tipped as a possibility for the role alongside Vanessa Paradis and Juliette Binoche. The thriller upon which the movie is based has sold more than 17 million copies and is centred on a global conspiracy surrounding the Holy Grail mythology. The Louvre Museum, scene of the gruesome murder at the beginning of the novel, recently gave permission for filming to take place there, showbusiness newspaper Variety reported. The $100m movie will be produced by Columbia/Sony Pictures and is due for release on May 19, 2006 in the United States and France.
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Foxx and Swank take actors awards	"Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank have won the Screen Actors Guild Awards for best male and female film actors, boosting their Oscars hopes this month.

Foxx's portrayal of late soul-singer Ray Charles in Ray had already earned him a prestigious Golden Globe award. Swank triumphed for playing a gutsy female boxer in Million Dollar Baby. Modest wine country comedy Sideways knocked out favourites Million Dollar Baby and The Aviator by taking the top prize for best cast performance.

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) represents US film and TV actors. Its winners often go on to win Oscars. In other nominations, Cate Blanchett triumphed as the best supporting actress for her role as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator. Veteran actor Morgan Freeman took the best supporting actor award for playing a prize-fighter turned gym manager in Million Dollar Baby.

""Thank you for Ray Charles for just living so complex and so interesting, and making us all just come together,"" said Foxx, accepting his award in Los Angeles on Saturday.

He also praised the film director: ""Thank you for Taylor Hackford for taking a chance with an African-American film. Taylor, you're my director of the year."" Swank, too, was full of praise for her director and co-star Clint Eastwood. ""I bow down to you,"" Swank said to the 74-year-old Eastwood. ""You are a talent beyond compare. If I'm half the person you are and half the talent you are when I'm 74, I will know that I've accomplished something great.""

Both Foxx and Swank are now considered to be among the favourites to get Oscars - the Hollywood's ultimate prize. However, Swank has to overcome a strong challenge from Annette Bening, a nominee for the theatre farce Being Julia. Meanwhile, ballots for Oscars - the Hollywood's top honours - were mailed earlier this week to members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The voting is due to end on 22 February - five days before the ceremony.
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Children vote Shrek 2 best film	"Young UK film fans voted animated Hollywood hit Shrek 2 best film at the children's Bafta awards on Sunday.

More than 6,000 children voted in the only category chosen by fans. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, runner-up in the poll, was the choice of the Bafta experts who named it best feature film. BBC One Saturday morning show Dick and Dom In Da Bungalow won two awards - best entertainment and best presenters for Richard McCourt and Dominic Wood.

Former Playschool presenter Floella Benjamin was awarded the Special Award for outstanding creative contribution to children's film and television. She first appeared on Playschool 25 years ago and was made an OBE in 2001 for services to broadcasting. South American-themed cartoon Joko! Jakamoko! Toto! won the honour for pre-school animation and its writer Tony Collingwood for original writer. Debbie Isitt won the award for best adapted writer for her work with Jacqueline Wilson's The Illustrated Mum, which won the award for best schools drama.

Schools' Factual (primary) - Thinking Skills: Think About It - Hiding Places

Schools' Factual (secondary) - In Search of the Tartan Turban

Pre-School Live Action - Balamory

Animation - Brush Head

Drama - Featherboy

Factual - Serious Desert Interactive Bafta - King Arthur International category - 8 Simple Rules for Dating my Teenage Daughter
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UK debut for Kevin Spacey movie	"Hollywood stars Kevin Spacey and Kate Bosworth attended the British premiere of new film, Beyond the Sea, in London's Leicester Square on Thursday.

Spacey, 45, wrote, directed and starred in the film, inspired by the life of 1950s croooner Bobby Darin. ""This is my tribute to someone I think was a remarkable talent,"" said Spacey, who, as Darin, sings all 18 songs on the film soundtrack. Bosworth, 21, plays Darin's wife - real life Hollywood actress Sandra Dee. ""I knew absolutely nothing about Bobby Darin before this film, but now I'm a huge fan,"" said Bosworth, who attended the premiere with British boyfriend Orlando Bloom.

""There is darkness and tragedy in the story, and it was a dream for me to land this part."" Actress Sandra Dee continues to live in Los Angeles as a virtual recluse, but has given her approval to the biopic.

""She called me last week and said she loved it,"" said Spacey, who was joined at the premiere by members of the boy band Westlife. Spacey, a double Oscar-winner, has long been fascinated by the story of singer Bobby Darin. The voice behind Mack the Knife, Dream Lover and Beyond the Sea, fought childhood illness to become one the biggest stars of the 1950s, but died aged 37 from the heart condition that had troubled him all his life. ""Bobby Darin was one of the greatest entertainers the world has ever known, and yet, because he died young, he's been kind of forgotten,"" said Spacey at the premiere. ""Making this film was the most fun I've ever had in my entire life."" The movie also stars British actors Bob Hoskins and Brenda Blethyn, as Darin's mother.
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Box office blow for Alexander	"Director Oliver Stone's historical epic Alexander has failed in its bid to conquer the box office, entering the US film charts at number six.

The swords and sandals blockbuster, rumoured to have cost more than $150m (£79m) to make, earned just $13.5 (£7m) over three days at the US box office. Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, the film opened on Wednesday, bringing its total takings to $21.6m (£11.4m). Top of the box office for a second week was action movie National Treasure. The family adventure, starring Nicolas Cage, took $33.1m (£17.m), ahead of animated comedy The Incredibles - now in its fourth week in the charts - which took $24.1m (£12.7m).

Last week Oliver Stone's film met with scathing reviews from US critics. The film stars Irish actor Colin Farrell as one of history's most celebrated leaders - a relentless and arrogant warrior who conquered much of the known world by the age of 25. In particular, its portrayal of Alexander as a bisexual has met with a hostile reception and the threat of legal action from Greek lawyers. ""Though the battles have the blood-and-sinew bravado you expect from Oliver Stone, this three-hour buttnumbathon is hamstrung by a hectoring grandiosity,"" wrote one reviewer in Rolling Stone magazine. Others poured scorn on Farrell's bleached hair and Angelina Jolie's unwieldy accent, which Variety called ""a combination of Mata Hari and Count Dracula"" . But novelist Gore Vidal defended the film, saying it was ""barrier-breaking"" for its frank depiction of bisexuality.

In Sweden last Thursday, to pick up a lifetime achievement award at the Stockholm International Film Festival, Stone expressed the hope that Alexander might be better appreciated in Europe. ""One of the reasons I am being honoured here is Europeans tend to see me a little differently than they do in the US,"" said the director behind JFK, Platoon and Born on the Fourth of July. He added Alexander ""was not an easy movie, but then I've never made easy movies"".
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Ray DVD beats box office takings	"Oscar-nominated film biopic Ray has surpassed its US box office takings with a combined tally of $80m (£43m) from DVD and video sales and rentals.

Ray's success on DVD outstripped its $74m (£40m) US box office total, earning more than $40m (£22m) on the first day of the DVD's release alone. Ray has been nominated in six Oscar categories including best film and best actor for Jamie Foxx. The film recounts the life of blues singer Ray Charles, who died in 2004. In its first week on home entertainment release the film was the number one selling DVD, with the limited edition version coming in at number 11. Sony horror film The Grudge, starring Michelle Gellar, was the US' second best-selling DVD, with Jennifer Lopez and Richard Gere's romantic comedy Shall We Dance? at number three. Foxx's critically acclaimed performance as Ray has already earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award for best actor, as well as a prestigious Golden Globe. Ray director Taylor Hackford, responsible for the classic 1982 film An Officer and a Gentleman, has also received an Oscar nomination in the best director category. The film's three other Oscar nominations are for costume, film editing and sound mixing.
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Ocean's Twelve raids box office	"Ocean's Twelve, the crime caper sequel starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, has gone straight to number one in the US box office chart.

It took $40.8m (£21m) in weekend ticket sales, according to studio estimates. The sequel follows the master criminals as they try to pull off three major heists across Europe. It knocked last week's number one, National Treasure, into third place. Wesley Snipes' Blade: Trinity was in second, taking $16.1m (£8.4m). Rounding out the top five was animated fable The Polar Express, starring Tom Hanks, and festive comedy Christmas with the Kranks.

Ocean's Twelve box office triumph marks the fourth-biggest opening for a December release in the US, after the three films in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The sequel narrowly beat its 2001 predecessor, Ocean's Eleven which took $38.1m (£19.8m) on its opening weekend and $184m (£95.8m) in total. A remake of the 1960s film, starring Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack, Ocean's Eleven was directed by Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh. Soderbergh returns to direct the hit sequel which reunites Clooney, Pitt and Roberts with Matt Damon, Andy Garcia and Elliott Gould. Catherine Zeta-Jones joins the all-star cast. ""It's just a fun, good holiday movie,"" said Dan Fellman, president of distribution at Warner Bros. However, US critics were less complimentary about the $110m (£57.2m) project, with the Los Angeles Times labelling it a ""dispiriting vanity project"". A milder review in the New York Times dubbed the sequel ""unabashedly trivial"".
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Indie film nominations announced	"Mike Leigh's award-winning abortion drama Vera Drake has scooped seven nominations at this year's British Independent Film Awards.

But the Venice winner faces stiff competition from Shane Meadows' critically acclaimed Dead Man's Shoes, which received eight nominations. Also in the running for a clutch of awards are My Summer of Love and the stalker drama Enduring Love. The winners will be announced at a ceremony in London on 30 November. The winners of the awards will be chosen by a jury chaired by Cold Mountain director Anthony Minghella and including actresses Cate Blanchett and Helena Bonham-Carter.

The awards, which recognise independent film-making in Britain, were established seven years ago. ""This year's nominees reflect the growing strength and diversity of British independent filmmaking,"" said BIFA founder and director Elliot Grove. Commenting on the diversity of the nominated films, he added: ""Our selection committee had a harder time than ever narrowing down the field.""

Joining Vera Drake and Dead Man's Shoes in the running for best film are My Summer of Love, climbing documentary Touching the Void and zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead. Geoffrey Rush wins a best actor nomination for his role as Peter Sellers in the recent biopic The Life & Death of Peter Sellers.

The Australian star faces competition from Daniel Craig (Enduring Love), Phil Davis (Vera Drake), Ian Hart (Blind Fight) and Dead Man's Shoes' star Paddy Considine. Considine is also nominated for a best supporting actor award for My Summer of Love. A rare US nominee, Scarlett Johansson, is among this year's best actress contenders for her role in Girl with a Pearl Earring.

Fellow nominees include Imelda Staunton (Vera Drake), Natalie Press (My Summer of Love), Anne Reid (The Mother) and Eva Birthistle (Ae Fond Kiss... ). Shane Meadows and Kevin McDonald, both former winners of the Douglas Hickox Award (for Best Directorial Debut) won best director nominations. Seasoned film-makers Roger Michell, Mike Leigh and Pavel Pavlikowsky challenge them to the award. Harry Potter author JK Rowling will receive a special award for her contribution to the industry.
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Fockers fuel festive film chart	"Comedy Meet The Fockers topped the festive box office in North America, setting a new record for Christmas Day.

The sequel took $44.7m (£23.2m) between 24 and 26 December, according to studio estimates. It took $19.1m (£9.9m) on Christmas Day alone, the highest takings on that day in box office history. Meet The Fockers is the sequel to Ben Stiller comedy Meet The Parents, also starring Robert De Niro, Blythe Danner, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand. Despite the success of Meet The Fockers, takings were down 26.5% on 2003's figures - which was blamed on Christmas falling over a weekend this year.

""When Christmas falls on a weekend, it's bad for business,"" said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations, which compiles box office statistics. The weekend's top 12 films took an estimated $121.9m (£63.3m), compared with $165.8m (£86.1m) last year, when the third Lord of the Rings film dominated the box office. Meet The Fockers knocked last week's top film, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, down to third place, with $12.5m (£6.5m). Comedy Fat Albert - co-written by Bill Cosby - entered the chart in second place after opening on Christmas Day, taking $12.7m (£6.6m). The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes, took $9.4m after expanding from 40 to 1,796 cinemas on Christmas Day.
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DVD review: Spider-Man 2	"It's a universal rule that a film can either be a superhero special effects extravaganza or it can be good. But Spider-Man 2 breaks that rule in two.

It's not fantastically deep but you get quickly drawn into the tale of Spidey versus Doc Ock and more so into the fate of poor Peter Parker. Gigantic action set pieces seamlessly work with more brooding personal torment and it all looks stunning. A few effects look false but Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst and Alfred Molina make this compelling. The other universal rule is that DVDs of superhero films will have Making Of features only about the effects. This disc covers those special effects enough but as just one part of a detailed look at the film. Then there are commentaries, trailers and a blooper reel.

Sometimes quality comes in bulk: this set contains no less than 34 John Wayne films ranging from the Westerns and war movies to The Quiet Man.

Now is that a Christmas present or what? Give this to someone on 24 December and you won't see them again until early in the New Year. It's not truly a complete collection and leans more toward Wayne's earlier films: there's no True Grit, for instance, though there is Hellraisers. The films look well transferred to DVD, though none has extras.

It was very daft but it knew it was and somehow this famous 1979 series became a cult favourite that's been long awaited on DVD. This set has the first season of Buck (Gil Gerard) and Wilma's (Erin Gray) tongue-in-cheek adventures and it's all as camp and gaudy as you remember. But it's also a disappointment. The US DVD has this and the more po-faced second season - and you can import it for just about the same price. The bigger omission, though, is that there are no extras. That's particularly disappointing because originally there were meant to be commentaries and stars Gerard and Gray had agreed to do them.
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Baby becomes new Oscar favourite	"Clint Eastwood's boxing drama Million Dollar Baby has become the new favourite to win best picture at the Oscars on Sunday.

According to pundits, the film has overtaken previous favourite The Aviator, with Eastwood also tipped to take the best director award. Its star Hilary Swank is favourite to win best actress while Jamie Foxx is tipped to win best actor for Ray. Million Dollar Baby has seven nominations while The Aviator has 11. The Aviator has scored a best director nomination for Martin Scorsese, who has never won an Oscar, while stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Cate Blanchett are both nominated for acting Oscars.

""If you look at the Oscars race, The Aviator should be ahead,"" said awards pundit Tom O'Neil. ""It is the most nominated film, and the most nominated movie has won best picture 18 times out of the last 20 years. ""But the reality is Million Dollar Baby is the dark horse. People feel emotionally about it and Clint is a beloved Hollywood chum of the Academy voters,"" he said. Anne Thompson of the Hollywood Reporter said that Million Dollar Baby was ""heart-wrenching"". ""It's very emotional, it even makes grown men cry,"" she said. ""The Aviator is a gorgeous movie, but it's colder.""

In the acting categories, Foxx is regarded as almost unbeatable for his performance as Ray Charles in Ray. ""The performance is based on a real person who was a showbusiness hero with a handicap, who recently died,"" O'Neil said. ""He has unstoppable momentum among the voters."" Hilary Swank is the favourite to win best actress for the second time in six years. She previously won in 1999 for her performance in Boys Don't Cry. In the supporting categories, Cate Blanchett is tipped to win for her performance as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator, while Morgan Freeman is favourite to take home his first ever Oscar, for Million Dollar Baby. The Oscars will take place at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre on 27 February.
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Russian film wins BBC world prize	"Russian drama The Return (Vozvrashchenie) has been named winner of the BBC Four World Cinema Award.

The film tells the story of two adolescent boys who are subjected to a harsh regime when their strict father returns after a 10-year absence. Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev, The Return previously won the 2003 Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was presented at an awards ceremony held in London on Thursday and hosted by Jonathan Ross. The winner was chosen by a panel which included X Files actress Gillian Anderson, critic Roger Clarke and Touching the Void director Kevin McDonald.

Ross, who is the presenter of BBC One's Film 2005, was also involved in the deliberations. A shortlist of six films from around the world had been drawn up from which the panel chose. Other nominees included the Motorcycle Diaries, Zatoichi and Hero. A viewer poll saw director Zhang Yimou's martial arts epic Hero emerge as the favourite with 32% of votes cast. Tragedy struck the production of The Return when one of the young stars, 15-year-old Vladimir Girin, drowned in a lake where some of the film's scenes were set. The winner of the World Cinema Award last year was the French animated feature Belleville Rendezvous
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US TV cuts nudity from BBC film	"A US TV network is editing BBC Films' Dirty War to avoid showing the front of a nude woman being scrubbed down after a fictional chemical attack.

It is not worth showing ""non-essential"" nude scenes when indecency complaints are ""aggressively pursued"" by US TV watchdogs, said PBS' Jacoba Atlas. Dirty War - screened uncut on BBC One last September - depicts a dirty bomb attack on the City of London. It is also being screened uncut on US cable channel HBO on 24 January. PBS said it will use extra footage for its broadcast, showing the woman ""from a more discreet angle"" instead.

The US Federal Communications Commission fined CBS $550,000 (£306,814) last autumn for singer Janet Jackson's ""wardrobe malfunction"", during which her breast was exposed during a dance routine with Justin Timberlake. Many US networks and broadcasters are now more nervous about airing nudity, violence or bad language. Ms Atlas said PBS could put itself financially at risk if it showed the uncut version of Dirty War, and it could also deter many of its 170 individual stations from airing ""an important film"". ""You want to pick your battles,"" she said. She added that PBS, which is a private, non-profit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation's 349 public television stations, is bolder about screening non-fiction or historical programming. PBS is seen in virtually all US homes with TV, and describes itself as a ""trusted community resource"" serving nearly 100 million people each week.
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Oscars race enters final furlong	"The race for the Oscars entered its final stages as the deadline for voters to choose their winners passed.

The 5,808 Academy voters had until Tuesday afternoon to return their ballots - any late submissions will not be included in the count. The next five days will be spent counting the voting forms and preparing the winners' envelopes. Best actor nominee Leonardo DiCaprio is to present a statuette for the first time at the LA ceremony on Sunday.

The 30-year-old actor, who is nominated for playing Howard Hughes in The Aviator, will join other hopefuls such as co-star Cate Blanchett, Natalie Portman and Kate Winslet as Oscar presenters. The only people who will know the Oscar winners before they are revealed at the ceremony will be the auditors who are in charge of looking after the ballot count.

After collating the results, they are responsible for sealing the results in the famous golden envelopes which will be revealed by a host of celebrity presenters at the ceremony. Former Academy Award winners Gwyneth Paltrow, Dustin Hoffman and Halle Berry will also present prizes. The event at the Kodak Theatre will be attended by 3,300 people, including some of the best-known names in film, and organisers say they expect it will be watched on television by one billion people around the world. One current concern is the torrential rain which has lashed Los Angeles for the past week, flooding suburbs and causing mudslides. It is hoped the forecast for Sunday, for cool weather but no rain, will prove accurate. ""The last time it rained on Oscars night was in the mid-to-late 1980s,"" said Oscars communications director John Pavlik. ""We have had rain up until the day before the show many times, but for some reason the Oscar gods always shine on Sunday and we hope they will do so again this year,"" he added.
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Aviator 'creator' in Oscars snub	"The man who said he got Oscar-nominated movie The Aviator off the ground and signed up Leonardo DiCaprio has been shut out of the Academy Awards race.

Charles Evans Jr battled over his role with the people who eventually made the film, and won a producer's credit. But he is not on the list of producers who can win a best film Oscar due to a limit on the number of nominees. The Oscars organisers have picked two of The Aviator's four producers to be nominated for best film.

Up to three producers can be named per film but the studios behind The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby failed to trim their credits - so the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (Ampas) has done it for them. The Aviator's nominated producers are Michael Mann and Graham King - with Mr Evans and Sandy Climan, Mr Mann's former deputy, left off. Mr Evans sued Mr Mann in 2001, claiming he came up with the idea, spent years developing it and persuaded DiCaprio to play Hughes - but said he was later excluded from the project. The two sides settled out of court in a deal that has remained secret apart from the fact Mr Evans' name has appeared as a producer when the film's credits roll. At the Golden Globes, Mr Evans - who was named among the winners when the film won best drama film - evaded a security guard to have his photo taken with DiCaprio, director Martin Scorsese, Mr Mann and Mr King.

Ampas decided to limit the number of producers who could be nominated after Shakespeare in Love's victory in 1999 saw five producers collect awards. The eligible names for The Aviator and Million Dollar Baby were decided by Ampas' producers branch executive committee on Wednesday. The decision also saw Clint Eastwood get his third personal nomination for Million Dollar Baby. He is now named in the best film category as well as being nominated for best director and best lead actor. The Academy Awards ceremony will be held in Hollywood on 27 February. Chinese actress Ziyi Zhang, star of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hero and House of Flying Daggers, is the latest name to be added to the list of presenters on the night.
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Cage film's third week at US top	"Nicolas Cage movie National Treasure has topped the US and Canada box office for the third week in a row.

National Treasure made $17.1m (£8.8m) in ticket sales from Friday to Sunday, according to studio estimates, taking its total to $110.2m (£56.7m). Comedy Christmas with the Kranks, starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, was in second place. The Polar Express entered in third place while Jude Law film Closer made its debut at number six.

Oliver Stone's big-budget epic Alexander, starring Colin Farrell, followed last week's disappointing sixth-place opening with a slump to seventh place and takings of $4.7m (£2.4m). Critics have savaged the three-hour epic, which reportedly cost $150m (£77m) to make. National Treasure, which sees Cage's character Ben Gates chase a hidden fortune, has been made by Disney Studios. It is Cage's fourth collaboration with Jerry Bruckheimer, who is usually noted for his male-orientated action films.
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Oscar nominees gear up for lunch	"Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank are among those due to attend this year's Oscar nominees luncheon on Monday.

They will join more than 100 nominees from the 24 Oscar categories at the annual event, which will take place at the Beverly Hilton hotel, Los Angeles. British hopefuls, including Kate Winslet, Imelda Staunton and Sophie Okonedo are also expected to attend. This year's Oscar ceremony will be held on Sunday 27 February.

Martin Scorsese's The Aviator is leading the field at this year's Oscars with 11 nominations, while other multiple nominees include Million Dollar Baby and Sideways. Oscar nominees Swank and Foxx were among the winners at the Screen Actors Guild awards at the weekend, one of the many ceremonies held in the run-up to the Oscars. Swank won Best Actress for Million Dollar Baby while Foxx triumphed for his performance as Ray Charles in the biopic Ray. Sideways was also among the winners, taking the prize for best cast performance. The next major film award ceremony of the season is the Bafta awards, which take place at London's Odeon Leicester Square on 12 February. Many of those nominated for Oscars including DiCaprio, Foxx and Staunton - an Oscar nominee for her performance in Vera Drake - have also been nominated for Baftas.
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Church anger over Bollywood film	"Roman Catholic organisations in India have demanded the withdrawal of a film that depicts a priest having an affair with a girl half his age.

Indian television channels are now refusing to run the promotional material for the film, Sins, ahead of its release on Friday. The director of the film, Vinod Pande, says the movie is not offensive and has refused to withdraw it. Catholics are planning a protest in Mumbai (Bombay) on Wednesday. The president of one of Mumbai's main Catholic organisations, Dolphy D'Souza, says the portrayal of an ordained priest as a man of loose moral character has hurt the religious sentiments of India's Catholic community.

He called the film ""pornographic and sensational"". Mr D'Souza, who is also the vice-president of the Catholics' national body, has accused the director of the film of portraying a priest in bad light for commercial gains. Catholics have urged Mr Pande to withdraw the film to show respect to the Christian community's hurt sentiments. ""Religion needs to be a personal affair and should not be a subject for entertainment or for commercial use,"" Joseph Dias, general secretary of the Catholic Secular Forum, said in a statement.

But Mr Pande said that if the critics were to see the film they would not protest against it and would not insist on its withdrawal. He says he has no plans to cancel the film ahead of its scheduled screening on Friday.

""It's about forbidden love. There was no agenda whatsoever to hurt anyone,"" he said. The BBC's Zubair Ahmed in Mumbai says that the controversial film shows a priest in steamy scenes with a girl half his age. She apparently goes to him for help but he falls in love with her. It takes place in the picturesque southern Indian state of Kerala. The film has already been cleared by the Censor Board with an 'A' (adults only) certificate. Mr D'Souza says he is shocked at the Censor Board's decision to clear the film. Our correspondent says that India's TV channels have so far refused to be dragged into the controversy and have not screened the film's promotional material. Most of the Catholic community's anger has come after watching newspaper advertisements and hoardings of the film. Christians make up about two per cent of India's population of more than a billion people.
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Bookmakers back Aviator for Oscar	"The Aviator has been tipped by UK bookmakers as the favourite to win the best film award at this year's Oscars.

Ray star Jamie Foxx is clear favourite in the best actor category while Million Dollar Baby's Hilary Swank is tipped to win the best actress prize. Bookmakers predict Cate Blanchett will be named best supporting actress. William Hill and Ladbrokes have given The Aviator 4/9 and 8/13 odds of winning best film, with Million Dollar Baby in second place at 9/4.

Bet Direct and Bet 365 also tip The Aviator, with the majority of bookmakers regarding Finding Neverland as the outsider. The Aviator is also widely tipped to win the best director prize for Martin Scorsese. British star Clive Owen is second favourite at William Hill to take the best supporting actor award, for his performance in Closer. The favourite in that category is Sideways star Thomas Hayden Church. Vera Drake star Imelda Staunton has 5/1 odds of winning the best actress Oscar at Bet 365 and William Hill, ahead of fellow UK star Kate Winslet who has odds of 25/1 at William Hill.

Mike Leigh is the outsider in the best director category for Vera Drake, a position he holds jointly with Ray's Taylor Hackford at bookmakers VC Bet. This year's Academy Awards will be handed out in Hollywood on 27 February. X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne will present Sky television's live coverage of the event. Meanwhile, Clive Owen's best supporting actor nomination has led a bookmaker to shorten his odds of becoming the next James Bond. He has moved from 4/1 to 5/2 favourite to play 007, with Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor joint second favourite. ""Clive Owen's nomination has sparked a betting frenzy from James Bond fans, who feel that his heightened global recognition will have done his chances of becoming the next Bond a world of good,"" said William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams.
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Global release for Japan hit film	"Oscar-winning animator Hayao Miyazaki's latest film, Howl's Moving Castle, is to be released in 50 countries around the world, its distributor has said.

Howl's Moving Castle set a Japanese box office record last week, taking 1.5bn yen (£7.7m) in its first two days. Miyazaki won an Oscar earlier this year for Spirited Away, Japan's first Academy Award for nearly 50 years. Howl's Moving Castle is based on a children's fantasy novel by UK author Diana Wynne Jones. It tells the story of an 18-year-old woman who ages dramatically after falling under a witch's spell. She heads to a moving castle kept by Howl, a wizard, and searches for a way to become normal again. A spokesman for distributor Toho said the film ""has received strong interest from domestic audiences and foreign media and viewers alike"". ""We have a good feeling about this film. We saw very good viewer response,"" he added. The film's worldwide release will start in South Korea on 24 December, and France on 12 January.
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Ocean's Twelve raids box office	"Ocean's Twelve, the crime caper sequel starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, has gone straight to number one in the US box office chart.

It took $40.8m (£21m) in weekend ticket sales, according to studio estimates. The sequel follows the master criminals as they try to pull off three major heists across Europe. It knocked last week's number one, National Treasure, into third place. Wesley Snipes' Blade: Trinity was in second, taking $16.1m (£8.4m). Rounding out the top five was animated fable The Polar Express, starring Tom Hanks, and festive comedy Christmas with the Kranks.

Ocean's Twelve box office triumph marks the fourth-biggest opening for a December release in the US, after the three films in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The sequel narrowly beat its 2001 predecessor, Ocean's Eleven which took $38.1m (£19.8m) on its opening weekend and $184m (£95.8m) in total. A remake of the 1960s film, starring Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack, Ocean's Eleven was directed by Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh. Soderbergh returns to direct the hit sequel which reunites Clooney, Pitt and Roberts with Matt Damon, Andy Garcia and Elliott Gould. Catherine Zeta-Jones joins the all-star cast. ""It's just a fun, good holiday movie,"" said Dan Fellman, president of distribution at Warner Bros. However, US critics were less complimentary about the $110m (£57.2m) project, with the Los Angeles Times labelling it a ""dispiriting vanity project"". A milder review in the New York Times dubbed the sequel ""unabashedly trivial"".
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Oscar nominee Dan O'Herlihy dies	"Irish actor Dan O'Herlihy, who was nominated for best actor at the 1955 Oscars, has died at the age of 85.

O'Herlihy, whose Oscar nomination was for Luis Bunuel's The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, died at his home in Malibu, California, a spokesman said. The actor began his film career in the 1940s, playing Macduff to Orson Welles' Macbeth in 1948, and was also a regular in on the Dublin stage. He later appeared in Robocop and its sequel and cult TV show Twin Peaks. He played the CEO of Omni Consumer Products in 1987's Robocop and Robocop 2 three years later, and was saw mill owner Andrew Packard in Twin Peaks, also in 1990. Despite his Oscar nomination, he had few other lead roles and became a familiar supporting actor on TV and in film. The year he was nominated, the Academy Award was won by Marlon Brando for On the Waterfront.
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Berlin cheers for anti-Nazi film	"A German movie about an anti-Nazi resistance heroine has drawn loud applause at Berlin Film Festival.

Sophie Scholl - The Final Days portrays the final days of the member of the White Rose movement. Scholl, 21, was arrested and beheaded with her brother, Hans, in 1943 for distributing leaflets condemning the ""abhorrent tyranny"" of Adolf Hitler. Director Marc Rothemund said: ""I have a feeling of responsibility to keep the legacy of the Scholls going."" ""We must somehow keep their ideas alive,"" he added.

The film drew on transcripts of Gestapo interrogations and Scholl's trial preserved in the archive of communist East Germany's secret police. Their discovery was the inspiration behind the film for Rothemund, who worked closely with surviving relatives, including one of Scholl's sisters, to ensure historical accuracy on the film. Scholl and other members of the White Rose resistance group first started distributing anti-Nazi leaflets in the summer of 1942. They were arrested as they dropped leaflets at Munich University calling for a ""day of reckoning"" with Adolf Hitler's regime. The film focuses on the six days from Scholl's arrest to the intense trial which saw Scholl initially deny the charges and ended with a defiant appearance. It is one of three German films vying for a top prize at the Festival.

A South African film version of Bizet's tragic opera Carmen shot in Cape Town in the Xhosa language has also premiered at the Berlin Festival. The film is entitled U-Carmen eKhayelitsha or Carmen in Khayelitsha after the township in which the story is set. It is performed by a 40-strong music and theatre troupe in their debut film performance. The film is the first South African feature in 25 years and only the second to be nominated for a Golden Bear Award.
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Wine comedy wins critics' award	"Quirky comedy Sideways was named the best film of the year by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

The US movie also picked up four other accolades including best director for Alexander Payne and supporting actor for Thomas Haden Church. British actress Imelda Staunton has again been recognised for her role in Vera Drake, winning best actress, while Liam Neeson won best actor for Kinsey. The awards will be handed out on 13 January at a ceremony in Las Vegas.

Sideways tells the story of two men who take a road trip through California's wine regions and also stars Paul Giamatti. Virginia Madsen was also named best supporting actress for her performance in the film. House of Flying Daggers, directed by Yimou Zhang, was named best foreign language film, while the animation award went to The Incredibles. Unusually, the runners-up in categories were also named with Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby just missing out on the best film award. The best director runner-up was Martin Scorsese for The Aviator. A career achievement award will be handed to veteran actor and comic Jerry Lewis at the ceremony next year.
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Actor Foxx sees Globe nominations	"US actor Jamie Foxx has been given two nominations for Golden Globe awards, with Meryl Streep, Morgan Freeman and Cate Blanchett also up for prizes.

The stars were shortlisted on Monday for supporting roles, with the main nominations still to come. Foxx has starred in Collateral and Ray. Clive Owen, David Carradine and Natalie Portman are also up for awards. The Golden Globes, Hollywood's second most prominent awards, are the first major nominations to be announced. Last year, The Lord Of the Rings: The Return Of the King was named best drama movie while Lost In Translation won best musical or comedy. Sean Penn, Charlize Theron, Tim Robbins and Renee Zellweger all won acting awards - mirroring the eventual Oscars outcome. The Golden Globes ceremony will take place on 16 January, with the Oscars following on 27 February.
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Godzilla gets Hollywood fame star	"Movie monster Godzilla has received a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame, honouring both his 50th birthday and the launch of his 28th film.

An actor dressed as the giant creature breathed smoke over photographers on Monday as Godzilla received the 2,271st star on Hollywood Boulevard. ""Godzilla should thank you for this historical and monumental star,"" said Final Wars producer Shogo Tomiyama. ""But unfortunately, he cannot speak English,"" he added. Hollywood's honorary mayor, Johnny Grant, said: ""I do hereby proclaim this Godzilla Day in Hollywood.

""He's loose, he's wild, and I'm getting the hell out of here,"" he added. The premiere of Godzilla: Final Wars at Grauman's Chinese Theatre followed the ceremony on Hollywood Boulevard. The monster was joined by co-stars including Japanese pop star and actor Masahiro Matsuoka. Director Ryuhei Kitamura said it may not be Godzilla's final outing, as it has been billed. ""That's what the producers say. But the producer's a liar,"" he said. ""[Godzilla's] been working for the last 50 years. So, I think Godzilla just deserves a vacation."" And producer Shogo Tomiyama added: ""So long as Godzilla can fascinate people, I believe he will be resurrected by new generations of filmmakers in the future."" Godzilla first appeared in 1954 as a prehistoric lizard woken by atomic bomb tests.
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God cut from Dark Materials film	"The director and screenwriter of the film adaptation of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials is to remove references to God and the church in the movie.

Chris Weitz, director of About a Boy, said the changes were being made after film studio New Line expressed concern. The books tell of a battle against the church and a fight to overthrow God. ""They have expressed worry about the possibility of perceived anti-religiosity,"" Weitz told a His Dark Materials fans' website. Pullman's trilogy has been attacked by some Christian teachers and by the Catholic press as blasphemy. Weitz, who admitted he would not be many people's first choice to direct the films, said he regarded the film adaptation as ""the most important work of my life"".

""In part because it is one of the few books to have changed my life,"" he told bridgetothestars.net. The award-winning trilogy - Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass - tell the story of Oxford school child Lyra Belacqua. She is drawn into an epic struggle against the Church, which has been carrying out experiments on children in an attempt to remove original sin.

As the books progress the struggle turns into a battle to overthrow the Authority, a figure who is God-like in the books. Weitz, who directed American Pie and About A Boy, said New Line feared that any anti-religiosity in the film would make the project ""unviable financially"". He said: ""All my best efforts will be directed towards keeping the film as liberating and iconoclastic an experience as I can. ""But there may be some modification of terms.""

Weitz said he had visited Pullman, who had told him that the Authority could ""represent any arbitrary establishment that curtails the freedom of the individual, whether it be religious, political, totalitarian, fundamentalist, communist, what have you"". He added: ""I have no desire to change the nature or intentions of the villains of the piece, but they may appear in more subtle guises."" There are a number of Christian websites which attack the trilogy for their depiction of the church and of God, but Pullman has denied his books are anti-religious. His agent told the Times newspaper that Pullman was happy with the adaptation so far. ""Of course New Line want to make money, but Mr Weitz is a wonderful director and Philip is very supportive. ""You have to recognise that it is a challenge in the climate of Bush's America,""
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Aviator wins top Globes accolades	"The Aviator has been named best film at the Golden Globe Awards, with its star Leonardo DiCaprio named best actor.

Hollywood veteran Clint Eastwood took the best director prize for Million Dollar Baby while its star Hilary Swank was best actress. Quirky comedy Sideways was named best screenplay and best comedy. Ray star Jamie Foxx was best actor in a musical/comedy while Briton Clive Owen and Natalie Portman won prizes for best supporting roles in Closer.

The Aviator, in which DiCaprio plays millionaire Howard Hughes, edged ahead of its rivals at the Beverly Hills ceremony by winning the best original score prize. This give it a total of three awards while Million Dollar Baby, Sideways and Closer took two Golden Globes each. Accepting his best dramatic actor prize, DiCaprio described director Martin Scorsese as ""one of the greatest contributors to the world of cinema of all time"".

Annette Bening won best actress in a musical/comedy for Being Julia while Spanish movie The Sea Inside was named best foreign language film. Swank, who previously won the Golden Globe and Oscar for Boys Don't Cry, paid tribute to Million Dollar Baby director and co-star Clint Eastwood. ""You guided us so brilliantly, while you also, in my humble opinion, gave the performance of your career,"" she said. Foxx was nominated for three awards but was beaten to the best supporting actor title by Owen and the best actor in a TV movie prize by Geoffrey Rush in The Life and Death of Peter Sellers.

A BBC co-production, The Life and Death of Peter Sellers was also named best TV movie. Mick Jagger and Dave Stewart won the best original song award for Old Habits Die Hard from movie re-make Alfie, while Ian McShane was named best actor in a TV drama for his lead role in Deadwood.

Other UK hopes Kate Winslet and Imelda Staunton went home empty-handed despite lead actress nominations for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Vera Drake respectively. Winning a Golden Globe is said to improve a film or performer's chance of subsequently winning an Academy Award. Unlike the Oscars, the Golden Globes split awards by genre - one prize for dramas and the other for musicals and comedies. The Globes also honour the best in television, with suburban series Desperate Housewives named best TV comedy show. Actress Teri Hatcher beat fellow Desperate Housewives stars Marcia Cross and Felicity Huffman to the best comedy actress prize.

Hatcher thanked the show's cast, crew and ""a network who gave me a second chance at a career when I couldn't have been a bigger 'has been'"". Cosmetic surgery series Nip/Tuck beat The Sopranos and Deadwood to the best television drama title. Arrested Development star Jason Bateman was named best TV actor in a musical or comedy series. The Golden Globes are awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, comprising film reporters based in Los Angeles and working for overseas outlets. Robin Williams, a five-time Globe winner for such films as The Fisher King and Good Morning, Vietnam, received the Cecil B DeMille award for career achievement. He dedicated his prize to Superman actor Christopher Reeve, who died last year.
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Singer's film to show at festival	"A documentary which takes a candid look at the life of chart-topping singer George Michael will be shown at this year's Berlin Film Festival.

A Different Story will screen in the Panorama section of the festival, which runs from 10-20 February. It features the singer talking about both his career and his personal life, from his days in Wham! through to more recent events. Michael will attend the festival to introduce the screening on 16 February. Director Southan Morris and executive producer Andy Stephens will also attend the festival.

The 93 minute film will see Michael discussing his early days in Wham! along with his later career, including his legal battles with record label Sony and his stance against the Iraq war and American politics. It will also touch upon his turbulent personal life, including his arrest in a Beverly Hills park toilet in 1998 for ""lewd behaviour"", and the death of his boyfriend Anselmo Feleppa from Aids. The film, which includes previously unseen footage of the singer also features contributions from Michael's former Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley, as well as ex-Wham! backing singers Pepsi and Shirlie. Other contributors include Sting, Mariah Carey, Elton John, Noel Gallagher, Geri Halliwell and Simon Cowell. This year's festival will open with Man To Man, a historical epic starring Joseph Fiennes and Kristin Scott-Thomas. It will be one of 21 films competing for the festival's top prize, the Golden Bear. Other films in competition will include The Life Aquatic, a quirky comedy starring Bill Murray, and the biopic Kinsey, which features Liam Neeson. The full programme will be announced on 1 February.
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Surprise win for anti-Bush film	"Michael Moore's anti-Bush documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 has won best film at the US People's Choice Awards, voted for by the US public.

Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ won best drama, despite both films being snubbed so far at US film awards in the run-up to February's Oscars. Julia Roberts won her 10th consecutive crown as favourite female movie star. Johnny Depp was favourite male movie star and Renee Zellweger was favourite leading lady at Sunday's awards in LA.

Film sequel Shrek 2 took three prizes - voted top animated movie, top film comedy and top sequel. In television categories, Desperate Housewives was named top new drama and Joey, starring former Friends actor Matt LeBlanc, was best new comedy. Long-running shows Will and Grace and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation were named best TV comedy and TV drama respectively.

Nominees for the People's Choice Awards were picked by a 6,000-strong Entertainment Weekly magazine panel, and winners were subsequently chosen by 21 million online voters. Fahrenheit 9/11 director Michael Moore dedicated his trophy to soldiers in Iraq. His film was highly critical of President George W Bush and the US-led invasion of Iraq, and Moore was an outspoken Bush critic in the 2004 presidential campaign inwhich Democratic challenger John Kerry lost.

""This country is still all of ours, not right or left or Democrat or Republican,"" Moore told the audience at the ceremony in Pasadena, California. Moore said it was ""an historic occasion"" that the 31-year-old awards ceremony would name a documentary its best film. Unlike many other film-makers, Passion of the Christ director Mel Gibson has vowed not to campaign for an Oscar for his movie. ""To me, really, this is the ultimate goal because one doesn't make work for the elite,"" Gibson said backstage at the event. ""To me, the people have spoken.""
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Da Vinci film to star Tom Hanks	"Actor Tom Hanks and director Ron Howard are reuniting for The Da Vinci Code, an adaptation of the international best-selling novel by Dan Brown.

Distributor Sony Pictures said production will begin next year, with a planned release in May 2006. Hanks will play Robert Langdon, who is trying to solve the murder of a member of an ancient society that has protected dark secrets for centuries. It will be Hanks' third collaboration with Howard. They previously worked together, along with Howard's producing partner Brian Grazer, on Splash and Apollo 13.

Hanks is one of Hollywood's most bankable stars, with his presence in a movie almost guaranteeing box office success. Brown's book has become a publishing phenomenon, consistently topping book charts in the UK and US. It has sold more than eight million copies worldwide in little over two years. It is a classic whodunit, which centres on a global conspiracy surrounding the Holy Grail mythology and places heavy emphasis on symbols and cryptography. Its protagonist is a Harvard professor likened to a contemporary Indiana Jones, who also appeared in Brown's first book Angels and Demons. The tale mixes art history with mythology, semiotics with medieval history.
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Controversial film tops festival	"A controversial film starring Hollywood actor Kevin Bacon as a convicted paedophile won top honours at the London Film Festival on Thursday.

The Woodsman won the Satyajit Ray Award, named after the Indian director. The low-budget film, directed by Nicole Kassell, is about a convicted child molester trying to rebuild his life after 12 years in jail. Judges said the film tackled the contentious subject with ""great insight and sensitivity"". Previous films to take the prize include the Oscar-winning Boys Don't Cry, which was about the true life story of murdered transsexual Brandon Teena.

British writer-director Amma Asante won the UK Film Talent Award this year for her debut feature A Way Of Life. Set in South Wales, the film is about a teenage single mother who becomes embroiled in a tense stand-off with a Turkish neighbour. Also on Thursday night, the Fipresci International Critics Awards went to Aaltra, a Belgian film about the handicapped; and the Sutherland Trophy, which was won by Jonathan Caouette for his film Tarnation. The festival closed with a screening of the film I Heart Huckabees, starring Jude Law and Dustin Hoffman and directed by Three Kings film-maker David O Russell. The festival this year also included the first European screening of the new Pixar animation The Incredibles, and the British film Bullet Boy, starring So Solid Crew rapper Asher D.
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Fockers retain film chart crown	"Comedy Meet The Fockers has held on to the number one spot at the North American box office for a second week.

It took $42.8m (£23.7m) at the weekend, making its overall takings more than $163m (£90m) in 12 days, according to studio estimates. It took $19.1m (£9.9m) on Christmas Day alone, the highest takings on that day in box office history. The sequel to the Ben Stiller comedy Meet The Parents stars Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand. The success of Meet the Fockers could help produce record box office revenue for 2004, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the industry's tracker Exhibitor Relations. ""We've had a much stronger than anticipated final week of the year that helped the industry end on a high note,"" said Mr Dergarabedian.

Meet the Fockers also broke the box office records for the most money taken on New Year's Eve, when it made $12.2m (£6.2m), and New Year's Day, when it took $18m (£9.4m). The previous New Year's Eve record was set in 2000 by Cast Away with $8.5m (£4.5m). The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King had held the New Year's Day title with $12.8m (£6.7m). However, Christmas takings were down 26.5% on 2003's figures - which was blamed on Christmas falling over a weekend this year. This weekend's top 12 films took an estimated $125.4m (£65.8m), a 4.3% increase on the same weekend last year. But there were no major releases last week to provide competition to Meet the Fockers or Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, which finished in second place with $14.7m (£7.7m). The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes, ended up in third position after taking $11.2m (£5.9m). Comedy Fat Albert - co-written by Bill Cosby - moved down the chart to fourth place after taking $10.7m (£5.6m).
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Sundance to honour foreign films	"International films will be given the same prominence as US films at next year's Sundance Film Festival, with movies dominated by the theme of war.

The independent film festival will feature two new international cinema competitions, during its 20-30 January season in Utah. Forty-two films will debut at Sundance, including The Liberace of Baghdad by British director Sean McAllister. The prestigious festival was founded by actor Robert Redford in 1981.

""We have always had an international component, but from next year they will enter a jury competition,"" festival director Geoffrey Gilmore said. ""We wanted to give world cinema more emphasis and have now put it on par with the American dramatic and documentary competitions."" Twelve films competing in the new world cinema documentary category focus on countries and people under siege.

The Liberace of Baghdad features an Iraqi pianist hiding in a hotel as he waits for a visa, while Finnish film The Three Rooms of Melancholia looks at the war in Chechnya. Shake Hands With The Devil: The Journey of Romeo Dallaire tells of a UN mission to Rwanda during the 1994 genocide, while French-Israeli production Wall looks at Israel's controversial security wall separating it from the Palestinian territories. The 16 films competing in the new world cinema dramatic category include works from Germany, South Korea, Angola, China, Denmark and Australia.

Several Hollywood stars feature in the festival's American independent drama category, including Keanu Reeves and Benjamin Bratt. Vince Vaughn stars in quirky movie Thumbsucker while 21 Grams actress Naomi Watts plays a budding Hollywood actress in Ellie Parker. The top Grand Jury prize at this year's festival went to low budget sci-fi thriller Primer, written and directed by Shane Carruth. Morgan Spurlock earned the directing award for Super Size Me, which became an international box office hit.
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Day-Lewis set for Berlin honour	"Actor Daniel Day-Lewis is to be presented with an award for his career in film at the Berlin Film Festival.

The 47-year-old, whose credits include his Oscar-winning performance in My Left Foot, will be presented with the Berlinale Camera award on 15 February. The honour, awarded since 1986, honours figures in cinema that the festival feels ""particularly indebted to"". Man to Man, a historical epic starring Kristin Scott Thomas, opens the German festival on 10 February. A candid documentary about the life and career of singer George Michael, A Different Story will also be screened at the 10-day event. '

Day-Lewis has competed four times at the Berlin Film Festival, with films In The Name Of The Father (1994), The Crucible (1997), The Boxer (1998) and Martin Scorsese's Gangs Of New York (2003). The festival praises him for his ""sensational start"" with roles in My Beautiful Launderette and costume classic A Room With A View, and a ""great number of celebrated roles"" in subsequent productions. Japan's oldest film studio will also be honoured along with Day-Lewis. Shochiku film studios, which was founded 110 years ago, will become the first cinematic institution to receive the Berlinale Camera award. Famous Japanese directors including Akira Hurosawa have had films produced at the studio.
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Downloads enter US singles chart	"Digital music downloads are being included in the main US singles chart for the first time.

Billboard's Hot 100 chart now incorporates data from sales of music downloads, previously only assigned to a separate download chart. Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams is currently number two in Billboard's pop chart, and tops its digital chart. Download sales are due to be incorporated into the UK singles chart later this year.

Digital sales in the US are already used to compile Billboard's Hot Digital Sales chart. They will now be tallied with sales of physical singles and airplay information to make up its new Hot 100 chart. Its second new chart - the Pop 100 - also combines airplay, digital and physical sales but confines its airplay information to US radio stations which play chart music. In addition to Green Day, other artists in the current US digital sales top 10 include Kelly Clarkson, The Game and the Killers.

Sales of legally downloaded songs shot up more than tenfold in 2004, with 200 million track purchased online in the US and Europe in 12 months, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) reported last month. In the UK sales of song downloads overtook those for physical singles for the first time at the end of last year. The last week of December 2004 saw download sales of 312,000 compared with 282,000 physical singles, according to the British Phonographic Industry. The UK's first official music download chart was launched last September, compiling the most popular tracks downloaded from legal UK sites - including iTunes, OD2, mycokemusic.com and Napster. Westlife's Flying Without Wings - a 1999 track reissued for the occasion - was the first number one of the UK download chart.

A spokesman for the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) said the first combined UK download and sales chart was due to be compiled ""within the first half of this year"". ""Work is going on across the music business right now to make sure the new chart works to plan,"" he said. The BPI spokesman described the UK music download chart, compiled by the Official Charts Company, as having been ""a great success"" since its launch. ""It has provided a focus for the industry and has really driven interest in downloads among music fans,"" he said.
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Glasgow hosts tsunami benefit gig	"The top names in Scottish music are taking part in a benefit concert in aid of the victims of the Asian tsunami.

All 10,000 tickets for Saturday's concert, featuring Franz Ferdinand, Belle and Sebastian and Travis, at Glasgow's SECC sold out in 36 hours. Mull Historical Society, Deacon Blue, Idlewild, Texas, Mogwai and Teenage Fanclub are among the other acts performing at the concert. Organisers hope to raise at least £250,000 from the show.

It follows a Cardiff gig starring Eric Clapton, Keane and Jools Holland, which raised more than £1.25m. And it is taking place on the same night as a tsunami benefit show in Bristol, which will see Massive Attack and Portishead share a stage for the first time. Colin MacIntyre, of Mull Historical Society, was playing another gig on the same day but said he was determined to make the Glasgow benefit. He said: ""I think we were all affected by seeing the reports coming from the Far East. ""We all know somebody who was there, but more than that it was that we had never seen a wave of destruction, a natural disaster, like this in my generation. ""I'm lucky as an artist to be able to perform at something like this.""
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Pop band Busted to 'take a break'	"Chart-topping pop band Busted have confirmed that they plan to ""take a break"", following rumours that they were on the verge of splitting.

A statement from the band's record company Universal said frontman Charlie Simpson planned to spend some time working with his other band, Fightstar. However they said that Busted would ""reconvene in due course"". The band have had eight top three hits, including four number ones, since they first hit the charts in 2002. Their singles include What I Go To School For, Year 3000, Crashed The Wedding, You Said No, and Who's David?

The band, which also includes members Matt Jay and James Bourne, made the top ten with their self-titled debut album, as well as the follow-up, A Present For Everyone, in 2003. They won best pop act and best breakthrough act at the 2004 Brit Awards and were nominated for best British group. Most recently they topped the charts with the theme from the live-action film version of Thunderbirds, which was voted Record Of The Year on the ITV1 show. The band have capitalised on a craze for artists playing catchy pop music with rock overtones. The trio are seen as an alternative to more manufactured artists who are not considered credible musicians because they do not write their own songs or play their own instruments. However, recent rumours have suggested that Simpson has been wanting to quit the band to focus on Fightstar. He now plans to take Fightstar on tour.
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Streets have 'album of the year'	"The Streets, aka British rapper and songwriter, Mike Skinner have topped a poll to find the year's best album.

A Grand Don't Come for Free beat Keane's Hope and Fears in second place with Franz Ferdinand's self-titled album third, in the Q magazine poll. Skinner uses blunt beats under streetwise lyrics about such things as falling in love and drink and drugs. Q Magazine said: ""A Grand Don't Come for Free captured the country's mood in a way no one could have predicted."" A Grand Don't Come for Free is the second album from The Streets. It followed Original Pirate Material. Q Magazine also had praise for the runners-up in the poll. Keane's Hopes and Fears, was described as a ""revelatory debut"" which showed ""they had songwriting flair to spare"". It also said Franz Ferdinand's album sounded ""natural, unforced (and) under-produced"". Rock band U2's latest album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb came fourth while Razorlight's Up All Night was in fifth place. Others notables on the list included Dizzee Rascal in at number 12 and The Zutons at 20. Estelle came in at 39, Joss Stone was 40th and Jamelia took the 44th place.
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Manics in charge of BBC 6 Music	"The Manic Street Preachers are to take over the helm of BBC digital radio station 6 Music for a week in December.

The Welsh band, whose hits include Design For Life and If You Tolerate This, have already chosen which records to play between 6 and 12 December. Their albums of the day include Who's Next by The Who and U2's Joshua Tree. The group will also perform their own live session. They follow in the footsteps of Radiohead, who took over the station for a week last year.

Bass player Nicky Wire will join Phil Jupitus on his morning show on Monday 6 December, while vocalist and guitarist James Dean Bradfield will appear on Andrew Collins' afternoon show on Thursday 9. The group have also chosen documentaries to air, such as The Leonard Cohen Story and Guitar Greats - Jimmy Page. The live concert session tracks they have picked include The Specials' Rat Race recorded at Hammersmith Odeon in London and Public Enemy's Fight The Power and Rebel Without A Pause. The band will also answer questions e-mailed in by 6 Music listeners.
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Media seek Jackson 'juror' notes	"Reporters covering singer Michael Jackson's trial in California have asked to see questionnaires completed by potential jurors.

Lawyers for news organisations said it was ""really vital"" for the responses of 250 potential jurors to be made public ""to serve as a check on the process"". Santa Barbara County Superior Court is due to consider the request on Monday. Mr Jackson denies child molestation. It is estimated his trial will cost Santa Barbara county up to $4m (£2.13m).

Meanwhile Michael Jackson's mother has said she is ""100% certain"" her son did not commit the child abuse charges he faces. The court is currently selecting 12 jurors and eight stand-by jurors for the trial, a process delayed until at least Thursday after a member of the star's legal team was hit by family illness. Defence lawyers argued against the bid by Associated Press and other news organisations to have potential jurors' responses made public.

""The release of the completed jury questionnaires does not serve any purpose other than to add to the sensationalist coverage of this case,"" a motion by Mr Jackson's lawyers stated. The estimated total costs of the trial, expected to last five months, range from $2.5m (£1.33m) to $4m (£2.13m) of local taxpayers' money. Those estimates do not include costs to the city of Santa Maria, the Superior Court or for the investigation and prosecution of the case. The cost of security and other needs around the courthouse has been estimated at $40,000 (£21,000) per day, said Jason Stilwell, a special projects manager at the county administrator's office.

Mr Jackson, 46, denies plying a boy with alcohol and molesting him. His mother Katherine Jackson told US TV network Fox News on Sunday that her pop star son told her he was innocent. ""I believe that for one reason - I know his character,"" she said. ""He loves children. You don't molest anything that you love."" Describing Mr Jackson as ""a good person"", the mother-of-nine said she feared he would not be given a fair trial. ""I can't sleep thinking about what these wicked people might try to do to him,"" she said.
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Band Aid retains number one spot	"The charity single by Band Aid 20 has held on the chart top spot for a second week, strengthening its chances of becoming the Christmas number one.

Do They Know It's Christmas, featuring artists including Chris Martin and Jamelia, held off Kylie Minogue to remain the week's biggest single. Next week's chart will reveal who will have the festive chart-topper Minogue's latest release I Believe in You went in at number two, pushing down Ice Cube's You Can Do It to three. Destiny's Child also slipped one place to four with Lose My Breath, followed by Girls Aloud at five with the Children in Need record I'll Stand By You.

The only other new entry in the top 10 came from Robbie Williams track Misunderstood, a new track written for his Greatest Hits album. There were no new releases in the entire top 40 album charts as record companies put out all the big releases early hoping to cash in on the lucrative Christmas market. U2's How to Dismantle a Bomb remains at number one for a third week in a row, followed by Williams' Greatest Hits. Opera band Il Divo have moved up one place with their eponymous album to number three. Maroon 5's album Songs About Jane has moved up to number seven despite being released 47 weeks ago. And the Abba Gold greatest hits album has crept back into the top 40 more than nine years after it was first released.
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Rap boss arrested over drug find	"Rap mogul Marion ""Suge"" Knight has been arrested for violating his parole after he was allegedly found with marijuana.

He was arrested in Barstow, California, on Saturday following an alleged traffic offence. He is expected to be transferred to a state prison while a decision is made on whether he should be released. Mr Knight, founder of Death Row Records, served a 10-month jail term in 2004 for punching a man while on parole for an assault conviction. Police said Mr Knight was stopped on Saturday after performing an illegal U-turn and a search of his car allegedly found marijuana.

He is also accused of not having insurance. A 18-year-old woman in the car was arrested for providing false information and having a fake ID card. She was later released. It was his second alleged violation, having previously served half of a nine-year sentence for breaking the terms of his parole. Mr Knight, 39, was jailed in October 1996 following his involvement in a fight with a rival gang just hours before rapper Tupac Shakur was killed in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting. He was driving Shakur's car at the time and was shot in the head. At the time he was on probation for assaulting two musicians. Mr Knight, a former bodyguard, set up Death Row records in the early 1990s with Shakur and Dr Dre among his protegees. But the label has always been dogged by allegations it supports gang culture and fuels the east and west coast rap rivalry.
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Elton plays Paris charity concert	"Sir Elton John has performed at a special concert in Paris to raise money for the victims of the Asian tsunami.

The British singer played to a 2,700-strong audience on Sunday at the French capital's Bastille opera house. The concert was also part of an attempt to bring a broader range of events to the famous venue. Money raised will go to the Fondation pour l'Enfance (Foundation for Childhood) which aims to rebuild a children's shelter in Sri Lanka. Sir Elton played hits from his vast back catalogue to a sell-out crowd which included former French president Valery Giscard d'Estaing and his wife Anne-Aymone. The veteran pop star played piano accompaniment throughout the concert which lasted for three hours without an interval.

He told the crowd: ""Throughout the years, I've done a lot of drugs and alcohol. It's true that I was a nightmare, impossible. For the last 14 years I've been normal. Now my drug is called David"" - a reference to David Furnish, his partner. The crowd, who greeted each song with a standing ovation, also included French singer Charles Aznavour and British ambassador Sir John Holmes. Sir Elton has also teamed up with Phil Collins to record a version of Eric Clapton's 1991 hit Tears In Heaven to raise money for the relief fund. A release date has yet to be set for the recording, which was organised by Sharon Osbourne.
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Elvis set to top UK singles chart	"Rock 'n' roll legend Elvis is set to top the UK singles chart on Sunday, 27 years after his death.

The re-release of hit song Jailhouse Rock was out-selling X Factor winner Steve Brockstein's cover of Against All Odds by 2,000 copies on Tuesday. If the record does make the top spot, it will be Elvis' 19th UK number one. The last time he topped the charts was with the remix of the little-known song A Little Less Conversation, which was number one in June 2002. If Jailhouse Rock does reach number one on Sunday, it will be the 999th in the history of the UK pop charts. The song first topped the charts in 1958. Chart analysts say Elvis could score the 1000th number one as well. His record One Night will be released the following week, followed the week after by A Fool Such As I, as part of his record company SonyBMG's new Elvis campaign. It has called it ""the most ambitious singles release campaign in the history of the UK record industry"".
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Wal-Mart is sued over rude lyrics	"The parents of a 13-year-old girl are suing US supermarket giant Wal-Mart over a CD by rock group Evanescence that contains swear words.

The lawsuit, filed in Washington County, alleges Wal-Mart deceived customers by not putting warning labels on the cover. Trevin Skeens alleges Wal-Mart knew of the offending word because it had censored it on its music sales website. Wal-Mart said it was investigating the claims but had no plans to pull the CD. Wal-Mart has a policy of not stocking CDs which carry parental advisory labels. Mr Skeens said he bought the Anywhere But Home CD for his daughter and was shocked to hear the swearing when it was played in their car.

""I don't want any other families to get this, expecting it to be clean. It needs to be removed from the shelves to prevent other children from hearing it,"" said Mr Skeens of Brownsville. The lawsuit seeks to force Wal-Mart to censor the music or remove it from its stores in Maryland. It also seeks damages of up to $74,500 (£38,660) for every customer who bought the CD at Maryland Wal-Marts, and also naming record label Wind-Up Records and distributor BMG Entertainment in the legal action. ""While Wal-Mart sets high standards, it would not be possible to eliminate every image, word or topic that an individual might find objectionable,"" Wal-Mart spokesman Guy Whitcomb told the Herald-Mail of Hagerstown.
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Pete Doherty misses bail deadline	"Singer Pete Doherty will have to spend the weekend in jail because he could not come up with £150,000 bond money for his bail on time.

The former Libertines singer had been granted bail with curfew restrictions at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on charges of robbery and blackmail. But his lawyer said the money could not be raised on time. Mr Doherty, 25, was arrested following an alleged incident in a London hotel on Wednesday evening. Musician Alan Wass, 23, also of north London, appeared in court accused of the same offences.

Magistrates imposed a range of bail conditions on Mr Doherty including a curfew between 2200 and 0700, except when he attends a drug rehabilitation centre. He was told he would not be able to leave his home without being accompanied by a security firm. He must also surrender his passport and report daily to a local police station. Mr Wass was also given a curfew and told to surrender his passport. Mr Doherty left The Libertines at the end of June 2004, but continued performing with his band Babyshambles. The singer, who has been linked to supermodel Kate Moss, was arrested after police were called to the Islington hotel in response to claims that a man had been assaulted. A man in his 30s was later taken to University College Hospital, London, with facial injuries, before being discharged. A lawyer representing Mr Doherty and Mr Wass said outside court the pair strenuously denied the charges.
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Rapper Snoop Dogg sued for 'rape'	"US rapper Snoop Dogg has been sued for $25m (£13m) by a make-up artist who claimed he and his entourage drugged and raped her two years ago.

The woman said she was assaulted after a recording of the Jimmy Kimmel Live TV show on the ABC network in 2003. The rapper's spokesman said the allegations were ""untrue"" and the woman was ""misusing the legal system as a means of extracting financial gain"". ABC said the claims had ""no merit"". The star has not been charged by police.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles on Friday, says the woman's champagne was spiked and she was then assaulted. The rapper's spokesperson said: ""Snoop will have the opportunity to prove in a court of law that [the alleged victim] is opportunistic and deceitful. ""We are confident that in this case, [the alleged victim's] claims against Snoop Dogg will be rejected."" The lawsuit names Snoop Dogg - real name Calvin Broadus - plus three associates, The Walt Disney Company and its parent company ABC Inc.

The woman waited two years to sue because she was trying to negotiate a settlement with the media companies, her lawyer, Perry Wander, said. Disney and ABC ""failed to provide a safe working environment for my client,"" he said. The legal action comes after the rap star sued a woman who claimed they tried to blackmail him to keep quiet about an alleged assault. The 32-year-old rapper has enjoyed six US top 10 albums since bursting onto the music scene with hit songs like What's My Name? and Gin and Juice in 1993.
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Legendary music studio to close	"The New York music studio where John Lennon spent his final hours is to close next month.

The Hit Factory, which opened 37 years ago, has played host to some of the biggest stars in music, including Paul Simon, Madonna and David Bowie. However, the rise in digital recording has affected business at the studio, which is relocating to smaller premises in Miami. Lennon recorded his final album Double Fantasy at the studio in 1979.

The studio was founded by Jerry Ragovoy in 1968. In 1975 it was sold to fellow producer Edward Germano, who turned it into a 100,000 square foot studio with seven recording rooms and live mastering suites. His first client was Stevie Wonder, who recorded part of his classic album Songs In The Key Of Life there. Other well-known albums to be recorded or partially recorded at the studio include Bruce Springsteen's Born In The USA, the Rolling Stones' Emotional Rescue and Paul Simon's Graceland. Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Jay-Z and Beyonce are also among artists who have used the Hit Factory in the past, as well as 50 Cent who survived an attempt on his life as he left the premises in 2000. The studio made history in 1994 when it won a record 41 Grammy nominations for songs recorded, mastered or mixed there, including the soundtrack to the Whitney Houston film The Bodyguard.
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Rapper Jay-Z becomes label boss	"Rap star Jay-Z is to become a record company executive after being put in charge of one of hip-hop's most influential labels, Def Jam.

Jay-Z, who said he would make no more music after 2003's The Black Album, will become the company's president and chief executive from January. Def Jam's parent company, Universal, made the appointment after buying Jay-Z's Roc-A-Fella label. Def Jam's artists include LL Cool J, DMX, Ludacris, Ja Rule and Ashanti. Jay-Z will continue to run Roc-A-Fella, which he founded with Damon Dash in 1995 and has Kanye West and Beanie Sigel on its roster. Universal said on Wednesday it had bought the 50% of Roc-A-Fella it did not already own.

Antonio ""LA"" Reid, chairman of The Island Def Jam Music Group, said: ""I can think of no-one more relevant and credible in the hip-hop community to build upon Def Jam's fantastic legacy."" He hoped Jay-Z would ""move the company into its next groundbreaking era"", he added. Jay-Z, real name Shawn Carter, said: ""I have inherited two of the most important brands in hip-hop, Def Jam and Roc-A-Fella.

""I feel this is a giant step for me and the entire artist community."" One of the most successful and respected rap stars of the last eight years, Jay-Z's hits have included Hard Knock Life, Dirt Off Your Shoulder and 03 Bonnie and Clyde with his girlfriend Beyonce Knowles. He said he would retire after The Black Album, but has just released an album and been on an ill-fated tour with R Kelly. Def Jam was founded in 1984 by Russell Simmons and producer Rick Rubin and signed artists including Run-DMC, The Beastie Boys and Public Enemy.
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REM concerts blighted by illness	"US rock band REM have been forced to cancel concerts after bass player Mike Mills was taken to hospital suffering from ""severe flu-like symptoms"".

The band were forced to cut short Monday night's show in Sheffield, and have cancelled Tuesday's Glasgow date. Mills could ""hardly stand up, let alone play"", said an REM spokesman, who added he is now ""resting"" in hospital. The remainder of the band played a short acoustic set on Monday. Tuesday's gig has been rescheduled for 15 June. Those who had a ticket for the show in Glasgow are being advised to retain their ticket stub so they can attend the new date. The band's spokesman said that they would review their remaining dates on a ""day-to-day basis"", based on doctors' advice to Mills. ""Obviously we all want Mike to get better, and clearly we all want to play the shows. Rest assured we will do so as soon as possible,"" he said.

The band were still hopeful they would be able to make their Wednesday date, added the spokesman. REM played accoustic versions of their hits Losing My Religion, I've Been High, Leaving New York and The One I Love to the Sheffield Arena audience on Monday. The band had originally been scheduled to play four dates in the UK as part of a world tour. In 1995 former drummer Bill Berry collapsed in Switzerland while the band was on tour, having suffered a ruptured aneurysm. He made a full recovery, only to leave the band two years later.
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Ring of Fire hit co-writer dies	"Merle Kilgore, co-writer of the country hit Ring of Fire, has died of congestive heart failure aged 70.

He started out as a singer and songwriter before going into music management, looking after country star Hank Williams Jr. He wrote Ring of Fire with June Carter Cash, the future wife of Johnny Cash who went on to score his most popular hit with the track. Kilgore had heart surgery in 2004 and was also diagnosed with lung cancer. His death has been attributed to treatment he was undergoing for the cancer. His first self-penned top 10 hit was Dear Mama in 1959.

One of the first songs he wrote for other artists was Wolverton Mountain, which sold 10 million copies when recorded by Claude King. He then wrote Ring of Fire with June Carter Cash, which was about her unrequited love for Johnny, who she later married. It was first recorded by her younger sister Anita Carter before Johnny went on to make such a success of it. June Carter Cash previously said it upset her husband when Kilgore talked about the song without crediting her and believed he should not have been credited on it. Last year, Kilgore turned up an awards dinner in a wheelchair expecting to honour Hank Williams Jr, but instead he was the surprise recipient of a lifetime achievement award from the International Entertainment Buyers Association.
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'My memories of Marley...'	"To mark the 60th anniversary of the birth of reggae star Bob Marley, Rob Partridge - Marley's former head of press at Island Records - remembers the man behind the legend.

Partridge worked with Marley from 1977 until the Jamaican musician's death in 1981.

: ""I joined Island Records in 1977 and the first week I was there I worked on his show at the Rainbow Theatre. It was one of the last dates he did in London.""

: The album Exodus came out in 1977 and that provided five hits and confirmed his global superstar status. ""By 1979 he was the biggest touring attraction in the world. I remember going to see dates in Milan and Turin and they were enormous concerts.""

: Bob was one of the most mesmeric people I've ever had the privilege to work with. ""He must have had an iron will to succeed. Bob was a very driven individual. You realised from the start there was a manifest destiny within him that he believed in. He didn't suffer fools gladly. At the risk of stating the obvious, he was an extraordinary song writer and his stage act was perhaps the greatest I've ever seen. I saw him many times.""

: ""I recall in 1978 he came to the UK for Top of the Pops and a Daily Mirror journalist did a half-hour interview. It was interrupted to do a rehearsal. He came back into the dressing room to resume the interview but saw a World Cup match on TV.

""He sat down in front of the TV and after 10 minutes it was obvious he wasn't going to move. That was the end of it. The Mirror had a very truncated interview. ""The last time I saw him was in London in 1980. I arranged for him to play four days of football indoors in Fulham. ""Bob was a good player. We are talking about Jamaican-style football. He was an attacking midfield player. His team assembled wherever his gigs were. We played in Brazil against some World Cup-winning players.""

: It was always a struggle for him to connect with Black America. Reggae did not correspond with disco in the 70s. But Bob in the 1990s became one of the great icons in America and the Third World. ""In 1991, ten years after his death, he sold more records than at any time during his life. ""We saw Black America taking Bob into their hearts for the first time.""

: ""Bob, in worldwide terms, is the greatest music star there has ever been. If you went to Africa he would be recognised everywhere, in places John Lennon or Elvis wouldn't be. ""No disrespect to the other artists but a case can be made for him as the greatest, the best and the most influential artist in popular music.""

: Well 1981 was to be the year he toured Africa with Stevie Wonder. He had only performed in Zimbabwe and Guinea before. ""Of course the 1981 tour never happened, but the whole of Africa would have embraced him. We can't speculate but he was at the height of his powers and just 36 years old. I had no sense his career was going to go downhill.""

: ""Bob was endlessly optimistic about the way Africa would turn out. He realised that nothing was perfect but he had total belief in the power of mankind. ""I'm sure if he were alive today he would believe Africa would firstly become politically free and secondly be able to defeat the Aids epidemic.""

: ""The final tune of his final album was Redemption Song - one of the most incredible classics of all time.""
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Belle named 'best Scottish band'	"Belle & Sebastian have been named the best Scottish band of all time after a three month-long public poll.

The group beat Travis and Idlewild into second and third place respectively. Franz Ferdinand, who recently picked up five Brit Award nominations, ended up in 15th place, while the Eurythmics wound up at a lowly 38. Other Scottish acts, such as the Mull Historical Society who also featured in the top 50, performed at a party in Glasgow where the result was announced. Scottish-based band Snow Patrol, who finished 14th in the vote and have been nominated for a pair of Brit Awards, were among the performers who covered well-known Scottish pop songs at the party on Wednesday night.

Indie stalwarts Belle & Sebastian have enjoyed a chart career stretching back to 1997. They were the surprise winners of the Brit Award for best breakthrough act two years later. Scottish bands from earlier musical eras also made it into the final list, including 1970s tartan boy band the Bay City Rollers and goth favourites the Jesus and Mary Chain.

Scottish magazine The List recently compiled a list of the top 50 Scottish bands of all time, but left the final decision to the public. The magazine's music editor Mark Robertson said: ""The idea behind the project was simple - to rediscover the very best of Scottish music, from the finest musical talent spanning from the age of 70s rock through to 80s pop, right up to today's international stars."" ""Everyone has strong opinions about this and we wanted to open it up to the public to decide,"" he added. BBC Radio Scotland presenter Vic Galloway, who has been involved in the project, said it had been ""great fun"" to look back at Scotland's musical heritage and take note of up-and-coming Scottish acts.
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Dance music not dead says Fatboy	"DJ Norman Cook - aka Fatboy Slim - has said that dance music is not dead, but has admitted it is currently going through a ""fallow patch"".

The commercial failure of the latest albums by Britain's two biggest dance acts - Fatboy Slim's Palookaville and The Prodigy's Always Outnumbered Never Outgunned - has been coupled with the closure of many ""superclubs,"" and the folding of three dance music magazines. Last month the Brit Awards announced they would no longer be awarding a Best Dance Act prize, with the Brits committee announcing that ""dance music is no longer where it's happening in music."" These developments lead some to suggest that dance was finished as a popular music genre. Cook acknowledged that much change in the dance world in the four years since his last album, Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars, but he stressed this did not mean the dance scene was permanently over. ""Every week when I was making the album, I was reading articles about the demise of dance music - and obviously that affects you somewhat,"" he told BBC World Service's The Ticket programme. ""I personally don't believe it's either dead or going to die, but it's going through a bit of a fallow patch. ""So I think, consciously or subconsciously, reading every week that dance music was dead I would think 'right, scrub that track then'.""

Although his album sales in the UK are down - Palookaville stayed in the UK top 75 for just three weeks - Cook has achieved recent global success with his beach parties. And event on Brighton sea front in 2002 attracted 250,000, people, while a later one in Rio achieved a crowd of 360,000. The DVD of the Rio set was the biggest seller of that year.

""With a crowd that big, if the weather's nice, the atmosphere before I even go is so good that about halfway through the first record I think 'I've got them',"" Cook said. ""I'm always really really nervous before the big ones - they had to give me Valium before Rio, because two hours before I was literally just pacing the floor. ""For some reason, especially now I've got a reputation for it, the atmosphere and the joie de vivre that's already going on means all I have to do is play 'up' records."" He promised more such parties in more locations around the world - despite problems after the Brighton event, which ended in chaos with many revellers finding themselves stranded as transport ground to a halt. One man also died of a heart attack, and a woman fell to her death during the free party. ""We're having to widen our horizons from just beaches, because there's landlocked countries that want to get involved,"" Cook said. ""We're doing Rio at the carnival, at the Maracana, and Sao Paolo - our new gig is famous football stadiums.""

The DJ admitted, however, that his massive worldwide success had a downside, with intense media interest in his personal life. In particular, he said he had struggled to cope with tabloid intrusion during the temporary break-up of his marriage to Radio One presenter Zoe Ball, after she was linked with DJ Dan Peppe.

""The tabloid thing has been difficult at times,"" Cook said. ""Especially the me-and-Zoe-Gate - it's quite scary."" He said that he had been ""determined"" that what had happened with Ball did not affect the album. ""At first I was doing deliberately jolly tunes so that people wouldn't think I was depressed,"" he explained. ""Then I thought, 'that's not right'."" And he highlighted a bizarre coincidence - that one song written before they split had turned out to have a great deal more meaning than intended. ""I said to Zoe, 'I did this track called My Masochistic Baby Went And Left Me, do you mind if it's on the album?'"" he recalled. ""She said, 'yeah, it's hilarious, because your masochistic baby did leave you'."" Cook also added that he had some ways of coping with the intense paparazzi pressure, which accumulates at the end of the private road he lives on - where Paul McCartney is a neighbour. ""It's almost like prisoners rattling the bars with their mugs,"" Cook explained. ""If there's a pap at the end of the road, everyone knocks on each other's doors - Paul comes round, and we warn him, because we don't know who they're after.""
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Label withdraws McFadden's video	"The new video of former Westlife singer Brian McFadden has been pulled after a Dublin school complained about being associated with his song Irish Son.

St Fintian's High School says it is clearly identified in the video, while McFadden never went there. McFadden makes claims that he was beaten at his own school in the song's lyrics, saying it had ""cell blocks"". The performer's record label Sony BMG has withdrawn the video and issued replacements to television stations. The label believed the school name was fictitious until they received the complaint. They have said the reference to the school was unintentional and coincidental.

The head of Christian Brothers' school St Fintian's, Richard Fogarty, said the video implied that the 24-year-old pop star had attended his school and was abused there. ""The school has always treated its pupils with respect,"" Mr Fogarty said in a statement. McFadden makes specific references to the Christian Brothers in his song, but did not attend St Fintian's. Corporal punishment was outlawed in Irish schools in 1982 when McFadden was two years old.

McFadden, whose debut solo album is released next week, has said that every song is autobiographical and ""a true story"". Alcoholism and domestic violence are among the other topics dealt with in his songs, half of which have been written with Robbie Williams' former collaborator, Guy Chambers. McFadden, who quit chart-topping group Westlife in March, went to number one in September with his first solo single Real To Me. He enjoyed 12 chart-toppers with the boy band before parting company with them.
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Byrds producer Melcher dies at 62	"Record producer Terry Melcher, who was behind hits by the Byrds, Ry Cooder and the Beach Boys, has died aged 62.

The son of actress Doris Day, he helped write Kokomo for the Beach Boys, which was used in the movie Cocktail, earning a 1988 Golden Globe nomination. He also produced Mr Tambourine Man for the Byrds, as well as other his such as Turn, Turn Turn. Melcher died on Friday night at his home in Beverly Hills, California, after a long battle with skin cancer. He joined Columbia Records as a producer in the mid-1960s, and also worked with Gram Parsons and the Mamas and the Papas.

Earlier in his career, Melcher had hits as part of duo called Bruce & Terry, with future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston, which evolved into the Rip Chords group. Melcher also worked closely with his mother, producing The Doris Day Show and helping to run her charitable activities. In 1969 his name became linked with the Charles Manson murders, which saw the deaths of actress Sharon Tate and four of her friends at a home which Melcher once rented. Rumours circulated that Melcher - who knew Manson - was the killer's real target, because he had turned him down for a record contract. But Los Angeles police discounted the rumours, pointing out Melcher had moved to Malibu, and Manson knew of his new address.
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Snow Patrol feted at Irish awards	"Snow Patrol were the big winners in Ireland's top music honours, the Meteor Awards, picking up accolades for best Irish band and album on Thursday.

The Belfast-born, Glasgow-based band collected the prizes at the ceremony at Dublin's Point Theatre. Westlife won the award for best Irish pop act, voted for by the public, beating former member Brian McFadden. Franz Ferdinand picked up best international band and album while Paddy Casey collected best Irish male. Singer-songwriter Casey beat Brian McFadden and Damien Rice. Juliette Turner was named best Irish female.

In the international categories, Morrissey beat Eminem, Usher and Robbie Williams to best male while PJ Harvey pipped Kylie Minogue, Joss Stone, Anastacia and Natasha Bedingfield to the female crown. The 8,000 fans at the ceremony were treated to performances from US rapper Snoop Dogg, Brian McFadden with Delta Goodrem and The Thrills featuring Rolling Stones star Ronnie Wood. Snow Patrol's success came after a year in which they made a chart breakthrough with their third album Final Straw. ""I think a lot of bands should go through a wee bit of a kicking before the make a success,"" singer Gary Lightbody and drummer Jonny Quinn said. ""It has been good for us, but also hard for us over the past six years."" Snow Patrol will support U2 on their European tour later this year - but U2 were not nominated for best Irish band and album.
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Doves soar to UK album summit	"Manchester rock band Doves have entered the UK album chart at number one with their new release, Some Cities.

The trio replace flamboyant US act Scissor Sisters at the top. The album follows single Black and White Town, which reached number six. R&B star Nelly has the new number one single with Over and Over, which sees him team up with Tim McGraw. Girls Aloud, Akon and Kaiser Chiefs all have new singles in the top ten, as do Futureheads and Usher.

The latest Elvis Presley re-release, (Marie's The Name) His Latest Flame, entered the chart at number three, one place ahead of Girls Aloud's Wake Me Up. Hip-hop performer Akon's Locked Up is at number five, while hotly-tipped Leeds band Kaiser Chiefs have their second chart hit at number six with Oh My God.

Futureheads' cover of Kate Bush's Hounds of Love entered the chart at number eight, while Usher's Caught Up was a new entry at number nine. In the album chart, operatic quartet Il Divo's eponymous debut rose 23 places to number six, while crooner Tony Christie's Definitive Collection is a new entry at number 10, making it the highest-charting album of the singer's career.
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Downloads enter US singles chart	"Digital music downloads are being included in the main US singles chart for the first time.

Billboard's Hot 100 chart now incorporates data from sales of music downloads, previously only assigned to a separate download chart. Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams is currently number two in Billboard's pop chart, and tops its digital chart. Download sales are due to be incorporated into the UK singles chart later this year.

Digital sales in the US are already used to compile Billboard's Hot Digital Sales chart. They will now be tallied with sales of physical singles and airplay information to make up its new Hot 100 chart. Its second new chart - the Pop 100 - also combines airplay, digital and physical sales but confines its airplay information to US radio stations which play chart music. In addition to Green Day, other artists in the current US digital sales top 10 include Kelly Clarkson, The Game and the Killers.

Sales of legally downloaded songs shot up more than tenfold in 2004, with 200 million track purchased online in the US and Europe in 12 months, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) reported last month. In the UK sales of song downloads overtook those for physical singles for the first time at the end of last year. The last week of December 2004 saw download sales of 312,000 compared with 282,000 physical singles, according to the British Phonographic Industry. The UK's first official music download chart was launched last September, compiling the most popular tracks downloaded from legal UK sites - including iTunes, OD2, mycokemusic.com and Napster. Westlife's Flying Without Wings - a 1999 track reissued for the occasion - was the first number one of the UK download chart.

A spokesman for the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) said the first combined UK download and sales chart was due to be compiled ""within the first half of this year"". ""Work is going on across the music business right now to make sure the new chart works to plan,"" he said. The BPI spokesman described the UK music download chart, compiled by the Official Charts Company, as having been ""a great success"" since its launch. ""It has provided a focus for the industry and has really driven interest in downloads among music fans,"" he said.
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Top gig award for Scissor Sisters	"New York band Scissor Sisters have won a gig of the year award for their performance at this year's V Festival.

The award was voted for by listeners of Virgin Radio, which compiled a top 10 which was mostly dominated by newcomers on the music scene this year. The quirky disco-rock band beat The Red Hot Chili Peppers who came second for their Hyde Park performance in June. Virgin Radio DJ Pete Mitchell said: ""This year has seen an amazing array of talent come into the mainstream."" He added: ""The Scissor Sisters are one of the most original, eccentric bands to come through and it's no surprise the British public are lapping up their performances."" Newcomers Keane came in third place for their August gig at the V Festival, followed by Maroon 5 and Snow Patrol.

Music veterans The Who and David Bowie, both earned places on the list, at number eight and 10 respectively. At number seven was Oxfam's Make Fair Trade gig at London's Hammersmith Apollo in October, which featured performances by REM, Razorlight and Coldplay's Chris Martin. Glasgow's Franz Ferdinand earned a place at number nine for their home-town performance in April. The annual survey was voted for by nearly 4,000 listeners.
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Brits return Keane to number one	"Brits success has helped return Keane's award-winning album Hopes and Fears back to the top of the UK album chart.

The debut album, which took the best British album title at the Brits on Tuesday, moved up seven places from number eight to number one. Also capitalising on Brits success were the Scissor Sisters whose eponymous album moved three places to number two. U2's latest single Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own took the top spot in the singles chart, ahead of Elvis. The track, from their current album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, pushed Eminem's Like Toy Soldiers from number one to number three.

Elvis' Wooden Heart, which entered the chart at number two, is the sixth in a series of 18 reissues to mark the 70th anniversary of Presley's birth. There are currently six re-released Elvis' tracks occupying spots in the top 40 singles chart including Are You Lonesome Tonight at number 20, It's Now or Never at number 27 and Jailhouse Rock at number 37. Soldier, by Destiny's Child, Ti and Lil Wayne, debuted at number four, while Almost Here, the duet from former Westlife star Brian McFadden and Delta Goodrem, fell from number three to number five. There was more follow up to Brits success for Franz Ferdinand won best rock act and best British group last week. Their self-titled album moved from 13 to number four. Last week's number one album Tourist, by Athlete, fell to number three.
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Charity single for quake relief	"Singers including Sir Cliff Richard and Boy George are recording a charity single to help raise funds for victims of the Asian tsunami.

They hope the song will raise more than £2m for the relief fund. The song, titled Grief Never Grows Old and described as a melancholy ballad, was written by radio DJ Mike Read. Former Boyzone singer Ronan Keating may also take part if a studio can be found close to where he is holidaying in Switzerland. Other music stars being approached include Robin and Barry Gibb of The Bee Gees, jazz sensation Jamie Cullum, Chris Rea and Olivia Newton-John.

Sir Cliff has recorded his vocal part in Barbados, while Boy George has recorded his in New York. Read wrote the song before the Boxing Day tragedy but had thought it was too gloomy to release. Now he plans to have it recorded by a collection of pop stars under the name One World Project. ""It's a natural home for it because people kept saying to me, 'it's such a good song', but it's such a sad song,"" Read said.

He said the song was a slow ballad and would work with around 10 singers, rather than a ""sing-along"" like the Band Aid 20 single raising money for famine relief in Africa. The backing track has already been recorded and organisers hope it can be finished within the next week to get it into record shops as soon as possible. Read went to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), which is co-ordinating the British relief effort, with the idea the day after Boxing Day. ""I was totally shocked at the enormity and suddenness of the disaster and in tears on seeing the orphaned children wandering aimlessly in search of their parents,"" he said. Read said all the funds raised by the record would go to the DEC. ""I'd only be pleased in terms of what it meant for sales if it got to number one,"" he added. The charity welcomed the news of the single and said money raised would help its agencies working in the affected region to rebuild survivors' lives and livelihoods.
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Franz man seeks government help	"Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos has called for more government help for musicians, while taking part in an Edinburgh Lectures discussion.

""For any cultural output to thrive there needs to be some kind of state input to that as well,"" he said. But Kapranos warned against musicians being too closely linked with MPs, at the University of Edinburgh event. ""I think the role of musicians is to question politicians rather than to go to bed with them,"" he said.

Kapranos joined the prestigious lecture series to discuss Scotland's role in making 21st Century music. ""There are elements of our musical output which require sustenance because they aren't self-sufficient,"" he said. ""But so-called commercial music would benefit from investment as well."" He warned musicians against being allied to a particular party, however. ""I don't know if having tea with politicians is always a good idea.""

Kapranos and his Glasgow four-piece band have been nominated for five prizes at next week's Brit Awards, including best group and best album. Their self-titled debut album won last year's Mercury Music Prize and spawned three top 20 singles. He told the 300-strong audience at the University's Reid Hall that musicians should listen to a wide range of music and should not be restricted by stereotypes. ""We say 'I like this'. Because I listen to Nirvana and Korn I am a troubled individual, I'm riddled with angst because I listen to Chopin and Debussy, I listen to Kylie Minogue and Scissor Sisters because I'm upbeat and I like to party, I listen to Wagner because I like the smell of napalm in the morning."" Kapranos said there was a general ""hostility"" towards classical music, adding: ""There is very little done to break that hostility other than Classic FM.""

He concluded: ""We define ourselves as a nation by the way we encourage our creativity."" Fellow speaker and classical composer James MacMillan agreed: ""We need to rediscover our ability to listen."" Previous speakers at the Edinburgh Lectures series have included former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and author Professor Stephen Hawking. Kapranos described his appearance on Wednesday as ""more daunting by a long way"" than their upcoming Brits performance. ""I don't really care about the Brits,"" he said. ""It's going to be great to go down but I have actually had to exercise part of my brain tonight.""

I think the government should do more to help up-and-coming artists be discovered by scrapping the entertainment licences for live venues. Also they should do more to help independent record labels have a louder voice within an industry dominated by commercialised major labels.

Rather than expecting the government - i.e. the taxpayer - to fork out, why don't some of the megastars put something back in? Some of Britain's wealthiest people are musicians who have raked it in from albums, concerts etc. There are far more important demands on government funds.

If they can fund football, why not fund music?

Areas of the arts are funded by government and lottery grants, so why not music? We already have the opera receiving huge grants and it would clearly be beneficial for diversity in music to have the same opportunities in other areas of the music. The only problem would be how to judge what merits state cash.

The government has enough problems funding schools and health services. If Alex Kapranos genuinely thinks a multi-billion pound industry should also have government funding then his own education was seriously lacking and more money should be put into that.

As a Scot living in England, I appreciate the value of Scottish music and culture being a success, so I can see no problem with it! Franz Ferdinand, Travis and Snow Patrol are just recent examples of the success Scottish music can have in the world, so we should do what we Scots are good at and support our own goods!

I think the issue is more fundamental: should the government be spending money on subsidising a multi-million pound industry when health and education are in such a sorry state? The answer is most definitely no. Those people who are lucky enough to pursue their passion to get their pay cheque shouldn't be looking for government subsidies. I know that if I was lucky enough to be able to pursue my dream of show jumping I would want to finance myself until I was in a position to pursue corporate sponsorship.

Yes the government should fund music - it brings joy to the masses.

There are already thousands of state-funded musicians out there sitting around, twiddling their thumbs on the ""new deal"". Getting the government even more involved would only waste money that could be put to better use.

As long as the Government was funding real talent it would be a great move. I would hate to see more Pop Idol-type funding of music though, as it would only serve to reinforce the stereotypes that Alex talked about.

Only if the proposals make financial sense. Franz Ferdinand must be paying serious amounts of tax on their record sales - if they'd had a government grant to get started they'd have more than paid it back by now, so the Treasury would be making far more than it paid out. However, the government has better things to spend its money on than to give charity to everyone who decides they're a musician. The government shouldn't ""fund"" music - it should ""invest"" in music and those investments should be treated like any other investment.

I think the government needs to provide facilities and for young groups and bands to form and practise. The equipment is not cheap and can be well beyond the means of many people. However, I do feel this should be the extent of their role, to provide the conditions for the talent to flourish and let it go from there.

I do agree that the government should help to fund music but there is also a responsibility held by record companies! They generally always opt for the tried and tested and tend not to want to break any moulds or risk losing any money which ultimately, the directors are in the business for! If labels were more willing to put money forward towards smaller breakthrough acts then the government wouldn't have to fork out a great deal.

Yeah, why not? Music should be government funded, particularly the work of modern composers and veteran bands/artists and stuff. Pop music pretty much rules the earth, so more attention should go to the other fraternities

I agree with funding the arts to make it more accessible to the public but I am not convinced that pop music requires financial support from the taxpayer. There is a great deal of money generated through pop music - perhaps a tax on pop could be ploughed into the public performance of other forms of music for everyone to enjoy. Perhaps we could financially penalise really bad Pop Idol-style music - that is, the music industry sector without any artistic merit or originality whatsoever and that which is specifically designed to line the pockets of music producers. Call it a tax on music ""pollution"", if you like.

Though I really like Franz Ferdinand, I have to disagree with Mr Kapranos. Once government gets their hand into the private sector, it will destroy the creative and possibly controversial avenues the artist pursues. Many years ago, this was the case with the US NEA, when the government started to question what was considered art for the money they were allotting. The solution Mr Kapranos should pursue would be privately-funded organizations, like Save the Music in the US.
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Hard act to follow for OutKast	"US rap duo OutKast's trio of trophies at the MTV Europe Awards crowns a year of huge success for the band.

The latest triumph adds to the three Grammys and four American MTV gongs won earlier in this year. Andre 3000 and Big Boi's album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below has been critically acclaimed since its release and sold in large quantities around the world. The double album - which saw the pair produce one disc each - topped the charts in the US at the same time as single Hey Ya! It took another track from the exponents of southern hip-hop - The Way You Move - to displace it from the top spot. The Georgia pair's year of critical and commercial triumph leaves them with a tough act to follow - what can be next for a musical act that has done it all?

G Money, a presenter on the BBC's urban music station 1Xtra, thinks a hiatus is inevitable after such a sustained period of exposure - giving the band time to think about other interests. ""They might be more appearances outside the band, such as producing for other artists, while they have a number of fringe music projects. ""Andre 3000 would like to go into acting, so we might see him a film, while Big Boi already has a dog-breeding business,"" says the DJ.

""But in a couple of years they will be back with another album which will be a collaboration unlike their double CD. ""Their greatness has become clear with Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. We haven't seen the last of them,"" he adds. OutKast's musical career spans 10 years and they have enjoyed commercial and critical success in the past, with their debut Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik going platinum. But it took until 2001 for the pair to score their first hit in the UK with Ms Jackson, while their album Stakonia saw their fame spread beyond the US.

1Xtra's G Money says it took the latest album, released in 2003, for him to be ""assured of their genius"". ""They have always been experimental, some of it has worked and some hasn't,"" he adds. But G Money acknowledges that making the next move for a band that has reached a pinnacle can be tough. ""What can you do next when you've done it all?"" he says. With ten years of success behind them and worldwide fame, it seems that OutKast is not a name that is likely to be forgotten in a hurry.
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Sir Paul rocks Super Bowl crowds	"Sir Paul McCartney wowed fans with a live mini-concert at American football's Super Bowl - and avoided any Janet Jackson-style controversies.

The 62-year-old sang Hey Jude and other Beatles songs in a 12-minute set at half-time during the game in Florida. Last year, Jackson exposed a breast during a dance routine, causing outrage among millions of TV viewers and landing the CBS TV network a fine. Sir Paul, however, did nothing more racy than remove his jacket as he sang. Organisers were widely considered to be playing it safe this year by booking 62-year-old Sir Paul for his second Super Bowl show.

Three years ago, he was invited to perform at the first Super Bowl after the September 11 attacks and performed his specially-written song Freedom. This time, he started off the show, at the Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, with the Beatles numbers Drive My Car and Get Back. He then performed a mellow version of Live And Let Die, the James Bond theme he recorded with the band Wings. Finally, he closed the show with a rousing version of Hey Jude. The former Beatle resisted any temptation to refer to Janet Jackson's headline-grabbing performance last year, instead keeping banter between songs to a minimum in order to squeeze as much music as he could into his slot. The singer removed his black jacket halfway through the show - but any fans hoping for a second ""Nipple-gate"" were to be disappointed as he kept his red sweatshirt on underneath.

Earlier, the Black Eyed Peas and Alicia Keys had provided the night's other high-profile entertainment by performing in a pre-game show. Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie was dressed in a tight orange top and purple hotpants, but nothing in her performance was likely to upset TV watchdogs. After the controversy last year - which saw CBS fined a record $550,000 (£292,000) by federal regulators - Super Bowl organisers had turned to producer Don Mischer to oversee this year's half-time show. His previous production credits included Olympic opening and closing ceremonies. The Super Bowl is watched by an audience of 144.4 million in the US, with many of the people watching are said to tune in specifically to see the entertainment put on around the event. Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, Diana Ross, Gloria Estefan and Phil Collins are among the stars who have previously graced the Super Bowl stage.
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Rock group Korn's guitarist quits	"The guitarist with US rock band Korn has quit the music business, saying he made the decision after experiencing a religious awakening.

Brian 'Head' Welch told a radio station in California that his bandmates respected his decision to leave. A replacement guitarist has yet to be named by Korn, who are currently at work on their eighth studio album. Welch added that he would appear at a church in Bakersfield to explain how he ""got to this place in life"". The remaining members of Korn, who are known for their hardcore brand of rock, said they hoped Welch ""finds the happiness he is looking for"".

The 34-year-old made reference to the band's aggressive brand of music and its young fans in his parting statement. ""Anger is a good thing, and if kids want to listen to Korn, good, but there's happiness after the anger,"" he told his local radio station in Bakersfield. ""I'm going to show it through my actions, how much I love my fans,"" added Welch. Korn have enjoyed a moderate degree of chart success in the UK, with 10 singles breaking into the Top 40. Their best performance to date in the UK has been 2002's Here To Stay, which reached number 12, while their album Untouchables, released in the same year, made it to number four.
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Vibe awards back despite violence	"The US Vibe awards will be held again next year despite a stabbing which happened during the ceremony.

Vibe magazine president Kenard Gibbs said the attack earlier this month in Santa Monica was ""sickening"". He said not holding the awards would be counter to the work the magazine has done to promote hip hop music. Rapper Young Buck has been charged after allegedly stabbing a man who hit Dr Dre as he was about to receive a lifetime achievement award.

The rapper, whose real name is David Darnell Brown, is due in court on 20 December after being arrested on one charge of attempted murder and a second charge of assault with a deadly weapon. The performer is one of the members of 50 Cent's G-Unit group, which is signed to Dr Dre's record label. The man who was stabbed, Jimmy James Johnson, suffered a collapsed lung and is in a stable condition at a Los Angeles hospital. Mr Johnson allegedly approached Dr Dre, who was seated at a table in front of the stage, and appeared to ask for an autograph before punching him. During the ensuing scuffle - which involved many of the 1,000-strong crowd - Mr Johnson was stabbed as he was being dragged away by security staff,
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'Christmas song formula' unveiled	"A formula for the ultimate Christmas single has been revealed by chart bible British Hit Singles and Albums.

The recipe includes a reference to Father Christmas, sleigh bells, a children's choir and a charity element. The song should also include Christmas in the title, wishes for peace on earth and lots of airplay at office parties. ""There are common musical elements linking nearly all the big Christmas number ones of recent times,"" said editor David Roberts. The book's analysts commissioned chart prank group Moped to create the first Christmas single using the whole formula - the song is called Gonna Have a No 1 This Christmas by Moped Vs Santa.

""Everybody says that Christmas number ones are formulaic, but Gonna Have a Number One this Christmas is the first song to crack the formula and combine all these elements into one ultimate Christmas track"" said Mr Roberts. ""Surprisingly, there's no Santa listed among the 8,000, top 75 chart performers in the book, so this is our chance to help Santa to his rightful place in British recording history."" Big festive hits over the years include Band Aid's Do They Know It's Christmas?, Slade's Merry Christmas Everybody, Wham's Last Christmas and Sir Cliff Richards' Mistletoe and Wine. Band Aid 20's remake of Do They Know It's Christmas is set to be confirmed as number one in the charts on Sunday.
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Glastonbury fans to get ID cards	"Fans who buy tickets for this year's Glastonbury festival will be issued with photo ID cards in an attempt to beat touts, it has been confirmed.

The cards will include a photograph of the ticket-holder plus an electronic chip with their details to prevent tickets being sold on or forged. Tickets for the June event are expected to go on sale in April. ""There is only one place in the world where you will be able to get tickets,"" festival organiser Michael Eavis said. ""That will be the official source. If you get them anywhere else, you won't get in."" Fans not wanting to carry the entrance card could present their passport or driving licence instead, he added.

More than 153,000 people are expected to travel to Mr Eavis' Somerset farm from 24-26 June, but the event's rising popularity has meant an extremely high demand for tickets in recent years. When the ID card idea was floated, Mr Eavis' daughter Emily said it would be ""quite a big step in terms of ticketing for events"" if implemented and they were ""going as far as we can"" to cut touting. ""As long as it's approached in the right way, it might really work, it might really change the system,"" she said. In 2004, all 112,000 tickets for the public sold out in 24 hours. They were personalised with the names of purchasers, who were asked to bring identification, such as a driving licence, passport or household bill. But some forgot to take the right information while some touts simply offered to supply their own bills along with the ticket bearing their name. No details of this year's line-up have been confirmed but rumours have suggested U2 and Coldplay may be among the headliners.
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Queen recruit singer for new tour	"The remaining members of rock band Queen are to go on tour next year with former Free and Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers taking Freddie Mercury's place.

Guitarist Brian May has said he expects to be on the road with Rodgers and drummer Roger Taylor from April. May said: ""Suddenly the Queen Phoenix is rising again from the ashes and will take precedence over... our lives."" Queen have played with many different singers since Mercury's death in 1991 but have reportedly not toured. May performed with Rodgers at a concert to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Fender Stratocaster guitar in London in September.

""We were both so amazed at the chemistry that was going on in [Free hit] All Right Now, that suddenly it seems blindingly obvious that there was 'something happening here,'"" May wrote on his website. They teamed up again for a concert to mark their induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and were joined by Taylor. ""The show went so incredibly well from our point of view, and we got so many rave reactions from out there, we decided almost then and there that we would look at a tour together,"" May wrote.

Queen went to number one in 2000 with a version of We Will Rock You sung by boy band 5ive and they have also played with Robbie Williams, Will Young and Bob Geldof. Queen bassist John Deacon has currently retired from the stage. Rodgers was singer with early 1970s rockers Free, who had a global hit with All Right Now, before forming Bad Company, a successful ""supergroup"" with members of King Crimson and Mott the Hoople. He has also been in The Firm with Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and The Law with The Small Faces and The Who drummer Kenny Jones.
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U2 to play at Grammy awards show	"Irish rock band U2 are to play live at the Grammy Awards presentation in the US next month, organisers have said.

Other acts to play include soul singer Alicia Keys, country singer Tim McGraw and punk band Green Day at the event on 13 February in Los Angeles. U2 are nominated twice for their recent single Vertigo, including a nomination for best rock song. This year the Grammys have been dominated by rap star Kanye West, who is in contention for 10 awards. US comedian Ellen Degeneres and singer Christine Milian will present awards at the event. Last week Grammy producers announced the show will be hosted by rap star and Chicago actress Queen Latifah. It will be held at the Staples Center. U2 had number one success in the album charts on both sides of the Atlantic in November when their latest studio album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, topped the US and UK charts. The band, who are also dominated for best international album at this year's Brit Awards, are to undertake a major world tour this year, their first for four years.
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Rock band U2 break ticket record	"U2 have smashed Irish box office records with ticket sales for their Dublin concerts, after more than 150,000 were sold within 50 minutes.

Tickets for the two concerts at the city's Croke Park stadium were released at 8am on Friday morning. ""Nothing like it has ever been seen in Ireland before,"" said Justin Green, spokesman for organisers MCD Promoters. ""We could have sold a million tickets."" The Dublin dates on June 24 and 25 form part of the worldwide Vertigo tour. The tour begins in San Diego on 28 March and will cover 13 US cities. The band will also play 24 European gigs, finishing in Lisbon in August.

Mr Green said that ticket outlets had been ""bombarded"" by U2 fans. ""Unfortunately there's thousands and thousands of disappointed fans all over the country which is disappointing, but there's only two dates confirmed,"" he said. Many fans camped on the streets of the Irish capital for three days to ensure they were first in line at Ticketmaster in St Stephen's Green Shopping Centre, where the tickets went on sale on Friday. However the majority of tickets, priced at between 59.50 and 80 euro each, were sold online. Earlier this week, Bono announced that the band would play two shows at the venue, which holds almost 80,000 people, due to the phenomenal demand for tickets.
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Police praise 'courageous' Ozzy	"Rock star Ozzy Osbourne has been praised by police for ""very courageously"" tackling a burglar who stole jewellery from his house.

The singer grabbed an intruder who then jumped 30ft (10m) from a first floor window as the star gave chase at his Buckinghamshire home on Monday. ""I acted on impulse,"" Osbourne said. ""In hindsight, it could have been a lot worse. It could've got really ugly."" A £100,000 reward has been offered for information leading to a conviction. His wife Sharon, who called the police, said her wedding rings were taken from her bedside table as she slept.

The heavy metal star said he could have met the same fate as late Beatle George Harrison, who was repeatedly stabbed in a break-in in 1999. ""I could have been badly injured or shot or anything,"" Osbourne said. ""I just thank God that no-one got injured."" He added he was glad the intruders were not hurt. ""I wouldn't want anyone to get injured."" The singer did not want to talk in detail about his actions but when asked whether he would do the same again replied: ""Is the Pope a Catholic?"" The incident happened at 0400 GMT on Monday in Chalfont St Peter. Detective Inspector Paul Miller of Thames Valley Police said it appeared a man used a ladder to get into the house through a first floor bedroom window. ""Whilst selecting items of jewellery, the burglar was disturbed by Ozzy who very courageously tackled this burglar and pursued him from the house,"" he said. Ozzy said he was ""just coming to grips"" with what had happened and his opinion of the UK had been lowered after 12 relatively trouble-free years in the US.

""We lived in Los Angeles where people get shot every day and have been trailed by lots of different stalkers - and yet we come back to England and I'm very disappointed."" At a press conference on Tuesday, Sharon Osbourne gave details of nine stolen items. They included a diamond wedding ring and two handmade wedding bands Ozzy gave her when they renewed their vows two years ago. She said she wished she had worn them at night. ""I always take them off and put them beside my bed and that's where they were, right beside me on my bedside table."" Also taken were a pearl necklace and a sapphire bought as an investment for their daughters described by Sharon as ""one of the only 24-carat sapphires that is absolutely pure"".

A daisy chain necklace that was a 20th anniversary present and a Franck Muller watch Sharon said was one of only 10 made were also stolen. She expressed her anger at the person who ""hasn't worked and wants to take what's yours"". ""But the thing is, we worked for everything. I came from Brixton. Ozzy came from not a very nice part of Birmingham and everything we've got we have worked our arses off for."" ""If I choose to make an investment for my kids in whatever way I choose to make it, that's my business and I worked for every God damn penny."" Ozzy also lamented two years in which the family has been plagued by problems, including his critical injury in a quad bike accident, his wife's colon cancer, their childrens' drug problems and now the burglary.

On Sunday night, the Osbournes had been celebrating the birthday of singer Sir Elton John's partner David Furnish. Police described the intruder as well-built, about 5' 10"" tall and said he was wearing a ski-mask, a light-coloured jacket and trainers. They believe he may have injured himself when he jumped from the window. There is no description of his accomplice. Police think the pair were driving a large vehicle, possibly a van, and are keen to hear from anyone who may have seen one leaving Chalfont St Peter at speed. Police appealed for public help to find the perpetrators and stolen items on 0845 8 505 505 or 0800 555 111.
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New York rockers top talent poll	"New York electro-rock group The Bravery have come top of the BBC News website's Sound of 2005 poll to find the music scene's most promising new act.

The Bravery, who have been compared to The Cure and New Order, were the most heavily-tipped act in the survey of 110 impartial critics and broadcasters. Rock band Keane won Sound of 2004 while US rapper 50 Cent topped Sound of 2003. Other new artists in this year's list include London indie group Bloc Party at second and UK rapper Kano third. The Bravery played their first gig in 2003 and have since supported bands including The Libertines, Interpol and Echo and the Bunnymen.

They were the subject of a record company bidding war in 2004 and their debut single, Unconditional, caused a huge buzz when it was released in the UK in November. Singer Sam Endicott said he felt ""great"" about coming top of the Sound of 2005 list. ""Anyone that says they don't want a zillion screaming fans is a jackass, a liar,"" he said. One of the experts to tip The Bravery was The Times' music critic Paul Connolly, who said they were ""spiky but in love with pop"". Chris Hawkins, host of BBC 6 Music's chart show, said the band had ""great guitars and a mastery of the electro-clash sound"". ""The Bravery are proof alone that New York City is still home to hot new talent,"" he said. Nigel Harding, head of music at London rock radio station Xfm, said every track from their live set ""sounded like a potential single"".

Unconditional reached the summit of the station's listeners' chart within a fortnight of its first play, which Mr Harding described as ""an unheard of achievement for a debut single"".

Q magazine reviews editor Ted Kessler said they were ""pretty-boy New York clothes horses"" with ""an unusually nimble ear for concise, yearning pop in the mould of Duran Duran or The Strokes"". Other pundits to take part in the survey included BBC Radio 1 DJ Trevor Nelson, NME editor Conor McNicholas, Top of the Pops presenter Fearne Cotton, Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis and BBC Radio 2 music editor Colin Martin. Elsewhere on the top 10, second-placed rock band Bloc Party began their rise after supporting Franz Ferdinand and UK garage MC Kano, in third, is signed to The Streets' record label. US rapper The Game is hip-hop great Dr Dre's latest protege while Leeds group Kaiser Chiefs came fifth with a promise to lead a Britpop revival. In last year's survey, Keane were followed by Franz Ferdinand, Razorlight and Joss Stone in the top five - all of whom were virtually unknown outside the music industry at that point.

Boy band McFly were sixth while Scissor Sisters, who had the UK's best-selling album of 2004, were seventh. In the survey, the pundits were asked for tips for three acts they thought were capable of reaching the top in their chosen genre, either in terms of sales or critical acclaim. The artists could be from any country and any musical genre, but must not have had a UK top 20 single, been a contestant on a TV talent show or already be famous for doing something else, such as a soap actor. Those tips were then counted and compiled to make the top 10.
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Blair buys copies of new Band Aid	"Prime Minister Tony Blair purchased two copies of the charity single Band Aid 20 in Edinburgh on Friday.

Staff were surprised when the Prime Minister walked into HMV at 0900 GMT, accompanied by aides and local police. ""When Mr Blair came in unannounced, we were all pretty gobsmacked,"" said HMV manager Clive Smith. ""Our customer helper approached him... it was only then we realised he wanted to buy copies of the Band Aid single, rather than the latest Eminem album."" Predicted chart-topper Do They Know it's Christmas? is expected to sell at least 300,000 copies by the time the new chart is announced on Sunday. However, the new version of the 1984 single is not going to be released in the US, despite being sold in many countries around the world. US record shops are stocking an import version of Do They Know It's Christmas, which is said to be selling very well in Los Angeles and New York. The original track was released in the US, and reached number 13 in the singles chart. British stars who appear on the current recording, such as Dido and Coldplay's Chris Martin, are well-known to music fans across the Atlantic, along with U2 frontman Bono.

Record company Universal is responsible for the global distribution of the single, which will be available across Europe, Asia, South America and Canada. But music fans in the US are still able to access the song and download it on Band Aid 20's official website. In 1985, a group of high-profile American stars known as USA For Africa came together to record their own fund-raising single, We Are The World. The song was written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, with Quincy Jones as producer. It topped the US charts for three weeks and went on win Grammy awards for best record and song.

Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross and Tina Turner were among the line-up of performers. It is predicted that the Band Aid 20 song will sell 300,000 copies in the UK by the time the new chart is announced on Sunday. The record is also tipped to become this year's Christmas number one, as the original version did in 1984. Proceeds from the sales are going towards relief for the Darfur region of Sudan and to combat HIV and Aids across Africa.
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Eminem beats Elvis to number one	"Rapper Eminem has denied Elvis his fourth number one of the year, after his song, Like Toy Soldiers, stormed to the top of the singles charts.

The track claimed the top spot ahead of The King's latest re-release, Are You Lonesome Tonight. It is the fifth in a series of 18 reissues to mark the 70th anniversary of Presley's birth. Almost Here, the duet from former Westlife star Brian McFadden and Delta Goodrem, went in at number three.

Like Toy Soldiers, from Eminem's Encore album, is sampled from Martika's 1980s hit Toy Soldiers. It takes a swipe at hip-hop feuds and follows the success of Just Lose It. Last week's number one, Elvis's It's Now or Never, slipped 13 places to number 14, but all five of his re-released songs are in the Top 40. One World Project Tsunami fundraiser, Grief Never Grows Old, slipped four places to number eight. Featuring Cliff Richard and Boy George, the song was written by former DJ Mike Read. In the album charts, Athlete's latest offering Tourist claimed the top spot, toppling the Chemical Brother's Push The Button Down, which fell to number six.
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Sir Paul rocks Super Bowl crowds	"Sir Paul McCartney wowed fans with a live mini-concert at American football's Super Bowl - and avoided any Janet Jackson-style controversies.

The 62-year-old sang Hey Jude and other Beatles songs in a 12-minute set at half-time during the game in Florida. Last year, Jackson exposed a breast during a dance routine, causing outrage among millions of TV viewers and landing the CBS TV network a fine. Sir Paul, however, did nothing more racy than remove his jacket as he sang. Organisers were widely considered to be playing it safe this year by booking 62-year-old Sir Paul for his second Super Bowl show.

Three years ago, he was invited to perform at the first Super Bowl after the September 11 attacks and performed his specially-written song Freedom. This time, he started off the show, at the Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, with the Beatles numbers Drive My Car and Get Back. He then performed a mellow version of Live And Let Die, the James Bond theme he recorded with the band Wings. Finally, he closed the show with a rousing version of Hey Jude. The former Beatle resisted any temptation to refer to Janet Jackson's headline-grabbing performance last year, instead keeping banter between songs to a minimum in order to squeeze as much music as he could into his slot. The singer removed his black jacket halfway through the show - but any fans hoping for a second ""Nipple-gate"" were to be disappointed as he kept his red sweatshirt on underneath.

Earlier, the Black Eyed Peas and Alicia Keys had provided the night's other high-profile entertainment by performing in a pre-game show. Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie was dressed in a tight orange top and purple hotpants, but nothing in her performance was likely to upset TV watchdogs. After the controversy last year - which saw CBS fined a record $550,000 (£292,000) by federal regulators - Super Bowl organisers had turned to producer Don Mischer to oversee this year's half-time show. His previous production credits included Olympic opening and closing ceremonies. The Super Bowl is watched by an audience of 144.4 million in the US, with many of the people watching are said to tune in specifically to see the entertainment put on around the event. Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, Diana Ross, Gloria Estefan and Phil Collins are among the stars who have previously graced the Super Bowl stage.
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J-Lo and husband plan debut duet	"Singers Jennifer Lopez and husband Marc Anthony, a Latin pop star, are to perform a duet at this month's Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.

Anthony became Lopez's third husband in June 2004. He won a Grammy in 1998 and is nominated for two more this year. The 13 February ceremony will also include a rendition of The Beatles' Across The Universe by Bono, Stevie Wonder, Norah Jones and Brian Wilson. The song will go on sale online to raise money for the tsunami aid effort. The awards show will also feature performances from U2, Green Day, Alicia Keys and Kanye West - but the Lopez and Anthony duet is likely to be one of the biggest talking points.

Anthony, born in New York to a Puerto Rican family, is reported to be the biggest-selling salsa artist of all time. He is nominated this year for best Latin pop album and best salsa/merengue album. The tsunami tribute song will also feature Alicia Keys, Velvet Revolver and Tim McGraw. Fans will be able to download it for $0.99 (£0.53) from iTunes, or purchase the video from the CBS TV network's site. Kanye West, the rapper who leads the awards with 10 nominations, will perform alongside John Legend, Mavis Staples and the Blind Boys of Alabama. There will also be a tribute to Ray Charles featuring Bonnie Raitt and Billy Preston and a celebration of southern rock with Tim McGraw, Gretchen Wilson, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Dickie Betts and Elvis Bishop. Ray Charles, who died in June 2004, has seven posthumous nominations. Alicia Keys and Usher share eight nominations each.
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Beastie Boys win sampling battle	"US rappers Beastie Boys have won their long-running battle over the use of a sample in their song Pass the Mic.

The punk-rappers used three notes of music from flautist James Newton's Choir in their track from 1992. Although the group had paid a licence fee for the sample, Mr Newton said his copyright had been infringed. But the US Court of Appeal upheld its original decision that the group did not have to pay an additional fee to license the underlying composition. The Beastie Boys - Michael Diamond, Adam Horowitz, and Adam Yauch - are considered to be one of early pioneers of sampling music.

Sampling, now a standard practice among musicians, involves taking a segment of one track and using it in a different song. A three-judge panel of the court held in 2003 that the band had abided by copyright protections by paying a licence fee for a sample of Mr Newton's recording. That finding upheld a lower-court dismissal of the case in favour of the Beastie Boys. ""We hold that Beastie Boys' use of a brief segment of that composition, consisting of three notes separated by a half-step over a background C note, is not sufficient to sustain a claim for infringement of Newton's copyright,"" Chief Judge Mary Schroeder wrote in her opinion. Mr Newton is a critically acclaimed jazz and classical flutist, composer, performer, and university professor. Mr Newton and the Beastie Boys were not available for comment.
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Pupils to get anti-piracy lessons	"Lessons on music piracy and copyright issues are to be taught to secondary school pupils in the UK.

The lessons, aimed at 11 to 14-year-olds, will introduce them to copyright - including the issues of downloading from the internet and the illegal copying of CDs - and its role in protecting creativity.

Music piracy, including illegally swapping music online, costs the UK music industry millions every year and has been blamed for a decline in world-wide CD sales. British Music Rights (BMR) - which was formed to represent the interests of songwriters and composers - worked with education experts to put together a learning pack.

Songwriter Guy Chambers, who has worked with stars including Robbie Williams, has thrown his support behind the scheme. He said as well as educating children about music piracy, it would also protect young people planning a career in the music industry from ""unscrupulous"" individuals. At a debate in London to launch the scheme, Chambers said: ""I think it is important that young people receive practical and engaging learning in schools. ""These lessons will give them an insight into how the creative industries work which will help them in possible future careers."" The education pack, which has already been requested by more than 1,600 secondary schools, is aimed at giving children an understanding of copyright in relation to the music industry. It will also teach children about the importance of royalties and raises awareness of different careers in the music industry, particularly in the digital age.

Henri Yoxall, general manager of British Music Rights, told BBC News schools had been crying out for a resource to help them educate pupils about the issues. The scheme - which is an extension of BMR's Respect the Value of Music campaign - is also being backed by singer-songwriters Feargal Sharkey, Lucie Silvas and Grammy Award-winning composer David Arnold. Silvas said: ""I think it is so important that students gain an understanding of how the music industry works when they are at a young age. ""I wish I had been given an opportunity like this when I was at school."" Emma Pike, director general of British Music Rights, said: ""We believe that copyright is an essential part of teaching music in schools. It is vital that the creatives of the future know how to turn their ideas into value. ""Copyright education has always been important... creatives are facing more challenges and more opportunities from technological change. ""Technology is allowing people to create music and distribute their music to the public in a whole host of new ways.""
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Spector facing more legal action	"Music producer Phil Spector is facing legal action from the mother of the actress he has been accused of killing.

Donna Clarkson, whose daughter Lana was found dead in Mr Spector's home in February 2003, is seeking unspecified damages in a civil action. The legal action accuses Mr Spector of murdering the actress at his LA home. Mr Spector is currently free on $1m (£535,000) bail and is awaiting trial. The 64-year-old has denied the killing, saying her death was accidental.

Ms Clarkson's legal action, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, also accuses Mr Spector of negligence and battery, alleging he ""grabbed, hit, fought with and restrained"" Lana Clarkson before shooting her to death. Her lawyers said in a statement: ""The Clarkson family had hoped that there would be some resolution with regard to the criminal proceedings before moving forward with the civil action. ""However, Ms Clarkson and her family understand that the fair administration of justice takes time and in light of the numerous changes Mr Spector has made in his legal defence team over the last two years, Ms Clarkson was forced to file the action before (the statute of limitations expired) on 3 February 2005."" Mr Spector, known for his work with the Beatles, has claimed that Lana Clarkson committed suicide. His lawyers, led by Bruce Cutler, have vowed to prove him innocent at trial.

Mr Cutler said: ""Phil did not cause the death of this woman, he's not criminally responsible and he's not civilly responsible either. ""But I'm not surprised they filed a suit for money, that seems to be de rigueur nowadays."" A Los Angeles Superior Court judge is expected to set a trial date later this month for Spector, who was indicted on murder charges in September. Roderick Lindblom, one of Ms Clarkson's lawyers, said: ""Our intent is to let the criminal proceedings go forward and not do anything that would interfere with the prosecution.""
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Usher leads Billboard nominations	"R&B singer Usher is leading the race for the Billboard awards with nominations in 13 categories, including best male.

Alicia Keys has 12 nominations for the awards, which will be held on 8 December at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Other multiple nominees include Maroon5, OutKast, Kanye West, R Kelly, Gretchen Wilson, Hoobastank and Jay-Z. Soul singer Stevie Wonder will receive Billboard's Century Award, the magazine's highest honour for creative achievement, at the ceremony.

The awards will be hosted by American Idol presenter Ryan Seacrest, and will feature performances by Usher, Gwen Stefani, Nelly and Green Day. Usher and Keys will be battling it out for prizes including artist of the year, Hot 100 songwriter of the year and Billboard 200 album of the year for their respective albums Confessions and The Diary of Alicia Keys. Maroon5 and OutKast are also up for artist of the year, while OutKast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is a finalist for Billboard 200 album of the year, alongside Josh Groban's Closer. The awards honour the year's leading artists and songs as determined by their performance on Billboard's weekly charts.
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Eminem secret gig venue revealed	"Rapper Eminem is to play an intimate gig in London on Saturday, following a show on the River Thames on Friday.

The US star will play just two songs at a night showcasing his label Shady Records at the Islington Academy. Eminem performed on HMS Belfast on Friday, which is docked on the River Thames, where he filmed two songs for BBC One's Top of the Pops. He arrived in the UK on Friday following his appearance at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Rome. Other rap acts who may appear at the Islington gig include Stat Quo, Proof, DJ Green Lantern, Swift and Obie Trice.

Eminem's latest album soared to the top of the US chart after just three days on sale in record shops. Encore is now a chart-topper on both sides of the Atlantic following its debut at number one in the UK. The fourth album from the rap star was on sale for two days before it outsold all of its rivals. The album was released early in an effort to combat both physical and online piracy.

Eminem's album includes the track Mosh, which is a tirade against US President Bush and the presence of US troops in Iraq. The rapper was criticised earlier this year after a performance on BBC One's Top of the Pops in April led 12 viewers to complain he was ""lewd"" and ""offensive"". The complaints about the star grabbing his crotch were upheld by the BBC. ""The performer had been asked to tone his act down after rehearsal but ignored this request during the live broadcast,"" a BBC statement read. ""Although his gestures were part of the rap culture, they had gone beyond what is expected.""
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Beatles suits sell for $110,000	"Four suits worn by the Beatles on their Please Please Me album cover have sold for $110,00 (£59,000) at a US auction.

But some of Elvis Presley's earliest recordings - including takes of All Shook Up - failed to sell at the Bonhams and Butterfields two-day sale. A private collection of six tape recordings of Presley valued at between $30,000 (£16,000) and $50,000 (£27,000) did not meet their reserve price. A signed Presley photograph managed to fetch $2,115 (£1,140).

Auction spokesman Erik Simon said the Presley tapes were withdrawn because ""they did not meet the minimum price set by the owners"".

He said the family of sound engineer Thorne Nogar did not want to divulge the price they had set or the offers they had received. The RCA tapes date from September 1956 to September 1957. The ""pre-masters"" include a take of Jailhouse Rock, religious songs, material for his first Christmas album, and banter between Presley, members of his band and Mr Nogar.

""We've had them for a lot of years, and I think the people should enjoy them. And frankly, we could use the money,"" Mr Nogar's son Stephen, 57, said before the auction. Mr Nogar, who died in 1994 aged 72, always used to make two tapes of sessions as a back-up in case RCA producers wanted to make late changes to songs. ""He called them his 'ass-saver' tapes,"" his son said. The quality is said to be noticeably crisper than that of a new vinyl record. Because the family does not own the copyright to the music, the tapes could only be sold for ""personal enjoyment"" and cannot be copied for commercial gain. The auction made a total of $1.1m (£600,000).
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OutKast win at MTV Europe Awards	"US hip-hop duo OutKast have capped a year of award glory with three prizes at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Rome.

They won best group, best video and best song for hit Hey Ya! after getting five nominations. R&B singer Usher won best male and best album for Confessions, while UK rock band Muse were named best alternative act and best British artists. OutKast will add their awards to the four they won at the US MTV Awards in August and three Grammys in February. Not only was Hey Ya! one of the biggest global hits of last year, but OutKast have been widely acclaimed as one of the most exciting and innovative acts in music. Their double CD album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, which saw Andre 3000 and Big Boi each produce one disc, was hailed as the album of 2003 by many critics.

Andre 3000 thanked fans ""for supporting OutKast throughout the years"". ""We really appreciate it,"" he said. ""I hope you don't get tired of us, but we only do what we do."" Also competing for best group had been the Beastie Boys, the Black Eyed Peas, D12 and Maroon 5. And Anastacia, Britney Spears, Maroon 5 and Ludacris had been on the shortlist for best song.

OutKast did lose out in the contest for best album - which was won by Usher, another award favourite. Usher, who performed a duet with Alicia Keys, also beat off competition from Justin Timberlake, Jay-Z, Nelly and Robbie Williams to take the best male crown. He had four nominations going into the ceremony, with seven artists nominated in three categories.

Eminem's group, D12, were surprise winners in the best hip-hop category, beating the Beastie Boys, Jay-Z, Kanye West and Nelly. Eminem told the crowd: ""D12 finally won an award, thank you very much."" The rapper opened the show with a performance of his songs Like Toy Soldiers and Just Lose It, for which he was joined on stage by a crowd of children. The Black Eyed Peas - who had a global hit with Where is the Love? - picked up the prize for best pop act, beating Anastacia, Avril Lavigne, Robbie Williams and Britney Spears. Spears was named best female, sending a message of thanks on video saying the award ""means so much to me"". Alicia Keys, Anastasia, Avril Lavigne and Beyonce Knowles had featured alongside her in that contest.

Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington described their prize for best rock band as ""quite an honour"" while Muse said their win for best alternative act was ""a real surprise for us"". Muse were also named best UK and Ireland act, ahead of Franz Ferdinand, Natasha Bedingfield, Jamelia and The Streets. Referring to the fact that winners of 11 of the 12 main awards were from the US, Muse singer Matt Bellamy said: ""There needs to be more European bands."" The 11th annual awards were hosted by hip-hop artist Xzibit and watched by 6,000 people at the Tor Di Valle arena, plus millions more on TV around the world. The ceremony featured performances from the Beastie Boys, who entered the stage on bicycles and skateboards, No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani being lowered from a giant clock and Nelly doing a duet with Pharrell Williams. MTV also organised a huge open-air concert featuring Anastacia and The Cure outside the Italian capital's ancient Colosseum, with some estimates putting the attendance there at 200,000. Last year's big winner at the MTV Europe Awards, held in Edinburgh, Scotland, was Justin Timberlake, who walked away with three trophies.
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Oasis star fined for German brawl	"Oasis singer Liam Gallagher has been fined 50,000 euros (£35,000) after a fight in a German hotel two years ago.

Gallagher was arrested along with drummer Alan White and three other members of the band's entourage after the brawl in Munich in December 2002. The band said they were victims of an ""unprovoked attack"" in a nightclub. But police said Gallagher kicked an officer in the chest and had large amounts of alcohol and drugs - possibly cocaine - in his blood. Gallagher lost two front teeth in the fight, which led to the band abandoning their German tour. His brother and bandmate Noel was in bed at the time.

""The process has stopped by paying 50,000 euros,"" said Anton Winkler, spokesman for the Munich prosecutor. At the time, police said a ""physical altercation"" broke out among the musicians at about 0200 local time. That led to one of the group being ""jostled"" and falling onto the table of five Italian guests - causing the fight, they said. The fight continued outside, where ""one of the officers was kicked in the chest with full force by Liam Gallagher... and suffered minor injuries"", they said.
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Disputed Nirvana box set on sale	"A box set featuring 68 unreleased Nirvana tracks has gone on sale in the US, after years of legal wrangles.

With the Lights Out was intended to be released in 2001, to mark the 10th anniversary of the album Nevermind. It was blocked by Courtney Love, the widow of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, who did not want unreleased song You Know You're Right on the box set. The dispute between Love and surviving band members Krist Novoselic and drummer Dave Grohl was settled in 2002. Work began on the box set in 1998, but legal battles put the project on hold. The legal fight centred on a studio recording of the unreleased track You Know You're Right, regarded by fans as one of the unreleased gems of Nirvana. The set, released on Tuesday, features three CDs and a DVD of rare performance and rehearsal footage. The DVD also includes the first performance of Smells Like Teen Spirit, the track that launched Nirvana on to the international stage in 1991. ""The band wasn't always pretty, or always in tune. This is not Nirvana unplugged. It's Nirvana unedited,"" said Cobain biographer Charles Cross. The band's development ended tragically when songwriter Kurt Cobain committed suicide in April 1994.
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Usher leads Soul Train shortlist	"Chart-topping R&B star Usher is leading the field at this year's Soul Train Awards, with five nominations.

The singer, whose album Confessions has sold close to eight million copies in the US alone, is already in the running for eight Grammy Awards. Newcomer Ciara - who recently beat Elvis Presley to the UK number one spot - has four nominations, while Alicia Keys has three. The Soul Train Awards ceremony will take place in Hollywood on 28 February.

Usher has already swept the board at the American Music Awards with four titles, including two best album awards. His Soul Train nominations include best male R&B-soul album and best male R&B-soul single for Confessions Part II. Usher's work with rappers Ludacris & Lil Jon won him nominations for best R&B-soul or rap music video and best R&B-soul or rap dance cut for the song Yeah!, while his duet with Keys, My Boo, earned the pair a nod for best R&B-soul single. Keys' album The Diary of Alicia Keys was also up for best R&B-soul album by a female. Her song If I Ain't Got You received a best single nomination in the female R&B-soul category. Newcomer Ciara's four nominations include best female R&B-soul album and best R&B-soul or rap by a new artist. Beyonce, Prince, Destiny's Child, Jill Scott and New Edition all received two nominations each. The Soul Train Music Awards, which started 18 years ago, celebrates artists in R&B, hip-hop, rap and gospel music.
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US charity anthem is re-released	"We Are The World, the American charity anthem inspired by the success of Band Aid, has been re-issued to raise money for Aids research and tsunami victims.

More than 40 stars sang as group USA For Africa, including Lionel Richie, Diana Ross, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen. It topped the charts in the US and UK, raising millions of dollars for African famine relief. The re-release also marks the 20th anniversary of the original recording. It has been re-issued as part of a two-disc DVD set, which will also feature footage from the recording session of the track in January 1985. The single was originally released in the US on 7 March 1985 and sold 800,000 copies in its first week. It went on to win Grammys for song of the year and record of the year.
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Queen recruit singer for new tour	"The remaining members of rock band Queen are to go on tour next year with former Free and Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers taking Freddie Mercury's place.

Guitarist Brian May has said he expects to be on the road with Rodgers and drummer Roger Taylor from April. May said: ""Suddenly the Queen Phoenix is rising again from the ashes and will take precedence over... our lives."" Queen have played with many different singers since Mercury's death in 1991 but have reportedly not toured. May performed with Rodgers at a concert to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Fender Stratocaster guitar in London in September.

""We were both so amazed at the chemistry that was going on in [Free hit] All Right Now, that suddenly it seems blindingly obvious that there was 'something happening here,'"" May wrote on his website. They teamed up again for a concert to mark their induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and were joined by Taylor. ""The show went so incredibly well from our point of view, and we got so many rave reactions from out there, we decided almost then and there that we would look at a tour together,"" May wrote.

Queen went to number one in 2000 with a version of We Will Rock You sung by boy band 5ive and they have also played with Robbie Williams, Will Young and Bob Geldof. Queen bassist John Deacon has currently retired from the stage. Rodgers was singer with early 1970s rockers Free, who had a global hit with All Right Now, before forming Bad Company, a successful ""supergroup"" with members of King Crimson and Mott the Hoople. He has also been in The Firm with Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and The Law with The Small Faces and The Who drummer Kenny Jones.
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Band Aid 20 single storms to No 1	"The new version of the Band Aid song Do They Know It's Christmas? has gone straight in at number one in the UK singles chart.

The charity record is also tipped to be this year's Christmas number one. It features vocals from the likes of Chris Martin, Dido, Robbie Williams and the Sugababes. The original version - which was the Christmas number one in 1984 - sold 750,000 copies in its first week and 3.5 million in total. It was released in the US, and reached number 13 in the singles chart. However, Band Aid 20 is not going to be released in the US, despite being sold in many countries around the world. US record shops are stocking an import version of Do They Know It's Christmas, which is said to be selling very well in Los Angeles and New York.

British stars who appear on the current recording, such as Dido and Coldplay's Chris Martin, are well known to music fans across the Atlantic, along with U2 frontman Bono. Record company Universal is responsible for the global distribution of the single, which will be available across Europe, Asia, South America and Canada. But music fans in the US are still able to access the song and download it on Band Aid 20's official website. In 1985, a group of high-profile American stars known as USA For Africa came together to record their own fund-raising single, We Are The World. The song was written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, with Quincy Jones as producer.

It topped the US charts for three weeks and went on win Grammy awards for best record and song. Dionne Warwick, Diana Ross and Tina Turner were among the line-up of performers. Proceeds from the sales of the Band Aid 20 single will go towards aid relief in Africa, in countries such as Ethiopia and Sudan. The money raised will also be used to help combat HIV and Aids across the continent. The Band Aid Trust which was set up 20 years ago, when the original single was released, handed out $144m (£75m) to famine relief projects across Africa between January 1985 and November 2004.
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iTunes now selling Band Aid song	"Ipod owners can now download the Band Aid single from iTunes after Apple reached agreement with the charity.

Apple had been unwilling to raise the cost of the single in line with other download services, said Band Aid. But the single is now on sale for 79p - the usual cost of a song from iTunes - with Apple donating a further 70p to the charity for each song downloaded. A copy of the original 1984 song is also available for download at 79p - with all proceeds going to the charity.

More than 72,000 copies of the new Band Aid single were sold on its first day of release on Monday, according to sales figures. The track has become the fastest-selling single of the year so far, shifting more copies than the rest of the top 30 combined, HMV claimed. Dido, Robbie Williams and Chris Martin are among those featured on the new version of Do They Know It's Christmas?, which is raising money to fight hunger in Africa. If the track sold 500,000 copies, more than £1m would be raised for charity. The CD is being sold for £3.99, with HMV, Virgin and Woolworths all donating their profits.
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Court halts Mark Morrison album	"Premiership footballer and record company boss Kevin Campbell has gained a court injunction stopping R&B singer Mark Morrison from releasing an album.

The Everton striker signed Morrison to his fledging 2 Wikid Records label and claims he spent thousands of pounds producing his album Innocent Man. Now he is attempting to prevent Morrison releasing the album on Monday through another label. But Morrison vowed to ignore the order, saying ""no judge is gonna stop me"".

Morrison, who is now as well known for his brushes with the law than his music career, rose to fame with the 1996 single Return of the Mack.

But the Leicester singer has struggled to repeat its success following two spells in jail. One was for hiring a stand-in to complete his community service for possession of a stun gun and three-months following a nightclub fracas. He signed to Mr Campbell's label a year ago and has released one single, with the label saying the album was due for release on 24 January. But Mr Campbell said he learned that Morrison planned to release the album through Jet Star, which is advertising it on its website. Mr Campbell said: ""I'm glad we were granted the injunction but I'm completely gutted that we have had to go that far. ""Mark Morrison was given everything he asked for by 2 Wikid but it seems that he couldn't help but return to his old ways.

""I've worked hard to realise my ambition in football but had hoped that my future career would be in the music business. ""I have always dreamt of starting a record label but now Mark Morrison has spoilt that dream for me. There is no loyalty in this business - just greed.""

But Morrison is determined the album will be released on Monday. He said: ""The injunction is ludicrous. ""I signed a new deal with a new record company because I was not getting the support I needed from 2 Wikid. ""I was with that label for a year and in that time released just one record, which was not properly promoted. He added: ""The whole world is waiting for this album and it will come out on December 27. No injunction or judge will stop it. The Mack will return."" The case is set to be heard in the High Court on 20 December.
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Prince crowned 'top music earner'	"Prince earned more than any other pop star in 2004, beating artists such Madonna and Elton John in US magazine Rolling Stone's annual list.

The singer banked $56.5m (£30.4m) from concerts, album and publishing sales with his Musicology tour and album. He kept Madonna in second place, as she earned $54.9m (£29.5m) while embarking on her global Re-Invention Tour. Veterans Simon and Garfunkel were in 10th place, their comeback tour helping them earn $24.9m (£13.4m) last year.

""Prince returned to centre stage after a decade in the commercial wilderness,"" the magazine reported. The singer's 2004 tour took $90.3m (£48.5m) in ticket sales and he sold 1.9 million copies of his latest album Musicology.

Although she grossed more than Prince last year, Madonna remained in second place because of the ""monumental"" production costs of her tour. Heavy metal band Metallica's Madly in Anger with the World tour helped push their 2004 earnings up to $43.1m (£23.1m). They were ahead of Sir Elton John, who took fourth place and almost $42.7m (£23m) from performances including a debut on the Las Vegas Strip. Other seasoned performers in the list included Rod Stewart, whose sold-out shows and third volume of The Great American Songbook covers album helped net him £35m (£19m). The highest-ranking rap act in the list was 50 Cent, who at number 19 took $24m (£13m) to the bank.
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Early Elvis recordings go on sale	"Some of Elvis Presley's earliest recordings - including takes of All Shook Up - are going under the hammer on Sunday at a Los Angeles auction.

The six unedited reel-to-reel tapes - which were owned by the engineer who recorded them - are valued at up to $50,000 (£29,000). Highlights of the two hour-long collection will get their public debut at Bonhams auction house on Saturday. The RCA tapes date from September 1956 to September 1957. The ""pre-masters"" include a take of Jailhouse Rock, religious songs, material for his first Christmas album, and banter between Presley, members of his band and engineer Thorne Nogar.

""We've had them for a lot of years, and I think the people should enjoy them,"" Nogar's son Stephen, 57, said. ""And frankly, we could use the money."" Nogar, who died in 1994 aged 72, always used to make two tapes of sessions as a back-up in case RCA producers wanted to make late changes to songs. ""He called them his ass-saver tapes,"" his son said. The quality is said to be noticeably crisper than that of a new vinyl record. Because the family does not own the copyright to the music, the tapes can only be sold for ""personal enjoyment"" and they cannot be copied for commercial gain.
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Parker's saxophone heads auction	"A saxophone belonging to legendary jazz musician Charlie Parker is expected to fetch up to $1m (£535,000) at an auction of jazz memorabilia next month.

The sale, at Guernsey's Auction House in New York, will feature instruments from other musicians including John Coltrane and Benny Goodman. Other items will include an evening gown belonging to Ella Fitzgerald. Organisers said the auction was the first in the US to be devoted to items belonging to jazz musicians.

Other items that will be auctioned include unreleased tape recordings of music by Parker as well as handwritten sheet music by jazz composers John Coltrane and Theolonius Monk. Among the instruments in the sale will be a trumpet which belonged to Dizzy Gillespie, which is expected to fetch around $500,000 (£267,000), as well as JJ Johnson's trombone and a vibraphone which beloned to Lionel Hampton. Works of art by musicians including Miles Davis and Bruni Sablan will also be featured. The proceeds from the auction, which will take place on 20 February, will go towards several organisations including the John Coltrane Foundation, a foundation set up in memory of Benny Goodman, and the Red Cross.
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Comic Morris returns with sitcom	"Comedian Chris Morris, who created controversial TV show Brass Eye, is to return to screens with a new sitcom about a spoof London media worker.

Morris will direct and co-write Nathan Barley - a character from cult website TV Go Home - for Channel 4. It is a send-up of the stereotypical ""cool"" metropolitan media scene, with Nicholas Burns in the title role. A Brass Eye satire of the media handling of paedophilia sparked 2,500 complaints in 2001.

Nathan Barley will be ""a character-driven comedy"", according to Charlie Brooker, who created TV Go Home in 1999 and has co-written the series. Barley is described as a ""webmaster, guerrilla film-maker, screenwriter, DJ and in his own words, a 'self-facilitating media node"". The story will also feature Dan Ashcroft, a style magazine columnist, and his sister Claire, a film-maker who hates the ""cool"" scene. As well as Brass Eye, Morris was behind another news show satire, The Day Today, and dark sketch comedy Jam. The new show is expected to begin in February.
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TV station refuses adoption show	"A TV station in the US has refused to show a controversial new series where adopted children try and pick their birth father - and win a cash prize.

The WRAZ-TV Fox affiliate in North Carolina was the only one of 182 stations to refuse Monday's show. Who's Your Daddy promises $100,000 (£52,000) to the contestant if she correctly identifies her father. It was met with protests by the National Council for Adoption, which said it ""exploits"" sensitive emotions. ""It exploits the sensitive emotions of adoption,"" said Thomas Atwood, president of the National Council for Adoption. ""It trivialises them. Adoption is a very personal, meaningful experience and it should not be commercialised like this."" On the pre-taped programme, the contestant is presented with eight men who may or may not be her natural father.

If she picks the correct man from the line-up, the contestant wins the jackpot prize of US$100,000 (£52,590). However, if she picks the wrong man, then the impostor takes the money. Fox producers defended the show, saying it was a ""positive experience"". They have made six specials, though only one episode has so far been broadcast.

""The special was thoroughly vetted by our standards and practices department to ensure that it was appropriate for broadcast,"" said a Fox spokesman. ""However, any network affiliate that feels the programming may be inappropriate for their individual market has the right to pre-empt the schedule."" WRAZ-TV instead chose to air an independently-produced film, I Have Roots and Branches... Personal Reflections on Adoption, a documentary about families with adopted children. ""We just don't think adoption is a game show,"" said Tommy Schenck, WRAZ-TV's general manager, though he said his decision had not been influenced by public protests.
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A-listers flock to Gervais sitcom	"Hollywood actors Samuel L Jackson and Ben Stiller have signed up for Ricky Gervais' new sitcom, the comedian has told BBC News.

He said they had both seen the scripts and had agreed to appear in an episode each of the sitcom Extras. They join British stars Jude Law and Kate Winslet who have been booked for guest roles. The comic and actor said he had drawn up an A-list of stars he wanted and all had agreed to be in it. ""We wanted actors who had iconic status but that we could also deconstruct,"" Gervais told BBC News.

""It's not about the zeitgeist. We wanted people who would still be around in 20 years, not just the winner of Big Brother to take part."" Gervais admitted he was cautious about revealing who would be taking part until they had all signed on the dotted line. But he has met with Stiller and Jackson and they enjoyed the scripts enough to commit to it.

""I didn't want to start revealing names until it was all sorted because people just mention people who haven't even been asked. ""I have been linked with ridiculous stories recently such as I'm going to be in a remake of 10 taking Dudley Moore's part. I haven't been approached and I wouldn't take it anyway.""

He said Stiller and Jackson would be playing ""twisted"" versions of themselves in Extras and that the jokes about them ""would sail pretty close to the bone"". Gervais and his writing partner Stephen Merchant are currently refining the scripts for the six-part series, in which Gervais plays a struggling actor who bitches about the stars. Meanwhile, Gervais is gearing up to promote his cartoon book Flanimals which is released in the US in March, around the same time as NBC begin showing the US version of The Office. The film rights to Flanimals have already been snapped up but Gervais is keen for the project to be taken slowly. ""A film will happen over the next three years but I don't want it to be a $50m movie straight away because it is not well enough known and it wouldn't be another Spider-Man or Batman. I would like to do something small on TV with it first.""
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Campaigners attack MTV 'sleaze'	"MTV has been criticised for ""incessant sleaze"" by television indecency campaigners in the US.

The Parents Television Council (PTC), which monitors violence and sex on TV, said the cable music channel offered the ""cheapest form"" of programming. The group is at the forefront of a vociferous campaign to clean up American television. But a spokeswoman for MTV said it was ""unfair and inaccurate"" to single out MTV for criticism.

The PTC monitored MTV's output for 171 hours from 20 March to 27 March 2004, during the channel's Spring Break coverage. In its report - MTV Smut Peddlers: Targeting Kids with Sex, Drugs and Alcohol - the PTC said it witnessed 3,056 flashes of nudity or sexual situations and 2,881 verbal references to sex. Brent Bozell, PTC president and conservative activist said: ""MTV is blatantly selling raunchy sex to kids. ""Compared to broadcast television programmes aimed at adults, MTV's programming contains substantially more sex, foul language and violence - and MTV's shows are aimed at children as young as 12. ""There's no question that TV influences the attitudes and perceptions of young viewers, and MTV is deliberately marketing its raunch to millions of innocent children.""

The watchdog decided to look at MTV's programmes after Janet Jackson's infamous ""wardrobe malfunction"" at last year's Super Bowl. The breast-baring incident generated 500,000 complaints and CBS - which is owned by the same parent company as MTV - was quick to apologise. MTV spokeswoman Jeannie Kedas said the network follows the same standards as broadcasters and reflects the culture and what its viewers are interested in. ""It's unfair and inaccurate to paint MTV with that brush of irresponsibility,"" she said. ""We think it's underestimating young people's intellect and level of sophistication."" Ms Kedas also highlighted the fact MTV won an award in 2004 for the Fight for Your Rights series that focused on issues such as sexual health and tolerance.
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US actor 'found with gun residue'	"Actor Robert Blake had gunshot residue on his hands and clothes the night his wife was shot dead, a court has heard.

But it may not have come from the shot that killed Bonny Lee Bakley in 2001, Mr Blake's murder trial was told by criminalist Steven Dowell. Mr Dowell told a Los Angeles court the residue may have come from Mr Blake's revolver, his gun collection, his presence at the crime scene or police. The 71-year-old former star of US TV drama Baretta has denied murder. Mr Blake said he found Ms Bakley, 44, dead in a car after they left a restaurant.

He said he briefly returned to the restaurant to collect a gun he had left behind and discovered her body when he returned. The gun he collected was not the murder weapon. It could also have been picked up if he touched or leant on the car when he found the body, or from a police box in which his clothes were later stored. The box had come from an area where officers went after being on the firing range. But Mr Dowell also said the residue would have been present if Mr Blake fired a gun that night. Witnesses have already told the trial Mr Blake ""stood out as being quite nervous and agitated"" at the restaurant before the murder. The actor, who won an Emmy for playing a maverick detective in the 1970s TV cop drama Baretta, could face life in prison if convicted.
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EastEnders 'is set for US remake'	"Plans to create a US soap based on the BBC's EastEnders have reportedly been drawn up by the Fox TV network.

EastEnders' head writer Tony Jordan and music mogul Simon Fuller are involved in the project, according to reports in the Hollywood Reporter trade newspaper. It said scripts have been commissioned for a series about a community of working class people in of Chicago. The original EastEnders was pulled from BBC America last year after it proved a failure in the ratings. US versions of other British hits have proved less successful across the Atlantic.

BBC comedy Coupling was remade with a US cast, but lost its primetime slot on the NBC network due to disappointing ratings. At home, EastEnders has been facing its own ratings battle, recently losing out to rival ITV soap Emmer dale. Primetime soaps on US television have made a recent comeback, following the success of ABC serial Desperate Housewives. The series takes a ""darkly comedic"" look at the goings-on of a group of characters living in the suburbs.
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US 'to raise TV indecency fines'	"US politicians are proposing a tough new law aimed at cracking down on indecency and bad language on US TV.

Fines of up to $500,000 (£266,582) could be imposed each time broadcasters transmit nudity or profanities. The proposal, unveiled in the House of Representatives, also seeks to revoke a broadcaster's licence after three violations have been committed. The exposure of Janet Jackson's breast at last year's Superbowl landed CBS with a $550,000 (£293,264) fine. Entertainers could also be liable for fines under the proposed legisation from both US politcians and officials from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). A Republican senator from Kansas, Sam Brownbeck, is set to call for a maximum $3 million (£1.6 million) fine for repeated violations.

The current maximum fine stands at $32,500 (£17,320) - 20 of the stations in the CBS network were each penalised these lesser amounts for the Jackson incident. Republican politician Fred Upton, who chairs the committee responsible for broadcasting, said current fines are ""more of a cost of doing business rather than a deterrent"". Last year's Janet Jackson 'wardrobe malfunction' encouraged the FCC to impose tougher rules, but the US Congress adjourned last year without agreeing on a new level of fines. New figures have to be decided before new legislation can be put before President Bush. Certain broadcasters, like Fox, claim the material they carry does not violate indecency laws and is protected under the right to free speech.
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Eurovision 'greats' to do battle	"Stars of the Eurovision Song Contest from the show's 50-year history are to compete against each other to celebrate the contest's anniversary.

Viewers will choose 14 past songs to be performed by the original artists or others in the spirit of the originals. Past Eurovision performers include Abba, Celine Dion, Bucks Fizz, Nana Mouskouri, Lulu and Julio Iglesias. Fans will then vote as usual to pick the all-time best Eurovision song during the show in Denmark in October. The first contest was organised by the European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, in 1956, and has become an annual event pitting pop giants against musical minnows - with often surprising results.

While some regard it as an essential celebration of continental talent, others see it as an equally unmissable parade of the reasons some countries do not normally produce international stars. The 50th annual contest will be held in Kiev, Ukraine, in May, after Ukrainian singer Ruslana won last year. The 50th anniversary special will be held in Denmark later this year because the Danish Broadcasting Corporation came up with the idea for the all-time contest. A plan to hold it in London was scrapped because of problems finding a suitable venue. Ireland has been the most successful country in the show's history with seven victories, followed by the UK, France and Luxembourg with five each.
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UK TV channel rapped for CSI ad	"TV channel Five has been criticised for sending ""offensive"" and ""threatening"" advertising material to viewers for a new show about murder scene scientists.

Five mailed thousands of fake dossiers including photos of murder victims and an e-mail suggesting the recipient was being stalked by a serial killer. Following complaints, the Advertising Standards Authority contacted Five to cease promotion of crime show CSI:NY. Five admitted it had sent out 55,000 promotion packs but had now stopped. The promotion material was sent in brown envelope of the type used by investigators in the series, a spin-off from the highly successful CSI: Crime Scene Investigation series, which also runs on Five. The pack also features pictures of forensic evidence from a crime scene and a wanted poster, which did have a CSI:NY logo printed in large at the bottom.

Five said it had received 100 complaints but that it had been surprised at the reaction because it was ""obvious this material is promoting a drama"". A Five spokesman said: ""In light of the efforts we have made to make the nature of the contents so transparent we are surprised a very small minority of recipients have mistaken it as anything else. ""Everyone who was sent this promotion has expressed an interest in receiving details about this particular genre of programming on various websites. ""We have also received emails and calls from recipients praising the originality and imagination of the campaign.""
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X Factor show gets second series	"TV talent show The X Factor is to return for a second series after being recommissioned by ITV.

Judges Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh and Sharon Osbourne are in discussions to sign up for the new series. The final of the first series will take place on 11 December. Last Saturday's show was beaten in the ratings by the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing. ""Working on the X Factor has been a blast... I predict series two will be even better,"" said Cowell. ""I think the production team have done an amazing job,"" he added.

The Pop Idol-style show votes off a group or contestant every week - the two that receive the lowest public vote have to perform a second time before the judges make a final decision. Rowetta Satchell, Steve Brookstein, Tabby Callaghan and group G4 are the remaining finalists. ITV's controller of entertainment, Claudia Rosencrantz, said she had no hesitation in recommissioning the show. ""There's much more to come this series as we build towards the final next month and it's great to have secured this terrific format for our viewers for another series,"" she said.
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Alicia Keys to open US Super Bowl	"R&B star Alicia Keys is to open February's Super Bowl singing a song only previously performed there by Ray Charles and Vicki Carr.

Keys, who will sing America the Beautiful, will be accompanied by 150 students from the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. Charles, who died last year, attended the school as a child in 1937. Keys said she was ""very excited"", describing Charles as ""an artist I admire, miss and respect"". ""I know that this is going to be a very touching and memorable moment,"" she said.

It will be her first performance at the Super Bowl, which will be watched by millions in the US on 6 February. Sir Paul McCartney will provide the half-time entertainment in the slot filled by Janet Jackson last year. Organisers have promised there will be no repeat of her nipple-baring incident that sparked thousands of complaints on US TV's most-watched broadcast. A National Football League spokesman said they were ""comfortable"" this show would be acceptable to a mass audience. The game and show were watched by 144 million people in the US in 2003.

Twenty CBS-owned TV stations were fined $550,000 (£300,000) by the country's TV regulatory agency after more than 542,000 complaints were made about Janet Jackson's ""wardrobe malfunction"". Sir Paul said: ""There's nothing bigger than being asked to perform at the Super Bowl. ""We're looking forward to rocking the millions at home and in the stadium.""
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'Comeback' show for Friends star	"Friends actress Lisa Kudrow is to play the lead role in a new series about a one-time sitcom star, according to the Hollywood reporter.

Thirteen episodes of Comeback have been commissioned by cable channel HBO, home of hits such as Sex And The City. Kudrow, who played Phoebe in Friends, co-wrote the pilot episode and will also act as executive producer. HBO has been looking for its next big comedy hit since Sex And The City drew to a close in the US in February. Comeback is the first 30-minute comedy series that the channel has picked up since the Sex And The City drew to the end of its six-year-run. Friends ended its 10-year run on the NBC network in May, and attentions have turned to which projects its six individual stars would pursue.

Matt LeBlanc is starring in a Friends spin-off sitcom, charting Joey's fortunes in Los Angeles as he pursues his acting career. Jennifer Aniston, who was Rachel in the long-running show, has enjoyed a series of successful film appearances, with further projects in the pipeline. Courteney Cox Arquette (Monica) has been working on a drama project along with husband David Arquette for HBO, called The Rise And Fall Of Taylor Kennedy. Matthew Perry, who played Chandler, has appeared on the West End stage, and has a film, The Beginning Of Wisdom, currently in production. And David Schwimmer (Ross) directed during his time on Friends, and has also worked on Joey.
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Hillbillies singer Scoggins dies	"Country and Western musician Jerry Scoggins has died in Los Angeles at the age of 93, his family has said.

Scoggins was best remembered for singing the theme tune to popular US TV show The Beverly Hillbillies. The Texan-born singer approached the producers of the programme with theme tune The Ballad of Jed Clampett for the pilot which was screened in 1962. The show, which told the story of a poor man striking oil and moving to Beverly Hills, ran until 1971.

Scoggins' daugher Jane Kelly Misel said that her father never tired of the song and would sing it at least once a day. ""He'd sing it at birthdays and anniversaries and variety shows. He never stopped performing it,"" she said. When a film version of The Beverly Hillbillies was made in 1993, Scoggins came out of retirement to perform the theme tune. Scoggins sang the lyrics while bluegrass stars Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs played guitar and banjo.
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Branson show flops on US screens	"Entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson's US TV show, The Rebel Billionaire, is proving a flop in the ratings.

The programme suffered poor viewing figures on its debut on the Fox network three weeks ago, and has lost one in five of its viewers since then. The show is seen as Fox's answer to The Apprentice featuring tycoon Donald Trump, a ratings hit for rivals NBC. Sir Richard's show sees a group of young entrepreneurs compete to become the president of his business empire. The Rebel Billionaire has averaged five million viewers and is 91st in the rankings of all prime-time shows. The Apprentice, which has already completed its first season, is still managing to pull in 16 million viewers, while its prime-time ranking is number four.

But Fox has said it plans to stick with Branson's show throughout its 12-episode run. ""It's going to remain on the air,"" said the network's spokesman Scott Grogin. ""Creatively we're extremely pleased with the show and hope the audience will find it,"" he added. Contestants on Sir Richard's show are confronted with business tasks to solve, similar to The Apprentice. They are also subjected to stunts like walking a plank suspended in mid-air. The Rebel Billionaire has marketed itself as a less materialistic version of The Apprentice, with Sir Richard shown jumping out of a taxi, while Trump is seen in a limousine.
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Housewives lift Channel 4 ratings	"The debut of US television hit Desperate Housewives has helped lift Channel 4's January audience share by 12% compared to last year.

Other successes such as Celebrity Big Brother and The Simpsons have enabled the broadcaster to surpass BBC Two for the first month since last July. BBC Two's share of the audience fell from 11.2% to 9.6% last month in comparison with January 2004. Celebrity Big Brother attracted fewer viewers than its 2002 series.

Comedy drama Desperate Housewives managed to pull in five million viewers at one point during its run to date, attracting a quarter of the television audience. The two main television channels, BBC1 and ITV1, have both seen their monthly audience share decline in a year on year comparison for January, while Five's proportion remained the same at a slender 6.3%. Digital multi-channel TV is continuing to be the strongest area of growth, with the BBC reporting Freeview box ownership of five million, including one million sales in the last portion of 2004. Its share of the audience soared by 20% in January 2005 compared with last year, and currently stands at an average of 28.6%.
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McCririck out of Big Brother show	"Racing pundit John McCririck has become the latest contestant to be evicted from Celebrity Big Brother.

He was nominated to leave the Channel 4 show by fellow housemates, alongside Happy Mondays dancer Bez. At one time Bez was among the most popular contestants but he has since become withdrawn and argumentative. McCririck was ordered to leave the house on Monday, following Jackie Stallone, the actor Sylvester's mother, who was first to be evicted. Bez reacted badly to the news that he had been nominated by five of his fellow housemates, whilst John received four votes against him. Sylvester Stallone's ex-wife Brigitte Nielsen nominated both John and Bez. She said: ""Bez is a difficult human being. There's something wrong with him. Even though he's making an effort, he's not very happy in here."" Former Holby City actor Jeremy Edwards said he had nominated Bez after he became agitated on Friday night and talked about escaping over the wall to go clubbing. He said Bez was being ""loopy"" and ""stressed"". According to bookmaker Ladbrokes, John McCririck was 1/3 favourite to be evicted on Monday while Bez was at 9/4 . McCririck faced the public vote on Friday and received 67% of the vote to keep him in the house, whilst Jackie Stallone was evicted.
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Chris Evans back on the market	"Broadcaster Chris Evans has begun selling thousands of his possessions from a stall in Camden Market, London.

Evans perched on a stool as shoppers wandered around the open-fronted shop packed with his furniture. Among the items from his homes in Los Angeles and London were countless sofas, chairs, pictures, beds and memorabilia from his past TV shows. Asked the reason for the sale, Evans said: ""I just want to get rid of it all, it's just a headache."" He added: ""It feels good to be selling this stuff, it's a weight off my mind. ""Look at it all, there's so much clutter. I've enjoyed every bit of furniture and every poster but it's not important anymore."" The normally gregarious Evans cut a peculiarly unshowbusiness-like figure as he sipped coffee and smoked cigarettes, wrapped in a big coat and scarf in front of his Aladdin's cave.

However, the ostentation of some of the items on sale painted a picture of the eccentricity that endeared him to the British public in shows such as Channel 4's gameshow Don't Forget Your Toothbrush. The most striking thing about many of the pieces was their sheer size. Sofas looked like they could seat a small party and a bed seemed big enough for four. The elaborate nature of the pieces, many custom-made, had to be admired, particularly a huge red and gold upholstered ""throne"" and a stripy deckchair from the Queen Mary liner.

To help people in their browsing, Evans had given the pieces labels with not only the price but a helpful, often comic, aside. ""Isn't it great"" was the comment on the £1,950 throne and ""Bob Dylan's old sofa - honest"" was written on a dark wood couch priced £4,250.

The prices were steep by a lot of people's standards but Evans said it was not deterring shoppers. ""I've sold quite a lot already. Everything here is on sale for less than I bought it for but it's not really about the money. It's about getting rid of it all. We've all been bartering, that's what it's all about."" He added that he was not going to reveal what he was going to do with the money he was making. Vintage TV and film posters also lined the walls, including a rare portrait of Raquel Welch and an original advertising print from the Benny Hill Show. And, almost hidden at the back of the lock-up, were the two giant toothbrushes from his former Channel 4 show, although these were not for sale.

Despite the sheer curiosity value of the sale, there was a healthy trickle of interest from the public rather than the perhaps expected crowds. Some wandered in just to browse, as they would any of the other stalls, not knowing that it belonged to Evans.

Paul Burgess said: ""I didn't realise. I thought it was just a load of junk. I should go back and have a better look."" But local resident Francesca Detakats came specially to the stall and left happy with her purchase of an original 1960s photograph of The Who by David Wedgburg. Ms Detakats said she was a collector and did not mind paying £350 for the print. ""If you like something, you don't really count it like that,"" she said.

Martin Hellewell, who had also made a point of visiting Evans' shop, said he thought it was a great idea. ""Why not, if you've got stuff to get rid of it's a good place to do it,"" said Mr Hellewell. Evans has taken out the stall with business partner Pete Winterbottom. They plan to open every day if possible, although Evans did not know how often he would be there. ""We'll stay definitely until Christmas and then maybe a week after that,"" said Evans.
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Top stars join US tsunami TV show	"Brad Pitt, Robert De Niro and Hugh Grant have been added to the line-up for a two-hour US TV special to raise money for victims of the Asian tsunami.

Andy Garcia, Lucy Liu, Natalie Portman and Jay Leno are also among the new names for Saturday's Tsunami Aid. They will join A-list singers Madonna, Sir Elton John, Nelly and Usher plus actors Kevin Spacey, Halle Berry and George Clooney on the NBC broadcast. Viewers will be urged to phone in to make donations throughout the night. Norah Jones, Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, Maroon 5, Mary J Blige and Eric Clapton will give musical performances on the show described as ""A Concert of Hope"".

Catherine Zeta Jones, Michael Douglas, Bruce Willis, Uma Thurman, Matt Damon, Drew Barrymore and Tim Robbins are among the other movie superstars due to put in an appearance. George Clooney recently reacted angrily to a TV host's suggestion that not all funds raised would go towards tsunami relief. Fox TV's Bill O'Reilly said he would be ""watching to see if the money gets to the tsunami victims"" and warned the celebrities taking part ""had better be involved all the way down the line"". But Clooney accused O'Reilly of creating a fuss for his own personal gain, saying viewers may now be ""afraid that their money will do no good"".

He urged O'Reilly to co-present the TV special, adding in a letter: ""We're not playing games here, we're trying to save lives. It's as simple as this - you're either with this joint effort or against it."" Organisers say all funds will go to the American Red Cross. The commercial-free benefit show will also be aired by a string of cable broadcasters and Clear Channel's radio stations across the US. In addition, performances will be available to buy on the internet as downloads from Sony's Connect music store. A similar TV benefit carried by all four primary US TV networks after the 11 September terror attacks raised more than $150m (£80m).


 - The Bangkok International Film Festival got under way on Thursday in the Thai capital in the shadow of the country's 5,300 deaths from the tsunami. The red carpet gala opening night was ditched in favour of a more subdued first night. Six different films were shown at six cinemas, with all money from ticket sales going to charity.
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Star Trek fans fight to save show	"Star Trek fans have taken out a full-page ad in the Los Angeles Times in an attempt to persuade TV executives not to scrap Star Trek: Enterprise.

Made by the UPN TV network, the latest spin-off from the hit sci-fi show is due to end in May after four series. But fans around the world have pitched in to pay for the advert, which had the headline ""Save Star Trek"". They are also asking the Sci-Fi Channel to pick it up from UPN and will stage a rally in Los Angeles on 25 February.

The advert described the Star Trek franchise as a ""cultural icon"". Enterprise stars former Quantum Leap actor Scott Bakula as Captain Archer and is set before the original 1960s Star Trek series. ""Captain Archer and the crew of the NX-01 need your help to continue their journeys!"" the advert said. It also included a cut-out coupon for fans to send to UPN's parent companies Paramount and Viacom plus the Sci-Fi Channel. It also urged supporters to join the rally outside the Paramount studios.

Fan website Trek United is hoping to raise $32m (£17m) from donations by the end of March to pay for a fifth series. More than $23,000 (£12,000) has been pledged so far, according to the site. The 98th and final episode of Star Trek: Enterprise will air in the US on 13 May. The fourth series has averaged 2.9 million viewers per episode - half the amount it got in its first series. Star Trek: Enterprise began in 2001 following other Star Trek spin-off series The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager.
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Top of the Pops leaves BBC One	"The BBC's flagship pop music programme Top of the Pops is to move from BBC One on Fridays to Sundays on BBC Two.

The new programme will combine with archive show TOTP2, mixing new music with footage of classic bands. The corporation said the new show ""aims to appeal to a diverse audience of music lovers"". The move is the biggest shake-up in the history of the show, which was first broadcast in 1964 and has always been on BBC One. Top of the Pops was relaunched in a blaze of publicity in December last year in an attempt to reverse a long-term decline in audience figures.

The All New Top of the Pops was fronted by newcomer Tim Kash and was put together by producer Andi Peters, who was brought back to the BBC from Channel 4 to revitalise the series.

About three million people a week were watching the show on Fridays - less than half the total it was attracting in the mid-1990s - as the programme went up against popular ITV soap Coronation Street. But despite the relaunch audience figures failed to rise and still remain around the three million mark. Tim Kash has since been replaced as host by Fearne Cotton. The new show will launch in Spring next year in an extended format. BBC Two controller Roly Keating: ""It's an exciting new era for Top of the Pops. We want to make it bigger and better so that it becomes the ultimate pop music show for music lovers of every generation."" Mr Keating described BBC Two as the ""natural home"" of Top of the Pops. He added: ""The addition of Top of the Pops will also extend BBC Two's offering to younger audiences.""

A BBC spokeswoman said Andi Peters would continue as executive producer on the show. She said that issues over the exact format of the programme and a time slot were still to be decided. The programme will have a close relationship with the BBC Radio 1 chart show, which suggests the relaunched show may be transmitted at about 1900 on Sundays. ""Hopefully the audience for Top of the Pops will find it on BBC Two. ""We think that the new slot will create a buzz around the programme as for the first time viewers will discover the news of who is number one as it happens.""
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Oscar host Rock to keep it clean	"Oscar host Chris Rock said he will steer clear of bad language when he fronts the awards on 27 February.

The comedian, who recently got into trouble for poking fun at the ceremony, is renowned for his heavy use of expletives during his stand-up routine. The live ceremony will be broadcast with a transmission delay on US network ABC to ensure swear words are removed. ""I've been on TV and been funny not cursing,"" he said during an interview for CBS network's 60 Minutes show. ""As far as content is concerned, I will talk about the movies. I'm not really worried about it. I'm sure ABC might be more worried about it than me,"" he added.

The 40-year-old comedian caused a furore when he said in an interview with US magazine Entertainment Weekly recently that he hardly ever watched the Oscars and labelled awards ceremonies ""idiotic"". The show's producers defended Rock and confirmed that he would still be presenting the Oscar ceremony, saying his comments were ""humorous digs"". Meanwhile, the Academy has announced that Oscar-nominated actress Natalie Portman will present an award at the ceremony. Portman, who has been nominated for a best supporting actress gong for her role in Mike Nichols' Closer, joins a growing list of stars set to bestow an award at the ceremony including Dustin Hoffman, Drew Barrymore, Renee Zellweger and British-born actress Kate Winslet.
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Johnny and Denise lose Passport	"Johnny Vaughan and Denise Van Outen's Saturday night entertainment show Passport to Paradise will not return to screens, the BBC has said.

The ex-Big Breakfast presenters were recruited to host the BBC One family variety show last July. ""There are currently no plans for another series,"" a spokeswoman said. She added the pair ""brought a real warmth to Saturday night, but in the end we felt we had done enough with the format of the show"".

Passport to Paradise involved a combination of games and outside broadcasts with a high level of audience participation. The first instalment attracted more than 4.1 million viewers - but that had dropped to fewer than 2.7 million by the time it ended. The BBC spokeswoman said Graham Norton's Strictly Dance Fever would be a priority for 2005. ""That's very much on the cards for next year, and we're concentrating at the moment on Strictly Come Dancing, which is doing phenomenally well,"" she said.
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Double eviction from Big Brother	"Model Caprice and Holby City actor Jeremy Edwards have both left the Celebrity Big Brother house in a surprise double eviction on Friday.

Caprice, who left in the scheduled fourth eviction having gained just 5% of the public vote, afterwards said: ""I am so happy, I am so glad I'm out."" Edwards then left in a surprise eviction, with 12% of the vote. Nineteen-year-old Blazin' Squad singer Kenzie is currently favourite to win the £50,000 charity prize. Caprice had been the pre-show favourite to be voted out of the house, with bookmakers Ladbrokes offering odds of 1/5 on her departure. Ladbrokes spokesman Warren Lush had said she was ""the hottest eviction favourite so far this series"".

Odds on Kenzie's victory have been slashed from 4/6 to 1/2, although bookmakers have said they are not ruling out a late rally from former Happy Mondays star Bez. The other remaining housemate is actress Brigitte Nielsen. DJ Lisa I'Anson became the third housemate to be voted out on Wednesday when she became the victim of a surprise eviction during a game of hide-and-seek on the Channel 4 show. I'Anson said she was ""glad to be out"" and predicted that Kenzie would emerge as the winner. The winner is due to be announced on Sunday night.
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Celebrities get their skates on	"Former England footballer Paul Gascoigne will join EastEnders' actress Scarlett Johnson on BBC One's Strictly Ice Dancing.

The one-off Christmas special will also star television presenter Carol Smillie and Jessica Taylor from Liberty-X. Each celebrity will be paired with a professional skater to impress a panel of judges and win the audience vote. The BBC is yet to confirm the final two stars who will battle it out to become Ice King or Queen.

Veteran presenter Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly will host the programme, which follows hot on the heels of the current Saturday night series Strictly Come Dancing. The celebrities will have to practise a stipulated ice dance and perform it at an ice rink with their partner. The judges will have 50% of the vote to decide who wins the contest, with the ice rink audience making up the rest of the vote. The show forms part of the BBC's festive schedule. Ice skating duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are to front a similar celebrity ice dance show for ITV, titled Stars on Thin Ice. The contestants on Stars on Thin Ice will each be paired up with a professional skater and will learn a new routine every week. At the end of the series, one celebrity will be crowned the winner.
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Holmes wins '2004 top TV moment'	"Sprinter Kelly Holmes' Olympic victory has been named the top television moment of 2004 in a BBC poll.

Holmes' 800m gold medal victory beat favourite moments from drama, comedy and factual programmes, as voted by television viewers. Natasha Kaplinsky's Strictly Come Dancing win was top entertainment moment and a Little Britain breast feeding sketch won the comedy prize. The 2004 TV Moments will be shown on BBC One at 2000 GMT on Wednesday. Double gold medal winner Holmes topped the best sports moment category, beating Maria Sharapova's Wimbledon triumph and Matthew Pinsent's rowing victory at the Olympics.

She then went on to take the overall prize of Golden TV Moment. The sight of former royal correspondent Jennie Bond with dozens of rats crawling over her in ITV's I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here was named best factual entertainment moment. Michael Buerk's return to Ethiopia, 20 years after originally reporting its famine, topped the factual category for BBC programme This World. Long-running soap EastEnders won the best popular drama moment title when character Dot confided in Den Watts that she was unwell.
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Veteran comic Cyril Fletcher dies	"Veteran comedian and broadcaster Cyril Fletcher has died aged 91 at his home in Guernsey.

Fletcher will be remembered for his ""odd odes"" and amusing misprints on TV show That's Life in the 1970s and 80s, as well as a long variety career. He was also a regular on Does the Team Think?, a comic version of radio information show The Brains Trust. That's Life host Esther Rantzen said he was ""so lovely"" and a ""delight"" to work with. ""The thing about Cyril was that he was, to use a slightly old-fashioned phrase, an English gentleman,"" she said. ""He was courteous, and understated, and he adored gardens, particularly creating them for his beautiful wife.

""He was funny and witty to work with. He was a real friend and I shall miss him."" One of the last comedians of old-time variety era, Fletcher made his first TV appearance in 1937. A year after BBC Television began, he was seen reciting humorous poems, appearing in a revue, Tele-Ho, and playing the Emperor of Morocco in the first televised pantomime, Dick Whittington. He went on to become a regular voice on radio, have a string of TV shows in the 1950s and appear in several films, including 1947's Nicholas Nickleby. He married actress Betty Astell in 1941 and in the 1950s and 60s, they produced pantos and summer shows, discovering new stars including Harry Secombe. In the mid-1990s, Fletcher said he had made a ""fabulous living"" since the age of 22 and had never had a day out of work.

He was most recently seen presenting a gardening programme for Channel TV. Fletcher was described as a ""consummate professional"" by his friend and fellow broadcaster Michael Pointon. ""It really was a pleasure to work with him - he had met everyone and done everything,"" Mr Pointon said. ""He was a whimsical, droll fellow, but also a very artistic man. As a friend, he was very kind, and generous."" Fletcher's daughter Jill said her father would be sorely missed. ""He was greatly loved by the public,"" she said.
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Little Britain vies for TV trophy	"BBC hits Little Britain and Strictly Come Dancing are among numerous British shows nominated for the prestigious Golden Rose television awards.

Homegrown reality programmes dominated that category, including Channel 4's Supernanny and ITV1's Hell's Kitchen. EastEnders and Coronation Street were overlooked in the soap category, but Doctors and Family Affairs gained nods. The festival, which honours the best TV from around the globe, will take place in Lucerne, Switzerland from 3-8 May.

Little Britain, which is now in its second series, faces competition from BBC Two's The Catherine Tate Show and Sacha Baron Cohen's creations Borat and Bruno. In the separate sitcom category, dark comedy Nighty Night - which began life on BBC Three - will do battle with mainstream BBC One show My Family.

BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing, which saw celebrities compete against each other to become champions of the dancefloor, is among five British nominations in the varirty category. Lenny Henry, who won a Golden Rose for his In Pieces series in 2001, picks up another nomination for his recent BBC show. British television music shows have picked up six nominations, with BBC Three's Flashmob - The Opera up against the UK Music Hall of Fame series, which was screened on Channel 4. British television has performed very well in the arts and specials category, gaining a total of 11 nominations. The BBC leads the way with its programmes on The Sound of Music, Agatha Christie and Rolf On Art - The Big Event - which saw Harris lead an effort to produce a life-size painting in London's Trafalgar Square.

British shows - which picked up a total of 48 nominations - will have to overcome competition from a host of other countries, including the US, Canada, Japan and across Europe. UK nominee TV Diaries, which is shown around the world, is owned by a British company but has yet to be screened in this country. Previous UK winners have included Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, Pop Idol, Channel 4 show Faking It and comedy duo French and Saunders, who became the first winners to receive and honorary Golden Rose. Individual performers will also be rewarded, with prizes for best comics, best sitcom actor and actress and best gameshow host. Last year actor Shane Richie won an award for his portrayal of Alfie Moon in EastEnders.
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Springer criticises Opera musical	"Talk show host Jerry Springer, whose programme inspired the controversial opera shown by the BBC, has said he would not have written it himself.

The BBC received 47,000 complaints before the musical was broadcast, and protesters demonstrated outside BBC buildings across the UK. Springer helped launch the West End show and attended the opening night. ""I wouldn't have written it. I don't believe in making fun of other religions,"" he said.

The TV host said he understood how people could have thought the musical had gone too far. ""You know, on our TV show if people use inappropriate language we bleep it out, if there's nudity we cover it up, so that viewers at home don't get to see any of this,"" he said.

Asked whether he thought the BBC should have screened the controversial musical he said: ""I don't know if they should have had it on television but, good Lord, if you don't like what's on television, that's why God gave us remote controls. ""My show is about dysfunctional people and I defy anyone to watch the show and suggest to me the people on it aren't to some degree dysfunctional.""

""If I did a show about the war in Iraq, it wouldn't make me a warmonger, I would just be doing my job to report on the war. ""In the case of my show, it's my job to report on the dysfunctions that take place in society."" The British-born presenter is in London to speak at a fundraising dinner for the United Jewish Israel Appeal. The dinner, on Tuesday, is expected to be attended by more than 800 guests.
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CSI shows give 'unrealistic view'	"People have unrealistic expectations of forensic science thanks to the success of the CSI TV shows, real experts say.

Evidence submitted to forensic labs has shot up as a result of the programmes, at a time when many have large backlogs, science investigators claim. Lawyers also fear the effect because jurors have a distorted view of how forensic evidence is used. The issue was discussed at a major science conference in Washington DC. Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) and its spin-offs, CSI: Miami and CSI: New York, have proven exceptionally popular with audiences on both sides of the Atlantic.

Each episode, a team of forensic investigators goes about solving a crime through the ingenious appliance of science - and the extensive resources at their disposal. ""The CSI effect is basically the perception of the near-infallibility of forensic science in response to the TV show,"" said Max Houck, who runs a forensic science graduate course at West Virginia University, US. ""This TV show comes on and everyone starts watching it - including the cops and prosecutors - and submissions to forensic laboratories go through the roof,"" he told the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The American forensics expert said there were roughly 200,000-300,000 backlogged DNA samples in US labs. Yet these constituted just 10% of the total test backlog, said Dr Houck. Forensic pathologist Dr Patricia McFeeley said she had started to see the show's influence in dealing with the families of victims. ""What I find is that families now are more dissatisfied with the investigation than was previously the case,"" she explained. ""For example, on television, the toxicology results are available almost instantaneously. But when people find out that it can take several months, they can find that very difficult.""

Dr McFeeley added that the accuracy with which forensic investigators can determine time of death was far lower than most people's perceptions. The show's influence can follow forensic investigators all the way into the courtroom, making lawyers jittery. ""Prosecutors fear the CSI effect with juries because, for example, they wonder: 'why wasn't everything tested?' Well, in fact, not everything needs to be tested,"" Dr Houck explained. ""Defence attorneys also worry about the CSI effect because they think that jurors come in and have this view of science as a juggernaut; this objective method that's always accurate."" However, he admitted the show had had positive as well as negative effects on the field. ""My university course started with four graduates in 1999; we're now the largest major on campus - with 400 students,"" he said. Dr Houck added that there was an urgent need for better funding of forensic science at the university level: ""There's more money spent in this country on holistic medicine than there is on forensic science research.""
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Ethnic producers 'face barriers'	"Minority ethnic led (Mel) production companies face barriers in succeeding in the film and television industries, research has suggested.

The study, commissioned by Pact and the UK Film Council, included interviews with industry experts and individuals. They indicated that career progression and a lack of role models are among the main problems within such companies. The research indicated that about 10% of independent production companies in the UK are minority ethnic led.

A minority ethnic led company is defined as one in which the majority of decision-making power rests with an individual or individuals from a minority ethnic group. The report also explored the problems faced by such companies when attempting to compete within the film and TV industries. It said they are often smaller than other companies and lack the resources, so are often squeezed out of the market by bigger firms. The research recommended that minority ethnic led companies could benefit from such positive actions as career training and business advice, plus improved communication within the film and TV sectors. ""The UK has a rich and diverse culture and it is essential that it is reflected on film and television,"" said Arts minister Estelle Morris of the findings. ""I welcome this report which I hope will lead to more doors being opened and all businesses in our film and television industries being given the same opportunities.""
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US TV special for tsunami relief	"A US television network will screen a celebrity TV special to benefit the tsunami relief effort in South Asia.

NBC will encourage viewer donations during an hour-long show featuring musical performances on 15 January. Actress Sandra Bullock has donated $1m (£525,000) to The American Red Cross and actor Leonardo DiCaprio pledged a ""sizable"" aid contribution to Unicef. Meanwhile 70 Hong Kong music and movie stars re-recorded We Are the World in Mandarin and Cantonese to raise funds.

The song will not be released as a single, but will be played regularly during a Chinese telethon on Friday in aid of victims of the Boxing Day disaster. Around 140,000 people were killed and five million left homeless or without food and water after an earthquake below the Indian Ocean sent waves crashing into coastal communities in 11 countries.

The United Nations warned that the number killed in the disaster could rise sharply, with aid yet to reach some remote areas. Performers have yet to be confirmed for NBC's aid relief benefit later this month. It follows a two-hour telethon carried by all four major US television networks 10 days after the 11 September terror attacks in 2001. America: A Tribute to Heroes raised more than $150m (£79m) to help victims of the suicide attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
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Gervais writing Simpsons episode	"The Office's Ricky Gervais is writing an episode of hit US cartoon The Simpsons, following an invitation from its creator Matt Groening.

Gervais has already begun writing the script but is keeping its subject matter a closely guarded secret. He will also write a part for himself in the episode. ""I've got the rough idea but this is the most intimidating project of my career. The Simpsons is the greatest TV show of all time,"" he said. Groening recently heaped praise on The Office, saying: ""Everybody on The Simpsons is a fan of The Office - it's one of the best shows on TV in the last decade."" Gervais has already said he would not guest star in the show as his Office character David, having left him behind for good in the Christmas specials. The Office became a surprise US success when it was screened on cable channel BBC America. The first series won two Golden Globes in 2004 for best comedy and best TV actor for Gervais.

In winning it beat the likes of Sex and the City and Will and Grace. An American version was produced, but so far only a pilot has been broadcast - to much criticism that it failed to live up to the original. At the British Comedy Awards on Wednesday, Gervais was handed a special achievement award for writing. But The Office missed out in the best comedy show category to Little Britain. Matt Groening was also at the awards to collect the award for best international comedy for The Simpsons.
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John Peel replacement show begins	"The permanent replacement for late DJ John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show goes on air on Tuesday, with three hosts chosen to fill the legendary presenter's slot.

Rock DJ Huw Stephens will go on air in the 2300 slot every Tuesday, with black music champion Ras Kwame on Wednesdays and dance DJ Rob Da Bank on Thursdays. Rob Da Bank filled in after Peel had a heart attack aged 65 in October. All three will play ""diverse, unpredictable and non-commercial"" songs under the banner of the OneMusic show.

Radio 1 said the station was not trying to replace Peel, but would rise to the ""challenge"" of ""keeping his legacy alive"" with unpredictable music. The three DJs were chosen for their ""in-depth musical knowledge across a variety of musical genres"", the station said.

Rob Da Bank is one of the hosts of The Blue Room, an early morning weekend show which plays electronic and dance music. Huw Stephens has been one half of the Thursday night show Bethan and Huw in Wales, which explores new music, especially up-and-coming acts in Wales. And Ras Kwame is host of 100% Homegrown on Radio 1's digital station 1Xtra, dedicated to showcasing the best hip-hop and garage. Another change to the station line-up will see Sara Cox return after maternity leave. She will host the lunchtime show on Saturdays from this week.

Good luck to all three of them, not one DJ could fill Peels boots so it's probably a good idea to get them all contributing. This time next year I hope we are saying how well these DJs have done, but I fear this time next year we will really realise how much John Peel will be forever missed.

Very good idea to continue the legacy without attempting to replace John Peel. Also, there will surely be a wider spectrum for international music as three top radio DJs unite under the One World name. Congratulations!

The whole glory of John Peel was the fact he was not commited to one genre. He played what he liked across the range of music.... this is not going to be the same, and all they seem to be doing is what they already have. Bring back Steve Lamacq.

The obvious heir to John Peel is the marvellous, wonderful and talented Claire Kember from totallyradio.com. This lady is young and fresh and is one of the most knowledgeable and likeable people in British broadcasting today. Everyone who listens to her show understands and compares her to the ledgendary John Peel. BBC Radio should seek out the real talent from internet radio stations, people who are making a real impact on the world of music and the world in general.
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Brookside actress Keaveney dies	"Actress Anna Keaveney, who appeared in Brookside, My Family and A Touch of Frost, has died of lung cancer aged 55.

Keaveney, who played Brookside's Marie Jackson when the Channel 4 soap began in 1982, died on Saturday. Born in Runcorn, Cheshire, she also starred in numerous films including 1989's Shirley Valentine. She played Nellie in Mike Leigh's latest film Vera Drake, which won the Golden Lion prize for best film at this year's Venice Film Festival.

And most recently she appeared alongside Richard Wilson in ITV's King of Fridges and with Martin Clunes in Doc Martin. Other TV appearances included the part of Matron in ITV drama Footballers' Wives and a cameo role as Tom Farrell's mother Sheila in BBC comedy Gimme Gimme Gimme. Keaveney's career also included stage performances in Neaptide for the National Theatre, Private Lives and The Rise and Fall of Little Voice. The actress died in hospital. Her agent Barry Brown said: ""Anna was due to have had another operation on Friday but unfortunately she was too weak.""
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£1.8m indecency fine for Viacom	"Media giant Viacom has paid out $3.5m (£1.8m) to end investigations into indecency in its US radio and TV shows.

The settlement to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ends a long-running saga dating back to 2001. The FCC was looking into 50 shows, including those by ""shock jock"" Howard Stern and two New York DJs. Stern recently announced he was leaving Viacom while the two DJs were sacked after their show featured a couple purporting to have sex in a church. After the church incident two years ago Viacom agreed to install audio delay equipment at its radio stations that broadcast live programming.

It also agreed to train its broadcasters and employees about indecency laws. The agreement cancels investigations into about 50 radio and television shows, said Richard Diamond, FCC deputy secretary of communications. The shows were broadcast by Viacom-owned stations across the United States. Viacom has five days to pay the $3.5m fine, according to the agreement. The payment is not related to the FCC's $550,000 (£293,000) fine levied against Viacom after the exposure of singer Janet Jackson's breast during the CBS Super Bowl halftime show in January. Viacom is contesting that fine. It is not the first time that Viacom has paid out over indecency charges. Infinity Broadcasting, which is owned by Viacom, paid cumulative fines totalling $1.7m (£907,000) in 1995 to settle FCC violations by Stern.
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Celebrities get to stay in jungle	"All four contestants still remain in I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here as no evictions were made on the television show on Saturday.

Contestants Paul Burrell, Joe Pasquale, Janet Street-Porter and Fran Cosgrave were told by hosts Ant and Dec. Natalie Appleton's decision to quit the show last Monday had given them all a stay of execution, the group were told. Model Sophie Anderton was the last person to be voted off the ITV1 show, set in the Australian jungle. The four remaining stars will do a joint Bushtucker Trial on Sunday.

Former All Saints singer Natalie Appleton,31, walked out of the show after learning she would face a fifth so-called Bushtucker Trial. The celebrities are chosen by the viewers to pass trials in order to win food for the rest of the camp. Appleton had endured a torrid time during the programme, including a well-publicised row with Sophie Anderton. And on 26 November singer Brian Harvey quit as a contestant after he had a blazing row with Janet Street-Porter.
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Triple triumph for Little Britain	"Top TV cult hit Little Britain has triumphed over The Office at the 15th annual British Comedy Awards.

The BBC show beat The Office Christmas Special in the best TV comedy category and took the people's choice award. Matt Lucas and David Walliams also jointly won best TV comedy actor over The Office creator Ricky Gervais, who won a special award for writing. It was also a good night for Ant and Dec who clinched two awards, including best comedy entertainment personality. The Geordie duo also secured best comedy entertainment programme for Saturday Night Takeaway, beating I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!, which they also host, and the BBC's Have I Got News For You.

The ceremony was presented by Jonathan Ross from ITV's London Studios headquarters on the capital's South Bank. Little Britain began life as a radio series on Radio 4, with Walliams and Lucas playing a range of misfit characters from an alternative Britain. It was later commissioned for BBC Three, where it proved a huge success, with the second series also shown on BBC One. After receiving his award for best TV comedy actor with Walliams, Lucas said: ""It's a great honour to be nominated alongside Ricky Gervais and Martin Clunes.""

The show also won the people's choice award, which is the only gong on the night voted for by viewers. Speaking after receiving the award for best comedy, Walliams said: ""It was a real shock but I don't think we deserved to beat The Office which is a great show and more than just a comedy. It's a beautiful piece of work."" Gervais and The Office co-writer Stephen Merchant received a special award for writing, presented by Noel Gallagher and Tom Stoppard. Gervais said: ""The show has won an awful lot of awards in the last couple of years, too much. It's got embarrassing to be honest."" Other winners at the awards included Caroline Quentin, who took home best TV comedy actress for Life Begins and Von Trapped.

Catherine Tate, from The Catherine Tate Show, was also nominated for the same award, but she did walk away with best comedy newcomer, over James McAvoy from Shameless (Channel 4) and Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding from The Mighty Boosh (BBC Three). Nighty Night was named Britain's best new TV comedy over ITV1 shows Doc Martin and Life Begins. But Doc Martin won best TV comedy drama, over Jonathan Creek (BBC One) and Shameless. Winner in the best international comedy category was The Simpsons, beating Sex and the City and Curb Your Enthusiasm. The prize was accepted by Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons, who also received an outstanding contribution award from scientist Stephen Hawking, who has been featured in the series. School of Rock was voted best comedy film beating Shaun of the Dead and Shrek 2.

Matt Lucas & David Walliams (Little Britain, BBC Three)

Caroline Quentin (Life Begins/ Von Trapped, ITV1)

Ant & Dec (Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway/ I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!, ITV1)

Catherine Tate (The Catherine Tate Show, BBC Two)

Nighty Night (Baby Cow Productions, BBC Three)

Little Britain (BBC Three)

Doc Martin (Buffalo Productions, ITV1)

Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway (Granada, ITV1)

The Simpsons (Twentieth Century Fox, BBC Two/Sky One/Channel 4)

School Of Rock
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BBC 'should allow more scrutiny'	"MPs have urged the BBC to give watchdogs more freedom to scrutinise how £2bn in licence fee money is spent.

The Public Accounts Committee called for the National Audit Office to be given a ""free hand"" to investigate how the BBC offers value for money. Although six areas are to be opened up to scrutiny the audit office should have more power to choose what it investigated, the MPs said. The call was made in a report into the BBC's Freeview digital service. ""Our aim is not to rewrite the storyline of EastEnders but simply to ensure that the BBC is as accountable to parliament as any other organisation spending public money,"" said the committee chairman, MP Edward Leigh. ""The BBC's spending is not subject to the full independent scrutiny, and accountability to parliament. ""Parliament requires television owners to pay a licence fee and expects the comptroller and auditor general, on behalf of parliament, to be able to scrutinise how that money, over £2 billion a year, is used.""

A BBC spokeswoman said: ""We share the committee's interest in ensuring the public money we receive is spent well. Though in its infancy, we think the arrangements with the NAO are working well and should be given time to mature."" The report said the Freeview digital service has had an ""impressive"" take up since its launch but the BBC must still dispel confusion about the service. The committee found the BBC had succeeded in ensuring subscription-free access to digital channels following the collapse of ITV Digital in 2002. But the fact that one in four homes could not access Freeview remained a problem.

The report said that while gaps in the coverage were largely due to landscape issues, there was need for detailed explanations on the Freeview website and on promotional literature as to why it was not available in specific areas. The government has proposed switch off of the analogue television signal, with 2012 the most recently proposed date. The BBC launched Freeview in 2002 as an alternative to satellite subscription services such as Sky, to allow its digital channels such as BBC Three and News 24 to be seen. There have been an estimated five million Freeview set-top boxes sold since the launch and prices have fallen considerably. The corporation plans to spend up to £138m on Freeview before 2014 to ensure people can receive the service throughout the UK, and are aware of it.
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Greer attacks 'bully' Big Brother	"Germaine Greer has criticised Celebrity Big Brother's ""bullying"" of housemates after quitting the reality TV show.

She said ""superior"" bullying tactics, like making housemates cold and hungry, could encourage playground bullying. She also condemned the ""complete irresponsibility"" of adding Brigitte Nielsen's former mother-in-law Jackie Stallone to the house on Monday. Nielsen had panicked that if she reacted badly it could harm her access to her children, Greer said. The feminist writer and broadcaster said Big Brother had behaved ""like a child rather than a parent"" by taunting contestant John McCririck after denying him a cola drink. ""I thought it was actually demonstrating the role of taunting in the playground and there are so many children whose lives have actually been destroyed by taunting in the playground,"" Greer said. She also said that her fellow housemates had publicity-seeking ""agendas"".

""I had no idea who would be in here and it's wrong for me to present myself in the same context as they are."" Media observers had been surprised by Greer's initial decision to join the third celebrity version of the Channel 4 reality TV show, given that she has written critical articles about the format in the past. As she packed her suitcase to leave the house she told fellow housemates: ""I'm leaving over specific issues, but best for everyone if I don't discuss them. ""I have a problem with decisions, I make them fast and when I make them, I stick to them."" Greer had earlier failed to persuade other contestants to stage a naked protest against Big Brother.

Other celebrities to walk out of a reality show TV include Sex Pistol John Lydon, former EastEnders actress Danniella Westbrook and ex-E17 singer Brian Harvey who all left I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here. Previous Big Brother housemates to leave before their time were Sunita Sharma and Sandy Cumming from the third series of the non-celebrity version of the show.

VOTE   Was Germaine Greer right to leave Celebrity Big Brother?   Yes  No   Results are indicative and may not reflect public opinion

Happy Mondays dancer Bez is now 2-1 favourite to win the show, followed by Blazin' Squad singer Kenzie at 5-2 and actor Jeremy Edwards at 4-1. Ladbrokes spokesman Warren Lush said that the series was still ""wide open"", adding that the last 24 hours had also seen a rush of bets on McCririck slashing his odds to 8-1. DJ Lisa I'Anson is the outsider with odds of 40-1, while Jackie Stallone, who joined the house on Monday, is also one of the less popular housemates at 20-1. The first eviction of the series has now been postponed after Greer's exit unexpectedly reduced the number of competitors. The eight remaining contestants are competing for a £50,000 prize, to be donated to the charity of their choice, if they survive a series of public votes. For every 50p vote cast by viewers by telephone or text during the programme's run, 9p will go to a tsunami charity appeal.
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No charges against TV's Cosby	"US comedian Bill Cosby will not face charges stemming from an allegation of sexual misconduct.

Authorities in Philadelphia said they found insufficient evidence to support the woman's allegations regarding an alleged incident in January 2004. The woman reported the allegations to Canadian authorities last month. Cosby's lawyer, Walter M Phillips Jr, said the comedian was pleased with the decision. ""He looks forward to moving on with his life,"" he said. District Attorney Bruce L Castor Jr, who was in charge of the case, said that detectives could find no instance ""where anyone complained to law enforcement of conduct which would constitute a criminal offence.

He also said that the fact the woman waited a year before coming forward, and she had had further contact with Cosby during that time, were also factors in his decision. The unidentified woman's lawyer, Dolores M Troiani, said her client was likely to sue the comedian. ""I think that's the only avenue open to her. She felt, as we did, that it's a very strong case and she was telling the truth."" She also said that the woman supplied further evidence to prosecutors that she believed strengthened her allegations. Cosby emerged as one of the first black comics to have mainstream success in the US. He was a successful stand-up before hosting the children's show Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids, and starring in The Cosby Show, one of the biggest sitcoms of the 1980s.
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Wife Swap makers sue US 'copycat'	"The British producers of US Wife Swap are taking legal action against a show they claim is ""a blatant and wholescale copycat"" of their programme.

RDF Media, which makes the show for US network ABC, has filed a damages claim for $18 million (£9.25 million) against Fox's Trading Spouses. ABC bought the rights to the British show, which was first aired in 2003 and became a hit on Channel 4. The US network is not part of the claim, but has supported RDF's action. ""We respect our producing partners' right to protect their intellectual property in whatever manner they deem most appropriate,"" said ABC in a statement. A spokesman for Fox said it had not seen the details of the legal action and could not comment.

Their show was first screened in June, and was criticised in the press for its similarities to Wife Swap. ABC originally planned to call their programme Trading Moms, but changed it to avoid confusion with the Fox version. Earlier this year, the NBC network claimed that Fox's boxing show The Next Great Champ had been hurriedly produced to ensure its programme was the first to be screened. NBC alleged that boxing regulations had been violated, but failed in their attempt to have the show pulled. The Fox show proved a ratings flop, while NBC's The Contender is due to begin in February.
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Show over for MTV's The Osbournes	"Rock star Ozzy Osbourne has said his family will not make any more episodes of reality TV show The Osbournes.

""At the end of it I didn't like having cameras around the house all the time,"" the Black Sabbath singer told reporters at the MTV Europe Awards in Rome. His wife Sharon, who also appears in the popular MTV show based on the Osbournes' family life, agreed. ""Now everybody's doing reality shows. He's done it, he's been there, he's got to do something else,"" she said.

Ozzy Osbourne said he had had enough of the work involved in making the series. ""When you watch a 25-minute episode, I've been filming all day,"" he said. Sharon Osbourne is currently appearing as a judge and mentor in ITV1 talent show The X-Factor alongside Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh.

Earlier this year she topped a poll of the most important people in rock, for her part in guiding the career of husband Ozzy and her family. She was the driving force behind The Osbournes, which ran for three series, earning the family a reported $85m (£46m). The renewed popularity for Ozzy has seen sales of his merchandise hit the $50m (£27.2m) mark, a record for a heavy metal artist. Sales of T-shirts, accessories and action figures have rocketed since The Osbournes hit screens. At its peak, The Osbournes had a regular audience of eight million, with America's TV Guide magazine describing the series as ""a cross between The Simpsons and This Is Spinal Tap"". Osbourne himself was at a loss to explain its popularity: ""I suppose Americans get a kick out of watching a crazy Brit family like us make complete fools of ourselves every week.""
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Jungle TV show ratings drop by 4m	"The finale of ITV1's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here drew an average of 10.9m viewers - about four million fewer than the previous series.

The fourth series of the show peaked on Monday at 11.9m and 49.2% of the audience, just before Joe Pasquale won. This compared with a peak of 15.3m at and a record 62.2% of the TV audience when Kerry McFadden won in February. Comic Pasquale beat former Royal butler Paul Burrell who came second, nightclub owner Fran Cosgrave, who was third. Pasquale follows Kerry McFadden, Phil Tufnell and Tony Blackburn as winners of the show.

Singer and TV presenter McFadden was the show's first female winner. When cricketer Phil Tufnell won in May 2003, 12.3 million people - 50% of the viewing public - tuned in to watch. And when Tony Blackburn won the first show in 2002, 10.9 million people saw the show. Pasquale had been the show's hottest ever favourite to win, and its hosts Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, known as Ant and Dec, said Monday's deciding vote was the closest in the programme's history.

Pascuale has been flooded with offers of TV work, according to his management company, but one of his first jobs on his return is pantomime.

Before joining I'm a Celebrity, he had signed up to play Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk in Birmingham, and tickets for the show have become increasingly popular since he joined the TV show. His manager Robert Voice said: ""We've had interest from different TV producers. Some are for comedy shows, some are new-type projects. ""There are a number of things Joe wants to do. He is very ambitious. ""He wants to play the West End and do different things other than straightforward comedy. We are talking to a couple of West End producers about a musical.""
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Duran Duran show set for US TV	"Chart stars Duran Duran are to appear in a VH1 special in the US including interviews and concert footage.

The show airs on Tuesday and will feature a studio performance, behind the scenes footage and fan interviews. ""They seemed like a perfect fit with our audience,"" said Rick Krim, VH1's vice president of music and talent. The band recently released a new album, Astronaut, the first from the original line-up since 1983. They will also tour Japan and the US next year.

""When we started playing together, we didn't try and make a really sort of mature album. We just really wanted to make a great Duran Duran album,"" said keyboard player Nick Rhodes. ""It's pretty much in line with a lot of stuff out there."" Duran Duran are currently promoting the album's second single, What Happens Tomorrow.

Simon Le Bon said earlier this year that the group were not trying to update their sound too much. ""We wouldn't want to lose them [older fans] by trying too hard by trying to connect with a new audience,"" the singer said. Le Bon also said the five members were getting on very well. ""We're like any people who get very close. Sometimes you argue with each other. But the fact is we inspire each other musically. ""Nobody else does it for me,"" he said. ""It's just very special.""
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US show sued for rat-eating stunt	"A US TV network is being sued for $2.5m (£1.3m) by a viewer who says he was disgusted by watching contestants eat dead rats in a stunt show.

Austin Aitken is taking action against NBC over its programme Fear Factor. He said watching the show caused his blood pressure to rise so high that he became dizzy and light-headed. The legal assistant said NBC was ""sending the wrong message to viewers that cash can make or have people do just about anything beyond reasoning"". The hand-written, four-page lawsuit said: ""To have the individuals on the show eat and drink dead rats was crazy and from a viewer's point of view made me throw-up as well as another in the house at the same time."" Mr Aitken, who lives in Cleveland, said that after becoming light-headed, he ran towards the bedroom and knocked his head in a doorway. A spokesman for NBC said it had no comment on the lawsuit, but confirmed the stunt show did feature a rat-eating scene in New York's Times Square on 8 November. Past shows have featured viewers eating spiders and live worms. The programme has been screened in the UK on Sky One.
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Muslim group attacks TV drama 24	"A British Muslim group has criticised the new series of US drama 24, which is about to be aired on Sky One, claiming it portrays Islam unfairly.

The Muslim Council of Britain has complained to broadcasting watchdog Ofcom. It says the programme breaches editorial guidelines. The group's members met with Sky executives on Tuesday after viewing previews of the first five episodes. The drama, now in its fourth series, begins on Sunday evening. The new series portrays a Muslim family as a sleeper terrorist cell. The Muslim Council of Britain said in a statement: ""We are greatly concerned by the unremittingly hostile and unbalanced portrayal of Muslims in this series of 24 based upon a preview of the first five episodes that we have seen."" ""There is not a single positive Muslim character in the storyline to date. At a time when negative stereotypes of Muslims are on the increase we feel that Sky - as a major UK broadcaster - has a responsibility to challenge these insidious views, not help to reinforce them."" But Sky denied the programme breached broadcasting guidelines. A spokesperson said: ""During a useful meeting yesterday, Sky listened to the concerns raised by representatives of the council. Sky does not believe that the episodes that it has reviewed to date breach Ofcom's programme code."" Fox TV, which shows the series in the US, is broadcasting public service announcements showing Muslims in a positive light after complaints about the series.
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Brookside creator's Channel 4 bid	"The creator of defunct TV soap Brookside has written to the culture minister to offer to buy Channel 4.

Phil Redmond, now chairman of Mersey TV, told Tessa Jowell he would run it with its current remit intact for the next 10 years. But media watchdog Ofcom has said the the commercially funded public service broadcaster will not be privatised. A spokesman for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said there were no plans to sell the channel.

He added that primary legislation would be required for the station to be sold off, which the government was not intending to introduce. Brookside was axed in 2003 after its ratings slumped from a peak of seven million to just 1.5 million. Redmond also brought teen soap Hollyoaks to Channel 4 and created Grange Hill, the school-based drama serial which was first broadcast on BBC One in 1978. He was awarded the CBE for services to drama earlier this year.
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Little Britain two top comic list	"Little Britain stars Matt Lucas and David Walliams have been named the most powerful people in TV comedy, in a poll by listings magazine Radio Times.

The duo kept Phoenix Nights creator Peter Kay at number two and The Office star Ricky Gervais in third place. A Radio Times panel compiled the list, taking the comedians' critical acclaim and financial success into account. Newcomers to the annual list included Nighty Night star Julia Davis at seven and Black Books' Tamsin Greig at 19.

Lucas and Walliams won numerous awards for Little Britain in 2004, including National Television, Royal Television Society and British Comedy awards. More than 1.8 million people watched the first episode of the latest series of Little Britain on BBC Three in October, giving the digital channel its highest rating ever.

They topped the Radio Times list after rising from 10th position last year. Other big risers over the past year included presenting duo Ant and Dec at five, up from 13 in 2004, Stephen Fry rising nine places to 15 and BBC Three controller Stuart Murphy, who moves to number 18 from 32 last year. Last year's winner, chat show host Graham Norton, fell to number 16 following relatively few television appearances in 2004. Production companies also featured in the top 50, including Steve Coogan's Baby Cow, which created Nighty Night among others, Hat Trick - behind The Kumars at Number 42 - and The Vicar of Dibley production company Tiger Aspect.
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TV show unites Angolan families	"Angolan families who are attempting to track each other down, after being separated by nearly 30 years of war, are succeeding thanks to a hugely popular TV show.

Meeting Point has become one of TV Angola's most watched programmes, and has reunited hundreds of families. It runs daily, not only on the television but also on the radio. Every Friday, hundreds of people gather in Luanda's Independence Square to record a message in front of the TV cameras, in the hope that a lost relative will see it. Many relatives have been reunited on air. ""At the beginning there was an absolute explosion - huge, huge crowds,"" Sergio Gera, the programme's chief co-ordinator, told BBC World Service's Assignment programme. ""Now things are a little calmer, there are slightly less people - but, after two and a half years of broadcasting, there are still a lot of people going.""

The media in the southern African country, twice the size of France, has been gripped by the quest of so many people to find their relatives. Hundreds of thousands of people died in Angola's 30-year civil war, which finally ended in 2002, and tens of thousands of people are still missing. Many have not heard anything for 10 or more years - in all, 90% of Angolan families have lost someone.

The idea of recording in Independence Square was modelled on a square in the Argentine capital Buenos Aries, where mothers go to talk about the dead and the missing, and to exchange news. One woman, Victoria Lapete, found her sister - the only remaining member of her family - in Independence Square live on Meeting Point. She had not seen her sibling for 28 years. ""When we saw each other, we threw ourselves into each other's arms,"" she told Assignment. ""We started to cry. I felt very, very happy, because I'd spent so long without any family. Suddenly I had a sister again."" However, Angola is one of the poorest countries in Africa, and the number of people with access to either a television or radio is comparatively few. This means that elsewhere in the country, the task of reuniting families lies primarily with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). In the city of Wambo, the ICRC runs the Gazetta - a 200-page, tabloid-size book which contains 13,000 names of missing or displaced.

Their task is made much harder by the huge number of landmines dotted around the country. ""It's very difficult - there are many displaced,"" stated Joaquim Sahundi, head of tracing in Wambo.

""As they try to go back [home], others are trying to relocate their relatives. Many people are getting injured because of that - in the villages, in the bush, there has been no clearance of mines. ""When people are crossing these areas, they step on mines."" The ICRC also uses the media where it can, running four daily broadcasts of their lists of the missing on Radio Angola. Meanwhile, there remain massive challenges to Angolan families even once they are reunited. ""The programme of family reunification is extremely important, but for these families to remain reunified, there has to be social integration, job access, education, healthcare,"" said Rafael Marques of the pro-democracy George Soros Foundation for Southern Africa. ""Essentially the government is waiting for the international community to pay for the reconstruction - that's why it has been persistently calling for a donor's conference. That is just a way of detaching itself from its political responsibilities.""
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Volcano drama erupts on BBC One	"Supervolcano, a docu-drama about a volcanic eruption in Yellowstone National Park in the US, is among the highlights on the BBC One this winter.

The £178m winter schedule also includes the return of Doctor Who and a drama about Angela Cannings, who was wrongly convicted of killing two of her babies. Sarah Lancashire and Timothy Spall will star in the real-life drama, Cherished. ITV also unveiled their festive season on Tuesday, which includes Stephen Fry in a remake of Tom Brown's Schooldays. Supervolcano, follows in the footsteps of last year's Pompei, which drew 10 million viewers to BBC One in October 2003.

The programme merges science, drama and computer imagery to reveal what could happen if Yellowstone - home to the only currently active supervolcano in the world - were to erupt again. BBC Two will run a two-part documentary, The Science Behind Supervolcano, in conjunction with the transmission. Other educational highlights include a documentary about infamous Mongolian warrior Genghis Khan and Grandchild of The Holocaust. Grandchild of The Holocaust, part of the BBC commitment to Holocaust Memorial Day, follows Adrian, 13, on a journey to uncover the truth about what happened to his grandmother in Auschwitz and Belsen.

New drama includes Archangel, an adaptation of the Robert Harris best-seller, which stars Daniel Craig on the trail of Stalin's diaries in Communist Russia. And Sarah Waters' gets her second adaptation on BBC One with Imelda Staunton and Charles Dance lined up to star in Fingersmith. The adaptation, about a conman in Victorian England, will make an interesting contrast to Julie Burchill's Sugar Rush - a lesbian teenage drama part of Channel Four's winter season. On a lighter note, Jessica Stevenson will star in new BBC One sitcom, The World According to Bex, penned by My Family creator Fred Barron and the Two Ronnies return for a celebration of their classic comedy series.

Fry's portrayal of headmaster Dr Arnold dominates a muted Christmas schedule on ITV1, which sees the channel retreat from broadcasting blockbuster movies in favour of extended soap episodes and popular quiz shows.

Sir Paul McCartney, wife Heather Mills and Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will join a celebrity edition of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? on Christmas Day. Also on Christmas Day, John Nettles will return in a one-off edition of Midsomer Murders, while two episodes of the new Miss Marple drama will air over the festive period. Films on ITV1 include Gus Van Sant's Finding Forrester, starring Sean Connery, and classics such a Mary Poppins, Star Wars and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. In contrast, BBC's Christmas season includes terrestrial debuts of the first Harry Potter film, Shrek and Steven Spielberg's AI, as well as new epipsodes of the Vicar of Dibley and the final Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.
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South Bank Awards honour hit soap	"Coronation Street has become the first soap to triumph at the South Bank Show Awards, which traditionally reward highbrow and groundbreaking culture.

The soap beat fellow ITV1 show Filthy Love and Channel 4's Shameless to win the best TV drama prize on Thursday. Little Britain was named best comedy while Franz Ferdinand beat Morrissey and The Libertines to the music award. Shane Meadows' Dead Man's Shoes picked up the best film award, beating Shaun of the Dead and My Summer of Love. The two award ceremonies reflect the achievements the industry believes have been made in the last year.

In 2004, Coronation Street pulled away from its BBC One rival EastEnders in the ratings and dominated other TV awards. Last year, the South Bank Award for best TV drama went to Steven Poliakoff's period piece The Lost Prince, while Bloody Sunday, about the 1972 killings in Northern Ireland, won in 2003. In other South Bank categories, Little Britain's second series beat Nighty Night and The Green Wing to the comedy trophy while Alan Bennett's The History Boys won in the theatre category. Author David Mitchell made up for losing out in the Booker Prize to Alan Hollinghurst by beating him to the literary award with his book Cloud Atlas. Shameless, State Of Play and Clocking Off creator Paul Abbott got a lifetime achievement award while former Grange Hill actress Amma Asante won the breakthrough award for writing and directing her first film, A Way Of Life.
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Housewives lift Channel 4 ratings	"The debut of US television hit Desperate Housewives has helped lift Channel 4's January audience share by 12% compared to last year.

Other successes such as Celebrity Big Brother and The Simpsons have enabled the broadcaster to surpass BBC2 for the first month since last July. However the channel's share of the audience fell from 11.2% to 9.6% last month in comparison with January 2004. Celebrity Big Brother attracted less viewers than its 2002 series.

Comedy drama Desperate Housewives managed to pull in five million viewers at one point during its run to date, attracting a quarter of the television audience. The two main television channels, BBC1 and ITV1, have both seen their monthly audience share decline in a year on year comparison for January, while Five's proportion remained the same at a slender 6.3%. Digital multi-channel TV is continuing to be the strongest area of growth, with the BBC reporting Freeview box ownership of five million, including one million sales in the last portion of 2004. Its share of the audience soared by 20% in January 2005 compared with last year, and currently stands at an average of 28.6%.
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Baywatch dubbed 'worst TV import'	"Surf show Baywatch has won the title of worst TV import of all time in a poll of UK television executives.

The programme, which starred David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson during its 12-year run, was shown in 140 countries at its height. Model Anna Nicole Smith's reality show and The Dukes of Hazzard were runners-up in the Broadcast magazine survey. The Simpsons and Dallas and 24 were among the magazine's list of the best all-time imports from the US. Soap operas Knots Landing, Falcon Crest plus The Bold And The Beautiful all made the top 10 of Transatlantic TV howlers. The Jerry Springer Show, which came in at sixth on the list, did not fare well.

Broadcast magazine said: ""British TV never realised how low it could go before Jerry showed the way."" Baywatch rose to the top of the list for having ""mind-numbingly predictable scripts: beachgoer is saved from drowning,"" according to the magazine. Just inside the all-time worst top 10 came Extreme Makeover, which sees members of the public given thousands of pounds worth of plastic surgery. Other American shows which won praise were The X-Files, I Love Lucy, Twin Peaks and Star Trek.
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Stern dropped from radio stations	"Controversial DJ Howard Stern has been dropped from four US radio stations because he keeps promoting his move to a network broadcasting on satellite.

Cidatel Broadcasting said Stern had transformed his show into a ""continuous infomercial promoting Sirius, his new satellite radio employer"". Stern will join the Sirius subscription service, which is not governed by US regulators, next year. Citadel pulled Stern's show from stations in New York and Pennsylvania. Stern had been holiday for two weeks but his show did not return to the four stations as expected on 3 January. Citadel said it did not yet know whether it would return to its network.

Stern announced in October that he was leaving conventional radio, where his syndicated show goes out across the US, for the relatively restriction-free satellite service. The DJ's broadcasts are well known for landing in trouble with regulators for obscene and sexually explicit rantings. Stern was dropped by six stations owned by media giant Clear Channel in 2004 after it had to pay the Federal Communications Commission $1.75m (£950,000), over breaches indecency laws. Media giant Viacom has also reportedly agreed to the FCC's demands that if Stern is issued with another indecency violation then his show must be pulled from all of its stations. Viacom has also been hit with record fines of $3.5m (£1.8m) over Stern and two other New York DJs. But Stern continues to be one of the most popular talk show hosts, particularly in the 25-54 age category.
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US TV host Clark suffers stroke	"Veteran US television host Dick Clark is in hospital in Los Angeles after suffering a mild stroke.

The 75-year-old presented long-running show American Bandstand from 1956-87 and has since hosted game shows and produced award ceremonies. Clark is scheduled to welcome in the New Year on the ABC network, a job he has done for 33 years. The presenter said that he is ""hopeful"" of getting better in time to lead the festivities in New York's Times Square. Clark's publicist Paul Shefrin said the television host was ""recovering"" and there was no cause for alarm. Clark, who produces the Golden Globe and American Music Awards, disclosed last year that he was suffering from diabetes.

His popular music show American Bandstand was first broadcast in 1952, and attracted an audience of 20 million people after it was picked up by ABC in 1957. The long-running weekly series, which featured guests including Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and Aretha Frankin, came to an end in 1989. Clark was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 for his contribution to the music industry. He has also been responsible for television series such as TV Bloopers, Celebrity Boxing and drama American Dreams. Clark is also expected to act as executive producer for the upcoming Golden Globe Awards ceremony, which is taking place on 16 January.
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New media battle for Bafta awards	"The BBC leads the nominations for the Bafta Interactive Awards, including one for the Radio Times website and one for Sport Interactive's Euro 2004 coverage.

The awards, which were started in 1997, recognise the best websites, digital TV shows and CD roms. Other nominees include The Guardian news website, the National Theatre, MTV, the Science Museum and the London Stock Exchange. The winners from 12 different categories are crowned on 2 March 2005. There were nearly 400 entries this year - a third more than last year. The BBC has 16 nominations while The Guardian has three nominations.

""This year's nominees are a testament to the creative and innovative work going on within the industry,"" said Grant Dean, chair of the interactive committee. Categories include interactive TV, film, digital TV, mobile phones and music. Shaun of the Dead, Oasis' Definitely Maybe, Really Bend It Like Beckham, The Chaplin Collection and The Day Today will battle it out in the DVD category.

ITV's Great British Spelling Test takes on the BBC's Olympics and Spooks Interactive for the interactive TV award. And the Guardian takes three of a possible five nominations in the news and sport category for its website coverage of Euro 2004, the Tour de France and the US elections. The BBC's iCan site is up for the technical and social innovation award alongside the likes of Nottingham University's Uncle Roy All Around You. In 2002, the British Academy of Film and Television decided to split the awards into separate games and interactive ceremonies, to fully cover the range of innovation outside the gaming industry.
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Bets off after Big Brother 'leak'	"A bookmaker has stopped taking bets on Celebrity Big Brother after claiming ""sensitive information"" about the Channel 4 show had been leaked.

William Hill made the move after four people tried to place bets on Friday's surprise double eviction. ""This is highly unlikely to have been an inspired guess,"" William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said. However, a Big Brother spokeswoman was ""satisfied"" that sensitive information about the show remained confidential.

The bookmaker said its suspicions had been aroused by betting for the last two contestant evictions, when people were still trying to place large sums despite odds as short as 1/14. But William Hill's ""overwhelming evidence"" came on Friday when four unknown callers asked to place bets on the show's surprise double eviction.

Shortly afterwards model Caprice and actor Jeremy Edwards left the show. Mr Adams believed someone had gained access to figures which revealed how viewers were voting, and was using them to predict which celebrity would be evicted next. ""We think somebody somewhere has got them and has been trying very hard to take us to the cleaners,"" he said. The bets were not taken. Mr Adams did not believe anyone from Channel 4 or Big Brother producer Endemol had tried to place the queried bets. But he added: ""They need to look at how many people are privy to the sensitive information.""

Big Brother's spokeswoman said: ""Only a handful of senior production executives are privy to any sensitive information regarding eviction voting and there are strict procedures in place to keep this information strictly confidential. ""We do not feel the need to investigate this further as we are satisfied that these measures are effective."" The show's independent adjudicator - the Electoral Reform Services - was also satisfied, she added. The current series of Celebrity Big Brother ends on Sunday, with Happy Mondays star Bez, actress Brigitte Nielsen and Blazin' Squad rapper Kenzie competing for a £50,000 charity prize.

Bookmaker Ladbrokes said it would continue to accept bets on the final, with Kenzie its favourite at 2/9. ""We felt no need whatsoever to close the book,"" spokesman Warren Lush said. ""We've seen absolutely no suspicious betting patterns."" Mr Lush added that people sometimes vote on short odds ""because they think it's like buying money"". ""You do have to risk quite a lot of money for a very small gain but if they think there's no chance of an upset they will still do it,"" he said.
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School tribute for TV host Carson	"More than 1,000 people turned out on Sunday to pay tribute to late US TV presenter Johnny Carson in the Nebraska town where he grew up.

Carson, who hosted the Tonight Show for 30 years, died on 23 January from respiratory disease emphysema. He lived in Norfolk, Nebraska from the age of eight until he joined the Navy, but returned regularly and donated $5m (£2.7m) to local causes. Old school friends were among the crowd at the school's Johnny Carson Theater.

Carson, who was one of the best-loved TV personalities in the US, asked not to have a public memorial in Los Angeles, where he lived in later life. He began his showbusiness career in Norfolk, performing magic under the name The Great Carsoni from the age of 14. His donations included $600,000 to Norfolk High School in the 1980s to build a new performing arts centre. When Carson died, President Bush led the public tributes, saying the presenter ""had a profound influence on American life and entertainment"".
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Singer Ferguson 'facing eviction'	"Three Degrees star Sheila Ferguson is the favourite to be evicted from ITV's I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here on Monday.

Bookmakers Ladbrokes says the singer has even odds of being the first contestant to be voted off the show. ""It's going to be close but Sheila is favourite as she has shown herself to be a bit of a troublemaker,"" said Ladbrokes' Warren Lush. Comic Joe Pasquale remains odds on favourite to win the reality show. Mr Lush added that Nancy Sorrell's chances of an early departure had increased since the surprise arrival of husband Vic Reeves in the jungle camp last Wednesday. Notwithstanding, comedian Reeves remains 3/1 favourite to win the show, after Pasquale.

Huggy Bear actor Antonio Fargas also remains a contender for eviction having ""done nothing to live up to the pre-show hype"". ""There has been a big gamble on Natalie [Appleton] to go... but bookies fancy the millions at home will keep piling on the misery by putting her through more bushtucker trials,"" added Mr Lush. The former All Saint star has performed dismally in bushtucker trials which have seen her plunged into glass tanks containing putrid waste and challenged to eat fish eyes. On Friday, Ladbrokes suspended betting after singer Brian Harvey quit the show folllowing a blazing row with Janet Street-Porter. Harvey, who entered the camp a day later than other contestants after learning that his grandmother had died, reached the end of his tether following days of meagre rations and rows.
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Farrell due to make US TV debut	"Actor Colin Farrell is to make his debut on US television in medical sitcom Scrubs, according to Hollywood newspaper Daily Variety.

The film star, who recently played the title role in historical blockbuster Alexander, will make a cameo appearance as an unruly Irishman. The episode featuring the 28-year-old will be screened on 25 January. Farrell's appearance is said to be a result of his friendship with Zach Braff, who stars in the programme. It will be the actor's first appearance on the small screen since he appeared in BBC series Ballykissangel in 1999. The gentle Sunday night drama came to an end in 2001.

He has since become one of Hollywood's fastest-rising stars, with a string roles in major league films such as Minority Report, Phone Booth and Daredevil. Farrell is pencilled in to play the role of Crockett in a film version of 1980s police drama Miami Vice. Scrubs, which appears on the NBC network in the US and has been shown on Channel 4 on British television, is an off-beat comedy about a group of hospital doctors. Other film stars to have appeared in Scrubs include Heather Graham, while Friends actor Matthew Perry has guest-starred and directed an episode of the show. Its leading star, Zach Braff, has recently been seen on the big screen in Garden State, which he also directed.
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Stallone evicted from Big Brother	"Jackie Stallone, mother of actor Sylvester, has become the first star to be evicted from Celebrity Big Brother.

She and John McCririck faced the public vote on Friday - 67% of people voted to keep the racing pundit in the house. Stallone, 71, appeared not to have enjoyed her time in the house saying: ""I'm a total wreck, I need a vacation, this was a nightmare"". But she was pleased to have patched things up with actress Brigitte Nielsen, her former daughter-in-law. ""That alone was worth $1m,"" she said. Stallone joined the Channel 4 show on Monday as a surprise for Nielsen. She was hot favourite to be evicted first, with odds of 1/4 to leave.

But McCririck has made some enemies with his outspoken views about women. Ladbrokes spokesman Warren Lush said: ""We may have underestimated the power of the anti-McCririck brigade, but it's so hard to call with him, there are people out there who either love him or hate him, there is no middle ground."" The bookmakers have made former Happy Mondays dancer Bez favourite to win the show at 7/4, while Blazin' Squad singer Kenzie is second at 2/1. ""Bez has wooed the viewers and looks the one to beat, he's kept his nose clean and doesn't take anything too seriously,"" Mr Lush said. Earlier on Friday 15 protesters from the Fathers 4 Justice campaign group were arrested after entering the Big Brother compound at 0300 GMT and throwing fireworks. Feminist icon Germaine Greer quit the show earlier in the week over what she called ""bullying"" tactics used by the programme's producers. The show is currently attracting an average audience of about 4.2 million viewers a night.
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Fox 'too reliant on reality TV'	"The head of US TV network Fox has admitted the broadcaster had relied too heavily on reality TV shows such as the poor-rating Who's Your Daddy.

Chief executive Gail Berman said ""in the case of this fall we drifted to too much on the unscripted side"". The series Who's Your Daddy, where a young woman tries to pick her natural father for a cash prize caused outrage from adoption groups and rated badly. Last season, Fox's prime-time audience fell by 600,000 to 5.9 million. Ms Berman said: ""I think the audience expects loud things from Fox. Sometimes they work, and sometimes they don't.""

Who's Your Daddy, the first episode of which was shown on 3 January, pulled in a disappointing audience of 6.3 million, according to the Nielsen ratings system. Five other episodes of the show had also been filmed will be dropped from Fox's schedules, Ms Berman said. She was predicting a drop in ratings even for some of the network's established reality shows, such as American Idol, which is due to start its fourth series this week. Fox had unveiled a new strategy last year promising to launch new shows every season, including the traditionally quiet summer season. Though that had met with a poor reception, Ms Berman said ""there's no question that the audience, in our mind, is ready, willing and able to accept new programming in the summer"". Fox has changed this plan, launching new shows in May instead of June. One of the new shows will be the animated series American Dad, made by Seth MacFarlane, the creator of Family Guy. That series, after becoming a hit on DVD, is also set to return with new episodes.
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George Michael to perform for BBC	"George Michael is to perform live at London's Abbey Road studios as part of a BBC Radio 2 special next month.

The session, which will broadcast on 18 December, will also see him talk about how his biggest hits came about. Michael's appearance is part of the station's Sold on Song initiative, which explores the art of songwriting. The station also confirmed that Chris Tarrant will be hosting a one-off New Year's Eve programme. He left London's Capital FM this year after 17 years. The former breakfast show host - who attracted some of the highest ratings in Britain, despite only broadcasting to London - will offer his own individual take on the year in the two-hour show. ""This should be great fun,"" Tarrant said. ""I've had a fantastic year and I know that lots of other people have as well. I'm definitely looking forward to being on Radio 2."" Other Christmas specials from Radio 2 include singer Jamelia hosting a Christmas Day concert from the London Community Gospel Choir, while actor Christopher Lee will read Fireside Tales from the likes of Edgar Allan Poe, E Nesbit and Ambrose Bierce. Comedian Harry Hill will host a spoof nostalgia show on Christmas Day, while singer Jamie Cullum will perform a live concert for the station.
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Joy Division story to become film	"The life of late Joy Division singer Ian Curtis is to be made into a film, it has been announced.

The Manchester-based production is called Touching From A Distance, after a book by Curtis's widow Deborah which forms the basis for the film. Music mogul Tony Wilson, who headed the record company Joy Division were signed to, will be co-executive producer. The musician committed suicide in 1980 aged 23, shortly before the band were due to go on tour in the US. Mr Wilson, who has remained friends with Curtis's widow and daughter Natalie, who he says asked for his involvement to make the film ""official"". ""People have different ideas as to why Ian committed suicide, so maybe the film will reflect those different views,"" he told the BBC News website.

Plans for a separate Joy Division film had been announced at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, but the project did not get off the ground as it failed to get the backing of Curtis's family. Mr Wilson, who was also involved with Joy Division's sucessor band New Order, as well as the Happy Mondays, said he would ""rather not"" appear in the film. He made a cameo appearance in 24 Hour Party People, in which his leading role was played by Steve Coogan. ""I'm not an actor and I did a lousy job playing my part in 24 Hour Party People,"" said the Factory Records founder, who has been associated with the Manchester music scene since the 1970s. ""Film people have a tendency to mess up when they touch music, but I hope this one works.

""This is much more than the music - they want to do the real story of Ian,"" he said. The film is to be directed by Dutch-born Anton Corbijn, who has made music movies for Depeche Mode and U2. It will be produced by a US production company, while the widow of Ian Curtis will also be an executive producer.
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New York rockers top talent poll	"New York electro-rock group The Bravery have come top of the BBC News website's Sound of 2005 poll to find the music scene's most promising new act.

The Bravery, who have been compared to The Cure and New Order, were the most heavily-tipped act in the survey of 110 impartial critics and broadcasters. Rock band Keane won Sound of 2004 while US rapper 50 Cent topped Sound of 2003. Other new artists in this year's list include London indie group Bloc Party at second and UK rapper Kano third. The Bravery played their first gig in 2003 and have since supported bands including The Libertines, Interpol and Echo and the Bunnymen.

They were the subject of a record company bidding war in 2004 and their debut single, Unconditional, caused a huge buzz when it was released in the UK in November. Singer Sam Endicott said he felt ""great"" about coming top of the Sound of 2005 list. ""Anyone that says they don't want a zillion screaming fans is a jackass, a liar,"" he said. One of the experts to tip The Bravery was The Times' music critic Paul Connolly, who said they were ""spiky but in love with pop"". Chris Hawkins, host of BBC 6 Music's chart show, said the band had ""great guitars and a mastery of the electro-clash sound"". ""The Bravery are proof alone that New York City is still home to hot new talent,"" he said. Alison Howe, producer of TV show Later... With Jools Holland, booked the group to appear the day after seeing them at a west London pub.

""They played like they were headlining the main stage at Glastonbury,"" she said. ""Great songs, a good look, a touch of attitude and a cracking live band.""

Q magazine reviews editor Ted Kessler said they were ""pretty-boy New York clothes horses"" with ""an unusually nimble ear for concise, yearning pop in the mould of Duran Duran or The Strokes"". Other pundits to take part in the survey included BBC Radio 1 DJ Trevor Nelson, NME editor Conor McNicholas, Top of the Pops presenter Fearne Cotton, Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis and BBC Radio 2 music editor Colin Martin. Elsewhere on the top 10, second-placed rock band Bloc Party began their rise after supporting Franz Ferdinand and UK garage MC Kano, in third, is signed to The Streets' record label. US rapper The Game is hip-hop great Dr Dre's latest protege while Leeds group Kaiser Chiefs came fifth with a promise to lead a Britpop revival. In last year's survey, Keane were followed by Franz Ferdinand, Razorlight and Joss Stone in the top five - all of whom were virtually unknown outside the music industry at that point.

Boy band McFly were sixth while Scissor Sisters, who had the UK's best-selling album of 2004, were seventh. In the survey, the pundits were asked for tips for three acts they thought were capable of reaching the top in their chosen genre, either in terms of sales or critical acclaim. The artists could be from any country and any musical genre, but must not have had a UK top 20 single, been a contestant on a TV talent show or already be famous for doing something else, such as a soap actor. Those tips were then counted and compiled to make the top 10.
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Aaliyah claim dismissed by court	"Late R&B star Aaliyah's record company has failed in an attempt to sue the video producer who booked the ill-fated flight on which she died in 2001.

A New York appeals court has told Blackground Records that only the singer's parents had the right to launch a claim for wrongful death. The 22-year-old singer's family came to an undisclosed settlement over a negligence claim in 2003. Aaliyah had completed a music video when the plane crashed in the Bahamas. She and eight others were killed on the plane, which crashed as if left for Florida. Blackground Records' lawyer Frank Penski said he had yet to examine the decision and did not know whether they would pursue the case.

An investigation into the crash revealed the twin-engined Cessna was overloaded by 700 pounds (320kg). A post-mortem carried out on the remains of the pilot showed there was cocaine and alcohol in his body. Aaliyah was a rising star in music and film before she was killed. She was honoured with a string of posthumous awards and her single More Than A Woman went to number one in the UK.
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Three DJs replace Peel radio show	"The late John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show is to be succeeded in February by three shows hosted by three DJs focusing on diverse, non-commercial music.

Huw Stephens, Ras Kwame and Rob Da Bank will each host the mid-week, late-night timeslot, showcasing UK talent. Radio 1 said the show would not try to replace Peel, but would rise to the ""challenge"" of ""keeping his legacy alive"" with unpredictable music. Peel died after suffering a heart attack in Peru in October. Radio 1 said the three DJs had been chosen for their ""in-depth musical knowledge across a variety of musical genres"". Rob Da Bank has been hosting The John Peel Show since the DJ's death. He is also one of the hosts of The Blue Room, an early morning weekend show that plays a mix of old and new electronic and dance music. Huw Stephens is currently one half of the Radio 1 Thursday night show Bethan and Huw in Wales, which explores new music, especially up and coming acts breaking through in Wales. And Ras Kwame is the host of 100% Homegrown on Radio 1's digital station 1Xtra. His show is dedicated to showcasing the best of UK black music and broadcasts live sessions, often giving new artists their first chance to perform on live national radio.

All of the three DJs will continue to host their current shows on Radio 1. ""It is widely accepted that John Peel can never be replaced,"" said the radio station. It added that One Music would support both signed and unsigned talent, and said: ""It will seek out those making music for music's sake rather than for commercial success. ""Above all it will provide support to emerging genres of music and styles that have not yet and may never reach the mainstream.""

One Music is not new to Radio 1 as it already exists as a website, offering advice on aspects of the music industry, such as recording a demo and signing a record contract. Radio 1's controller, Andy Parfitt, said: ""We believe that by having a series of DJs hosting a selection of shows under the One Music title, we will ensure that his legacy lives on."" Stephens said he grew up ""listening to John"" and that it was a ""massive honour"" to continue Peel's work championing new music. The show will be broadcast from 1 February on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 2300 GMT - 0100 GMT.
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Connick Jr to lead Broadway show	"Singer and actor Harry Connick Jr is to star in a Broadway revival of 1950s hit musical The Pajama Game.

He will play the supervisor of a US pyjama factory who has a romance with a union activist during labour unrest. Jeffrey Richards, the show's co-producer, said Connick was ""an actor of enormous charisma and skill, a wonderful singer and a bona fide star"". He has recently starred in hit US comedy Will and Grace as the husband of Grace, played by Debra Messing. The musical will open in November, said Mr Richards, who added that no other casting had been announced yet.

The original book by George Abbott and Richard Bissell will be revised by playwright Peter Ackerman, who co-wrote the screenplay for the movie Ice Age. It has a score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, and Adler is writing two new songs for the score, which includes numbers including Hey There, Small Talk and Steam Heat. Connick appeared with his band on Broadway in 1990, and he wrote the score for a musical based on Emile Zola's novel Therese Raquin, called Thou Shalt Not. It had a three-month run on Broadway in 2001.
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Elvis fans hold birthday bash	"Elvis fans around the world have been marking the legendary singer's 70th birthday on Saturday.

A three-day Elvis convention took place in Blackpool, England, over the weekend with the aim of finding the best European Elvis impersonator. His Graceland, Tennessee, home was the focus for US celebrations with four days of events including a concert by the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Elvis' single Jailhouse Rock became the UK's number one on Sunday. Fans in France celebrated with a tribute concert by Elvis cover bands and a special exhibition of memorabilia is on display in Bonn, Germany.

Jailhouse Rock is now the 999th number one single in UK pop history. Record company SonyBMG are releasing Elvis' 18 number one singles at the rate of one a week in Britain, complete with original artwork and a collector's box. Hit single One Night will follow next week - with the chance of becoming the 1,000th number one as interest surrounding Elvis' birthday grows. HMV spokesman Gennaro Castaldo said: ""It would be a fantastic and truly fitting way to celebrate Elvis' landmark birthday.""
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Elvis regains top chart position	"Elvis Presley has scored his 19th number one single in the UK charts with the re-release of Jailhouse Rock, 27 years after his death.

Elvis knocked X Factor winner Steve Brookstein down into second place after three weeks in the charts. In at number three was Iron Maiden for the Number Of The Beast and Erasure entered the chart at four with Breathe. Elvis's number one is the 999th in chart history and comes the day after what would have been his 70th birthday. Fans around the world held tribute events for the singer on Saturday, ranging from concerts to memorabilia exhibitions. Meanwhile, a poll carried out by royalty payments group the Performing Right Society found that The Wonder of You is the Elvis song most performed by live bands and tribute acts.

Record company SonyBMG are releasing Elvis's 18 number one singles at the rate of one a week in Britain, complete with original artwork and a collector's box. Hit single One Night will follow next week - with the chance of becoming the 1,000th number one as interest surrounding Elvis's birthday grows. Elsewhere in the singles charts, the Scissor Sisters went straight in at number five with Filthy/Gorgeous. Band Aid 20 slipped to six after seven weeks in the chart with Do They Know It's Christmas. The other two new entries are Dana Rayne with Object of My Desire at seven and Kasabian who are at number eight with Cut Off. Making up the top 10 are Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day, down three places to number nine, and Out of Touch by Uniting Nations, also down three places to 10. In the album charts, the Scissor Sisters went to number one with their self-titled release, knocking Green Day's American Idiot to third place. The Killers' album Hot Fuss moved up three to number two.
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Pop band Busted to 'take a break'	"Chart-topping pop band Busted have confirmed that they plan to ""take a break"", following rumours that they were on the verge of splitting.

A statement from the band's record company Universal said frontman Charlie Simpson planned to spend some time working with his other band, Fightstar. However they said that Busted would ""reconvene in due course"". The band have had eight top three hits, including four number ones, since they first hit the charts in 2002. Their singles include What I Go To School For, Year 3000, Crashed The Wedding, You Said No, and Who's David?

The band, which also includes members Matt Jay and James Bourne, made the top ten with their self-titled debut album, as well as the follow-up, A Present For Everyone, in 2003. They won best pop act and best breakthrough act at the 2004 Brit Awards and were nominated for best British group. Most recently they topped the charts with the theme from the live-action film version of Thunderbirds, which was voted Record Of The Year on the ITV1 show. The band have capitalised on a craze for artists playing catchy pop music with rock overtones. The trio are seen as an alternative to more manufactured artists who are not considered credible musicians because they do not write their own songs or play their own instruments. However, recent rumours have suggested that Simpson has been wanting to quit the band to focus on Fightstar. He now plans to take Fightstar on tour.
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Franz Ferdinand's art school lesson	"Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand, who shot to prominence in 2004, have won two Brit Awards.

With their self-titled debut, Franz Ferdinand have achieved what most rock bands crave - high credibility and critical acclaim while also selling stacks of CDs. They have risen to the head of the UK's art rock ranks with an album of songs that are catchy, creative and original enough to sound fresh. With a cool, spiky, fun sound previously associated with bands like Talking Heads, they hit upon a style that had been out of fashion for a while and so was ripe for another airing. Their first UK single hit number three last January, followed by two more top 20 hits, while the album has sold more than 600,000 copies in 11 months on release. In September it was named album of the year winning the prestigious Mercury Music Prize.

On the festivals circuit, they have been one of the main attractions for huge crowds at Glastonbury, T in the Park and Reading/Leeds. They have also found success in Japan, Europe and the US. By September the album had sold 500,000 in the States and total sales were pushing two million worldwide. They have been nominated for three Grammy awards in the US as well as the US music industry's Shortlist award, but lost the Shortlist prize to US band TV on the Radio. Nevertheless Franz Ferdinand were the only UK band to win an MTV Video Music Award this year, taking the breakthrough video crown for Take Me Out.

The four-piece met two years ago when drummer Paul Thomson was working at the Glasgow art school where bassist Bob Hardy was studying. Singer Alex Kapranos was studying English at university but had friends at art school, and the line-up was completed when guitarist Nick McCarthy moved from Munich, Germany, to the city. At the turn of the year, Kapranos told BBC News Online the band were fed up with serious bands in ""that post-rock thing that seemed to be doing its damndest to avoid any bloody tune"".

""We want people to go away from the gigs humming the tunes that we were singing. But at the same time bringing an edge to it."" Franz Ferdinand had a question they asked themselves every time they wrote a song, Kapranos said. ""Where's the fun in that?"" they pondered at every stage, making enjoyment the top priority and ensuring they did not disappear up their own muso posteriors. The band started out with a DIY ethic that saw them take over a disused art-deco warehouse in Glasgow and rename it The Chateau. The venue soon became legendary - so well-known that the police spent a month trying to find it, eventually raiding it and arresting Kapranos. But the charges of running an illegal bar and contravening health and safety, fire hazard and noise abatement laws were dropped.

The band took over an abandoned Victorian courtroom and jail instead, and named that The Chateau. The buzz about the band soon spread around the music industry and 40 record labels turned up to one gig in Glasgow - which the band thought was ""totally ridiculous"". ""I'm really glad it was almost comical because we weren't overwhelmed by the seriousness of it,"" Kapranos said. They signed with independent label Domino, home of Smog, Sebadoh and Four Tet, in June 2003.
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Singer Knight backs anti-gun song	"R&B star Beverley Knight said she sang on an anti-gun single after being ""haunted"" by the fatal 2003 shooting of two teenage girls in Birmingham.

Knight and drum 'n' bass star Roni Size have released No More in a bid to reduce gun use among young people. She said she was ""horrified"" by the deaths of Charlene Ellis, 18, and Letisha Shakespeare, 17. Size, whose New Forms album won the 1997 Mercury Music Prize, said gun use was ""nothing to be glamorised"".

There were more than 10,500 firearms offences and 70 gun crime deaths in England and Wales between June 2003 and 2004, according to Home Office figures. Knight said the scale of the problem became clear to her after the 2003 shootings in Aston, near Knight's Birmingham home.

""It haunted me to be honest, it haunted my sleep,"" she said. Size became involved after two friends, Donna Small and Asha Jama, were shot in his Bristol hometown in October. Jama, 25, lost her sight in one eye while 22-year-old Small suffered serious head injuries. Size said he collaborated on the single, which was released on Monday, because he has ""a bird's eye view of what's going on"". ""Over the last 10 years, I have seen a lot of things happen and it is nothing to be glamorised, it really isn't,"" he said.
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Portishead back after eight years	"Cult British group Portishead have revealed they are writing their third album, their first in eight years.

Founding member Geoff Barrow told BBC 6 Music the record was well on the way to being completed. ""We're actually into it as we speak. We took some time off for Christmas, but generally we're doing another record,"" Barrow told the digital radio station. News of their album plans comes after confirmation the Bristol band will play a tsunami charity show next month. Portishead will play alongside fellow Bristol band Massive Attack at Oxfam's Tsumani appeal, held at the Bristol Academy on 19 February. Barrow said he was surprised people thought the band, who won a Mercury Music Prize in 1995 for their debut album Dummy, had split up.

""We've just had our heads down really, we've never actually broken up, or parted, or whatever. ""So for us it just seems, even though we haven't played for years, we still see each other and write - we just haven't released a record for a long time."" Portishead will not play any new material at next month's concert, which will feature singer Beth Gibbons playing with an acoustic backing. Other acts appearing include Liverpool band The Coral and former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant. Portishead became an international success and a deeply influential band despite their scant recorded output. Dummy was a critics' favourite in 1994, hailed for its blend of menacing sounds and hip-hop beats married to old soul samples. The follow up, Portishead, was released three years later.
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Fightstar take to the stage	"Charlie Simpson took his new band Fightstar to the stage on Friday night, just hours after officially announcing his departure from pop band Busted.

He was greeted by a sell-out crowd at the University of Warwick. Confirmation of Busted's long-rumoured split had come earlier in the day, when Simpson held a press conference in London with bandmates Matt Willis and James Bourne. All three band members stressed that the break up was amicable, although Bourne admitted he was ""devastated"" to hear of Simpson's departure. ""This has been a really difficult decision,"" 19-year-old Simpson revealed, ""I hope the fans will understand.""

While Simpson declared he would look back with pride on Busted's enormous success, his focus turned immediately to Fightstar, with Friday's press conference coinciding with the start of the band's 13-date tour of the UK. Fuelled by this news, all 1,400 tickets to see Charlie's first post-Busted live appearance - at the University of Warwick's Student Union - sold out rapidly. Mike Eccleshall, the venue's Promotions Coordinator, said: ""Tickets had been selling strongly over the past few days, but sales went mad after the news broke. We had completely sold out by 4pm.""

With queues outside the venue long and expectations high, the pressure was on Fightstar to impress. Although many dedicated fans travelled to the gig from around the country, they faced a tough crowd made up chiefly of students, the average age of the audience far exceeding that of any Busted concert. Gone were the screaming girls to which Simpson had become accustomed. Support act Brigade, fronted by Simpson's brother, played a short set first and were met with general approval. When Fightstar eventually took to the stage around 11pm, however, a riotous cheer easily drowned out any hecklers lurking in the crowd.

Unfortunately, the band were initially hindered by technical teething problems as Simpson's guitar amplifier failed to work. As sound technicians rushed to fix it, other band members did their best to improvise. When they eventually got under way, Fightstar's blend of emotionally charged rock was warmly received. Far heavier and less commercial than Busted's chart-topping pop-punk, the band will undoubtedly appeal to a more mature fan-base. Warwick student Helen Clutterbuck admitted: ""I came to check out Fightstar because of all the controversy. ""I've never heard them before, but I'm pretty impressed."" Less impressed were fellow students Ryan Crabbe and Gordon Rennie, who observed, ""With Fightstar, Charlie has clearly progressed from Busted's sound, but they're still not very inspiring."" Fightstar played for around 45 minutes, showcasing material from their forthcoming EP called They Liked You Better When You Were Dead, due for release in February.
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Elvis 'set for chart hat-trick'	"The late US legend Elvis Presley is likely to score his third UK number one single in three weeks on Sunday, according to early sales figures.

The king of rock 'n' roll has already had consecutive chart-toppers with Jailhouse Rock and One Night. A Fool Such As I, the next in a series of 18 reissues, is on course to beat the Chemical Brothers to the top. But his next single, It's Now Or Never, will face a challenge from tsunami charity single Grief Never Grows Old. Sir Cliff Richard, Russell Watson, Boy George, Bill Wyman and members of the Bee Gees, the Beach Boys, America and the Eagles are expected to feature on the charity song.

Bookmakers have offered odds of 10/1 for all Presley's 18 hits to go back to number one. A Fool Such As I would become the 1,001st number one single in UK chart history after One Night took the 1,000th place on Sunday. The latest release is currently outselling the Chemical Brothers' comeback single Galvanize plus other new releases from Athlete, Ciara and Feeder. Presley's 18 original number ones are being reissued as limited release singles, with fans eager to buy the set to fill a collector's box that went on sale in the first week. Record company Sony BMG is now manufacturing 5,000 more copies of each single than originally planned to meet demand, taking the total number of copies of each song on sale to about 28,000.
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Youssou N'Dour wins music prize	"Senegalese musician Youssou N'Dour has been named a winner of a BBC Radio 3 World Music Award.

His album Egypt won the critics' award for album of the year, while the best newcomer accolade went to Argentine Chango Spasiuk. Winners were chosen from ten categories to reflect different continents. A special Poll Winners concert, hosted by Eliza Carthy and Benjamin Zephaniah will take place at The Sage in Gateshead on 5 March.

The concert will be broadcast on Radio 3's World Music Day the following evening and will feature performances by many of the award winners. It will also include the announcement of the Audience Award, chosen by Radio 3 and BBC World Service listeners, alongside BBC Four viewers.

Winner in the Africa category was Malian desert blues band Tinariwen, formed from the nomadic people of the southern Sahara. Cuban pianist Bebo Valdes and flamenco singer Diego El Cigala, responsible for critically acclaimed album Lagrimas Negrasmusic, won an award in the ""boundary crossing"" category. Each winner will receive a specially commissioned sculpture entitled Planet by Anita Sulimanovic who won a competition to design the award. Highlights of the Poll Winners Concert, to be held at The Sage, Gateshead, will be televised on BBC Four on 11 March.
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TOTP turns to Elvis impersonator	"Top of the Pops has turned to the star of Elvis Presley musical Jailhouse Rock after the late rock legend scooped the UK's 1,000th number one single.

Mario Kombou, who plays the Presley role on stage, will sing One Night on Friday's BBC One show as producers are unable to use Presley video footage. It is his second number one in a row. The show used Presley photos last week. Presley will feature in the charts for several more months as all 18 of his original UK chart-toppers are reissued.

A Top of the Pops spokesperson said: ""It's a very special number one as it's the UK's 1,000th. ""We wanted to pay tribute to Elvis in the best way we knew how, so we thought getting a professional would be the best way for Top of the Pops to do that."" Kombou is likely to appear on the show again next week as the next Presley re-release, A Fool Such As I, is on course to give him his third number one in three weeks. Kombou plays Vince Everett in Jailhouse Rock - the same role Presley played in the 1957 film of the same name.
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Blue beat U2 to top France honour	"Irish band U2 have been honoured at France's biggest music awards, but were beaten to a prize by boy band Blue.

U2 received a special achievement prize at the NRJ Music Awards, but Blue beat them to the international group award. US band Maroon 5 was named best new international artist, and took the best international song title for This Love. More than five million radio listeners voted in the awards. The international male and female prizes went to Usher and Avril Lavigne respectively. Collecting his band's award from model Naomi Campbell at the Cannes ceremony, U2 frontman Bono said in French: ""I'm not from this country but I'll make a little confession to you - it's at the Cote d'Azur I feel at home.""

Hosted by radio group NRJ, the ceremony featured performances from Usher and Jennifer Lopez, who was accompanied by dancers clad in schoolgirl outfits. US pop act Black Eyed Peas picked up the best international album gong for Elephunk. Singer Jenifer also took home two awards, for best French female singer and best French album. French-Canadian pop star Roch Voisine was named best Francophone male artist.
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Ten-year tragedy of missing Manic	"Richey Edwards, guitarist and lyricist for The Manic Street Preachers, vanished 10 years ago, on 1 February 1995. His disappearance remains one of the most tragic mysteries in rock music.

For his devoted fans, Richey Edwards was an inspired and inspiring poet, a man who articulated their desperation and despair, who shouted the things most kept hidden. The Manic Street Preachers may only have become stadium-conquering rock giants since his disappearance - but Edwards was the figurehead for their first, dangerous and dazzling incarnation. Edwards did not feature in the original line-up of the band, though. Singer/guitarist James Dean Bradfield, bassist Nicky Wire and drummer Sean Moore were originally accompanied by a rhythm guitarist called Flicker. But Edwards replaced Flicker in time for the band's self-financed debut, Suicide Alley, after designing the record's artwork.

After becoming a full-time member, Edwards became a critical part of the band, writing lyrics and playing guitar - though in many concerts, he was not actually plugged in. But the fiercely intelligent Edwards - who name-checked writers such as Sylvia Plath, George Orwell and Philip Larkin - battled depression, alcohol problems, eating disorders, and self-harm. By the time the band released their third album, The Holy Bible, in October 1994, Edwards had been admitted to hospital with depression. But in his last interview a few months later, seemed to be making plans for the future.

Edwards walks out of the Embassy Hotel in London in the early morning, ahead of the band's US tour to promote The Holy Bible. In the following days, police issue a missing person alert and his parents, Graham and Sherry, plead for their son to let them know he is safe and well.

Police discover Edwards' car in a car park near the Severn Bridge near Bristol - a notorious suicide spot. The discovery leads many to believe he has killed himself. The rest of the band stop touring and recording.

The band play their first concerts since Edwards' disappearance as a trio, performing support slots for The Stone Roses on their UK stadium tour.

The Manic Street Preachers release their first music since Edwards' disappearance. A Design For Life reaches number two in the UK singles chart. The album Everything Must Go follows.

The Manics win best band and best album for Everything Must Go at the Brit Awards.

A fan says she saw Edwards in the hippy resort of Goa, India. Interpol are alerted but do not track him down.

Graham and Sherry Edwards fly to the Spanish island of Fuerteventura six weeks after reports a man fitting their son's description has been seen in a bar called Underground. The report comes to nothing.

Edwards' sister Rachel makes an emotional TV appeal five years after the disappearance. ""I'd just like to say to him if he is able to listen that we do love him very much and we'd like him to come back - me, mum and dad,"" she said.

The band play a concert in the Cuban capital, Havana - the first contemporary western rock band to play there.

On the seventh anniversary of his disappearance, police offer Edwards' parents the opportunity to sign a death certificate. They refuse. The Big Issue magazine, which supports homelessness charities, prints the last known picture of Edwards in a fresh plea for information.

A pair of trainers containing human bones washed up on the banks of the River Severn have no link to Edwards, police say.

The last song written by Edwards - a song called Judge Y'Self, which was to have been used for the Judge Dredd film soundtrack - is released on the B-side compilation Lipstick Traces. A skeleton found by the River Severn is not Edwards, tests reveal.

The Manics' seventh studio album, Lifeblood, features a song dedicated to Edwards called Cardiff Afterlife.

The remaining Manic Street Preachers members continue to pay a quarter of the band's royalties into an account held in his name.
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Mogul Wilson backing UK rap band	"Tony Wilson, the music mogul who established the influential Factory Records in the 1980s, is to launch a new label - convinced he has discovered his ""third major band"".

Factory were the label of both Joy Division - who became New Order after singer Ian Curtis committed suicide - and the Happy Mondays. Now Wilson believes rap act Raw T - signed to his F4 label, the fourth incarnation of Factory - will ""complete the hat-trick"". ""Suddenly, when Raw T came into my life, I realised they are my third major band,"" he told BBC World Service's The Music Biz programme. The group are set to release their first single on 21 February, and follow it up with an album, Realise And Witness, in March.

Wilson has twice tried to resurrect Factory - which lasted for 14 years before folding - but conceded these efforts had been ""despondent and dismal experiences"". But it has not put him off. ""Of all the things I do in my life the most exciting thing I've ever done, and the thing I have most loved, is being part of a record company,"" he added.

""The idea of working with brilliant young musicians, and being close to the centre of popular culture, is just the biggest thrill in my life."" Wilson explained how his son persuaded him to go and see Raw T, but he had initially been reluctant saying he ""detested"" young British people rapping. ""It's always inauthentic, it's always crass, it never really works for me,"" he said. ""I went to see this group, Raw T - which stands for Realise And Witness Talent - and like everyone else in the room that night, we were utterly blown away."" Wilson believes Raw T could be ""to F4 as Joy Division were to Factory records"".

The story of Factory records - which also owned the legendary Hacienda club in Manchester - was told in the Michael Winterbottom film 24 Hour Party People, in which Wilson was played by Steve Coogan.

Wilson stressed that the independent music scene remained ""as important"" as it had been during the 1980s, when labels such as Factory and Rough Trade proliferated. He pointed out that Franz Ferdinand and The White Stripes - ""perhaps the two most important bands since the millennium"" - were signed to indies. ""I think that is a reflection of how useful and how powerful the indie philosophy is, and how bands prefer it,"" he added. ""They can make more money that way - it's a more generous relationship, and also it's a more understanding relationship. ""I think independents are in a wonderful position at this moment in time.""
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Singer Sizzla jailed for swearing	"Reggae star Sizzla, whose UK tour was cancelled after protests at his ""anti-gay"" lyrics, has been jailed in Jamaica for swearing on stage.

The singer must serve 15 days in prison after he consistently swore during a concert in St Thomas, Jamaica, in January despite warnings by police. He was charged under a law which prohibits indecent dress or expression. Sizzla's five-date UK tour was cancelled last November after protests by gay rights campaigners.

Sizzla, whose real name is Miguel Collins, has released 25 albums since 1995 and is credited with taking dancehall music back to its reggae origins. Many Jamaican entertainers have appeared before the courts for use of profanity in recent years but they usually receive a verbal warning, a suspended sentence or community service. Sizzla's UK tour was cancelled after Scotland Yard's Racial and Violent Crime taskforce announced it was examining lyrics by eight reggae artists. It would not confirm that Sizzla was among them. One of his most controversial songs, Pump Up, contains the Jamaican patois lyrics ""fire fi di man dem weh go ride man behind"", translated by gay rights group OutRage! as ""burn the men who have sex with men"".
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Spears seeks aborted tour payment	"Singer Britney Spears is suing eight insurance companies that have refused to reimburse her for cancelling her 2004 world tour.

The pop star cancelled her Onyx Hotel tour last June after suffering a knee injury during a video shoot. She is now seeking to be reimbursed for the tour's £5m ($9.3m) costs in a claim filed at New York State Supreme Court. Seven London-based companies and an eighth Paris firm have been given up to 30 days to respond to the complaint.

The 22-year-old star initially missed a number of shows on the 82-date tour after injuring her knee during a show in Illinois last March. But she was rushed to hospital and needed surgery after a later incident while filming a video for her song Outrageous, leading her to cancel the rest of the tour, including dates in China. ""She obviously took a wrong step and blew out her knee,"" a Jive spokeswoman said at the time. ""It was an old dance injury."" The legal submission described Spears as ""one of the most recognised performers in her industry"". The Onyx Hotel tour was cited as ""a highly crafted production which included the well-known music and dancing of Spears, supported by elaborate costumes, complex choreography as well as cutting-edge video production, lighting and other effects"". In September Spears married Kevin Federline, who had been a dancer on the aborted tour.
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Deal to ban 'homophobic' reggae	"The reggae industry is to refuse to release or stage concerts featuring homophobic songs under a global deal struck with gay rights groups.

A damaging campaign against stars such as Beenie Man and Sizzla has been waged over lyrics that allegedly call for gay people to be killed or assaulted. The campaign, which led to gigs being scrapped and a UK police investigation, will now be dropped under the truce. Brett Lock of gay group OutRage! said they were ""wiping the slate clean"". The protests had been led by the Stop Murder Music coalition, an umbrella group including OutRage!, the Black Gay Men's Advisory Group and Jamaican movement J-Flag.

That coalition has reached a verbal agreement with major dancehall reggae record labels and concert promoters covering eight of the scene's biggest stars. But the artists themselves were not involved in the negotiations and have not directly signed up. Instead, the record companies have pledged not to release or re-release any offensive songs - many of which date back a number of years. And it is believed promoters will make stars agree not to perform such tunes on stage. ""The reggae industry will work with the artists while still maintaining their freedom of speech and artistic freedom,"" according to media and PR strategist Glen Yearwood, who is representing the reggae industry.

The industry would halt any attempt by an artist to perform or release a song inciting violence against any group or gender, he said. ""We'll advise them this is not the way forward in a civilised society."" The Stop Murder Music campaign saw protesters picket gigs, resulted in Sizzla's UK tour being cancelled in November, forced Mobo award organisers to drop artists from nominations and saw Beenie Man dropped from an MTV show in August. Police have also been investigating whether lyrics incite the assault and murder of gay people. The campaign was a blow to the reggae industry, Mr Yearwood admitted. ""If you can't have major stars touring, then you don't sell many albums,"" he said.

But the artists - Beenie Man, Sizzla, Elephant Man, Buju Banton, Bounty Killer, TOK, Capleton and Vybz Kartel - will not have to apologise for past songs or comments. OutRage!'s Mr Lock said: ""The main players in the dancehall reggae industry will attempt to regulate the industry themselves to ensure that there aren't any violently homophobic or gay-bashing lyrics in the future. ""As a gesture of good faith, the Stop Murder Music coalition has agreed to suspend our aggressive campaigning against murder music. ""So we shall not be picketing concerts or calling for prosecutions to give the industry the space to regulate and reform itself."" Record companies VP and Greensleeves, distributor Jet Star and concert promoters including Jammins and Apollo Entertainment are all on board.
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Soul sensation ready for awards	"South West teenage singing sensation, Joss Stone, has been nominated in three categories in Wednesday's Brit awards.

The 17-year-old from a small east Devon village near Cullumpton, received nominations for Best Solo Female, Best Urban Act and Best Breakthrough Artist. Her second album Mind, Body & Soul reached number one in the UK charts last October and went straight into the US charts at number 11. Ms Stone is due to perform at the 25th award ceremony at London's Earls Court. The teenager also has Grammy nominations in the US, normally dominated by home-grown acts. Born Jocelyn Stoker, the Devon diva started her career in a BBC talent programme, and was then discovered at a New York audition by a US record executive, Steve Greenberg. The 17-year-old singer is hoping to tour in Japan, Australia and the US in 2005.
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Prince crowned 'top music earner'	"Prince earned more than any other pop star in 2004, beating artists such Madonna and Elton John in US magazine Rolling Stone's annual list.

The singer banked $56.5m (£30.4m) from concerts, album and publishing sales with his Musicology tour and album. He kept Madonna in second place, as she earned $54.9m (£29.5m) while embarking on her global Re-Invention Tour. Veterans Simon and Garfunkel were in 10th place, their comeback tour helping them earn $24.9m (£13.4m) last year.

""Prince returned to centre stage after a decade in the commercial wilderness,"" the magazine reported. The singer's 2004 tour took $90.3m (£48.5m) in ticket sales and he sold 1.9 million copies of his latest album Musicology.

Although she grossed more than Prince last year, Madonna remained in second place because of the ""monumental"" production costs of her tour. Heavy metal band Metallica's Madly in Anger with the World tour helped push their 2004 earnings up to $43.1m (£23.1m). They were ahead of Sir Elton John, who took fourth place and almost $42.7m (£23m) from performances including a debut on the Las Vegas Strip. Other seasoned performers in the list included Rod Stewart, whose sold-out shows and third volume of The Great American Songbook covers album helped net him £35m (£19m). The highest-ranking rap act in the list was 50 Cent, who at number 19 took $24m (£13m) to the bank.
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Brit awards for Devon music acts	"Devon singer Joss Stone and rock band Muse won coveted Brit awards during the event's 25th anniversary.

Seventeen-year-old Stone, from near Cullumpton, won two awards: best British female act, and best urban act out of three award nominations. Muse, whose members met in south Devon, beat Franz Ferdinand, Jamie Cullum, Kasabian and The Libertines for best British live act. The band has sold about two million records worldwide.

After beating Amy Winehouse, Jamelia, Natasha Bedingfield and PJ Harvey to the best British female prize, Joss Stone said: ""I don't know what to say. I don't like doing this at all. I'd like to thank my family for being really supportive and everybody that made my record with me."" ""I don't even know what to do right now. Thank you all you guys for voting for me, I feel sick right now."" Viewers of digital music TV channel MTV Base voted Stone the winner in the best urban act category. Ms Stone also performed her song Right To Be Wrong, backed by a gospel choir, at the 25th award ceremony at London's Earls Court. Her second album Mind, Body & Soul reached number one in the UK charts last October and went straight into the US charts at number 11.

The teenager also has Grammy nominations in the US, normally dominated by home-grown acts. Born Jocelyn Stoker, the Devon diva started her career in a BBC talent programme, and was then discovered at a New York audition by a US record executive, Steve Greenberg. Indie Rock group Muse consists of Matthew Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and Dominic Howard who met in their early teens in Teignmouth, south Devon. Dominic Howard said of winning: ""We love playing live, it's very important for our band. So to win something like this really feels great."" The trio met aged 13 and formed the band Gothic Plague, changing its name to Fixed Penalty, Rocket Baby Dolls and finally Muse. The band released its first self-titled EP in 1998. The third studio album, Absolution, was released in 2003, providing the hit singles Time Is Running Out, Hysteria, and Butterflies And Hurricanes.
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Rock star sued by ex-girlfriend	"Motley Crue guitarist Mick Mars is being sued by his ex-girlfriend for $10 million (£5.4 million), claiming he broke a promise to take care of her.

The woman, Robin Mantooth, said Mars promised her repeatedly that he would provide financial support in the event of the couple breaking up. When they split in December, Mantooth says Mars denied any such agreement. She is asking a Los Angeles court to award her half the musician's property, a monthly allowance and damages. Mantooth added that the pair became lovers in 1990, after which she abandoned her career as a documentary film-maker to move in with the guitarist at his Malibu home.

She is also claiming that Mars, 53, has failed to provide her with any material support since they ceased to be a couple. Motley Crue recently reunited after being apart for a period of five years. They originally formed in the early 1980s and scored six hits in the UK, including Girls Girls Girls in 1987. They are embarking on a world tour later this year which will take in 60 cities across the US, Europe, Asia and Australia. Mars - real name Bob Allen Deal - underwent hip replacement surgery in October. He suffers from a degenerative rheumatic disease which causes ligaments and tendons to attach to the bone.
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Scissor Sisters triumph at Brits	"US band Scissor Sisters led the winners at the UK music industry's Brit Awards, walking off with three prizes. The flamboyant act scored a hat-trick in the international categories, winning the best group, best album and best newcomer awards. Glasgow group Franz Ferdinand won two prizes, as did Keane and Joss Stone, who was voted best urban act by digital TV viewers. Robbie Williams' Angels was named the best song of the past 25 years. Scissor Sisters frontwoman Ana Matronic collected the best international album prize from singer Siouxsie Sioux. She told the audience: ""If you told us a year ago we would be getting these awards today we would have called you crazy. You guys made our dream come true.""

The band - whose self-titled LP was 2004's biggest-selling album - thanked ""all the members of the sisterhood"", adding: ""We wouldn't be here without you."" The US band, who opened the show with Take Your Mama, won the best international act and newcomer awards, as well as best international album.

Franz Ferdinand, who were shortlisted in five categories, won best rock act and best British group, an award they dedicated to late DJ John Peel. But they missed out on best British live act, which went to Muse. Keane won best British album and breakthrough act. Will Young won the best single prize for Your Game. McFly won the best pop act prize, and Gwen Stefani picked up the best international female artist award. Eminem won the male prize.

Best British male artist winner Mike Skinner - aka The Streets - does not usually attend award ceremonies, but the Birmingham hip-hop artist performed his hit Dry Your Eyes at the ceremony. However, he did not collect his prize. A bandmate informed the crowd Skinner was ""in the toilet"". After beating Amy Winehouse, Jamelia, Natasha Bedingfield and PJ Harvey to the best British female prize, Joss Stone said: ""I don't know what to say. I don't like doing this at all. I'd like to thank my family for being really supportive and everybody that made my record with me."" ""I don't even know what to do right now. Thank you all you guys for voting for me, I feel sick right now."" Viewers of digital music TV channel MTV Base voted Stone the winner in the best urban act category.

Little Britain comedy duo Matt Lucas and David Walliams presented the best song prize to Robbie Williams dressed as his former Take That colleagues Gary Barlow and Howard Donald, leading him to quip he was ""always the talented man of the band"".

Williams' track beat songs by Will Young, Queen, Kate Bush and Joy Division in a vote by BBC Radio 2 listeners to mark 25 years of the UK music industry ceremony. It is his 15th Brit award, having already received 10 solo awards and four with Take That. He told the audience: ""I'm just amazed that my career keeps going."" Keane frontman Tom Chaplin thanked fans for enduring ""rubbish gigs"" after they won the British breakthrough act prize. He added: ""A lot of people don't think it's cool that we've had the guts to be ourselves but it's a vital part of who we are as a band and receiving this is recognition of that.""

Natasha Bedingfield - in the running for best British female and best pop act - performed with her brother Daniel for the first time at Wednesday's event.

The chart-topping siblings duetted on the Chaka Khan hit Ain't Nobody. Meanwhile, Joss Stone performed Right To Be Wrong backed by a gospel choir, while Lemar and Jamelia performed the Robert Palmer track Addicted To Love. Bob Geldof won a prize for his outstanding contribution to music. Of the 15 Brit awards for achievements in 2004, 10 were won by artists tipped in the BBC News website's Sound of 2004 list of artists to watch, published at the start of last year. Scissor Sisters, Franz Ferdinand, Keane, Joss Stone and McFly were all in the Sound of 2004 top 10. The other five Brits winners were already established before Sound of 2004 was compiled. The ceremony will be televised on ITV1 on Thursday.



I'm speechless. Best song of the last 25 years? Yeah right.

I very much doubt that 'Angels' was even the best song of the week that it came out. Like every track Robbie has released as a single, it's a blatant but poor facsimile of something that someone else has done better before.

Give us a break...!!!

Best song in 25 years, you must be joking. Its good if you like that sort of thing, but really!

Listened to Angels on Radio 1 this morning when I was driving into work. Had not heard it for a while. I love Robs voice, the lyrics and tune. Perfection!

As usual, the public have short memories when it comes to voting for ""the greatest"". There must be more than a dozen songs in the last 25 years that deserve this award more. It's not exactly groundbreaking. Presumably, the age range that could be bothered to vote is is pretty low...

I'm actually embarrassed to be British if that is the best song we have produced in the last 25 years!!

What about The Specials - Ghost Town, The Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen in Love With Someone... Happy Mondays - Kinky Afro, McAlmont & Butler - Yes, Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart... Angels is middle-of-the-road rubbish.

Angels is a awful piece of sentimental claptrap. It's musically and lyrically inept; and fantastically overrated, a bit like Mr Williams himself. This result isn't very surprising though, The Brits has a long history of celebrating rubbish music!

Best of the last 25 years? Maybe. Cunning to make the timescale not include Stairway to Heaven or Bohemian Rhapsody, but it does kind of make it a bit of a hollow award really. Not much competition in the last 25 years after all.

It's alright for a pop song - but the best song of the last 25 years???

There is no way on earth that song should have been voted the best of the last 25 years....it's a travesty.

Rubbish! Who voted it for it to be included in any list? I am a regular listener to Radio 2 but I don't recall the invitation to vote for this bland, slushy rubbish which might appeal to the masses who wouldn't know a good song if it jumped up and bit them on the nose but is certainly NOT the best song of the last 25 years. How depressing and just when we thought manufactured 'pop' was on the way out - where on earth did this dreadful list appear from?

While I am biassed in that I thought Love Will Tear Us Apart should have won, in all seriousness, I think that the best song of the last 25 years should not include songs less than 5 years old as that would exclude songs which are popular because of novelty. Then again, well done Robbie, good show.

You've got to be kidding.

Angels is a great song, but not the best song of the last 25 years. Only the best song to be up for nomination at the Brits.

I think Angels is a great song and deserved to be in the run up for this award but I don't think its the best song from the past 25 years! Right enough, it is better than some of the others in this catergory, for example, what was Will Young doing being nominated in the first place - he is alright but the song isn't that good! I'm happy for Robbie himself though!

Best song in the last 25 years? What a Joke! Think of all the great rock and pop songs released in the 80s and pretty much all of them are better than Angels. Phil Collins doesn't deserve awards for all the good songs he wrote? Angels is an overrated song, that got tiresome even before you had finished listening to it. Soppy rubbish at best. Hopefully manufactured rubbish will die down soon, and let the real artists who worked hard for there glory receive awards.

So boringly obvious and typical of the bland nature of mainstream music in Britain today, for me it's proof that music and democracy just don't mix. Still, at least it wasn't Will Young...

Oh it's all just a bit of fun. People take these awards too seriously! Robbie has millions of loyal fans, while even non-fans know the words to angels. Him winning obviously reflects who votes in these awards. Personally I wanted Will Young to win, but that was not really due to his musical talent!

I hate the song, all it brings back is memories of school discos and no-one to slow-dance with!

I agree about Angels. I never get fed up hearing it. Whenever the song comes on the radio I turn the radio up, smile and sing along (very badly, that is why the radio has to be turned up to drown my voice out). The song makes me calm and serene and happy. Well done Robbie.

I think that although Robbie Williams is a good performer, that Angels isn't really that good a song. It certainly isn't anywhere near as good as Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division or Wuthering Heights by Kate Bush.

Angels is a fantastic song. All credit to Robbie Williams and Guy Chambers. It's a song that will be played forever and bridges all age groups.

Robbie did in no way deserve that mantle. Whenever we have these awards it is always 'artists' from the past five years that seem to win the best of the best...We forget about the late 80s and early 90s for example. They weren't cool at the time, but because they are cool again now shows that the songs have greater longevity than people think.

Yes Angels is the best song since the past 25 years, because it touches the soul as it carries a lot of meaning.

I've always disliked Angels intensely. I believe it to be symbolic of the general capacity of British pre-teens, teens and middle aged women to accept low quality/ low aspirational music as ""classic"" songwriting. It's 'orrible. It seems obvious to me that people who like Robbie are people who don't particularly like music all that much. Folks without collections; folks who have never engaged in that madness one experiences when falling under the spell of pop music. Angels adds nothing - it is merely an irritating distraction - a wasp that refuses to go away on a summer's afternoon picnic. What a dreadful result. If you voted for it - you should feel ashamed of yourself - you probably only know a dozen songs or so don't you - so where do get off applying this uninformed filter and casting this ridiculous vote. Booo hisss

Angels, best song? You are kidding, right? Last five years I might be willing to accept, but 25, no way. Did whoever voted for this actually have ANY music knowledge prior to, say, 1995? Really quite insulting to the British music industry of the past quarter of a century.

No surprise about Robbie Williams considering the list. Where on earth did the nominations list come from???? Compiled by an eleven year-old girl perhaps?? I mean, Will Young? Come on.

What a load of crap, best song in the last 25 years - I don't think so!! What about all the REAL artists out there over the last 25 years - the list is endless, but Robbie Williams doesn't even come close.

What a joke. That song has become such a bane to me that I have developed a Pavlovian response to the word 'Angels' where I thrash around, and scream ""no no no no no"" until someone tells me ""the radio's off"". Why a half-baked cheesy ditty like Angels, which has become the anthem for millions of romantic sops (think how many times it was sung on Pop Idol for example, and by whom), should be voted the best song of the past 25 years, is beyond me. If this is the song against which all others are judged, then musicians may as well give up.

Why do we reward mediocrity so highly in this country?? The initial list was very weak anyway, but Angels the best song of the last 25 years!!!! I think not, I didn't realize Radio 2 had so many listeners under the age of 10!!

People have such short memories! A great song yes, but the best of the last 25 years? Not a chance. I think the person as opposed to the song has been voted for here.

The Great British Public at work again. It's a mediocre, sentimental and safe song. Granted, it's not too bad, either. But can it stand up against ANYTHING by The Smiths (in particular ""How Soon is Now?"") or anything from the Stone Roses' first album? Nope.

No, Because I'm not female and I'm not 10!

Ok I like Robbie and Angels is a decent song. But it is no way the best song of the past 25 years! The shortlist wasn't great but him winning it is a joke!

Predictable and laughable.

The success of Angels at this years Brits reflects poorly on the state of British music over the last 25 years. The British public are brainwashed by the corporate pulp that is presneted to them as cutting edge music and true talent is being sadly missed. Whilst Angels is a popular song it is not even the best song in Robbie's repertoire never mind best song of the last 25 years.

I am a huge Robbie fan and love that song. But I think there are a lot more outstanding songs / music out there that influenced music today, unfortunately they were left out of the list.

Have Radio 2 listeners even heard of Joy Division? A band who, through two albums, have had a bigger impact on music, and continue to do so, over the last 25 years than Robbie Williams ever will.

No doubt about it. There's not a song done by anyone with more emotion and feeling. Some people will adopt their slightly snobby stances, but Angels has hit home with a far larger audience than any other song.

It should have been Joy Division.Those guys have played an influential part in shaping modern day music while Angels remains yet another pop song. I sincerely do not believe that in 25 years from now, the most influential artists will argue that Robbie Williams inspired their art in the way that the Byrds, the Beatles and Nick Drake have done for music today.

Yes!! I think its a brilliantly written song with different meanings to different people. There were other great songs in the category... but somebody had to win! Robbie was a deserved winner.

I am astounded that such a second-rate record has beaten such a line up of amazing songs! it's a terrible song, voted for by the masses who don't have the brains to appreciate innovative and exciting music.

The best song of the past 25 years? Really? Come on, this is surely a joke? No? I think I need a long lie down...

It just goes to show that the british public do not have a clue about good quality music when they pick Robbie Williams over the beautifully talented Kate Bush and Joy Division. I suppose it's confirmed one thing - the British public are consistently dull :- <(

No offence Robbie, but pleeease! There must be a thousand better songs than a formulated cheesy pop song for kids. No one agrees with this and quite frankly it is an embarassment to the integrity of British music, and a further nail in the coffin!

I think Robbie deserves it, he has been the most iconic of any stars we have had in Britain since John Lennon and is an idol to millions worldwide. Anybody who says he doesn't deserve it is jealous of his success. The only real challenger was Queen but hey, Another One Bites the Dust!!

Obviously all the Karaoke singers in the UK voted for it.

If this is the best song of the last 25 years then the British Music industry is in trouble. Sure Robbie is talented and produces excellent material, but this is not the best record.

A sad day for music

It's not the type of music I normally like, but even as a diehard rock fan, I recognise that it is a good song and appelas to most people. That's why it has been voted best song of the last 25 years. It's a good all-rounder. Just like Robbie.

Best song in 25 years? Since 1980? I'm confused. ""Angels"" isn't a bad song. It's a nice, catchy, formulaic anthem that ticks all the boxes. But this is not great music. If anything it's regressive. Bland even. I suppose it's just more evidence of how redundant the Brit Awards have become.

Granted angels is a good song, however it really wasn't up against any other proper competition. The Queen's song was lackluster, and apart from Kate Bush, the other choices were pathetic! Also, why weren't the Stones there, David Bowie, etc, there are so many greater songs than Angels...I wonder if it was simply the fact that Robbie wasn't getting more awards so they had to make one up for him!

Best song of the last 25 years? What a ridiculuous concept, and an even more ridiculous winner. Sigh. On the upside, at least it wasn't Bohemian Rhapsody, for which we should all be thankful.

Angels is without doubt a great song but I really don't think it deserves the title of best song in 25 years.perhaps the vote had more to do with teenage opinion on Robbies' goodlooks than the actual song!!! Don't get me wrong, I'm not disputing his looks, but there are more deserved winners.

It would have been a travesty had Angels not won. Without Angels, Robbie Williams may well not be where he is now, and Britain would have been deprived of one of its most charismatic and talented performing artists. It has to be seen performed live, with 125,000 people singing along to be fully appreciated. Well done Rob.

I find it hard to believe that 'Angels' is the best we have to show for the past 25 years! I'm rapidly redifining 'best' in my own head now to mean 'most gratuitously played at weddings and funerals because people think it has deep meaning'. What about Britpop? Blur, Oasis, Suede, Pulp... not only making fantastic songs but also making changes, doing something different. Why must 'best' always come down to most commercially popular?

I've nothing against Robbie, I actually like his music, but how can this possibly be the best song from the last 25year? The Brits has proved to be nothing more than a bargaining tool between the pop moguls to boost band profiles and record sales. The same goes with the Scissor Sisters, I think this is a superb record and thoroughly deserves the newcomer award, but the album comes no where near U2's new record, neither are they in the same league. Once again there have been some baffling discisions made, they are not for artisic reasons, but for profit.

No surprise really, it's voted for by the general public. Since when did they have taste in music?

Personally I find Angels by Robbie Williams to be one of the most irritating songs I have ever heard!

It absolutely deserved to win. It is a song that has united the generations and will continue to be played for many years to come.

It's an absolute joke, however most of the original 25 were very poor choices as well. All in all a pretty pointless exercise !

The song is overplayed and oversentimental. Out of the rather poor five choices that were left, it should have gone to either Joy Division or Queen. I suppose we should be thankful that it didn't end up in the hands of Will Young though.

Although it has nostalgia value, there is no way it deserved to win. Everybody knows the words to Bohemian Rhapsody, Nothing Compares 2 U, etc. Much better songs and more timeless. Give it to someone with real talent.

Although Angels is a good song I think that anyone with the slightest musical taste will realise that this is not the best song of the last 25 years. This is just another example of record company manipulation to keep an artist in the public eye. Why not give him an award for the greatest pair of trousers if that's all it means!
"	entertainment
Jamelia's return to the top	"R&B star Jamelia had three Brit nominations to go with her triple triumph at last year's Mobo awards.

The Birmingham-born singer, full name Jamelia Davis, was signed to a record label at the age of 15 and released her first single So High at 18. She released four number ones from her 2000 album Drama, including the top five hit Money featuring the vocals of reggae artist Beenie Man. She racked up five Mobo nominations in 2000, winning one for best video. But in the same year she also fell pregnant and decided to take a break from music to bring up her daughter Teja, who was born in March 2001. While she originally planned to get back to work pretty swiftly after giving birth it was actually two years before she released another single. During her absence R&B music exploded and a whole host of female artists were on the scene, meaning Jamelia had to once again prove herself. Her comeback song Bout featuring Rah Digga only just scrapped into the top 40.

It was her next single, Superstar, that really put her back on the map as one of Britain's most popular female R&B singers, holding her own in a music scene dominated by US artists such as Beyonce and Ashanti.

Superstar was followed by Thank You, winner of best single at the 2004 Mobos, which reached number two in the UK charts. The autobiographical song, which deals with domestic abuse, hit number one in New Zealand and Australia. Next came the song See It In A Boy's Eyes, which was especially written for her by Coldplay's Chris Martin. His involvement with the song meant not only was it given massive publicity but it was also greeted favourably by a new audience who would not usually listen to R&B. She now combines singing with modelling and supporting charities including the NSPCC and Make Trade Fair. Despite her huge success in recent years, Jamelia remains down-to-earth about her fame and her chances of lasting in the fickle music business, partly due to motherhood. ""When I first got into the industry, I'd be away from home for months at a time. But now I have other things in my life. I still want to make it, but it's not the end of the world if I don't,"" commented Jamelia.
"	entertainment
Cult band Kasabian surge forward	"Indie dance band Kasabian built up a cult following throughout 2004 to secure three Brit Award nominations.

The four-piece Leicester band blends dark electronics with rock, earning Kasabian places on the best British group, rock act and live act shortlists. They have also earned a reputation as outspoken and charismatic, in contrast to fellow Brit nominees such as Keane and Snow Patrol. ""British music needs a kick up the arse and Britain needs a new band to breathe life into the British people again,"" declared Kasabian's singer Tom Meighan.

""No-one's doing it at the minute. Music feels like it's in the afterlife right now. We don't want people to give up on it. ""The serpent's going to rise from the sea and scare all the pirates away!"" Meighan grew up in Leicester with Kasabian songwriter/guitarist Sergio Pizzorno and bassist Chris Edwards, a trio which began making music from the age of 17.

They enlisted guitarist and keyboard player Christopher Karloff after spotting him in a pub. ""We saw his long sideburns and thought 'hey, he looks the part, we'll ask him,'"" said Meighan. Inspired by Britpop and a mutual love of hardcore, an early 1990s genre that fused house music with hip hop beats and a dark sensibility, they added an electronic element to the traditional guitar sound. ""We got a computer and we cut rock'n'roll up, because there's no point in going back to how it was,"" said Meighan. ""It's all about new ideas and creativity.""

The band's original approach is reflected in its name, inspired by Linda Kasabian - the getaway driver of US serial killer Charles Manson. Coincidentally it is also the Armenian term for ""butcher"". Kasabian moved into a remote farmhouse in Rutland to record their debut album, benefiting from its isolation but also managing to sneak in a few parties while they were there. Signed to the RCA record label, Kasabian tested the water with two singles, Club Foot and LSF, which reached numbers 19 and 10 in the UK singles chart respectively.

They built up their following on the summer festival circuit, opening both Glastonbury and T in the Park, and at a series of ""guerilla gigs"" at unusual venues including Half Time Orange, a pub next to Leicester City football club's headquarters. Kasabian's self-titled album was released last September to widespread critical acclaim, its indie dance stance drawing comparisons to The Stone Roses, Primal Scream and The Happy Mondays.

Regarding it as ""both a fiery assertion of rock 'n' roll ethics and proof that a siege mentality is alive and well in the badlands of Rutland Water"", the NME's praise was typical of the album's reception. As 2004 progressed Kasabian would score a further two hits - Processed Beats and Cutt Off - and embark upon a well-received UK tour. ""We take our music seriously, definitely, but we want to have fun with it,"" said Pizzorno. ""This is not a job to us,"" added Meighan. ""This is the best life we could ever have. This is what it's all about and without it we'd be lost souls. But music needs us as well.""
"	entertainment
Brits debate over 'urban' music	"Joss Stone, a 17-year-old soul singer from Devon, beat Dizzee Rascal, Jamelia, Lemar and The Streets to win best British urban act at the Brit Awards. Her victory has reignited the debate about what urban music is.





I'm not really comfortable with the word urban. It's a word that's been manufactured in this country and America to describe black music. The word urban seems to cover such a broad range of black music that it's wrong. How far are the Brits removed from inner-city music and what people are doing? It's so far removed that I don't expect them to get it bang on. The music industry isn't championing music from our particular genre very well anyway. People don't feel like that's anything to do with us. I don't feel like urban music's just been celebrated by [Joss Stone] winning or her being nominated, or by the Brits acknowledging that there's an urban music scene because it's all a kick in the teeth at the end of the day. It's not really relevant. If Joss Stone is the closest thing that they feel comfortable championing because of what she looks like and how she sounds and who she's signed to, then so be it. It's got nothing to do with what's really going on.



Urban as a genre is very broad. If you look underneath urban, there are a number of core elements that include hip-hop, R&B, garage and into that obviously comes soul. Joss Stone is a soul artist. Her first album was called The Soul Sessions. So urban is a very broad brushstroke that is the umbrella over the top of sub-genres, and there are offshoots of all of those. Joss Stone has had amazing success [in the US] given that she's a UK artist. What has really captured everybody's imagination is that here you have a 17-year-old from Devon with a voice to die for and a bunch of really, really good tunes and she looks good - I think that's what's done it.

The award for best British urban act was voted for by viewers of MTV Base.



I don't think Joss was not a worthy winner. She makes soul music and that definitely comes under the category of what we describe as urban. The fact that she's from Devon is the interesting thing because most of the music we cover is made in large cities and she's literally rural. The great thing about urban music is that there's a big range. If there is some sort of root with black music or dance music in Britain, I think that's where you can call it urban - that's where this new sub-category, or uber-category, has come from. Joss Stone is certainly not old enough to have had some of the experiences of an older soul singer, but you couldn't argue that she was being inauthentic with her emotions - it is coming from somewhere genuine. It has to come across as real. That's the only cut-off point we have here and that's the only way by which we judge people.



What urban means to us as an organisation is the politically correct term to describe music which originated from a black background. Music should become inclusive and if we are fighting for a multi-cultural Britain, then we should be fighting for inclusion rather than exclusion. If Joss Stone can be accepted within the urban music community, I think acts from other ethnicities doing classical music and rock should be accepted too. Race doesn't make a difference if everyone is included. Out of all the awards dished out yesterday, I'm still trying to find out what people of other races received any sort of recognition or award.



A type of music (especially street music) that originates from a city, and typically reflects or is characteristic of urban life.

She might not be urban, but when did R&B become the hip hop tainted thing it is now? R&B stands for Rhythm And Blues, remember!

That Joss Stone is rubbish is certain. If anyone deserves to win an award for urban music (I think probably should include Hip-Hop, Soul & Funk at least but not rock or pop) this year its the Streets, although Dizzee Rascal stakes a good claim

She definitely deserved to win a prize, Joss Stone's albums are quite simply amazing, easily better than anything else that was released last year. This whole debate about what is urban, what isnt urban is completely pointless and probably fueled by urban artists who weren't nominated or didn't win. I cant see why people can't just congratulate her for the talent that she is.

She did deserve it, but I agree with the comments about urban music. Its a stupid phrase, and particularly British. In the states they tend to use hip hop and R&B, if I say hip hop here a lot of people have no idea what I'm talking about. Very strange.

What's in a name? A rose by any other name etc... If people want to call it urban, why not? If we really analysed it, the term 'dance music' is misleading because it doesn't describe everything you can dance to.

Whilst I agree that the term 'urban' is open to interpretation, it strikes me as simply weird that Joss Stone has won. 'Urban' to me is what I hear being played in parties in the inner cities - I live in Brixton and have never heard The Soul Sessions pumping out of of a bass heavy sound system in any parties I've been to. Good luck to Joss Stone, let's celebrate her victory - let's also question why, with artists so successful and talented as Jamelia, Lemar, Kanye West, Dizzee Rascal, Alicia Keys and Outkast - we didn't see a single black artist on stage collecting an award.

So, what you're saying is that any music that has black heritage is not allowed to be sung by anyone who isn't black. And, if it is, then they shouldn't be acknowledged for it even if they're pretty dam good at it? She's 17, has an amazing voice, and won. Good on her. Oh, but she's not ""black"" well, let's make her feel real bad about it then. How dare she! Though hang on, didn't the so-called 'public' vote on this one?

This idea of pigeonholing whatever is popular at the time is no different than what was happening in the 1940s and 50s in relation to what ""Jazz"" was. The media then called anything that had a swinging beat, syncopated melody or soulful feeling ""Jazz"", much to the chagrin of the artists. It would mean that ""blues"" would be put in the same mould as ""bebop"", ""cool"" and ""ragtime"", all very different styles at that time. Jazz was and remains such a massively misunderstood term. And so what of ""Urban"" music? In truth it's a lazy term to categorise music that you don't really understand. Soul and garage are worlds apart musically (Marvin Gaye v Tuff Jam?), but no doubt have their connections. If we just let the music speak for itself and not judge the success of an artist by the number of awards won, then maybe we can enjoy the music for what it is, rather than what it represents.

I demand a prize for rural music! Sucks to the cities- it's way better out here. We have hay, for one thing.

Excluding her from what has become known as urban music would be as bad as excluding Lenny Kravitz or Hendrix from rock music for being black surely? I dont understand the point that Ty is making. If Lemar, who makes music which is less soulful than Joss' work won, he might have said nothing. (btw i'm black too)

How can she be ""urban"" if she spent most of her life in the Devon countryside? Nonsense.

I love Joss to bits and don't care what her branding is - it's amazing music, full stop. Stop puting it all in brackets and let's just call it music, and let's especially drop the black / urban tag - nearly all music came from black origin, this just sets an example that it is ok to pigeonhole people and their music by their colour.

Surely the point of having an urban music category is simply to acknowledge artists that are making what is (historically) considered urban music, irrelevent of the colour of their skin, or where they originate from. Joss Stone is simply singing a certain type of music that can be considered urban in style, just as someone from an inner city, and indeed not from the USA could sing country music. If that person was good at it and authentic in sound, would we criticise it being referred to as country music or the artist for representing that style?

The term urban in reference to a music genre in UK has developed, in part, from the controversy surrounding the branding of the MOBO Awards. The very term 'Music of Black Origin' has confused and offended many people. This is particularly strange given the existence of the Asian Music Awards. It appears that the use of 'black' or 'white' in relation to music makes people feel uncomfortable. The term 'urban' therefore, has been invoked to sidestep the debate of which type of music came first 'black' or 'white' thereby rendering the issue colourblind. The result is now a redundant new debate as to what 'urban' also means. Perhaps we should have created a new term altogether to describe the various strains of soul/RnB and Hip-Hop, one which does not also mean something else - as we have done with 'Crunk'.

Urban is just a word that's come about recently to describe ""black"" music that's become popular now. The word wasn't even in use, or common use five of six years ago. It's just a way of the industry clumping it all together without having to call it black music, because some people are oversensitive and might call them racist for it.

I'm in a band that has been called ""urban"", and I despise the label. I'd hate to think I belonged to any neat marketing niche, because that's all it is. Ever since the music channels and record comapnies tried to fracture what they consider 'music of black origin', these labels have been used to undermine the status of good music into a commodity. Look at all the TV broadcasters, unable to reach young people without condesending, they simply play some 'urban' music on the soundtrack as if its some dreadful cheap lift music. Ignore the labels, it is what it is, just music.

As a black man, I think I agree with some of the statements at least the statements made by the key executives. Black people should lead the music they invented . We should stop calling a genre meaningless, northing is meaningless. The real question is would Joss Stone would have been that successful doing the music she was doing if she were black? Same thing, with Streets, Amy Winehouse, etc. Who's ever heard of Terri Walker or Rhian Benson.. They are both 10 times better than Joss Stone and both of them have won Urban Music Awards and i think Mobos , but why not Brits????

So what if Joss Stone won the Urban awards. Her music is great soul and surely that is under the 'Urban' banner? What if The Streets had won? Would people be whining because Mike Skinner is white... It seems that a lot of the fuss is about race where the real issue should be music and nothing else.

Urban is PC version for saying black music. I'm not doubting Ms Stone's talent, but why didn't Jamelia or Lemar get a Brit? This reminds me of what happened to Craig David and Soul II Soul in the past, getting nominations are easy to get, but picking up a Brit seems to be the hardest thing.

Refreshing to see people making reasonable, intelligent comments on any topic these days. More power to you, people! You have said it: there is music you like and music you don't like - who cares what label you put on it?

That entire category was a mess. How can you have people like Dizzee Rascal up against Joss Stone? Its like putting Eminem against Bob Geldof. She should have been nominated for Best British R & B act. Joss Stone deserved to win an award for her talents, but I don't think it was very 'urban' of her to sing angels with Robbie Williams.

Urban is a nonsense term - music of black origin? Well doesn't that include rock? Music made in the inner cities? Well almost all bands end up making music in London/Manchester etc. And doesn't that make some weird implication that all black people live in cities? It doesn't make any sense.

Why does music have to be put into a genre? It's music, you like it or you don't. Simple as that.

I play in a heavy metal band. We are urban music as far as I'm concerned. We live in cities and spend our working life in an urban environment; It therefore directly shapes what we write musically.

""Urban"" seems to be the new name for all styles of black music. Why it needed a rebrand I don't know as the name is misleading. Oasis originate from a city and characterise the urban life they know, therefore more than fit the term ""urban"" yet as they're a white rock band they won't be described as such.

Joss Stone has a fantastic voice and great timing and delivery - what other reason do they need to award her the Brit? All this ""urban"" and other such categorisation is just the red-tape of the music business and is best ignored.

Yeah, she deserved it. She is talented. Urban is a crap, meaningless, politically correct and probably actually racist marketing term though. There's only two kinds of music: good and bad.
"	entertainment
Row threatens Hendrix museum plan	"Proposals to open a museum dedicated to Jimi Hendrix are flailing because of a row over the home of his late father.

The run-down house in Seattle has already been moved wholesale once and local authorities are now demanding it be moved to another site. Hendrix supporters hoped to turn the home into a museum for the guitarist. ""The mayor is going to go down as the mayor who destroyed Jimi Hendrix's house,"" said Ray Rae Marshall of the James Marshall Hendrix Foundation. The foundation moved the building, in which Al Hendrix lived between 1953 and 1956, when the land it was built on was to be developed for housing in 2002. Now the City of Seattle wants its new plot to be used for development, giving a deadline of 22 February for the home to be moved. Mr Goldman said the authority had promised the house could remain on its new site and be turned into a memorial and community centre. Seattle officials said no such deal had been offered.

""We never said, 'You can own this property,'"" said John Franklin, chief of its operations department. ""From our perspective, it was a temporary situation. We have not threatened to demolish the house. We've simply asked that they have to move it."" Now Mr Goldman is calling for the authority to pay to move the building to Seattle's central district, where Hendrix grew up. Janie Hendrix, the guitarist's stepsister, said the family were still hoping the guitarist would be honoured by having a road named after him. ""That's something my father really wanted to see,"" she said. ""It would be nice if we didn't have to fight for everything to get it."" Hendrix was widely considered one of the most important guitarists of his time. He died of drug overdose in 1970 at the age of 27.
"	entertainment
No jail for singer Courtney Love	"Singer Courtney Love has been spared jail for assault and drug offences, but must serve three years probation.

She had back-to-back court appearances in two separate cases in Los Angeles, first pleading no contest to attacking a woman with a whisky bottle. In the second, Ms Love, 40, pleaded guilty to possessing a forged prescription and painkiller oxycodone. She must also do 100 hours community service, have drug treatment, attend Narcotics Anonymous and pay a fine. The ex-Hole singer's lawyer Howard Weitzman said Ms Love had ""turned her life around"" and she was ""clean and sober"".

The assault charge stemmed from April 2004, when Ms Love found musician Kristin King in her boyfriend's home. Ms King said the singer ""threw the bottle at the left side of my face"" in an ""angry, vicious and erratic"" attack. Ms Love was originally charged with the more serious offence of assault with a deadly weapon, but that was reduced to assault. Judge Rand Rubin said she must:

- Spend three years on probation 
 - Have one year's anger management counselling 
 - Have one year's drug rehabilitation 
 - Do 100 hours community service 
 - Pay $1,000 (£535) fine 
 - Have random drug tests 
 - Go to three Narcotics Anonymous meetings per week

In the drugs case, she was sentenced to 18 months probation, to run concurrently with the probation for the assault. That offence stemmed from October 2003, when she suffered an overdose after breaking a window at her boyfriend's home. In a separate case relating to the same incident, Ms Love was sentenced to 18 months in drug rehabilitation for being under the influence of cocaine and opiates. In another case last October, she pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct for hitting a man on the head with a microphone stand at a New York City nightclub. Last month her lawyers said she had won back custody of Frances Bean, her 12-year-old daughter with former Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. The girl was removed from her care following her double arrest in October 2003. Cobain committed suicide in 1994.
"	entertainment
Rapper Kanye West's shrewd soul	"US hip-hop star Kanye West - who leads the race for this year's Grammys with 10 nominations - rose to prominence by producing songs for artists such as Jay-Z and Alicia Keys.

He then emerged from his behind-the-scenes role to become an artist as well as a producer. But his solo career almost ended before it began after a near-fatal car crash left West with his jaw wired shut in 2002. The resulting song, Through the Wire, became West's first UK hit in April 2004 and subsequent album The College Dropout became a transatlantic success, both critically and commercially. West, 26, began rapping as a teenager at his Chicago school, inspired by the beats and rhymes of 1980s pioneers Run DMC.

Hip-hop producer No ID encouraged West to sample old soul and R&B hits then revive them with an updated sound, an approach that would become his trademark. ""I feel like a lot of the soul that's in those old records that I sample is in me,"" he said. ""So when I hear them and I put them with the drums and I bring them to the new millennium, it's just like God's doing that. I'm one with them records right there. It's a blessing.""

Leaving his Chicago art school after only one year - a move which would later inspire the title of his album - West began his music career co-producing songs for artists Mase and the Madd Rapper. This drew the attention of superstar rapper Jay-Z, who signed West up to his Roc-A-Fella record label to produce numerous artists on his roster. West's work gained mainstream recognition when he produced the singles Takeover and Izzo (HOVA) on Jay-Z's own 2001 album Blueprint. Incorporating samples of Five to One by The Doors and the Jackson Five's I Want You Back respectively, the hits were credited with injecting soul back into hip-hop.

As their success attracted further production work for Jay-Z ('03 Bonnie & Clyde) and artists such as Ludacris (Stand Up) and Alicia Keys (You Don't Know My Name), West announced plans for a solo album. Driving home from a late-night Los Angeles recording session in October 2002, he was involved in the car crash that left his jaw fractured in three places. ""Anytime I hear about any accident my heart sinks in and I just thank God that I'm still here,"" he later said. ""That steering wheel could have been two inches further out, and that would have been it.""

West's account of the accident sampled Chaka Khan's hit Through the Fire to become the heart of his completed solo album The College Dropout. Released last year, it was by turns smooth, humorous and sharp and largely avoided the clichéd hip-hop preoccupation with guns, girls and jewellery.

Through the Wire was quickly joined in the UK and US charts by Slow Jamz, on which West collaborated with rapper Twista and Ray actor Jamie Foxx. The College Dropout spawned two further UK hits and a string of award nominations. West was shortlisted for 10 Grammys - including nominations for artist and album of the year - and took the best hip-hop artist, producer and album titles at last year's Music of Black Origin (Mobo) Awards. Now a respected rapper and producer in the influential field of hip-hop, Kanye West is unlikely to regret his decision to leave college early.
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Singer Christina Aguilera to wed	"Pop star Christina Aguilera is to marry music executive Jordan Bratman, the singer's agent has confirmed.

Bratman, 26, proposed to Grammy-winning singer Aguilera, 23, on holiday at an undisclosed location. The pair have been together for more than two years. ""No wedding plans have been set yet,"" said Aguilera's agent Meghan Prophet. Aguilera burst onto the pop scene in 1999, winning a best new artist Grammy in 2000. Her hits include What a Girl Wants, Dirrty and Beautiful. Bratman presented his fiancee with a diamond ring designed by jeweller Stephen Webster on Friday, said Ms Prophet. New York-born Aguilera reached number one in the UK with her debut hit Genie in a Bottle in October 1999. Her early success was cemented by two further Grammys in subsequent years. In 2002, Aguilera won best pop collaboration for the hit track Lady Marmalade with Lil' Kim, Maya and Pink, and last year she picked up the award for best female pop vocal performance for Beautiful. Her most recent single, Car Wash, featuring Missy Elliott, reached number four in the UK charts last November.
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Brits return Keane to number one	"Brits success has helped return Keane's award-winning album Hopes and Fears back to the top of the UK album chart.

The debut album, which took the best British album title at the Brits on Tuesday, moved up seven places from number eight to number one. Also capitalising on Brits success were the Scissor Sisters whose eponymous album moved three places to number two. U2's latest single Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own took the top spot in the singles chart, ahead of Elvis. The track, from their current album How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, pushed Eminem's Like Toy Soldiers from number one to number three.

Elvis' Wooden Heart, which entered the chart at number two, is the sixth in a series of 18 reissues to mark the 70th anniversary of Presley's birth. There are currently six re-released Elvis' tracks occupying spots in the top 40 singles chart including Are You Lonesome Tonight at number 20, It's Now or Never at number 27 and Jailhouse Rock at number 37. Soldier, by Destiny's Child, Ti and Lil Wayne, debuted at number four, while Almost Here, the duet from former Westlife star Brian McFadden and Delta Goodrem, fell from number three to number five. There was more follow up to Brits success for Franz Ferdinand won best rock act and best British group last week. Their self-titled album moved from 13 to number four. Last week's number one album Tourist, by Athlete, fell to number three.
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U2's desire to be number one	"U2, who have won three prestigious Grammy Awards for their hit Vertigo, are stubbornly clinging to their status as one of the biggest bands in the world.

The most popular groups in the history of rock all have several things in common. The music must be inspired and appeal across generations and be distinctive, if not always groundbreaking. But such success is down to more than music. They have to be compelling performers, charismatic and intelligent enough to make good decisions and keep their feet on the ground. They also have to want it. They have to want to be the biggest band ever and not stop wanting it. The Beatles had it, the Rolling Stones still have it, REM hold onto it and Queen were it in a catsuit. And U2 have it in spades, and keep churning it out. Their new album, How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, comes 28 years after the schoolfriends got together in Dublin and 17 years after The Joshua Tree cemented their place on the all-time rock A-list.

They may have lost some of the edginess and raw, youthful force that propelled them to the top, but they have lost none of the desire or ability to craft songs and albums.

Vertigo, the first single from the new album, went straight into the UK singles chart at number one, knocking Eminem off the top spot and giving them their 26th top 10 hit. ""The challenge is to be bigger and bolder and better - to make records the whole world will listen to,"" Bono recently said. Drummer Larry Mullen Jr echoed those sentiments: ""We're very competitive - we want to be on the radio, have big singles. We don't want to be thought of as a veteran band."" The band have done ""everything in their considerable powers"" to ensure they remain the biggest band in the world, according to Q magazine editor Paul Rees.

""This makes them hugely determined and formidable."" He added: ""They are equally determined to push themselves to make music that continues to stand up. ""As such, they've constantly re-invented and challenged themselves. They are, perhaps, alone as the only rock band that has got better with age."" The other key ingredient was the fact they were highly organised, Mr Rees said. ""They do everything in the right way."" The group were born when Mullen put an appeal for bandmates on a high school notice board, attracting fellow pupils Paul Hewson (Bono, vocals), Adam Clayton (bass), David Evans (The Edge, guitar) and his brother Dick.

Dick Evans soon dropped out and the four-piece were known as The Feedback and The Hype before settling on U2.

By 1978, they had won a talent contest and got noticed by a manager, Paul McGuinness. ""They were brilliant, but very coarse,"" McGuinness recently said. ""In a way, they were doing exactly what they do now. Only badly."" They struggled to attract record company attention, later being described as ""pretty damn average"" and ""strange and eerie"" by scouts who saw them live. They released two Ireland-only singles, which topped the national charts in 1979 and 1980, leading to a deal with Island and their debut album Boy. The stadium-filling, anthemic sound was U2's aim from the start, and their third album, War, saw them make the breakthrough on both sides of the Atlantic, going to number one in the UK and 12 in the US. Songs like Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year's Day brought success and an image as a political and spiritual band - which Bono rejected as a cliche.

His stage performances - which included flag-waving, speaker-climbing and drum-throwing - earned him a reputation as an electric performer, and their appearance at 1985's Live Aid is widely seen as sealing their global stardom.

In 1987, The Joshua Tree broke sales records and saw the band reach the height of their powers with hits including Where the Streets Have No Name, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For and With Or Without You. Those songs took the band's epic, atmospheric sound to a simple, powerful and popular pinnacle. The end of the decade marked a crucial point for the band - they had reached the top but still yearned for new challenges and achievements. These came in the form of explorations of different branches of rock and forays into electronic dance music, plus wildly extravagant stage shows, while still trying to retain their mass appeal. The Achtung Baby album in 1991 was followed by Zooropa, Pop and their corresponding stadium tours, which featured giant olives, flying cars, live phone calls to the White House and Bono's transformation into alter-egos The Fly and MacPhisto. He was also building a parallel reputation - not always to the pleasure of his bandmates - as a campaigner on issues from global debt to Aids. Before the release of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, they had sold 125 million albums around the world. But they still want more.
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Lasting influence of legend Charles	"Ray Charles, who has won a string of posthumous Grammy Awards, belonged to a pioneering generation of artists that had a huge influence on the course of rock and pop music.

His sound encompassed so many styles - blues, gospel, jazz, rock 'n' roll, even country - and had a real impact on the nascent UK beat and R&B scenes.

Compared in stature to Elvis Presley by some commentators, Charles' songs cast their spell on such 1960s stalwarts as Joe Cocker, Steve Winwood, Eric Burdon and Van Morrison. His influence has extended to contemporary artists such as Norah Jones, with whom he recently recorded a duet. If James Brown was the godfather of soul, then Ray Charles was indisputably one of its founding fathers. Along with Sam Cooke, he was instrumental in bringing together the gospel fervour of the deep south Baptist church with the ""devil's"" music of R&B to pave the way for a new generation of soul artists.

Without Charles, it is hard to imagine the tear-stained Atlantic R&B sound of Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding or Wilson Pickett. He was also a talented jazz composer, arranger and band leader, playing at the Newport Jazz Festival and Carnegie Hall and recording with noted jazz musicians such as Milt Jackson and David ""Fathead"" Newman. Unfortunately, he also shared another trait common among many jazz artists of the era - that of heroin addiction, which led to him being arrested in 1965. His string of 1950s Atlantic R&B successes included songs that would be covered by the first-generation rock 'n' roll greats, including I've Got A Woman (Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley) and Hallelujah, I Love Her So (Eddie Cochran). After the exuberance of his 1959 signature song What'd I Say, Charles turned towards a more pop-oriented style, recording Hoagy Carmichael's sentimental string ballad Georgia On My Mind, and the upbeat Hit The Road Jack.

He also won acclaim in the country arena with his interpretations of Hank Williams standards such as Your Cheating Heart and You Win Again. More than 40 years after its release, his 1962 ABC album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music is still regarded as a classic. His version of Don Gibson's I Can't Stop Loving You topped the pop and R&B charts in the US. In 1972, he made a rare foray into protest songs with his album A Message from the People.

On it, he took a stand on poverty and civil rights - echoing similar recordings of the era from progeny such as Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Curtis Mayfield and Marvin Gaye. More than 20 years later, he would embrace contemporary production with his 1993 album My World, which featured hip-hop beats - although Charles claimed at the time not to know what hip-hop was. Among the tributes that poured in from all sections of the music world when Charles died aged 73 in June 2004 was one from his friend, the producer Quincy Jones, who described him as a ""brother in every sense of the word"". ""There will never be another musician who did as much to break down the perceived walls of musical genres as much as Ray Charles did,"" he said. Former Manfred Mann singer Paul Jones, who sang on 1960s hits such as Come Tomorrow and Sha La La, said Charles was one of his heroes. ""I'm quite sure my own writing was influenced by him,"" he told BBC News Online. ""I would put money on the proposition that Ray Charles will have an influence on music forever.""
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Grammys honour soul star Charles	"The memory of soul legend Ray Charles dominated the music world's leading music ceremony on Sunday as he was given eight posthumous Grammy Awards.

Charles, who died in 2004, got honours including record and album of the year, while Alicia Keys and actor Jamie Foxx performed a musical tribute to him. R&B star Keys won four awards herself at the Grammy ceremony in Los Angeles. U2, Usher, Norah Jones and Kanye West got three each. West led the race going into the ceremony with 10 nominations.

Charles' last album, Genius Loves Company, a collection of duets that has sold more than two million copies, was named album of the year and best pop vocal album. His song Here We Go Again with Norah Jones won record of the year and best pop vocal collaboration, while Heaven Help Us All with Gladys Knight picked up best gospel performance. Jones said: ""I'm glad he's getting recognised, because of who he is and how much I love him."" Actor Jamie Foxx - who is nominated for an Oscar for playing Charles in the hit movie Ray - dedicated a rendition of Georgia on My Mind to ""old friends"". Keys, looking to replicate her Grammys success of 2002, when she won five, picked up best R&B song for You Don't Know My Name and best R&B album for The Diary of Alicia Keys. She also shared the award for best R&B vocal performance by a duo or group with Usher for My Boo.

Usher's other victories were for best contemporary R&B album for Confessions and best rap/sung collaboration for Yeah!, featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris. Kanye West dominated the rap categories, winning best rap song for Jesus Walks and best rap album for The College Dropout. But in one of the night's biggest shocks, he lost out in the battle to be named best new artist to pop rock act Maroon 5. Vertigo by rock giants U2 won three trophies - best rock song, best short video and best rock vocal performance by a duo or group. One of the other main awards, song of the year, went to US singer-songwriter John Mayer for Daughters. Mayer also won best male pop vocal performance. Britney Spears picked up her first ever Grammy for her song Toxic, which was named best dance recording.

Rod Stewart also won the first Grammy of his career, getting the best traditional pop album award for Stardust... The Great American Songbook: Volume III. In 2003, Stewart said he was ""astounded"" he had never won a Grammy - but ""they tend not to give it to the British unless you're Sting"". There were few other high-profile British victors this year. Annie Lennox, metal group Motorhead and dance act Basement Jaxx all took home trophies. But Elvis Costello, who had four nominations, and Joss Stone and Franz Ferdinand, who were both up for three awards, got nothing.

Beach Boys veteran Brian Wilson was another first-time winner - for best rock instrumental performance. ""It represents triumph and achievement in music that I feel that I deserved, and I'm really glad I won,"" he said. A live recording of composer John Adams' 11 September tribute, On the Transmigration of Souls, performed by the New York Philharmonic, won three classical prizes. And former US President Bill Clinton picked up the second Grammy of his career, winning the spoken word award for the audio version of his autobiography My Life.
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Abba reunite for musical premiere	"The original stars of Swedish pop quartet Abba have reunited for the home premiere of hit musical Mamma Mia! which is based on the band's songs.

It is the first time in almost 20 years that the four, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, Agnetha Faltskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, have met publicly. Faltskog has been a virtual recluse since the band split up in 1982. The musical, which has become a global phenomenon, will be performed in Swedish for the first time. Fans camped outside Stockholm's Cirkus theatre in the snow for a glimpse of the stars. The premiere marks Abba's first public reunion since the legendary band's acrimonious break-up in the early 1980s. It was thought that Faltskog would appear in London for the musical's fifth anniversary celebrations in April 2004 but she stayed away due to her fear of flying.

Original Abba member Bjorn Ulvaeus set about translating the musical into the band's mother tongue for the celebrated homecoming, alongside Swedish artist Niklas Stromstedt. Almost all of Abba's original songs, which have sold more than 350 million records worldwide, were written and recorded in English. The musical, set on a small Greek island, tells of the story of a young woman and her fiercely independent single mother. The show will include such classics as Super Trouper, SOS and Dancing Queen. There are currently 14 productions being staged worldwide, including New York and London, with road shows in Toronto, South Korea and Madrid. More than 20 million people around the world have seen the show.
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Help for indies in download sales	"A campaign has been launched to help independent labels get their music online and benefit from the growing trend for downloading music.

The British Phonographic Industry has identified a lack of independent music available for download. ""We want to ensure that independent repertoire is as successful in the download world as it is in the physical world,"" said BPI chief Peter Jamieson. Downloaded singles have now overtaken physical singles in the UK. Mr Jamieson said his organisation was lobbying music service providers, which include iTunes and Napster, to urge them to promote independent releases. Download sales are due to be incorporated into the UK singles chart later this year. ""With downloads shortly to be eligible for the singles chart, this is a key commercial issue on which the BPI committed to assisting its members,"" added Mr Jamieson. As part of the campaign the BPI is running a series of seminars entitled Getting Your Music Online, focusing on how independent labels can embrace digital music. The US has already begun incorporating download sales in the Billboard's Hot 100 chart.
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T in the Park sells out in days	"Tickets for Scotland's biggest music festival have sold out in record time, five months before the event is held.

The 12th annual T in the Park festival, which takes place at Balado near Kinross in July, sold out just four days after the line-up was announced. Green Day, the Foo Fighters and Keane are among the acts that had already been lined up to appear at the event. However, the organisers have revealed Scots favourites Travis as well as soulman James Brown will also appear.

Last year tickets sold out 10 weeks before the festival but organisers confirmed that all 130,000 for the two-day event had been sold. Geoff Ellis, CEO of festival organisers Big Day Out Ltd, said this year's event promises to be the best yet. ""After last year's sell-out, we did think this year's event would sell slightly earlier, however this is way beyond our expectations,"" Mr Ellis said.

""We are extremely proud that fans are so excited about T in the Park that they have made absolutely sure that their place at Balado is booked for 2005, and we will deliver one of the greatest events yet for them in July."" More than 120 acts will play on eight stages over the weekend of 9 and 10 July. Brit Award winners Keane and The Streets are among the main attractions, while The Killers and dance act The Prodigy are also on the bill. Both Green Day and The Foo Fighters last played at the festival in 2002, the same year Oasis and Basement Jaxx were among the headline acts.
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Black Sabbath top rock album poll	"Black Sabbath have topped a list of the best British rock albums of all time.

The band once fronted by Ozzy Osbourne led a poll of Kerrang! magazine readers with their 1970 self-titled debut. The band have three more efforts on the list, including fifth-placed Paranoid. Osbourne appears more than any other act, with two solo records featured. The top five includes Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden and Sex Pistols. Queen, Muse, Manic Street Preachers and The Clash complete the top 10. A mix of heavy metal, punk, glam rock and even dance music makes up the list. Motorhead, Judas Priest and Prodigy are included along with newer acts like The Darkness and Lostprophets.

Kerrang! editor Ashley Bird said: ""It's amazing to see so many incredible homegrown albums in one list, and without any of the abysmal fashion bands that currently clog up the music scene. ""These are the real opinions of proper rock fans.""

Formed by four teenage friends in the West Midlands in the late 1960s, Black Sabbath are one of Britain's most successful heavy rock bands. Their debut was a UK top 10 hit in 1970 and sold more than a million copies in the US. Osbourne said the band's success in the Kerrang! poll was a triumph for British rock. He said: ""Back then you'd hear: 'If you go to San Francisco, be sure to wear a flower in your hair'. ""We lived in Aston, Birmingham. The only flowers I ever saw were on a gravestone in our local cemetery."" Despite being disliked by many critics, Black Sabbath's subsequent albums included multi-million sellers but internal rows led to Osbourne leaving in 1979. The band continued without Osbourne, who went on to solo success but also had to battle alcoholism and legal action over his music allegedly inciting teenagers to commit suicide. He was eventually cleared of the charges. Osbourne, who bit off the head of a live bat on stage in 1982, rejoined the band to play the Live Aid charity concert in 1985. After many changes in line-up, the original four members reunited to play live dates in 1997. Black Sabbath have reunited regularly in recent years while Osbourne has gone on to wider fame with his family through MTV documentary series The Osbournes.
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Michael film signals 'retirement'	"Singer George Michael has said that a new film about his life is the start of a retirement from public view.

The pop star said it would be a much more ""behind the scenes affair"", and called his own genre of music ""dead"". ""I thought I should explain myself before I disappear,"" said Michael, who was at the Berlin film festival to launch the documentary. The film, A Different Story, chronicles Michael's life and career from the 1980s and his personal struggles. The 41-year-old chart-topper told reporters in the German capital that he wanted to ""move his career into a different form"", but added that he does not know what it is going to be yet.

""I'm still going to be making music,"" he said, but added that he was ""not going to be around"". He hinted at discontent with the current state of music industry, and said: ""I don't really think that there is anyone in the modern pop business who I feel I want to spar with."" Michael said that the film, directed by Southan Morris, would put his two decades of fame into context. ""It's almost as much for me as for my fans, in terms of trying to make sense of the last 22 years and bring it to a close in a proper way,"" he said. The documentary chronicles the highs and lows of his life in the public gaze, from his meteoric rise as one half of pop duo Wham! to his arrest for lewd conduct in a Los Angeles toilet in 1998. The film also deals with the loss of Michael's partner Anselmo Feleppa from an Aids-related condition in 1993. A Different Story, which is being shown at the Berlin Film Festival, has been screened by BBC One.
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Hendrix guitar fetches £100,000	"A much-loved guitar belonging to Jimi Hendrix has been sold for £100,000 at an auction in London.

The 1965 Fender Stratocaster was one of a number of guitars included in the sale dedicated to the rock legend. The vast archive of instruments, signed records and posters were collected by a dedicated fan who had become friendly with the star. The auction was billed as the biggest collection of Hendrix memorabilia to go under the hammer. The majority of the items were collected by fan Bob Terry who began collecting at the age of 17. He later sold it on to another collector.

Hendrix, widely considered one of the best guitarists of his era, died of a drug overdose in 1970 at the age of 27. The 1965 Fender Stratocaster was used by the musician on tour and in his studio. A poem written by Hendrix two weeks after his infamous appearance at the Monterey Festival where he set light to his guitar went for £10,000. The Jimi Hendrix Experience's first single Hey Joe, signed by all the band, was sold for £2,000. The sale, hosted by auctioneers Cooper Owen, was held at the Hard Rock Cafe in London.
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German music in a 'zombie' state	"The German music business - the third largest in the world - is ""in the state of a zombie"" because it has failed to respond to the challenge posed by downloading and piracy, a leading industry figure has said.

Tim Renner, the head of Universal Music Germany until last year, told BBC World Service's The Music Biz programme that the country's music industry was now struggling to survive. Renner warned that unless the industry accepted ""new realties"" - such as downloading - its decline could become irreversible. ""The problem the music industry has got is that they aren't willing to accept that the classic way of doing business is over and out,"" he stated. ""So the music industry in its current form over here is pretty much in the state of a zombie.""

The music market in Germany peaked in 1997, with sales of 2.6bn euros (£1.8bn). Since 2000, sales have plummeted to just 1.6bn euros (£1.1bn) in 2003. In the space of one year - between 2002 and 2003 - CD album sales fell by 13.8%. But a study by the Society for Consumer Research found that at the same time, more than twice as many recordable CDs had music recorded on them than CD albums were sold. Mr Renner pointed out that, because profit comes mainly from the longevity of a good-selling record, this was particularly damaging.

""You need time,"" he added. However, Peter Zombic, the managing director of the International Federation of Phonographic Industry in Germany, said he did not feel the situation was as ""dramatic"" as Mr Renner believed. ""It's quite true that we have severe problems in Germany - but that's true in other parts of the world and in most developed markets too,"" he argued. ""We have a severe problem with piracy, especially internet piracy, and we also have a severe problem of private copying. ""I don't agree that the music industry lost control over the music market - in fact, especially in regard to Germany talent, the market is quite successful."" He did, however, admit that copyright owners have ""partly lost control of their copyright"", due to piracy and copying.

But he refuted suggestions that the industry had been too slow to respond to digital downloading. ""We were the first to implement a download service - back in 1997,"" he argued. ""At that time it was not successful, because of the advent of piracy - it was the Napster time, when P2P services became popular. ""It still is quite difficult for the music industry to compete with a price that is zero as far as the illegal product is concerned."" Mr Zombic also called for a change to the perception in Germany that private copying of music is not a problem. German law does allow people to make copies of CDs for their family and close friends, without fear of breaking copyright. Mr Zombic said that this legal framework was a ""huge problem"". ""There is a widespread attitude that private copying is a hobby, it's nice, it's fun,"" he added. ""We try to make clear it's not nice and it's not fun - it's endangering the creativity in our country.""
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Musical treatment for Capra film	"The classic film It's A Wonderful Life is to be turned into a musical by the producer of the controversial hit show Jerry Springer - The Opera.

Frank Capra's 1946 movie starring James Stewart, is being turned into a £7m musical by producer Jon Thoday. He is working with Steve Brown, who wrote the award-winning musical Spend Spend Spend. A spokeswoman said the plans were in the ""very early stages"", with no cast, opening date or theatre announced.

A series of workshops have been held in London, and on Wednesday a cast of singers unveiled the musical to a select group of potential investors. Mr Thoday said the idea of turning the film into a musical had been an ambition of his for almost 20 years. It's a Wonderful Life was based on a short story, The Greatest Gift, by Philip van Doren Stern. Mr Thoday managed to buy the rights to the story from Van Doren Stern's family in 1999, following Mr Brown's success with Spend Spend Spend. He later secured the film rights from Paramount, enabling them to use the title It's A Wonderful Life.
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Famed music director Viotti dies	"Conductor Marcello Viotti, director of Venice's famous La Fenice Theatre, has died in Germany at 50.

Viotti, director of La Fenice since 2002, conducted at renowned opera houses worldwide including Milan's La Scala and the Vienna State Opera. His time at La Fenice coincided with its reopening in 2003 after it was destroyed by fire in 1996. He fell into a coma after suffering a stroke during rehearsals for Jules Massenet's Manon last week.

He conducted some of the best orchestras in the world including the Berlin Philharmonic and the English Chamber Orchestra. Viotti was born in Switzerland and studied the piano, cello and singing at the Lausanne Conservatory. His career breakthrough came in 1982 when he won first prize at the Gino Marinuzzi conducting competition in Italy. Viotti established himself as chief conductor of the Turin Opera and went on to become chief conductor of Munich's Radio Orchestra. At La Fenice Viotti was widely acclaimed for his production of the French composer Massenet's Thais and some of his other productions included Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata and Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos.

The last opera he directed at La Fenice was Massenet's Le Roi de Lahore. Viotti's debut at the New York's Metropolitan Opera came in 2000 with Giacomo Puccini's Madame Butterfly, followed by La Boheme, La Traviata and Fromental Halevy's La Juive. Giampaolo Vianello, superintendent of the Fenice Theatre Foundation, said: ""I am filled with extreme sadness because, other than a great artist, he is missed as a friend - a main character in the latest joyous times, during the rebirth of our theatre."" Viotti's last public performance was on 5 February when he conducted Vincenzo Bellini's Norma at the Vienna State Opera.
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TV presenter Deeley drops CD:UK	"Cat Deeley has resigned as host of ITV1's Saturday morning children's music show CD:UK after six years.

The 28-year-old host who also presents Stars In Their Eyes said she wanted to concentrate on new television projects. ""I've had a great few years, met some really incredible people and been given some wonderful opportunities,"" the presenter said. Deeley will host her last show on 5 March and guest presenters will stand in until a replacement is found.

The long-running presenter said: ""I would like to take this opportunity to thank the CD:UK team and all the viewers that have watched, supported the show and let me gate crash their Saturday morning. ""Whilst obviously I am really sad to say goodbye, I'm immensely excited about the future."" Deeley formerly co-hosted SM:tv, the children's show which airs before CD:UK on a Saturday morning, alongside hit presenters Ant and Dec. She won a Children's Bafta award for best presenter in December 2001 and also fronted BBC One's Fame Academy series.
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The Producers scoops stage awards	"The Producers has beaten Mary Poppins in the battle of the blockbuster West End musicals at the Olivier Awards.

The Producers won three prizes at the UK's most prestigious annual theatre awards, while Mary Poppins won two. Mel Brooks' hit show triumphed in the battle for best new musical, where it was up against Mary Poppins and Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Woman in White. Alan Bennett's The History Boys was the big winner in the straight theatre categories, picking up three trophies. But all eyes were on the musical prizes after The Producers, Mary Poppins and The Woman in White all had high-profile openings in the last six months.

The Producers' Nathan Lane, a last-minute replacement for Richard Dreyfuss, beat his former co-star Lee Evans to win best musical actor. Lane has already left the production. A smash hit on Broadway before moving to London, the show also won best musical performance in a supporting role for Conleth Hill, who plays director Roger DeBris. Mary Poppins' awards came for best choreography and best musical actress for its star Laura Michelle Kelly. It led the nominations going into Sunday's ceremony at London's Hilton hotel, up for nine awards. Both shows are stage adaptations of 1960s films. The History Boys, set in a grammar school in the early 1980s and partly based on Bennett's experiences as a teacher, was named best new play.

It also won best actor for Richard Griffiths, who beat his Harry Potter film co-star Michael Gambon, nominated for Endgame, as well as Jonathan Pryce and Ben Whishaw. The play also won National Theatre artistic director Nicholas Hytner best director and Bennett got a special award for outstanding contribution to British theatre. Dame Judi Dench, who starred in All's Well That Ends Well at the Gielgud, lost out in the best supporting role category to Amanda Harris, who played Emilia in Othello for the Royal Shakespeare Company. The Olivier Awards have been handed out by the Society of London since 1976.

- Best lighting design - His Dark Materials designed by Paule Constable at the Olivier 
 - Best sound design - The Woman in White designed by Mick Potter at the Palace 
 - Best new opera - Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk at the Royal Opera House 
 - Outstanding achievement in opera - Thomas Ades and the Royal Opera House for the world premiere of The Tempest 
 - Best costume design - All's Well That Ends Well designed by Deirdre Clancy at the Gielgud 
 - Best Revival - Hamlet by William Shakespeare at The Old Vic 
 - Best set design - His Dark Materials designed by Giles Cadle at the Olivier 
 - Outstanding musical production - Grand Hotel at the Donmar Warehouse 
 - Best supporting role in a musical - Conleth Hill for The Producers at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane 
 - Best theatre choreographer - Matthew Bourne and Stephen Mear for Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward 
 - Best actor - Richard Griffiths for The History Boys at the Lyttelton 
 - Outstanding achievement or performance in an affiliate theatre - Andrew Scott for A Girl in A Car With A Man at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs at the Royal Court 
 - Best new dance production - Rambert Dance Company's Swamp at Sadler's Wells 
 - Outstanding achievement in dance - San Francisco Ballet for their season at Sadler's Wells 
 - Best performance in a supporting role - Amanda Harris for Othello at Trafalgar Studios 
 - Best actress - Clare Higgins for Hecuba at the Donmar Warehouse 
 - Best musical actor - Nathan Lane for The Producers at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane 
 - Best musical actress - Laura Michelle Kelly for Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward 
 - Best director - Nicholas Hytner for The History Boys at the Lyttelton 
 - Best new play - The History Boys by Alan Bennett at the Lyttelton 
 - Best new musical - The Producers at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane 
 - Special award - Alan Bennett for his outstanding contribution to British theatre
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Rocker Doherty in on-stage fight	"Rock singer Pete Doherty has been involved in a fight with his band's guitarist at their biggest gig to date.

Babyshambles played for 5,000 fans at London's Brixton Academy on Tuesday. The former Libertines singer traded blows with guitarist Patrick Walden. They were separated and bundled off stage before returning to end the set. The show was earlier held up due to audience overcrowding. On Monday Doherty faced blackmail and robbery charges in court, which he denies. He is out on £50,000 bail and the judge agreed to extend his 2200 GMT curfew deadline by two hours so he could play the Brixton gig.

Babyshambles, which he formed after his acrimonious departure from the Libertines, played a warm-up show at The Garage, north London, on Monday. On Tuesday, Doherty and his three bandmates were introduced to the crowd by Mick Jones, the former Clash guitarist who produced the Libertines' second album. Babyshambles took the stage to a frenzied reception at 2200 GMT, launching into their last single, Killamangiro, which reached number eight in December. But the group had to stop during the next song to persuade fans not to push forward and allow security guards to pull people out of the crush. Doherty appealed to fans to calm down, saying: ""There's a few people getting hurt down the front, you've got to move back.""

The music resumed minutes later but after several more songs, the singer appeared to accidentally disconnect Walden's guitar, leading the pair to trade kicks and punches. Bouncers stepped in and the band left the stage, but returned after five minutes and finished their 50-minute performance with no further trouble. Doherty, 25, had to be home by midnight to observe the curfew, which is one of the conditions of his bail. On Monday, the judge agreed to allow him to perform on condition that requests for changes to his bail terms were ""not too regular an occurrence"". The singer was arrested with fellow musician Alan Wass on 2 February after an alleged dispute with documentary-maker Max Carlish at a London hotel. They are next due in court on 18 April.
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The Sound of Music is coming home	"The original stage production of The Sound of Music is to be performed for the first time in the Austrian capital, 40 years after the film was released.

The first full-scale theatrical production of the musical will make its debut in Vienna on Saturday. Julie Andrews starred in the 1965 film version of the Rogers and Hammerstein classic set in the Alpine country. But despite being one of the most successful musicals of all time, it is barely known inside Austria.

The film was never shown in any cinema in Austria and was not broadcast on television until the early 1990s. The musical is based on the true story of the von Trapp family who formed a singing troupe and escaped from Nazi-occupied Austria in 1938.

Sensitivities about Nazism during wartime Austria and issues towards the von Trapp family themselves could explain Austria's reluctance to embrace the musical. Another source of irritation for Austrians is the song Edelweiss, which is considered an traditional folk song by many filmgoers. The song was actually an invention by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Many also consider the film to portray a kitsch image of Austria, including yodelling, goat-herds and lederhosen. The production is being staged at a Viennese opera house, the Volksoper, beginning on Saturday. Maria, the novice nun who falls in love with Baron von Trapp, will be played by Austro-Australian actress and singer Sandra Pires.
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Download chart debut is delayed	"The inclusion of downloaded music in the official singles chart has been delayed for a month.

The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) had planned to include download formats in the chart from 20 March. But the date has been put back to 17 April to create a ""level playing field"" for independent labels. The BPI is concerned that independent repertoire is not adequately represented online and said they were looking at ways of rectifying it.

BPI chairman Peter Jamieson said: ""The inclusion of download formats in the Official UK Singles Chart is the most significant development in the charts for 20 years.

""But for a multitude of reasons the current chart representation of independent repertoire at the major download outlets is poor. ""I am very pleased we have secured this delay on behalf of independents. We have to try and establish a realistic 'level playing field' of opportunity. The Official UK Charts are run by The Official UK Charts Company (OCC) - a joint venture between the BPI and the British Association of Record Dealers (BARD). At an OCC board meeting on Wednesday, the OCC board agreed with BPI members that the 20 March start date be postponed. Download formats will now be included in the Official UK Singles Chart for the first time in the chart published on 17 April - the sales week beginning 10 April. The US has already merged downloaded singles into its Billboard Hot 100 chart.
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Rapper films music video in jail	"A US rapper awaiting trial for murder has filmed part of a music video in jail, angering a sheriff who says he was tricked into letting TV crews in.

C-Murder, a former member of rap group Tru, was filmed in his orange prison suit for the video for his Y'all Heard of Me single in a New Orleans jail. He is awaiting a second trial after an original conviction was thrown out. ""I'm not pleased,"" Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee said. ""He will not make another video in my jail."" Footage for the video was filmed by two crews who had permission to interview C-Murder - one from Court TV and one from a local cable show.

But Mr Lee said he did not know the rapper had filmed the video and made an album behind bars, and said he was fooled into letting the cameras in. The rapper's lawyer Ron Rakosky said: ""The bottom line is, we didn't do anything wrong."" Mr Rakosky said it was better than C-Murder, real name Corey Miller, ""just sitting there, wasting away"". ""Here's a guy in jail, making constructive use of his time instead of withering away,"" he said. ""He's lost more than three years of his life, locked up for a crime he did not commit.""

But local group Victims and Citizens Against Crime said he should not be working behind bars. ""He is a suspect in a murder case. I don't think he should be allowed these privileges, especially earning money, until his name is totally cleared,"" the group's president Beverly Siemssen said. In 2003, C-Murder was found guilty of killing a 16-year-old in a nightclub, but that decision was thrown out last April. He is now facing a second trial on a charge of second-degree murder. With two brothers in the group Tru, he had two US top 10 albums in the late 1990s before going solo, when he scored another three top 10 albums.
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Music man to the Oscars	"Bill Conti's job of musical director of the Oscars show is not for the faint-hearted since conducting the orchestra is the ultimate plate-spinning assignment.

This year marks Conti's 17th turn at the helm of the Academy Awards orchestra. ""The excitement is a live performance as a musician,"" he says. ""All of your colleagues, everyone in the film industry is in the theatre. All the important people. ""I guess it's just a television show but we always think it's a bit more.' The orchestra strikes up more than 110 times during the average Oscars show. As well as playing the presenters and winners on and off stage, it also performs during the commercial breaks to entertain the live audience in the house.

""It's a very busy evening, it takes a certain amount of preparation of music, orchestrating, sketching rehearsing, before the show. But you don't know what the unexpected will be and as the musical director, it's exciting,"" explains Conti. And much of the preparation goes into mastering scores that will never be performed. ""We don't know who the winners will be. So when they say, 'the winner is', we have five different pieces of music in front of us, they say the name, we play the appropriate one immediately,"" adds Conti.

The orchestra is often called upon to play when the winners ramble on too long during their acceptance speeches, despite being told to be brief by the show's producers.

The decision to drown out or 'kill' the offending star with music is relayed from the director's box to the orchestra via Conti's earpiece. ""I don't feel good about it at all. It's not my call though,"" he says. ""When the director says 'music' the orchestra plays and he takes a long shot of the hall. We don't usually see the person speaking while his microphone is cut off. ""The person that's been cut off, who's 10 feet from me, is glaring at me like it's death time."" On occasions, some stars have taken it upon themselves to send a warning shot across the bows of the musical director before they start to speak. ""Julia Roberts, when she came on, she asked me to not get ready to play because she had so much to do,"" he says. Conti received an Oscar in 1983 for the original score of The Right Stuff. He also received two nominations in the original song category in 1976 for Gonna Fly Now from Rocky and in 1981 for the title song from For Your Eyes Only.

""It's a moment in the sun,"" he says. ""When people get up there, some people, this is hard to believe, people that spend their lives in front of the camera or audiences entertaining, might get a little flustered. ""But there's this moment in time when the biggest award that they could possibly get in their life has been handed to them and they're either not in control or they want to thank everyone that they ever met.""

The image of the Oscars telecast is one of slick presentation and smooth transitions between performances and the award categories. Behind the scenes, the key players, such as Conti, have a bewildering array of technical props to deal with. ""There's a big script and video monitors you have to watch and there are also audio controls. I can control hearing in my ears, the left ear or the right ear - different things at different times.

""I have to communicate with the director. I have a little microphone that's attached to my headset. To open up that microphone, I have a footswitch,"" he explains. Conti's most nerve-wracking moment came during his first Oscars show as musical director, in 1977, when a member of the orchestra alerted him that they could smell smoke. Conti immediately told the show's director: ""I start cursing and screaming, I tell him we're not going to die for this show - you must do something or I'm going to climb out of this pit with 60 musicians and we're going to be home in 10 minutes. ""'Oh no Bill don't do anything,"" came the response. ""Imagine these elegantly dressed ladies and gentlemen of the orchestra, 60 or so of them in the pit and while we're playing, firemen with their helmets and their hatchets crawling among us trying to find the reason for the smoke."" The smell turned out to be new paint smouldering on the music stands. ""No one died, it's not a big story, but it was scary at the time,"" laughs Conti. When the ceremony is over, the music director attends the annual Governor's Ball with his family. ""I have a drink and relive the show,"" he says. ""I'm not for too much carousing. I go home and unwind. It takes me about a day.""
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Church urges Nelly show boycott	"Church ministers are trying to prevent rapper Nelly performing in Arkansas, saying they do not want his ""vile and filthy lyrics"" in their town.

More than 20 Jonesboro ministers urged music fans to boycott Nelly's 12 March concert at Arkansas State University in a bid to have it cancelled. ""Jonesboro is a wonderful city because of what does not come here,"" said the Reverend Adrian Rodgers. But a venue spokesman said more than 5,500 tickets had been sold so far.

Mr Rodgers, of the Fullness of Joy Church, said he was concerned about the rapper's lyrics that include references to drugs, sex and violence, and songs that the minister said were demeaning to women. Ministers were worried that bringing such acts to Jonesboro would lead to problems. ""Tear the tickets up,"" Mr Rodgers said. ""Do not go and do not allow your children to go.""

Tim Dean, director of the Arkansas State University venue, said ticket sales had been brisk. ""It would appear that with ticket sales over 5,000, many others have expressed their right to find Nelly's music entertaining and worth spending their time and money on,"" he said. Nelly has sold more than 30 million singles and albums worldwide, and in September 2004 simultaneously occupied the number one and two positions in the US albums chart. He has had 12 UK hit singles, including Hot in Herre, Dilemma and recent number one Over and Over.
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Rap feud in 50 Cent's G-Unit crew	"US rap star 50 Cent has said he has thrown protege The Game out of his G-Unit gang in a feud that has apparently involved two shootings.

In a radio interview on Monday, 50 Cent said the newcomer was disloyal in conflicts with other rappers. A man was shot in the thigh outside New York's Hot 97 studios while 50 Cent was on air. More shots were fired outside his management offices two hours later. 50 Cent appeared on The Game's debut album, which was number one in the US. 50 Cent, whose second album is about to be released after his debut made him one of hip-hop's biggest stars, has been involved in recent rivalries with fellow artists including Fat Joe, Nas and Jadakiss.

He has claimed credit for the success of The Game, who has become the hottest new star on the rap scene. Both were drug dealers and were shot before turning to music.

In an interview with Hot 97 on Saturday, The Game described some of 50 Cent's rivals as ""my friends"" and said he would not turn on them. ""Nas is one of my friends, and Jada's really a homie,"" he said. ""50's beef is 50's beef and I really don't know where all this stems from."" When 50 Cent appeared on the same station two days later, he said The Game was no longer a member of G-Unit. ""Every record he's selling is based on me being on his record with him,"" he said. When the shooting took place outside the studio, the interview was ended and the rapper was escorted out of the building by security personnel.

An unidentified 24-year-old Los Angeles man is stable with a gunshot wound to the upper thigh. Police say The Game's associates may have heard the interview and gone to the studio, where they confronted 50 Cent's entourage. Officers are also investigating a later shooting in which eight bullets were fired into the door of 50 Cent's management company, Violator. No arrests have been made in relation to either incident. 50 Cent's second album, The Massacre, is released on Thursday, five weeks after The Game's debut, Documentary, went to number one.

Elliott Wilson, editor-in-chief of hip-hop magazine XXL, said the feud would boost publicity for 50 Cent's release. ""It helps him obviously in terms of exposure. You can't ask for better promotion,"" he said. But he added: ""I think he's making more and more enemies. ""You definitely feel like is he doing too much of a Tupac spiral, like me against the world. You bring more people wanting to see you fail."" Tupac Shakur was shot dead in 1996.
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Prodigy join V Festival line-up	"Essex act Prodigy are to headline the second stage at this year's V Festival, joining main stage headliners Scissor Sisters and Franz Ferdinand.

The event, which is in its 10th year, will be held at two venues - Hylands Park in Essex and Weston Park in Staffordshire on 20 and 21 August. Meanwhile, rock veterans New Order have joined the T in the Park line-up alongside Athlete and Green Day. The Manchester band will play on 9 July at Scotland's biggest festival. It will be their debut performance at the music event which is held over the weekend of 9 and 10 July in Balado near Kinross. Other bands at the sold-out festival include Queens of the Stone Age, The Killers, Keane, The Streets and Foo Fighters.

A month later at the V Festival, Prodigy will play at Weston Park on Saturday 20 August and Hylands Park on Sunday 21 August and the Chemical Brothers vice versa. It will be the Chemical Brothers' only UK festival performance of the year. V festival director Bob Angus said: ""With the Prodigy and the Chemical Brothers now confirmed to headline the second stage, we are headed for a really stellar line-up. ""We pride ourselves on putting on an unbeatable live music experience and V Festival 2005 will not disappoint."" Tickets for the V festival go on sale on Friday 11 March.
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DJ double act revamp chart show	"DJ duo JK and Joel are taking over BBC Radio 1's flagship chart show on Sunday, adding showbiz news, celebrity interviews and between-song banter.

They hope to boost ratings for the long-running show, which has been overtaken in popularity by independent radio's Hit 40 UK rundown. ""Radio 1's chart show is an institution and remains the station's single most popular show,"" says JK, also known as Jason King. ""For years people have been tuning in at four o'clock with their tape recorders ready to record their favourite tunes. Not that I ever did that. ""But things have moved on a lot now so it was time for a change.""

That change involved ejecting previous host Wes Butters and relocating King and DJ partner Joel Ross from their weekend afternoon Radio 1 slot. The pair have worked together for a decade - meeting on Viking Radio in Hull before moving to Manchester station Key 103 and winning two Sony Radio awards. They also presented gadget series Playboyz and car show Motor Maniacs for cable TV channel Granada Men and Motors, and Pure Soap on BBC Three.

On the revamped chart show their cheeky, laddish banter will punctuate star interviews and competitions, film and DVD charts plus a look at future single releases, in addition to the singles chart itself. ""The chart rundown is no longer the only point of the programme,"" says Ross. ""The show used to be the only way to discover who was in the Top 40. Now you can just click on the internet to find that out, so the show has plenty of extra items too."" The show's reduced reliance upon the Top 40 also reflects the fact that music fans are now more likely to download songs in digital format rather than buy them on compact disc, vinyl or cassette.

""I personally buy downloads rather than CD singles,"" says 27-year-old Ross. ""Even my grandma can download songs now. JK is still struggling with the technology, though."" ""But it's premature for people to say that the singles chart is dead,"" Ross adds. ""While sales of singles on traditional formats are down, interest in songs has been revived by download sales, which will be incorporated into our main chart rundown from April. ""Music fans still want to know what is the most popular song of the week.""

Ross will be plumping for chart success from rapper Verbalicious and the Stereophonics on Sunday, while King is more of an R&B and dance music fan. ""So listeners will get the advantage of both our music tastes,"" says King, 30, who describes outgoing host Butters as ""an extremely professional and competent broadcaster"".

""The advantage Joel and I have is that we're a double act, with a rapport between us that makes the show much more interactive,"" King says. ""Wes has a great broadcasting career ahead of him. And if not, I could always use a cleaner,"" he jokes. Ross says the pair have done their best to ignore the weight of expectation placed upon the revamped show. ""Other people can worry about that, we are going to continue doing what we do well,"" he says. ""At the end of the day this is a radio show that is meant to be entertaining. Nobody died.""
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Rapper 50 Cent scores chart first	"Rapper 50 Cent has become the first solo artist to have three singles in the US top five in the same week.

His track Candy Shop remained at the top of the charts, while Disco Inferno crept up from six to five. 50 Cent also appears on rap protege The Game's song How We do, number four in the US but now outside the UK top ten. The pair had a recent dispute which saw The Game thrown out of 50 Cent's rap collective G-Unit, accusing him of disloyalty in an ongoing feud.

50 Cent, who burst onto the music scene in 2003, has had less success in the UK charts, with three singles making the top ten. His debut album, Get Rich And Die Tryin', narrowly missed out on becoming a UK chart topper.

But in the US, he headed the 2003 end of year charts for the album and R&B and hip hop artists. Newcomer The Game's debut reached the top of the charts five weeks ago, while 50 Cent's second collection The Masscre was released in the US at the end of last week. Last May, R&B star Usher scored a chart first, with three concurrent singles in the US Top 10, a feat which was previously matched only by The Bee Gees and The Beatles. The hit songs were taken from the 24-year-old's Confessions album, which topped the American chart for eight weeks.
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Goodrem wins top female MTV prize	"Pop singer Delta Goodrem has scooped one of the top individual prizes at the first Australian MTV Music Awards.

The 21-year-old singer won the award for best female artist, with Australian Idol runner-up Shannon Noll taking the title of best male at the ceremony. Goodrem, known in both Britain and Australia for her role as Nina Tucker in TV soap Neighbours, also performed a duet with boyfriend Brian McFadden. Other winners included Green Day, voted best group, and the Black Eyed Peas. Goodrem, Green Day and the Black Eyed Peas took home two awards each. As well as best female, Goodrem also took home the Pepsi Viewers Choice Award, whilst Green Day bagged the prize for best rock video for American Idiot. The Black Eyed Peas won awards for best R 'n' B video and sexiest video, both for Hey Mama. Local singer and songwriter Missy Higgins took the title of breakthrough artist of the year, with Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian taking the honours for best pop video. The VH1 First Music Award went to Cher honouring her achievements within the music industry. The ceremony was held at the Luna Park fairground in Sydney Harbour and was hosted by the Osbourne family. Artists including Carmen Electra, Missy Higgins, Kelly Osbourne, Green Day, Ja Rule and Natalie Imbruglia gave live performances at the event.
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REM announce new Glasgow concert	"US band REM have announced plans to perform for 10,000 Scottish fans in a rescheduled gig.

The band will play in what has been dubbed Europe's biggest tent on Glasgow Green on Tuesday, 14 June. They were forced to pull out of a concert at the SECC in Glasgow last month after bassist Mike Mills contracted flu. Fans who bought tickets for the original 22 February show can attend the rescheduled concert. The June gig will act as a warm-up for REM's open air concert at Balloch Castle Country Park, on the banks of Loch Lomond, four days later.

Promoters Regular Music booked Glasgow Green as the SECC was not available on the most suitable date. Mark Mackie, director of Regular Music, said: ""It is fantastic news and it really shows REM's commitment to their Scottish fans that they are coming back to Glasgow for what will be a truly unique gig."" The REM gigs will kick-start what promises to be a memorable summer for Scottish music lovers.

Grammy Award winners U2 will play Hampden on 21 June while Oasis will also perform at the national stadium in Glasgow on 29 June. Coldplay have announced a concert at Bellahouston Park in Glasgow on 1 July and T in the Park will be held at Balado, near Kinross, from 9-10 July. Ticketweb and the SECC box office will write to customers who bought tickets for the February gig asking if they want to attend the new show. Those who bought tickets in person are being urged to return to the point of purchase. Anyone who cannot make the concert will be given a refund. The cut-off date for swapping tickets is 1 April, when those remaining will go on sale to the public.
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Rapper 50 Cent ends protege feud	"Rapper 50 Cent has ended his public feud with his protege The Game as the pair said they wanted to be good role models for their communities.

The row blew up when 50 Cent threw The Game out of his G-Unit crew and accused him of being disloyal. A member of The Game's entourage was reportedly shot outside a radio station where 50 Cent was being interviewed. But the pair shook hands as they handed over money to music projects for New York's deprived areas on Wednesday.

The Game, whose real name is Jayceon Taylor, told a news conference: ""I want to apologise. I'm almost ashamed to have participated in the things that went on over the last few weeks."" Chart-topper 50 Cent, real name Curtis Jackson, said the truce came on the anniversary of the death of the Notorious BIG in 1997, who was part of a volatile feud between the east and west coast rap scenes. ""We're here today to show that people can rise above the most difficult circumstances and together we can put negativity behind us,"" 50 Cent said.

""A lot of people don't want to see it happen, but we're responding to the two most important groups - our family and our fans."" The Boys Choir of Harlem got a cheque for $150,000 (£77,800) from 50 Cent, while The Game handed over $103,500 (£53,400). The Game also made a contribution to the Compton schools music programme. 50 Cent announced he has launched the G-Unity Foundation ""to help people overcome obstacles and make a chance for the better in their lives"".

""I realised that if I'm going to be effective at that, I have to overcome some of my own,"" he said. ""Game and I need to set an example in the community."" 50 Cent is no stranger to feuds, with rapper Ja Rule among the targets for ridicule in his songs. On his latest album, released earlier this month, he turned his attentions to Fat Joe and Nas, who have both worked with Ja Rule. Both he and The Game have admitted drug dealing in the past and have both been shot.
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Musicians to tackle US red tape	"Musicians' groups are to tackle US visa regulations which are blamed for hindering British acts' chances of succeeding across the Atlantic.

A singer hoping to perform in the US can expect to pay $1,300 (£680) simply for obtaining a visa. Groups including the Musicians' Union are calling for an end to the ""raw deal"" faced by British performers. US acts are not faced with comparable expense and bureaucracy when visiting the UK for promotional purposes.

Nigel McCune from the Musicians' Union said British musicians are ""disadvantaged"" compared to their US counterparts. A sponsor has to make a petition on their behalf, which is a form amounting to nearly 30 pages, while musicians face tougher regulations than athletes and journalists. ""If you make a mistake on your form, you risk a five-year ban and thus the ability to further your career,"" says Mr McCune.

""The US is the world's biggest music market, which means something has to be done about the creaky bureaucracy,"" says Mr McCune. ""The current situation is preventing British acts from maintaining momentum and developing in the US,"" he added.

The Musicians' Union stance is being endorsed by the Music Managers' Forum (MMF), who say British artists face ""an uphill struggle"" to succeed in the US, thanks to the tough visa requirements, which are also seen as impractical. The MMF's general secretary James Seller said: ""Imagine if you were an orchestra from the Orkneys? Every member would have to travel to London to have their visas processed.""

""The US market is seen as the holy grail and one of the benchmarks of success, and we're still going to fight to get in there. ""It's still very important, but there are other markets like Europe, India and China,"" added Mr Seller. A Department for Media, Culture and Sport spokeswoman said: ""We're aware that people are experiencing problems, and are working with the US embassy and record industry to see what we can do about it."" A US Embassy spokesman said: ""We are aware that entertainers require visas for time-specific visas and are doing everything we can to process those applications speedily."" ""We are aware of the importance of cultural exchange and we will do our best to facilitate that,"" he added.
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Angels 'favourite funeral song'	"Angels by Robbie Williams is the song Britons would most like played at their funeral, a survey has suggested.

While the melancholy hit topped the UK poll, Europeans favoured Queen's more upbeat anthem The Show Must Go On as their first choice. Frank Sinatra's My Way was second in the UK vote with Monty Python's Always Look on the Bright Side of Life in third place. More than 45,000 people were surveyed by digital TV station Music Choice.

The European chart, which included Denmark, France and Germany, put Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven in second and AC/DC's Highway to Hell in third. Queen's Who Wants to Live Forever was highly favoured by both UK and European voters.

Both lists featured only one traditional or classic song each, with Britons requesting the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards' Amazing Grace and their continental counterparts opting for Mozart's Requiem. ""Wanting to share your most treasured musical gem with those you're leaving behind is the perfect way to sign off and leave a lasting impression,"" Music Choice music and marketing manager Simon George said.
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U2 stars enter rock Hall of Fame	"Singer Bruce Springsteen has inducted Irish rock band U2 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in New York.

The lavish ceremony, celebrating the 50th anniversary of rock 'n' roll, also saw the induction of the Pretenders, Percy Sledge, the O'Jays and Buddy Guy. ""This was a band that wanted to lay claim to this world and the next one, too,"" said Springsteen. Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr, who formed U2 at school in 1977, begin a world tour on 28 March. Introducing the band, Springsteen mocked Bono as the man who ""single-handedly pioneered the Irish mullet"", poking fun at ""one of the best and most endearingly messianic complexes in rock 'n' roll"". But he also spoke of the group's enduring stature, adding that it was the only band of the last 20 years where he knew all four members' names.

U2's contemporaries, the Pretenders, led by Chrissie Hynde - took to the stage to perform My City Was Gone with inductee Neil Young. ""We are a tribute band,"" said Hynde, 53. ""We're paying tribute to James Honeyman-Scott and Pete Farndon, without whom we would not have been here,"" she said, referring to the premature deaths of two of the band's guitarists from drug overdoses.

Britain's Rod Stewart introduced Percy Sledge, citing his best-known hit When a Man loves a Woman as ""one of the best performances I've ever heard"". Justin Timberlake introduced soul group the O'Jays, a gospel-style quartet from Ohio, who performed a medley of their best-known songs including Back Stabbers, Love Train and For the Love of Money. ""Anyone who's ever written, produced or performed something soulful stands in the shadows of these giants,"" said Timberlake.

Joining the ceremony at New York's Waldorf Astoria were legendary R&B star Bo Diddley, who performed with Eric Clapton and Robbie Robertson.

Clapton, alongside BB King, also introduced fellow guitarist Buddy Guy and recalled seeing him play as a teenager in England. ""He was for me what Elvis was probably like for other people,"" he said. ""My course was set and he was my pilot,"" said Clapton who joined Guy and King in a performance of Let Me Love You Baby. Also performing at the ceremony was veteran musician Jerry Lee Lewis who continued his reputation as a rowdy piano-pounder despite his 69 years, kicking over his stool and sitting on the piano during a rendition of Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On.
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Tough schedule delays Elliot show	"Preview performances of the £3m musical Billy Elliot have been delayed to give the child actors a less arduous rehearsal schedule.

Director Stephen Daldry made the decision to re-schedule the previews to protect the young stars. Three boys will rotate the demanding role of ballet dancer Billy, which requires them to sing, dance and act. The show's opening night on 12 May at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London remains unaffected by the changes. Preview performances will now be held on 14, 20 and 27 April. ""This is one of the most ambitious projects I have been involved with,"" said Daldry. ""The decision has been made to push back our preview performances in order to give our company, with a cast including 45 children, a little extra time so they are as fully prepared as possible.""

He added: ""The young Billy Elliots in particular, making their professional stage debuts in the West End, will benefit from a little extra time to familiarise themselves with all aspects of the production.""

The three boys playing Billy are James Lomas, 15, George Maguire, 14, and Liam Mower, 12. The other major child parts will also be rotated between young actors. Such are the demands of the show that producers set up a stage school in Newcastle to train potential stars for the show. Child labour laws also mean the young actors can only work for a limited period each week. Adult actors in the show include Tim Healy as Billy's father and Haydn Gwnne as his dance teacher Mrs Wilkinson. Sir Elton John has composed the music. Daldry directed the successful film version of Billy Elliot, adapted from Lee Hall's script. Both were nominated for Oscars, alongside Julie Walters, who played Billy's teacher.
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Singer Ian Brown 'in gig arrest'	"Former Stone Roses singer Ian Brown was arrested after a fight during a concert in San Francisco on Tuesday, his spokesman has said.

A fan jumped on stage and attacked the singer, who then became involved in a fracas with a security guard, Fiction Records spokesman Paul Smernicki said. He said Brown was arrested at his hotel after the show at the Great American Music Hall but released without charge. San Francisco police said they could find no record of his arrest. Mr Smernicki said he had been told a fan ""rugby-tackled"" the singer during the gig, which resulted in ""pushing and shoving"".

Brown then got into a brawl with another man who tried to restrain him - without realising he was a security guard, Mr Smernicki added. The star went off for 15 minutes before returning to finish his set. Police took witness statements and apprehended Brown at his hotel, Mr Smernicki said. But he was released without charge and ""as far as we're aware, that's the end of it"", Mr Smernicki added. A spokesperson for the San Francisco Police Department said he may have been detained but they could find no record of the incident. Brown, 42, was lead singer with The Stone Roses, one of the most seminal bands in British rock, until they split in 1996. He has since forged a successful solo career, scoring nine UK top 30 singles since 1998. In 1998, he was sentenced to four months in jail for using threatening behaviour towards an aeroplane captain and stewardess.
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No UK premiere for Rings musical	"The producers behind the Lord of the Rings musical have abandoned plans to premiere the show in London because no suitable theatre was available.

The £11.5m show will make its debut in Toronto in March 2006, after it was found that all three West End theatres with sufficient capacity were booked. The musical is not expected in London before December 2006. Producer Kevin Wallace said it would be ""worth waiting for"". ""It will be like nothing they have ever seen before."" ""I know there will be a lot of disappointed British Tolkien fans who hoped to see the show in London, but we couldn't get a London theatre in time,"" added the British producer. The world premiere of the stage musical, co-produced by Canadian theatrical impresarios David and Ed Mirvish, will take place at Toronto's Princess of Wales Theatre next year.

""Toronto really wanted this premiere. The Tolkien books and films are hugely popular in Canada,"" said Mr Wallace, shortly after signing the deal in Canada. ""We hope the anticipation and excitement over here will create an even bigger buzz by the time we open in London."" Auditions begin in Canada on Thursday, but up to five British actors may join the cast, under a deal struck with Canadian Actors' Equity. The music for the show is being written by Bollywood composer AR Rahman, who was behind Andrew Lloyd Webber's West End musical Bollywood Dreams, and in conjuction with the Finnish group Varttina.

""There will be no singing and dancing Hobbits. The music will be in a very traditional mould and draw on ethnic traditions,"" assured Mr Wallace. The musical's British director is Matthew Warchus, best known for staging the worldwide stage hit Art. ""The production will be a hybrid of text, physical theatre, music and spectacle never previously seen on this scale,"" he said. ""Only in the theatre are we actually plunged into the events as they happen. The environment surrounds us and we are in Middle Earth."" New Zealander Peter Jackson took 10 years to bring JRR Tolkien's fantasy trilogy to the big screen, winning Academy Awards for best film and best director for the final film The Return of the King in 2004.
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Dame Julie pops in to see Poppins	"Mary Poppins star Dame Julie Andrews watched the hit stage version of her classic film at a charity performance in London's West End.

It was the first time Dame Julie, who shot to fame as the nanny in the 1964 Disney movie, had seen the musical, staged at the Prince Edward Theatre. She watched Laura Michelle Kelly, 23, reprise the role on stage. The show has been one of the West End's hottest tickets since opening in December, winning two Olivier Awards. Kelly was named best musical actress at last month's ceremony and the musical also won best choreography.

But Kelly said she was ""very nervous"" about meeting Dame Julie because she was ""my absolute hero"". The gala performance saw Dame Julie, 69, return to the theatre where she had her first starring role in a performance of Humpty Dumpty in 1948. The Mary Poppins musical has been masterminded by theatre impresario Sir Cameron Mackintosh and directed by Richard Eyre with choreography by Matthew Bourne. Sir Cameron said he hoped the production, which cost £9m to bring to the stage, was a blend of the sweet-natured film and the original book by PL Travers. Proceeds from Thursday's show will go to charities including Absolute Return for Kids (Ark), international relief agency Operation USA and drama school Lamda.
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Snow Patrol bassist exits group	"Snow Patrol had ""no other course of action"" but to ask their co-founder and bassist to leave the band, lead singer Gary Lightbody has said.

Mark McClelland had been in the band for more than 10 years since its formation at Dundee University. Lightbody said ""over the last 18 months touring has taken its toll on the rest of the band's relationship with him"". He said: ""This is the hardest decision we have ever had to make and believe us when we say we didn't make it lightly."" The group, originally from Northern Ireland, has only achieved mainstream success in the last year with the single Run and award-winning album Final Straw. In a statement on the band's website, Lightbody said: ""I started the group with Mark 10 years ago and he was a massive part of Snow Patrol and my life throughout that decade.""

He added: ""It got to the stage that things couldn't go on as they were, so we felt there was no other course of action but this. ""I know you will all be distressed and may not understand this news but we had to do what was best for the band."" Snow Patrol are currently working on the follow-up to their breakthrough third album. The band is set to play support to U2 on a number of summer stadium gigs. Last month, they were the big winners in Ireland's top music honours, the Meteor Awards, picking up accolades for best band and album. It followed nominations for the Brit Awards and the Mercury Music Prize. The band formed in 1994 when Lightbody and McClelland met as students at Dundee University.
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Fockers keeps US box office lead	"Film comedy Meet The Fockers, sequel to Meet The Parents, has topped the US box office for a third week.

The movie, which stars Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, took $28.5m (£15.2m), making a total of 204.3m (£109m). Michael Keaton thriller White Noise was second with $24m (£12.8m) despite negative reviews. Martin Scorsese's Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator came third with $7.6m (£4m) and a total of $42.9m (£22.8m). Children's adventure Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, starring Jim Carrey and Meryl Streep, fell two places to fourth position with $7.4m (£3.9m).

It is also the ninth Jim Carrey film to hit the $100m (£53.2m) mark, according to Exhibitor Relations. And Fat Albert, a live-action adaptation of Bill Cosby's TV cartoon, fell one place to number five, with takings over the three days beginning on Friday of $5m (£2.6m). Ocean's Twelve took sixth place in the US chart with $5.4m (£2.8m), but it led the non-US chart at the weekend, according to Hollywood Reporter, with an estimated $17.7m (£9.4m) and total takings of $137m (£73m). The Incredibles took $300m (£160m) outside the US, while Meet the Fockers topped box office charts in Australia and Mexico with non-US takings of $19.35m (£10.2m).
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Spider-Man creator wins profits	"Spider-Man creator Stan Lee is to get a multi-million dollar windfall after winning a court battle with comic book company Marvel.

A judge has upheld Lee's demand for 10% of Marvel's profits from the hugely successful Spider-Man films. Spider-Man and its sequel made $1.6bn (£857m) at box offices worldwide. Of the cut now due to Lee, 82, who created Spider-Man in 1962, his lawyer said: ""It could be tens of millions of dollars, that's no exaggeration."" US District Court Judge Robert W Sweet ruled Lee should get a tenth of profits generated since November 1998 by Marvel TV and movie productions involving the company's characters. Lee took legal action in 2002, saying Marvel shut him out of ""jackpot"" profits from the first blockbuster film.

He said the company - where he worked for more than 60 years - had gone back on agreement to give him the 10%. As well as Spider-Man, Lee co-created the Incredible Hulk, X-Men, Daredevil and Fantastic Four characters. He said: ""I am gratified by the judge's decision although, since I am deeply fond of Marvel and the people there, I sincerely regret that the situation had to come to this."" The ruling also means he is entitled to a slice of profits from DVD sales and certain merchandise. Marvel said it would appeal and did not expect the decision to impact on financial forecasts for 2004 and beyond. The New York court did not rule on Lee's claims to a share of profits from some Spider-Man and Hulk movie merchandise, which will be decided at a future trial, Marvel said.
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Fry set for role in Hitchhiker's	"Actor Stephen Fry is joining the cast of the forthcoming film adaptation of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.

Fry will provide the voice of The Guide, an electronic book which accompanies the story's hero Arthur Dent on his travels around the galaxy. Martin Freeman, John Malkovich, Bill Nighy and Alan Rickman are co-starring in the film, due for release in May. The late Douglas Adams' original 1977 scripts have also been turned into a series of successful books.

""Being asked to do the voice of The Guide is like having your birthday on Christmas Day, discovering a winning lottery ticket in your stocking and having chocolate poured all over you,"" said Fry, a self-confessed fan of the book. The film's executive producer Robbie Stamp said that Adams, who died in 2001, would have been ""delighted"" with the choice of Fry for the role.

""His humour and intelligence are perfect for the voice of The Guide,"" added Mr Stamp. Adams wrote the screenplay based on his book before his premature death, while a new radio series was aired 26 years after the first broadcast and included many of the original cast members. Hollywood star Malkovich will play religious cult leader Humma Kavula, which was especially created by Adams for the new film. Freeman, who starred in hit BBC comedy The Office, will play the role of Arthur Dent, who begins his intergalactic voyage following the destruction of the Earth.
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Bollywood draws global stars	"British actress Antonia Bernath is making her debut in Kisna - the Warrior Poet, marking a growing trend for non-Indian stars to appear in Bollywood films.

Directed by Bollywood veteran Subhash Ghai, the film is set in the British Raj and Bernath plays an army general's daughter who falls in love with a rural boy, Kisna. ""I liked the fluid nature of film-making. We improvised quite a lot,"" says Bernath. ""At times it felt very chaotic but Mr Ghai was quite clear about what he wanted."" Picked from more than 200 girls in an audition in London, Bernath cut short her education at Bristol's Old Vic Theatre School to take up the opportunity. It is not often that somebody gets to play the lead role straight out of a drama school. She spent three weeks learning Hindi and taking dance lessons. ""Initially, I was a bit sceptical about how people would respond to me,"" Bernath says. ""But I found the Hindi film industry very warm and encouraging. I even had a few offers before the work on Kisna was completed.""

Films are one of India's biggest exports and those like Lagaan and Monsoon Wedding have broken the traditional boundaries of colour and culture. Spurred by this, Bollywood producers are trying to go global in all aspects of film-making, be it technical or artistic.

From young heart-throbs like Nick Moran of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels to model Sophie Dahl, many non-Indian stars want to make the most of this opportunity. ""Bollywood has truly gone global,"" says Taran Adarsh, editor of Indian film journal Trade Guide. ""Directors are now attempting to woo non-Asian audience to increase their share in the overseas film market."" Kisna has been shot simultaneously in Hindi and English, with the English print shortened by an hour to accommodate the Western audience. The film even has a song composed in English by AR Rahman, the director of the popular West End musical, Bombay Dreams. ""Identification is a popular cinematic device. Use of European or American actors can be viewed as a step in that direction,"" says Adarsh.

The cast of Kisna also includes British actors Michael Maloney, Caroline Langrishe and Polly Adams.

Another actress, Annabelle Wallace, plays the lead role in a bilingual romantic comedy Dil Jo Bhi Kahey (Whatever the Heart Says), which also stars Indian screen legend Amitabh Bachchan. Actor and Producer Aamir Khan's forthcoming venture The Rising is set against the backdrop of the Indian mutiny of 1857, with British actor Toby Stephens in a key role. But it isn't only the Western actors looking eastwards. Bollywood sweetheart Aishwarya Rai, recently seen in Bride and Prejudice alongside New Zealand actor Martin Henderson, is building her international career. And, many other Bollywood stars have their eyes set on Hollywood. ""Hollywood or Bollywood, it's the box office that determines whether something is a passing phase or a trend,"" says Adarsh.

Kisna - the Warrior Poet opens in the UK on 21 January.
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Hollywood hunts hits at Sundance	"The Sundance Film Festival, the movie industry's top destination for uncovering the next independent hits and new talent, opens on Thursday.

The event will see screen executives decamp from Hollywood to Park City, Utah, for 11 days to search for low-key movies that could make it big in 2005. Open Water, Napoleon Dynamite, Garden State and Super-Size Me were all snapped up at last year's festival. But stars like Keanu Reeves and Pierce Brosnan also have films showing there. The festival is being opened by a screening of quirky comedy Happy Endings, starring former Friends actress Lisa Kudrow and Maggie Gyllenhaal, on Thursday.

Kudrow's Friends co-star, David Schwimmer, plays a divorced drunkard in Duane Hopwood, while Brosnan stars as a hit man in comedy The Matador. Keanu Reeves appears in coming-of-age tale Thumbsucker while Kevin Costner and Michael Keaton are among the other big names whose films are involved. Robert Redford founded Sundance in 1981 and it has gone on to showcase future successes such as Reservoir Dogs, The Blair Witch Project and The Full Monty. But it has received criticism that it has become more commercial and mainstream over the years. ""As much as the press argues that Sundance has completely changed, it hasn't changed that much,"" festival director Geoffrey Gilmore said. ""It's still a place for discovery. It's a place for common ground among film-makers and audiences more than it is the celebrity stuff."" Other films generating interest before this year's festival include Hustle & Flow, about an aspiring rapper, The Squid and the Whale, an autobiographical film by writer-director Noah Baumbach, and comedy/drama Pretty Persuasion. It also has two new international cinema competitions.
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Actress Roberts takes spider role	"Actress Julia Roberts will play the part of a spider in a new film version of children's classic Charlotte's Web.

She will voice Charlotte, who teams up with a girl to save their friend Wilbur the pig, in the story by EB White. The film - a mix of live action and animation - will be Roberts' first project since the birth of her twins, Hazel and Phinnaeus, two months ago. Oprah Winfrey will voice a goose, John Cleese will voice a sheep and Steve Buscemi a rat in the 2006 film.

Ten-year-old Dakota Fanning will play Fern, the girl at the centre of the story, in the film to be directed by 13 Going on 30 film-maker Gary Winick. Filming is due to begin in Melbourne, Australia, later this month. Charlotte's Web has sold 45 million copies since it was published in 1952. An animated version was made in 1973 but this will be the first live action film. The actor who will voice Wilbur the pig has yet to be revealed.
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Film production 'falls' 40% in UK	"The number of British films produced in the UK fell 40% in 2004, with movies starring Johnny Depp and Jude Law among those affected, Screen Daily has said.

Twenty-seven British films were made in the UK last year following a drop in funding, compared with 45 in 2003, according to the trade weekly. It attributed the drop to tighter tax laws and reduced funding from sources such as the National Lottery. UK and US co-productions in Britain fell from 102 in 2003 to 81 last year.

Last year the government closed tax loopholes that many film investors had taken advantage of to fund films in the UK. Several projects were shelved as they faced the implications of this clampdown, coupled with the reduction in movie funding from traditional sources including the lottery and Miramax Films. Shooting on period drama Tulip Fever, which was to star Jude Law and Keira Knightley, was postponed indefinitely while shooting of The Libertine starring Johnny Depp was moved to the Isle of Man.

""There isn't anything coming in to replace (the funds),"" said The Libertine's executive producer Marc Samuelson. ""We are in a hiatus."" Films with ""medium"" budgets of up to £9m, a similar level to box office hits Vera Drake, Calendar Girls and Enduring Love, are expected to be worst hit by the tax clampdown. The strength of the pound against the dollar is expected to have resulted in a fall in the number of US films shot in the UK during 2004, Screen International added. Big budget co-productions, such as the Harry Potter series, continued to be shot in the UK, however. The UK Film Council said the drop was partly due to 2003 being an especially good year for British film production, when Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Wimbledon and Thunderbirds were all filmed in the UK.

""The drop was expected as there was no way 2003's record level of production could be bettered,"" the council's spokesperson said. ""The reduction in indigenous film production in 2004 was due to a variety of factors, including the continuing long-term trend towards co-production of films in more than one country and changes to financing arrangements."" It was ""too early"" to predict whether the downward trend in UK production would continue throughout 2005, the UK Film Council said. In September the government introduced subsidies worth up to £4m per film for medium budget films, under new Treasury measures. It is also due to announce a replacement for UK film tax relief scheme Section 48 in July.
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Fantasy book wins Hollywood deal	"A British author has had the film rights to her children's bestseller snapped up for a seven-figure sum, with Ridley Scott set to direct.

Michelle Paver's Wolf Brother, a fantasy set 6,000 years ago, is the first in a planned series of six books. Film studio Fox has bought the rights for around $4m (£2.13m) for Scott's company Scott Free to develop. The director said he was ""thrilled"" with the project. ""Wolf Brother is an enchanting book,"" he said. Paver, who lives in London and previously worked as a lawyer, began writing the book in 1982 while studying biochemistry at Oxford University.

She was an established author of love stories when she turned the work-in-progress into a children's novel. It was published in 2004, with Paver earning an advance of $5m (£2.8m) - the highest sum ever paid for a debut children's book. Wolf Brother tells the story of Torak, a 12-year-old hunter who lives in the forest. After his father is killed he teams up with a wolf cub and sets out to rid the forest of an evil force. Paver is currently writing the second book in the series. ""Michelle Paver lives and breathes the worlds she writes about,"" said a spokesman for the author. ""I've told her about the film deal but at the moment she is writing the second book and her mind is 6000 years away deep in the primeval forest.""
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The comic book genius of Stan Lee	"Stan Lee, the man responsible for a string of comic superheroes that have become household names, has won a court battle for a slice of the profits from the hit Spider-Man movies.

Many marvel at the man who gave his characters extraordinary powers and everyday headaches - a formula which revolutionised comics. Born in 1922 to poor working-class Jewish immigrants from Romania, Stan Lieberman, got a job in Timely Publications, a company owned by a relative. He was assigned to the comics division and - thanks to a fertile imagination - rose to editor by the age of 18. For more than 20 years, he was ""the ultimate hack"" - knocking out crime stories, horrors, westerns, anything to sate the appetite of his juvenile readership. Words of more than two syllables were discouraged. Characters were either all good or bad, with no shades of grey. So embarrassed was Lieberman by much of what he was writing that he refused to put his real name on the byline. He assumed the ""dumb name"", Stan Lee, now legally adopted.

By the time he was 40, Lee had decided he was too old for the comic game. His British-born wife, Joan, suggested he had nothing to lose and, for his swansong, should write the kind of characters he really wanted to create. After a rival comic had come up with a superteam consisting of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, Timely needed to respond.

Lee's answer, in 1961, was the Fantastic Four - a team of astronauts who gained super powers after being bombarded with cosmic rays. They were to change Lee's life, and the comics industry, forever. Lee gave each character individual, everyday teenage problems such as dandruff, ingrown toenails and acne. They would frequently fall out with their parents and each other. The fan letters poured in. Without immediately knowing it, Stan Lee had ushered in the golden age of comics, and his imagination was rekindled. His Marvel universe spawned the new title of Marvel Comics. Soon after, nerdy Peter Parker was transformed - after a bite from an irradiated spider - into someone who could crawl up the sides of New York's skyscrapers. Spider-Man was born. He was to become an icon of modern popular culture. Spidey, as he is affectionately known, had quite extraordinary powers - yet he had problems at work, at home and with his girlfriends. At last, the teenager was no longer just the sidekick, but the main hero. And the hero was no longer just brawn, he had brains too.

""Just because he's a hero and has super powers doesn't mean he doesn't have problems,"" Stan Lee told the BBC. The Incredible Hulk, The Mighty Thor, Iron Man and the rest all grappled with problems like drug abuse, bigotry and social inequality. Radically, Lee gave the artists responsible for the comic designs credits for their work. Jack Kirby, Frank Miller, John Romitaand and others achieved cult status in their own right. Other superheroes broke new ground in other ways. Daredevil was blind, Black Panther was black and Silver Surfer pondered the state of humanity. Lee's influence remains. Some years ago the Marvel hero, Northstar, came out of the closet. In its heyday, Marvel was selling 50 million copies a year. Until he retired from editing in 1971, Stan Lee wrote all the copy for Marvel's covers.

In 1999, his Stan Lee Media venture, aimed at marrying comic-strips with the internet, went spectacularly wrong. Lee went bankrupt and his business partner landed in prison for fraud. In 2001 though, he started a new company entitled POW! (Purveyors of Wonder) Entertainment, which is currently developing films and television programmes. His latest project is a superhero based on a real person - Jay J Armes, who has metal claws after losing both hands aged 12 and fights crime with a tiger. But his 40-year-old creations are still as enduring as ever - with X-Men, The Hulk and Daredevil have all been turned into Hollywood action movies in the last five years. But Spider-Man has been the biggest box office hit, with the 2002 original and its 2004 sequel taking almost $1.6bn (£857m) in ticket sales around the world - before DVD and merchandise sales are counted. It seems Stan Lee is as indestructible as his heroes.
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Bangkok film festival battles on	"Organisers of the third Bangkok International Film Festival have been determined to carry on with this year's event despite the ravages of the Asian tsunami disaster.

The festivities have been scaled down, red carpets have been mothballed and profits from ticket sales are being donated to the tsunami relief fund. Apart from this, however, the festival has continued as originally planned. ""When the disaster happened, we naturally asked ourselves if we should cancel,"" said the festival's executive director, Craig Prater. ""The decision was made that we would continue, but that the focus would change.

""Our premieres became fundraisers, the opening night was visibly toned down and 10% of every ticket sold goes to the disaster fund,"" he continued. ""But we feel like we've turned a page. We've acknowledged our position, and now it's business as usual.""

Mr Prater's sentiments were echoed by Christine Rush, director of the festival's sister event, the Bangkok Film Market. ""We have been careful to be respectful of the Thai nation's recovery from this terrible disaster,"" she said.

""However, the nation's recovery very much depends upon it continuing its economic life. ""We are encouraging attendees to keep the victims in mind and aggressively support the aid organisations helping out,"" she added. Given the conspicuously low audience figures, that support may be more symbolic than significant. However, poor ticket sales have less to do with any fallout from the disaster and more to do with administrative and promotional difficulties.

The eclectic programme contains a wide range of titles, including such Oscar hopefuls as Ray Charles biopic Ray and Mike Leigh's abortion drama Vera Drake. That said, the absence of Thai subtitles on most film prints might have proved offputting to local cinemagoers.

On a more positive note, the celebrity guests attending the event have generated huge media interest in this busy capital city. Problems securing air transport, the clash with last Sunday's Golden Globes ceremony in Los Angeles and other factors have forced some big names to cancel.

But the festival has still attracted such Hollywood directors as Oliver Stone and Joel Schumacher, alongside such screen stars as Michael Douglas, Jeremy Irons and Jean-Claude Van Damme. Irons, whose film Being Julia is in competition for the festival's Golden Kinnaree awards, said he had wondered whether he should attend after December's catastrophe. ""I questioned whether I should come when such a tragedy had happened,"" the British actor said. ""I thought it might be in rather bad taste. But then I spoke to the organisers and I was encouraged to let life go on. ""Now I've come here I'm very glad. What impresses me about Thai culture is they get over these things far quicker than we do in the West,"" he continued. ""Basically I was invited here by Thailand. If they still want you to come, you should.""

Now in its third year, Bangkok is a relatively recent addition to the hectic film festival calendar. And while it has yet to attain the stature of more established events held in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Pusan in South Korea, Mr Prater predicts it will soon become their equal. ""It's grown awfully fast in three years - maybe too fast,"" he concedes. ""We've had some bumps in the road, but that's only because the festival is still a baby. ""I have no doubt in my mind that in five years, this will be the top Asian film festival in the world."" The Golden Kinnarees will be awarded on Friday. The festival itself runs until 24 January.
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Carry On star Patsy Rowlands dies	"Actress Patsy Rowlands, known to millions for her roles in the Carry On films, has died at the age of 71.

Rowlands starred in nine of the popular Carry On films, alongside fellow regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor. She also carved out a successful television career, appearing for many years in ITV's well-loved comedy Bless This House. Rowlands died in Hove on Saturday morning, her agent said.

Born in January 1934, Rowlands won a scholarship to the Guildhall School of Speech and Drama scholarship when she was just 15.

After spending several years at the Players Theatre in London, she made her film debut in 1963 in Tom Jones, directed by Tony Richardson. She made her first Carry On film in 1969 where she appeared in Carry On Again Doctor. Rowlands played the hard-done-by wife or the put-upon employee as a regular Carry On star. She also appeared in Carry On at your Convenience, Carry On Matron and Carry On Loving, as well as others.

In recent years she appeared in BBC mini-series The Cazalets and played Mrs Potts in the London stage version of Beauty and the Beast. Agent Simon Beresford said: ""She was just an absolutely favourite client She never complained about anything, particularly when she was ill, she was an old trouper. ""She was of the old school - she had skills from musical theatre and high drama, that is why she worked with the great and the good of directors. ""She didn't mind always being recognised for the Carry On films because she thoroughly enjoyed making them. She was a really lovely person and she will be much missed."" Her last appearance on stage was as Mrs Pearce in the award-winning production of My Fair Lady at the National Theatre. Previously married, she leaves one son, Alan. Her funeral will be a private, family occasion, with a memorial service at a later date.
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Tautou 'to star in Da Vinci film'	"French actress Audrey Tautou, star of hit film Amelie, will play the female lead in the film adaptation of The Da Vinci Code, it has been reported.

The movie version of Dan Brown's best-selling novel is being directed by Ron Howard and also stars Tom Hanks. Tautou will play Hanks' code-cracking partner, according to various newspapers. She is currently starring in A Very Long Engagement, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Jeunet was also responsible for directing Tautou in Amelie in 2001, which launched the actress into the mainstream.

She also starred as the lead role in critically-acclaimed film Dirty Pretty Things in 2002. Oscar-winning director Ron Howard chose Tautou for the part, preferring a French actress to a big name Hollywood star. UK actress Kate Beckinsale had been widely tipped as a possibility for the role alongside Vanessa Paradis and Juliette Binoche. The thriller upon which the movie is based has sold more than 17 million copies and is centred on a global conspiracy surrounding the Holy Grail mythology. The Louvre Museum, scene of the gruesome murder at the beginning of the novel, recently gave permission for filming to take place there, showbusiness newspaper Variety reported. The $100m movie will be produced by Columbia/Sony Pictures and is due for release on May 19, 2006 in the United States and France.
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Double win for Sea Inside	"Spanish movie The Sea Inside has been named best picture and star Javier Bardem best actor at the Bangkok International Film Festival.

Based on the true story of a paralysed man's battle to end his life, The Sea Inside was best foreign language film at the 2005 Golden Globe Awards. Annette Bening and Ana Geislerova shared the best actress award at the Bangkok festival. This year's event was scaled down following the Asian tsunami disaster.

Falling Down and The Phantom of the Opera director Joel Schumacher won a lifetime achievement award while Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai was honoured for promoting Asian cinema. ""It's a great honour, I want to share this honour with my Thai colleagues,"" Wong said. French writer Christophe Barratie and Korean writer Park Chan-Chook shared the best screenplay award for Les Choristes and Old Boy respectively. Now in its third year, the Bangkok International Film Festival is donating profits from ticket sales to the tsunami relief fund.
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BBC denies Blackadder TV comeback	"The BBC has said there are no plans in the pipeline for a new series of hit comedy Blackadder, which ended in 1989.

Tony Robinson, who played the servant Baldrick, told ITV1's This Morning the show's star, Rowan Atkinson, was ""more keen than he has been in the past"". Robinson added he would ""love"" to do another series, each of which was set in a different era, ranging from the 15th century to World War I. But the BBC said on Thursday there were no plans for a comeback.

In the final series all the main characters were killed off charging towards German lines after being ordered out of their trench. The poignant finale was later voted the best farewell episode of a TV series. A host of other UK actors, including Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry and Miranda Richardson, also appeared in the show. Blackadder returned for a one-off special filmed to celebrate the arrival of the millennium in 1999. It was shown at the Millennium Dome in Greenwich before being screened on BSkyB.
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Corbett attacks 'dumbed-down TV'	"Ronnie Corbett has joined fellow comedy stars Victoria Wood and David Jason in attacking the declining standards of British television programmes.

Speaking to the Radio Times, the Two Ronnies star said there is too much bad language and reality TV. ""You get fed up watching shows with not much care and love,"" he complained. Corbett, soon to reunite with Ronnie Barker for a new Two Ronnies series, also criticised quiz shows like the BBC's They Think It's All Over. ""It's just laughing at each other and thinking, 'Aren't we clever?'"" said the 74-year-old comedian. Corbett is the latest comedy star to bemoan the ""dumbing down"" of modern TV programmes. In an interview published in the Radio Times in January, Victoria Wood slated comedian Sacha Baron Cohen for his character Ali G's ""horrible"" brand of ""victim"" humour.

""With so many good writers and good performers, it's a shame people can't just write a script and have other people learn it,"" she said. And last week Only Fools and Horses star David Jason criticised British TV for being ""too safe and too cheap"". ""We've got to be careful not to dumb down for the audience,"" he said. ""They shouldn't be sitting at home on the sofa vegetating."" Corbett said he and Barker were always mindful of their family audience while making The Two Ronnies. ""Our material was good-natured,"" he said. ""We knew what would upset the average man in the street. ""There's a lot of swearing on TV today. They even have documentaries with the f-word.""

Corbett goes on to criticise ""reality programmes where they put people in a house for a fortnight and film them doing everything"". The Two Ronnies ran from 1971 to 1987 and attracted 17 million viewers at its peak. Its bespectacled stars will return later this year in The Two Ronnies Sketchbook, which will combine classic sketches with newly recorded material. Corbett claims he and Barker differ from today's celebrities in that they did not allow their success to go to their heads. ""We were never temperamental, fractious or walked out slamming doors,"" he said. ""We were fussy though,"" he added. ""We wanted everything done properly.""
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Smith loses US box office crown	"New comedy Diary of a Mad Black Woman has ended Will Smith's reign at the top of the North American box office.

Based on a play by Tyler Perry, who also stars as a gun-toting grandmother, the film took $22.7m (£11.8m) in its first three days of release. After topping the chart for two consecutive weeks, Smith's romantic comedy Hitch dropped to second place with takings of $21m (£10.9m). Keanu Reeves' supernatural thriller Constantine dropped a place to three. Based on the Hellblazer comics, the film took $11.8m (£6.1m) on its second week of release. Two new entries came next in the chart, with Wes Craven's horror movie Cursed, about a werewolf loose in Los Angeles, in fourth position with $9.5m (£4.9m).

Action comedy Man of the House, starring Tommy Lee Jones as a Texas ranger assigned to protect a cheerleader squad, came in at fifth with $9m (£4.6m). Clint Eastwood's boxing drama Million Dollar Baby - recipient of four Academy Awards, including best picture - continued to perform well in sixth place with takings of $7.2m (£3.74m). Martin Scorsese's Hollywood biopic The Aviator - which won five Oscars, all in minor categories - held on in ninth place. The low-budget feature Diary of a Mad Black Woman stars Kimberly Elise as a woman thrown out on the streets by her philandering husband. With the help of her grandmother Madea (one of three roles played by Perry), she plots revenge. Perry, 34, is one of America's best-known black playwrights but is a newcomer to film. Once made homeless after investing his own money in unsuccessful productions of his work, he now lives in the mansion in which Diary of a Mad Black Woman was filmed.
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BBC to pour £9m into new comedy	"The BBC is to invest £9m in developing new comedy and entertainment programmes outside London.

The changes come as part of a shake-up of several departments to create shows that appeal to a wider range of people. Changes are also being made to teams in the factual and daytime departments outside London. Director of television Jana Bennett said the changes were about ""getting the best ideas on screen as efficiently and effectively as we can"". ""The new structure in each genre is designed to ensure that happens,"" she said.

A number of new roles are being created in each department, including a head of comedy commissioning based in Glasgow. The new person will be in charge of the £9m budget and their role will be to develop shows outside the capital, both within the BBC and with independent production companies. Jane Lush, controller of entertainment commissioning, said, ""Entertainment and comedy are incredibly important to our audiences; I'm confident these changes will help us get the very best programmes on screen."" Similar positions will also be created in the other departments, with the new commissioning editor for documentaries based in Bristol and the daytime commissioning editor in Birmingham. Ms Bennett said the new roles would benefit those making programmes within the BBC as well as those making shows for the channel independently. ""A strong independent sector and a flourishing in-house production base are not mutually exclusive and will stimulate the competition that will deliver the best ideas to the audience,"" she said.
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How the Academy Awards flourished	"The 77th annual Academy Awards are taking place on 27 February with the stars of the movie-making world once again holding their breath to discover who will be showered with the honours this year. But from humble beginnings, how did the modern day extravaganza become the behemoth it is today?

HOW IT ALL STARTED The first Academy Awards were handed out in 1929 at a comparatively low-key dinner held at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - just over the road from their modern day home.

Just 250 guests attended with ticket prices at $5.

The first film to win was Wings, which starred Clara Bow in the only silent movie to win the big award. For the first 10 years or so, the winners list was handed to the newspapers so they could publish them at 11pm, but in 1940 the winners were published in the Los Angeles Times at 8.45pm meaning guests entering the ceremony knew already knew the results. As a result the sealed envelope system was introduced, leading to the secrecy and suspense-filled night that happens today. WHEN AND WHERE The tradition of holding the awards at a banquet continued until 1942 but with increasing interest came a growing guest list and it became impractical to host it as a dinner.

The ceremonies were then transferred to theatres with the famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre the first to host the expanded event. Other venues included the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and the Shrine Auditorium. They are now held at the Kodak Theatre, which opened in 2002 just across the road from its original home and holds 6,000 people. Until 1954 they were held on a Thursday, then swapped around from Monday to Wednesday before Sunday night was settled on, although the month swapped from May to April to March and now its current month of February. The first televised ceremony was in 1953, with Bob Hope as the MC. WHO WAS OSCAR? There is no solid evidence as to how the trophy became to be known as Oscar.

One popular story is that Academy librarian Margaret Herrick said the statue looked like her uncle Oscar. A journalist apparently overheard this conversation and used the phrase in an article.

The first time it is thought to have been used in print was when columnist Sidney Skolsky used it to describe Katherine Hepburn's first best actress win in 1934. The Academy officially adopted the nickname in 1939. The trophy was designed by MGM art director Cedric Gibbons. Since its inception 2,530 Oscars have been handed out. In support of the war effort, the Academy handed out plaster Oscar statuettes during WWII. After the war, winners exchanged the plaster awards for the real thing. Fifty-five statues were stolen in en route to the awards in 2000, 52 were recovered nine days later. Winners were unaffected as a new batch was rushed out. WHO SITS IN JUDGEMENT? The Academy was set up in 1927 as a non-profit organisation with 36 members from different film disciplines. Douglas Fairbanks Sr was the first president and oversaw the first awards. There are now 5,700 members of the Academy - with membership by invitation only to those who are seen to have achieved distinction in the movies and are therefore seen as fit to judge their peers. Some of the criteria for admittance includes: film credits that reflect the high standards of the Academy, receipt of an Academy Award nomination, achievement of unique distinction, earning of special merit, or making an outstanding contribution to film. THE STARS WHO LEFT EMPTY-HANDED While many of the biggest films and movie-makers have been honoured by the Academy, there is still surprise at those that did not receive any nominations that later went on to become classics.

Among the overlooked films were Hobson's Choice, Dirty Harry, The 39 Steps, The Searchers and King Kong. Actors that failed to win for their iconic roles included Al Jolson in the Jazz Singer (1927), Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1944), Gene Kelly in Singing in the Rain (1952) and Henry Fonda in 12 Angry Men (1957). Alfred Hitchcock also failed to win an award despite five nominations. His enduring influence on the horror genre was finally recognised with an honorary gong in 1968. THE SHOW ALWAYS GOES ON Not even war has halted the glittering Hollywood event. There were calls for it to be cancelled in 2003 during the war in Iraq, but as it didn't stop during World War II or the Vietnam war.

Documentary winner Michael Moore ensured nobody forgot about the Iraq war though and used his acceptance speech to criticise the American invasion. The ceremony was muted with the glitz turned down and many female stars opting for demure dark dresses. The ceremony has been postponed on three occasions. Los Angeles floods in 1938 saw it put back a week. The death of Martin Luther King saw it postponed for two days in 1968 as a mark of respect and there was a 24-hour delay following the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. CONTROVERSIES AND OTHER GAFFES Three people have refused Oscars, including actor George C Scott who said the whole thing was ""demeaning"". Writer Dudley Nichols refused his Academy Award in 1935 for his screenplay for The Insider because the Writers' Guild was striking at the time. Marlon Brando turned down his best actor Oscar for The Godfather in 1973 in protest as Hollywood's apparent discrimination against Native American people. He sent along a woman called Sacheen Littlefeather to collect his award. She was later revealed to be Native American actress Maria Cruz.

The following year Robert Opal interrupted proceedings when he streaked, flashing a peace sign as well as everything else. The TV network managed to pan away and avoid too much nudity. Opal was murdered in 1979. Frank Capra was the butt of one major gaffe in 1934 when the host opened out best picture envelope and declared ""come on up and get it, Frank"" to which Frank Capra bounded up to the stage before realising that he had meant Frank Lloyd had won for Cavalcade.

Capra vowed he would never to go the awards again but went the following year to collect his award for It Happened One Night.
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Hoffman hits out over modern film	"Hollywood legend Dustin Hoffman has hit out at the quality of current films and theatre productions.

The star of Rain Man and Tootsie said the film culture was ""in the craphouse"" at a press conference on Tuesday. The 67-year-old also said he stopped working a few years ago because he lost his ""spark"" for acting. Hoffman is in the UK to publicise his new comedy, Meet the Fockers, which also stars Robert De Niro, Barbra Streisand and Ben Stiller.

He said: ""You go to the cinema and you realise you're watching the third act. There is no first or second act. ""There is this massive film-making where you spend this incredible amount of money and play right to the demographic. ""You can tell how much money the film is going to make by how it does on the first weekend. ""The whole culture is in the craphouse. It's not just true in the movies, it's also true in the theatre. ""Broadway, and now London is the same, special effects are in great demand. It's not a good time culturally.""

Hoffman also said he stopped working a few years ago and moved into directing and writing. He said: ""I just lost that spark I always had. ""A couple of years ago I didn't like the parts I was getting. ""Studios weren't interested in the kind of films that people of my generation wanted to see. ""I thought I would stop and just try writing and directing. I wasn't aware of the depression that set in."" Recently, Hoffmann has returned to film, with roles in I Heart Huckabees, Finding Neverland and now Meet the Fockers, which is the sequel to Meet the Parents. Meet The Fockers opens in the UK on Friday.
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Johnny Depp: The acting outlaw	"Johnny Depp, whose latest role was Peter Pan creator JM Barrie in Finding Neverland, is celebrated as one of Hollywood's most maverick talents. Depp has become an unlikely major star, given his preference for taking dark and idiosyncratic roles instead of surefire box office hits. He has had a long-running working relationship with the equally unconventional director Tim Burton. Depp was born in Kentucky in 1963 and at first wanted to be a rock star, playing in a number of bands and supporting acts such as Iggy Pop and The B-52s in Florida. On a visit to Los Angeles, his former wife introduced him to actor Nicolas Cage.

In 1984 he started his film career playing a doomed teenager in horror film Nightmare On Elm Street. Two years later he played a soldier in Oliver Stone's Vietnam epic Platoon. But it was TV that first made Depp a star. He played undercover cop Tommy Hanson in the US series 21 Jump Street for three years from 1987.

In 1990 he began his partnership with Burton in the dark fairy tale Edward Scissorhands, about a young man with blades for hands. He won plaudits in 1993 for the downbeat film What's Eating Gilbert Grape, where he played a sensitive youth looking after an overweight mother and a retarded younger brother, played by Leonardo DiCaprio. Another role under Burton, Ed Wood, starred Depp as the crazed cult film-maker Wood, in 1994. He played a much more serious, sensitive role in his next major film, Donnie Brasco, where he portrayed an undercover cop infiltrating a mafia ring. In 1997 he directed his only film to date - The Brave, the story of an Indian man offered money to appear in a snuff film.

Two years later he played Hunter S Thompson in Terry Gilliam's ambitious but poorly-received big screen adaptation of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He worked again with Tim Burton in the 1999 horror film Sleepy Hollow, and appeared opposite Dame Judi Dench and Juliette Binoche in Chocolat. His performance in Pirates of the Caribbean, which earned him Golden Globe and Bafta nominations, had many critics thinking he based it upon the mannerisms of his friend, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. His latest role in Finding Neverland explored JM Barrie's relationship with Sylvia (Kate Winslet) and her children. Depp's charismatic performance drew an audience of adults and children alike into Barrie's vivid imagination, and he was called the ""fifth child of the group"" by the film's director Marc Forster.

He has two children of his own with French singer Vanessa Paradis, having previously been in a long-term relationship with British model Kate Moss. The theme of children's literature in Depp's career - and his long association with Tim Burton - are set to continue in his next role, playing Willy Wonka in a remake of Roald Dahl's classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. British TV comedy fans might also remember Depp's guest role in the final episode of BBC sketch programme The Fast Show, cited as his favourite show. It was another surprise move in Depp's varied and intriguing career.
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Patti Smith to host arts festival	"Rock star Patti Smith has been made artistic director of this year's Meltdown festival, to be held at London's South Bank Centre in June.

The punk pioneer follows Morrissey, David Bowie and Nick Cave in directing 15 days of concerts and events. Smith has yet to decide the line-up for Meltdown, which begins on 11 June. ""I want to touch on all aspects of our culture, perhaps with readings from Genet, and I have an idea for Jeremy Irons to read Proust,"" she said.

The 58-year-old US singer of Because the Night told The Observer newspaper that the festival would be her response to these ""material, exploitative and greedy times"". ""It is important we explore the new, but we should also salute the best art there is, aesthetically and spiritually,"" she said. Last year's Meltdown festival, directed by the ex-Smiths star Morrissey, included appearances by singer Jane Birkin, Nancy Sinatra and playwright Alan Bennett. He also persuaded punk band The New York Dolls to reform for a reunion show.
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Roxy Music on Isle of Wight bill	"Roxy Music will appear at June's Isle of Wight music festival, along with Morrissey, Supergrass and Idlewild.

REM have already been confirmed as headliners for the three-day event, which takes place from 10-12 June. Original band members Bryan Ferry, Phil Manzerana, Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson will take to the stage on the Saturday night of the festival. The band are also working in the studio on new material, their first since the 1982 album Avalon. Roxy Music were formed in 1971 by Ferry, Mackay and Brian Eno, with Manzanera joining the following year. Their first hit was 1972's Virginia Plain, with other hits including Street Life, Love Is The Drug and the 1981 John Lennon cover, Jealous Guy. Roxy Music's back catalogue was re-released in 2000, leading to the band undertaking a world tour in 2001. Morrissey will also play on Saturday at the festival, while Supergrass and Idlewild have been confirmed for the Friday.
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Music mogul Fuller sells company	"Pop Idol supremo Simon Fuller has sold his 19 Entertainment company to an US entrepreneur in a $156m (£81.5m) deal.

Robert Sillerman's Sports Entertainment Enterprises, which is to be renamed CFX, recently also bought an 85% share in the estate of Elvis Presley. Mr Fuller has been appointed to the CFX board and will plan and implement the company's creative strategy. The 19 firm handles a roster of music artists, TV shows and PR strategies for stars including the Beckhams. The deal sees Mr Fuller receive £64.5m in cash and about 1.9 million shares in Sports Entertainment. There will also be a further £19.2m in either cash or stocks by the end of the financial year in June. Mr Fuller has signed a long-term agreement with the company which will see him continue to expand and develop entertainment brands. He said: ""This is a hugely exciting new partnership for myself and 19 Entertainment.

""CKX will provide 19 with a powerful platform for global growth and allow us to fully take advantage of all the amazing opportunities that lie ahead. I cannot wait to get started.""

Mr Fuller was the creative drive behind Pop Idol and its US offspring American Idol. 19 Management runs the careers of many of its successful contestants including Will Young, Gareth Gates and Kelly Clarkson. The company was set up 15 years ago by Mr Fuller, taking the name from his first successful single - 19 by Paul Hardcastle. Fuller was the driving force behind the Spice Girls phenomenon, using canny marketing and catchy pop songs to secure their place as the most lucrative girl group in history. He then put together S Club 7, who had their own TV show as well as a music career. Mr Sillerman's deal to buy the Presley estate sees him control the operation of Graceland, as well as money from the late star's music and films. Presley's daughter Lisa Marie retains possession of Graceland and many of her father's ""personal effects"".
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Johnny Cash manager Holiff dies	"The former manager of Johnny Cash, Saul Israel Holiff, has died at the age of 79, his family said.

Mr Holiff, who was also a concert promoter, managed Cash's career between 1960 and 1973, quitting when he thought the singer's career had peaked. ""I was guilty for underestimating him repeatedly,"" he once said. The Canadian music manager, who also managed Tommy Hunter and the Statler Brothers, had been in declining health, according to his family. An entrepreneur from an early age, Mr Holiff served as a rear air gunner in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II, afterwards setting up a drive-in restaurant. He briefly dabbled in acting, before setting up offices in Nashville and Los Angeles for his concert and artist promotion business. In 1970, RPM weekly magazine presented Holiff with a special award as the Canadian music industry's man of the year. Mr Holiff retired when he was in his late 40s, returning to education as a mature student at the University of Victoria, where he graduated with a degree in history. He passed away on 17 March. According to his wishes, there will be no funeral service.
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UK 'world's biggest music buyer'	"UK consumers are the biggest music buyers in the world, according to new figures released on Tuesday by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

But global sales of recorded music were flat in 2004, with growing sales in DVD music videos offset by online and physical piracy in major markets. The UK music industry recorded an overall 3% increase in volume sales, mostly due to its robust albums market. However, world music sales declined by 1.3% to $33.6 billion (£17.7 billion). The UK CD albums market grew by 4.5% in 2004 with a record 174.6 million units sold. On average every Briton buys 3.2 CDs per person per year.

Around 26,000 albums are released in the UK each year, making Britain second only to the US in terms of the number of releases. Overall sales were driven by new UK-signed artists such as Keane, Katie Melua and Scissor Sisters, whose debut album sold almost 1.6 million copies in the UK. ""A slew of great new British artists have met UK music fans' demand for great music,"" said BPI chairman Peter Jameson. The best-selling album globally was Usher's Confessions - one of eight albums to sell more than five million copies in 2004.

The growth in the DVD market and a sharp increase in sales of digital music ensured a strong market in the US. The total number of tracks downloaded last year were up more than tenfold on 2003. Digital sales in the US in the first two months of 2005 are already more than double that of the same period in 2004.

However, some markets in Continental Europe and Asia - notably Sweden, Finland, France, Spain and South Korea - have been drastically hit by internet piracy. Australia, Italy and the Netherlands also saw a decline. ""On the positive side digital sales are booming,"" said John Kennedy, chief executive of the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI). ""However, commercial piracy and illegal file-sharing are continuing to depress our markets. ""The priority in the coming year is to step up the advance of legitimate digital sales and sustain our anti-piracy efforts."" ""The main choice today's music fan now has to make is whether to get music legally or illegally,"" added Mr Jameson.
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Pixies take on Reading and Leeds	"Pixies, Foo Fighters and Iron Maiden will headline this summer's Leeds and Reading festivals.

The trio of rock heavyweights will top the bill for the three-day events at Bramham Park, near Wetherby, and at Richfield Avenue, Reading. They are the Pixies' and Iron Maiden's only UK festival gigs, while Foo Fighters are also at T In The Park. The Killers, Razorlight and Queens of the Stone Age are also playing the twin festivals, to be held on 26-28 August. Other acts in this year's line-up include The Charlatans, Marilyn Manson and Kings of Leon. Pete Doherty's band Babyshamblers will appear on the NME/Radio One stage along with Kasabian, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Bloc Party.

Organiser Mean Fiddler said more acts were still to be confirmed for the summer event. ""We are all very excited to be going back to Reading and intend to have a fantastic time,"" said Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson. ""We're sure fans will too."" It will the first time the veteran British metal band have played Reading in 23 years. At Leeds, Iron Maiden will headline the first day of the festival on the Friday, Pixies will follow on Saturday and the Foo Fighters will close the event on Sunday. The Pixies will headline the first day of Reading, while Foo Fighters will play on Sunday and Iron Maiden will close the event. Weekend tickets are now on sale priced at £125 each.
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Vera Drake leads UK Oscar hopes	"Mike Leigh's film Vera Drake will lead British hopes at this year's Academy Awards after getting three nominations.

Imelda Staunton was nominated for best actress for her role in the abortion drama, while Leigh received nods for best director and original screenplay. Kate Winslet was also nominated in the best actress category for her role in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. And Clive Owen and Sophie Okonedo both got nominated for supporting roles in Closer and Hotel Rwanda respectively. Owen has already been made bookmakers' favourite for best supporting actor for the role in Closer that has already clinched him a Golden Globe award.

And it is the first nomination for actress Okonedo, chosen for her performance in Hotel Rwanda, about the 1994 Rwandan genocide. It is also a debut nomination for Staunton, 49, who told BBC News 24 she had not thought the film would appeal to Academy voters. ""It was an extraordinary time making the film and I can't believe what has happened this morning,"" she said. ""I hope it just shows Mike up to be the extraordinary filmmaker he is. ""We are also dealing with a very difficult subject matter and it is amazing to have it accepted in this way."" Leigh, who had previously received three Oscar nominations for Secrets and Lies and Topsy Turvy, told BBC News 24 the latest success was ""amazing"". He said: ""We hoped that Imelda Staunton would get a nomination but I never expected to get director and screenplay. It's just absolutely wonderful.

""I think people are aware that it's about life - and I hope it is the warmth and compassion that really talks to people."" Winslet said she was ""ecstatic"" about the fourth nomination of her career. ""Being nominated means so much to me. To be nominated for a film that was released a while ago, I feel so honoured and overwhelmed,"" she said. John Woodward, chief executive of the UK Film Council, said it was ""extremely heartening"" to see British filmmaking talent recognised on the global stage. ""Britain has a hugely talented industry and these nominations show why National Lottery investment in film pays major dividends for our culture and economy."" Among a total of 24 British nominees, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Charles Hart are up for best original song for Learn To Be Lonely, from The Phantom of the Opera movie.

Cinematographer John Mathieson, who was nominated for Gladiator in 2001, is also up for The Phantom of the Opera. And Finding Neverland has garnered two more nominations for Brits. Gemma Jackson, who has also worked on Bridget Jones's Diary and Iris, is up for art direction while costume designer Alexandra Byrne, whose previous films have included Captain Corelli's Mandolin and Elizabeth, is in the running. The UK has two contenders in the best live action short film category. Wasp was made by ex-children's TV presenter Andrea Arnold while Little Terrorist is the work of Ashvin Kumar. This year's awards will be handed out in Hollywood on 27 February.
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Moreno debut makes Oscar mark	"Catalina Sandino Moreno has joined a rare group of actresses who have been nominated for an Oscar for starring in a foreign language film.

The Colombian-born actress was the final hope for director Joshua Marston, who scoured the US and Colombia for a lead for Maria Full of Grace. The film sees the 23-year-old play a teenage drug mule who smuggles heroin by swallowing pellets in condoms. Plaudits have been raining down on her for her gritty performance, making it all the more surprising that this is her first film. Her previous acting experience was in amateur productions in her home city of Bogota at the Ruben Di Pietro theatre academy. She has already received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Awards leading actress category but these rarely overlap with Academy Awards, instead recognising quirkier, low-budget films. And at the 2004 Berlin Film Festival the jury could not choose between her and Charlize Theron's Oscar winning performance in Monster so gave them a tied award. Sandino Moreno is now being regarded as one of the most promising actresses around at the moment. But she is taking her time committing to her next project, hoping to land a strong Spanish script and would love to be able to work with directors Pedro Almodovar or Alejandro Amenabar.
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Bening makes awards breakthrough	"Film actress Annette Bening is up for an Oscar for her starring role in the award-winning film Being Julia.

Bening, who was born in Texas in 1958, has gained prominence for a string of key roles. Although an Oscar has so far eluded her, her status as one of Hollywood's favourite actresses remains solid. One of the biggest Oscars buzzes in recent years was for Bening's role as troubled Carolyn Burnham in 1999's American Beauty. But her deliciously neurotic portrayal of surburban life turning sour was overlooked in favour of Hilary Swank's leading role in Boys Don't Cry. After opening her career in the theatre - and gaining a Tony Award nomination in 1986 - Bening had a low-key spell in television. She then made her film debut as a sex-starved wife in 1988's The Great Outdoors, opposite comics Dan Akroyd and John Candy.

Following a cameo in Postcards From The Edge, Bening's breakthrough role came in 1990, playing seductive con artist Myra Langtry in The Grifters - a role that won her an Oscar nomination. Despite some rave reviews, Bening did not win the best supporting actress Academy Award.

However the high-profile performance enabled Bening to capture roles in a number of big budget Hollywood productions, co-starring with some of Hollywood's greatest players, including Robert De Niro and Harrison Ford. But it was her role opposite Warren Beatty in 1991 gangster flick Bugsy which had the greatest impact. Bening played Virginia Hill, another role which won her high critical acclaim, but the film only picked up two of a staggering 12 Oscar nominations.

Bugsy was the start of a very significant liaison for Bening - she married Beatty, with whom she had a child as the couple promoted the film in Europe. The couple now have four children together. A pair of contrasting yet successful performances peppered Bening's career in the mid-1990s. She played Michael Douglas' opposite number in romantic comedy The American President, and as a ""fiery"" Queen Elizabeth I in a contemporary adaptation of Shakespeare's Richard III.

Bening was the first choice to play the female lead in American Beauty, director Sam Mendes' film debut which was a critical and commercial success - but the actress had to be content with a Bafta award for her strong performance. But current film Being Julia has made Bening an award-winning actress rather than the perennial nominee, with success at the Golden Globes. The witty tale of revenge and love set in 1930s London sees the eponymous theatrical diva - played by Bening - grow tired of her success and fall for a young American - and could be the role which finally wins her the coveted Academy Award.
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Oscars steer clear of controversy	"The Oscars nominations list has left out some of the most controversial films of the past year in favour of safer, less contentious cinema.

If best film nominees were drawn on the basis of column inches, two of the front-runners would have had to be Michael Moore's Bush-baiting documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 and Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. Both films polarised opinion but had critics talking, and the public turning up to see them - Fahrenheit 9/11 breaking US box office records for a documentary, and The Passion of the Christ making more than US$370m (£196m) in the US alone. But this year's Academy Awards have shied away from the big name controversies, with The Passion of the Christ - a film accused of being anti-Semitic - receiving nominations only in the 'minor' categories of cinematography, makeup and musical score.

Fahrenheit 9/11 has also been overlooked, despite winning the Palme d'Or at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2004.

Moore's caustic documentary may have been affected by its distributors' decision to enter it in the best picture category, rather than best documentary, says Tim Dams, the news editor of trade magazine Screen International. But he also believes the strong political viewpoint of Moore's film does not sit well with the Academy. ""If you look at past Oscar winners and nominees, the very conservative Oscar voters tend to go for very conservative, epic-style pictures. Fahrenheit 9/11 didn't really fit in to that category. ""They tend to go for films like Titanic, Gladiator, and the Lord of the Rings, films with scale that often aren't too contentious,"" he said. While he said the Oscar voting panel were not ""snubbing"" Moore's film, he thought it was unlikely a documentary could ever seriously compete in a best film category. ""I think it's more a misjudgement by the people putting it out rather than a deliberate snub,"" he said.

The problem with Mel Gibson's film, he believed, was that the voting panel may have been cautious in nominating a film with dialogue in Aramaic, an ancient Middle Eastern language.

""Hollywood doesn't tend to like foreign-language films - no-one's ever tried doing a film in a dead language,"" he said. But aside from these two films, some potentially contentious pictures have won nominations. The German film The Downfall, a biopic tracing the final days of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler in his Berlin bunker, has been recognised in the best foreign film category. The film has caused some controversy in showing Hitler as a fallible but human man, rather than a semi-mythical, historical monster. But Mr Dams said: ""It's not an inflammatory film. It has done very well in Germany, and it's a film that portrays Hitler as a human rather than some kind of devil or monster."" Another 'contentious' film, Mr Dams said, has gained a nomination in the best documentary section through the force of its charm.

Independent film-maker Morgan Spurlock may have forced fast-food giant McDonalds to withdraw its 'super size' portions in the US after he went on a month-long diet eating nothing but McDonalds meals - and filmed his progress.

The film has been a hit around the world. Mr Dams said: ""It's a political film, but it's quite fun and punky and well-paced. ""Morgan Spurlock is a really likeable guy. It's a very accessible film, and it doesn't beat you over the head with its views. ""While in Fahrenheit 9/11 there are moments of comedy, I think the way that Super Size Me is put together - the fact it's a very likeable film - means it's won through on charm."" Dam's pick at this year's Oscars? The Aviator, Martin Scorsese's biopic of aviation pioneer and Hollywood player Howard Hughes. Tinseltown, it seems, likes nothing more than a picture about one of its own.
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Kidman wins photographer battle	"Actress Nicole Kidman has won a restraining order against two paparazzi photographers who she claims left her fearful of leaving her Sydney mansion.

The Oscar-winning star took action against Jamie Fawcett and Ben McDonald after a bugging device was found outside her home earlier this week. Lawyers for the pair denied allegations they had planted the device. The Australian actress is currently in Sydney to film her latest movie, Eucalyptus, with Russell Crowe. Kidman was prompted to take action following a reported high-speed car chase with members of the paparazzi in Sydney last weekend.

According to local newspaper the Daily Telegraph, the incident involved paparazzi driving through red lights and on the wrong side of the road in pursuit of Kidman's vehicle. Lawyers for Mr Fawcett and Mr McDonald denied that the pair were involved in the chase. Kidman sought the ""apprehended violence"" orders - normally used in Australia in cases of domestic violence and similar incidents - after being advised to do so by local police. ""Nicole would like to make it clear that she acknowledges she is a public figure and that reporters and photographers have a job to do and she respects that,"" said Kidman's publicist Wendy Day. ""However, these are specific actions against two individuals who, over a period of time, have caused her to feel threatened, intimidated and unable to leave her home without fearing for her safety."" Magistrate Lee Gilmore, who issued the restraining order at Waverley Local Court in Sydney, said she understood the photographers were entitled to earn a living but there had to be limits to their behaviour. ""Miss Kidman says she's willing to put up with some of it, but it's gone beyond that,"" she said. ""I do believe the allegation in relation to the driving is a serious issue.""
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Bookmakers back Aviator for Oscar	"The Aviator has been tipped by UK bookmakers as the favourite to win the best film award at this year's Oscars.

Ray star Jamie Foxx is clear favourite in the best actor category while Million Dollar Baby's Hilary Swank is tipped to win the best actress prize. Bookmakers predict Cate Blanchett will be named best supporting actress. William Hill and Ladbrokes have given The Aviator 4/9 and 8/13 odds of winning best film, with Million Dollar Baby in second place at 9/4.

Bet Direct and Bet 365 also tip The Aviator, with the majority of bookmakers regarding Finding Neverland as the outsider. The Aviator is also widely tipped to win the best director prize for Martin Scorsese. British star Clive Owen is second favourite at William Hill to take the best supporting actor award, for his performance in Closer. The favourite in that category is Sideways star Thomas Hayden Church. Vera Drake star Imelda Staunton has 5/1 odds of winning the best actress Oscar at Bet 365 and William Hill, ahead of fellow UK star Kate Winslet who has odds of 25/1 at William Hill.

Mike Leigh is the outsider in the best director category for Vera Drake, a position he holds jointly with Ray's Taylor Hackford at bookmakers VC Bet. This year's Academy Awards will be handed out in Hollywood on 27 February. X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne will present Sky television's live coverage of the event. Meanwhile, Clive Owen's best supporting actor nomination has led a bookmaker to shorten his odds of becoming the next James Bond. He has moved from 4/1 to 5/2 favourite to play 007, with Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor joint second favourite. ""Clive Owen's nomination has sparked a betting frenzy from James Bond fans, who feel that his heightened global recognition will have done his chances of becoming the next Bond a world of good,"" said William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams.
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Van Gogh festival film withdrawn	"Murdered director Theo van Gogh's controversial film Submission has been pulled from the Rotterdam Film Festival because of security fears.

It was one of three of his works to be shown as part of a freedom of expression event in tribute to the late film-maker's life. The film is critical of the treatment of women under Islam. Its TV screening is thought to have led to his murder. The 10-day Dutch festival begins on Wednesday. Submission was made with liberal Somali-Dutch politician Ayaan Hirsi Ali and was due to be shown on 30 January. Van Gogh was shot and stabbed to death in November 2004 several months after receiving death threats following Submission's first broadcast on Dutch television. Two of Van Gogh's other films will be shown as planned, including the theatrical world premiere of his last feature 06/05.

Festival director Sandra den Hamer said: ""The festival reflects what happens around us and within cinema itself."" The festival opens with the French film The 10th District Court, Moments of Trials made by Raymond Depardon. The event sees 14 films competing to win three Top Tiger Awards which aim to introduce promising new talent. New sections added to this year's festival include Cinema of the Future and Cinema of the World, with special focus on Russian and south-east Asian productions. There is also an Iraqi-German offering entitled Underexposure, which looks at life in Iraq after Saddam Hussein.
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Douglas set for Indian adventure	"Actor Michael Douglas is to co-produce and star in an adventure film about a diamond robbery set in India.

The new picture is expected to be similar to Douglas's action films of the 1980s, Romancing The Stone and The Jewel Of The Nile. Another Hollywood star is being lined up to co-star, while the rest of the cast will be Indian. Aishwarya Rai, star of Bride and Prejudice, is the ""preferred choice"" of the Indian studio involved in the film.

On a visit to India, the 60-year-old actor said he hoped to start shooting Racing The Monsoon next year. Douglas added that it had been inspired by a Wall Street Journal article about India's 'angadias', who courier money and diamonds around India.

The actor's own production company, Further Films, is working in partnership with two Indian film-making concerns to bring the picture to the screen. Shailendra Singh, the founder of India's Percept Films, said there would be ""a lot of India"" in the movie - and that an Indian train would play a big role. ""The train will be a crucial part of the film. The chase and most of the stunts will be on the train,"" said Mr Singh. Swashbuckling adventure film Romancing The Stone saw Douglas's female co-star Kathleen Turner win a Golden Globe award for her performance in 1985.
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Russian film wins BBC world prize	"Russian drama The Return (Vozvrashchenie) has been named winner of the BBC Four World Cinema Award.

The film tells the story of two adolescent boys who are subjected to a harsh regime when their strict father returns after a 10-year absence. Directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev, The Return previously won the 2003 Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was presented at an awards ceremony held in London on Thursday and hosted by Jonathan Ross. The winner was chosen by a panel which included X Files actress Gillian Anderson, critic Roger Clarke and Touching the Void director Kevin McDonald.

Ross, who is the presenter of BBC One's Film 2005, was also involved in the deliberations. A shortlist of six films from around the world had been drawn up from which the panel chose. Other nominees included the Motorcycle Diaries, Zatoichi and Hero. A viewer poll saw director Zhang Yimou's martial arts epic Hero emerge as the favourite with 32% of votes cast. Tragedy struck the production of The Return when one of the young stars, 15-year-old Vladimir Girin, drowned in a lake. The winner of the World Cinema Award last year was the French animated feature Belleville Rendezvous
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Incredibles win animation awards	"The Incredibles movie has beaten Shrek 2 to the main prizes at Hollywood's animation awards, the Annies.

The superhero film was named best animated feature while Brad Bird won best director, writer and voice actor for his role as designer Edna Mode. The Incredibles won a total of 10 awards - but Shrek 2, which had seven nominations, went home empty-handed. The two movies will compete with Shark Tale in the best animated film category of the Oscars at the end of February.

The Incredibles' awards came despite Shrek 2's greater box office success. Shrek 2 took $881m (£468m) around the world, compared with $576m (£306m) for The Incredibles. SpongeBob SquarePants was named best animated TV show while TV comedy King of the Hill picked up two prizes including one for actress Brittany Murphy's voice work. Tom Kenny, who provides the voice for SpongeBob SquarePants, hosted Sunday's ceremony at the Alex Theater, Los Angeles. The awards are handed out by the International Animated Film Society. Finding Nemo won nine Annies last year.
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Actor Scott is new Bond favourite	"Bookmaker William Hill has stopped taking bets on who will be the next James Bond, following a succession of large wagers on actor Dougray Scott.

The firm closed the book on Friday, saying ""insider information"" could have contributed to the number of bets. ""In the past gambles like this have often been right,"" William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said. The closing list gave Scott odds of 6-9, followed by Oscar nominee Clive Owen at 5-2. Scott first found fame in the TV series Soldier Soldier and has since then starred in such films as Mission Impossible II and the wartime drama Enigma.

Mr Adams said one punter had placed a bet of £870 on the 39-year-old actor at odds of 8-1. ""She told us she had some inside information, perhaps she knew he had been to a casting, but she wouldn't say,"" he said. Others thought to be in the running include Star Wars actor Ewan McGregor and Australian star Hugh Jackman, both of whom have odds of 4-1. Colin Farrell, Jude Law and Troy star Eric Bana have also been tipped for the role in the past.

A large number of bets on actor Colin Salmon to become the first black James Bond were dismissed as a publicity stunt a month ago. The next Bond film, originally due for release in 2005, has been delayed until 2006 due to Sony's takeover of the MGM studio. The most recent, Die Another Day, was released in late 2002 and saw Pierce Brosnan make his final appearance as the secret agent. The actor was originally due to make a fifth appearance as Bond, but was released from his contract in 2004.
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Singer's film to show at festival	"A documentary which takes a candid look at the life of chart-topping singer George Michael will be shown at this year's Berlin Film Festival.

A Different Story will screen in the Panorama section of the festival, which runs from 10-20 February. It features the singer talking about both his career and his personal life, from his days in Wham! through to more recent events. Michael will attend the festival to introduce the screening on 16 February. Director Southan Morris and executive producer Andy Stephens will also attend the festival.

The 93 minute film will see Michael discussing his early days in Wham! along with his later career, including his legal battles with record label Sony and his stance against the Iraq war and American politics. It will also touch upon his turbulent personal life, including his arrest in a Beverly Hills park toilet in 1998 for ""lewd behaviour"", and the death of his boyfriend Anselmo Feleppa from Aids. The film, which includes previously unseen footage of the singer also features contributions from Michael's former Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley, as well as ex-Wham! backing singers Pepsi and Shirlie. Other contributors include Sting, Mariah Carey, Elton John, Noel Gallagher, Geri Halliwell and Simon Cowell. This year's festival will open with Man To Man, a historical epic starring Joseph Fiennes and Kristin Scott-Thomas. It will be one of 21 films competing for the festival's top prize, the Golden Bear. Other films in competition will include The Life Aquatic, a quirky comedy starring Bill Murray, and the biopic Kinsey, which features Liam Neeson. The full programme will be announced on 1 February.
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De Niro film leads US box office	"Film star Robert De Niro has returned to the top of the North American box office with his film Hide and Seek.

The thriller shot straight to the number one spot after taking $22m (£11.7m) at the box office. De Niro recently spent three weeks at the top with comedy Meet The Fockers, which was at number five this week. Oscar hopefuls The Aviator, Million Dollar Baby and Sideways all cashed in on their multiple nominations with stronger ticket sales.

In Hide and Seek, De Niro plays a widower whose daughter has a creepy imaginary friend. Despite lukewarm reviews from critics, the film took more than the expected $18m (£9.5m). ""The element of a real actor in a psychological thriller certainly elevated it,"" said Bruce Snyder, president of domestic distribution at 20th Century Fox. Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby led the Oscar hopefuls with $11.8m (£6.3m), coming in at number three during its first weekend of wide release. The Aviator, a film biography of Howard Hughes that leads the Oscar field with 11 nominations, was at number six for the weekend with $7.5m (£4m). Oscar best-picture nominee Sideways entered the top ten for the first time in its 15th week of release. It came in seventh $6.3 (£3.35m). Last week's top film, Ice Cube's road-trip comedy Are We There Yet?, slipped to second place with $17m (£9m), while Coach Carter fell two places to number four, taking $8m (£4.25m) in its third week. Rounding out the top ten were In Good Company - starring Dennis Quaid and Scarlett Johansson - Racing Stripes and Assault on Precinct 13.
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Films on war triumph at Sundance	"A study of the United States at war in the past 50 years has picked up one of the main awards at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival in Utah, in the US.

Why We Fight scooped the grand jury prize for documentaries at the world's leading independent film festival. British director Sean McAllister's The Liberace of Baghdad - about a pianist in war-torn Iraq - won a special prize in the world documentary category. Both Why We Fight and The Liberace of Baghdad were made for the BBC. Why We Fight is due to be screened on BBC Four in March.

The Sundance festival was founded by actor Robert Redford in 1981. This year's festival - which ended on Sunday after a 11-day run - has been dominated by the themes of war and politics. In the new world cinema drama category, the Angolan film The Hero triumphed to win the grand jury prize. The film - an Angolan/French/Portuguese production - tells the story of a veteran of the country's civil war who returns home to face a new battle of survival. Twelve films competing in the new world cinema documentary category focused on countries and people under siege.

Finnish film The Three Rooms of Melancholia looks at the war in Chechnya and Shake Hands With The Devil: The Journey of Romeo Dallaire tells the story of a UN mission to Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. But it was Dutch documentary Shape of the Moon - a study of an extended family in Indonesia - which took the top prize. Meanwhile, French-Israeli production Wall, which looks at Israel's controversial security wall separating it from the Palestinian territories, picked up a world cinema special jury prize for documentaries. In the main drama category, Forty Shades of Blue was named winner of the grand jury prize. The film tells the tale of a forbidden tug-of-love between a father, his Russian immigrant girlfriend and his son.

During its 24-year history, the Sundance Film Festival has showcased successes such as Reservoir Dogs, The Blair Witch Project and The Full Monty. Last year's festival provided a platform for hits such as Open Water, Napoleon Dynamite, Garden State and Super-Size Me. The festival is held in the mountain resort of Park City, east of Salt Lake City, which sees its population rise from 7,500 to 45,000 during the festival.
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Career honour for actor DiCaprio	"Actor Leonardo DiCaprio's ""exceptional career"" has been honoured at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

The star was presented with the award by Martin Scorsese, who directed him in Oscar-nominated movie The Aviator. ""It's a lifetime achievement award, which is completely and utterly surreal, given I'm only 30 years old,"" DiCaprio said. ""But what has it been? Almost 17 years now. I've done quite a few films."" A retrospective of his movies was shown.

""What's really exciting, for me, is that this is what I really love doing,"" he added. ""It's what I want to do for the rest of my life."" DiCaprio began his movie career in horror film Critters 3, before moving onto roles in The Basketball Diaries, Romeo and Juliet, Titanic and Gangs of New York. The achievement award was created to commemorate the California festival's 20th anniversary and coincided with DiCaprio's portrayal of millionaire Howard Hughes in The Aviator.

Veteran actress Jane Russell, who starred in Hughes' 1943 film The Outlaw, said was impressed by DiCaprio's quest for authenticity when he previously discussed the role with her. ""I was very happy that (DiCaprio) came and cared to come up and find out what (Hughes) was really like,"" she said. The Aviator has taken pole position in this year's Oscars race with 11 nominations, including nominations for best film, best actor for DiCaprio and best director for Scorsese.
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Howl helps boost Japan's cinemas	"Japan's box office received a 3.8% boost last year, with ticket sales worth 211bn yen (£1.08bn).

The surge was led by animated movie Howl's Moving Castle, which took 20bn yen (£102m) to become the biggest film in Japan in 2004. It is expected to match the 30.7bn yen (£157m) record of Hayao Miyazaki's previous film Spirited Away. Japan Motion Picture Producers figures showed that 170 million cinema admissions were made in Japan in 2004. The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise, was the biggest foreign movie hit in Japan last year, taking 13.8bn yen (£70.7m).

It was followed by Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Finding Nemo and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The second highest-grossing Japanese film was romantic drama Crying Out Love in the Centre of the World, followed by Be With You and Pocket Monsters Advanced Generation. Japanese films accounted for 37.5% of Japan's box office total last year, with foreign films taking the remaining 62.5%. This represented a 4.5% gain for the proportion of Japanese films in 2004 compared to 2003. The number of Japanese films released rose to 310 in 2004 from 287 the previous year. Sales of movies on DVD and video amounted to 497bn yen (£2.54bn) for the year.
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Keanu Reeves given Hollywood star	"Actor Keanu Reeves, best known for his role in the Matrix movies, has been awarded a star on the prestigious Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The 40-year-old attended the unveiling of the star with his mother, Patricia, and thanked her for inspiring him to become an actor. ""When I was 15 years old I asked my mom if it was OK to be an actor,"" Reeves said. ""She said: 'Whatever you want'."" His star is the 2,277th to be embedded in the pavement on Hollywood Boulevard.

The actor, who was born in the Lebanese capital Beirut, also spoke of how he dropped out of school to pursue an acting career. ""Hollywood was calling,"" he said, ""So I got in my car, a 1969 British racing green Volvo with holes in the floor and bricks holding up the seats. I was a young man full of hopes and dreams."" Reeves first found fame in the teen comedy Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, and went on to combine such blockbusters as Speed, The Devil's Advocate and the Matrix series, with smaller films including My Own Private Idaho. More recently he was seen in Something's Gotta Give alongside Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. His next film, the supernatural thriller Constantine, is released in the US later this month and opens in the UK in March.
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De Niro completes box office coup	"Robert De Niro has completed a transatlantic box office double by topping the UK and US film charts with two different films at the same time.

Comedy sequel Meet the Fockers, in which he stars with Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, shot to the top of the UK chart at the weekend. It took £7.2m in three days - eight times more than the number two, Closer. Assault on Precinct 13 was in third. At the same time, US audiences were won over by his new thriller Hide and Seek. In Meet the Fockers, he picks up the role of an uptight father and ex-CIA agent from 2000 hit comedy, Meet the Parents.

It is a big leap to his role in Hide and Seek, a supernatural horror in which he plays a widower whose daughter's imaginary friend turns nasty. In the UK box office chart, Meet the Fockers pushed Closer off the top spot while police action movie Assault On Precinct 13, starring rapper Ja Rule, made £750,000 in its first weekend. London Underground thriller Creep was another new entry at six while quirky comedy Sideways, which got five Oscar nominations last week, entered in eighth place. The Oscar nominations do not seem to have had an impact on fans' choices at cinemas. Leading contenders The Aviator, Million Dollar Baby and Ray all suffered substantial drops in takings compared with the previous weekend.
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Day-Lewis set for Berlin honour	"Actor Daniel Day-Lewis is to be presented with an award for his career in film at the Berlin Film Festival.

The 47-year-old, whose credits include his Oscar-winning performance in My Left Foot, will be presented with the Berlinale Camera award on 15 February. The honour, awarded since 1986, honours figures in cinema that the festival feels ""particularly indebted to"". Man to Man, a historical epic starring Kristin Scott Thomas, opens the German festival on 10 February. A candid documentary about the life and career of singer George Michael, A Different Story will also be screened at the 10-day event. '

Day-Lewis has competed four times at the Berlin Film Festival, with films In The Name Of The Father (1994), The Crucible (1997), The Boxer (1998) and Martin Scorsese's Gangs Of New York (2003). The festival praises him for his ""sensational start"" with roles in My Beautiful Launderette and costume classic A Room With A View, and a ""great number of celebrated roles"" in subsequent productions. Japan's oldest film studio will also be honoured along with Day-Lewis. Shochiku film studios, which was founded 110 years ago, will become the first cinematic institution to receive the Berlinale Camera award. Famous Japanese directors including Akira Kurosawa have had films produced at the studio.
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US composer recreates Bach score	"A US musicologist has recreated a lost musical score by German composer Johann Sebastian Bach.

The 1728 composition, called Wedding Cantata BWV 216, was found among the papers of Japanese pianist Chieko Hara, who died in Japan in 2001 aged 86. The work, written for the wedding of a daughter of a German customs official, was missing for 80 years. Joshua Rifkin - a composer and leading interpreter of Bach - has recreated the missing instrumental parts.

He said he originally wanted to let the lost cantata lie in rest. ""Maybe a fragment should stay a fragment,"" said Rifkin. ""Then I thought of palaeontologists, from one bone they figure the entire dinosaur. This is my dinosaur."" The eight rediscovered pages consist of vocal pieces in German for soprano and alto, with the seven movements lasting for a total of between 20 and 25 minutes. The instrumental parts were entirely lost except for two recycled movements, a duet and an aria which had been used elsewhere in Bach's work. Rifkin likened the challenge to a ""musical Rubik's cube"". ""I could not reconstruct what Bach wrote but I could give the people of today an idea of what his music was like,"" he said. ""It sounds like Bach's music, but the listener should not know which part is Bach's and which part is mine.""
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Applegate's Charity show closes	"US musical Sweet Charity has cancelled its run on Broadway after poor ticket sales for its early shows.

Star Christina Applegate had to pull out of pre-Broadway performances earlier this month with a broken foot. Producer Barry Weissler said he was ""deeply proud"" of the show, but said the decision to close it was ""painful but fiscally responsible"". Applegate, who starred in TV comedy Married With Children, had been hoping to make her Broadway debut in the show. The 33-year-old injured herself while performing in Chicago, and had been hoping to recover in time for its official New York opening on 21 April. She had received mixed reviews for performances in Minneapolis and Chicago. Previews of the $7.5m (£4m) show were due to begin on 4 April. Sweet Charity tells the story of Charity Hope Valentine, a dancer who always falls in love with the wrong man. It was first performed on Broadway in 1966 with Gwen Verdon in the title role, while Shirley MacLaine starred in the 1969 film version.
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Ray Charles studio becomes museum	"A museum dedicated to the career of the late legendary singer Ray Charles is to open in his former recording studio in Los Angeles.

His longtime publicist Jerry Digney said the museum would house ""archive materials from recordings, to awards, to ephemera, to wardrobe"". A tour bus used by Charles and his entourage over the years will also be on permanent display. It is hoped the museum will be ready for visitors in late 2007.

Mr Digney said the recording studio and offices had been used by Charles for many years, and was where he recorded much of his last album, Genius Loves Company. It is hoped the museum will also house an education centre. The building had been declared a historic landmark by the city of Los Angeles just before Charles' death in June 2004 at the age of 73. Following his death, Charles won eight Grammy Awards, including album of the year for Genius Loves Company, a collection of duets.
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Britney attacks 'false tabloids'	"Pop star Britney Spears has attacked ""false"" and ""desperate"" US tabloid magazines, questioning their honesty after they reported she was pregnant.

In a letter on her website, the singer named celebrity tabloids Us Weekly, In Touch and Star as the worst offenders. ""Until you face what is going on in your life, I guess you'll remain a false tabloid,"" the 23-year-old wrote. Stories about the state of her marriage to Kevin Federline and rumours about a pregnancy have recently appeared. But the chart-topping singer's letter did not shed any further light on those stories. In February, Spears clashed with Us Weekly for publishing pictures of her honeymoon in Fiji without permission. The couple, who married in Los Angeles last September, claimed staff took photographs of them which were later sold.

They said they allowed the pictures to be taken after they were assured they would only be used for a private scrapbook, which they later received as a souvenir. Us magazine was unrepentant about their decision to publish, saying: ""Britney should start her own magazine if she'd like to dictate her own coverage."" ""Coming from a celebrity who sold pictures of both her wedding and her stepdaughter, it's unlikely the issue here is privacy,"" they added. Spears claimed that other magazines were approached with the pictures but chose to contact her instead.
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Abba queen enters music rich list	"The woman behind the Abba musical Mamma Mia! has joined a list of British-based music millionaires.

Producer Judy Craymer is the highest new entry in the Sunday Times' music rich list, with a £67m fortune. Ms Craymer remortgaged her home to finance her idea of a musical based around Abba's hits, which has since become a global triumph. Teenage soul singer Joss Stone is a new entry on a list of Britain's young music millionaires with £5m.

Ms Craymer, who developed Mamma Mia! with playwright Catherine Johnson and members of Abba, is at number 31 on the music rich list. But taking the top spot for a second year is former record label boss Clive Calder, whose wealth has risen to £1.3bn. Mr Calder is the man behind acts including Britney Spears. He made his fortune by selling his independent label Zomba to record giant BMG. Former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney is second on the list with £800m - up £40m on last year. Andrew Lloyd-Webber's wealth rose an estimated £300m on last year, to £700m, while theatre impresario Sir Cameron Mackintosh's fortune rose from £340m to £400m.

His recent hits have included the West End show Mary Poppins. But Pop Idol mogul Simon Fuller has seen his wealth plummet from £220m last year to £75m after selling his entertainment company 19 for less than expected, according to the Sunday Times. Joss Stone, the 17-year-old soul singer from Devon, was a new entry in the young music millionaires list. The list also features Charlotte Church, Coldplay, Daniel Bedingfield, Will Young and David and Victoria Beckham. At number one is Dhani Harrison, son of the late Beatle George Harrison, who has inherited £140m. The Beckhams - who qualify thanks to Victoria's former singing career - are in second place with £75 million between them - up £10m on last year.
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Casino Royale is next Bond movie	"Casino Royale, author Ian Fleming's first James Bond book, is to be the next Bond film, with Goldeneye director Martin Campbell behind the camera.

It will be the 21st James Bond film to hit the big screen, and speculation has been rife over who will play the lead. Casino Royale was turned into a spoof spy movie by John Huston in 1967, with David Niven in the lead role. Pierce Brosnan led the past four Bond films but said producers axed him after offering him the chance to return. Among the favourites to take over the coveted role are Scottish actor Dougray Scott, Oscar nominee Clive Owen and Australian star Hugh Jackman. Producers say no decision has yet been made on who will become the seventh actor, including Niven, to play Bond on film. Kill Bill director Quentin Tarantino had talked of wanting to take on the Casino Royale project, and said he had spoken to Brosnan about it.

Shooting on Casino Royale is expected to begin once Campbell has finished work on The Legend of Zorro, a sequel to The Mask of Zorro, starring Catherine Zeta Jones and Antonio Banderas. Producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson expect the film to be released in 2006.

The script will once again be developed by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade who have both worked on two previous Bond movies. Fleming's book saw the introduction of Bond pitted against a Russian spy in a game of baccarat. Simultaneously, a woman arrives on the scene to take his eye off the game. The novel is one of Fleming's most violent and sadistic stories, with 007 suffering a savage beating from his nemesis Le Chiffre. In addition to the 1967 film, it was also adapted for television in 1954 with actor Barry Nelson as an Americanised ""Jimmy"" Bond. MGM Vice Chairman Chris McGurk said: ""Martin (Campbell) is an incredibly exciting film-maker. Goldeneye was a wonderful movie and helped reinvigorate the Bond franchise. We're thrilled to have him back to direct the newest Bond."" New Zealand-born Campbell moved to the UK in 1966 and directed TV series such as The Professionals, Minder and Bergerac. His film credits include Edge of Darkness, Vertical Limit and Beyond Borders, which starred Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen.
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Berlin celebrates European cinema	"Organisers say this year's Berlin Film Festival, which opens on Thursday with period epic Man to Man, will celebrate a revitalised European cinema.

Of the 21 films in competition for the Golden and Silver Bear awards, more than half are from Europe with France particularly well represented. Festival director Dieter Kosslick says this strong showing signals ""a new consciousness for European films"". ""They're on an incredible winning streak,"" he told the Reuters agency. ""This isn't to say there aren't any good American films,"" he continued. ""It's just that there are more good European films.""

However, Mr Kosslick refused to accept that widespread opposition to the Iraq war had turned audiences against Hollywood imports. ""There is no anti-American mood,"" he said. Some 350 films will be screened at this year's festival, with a further 300 shown at the European Film Market that runs alongside it. More than a dozen celebrities are scheduled to attend, among them Will Smith, Kevin Spacey and Keanu Reeves. But Mr Kosslick says more would be coming had the Academy Awards not been brought forward to 27 February. ""I'm not worried that we won't be able to fill the red carpet with stars,"" he said, though he admitted the festival may be moved to January next year to avoid a similar clash. The 10-day Berlinale runs until 20 February.
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India to deport Bollywood actress	"India has ordered the deportation of Iranian-born model and actress Negar Khan to Norway after saying she was working illegally on her visa.

Khan has had raunchy roles in music videos and Bollywood films over the past two years. The distressed actress told media she was being driven straight to the airport after a routine appointment at the Bombay immigration office. Immigration officials said she had been warned about her visa last year.

Khan told an Indian news channel on her mobile phone: ""They are not even letting me go home to get my bags. I have no clothes or money on me. ""They did not give me any notice. I don't know why they are taking me away like this. There is nothing wrong with my visa. It says I work here... They are not allowing me to even call a lawyer."" Bipin Bihari, deputy police chief in Bombay, said Khan was being sent back to Norway, from which she holds a passport, on the first available flight. ""She was on a visitor's visa but she has engaged in several commercial ventures,"" he said. ""We issued notices last year, in view of which she had gone back to Norway, but she has returned again this year to work."" One of Khan's biggest successes was the steamy Hindi song Chadti Jawani (Rising Youth). Khan was involved in controversy when topless photos alleged to be of her appeared in a Norwegian magazine.
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Ray DVD beats box office takings	"Oscar-nominated film biopic Ray has surpassed its US box office takings with a combined tally of $80m (£43m) from DVD and video sales and rentals.

Ray's success on DVD outstripped its $74m (£40m) US box office total, earning more than $40m (£22m) on the first day of the DVD's release alone. Ray has been nominated in six Oscar categories including best film and best actor for Jamie Foxx. The film recounts the life of blues singer Ray Charles, who died in 2004. In its first week on home entertainment release the film was the number one selling DVD, with the limited edition version coming in at number 11. Sony horror film The Grudge, starring Michelle Gellar, was the US' second best-selling DVD, with Jennifer Lopez and Richard Gere's romantic comedy Shall We Dance? at number three. Foxx's critically acclaimed performance as Ray has already earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award for best actor, as well as a prestigious Golden Globe. Ray director Taylor Hackford, responsible for the classic 1982 film An Officer and a Gentleman, has also received an Oscar nomination in the best director category. The film's three other Oscar nominations are for costume, film editing and sound mixing.
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Women in film 'are earning less'	"Women in the UK film industry earn less than their male counterparts despite being better qualified, according to a study released on Wednesday.

Only 16% of women earn more than £50,000, compared with 30% of men. Women make up a third of the workforce. The research was carried out jointly by the UK Film Council and industry training body Skillset. It also found that women in the industry were less likely than men to be married or have dependant children.

The study, which claims to be the most in-depth so far conducted, found 60% of women in the film industry hold degrees, compared with 39% of men. Whilst 17% of men in the industry had no qualifications, this was true for only five per cent of women. In the lower salary bracket, 35% of women earn less than £20,000 a year, compared to only 18% of men. The research found very few women worked in the camera, sound, electrical and construction departments, but they made up a majority of those working in make-up and hairdressing.

UK Film Council chief executive John Woodward said: ""Whilst the UK has benefited hugely from its highly-qualified film production workforce there are still many barriers facing people who want to get in and stay in the industry."" ""Developing the film production workforce must be underpinned with a commitment to diversity as well as training."" The workforce is largely focused around London, with 78% in the industry based in the capital and the south east of England. The industry depends heavily on word of mouth, with 81% being recruited in that way. In total, only five percent of the workforce is made up of ethnic minorities, although in London the figure rises to 24%. The necessity of completing unpaid work experience to get into the workforce has also shot up, from 5% before the 1980s, to 45% after 2000.
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Vera Drake's Bafta triumph hope	"At the Bafta film awards on Saturday night, there is the prospect that a home-grown movie could walk off with a clutch of trophies.

Vera Drake, Mike Leigh's tale about a 1950s backstreet abortionist, is nominated in 11 categories. These include best film, best director and best actress shortlist for Imelda Staunton who plays the eponymous character. The film has spent months being lauded with prizes, from the Venice Film Festival to five awards from the London Critics' Circle on Wednesday night.

The Baftas has a tradition of honouring British cinema, and this year Vera Drake is the obvious candidate to be heaped with praise. Empire magazine's reviews editor Dan Jolin said the film had ""a very good chance"" of doing well on Saturday, predicting that it would collect five or six awards. ""I don't think it's going to do a Lord of the Rings-style sweep, but Imelda Staunton is a shoo-in for best actress,"" he said.

""A best director prize for Mike Leigh and best British film are also likely and it could steal some awards from heavily-nominated competitors The Aviator and Finding Neverland."" Mr Jolin tipped another contender - most likely The Aviator - to walk away with the Bafta for best film, and added that Finding Neverland had been lavished with nominations but not trophies. Strong Oscar contenders Million Dollar Baby and Sideways did not figure in the Bafta nominations, giving Vera Drake greater potential to walk away with the big prizes.

""There is a sense that this film is ours and we should slap our own guys on the back. Out of all the films in the running for the Baftas, Vera Drake is the true blue British one.""

""If Mike Leigh is going to win awards for anything, it should be Vera Drake at this year's Baftas"", said Mr Jolin, adding that the film was probably his most technically accomplished and lavish work yet. Mr Jolin also tipped Phil Davis for a best supporting actor prize for his role in Vera Drake but felt that Heather Craney could be outdone by Kate Winslet or Natalie Portman in the supporting actress category. ""If there is anywhere where this film is going to win, it will be at the Baftas,"" he said.

The Guardian's film critic Peter Bradshaw felt that there ""might well be"" a sweep of awards for Vera Drake on Saturday night. ""I hope that Bafta voters will respond to the extremely high standard of acting from the whole cast of the film. If Bafta can't do so, what hope is there?"" he said. Mr Bradshaw felt that Mike Leigh's ""masterpiece"" was entitled to the best film award - leaving Dead Man's Shoes, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, My Summer of Love and Shaun of the Dead to slug it out for the best British film trophy. ""I will be cheering if Vera Drake wins a whole host of awards,"" he added.
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Roundabout continues nostalgia trip	"The new big-screen version of The Magic Roundabout, released in the UK on Friday, is the latest attempt to turn children's television into box-office gold.

Recent years have seen a less-than-successful adaptation of the 1960s puppet show Thunderbirds and a moderately successful version of E Nesbit's Five Children and It, previously filmed by the BBC in 1991. He-Man and Transformers, which were cartoon favourites in the 1980s, will soon receive their own costly makeovers. With screen versions of The A-Team, The Dukes of Hazzard and even Blake's Seven on the cards, nostalgia is clearly big business. But some critics complain that these expensive takes on iconic series of yesteryear do not match up to our fond memories of the originals. The new version of The Magic Roundabout, which will be released as Sprung! in the US, replaces the stop-motion models of the 1960s TV show with polished, computer-generated animation.

In a similar fashion, the 2004 Thunderbirds used human actors and special effects in place of the original's puppets and models. The films are squarely pitched at younger audiences. Pop stars Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue provide voices in The Magic Roundabout, while the now-defunct boy band Busted performed the Thunderbirds theme song. But while some reviewers have been won over, there has nonetheless been a significant backlash. ""This CG-animated adventure airbrushes the sly charm and trippy otherworldliness which made the 60s stop-motion Roundabout a cult hit,"" writes Stella Papamichael on the BBC Movies site.

And the recent puppet comedy Team America: World Police was in part provoked by its directors' outrage that Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds was remade without its signature mannequins. Dan Jolin, reviews editor of Empire magazine, says classic children's TV shows have a built-in audience that make them ideal for reinvention.

""I can understand why people are taking these intellectual properties and repackaging them for the kids of today. ""But I think it's backfiring. What's next - The Clangers on some distant planet, with some giant CGI Soup Dragons chasing after them?"" Despite Thunderbirds' disappointing global box-office performance - the film cost $42m (£22m) but only recouped $21m (£11m) - the nostalgia craze shows no signs of abating. It can therefore be only a matter of time before some other TV favourites receive the Hollywood treatment.

After the success of Garfield: The Movie, Britain's shabby tabby

surely deserves his own film vehicle. With only 13 episodes made of the 1974 series, there is plenty of room to explore the lives of the pink cat, Professor Yaffle and the Mice of the Marvellous Mechanical Mouse Organ.

Furry recyclers

have already had one big-screen outing - 1977's Wombling Free. But with environmental issues still occupying our thoughts it is high time they made a comeback. Advances in special effects technology could do wonders for the BBC's supernatural comedy

. And the success of Pirates of the Caribbean must surely herald a comeback for TV's most popular cartoon buccaneer,

. It might also remind viewers the lewd character names often associated with the show never actually existed.

The Magic Roundabout is out in the UK on 11 February.



How about bringing Catweazle to the big screen? He could give Gandalf a run for his money!

Thundercats!! I loved it. Should be fun to see on the big screen, if some effort is put in! it will bring my youth back!

Get your hands off the Clangers! Is nothing sacred?

Make a movie version of the Banana splits!

What about Keanu Reeves and Richard Gere in a remake of The Wooden Tops? Or perhaps Robbie Williams could get his much mooted acting career off the ground by taking on the role of Andy Pandy.

You forgot to mention the grearest of them all, Danger Mouse! But then again, it couldn't be better than the original series, could it?

It's always nice to see these old toons re-released, but after the abysmal Thunderbirds movie (and the song!) I think I've been completely put off. Just leave these classics alone as good memories.

I think remakes are a good idea. As the world moves on people tend to look more and more into the past to things that make them feel safe. I believe this is the whole reason ""retro"" has become so popular. As long as a remake does justice to the original then all it can do is create a wider audience and possibly entice a new generation of persons to enjoy and revive and old series. Personally i'd like to see cartoons such as Transformers, Thundercats and M.A.S.K. get full Hollywood remakes.

Leave them alone, why ruin something that we all have very fond memories of in the first place? The thunderbirds film was apalling, not a patch on the puppet series I grew up with and the Magic Roundabout will never be the same without the voice of Eric Thompson.

Love to see Transformers with real actors and CGI. And make it at least a 15 rating.

Part of the reason for the success of such classics as the Magic Roundabout was that the characters were not the sweet and cuddly creatures that you would expect. They were moody, sarcastic, and rather human. Just looking at the pictures of the animations for the new film show that these characteristics have not been preserved. Dougal never smiled like that! Films of this sort have an unfortunate habit of Disneyfying everthing, and they just lose the real magic that made the show special in the first place.

I have fond memories of Bod (not least of which because I look like him) and would like to see someone attempt to make it into a film. It's got all the right material for an american blockbuster - no plot and no story. Bod would likely be played by Tom Cruise and would undoubtedly have a girlfriend or two.

It's all very well and good remaking these classic TV shows and films with all the latest technology for a 'new' audience, but for me a lot of the original charm is lost when they do this, and seems more like a money making exercise to cash in on the original success of the programme than reinventing or improving it. It maybe that to an audience who have never seen the originals they can watch them without prejudice, but to people who have grown up with all these shows such as Thunderbirds and Magic Roundabout which are part of our childhood, they are never going to live up to expectation. It does pose the question though that with all the long line of remakes being made, are film-makers running out of original ideas?

All I can say is bring back Danger Mouse, probably the greatest kids' show ever. I recently re-watched some episodes and realised that there was a level of humour shown in Danger Mouse that was completely lost on me when I was a child.

There WAS a new Captain Pugwash cartoon made a couple of years back. Again, like so many of these nostalgia programmes, the animation - this time computer created flat-cell like animation - failed to match the original's cut out paper technique for inventiveness, and was woefully inadequate. We live in a sampling world - the music industry has been pludering past decades for inspiration, clipping sounds from 20 years ago is much cheaper and easier that doing something new. Seems that the film and TV is doing the same now - it's just cheaper to take ideas from the past and rework them, rather than being daring and trying something new.

It got to be Mr.Benn. The story line about a man who changes in a fancy dress shop, steps into a door way and appears in another time and place would be amazing! If they got a decent producer and writer the story line could be great. And who to play the lead role? Well if it was a comedy then it would have to be someone like Steve Martin. If its going to be an adventure then Johnny Depp playing a role similar to the Pirates Of The Caribbean Character.

Muffin the Mule perhaps ? After all, grannies and grandpas go to the cinema as well you know!

Why can't the British film industry try making Gerry Anderson's UFO or Captain Scarlet, or Saphire and Steel, or The Tomorrow People.

In today's media, it seems the past is the future. TV shows such as Battlestar Galactica have new remakes, DJ's are sampling or re-working 70's and 80's music. Even computer games from 10-15 years ago are getting modern re-workings. Personally, I think it shows that no one has any originality any more! Why not just leave our misty-eyed nostalgia alone.

Mary, Mungo and Midge. But of course for most of the episodes the lift would be out of order and they would have to use the stairs. Plus would Mary be more of a Vicky Pollard character as she lives in a high rise council block? Yeah but no but I wasn't even there!

I'd like to see Mr. Benn, with Brad Pitt in the title role. Sean Connery could play the mysterious costume shop owner.

It demonstrates a profound lack of imagination in today's film-makers that they continually try to remake and remodel the past in an effort to cash in on nostalgia. There are plany of modern children's book that would make excellent films or TV programmes, why not use them instead of rehashing the past?

Mr. Benn with Rowan Atkinson as the lead.

Would have loved to see Dungeons & Dragons made, but unfortunately the film that it was made into didn't come up to scratch. The only one that isn't to be remade as yet is Thundercats, which I'd like to see.

I'm an expat living in Norway, and I recently went through a period of buying the DVDs of many of my favourite children's programs for my 2 daughters. My dearest wish, however, is to see a feature length version of Noggin the Nog appear on The Big Screen!! Very Scandinavian...

Rainbow!

I believe that Childrens classics should be left well alone, and I will not be surprised if the Magic Roundabout does not do well at the Box Office, especially since it will be going up against The Spongebob Squarepants movie, popular among children because it's original, witty, and modern. The Magic Roundabout will never appeal to the children of today as it did all those many years ago.

How about classics like Chorlton and the Wheelies, Rentaghost, Terrahawks, Bod.....oh the list could go on and on!!!

If a Transformers movie is indeed on the cards then I'll be the first one on Amazon buying a copy, eagerly waiting at the front door with a frothy mouth and a nervous twitch. Repackage my childhood and sell it to me at an extortionate price! I don't care! Till then I'll have to make do with the Citreon C4 advert.

I'd luv to see Willow the Wisp on the big screen but sadly without the late Kenneth Williams doing the voices it wouldnt be the same. And who remembers Trap Door voiced by the late Willie Rushden, superb children's programme. Could Morph hold his own in a big screen movie??? Or even Jamie and the Magic Torch....hmmmmm, I could go on and on. Danger Mouse? At 34 I'm showing my age. :-)

Noggin the Nog was one of the best children's programs. The problem with bringing it to the big screen is that no-one could approach Oliver Postgate's wonderful voices. So in general leave well alone. The originals are good because they are of their time and the methods used are an integral part of the story.

Just imagine what could be achieved by using CGI in a remake of Fingerbobs... the already disturbing hand antics of the bearded hippy, Yoffi could take on a whole new level with a more life-like Fingermouse

Bob the Builder, Postman Pat and Fireman Sam together in an epic adventure of fire, post and bricks. In the ultimate struggle to save the women they love from the evil clowns, Krusty and Gobo. Will they triumph or will they fail miserably? Find out this Fall.

One puppet show that I personally would love to see made into a live action movie is Joe 90. It would be worth the price of admission alone to see the large screen version of Joe's car. Of course, Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation is a rich seam of material worthy of big-screen, big-budget action. It was only that Thunderbirds The Movie was targetted as a children't movie that really let it down. After all, the children that remember those shows with such affection are now the parents of children themselves.

It's only because the people who were children when these programmes were first shown have grown up and are plundering their childhoods, isn't it? I'd hate to see Bagpuss with perfect animation - I love that 'done in a shed' clunkiness and you couldn't recreate the magic. Perhaps if the remakes were done in a 'Look Around You' mock-authentic style I might be interested ...

Chorton And The Wheelies or Jamie And His Magic Torch; that would be mega!

This re-gurgitation of old films and TV shows makes me angry - it is corporate laziness resting on the safety of other people's ideas, because it guarantees to bring in the $$$. The same can be said of modern day pop bands who release other peoples material, Will Young etc. The sad fact is nostalgia sells big bucks in the short-term. The fact that they will be forgotten in 6 months time is irrelevant (e.g. Starsky & Hutch) Hence, the market is saturated with this mindless drivel, but it can only be stopped if people stop buying it!

I pray they never do a remake of Chorlton And The Wheelies. I'm only 27 and don't remember the series from when it was on TV, but have the set on DVD and it's a classic. The fact it's so great comes from the fact that there were very few special effects involved and compared to today's stuff it looks amateurish. Thats the appeal though, it's so innocent (like Chorlton himself) and it would be a real shame if they did remake it.
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Stars shine on Bafta red carpet	"Hollywood stars brought a touch of glamour to London on Saturday for the biggest night in the British film calendar.

Cate Blanchett, Leonardo DiCaprio and Richard Gere were just some of the actors who attended the 2005 Bafta film awards. They emerged from limos at Leicester Square to an uncertain British climate that threatened rain one moment and promised late winter sunshine the next. But the gods were certainly shining on the thousands of film fans who lined the red carpet to meet their idols. Screaming built up into a crescendo as more and more big name stars appeared. The biggest cheer of the night was reserved for The Aviator star Leonardo DiCaprio, who paused in the chilly February air to sign autographs for the throngs. He said the ear-piercing welcome was ""unlike anything I've ever encountered. It's very intense and very loud.""

Best actress winner Imelda Staunton, who wore a green chiffon dress that sparkled with sequins and beads, told the BBC News website that Vera Drake was the highlight of her career. Her role as a backstreet abortionist in the gritty low-budget film has already led to a clutch of awards and an Oscar nomination. She said: ""Never in a million years did I think this was going to happen. ""Being here and just being nominated is great, but I hope it means more people will go and see the film as well."" Rooting for Staunton in the best actress category was Cate Blanchett, herself nominated for her supporting role as Hollywood icon Katherine Hepburn in The Aviator.

Shivering in a floor-length shimmering Armani dress, the Australian-born actress stopped to sign autographs and joked: ""It's tight but I love it."" Glamour was also brought to the evening by actress Sienna Miller, supermodel Claudia Schiffer - who was supporting her director husband Matthew Vaughn - Troy actress Diane Kruger and star of the TV programme The OC, Micha Barton. Wearing a caramel-coloured floaty frock by the designer Alexander McQueen, Miller told reporters the red carpet experience was ""intense, nerve-wracking and cold"". The younger stars of British film were also represented in the shape of Emma Watson, who plays Hermione in the Harry Potter films. The 14-year-old said she was hoping to meet DiCaprio and Keanu Reeves but joked that ""they are probably a little too old for me"".

Actor Christian Slater, who is currently starring in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest in London's West End, was greeted by cries of ""Christian, Christian"" by the ever vocal crowd. Keanu Reeves, who presented the best actress award, said being on the red carpet was an ""exciting"" part of his job. ""It is always surreal and when it is nice, it is nice,"" he said. Martin Scorsese, whose movie The Aviator went on to win best film, said being honoured in the UK meant a lot to him. He said: ""I am a great admirer of British cinema since the 1930s and 40s, up until now.

""They give me a new energy when I see the best coming out of England and every two or three years is a whole new cycle of tough and young film-makers, and even the older ones are making good films. ""To recognise me in this way is a great honour."" British actor Clive Owen, who has won a Golden Globe and a Bafta for his supporting role in Closer, said it ""meant a lot"" to be at the ceremony. He said: ""Just to be here really, at the Baftas. The bottom line is it is a celebration of British films.""
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Bafta to hand out movie honours	"Movie stars from across the globe are attending this year's Bafta film award ceremony.

British stars Imelda Staunton and Clive Owen are hoping for awards at the Odeon in London's Leicester Square. Hollywood stars Leonardo diCaprio, Pierce Brosnan, Christian Slater and Richard Gere are also in the audience for the biggest night in UK film. Hollywood blockbuster The Aviator, starring DiCaprio, leads the field with 14 nominations, including best movie. It is up against Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Finding Neverland, The Motorcycle Diaries and British film Vera Drake, which has 11 nominations.

Staunton is one of the favourites to land the best actress award for her gritty role as a backstreet abortionist in the small-budget film. She arrived at the ceremony wearing a green silk and chiffon low cut evening dress decorated with beads. ""It's lovely to be here at home, to be on British soil. It's very nice indeed,"" she told reporters.

Asked whether she was nervous about her best actress nomination she said: ""It's out of my hands, there's nothing I can do. I'm here with a lot of mates and we're going to have a very nice evening."" Other nominees in the best actress category include Charlize Theron for Monster, Ziyi Zhang for House of Flying Daggers and UK star Kate Winslet, who has two nods for her roles in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Finding Neverland. DiCaprio faces competition from Bernal, Jamie Foxx, Jim Carrey and Johnny Depp in the best actor category. The crowed screamed when he arrived on the red carpet.""It's unlike anything I've ever encountered. It's very intense and very loud,"" he told the BBC.

""It's the first time I've come to the Baftas because it's the first time I've been nominated...I've appreciated British cinema for a long time and to be recognised like this is a special honour."" Gere, who is presenting the best film award, said: ""It's a big party, I had no idea it was going to be this big. It's crazy, I think it's bigger than the Academy Awards.""

British actor Owen is hoping to repeat his Golden Globe success with a best supporting actor award for his role in Closer. He raised one of the biggest cheers of the night when he walked down the red carpet. ""I was always a huge fan of Closer as a play, so when I got the call to appear in the film, it was a huge thrill for me,"" he said. ""The whole experience has been a treat and I'm very fortunate to have been given the role."" His co-star Natalie Portman is up against Blanchett, Heather Craney, Julie Cristie and Meryl Streep in the best supporting actress category. Mike Leigh is up for the best director award for Vera Drake, alongside Martin Scorsese for The Aviator, Michael Mann for Collateral, Michel Gondry for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Marc Forster for Finding Neverland.

The Orange British Academy Film Awards will be shown on BBC One at 2010 GMT.
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Stars pay tribute to actor Davis	"Hollywood stars including Spike Lee, Burt Reynolds and Oscar nominee Alan Alda have paid tribute to actor Ossie Davis at a funeral in New York.

Veteran star Ossie Davis, a well-known civil rights activist, died in Miami at the age of 87 on 4 February 2005. Friends and family, including actress Ruby Dee his wife of 56 years, gathered at the Riverside Church on Saturday. Also present at the service was former US president Bill Clinton and singer Harry Belafonte, who gave the eulogy. ""He would have been a very good president of the United States,"" said Mr Clinton. ""Like most of you here, he gave more to me than I gave to him.""

The 87-year-old was found dead last weekend in his hotel room in Florida, where he was making a film. Police said that he appeared to have died of natural causes. Davis made his acting debut in 1950 in No Way Out starring Sidney Poiter. He frequently collaborated with director Spike Lee, starring in seven Lee films including Jungle Fever, Do The Right Thing and Malcolm X. Attallah Shabazz, the daughter of activist Malcolm X, recalled the famous eulogy delivered by Davis at her father's funeral. ""Harlem has come to bid farewell to one of its finest hopes,"" she said, quoting the man she knew as Uncle Ossie. ""Ditto."" ""Ossie was my hero, and he still is,"" said Aviator star Alan Alda, a family friend for over forty years. ""Ossie was a thing of beauty.""

""I want so badly someday to have his dignity - a little of it anyway,"" added Burt Reynolds, Davis's co-star in the 90s TV comedy Evening Shade. Before the midday funeral, scores of Harlem residents formed a queue outside the church to pay their respects to Davis. ""It is hard to fathom that we will no longer be able to call on his wisdom, his humour, his loyalty and his moral strength to guide us in the choices that are yet to be made and the battles that are yet to be fought,"" said Belafonte, himself an ardent civil rights activist who had been friends with Davis for over 60 years. ""But how fortunate we were to have him as long as we did.""
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Aviator and Vera take Bafta glory	"Hollywood blockbuster The Aviator and low-budget British movie Vera Drake have shared the main honours at the 2005 Bafta film awards. The Aviator was declared best film, and its star Cate Blanchett won best supporting actress. But Vera Drake scored best director for Mike Leigh while Imelda Staunton took the hotly contested best actress award. Jamie Foxx won best actor for Ray, while British actor Clive Owen took best supporting actor for Closer. The two actors have repeated their success at the Golden Globes in January. But big British hope Kate Winslet walked away empty-handed on Saturday despite two nominations for best actress. Celebrating his win, the Oscar-nominated Owen told reporters: ""The whole award season is new to me because I haven't won anything before. All of that is a bit overwhelming."" Blanchett, who won a Bafta in 1999 for her leading role in Elizabeth, said: ""Winning a Bafta means an enormous amount to me."" She thanked the woman she played, Katharine Hepburn, for paving the way for women to work in film. ""Thank you very much, I'm sure you're pleased, although you're not able to see this,"" she said.

The Aviator took four awards in all, also collecting best make-up and hair and production design, while Vera Drake also scooped best costume design. Staunton, who is up for an Oscar for her role in Vera Drake, arrived wearing a green silk and chiffon beaded evening dress. ""Thank you very much. I'm so thrilled and so grateful and I'm delighted that the success of Vera Drake has boosted sales of hair nets and pinnies, which is very good,"" she said on accepting her award. Her director Leigh, who beat Martin Scorsese to the best director award, told the audience: ""We always say it was a surprise and sometimes I've said it and not meant it. On this occasion, given the other names, it's a real surprise and an extraordinary honour. ""It's an immense privilege to have been allowed the freedom to make as uncompromising a film as I think Vera Drake is and an epic with such a small budget."" Best actor Foxx could not make the ceremony, but actress Helen Mirren read out his acceptance speech. ""I'm honoured and proud to receive this Bafta. I'd like to thank the late Ray Charles himself."" He apologised for not being in London, joking: ""Unfortunately I'm stuck driving a car in LA at gunpoint and I can't get away."" DiCaprio, who lost out on the best actor Bafta to Foxx, will face him again at the Academy Awards in two weeks' time.

""It's the first time I've come to the Baftas because it's the first time I've been nominated,"" he told reporters on the red carpet. ""I've appreciated British cinema for a long time and to be recognised like this is a special honour."" Other winners included The Motorcycle Diaries which took best foreign film and best music, while Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind won best original screenplay and best editing. Best British film was My Summer of Love, the story of two young women and their developing relationship, while Foxx's movie Ray, a bio-pic of late singer Ray Charles, also took best sound. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban won the Orange Film Of The Year, voted for by the public.

The Orange British Academy Film Awards are being shown on BBC One from 2010 GMT.
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Film star Fox behind theatre bid	"Leading actor Edward Fox is one of the men behind plans to reopen a Swansea theatre thought to be Wales' oldest.

The star of film and TV hits Day of the Jackal and Edward and Mrs Simpson has joined forces with Swansea-born actor-director Terry Palmer. They will set up a charity to raise money to buy the Palace Theatre, and hope to reopen it to audiences in summer 2006. It is estimated that £500,000 is needed to buy the Grade II listed building. The Palace Theatre, which will be known as The Pavilion Repertory Theatre, was sold to an undisclosed bidder at auction 13 months ago for £340,000. Before that it had been used as a nightclub for 10 years.

Oscar-winner Sir Anthony Hopkins, who was born in nearby Port Talbot, made his professional debut there, and Charlie Chaplin and Lily Langtry have also trodden its boards. Fox told the South Wales Evening Post that after visiting the theatre he was surprised by its beauty. ""A lot of money needs to be spent on it, but all the bones are there - it just needs a beautiful skin,"" he said.

""To call it a jewel is not an over-estimation. There are not many theatres left like this. ""The hope for the immediate future is that we can attract enough people to come forward to allow it to prosper,"" he told the newspaper.

Fox first found fame in the 1960s. One of his most memorable roles was as an assassin in the Day of the Jackal in 1973, and he won a TV Bafta as the Prince of Wales in 1980 for Edward and Mrs Simpson. He was brought on board to save the theatre by Mr Palmer, a long-standing friend of 40 years. ""Two years ago I decided to return to Swansea and do something for the city,"" said Mr Palmer. He said he was excited by the idea of running the Palace as a charity where young actors could develop, and with an annual Shakespeare festival in the summer. ""If in five years' time the theatre can function in all areas without me, I shall be well satisfied having helped to create a vital living theatre for the city,"" he added. Keith Poulton, a business adviser from Swansea, has already committed an undisclosed amount of money to the project. ""We need at least £75,000 to secure a deposit on the building and we've only got two months to do that,"" said Mr Poulton. ""A few benefactors have expressed their interest and Mr Fox is going to give it an awful lot of time,"" he added. Last year, roads around the theatre were cordoned off when masonry from its roof fell onto a car, but engineers said they were happy that it was safe.
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Shark Tale DVD is US best-seller	"Oscar-nominated animation Shark Tale has raked in $80m (£42.4m) in the first week of its US DVD release becoming the year's best-selling home video so far.

The tally for its DVD and video sales soared past the film's opening week US box office takings of $56m (£29.7m). Shark Tale is now the sixth-highest earning DVD for first week sales. The all-time first-week record is held by 1995's Lion King followed by Shrek 2, Finding Nemo, the original Shrek, and Monster's Inc.

Shark Tale, whose voice cast includes Will Smith, Robert De Niro, Renee Zellweger and Martin Scorsese, sold more than 6 million DVDs and videos across the United States and Canada. It becomes the highest first-week earner for February, outshining My Big Fat Greek Wedding which sold four million units in 2003. Films which are expected to earn strong home video returns are usually timed for release in the busiest retail season which falls before Christmas. The best-selling home video of last year was the Dreamworks hit Shrek 2, which took an estimated $458 m (£242.7m) in North America alone.
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Lopez misses UK charity premiere	"Jennifer Lopez cancelled an appearance at the UK charity premiere of her new movie saying she was too ill to fly.

The actress and singer dropped out at the last minute and has now cancelled all European promotion of the film Shall We Dance? and her new album. She said: ""I very much wanted to be in London but unfortunately I'm not well. At the advice of my doctors I'm unable to travel."" Co-star Richard Gere attended the event held in aid of the tsunami appeal. Thousands braved the cold weather to see the stars in London's Leicester Square. The red carpet boasted waltzing dancers in honour of the film's ballroom dancing theme. The film's director Peter Chelsom said he was disappointed that Lopez did not attend.

""It's a shame. I know it's true that she's not well because she has also cancelled her promotional tour. I've heard she has swollen glands."" Gere, 55, greeted the crowd and signed autographs, accompanied by his wife Carey Lowell. Other stars who turned out on the night included Honor Blackman, Strictly Come Dancing presenter Tess Daly and actress Anita Dobson. Lopez issues a statement apologising for her absence. ""I'm so proud of Shall We Dance and was looking forward to visiting London,"" she said. ""This film was a labour of love for me, and I want to thank everyone involved in bringing it to you, from the cast, to the film director, to the crew."" Lopez appeared at the Grammy awards on Sunday, singing a duet with her third husband Marc Anthony.
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Super Size Me wins writers' award	"Super Size Me director Morgan Spurlock has won the Writers Guild of America's award for documentary feature writing.

The Oscar-nominated film followed Spurlock as he ate only McDonald's fast food for an entire month. Spurlock was given the award at a special ceremony at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood on Tuesday. Organisers said the rising popularity of documentary films led them to honour a writer for a documentary screenplay for the first time.

Producer Brian Grazer presented the award to Spurlock and the film's backers, Roadside Attractions, Samuel Goldwyn Films and Showtime Independent Films. Spurlock set out to discover the effect of living on nothing but McDonald's for a month, upgrading to supersize portions when offered. The film followed his 25lb weight gain and the health effects on his body, including his liver and cholesterol levels. McDonald's announced it was to scrap its ""supersized"" meals last year, but denied the move was as a result of the negative publicity created by Spurlock's film. Spurlock was given his award on the same day the European Court of Human Rights ruled that two UK activists should have been given legal aid in their long fight against a McDonald's libel action. Helen Steel and David Morris, from north London, dubbed the ""McLibel Two"", were found guilty in a 1990s trial of libelling the company in a leaflet they had been handing out At the end of the case the High Court in London ruled McDonald's had been libelled and awarded the company £60,000 in damages, later reduced to £40,000 on appeal. But he found the leaflet was true in some aspects.
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Original Exorcist to be screened	"The original version of horror prequel Exorcist: The Beginning, dropped by producers over claims it was not scary enough, is to have its world premiere.

The film, directed by Paul Schrader, will be screened on 18 March at the International Festival of Fantastic Film in Brussels. The psychological drama stars Stellan Skarsgard and foreruns the 1973 film. Schrader was replaced by director Renny Harlin who made a new version of the film which debuted in 2004. The prequel project was originally announced in 2001, with actor Liam Neeson in the lead role and John Frankenheimer as director. However Frankenheimer pulled out in 2002, a month before he died.

Skarsgard then replaced Neeson in the role of Father Merrin, made famous by Max Von Sydow in the 1973 film. Principal footage was shot in Morocco and Rome at a reported cost of $32m. However, in August 2003 it emerged that producers Morgan Creek were shelving Schrader's version of the film, having complained it was not scary enough. As well as replacing Schrader with Harlin - the director behind Die Hard 2 and Cliffhanger - the producers also changed most of the cast, but Swedish star Skarsgard stayed in the Merrin role. Harlin's film, released in the UK in October 2004, received lukewarm reviews but went on to make over $76m (£40.7m) worldwide. The festival screening will be the first time that Schrader's film has been seen in public. Reports that it will be released either in cinemas or on DVD have yet to be confirmed. Other films at the festival in the Belgium capital, which runs from 11-26 March, include the US horror hit Boogeyman and the forthcoming sequel Ring 2, as well as a selection of films adapted from the works of Jules Verne.
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Oscar nominees lack pulling power	"This year's clutch of Oscar nominees have been the least popular for 20 years according to box office figures.

In the US the five nominated for best film have been seen by 50% fewer people than movies in previous years. While the awards are not based on box office popularity there is concern for the ratings of the televised ceremony. ""We don't have a Titanic or a Lord of the Rings out there. I think it's fair to say it does concern us a bit,"" said Academy executive director Bruce Davis. About 51 million people in the US have seen this year's nominees, compared with between 100 million and 118 million in recent years. The last time combined attendance was so low was in 1984 when Amadeus beat The Killing Fields, A Passage to India, Places in the Heart and A Soldier's Story to best picture, when 41 million saw the five films. Last year's ceremony attracted the highest audience in four years as viewers tuned in to see Lord of the Ring: Return of the King sweep the board.

And the show reaped its biggest audience in 1997 when Titanic took home 11 Oscars.

The film had taken $500m (£264m) worldwide before the ceremony, and eventually took $1.8bn (£952m). ""Eyeballs starring at the movie screen translates to eyeballs staring at the TV screen,"" said Paul Dergarabedian of box office tracker Exhibitor Relations. ""People like to have a vested interest in what they're watching. ""When Titanic does $1.8bn in worldwide box office, you've got a lot of people with a vested interest."" Past years have also seen blockbusters such as Saving Private Ryan, Forrest Gump and Ghost compete for Oscars. The biggest box office hitter among this year's nominees is The Aviator, which has taken $90m (£48m) in the US, although takings in the UK have reached only £7m so far.

Low-budget move Sideways and Finding Neverland have so far grossed about $45m (£24m) each. The year's biggest blockbusters do actually feature in the Oscar nominees but in the animation category. Shrek 2 and The Incredibles took $436m (£231m) while The Incredibles took $259m (£137m). Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, which took $370m (£196m) in the US, was largely ignored by Academy voters.

But many in the film industry do not equate award and box office success. ""I have never equated the Academy Awards with how much money a movie takes in,"" said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution at Universal which released nominee Ray. ""That's the People's Choice Awards. This is not about the public. This is about the industry bestowing awards on what they think are the best films of the year.""
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Hitch holds on to US box office	"Will Smith's first romantic comedy, Hitch, has topped the North American box office for a second weekend.

Smith plays a New York ""date doctor"" with love worries of his own in the movie, which took $31.8m (£16.8m). It held off a strong challenge from the new Keanu Reeves sci-fi thriller Constantine which opened at number two with $30.5m (£16.1m) Constantine, based on the Hellblazer comics, stars Reeves as an exorcist who must send Satan's minions back to hell. Two family films came next in the chart, with Wayne Wang's comedy Because of Winn-Dixie, about a young girl and an abandoned dog, in third position with $10.85m (£5.73m).

Comedy adventure Son of the Mask, came in at number four with $7.7m (£4.1m), just ahead of Oscar favourite Million Dollar Baby at five.

Smith's comedy will be the first US movie released this year to top the $100m (£52.7m) mark. It's success continues a strong trend of Hollwood movie-going this year with figures for the popular President's Day weekend 13% greater than last year. Oscar contenders The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes and wine-tasting comedy Sideways, both held onto positions in the top 10.
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Tarantino to direct CSI episode	"Film director Quentin Tarantino is to direct an episode of US television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

The Oscar-winning Pulp Fiction director has also written an original story for the season finale episode. CSI's co-producer, Carol Mendelsohn, said the episode would have ""more bugs and blood"" than usual. It is not Tarantino's first venture into TV. In 1995 he directed an episode of the medical drama ER and has also appeared in Alias.

Ms Mendelsohn said the production team had been trying for a while to get Tarantino to direct an episode of CSI, and added that he was a fan of the forensic drama. She said he finally agreed a few weeks ago while CSI was doing some location shooting in Las Vegas and the show's stars persuaded him. ""He knows everything there is to know about CSI, and he is into the whole mythology of CSI,"" Mendelsohn said. ""Quentin came in a couple of weeks ago. We had a story meeting with the writers. ""He had a great idea, and it was so much fun to have him in the room... we are positively giddy."" Filming is due to start in early April and the Tarantino-directed episode will be broadcast in the US on 19 May.
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Bollywood DVD fraudster is jailed	"A major distributor of pirated DVDs of Bollywood films has been sent to prison for three years.

Jayanti Amarishi Buhecha from Cambridge was found guilty of two trademark offences last month, and sentenced at Harrow Crown Court, London, on Tuesday. Buhecha, who made £26,000 per month from his illegal trade, was called ""one of the biggest Bollywood pirates in the UK"" by the sentencing judge. The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) worked for two years on the case.

An operation was launched against Buhecha in 2002 after complaints were received about his activities. The judge in the case, which lasted seven days, said that ""a heavy penalty was called for because of the enormous damage Buhecha caused to legitimate business"". Fake DVDs were manufactured in Pakistan and Malaysia and sold on wholesale to shops by Buhecha, who traded in conterfeit DVDs in 2002 and 2003.

In December 2002, he was stopped in his car by trading standards officers, who uncovered 1,000 pirated DVDs and faked inlay cards printed with registered trademarks. Despite being arrested and bailed, Buhecha was caught a second time at the end of 2003. His home and a lock-up in Cambridge were found to contain 18,000 counterfeit DVDs and further faked inlay cards. Buhecha was previously a legitimate distributor of Bollywood films, but was suspended and sued by his employers for dealing in illegal copies of Bollywood classic Mohabbatein. Legitimate Bollywood film distributors have hailed the conviction as ""a major boost"". Bollywood music and film suffers piracy at the rate of 40%, which is more than that suffered by mainstream productions. The BPI welcomed the news of the prison sentence, but warned there are plenty of other active counterfeiters of Bollywood films. The organisation's anti-piracy director David Martin said: ""The problem simply will not disappear with Buhecha. Others and more will take his place, so it's vital that keep up our efforts in this field.""
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US 'afflicted' with awards fatigue	"The film world and media may be wild about the Oscars but cinema-goers and the TV-viewing public are sick of watching award ceremonies, according to some LA film critics.

Bob Strauss, from the LA Daily News, thinks there are just too many televised gatherings of stars showering praise on each other. He came up with a colourful but unprintable description for these glitzy events, which roughly translates a ""celebrity love-in"". This echoed the views of Oscars host and comedian Chris Rock, who whipped up a media storm for saying he rarely watched them, calling award shows ""idiotic"". ""As Chris Rock accurately said, they're about celebrity and fashion,"" Mr Strauss said. The recent Grammy music awards proved to be a ratings loser, and it seems Oscars organisers are determined not to go the same way.

Recently announced changes to the ceremony include lining up all five nominees on stage before announcing the winner.

Unsurprisingly, this prompted press speculation that the changes were aimed at boosting flagging advertising revenue. But Entertainment Weekly's Dave Karger maintained the Oscars only generated excitement outside the industry when a blockbuster, such as Titanic or Lord of the Rings, was nominated. The near constant flow of US film awards, representing directors, actors and producers' guilds, also means ""few surprises"" are left by the time the Oscar ceremony is upon us, he said. A quick scan of the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily News bears this out - speculation about who will win seems to have ground to a halt.

On Thursday, the Times simply printed a picture of the plastic tents going up outside the Kodak Theatre to protect the red carpet from rain. Variety and the Hollywood Reporter have also kept their focus firmly on industry-related news, while in the UK bets have closed on the best actor category, with Ray star Jamie Foxx a dead cert to win.

Screen International's US editor Mike Goodridge thinks 2004's films have simply not grabbed the public's imagination. ""Film-makers haven't produced films that people adore this year,"" he said. ""They adored Saving Private Ryan for example - people loved it and it made a ton of money. ""2004's films could be a reaction to 9/11 - there was a realisation in America that things might not be so rosy after all. ""Audiences don't necessarily want to see darker films such as Million Dollar Baby, Aviator and Finding Neverland, which end with casualty."" As to whether Rock could pep up the awards, the critics were not hopeful.

Mr Strauss doubted whether Rock would make an impact, but added: ""I'm all for lower ratings though - there are far more important things going on than the Oscars."" Mr Karger said the comic might boost younger viewers, but Mike Goodridge thought Rock's humour could prompt America's conservative states to switch off. So despite all this, did the critics have any views on who would win?

""Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby affected people emotionally, which is why it will beat Aviator, which was about technical artistry not feelings,"" Mr Karger said. ""Eastwood has it in the bag,"" added Mr Strauss. ""Oscar voters often vote with their hearts not their heads."" And Mr Goodridge said best film and director were between Martin Scorsese's Aviator and Million Dollar Baby. Mr Karger, whose favourite film of the year was Mike Leigh's abortion drama Vera Drake, stayed upbeat about the awards despite his other comments. ""I hope this is the year for small films to triumph,"" he said. ""After all, it's still one of the biggest TV events of the year.""
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Critics back Aviator for Oscars	"Martin Scorsese's The Aviator will win best film at the Oscars, according to the UK's leading movie critics.

But several of those surveyed by the BBC News website think the veteran film-maker will lose the best director prize to Clint Eastwood. Most of the critics tipped Jamie Foxx and Hilary Swank to scoop best actor and actress for Ray and Million Dollar Baby respectively. The jury comprised experts and critics from the top UK film publications. The panel also revealed which nominees they would personally prefer to win.

All expect The Aviator to win best film, but many think it will be a close race between Scorsese's Howard Hughes biopic and Eastwood's boxing drama Million Dollar Baby. The other films nominated are wine comedy Sideways, factual drama Finding Neverland, and Ray Charles biopic Ray.

""I'm pretty sure this is the year of The Aviator, though my own choice would be Sideways,"" said the Observer's Philip French. ""Sideways should win but it doesn't have a hope,"" said Jamie Graham of Total Film, a position shared by Film 2005 presenter Jonathan Ross. ""The form going in to the Oscars points to The Aviator, but I liked Million Dollar Baby more,"" said Tim Dams, news editor of trade weekly Screen International.

Five of the eight critics tipped Scorsese to win best director, with Mr Dams, Heat's Charles Gant and Empire's Angie Errigo plumping for Eastwood. Sideway's Alexander Payne, Ray's Taylor Hackford and British director Mike Leigh - nominated for period drama Vera Drake - are considered outsiders in this category. ""Up until recently I could have sworn Scorsese would get it just for being Scorsese,"" Ms Errigo told the BBC News website. ""But I'm beginning to think Eastwood will get it.""

""I'd be very happy for Mike Leigh to win, but I don't think he has any chance,"" said Charles Gant, film editor of Heat. Foxx's portrayal of Ray Charles has already seen him win prizes at the Golden Globes, Baftas and Screen Actors Guild Awards. Mr Dams said this made him ""out-and-out favourite"" to be named best actor on Oscar night. ""Everyone would be incredibly surprised if he didn't win,"" he said. ""If you're a betting man, he's as close as you get to a certainty."" ""If Paul Giamatti was nominated for Sideways it would be a different game,"" says Total Film's Jamie Graham. ""But Foxx will and should win.""

With Vera Drake star Imelda Staunton nominated for best actress alongside Kate Winslet, Britain has a good chance of victory - on paper. Jonathan Ross, for one, will be very happy if Winslet wins for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. But while Wendy Ide of The Times still thinks Staunton has a chance, Heat's Charles Gant believes her Bafta win will cut little ice with Academy voters. ""I'd like Staunton to win, but her chances are not that great,"" said Mr Gant, who predicted a second Oscar for Hilary Swank.

""I think Swank will win,"" said Mr French. ""Imelda has got as far as she's going to get playing that role."" Staunton is also the personal choice of Steven Gaydos, executive editor of industry magazine Variety. But while he tipped Swank to win, he predicted it would be a close contest. ""Everything has the ability to flip by one vote and go the other way,"" he told the BBC News website. ""There's not a sense that it's obvious how it's going to go."" Meanwhile, thousands of people have voted in a BBC Radio Five Live poll to find the best film never to have won a best picture Oscar. The audience voted overwhelmingly for The Shawshank Redemption, the 1994 Frank Darabont tale of hope and humanity, which received 52% of the online votes and 68% of the text messages. The other two finalists, Citizen Kane and A Matter of Life and Death split the remaining votes roughly equally. This year's Academy Awards will be shown in the UK by Sky Movies 1 at 0130 GMT on Monday.

- Tim Dams, Screen International: Film - The Aviator; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Angie Errigo, Empire: Film - The Aviator; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Philip French, The Observer: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Charles Gant, Heat: Film - The Aviator; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Steven Gaydos, Variety: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Jamie Graham, Total Film: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Wendy Ide, The Times: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Imelda Staunton.

- Jonathan Ross, Film 2005: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Tim Dams, Screen International: Film - Million Dollar Baby; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Angie Errigo, Empire: Film - The Aviator; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Philip French, The Observer: Film - Sideways; director - Martin Scorsese; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Imelda Staunton.

- Charles Gant, Heat: Film - Sideways; director - Mike Leigh; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Imelda Staunton.

- Steven Gaydos, Variety: Film - Million Dollar Baby; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Don Cheadle; actress - Imelda Staunton.

- Jamie Graham, Total Film: Film - Sideways; director - Alexander Payne; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Hilary Swank.

- Wendy Ide, The Times: Film - Sideways; director - Alexander Payne; actor - Don Cheadle; actress - Imelda Staunton.

- Jonathan Ross, Film 2005: Film - Sideways; director - Clint Eastwood; actor - Jamie Foxx; actress - Kate Winslet.
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Briton wins short film Oscar	"Three of the five nominees in the live-action short film category at this year's Oscars were British. For Andrea Arnold, who won the category, Ashvin Kumar and Gary McKendry the past month has thrust them from relative obscurity into the limelight.

Arnold's gritty drama Wasp is about a single mother living on the breadline, while Kumar's Little Terrorist follows a young Pakistani Muslim boy, who gets stuck on the wrong side of the heavily armed Indian border. McKendry's entry, Everything In This Country Must, forces British soldiers and Catholics to challenge their relationship during the troubles in Northern Ireland. Last week, the trio attended an official screening of all the nominated short films at the Academy's headquarters in Beverly Hills. ""I felt so privileged to have a thousand people watching my film on the biggest screen I've ever seen,"" says Arnold.

Set in her native Dartford, Wasp tells the story of a young mum, who, unable to find a babysitter, leaves her four young daughters outside a pub while she's on a date. The image that sparked the film was that of a wasp crawling into a baby's mouth. ""The other nominees said they made their films for this reason or that - they had something to say. But I just start with an image I can't shake off, work outwards from that and see what comes out,"" she explains.

Since she presented children's TV shows Number 73 and Motormouth in the 1980s, Arnold has kept a low profile and is having trouble adapting to this sudden onslaught of attention. ""I'm not interested in the publicity. It's not my personality. I'm overwhelmed by all the fuss,"" she said.

""It's all a bit like a beauty contest - all the films are great and so different. ""But even though my film has won 30 awards worldwide (including one at Sundance last month), I'd still be proud of it - even if it hadn't won any."" Asked what the nomination means to her, Arnold says she feels ""flattered and honoured"". ""We've all been overwhelmed by the response and can't get it in perspective yet. I'm still reeling.""

And she won't commit to an opinion of Hollywood yet. ""I'm just in the middle of it, living moment to moment, day to day."" But despite her reservations about the Academy Awards and the media frenzy that surrounds it, she accepts that it has opened doors for her. ""People will definitely listen to what I want to do now, and the phone didn't stop ringing for a week after I got nominated."" As for the future, Arnold firmly believes that you often get a stronger vision of the world with short films. ""You're left more to your own devices, without people interfering as much."" That said, she is currently working on a feature film with Dogville and Dancer In The Dark director Lars Von Trier.
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Sideways dominates Spirit awards	"The comedy Sideways has dominated this year's Independent Spirit Awards, winning all six of the awards for which it was nominated.

It was named best film while Alexander Payne won best director and best screenplay, along with writing partner Jim Taylor. It also won acting awards for stars Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen. Sideways is tipped to do well at Sunday's Oscars, with five nominations.

The awards, now in their 20th year, are given to films made outside the traditional studio system, and are traditionally held the day before the Oscars. Other winners included Catalina Sandino Moreno, who took best actress for her role as a drug smuggler in the Colombian drama Maria Full of Grace. Moreno is also nominated for best actress at the Oscars. The best first screenplay award went to Joshua Marston for Maria Full of Grace. Scrubs star Zach Braff won the award for best first feature for Garden State, which he wrote, directed and starred in. Oscar-nominated euthanasia film The Sea Inside from Spain won best foreign film, while Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster was awarded best documentary. Actor Rodrigo de la Serna took the best debut performance prize for The Motorcycle Diaries. The awards are voted for by the 9,000 members of the Independent Feature Project/Los Angeles, which includes actors, directors, writers and other industry professionals. Last year's big winner, Lost In Translation, went on to win the Oscar for best original screenplay, for writer-director Sofia Coppola.
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Arnold congratulated on Oscar win	"Oscar-winner Andrea Arnold has been congratulated by the UK Film Council, the organisation which partly funded her project.

Arnold's film Wasp won the best live action short film award on Sunday. ""The UK Film Council spends millions of pounds of lottery investment on short filmmaking in Britain every year,"" said chief executive officer John Woodward. ""It certainly pays off when you see new film-makers winning such prestigious awards,"" he added.

Wasp, which was commissioned by the Film Council and Channel 4, beat films by fellow UK nominees Gary McKendry and Ashvin Kumar to the prize. It stars actress Nathalie Press, who appeared in the Bafta-winning drama My Summer Of Love, as a single mother who is forced to take drastic action when she is invited on a date and is unable to find a babysitter to look after her four daughters. The film has already won over 30 other international awards including the Sundance Short Film Prize. Arnold, from Dartford in Kent, described her victory as ""truly overwhelming. I'm really not used to this kind of thing,"" she said, after receiving her Oscar from actor Jeremy Irons. ""Thanks to everyone who worked on this - the beers are on me when we get home."" The director was one of only two British winners on the night, the other being Sandy Powell, who won the costume design Oscar for her work on The Aviator.
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Eastwood's Baby scoops top Oscars	"Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby beat Martin Scorsese's The Aviator to the top awards at the Oscars on Sunday.

The boxing drama was named best picture and Eastwood pipped Scorsese to best director, while its stars Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman won acting awards. The Aviator took five prizes including best supporting actress for Cate Blanchett. The biopic of Howard Hughes led the nominations with 11. Jamie Foxx picked up best actor for playing soul star Ray Charles in Ray. Many expected this to be Scorsese's year - but he was unsuccessful in the best director category for the fifth time in his career.

He has never won despite being nominated for such films as Raging Bull and Goodfellas. Instead, Eastwood took his second Oscar for best director after winning for Unforgiven in 1993. ""It was a wonderful adventure,"" Eastwood said. ""To make a picture in 37 days, it takes a well oiled machine. I am lucky to be here and lucky to be still working. I've got a lot of stuff to do yet."" Hilary Swank picked up her second best actress Oscar for playing a female boxer in Million Dollar Baby, beating stars including Annette Bening, Kate Winslet and Imelda Staunton. ""I don't know what I did in this life to deserve this,"" she told the audience. ""I'm just a girl from a trailer park who had a dream."" Morgan Freeman beat actors including Clive Owen, Jamie Foxx and Alan Alda to the prize for best supporting actor. He thanked Eastwood and described the film as ""a labour of love"". This was the fourth nomination of his career but his first win. Backstage, he said: ""A lot of people say you're due - maybe you are, maybe you aren't - it's an accolade."" Million Dollar Baby's success was the night's biggest surprise after The Aviator seemed to have the advantage until the end of the ceremony.

Cate Blanchett, who won for playing late screen legend Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator, said her award was ""an indescribable surprise and honour"". Of Hepburn, she said: ""The longevity of her career is inspiring to everyone."" Blanchett also paid tribute to the film's director Martin Scorsese, telling him: ""I hope my son will marry your daughter."" The Aviator's other awards came for cinematography, film editing, art direction and costume design. And Jamie Foxx, who had two nominations this year, paid tribute to the ""beautiful legacy"" of soul legend Ray Charles, who died last year, and thanked director Taylor Hackford. ""You took a chance, man,"" he said. ""That love for Ray Charles was deep down in the earth somewhere and you opened it up. ""Everybody's drowning in this love. Thank you for taking a chance and thank you for waiting 15 years to get me to do it.""

He broke down in tears when speaking about being whipped by his grandmother, whom he described as his first acting teacher, when he was young. In other awards, cartoon hit The Incredibles won best animated feature and best sound editing. Bittersweet comedy Sideways won best adapted screenplay while the original screenplay prize went to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Born into Brothels, about the children of prostitutes in Calcutta, was named best documentary, The Sea Inside was named best foreign language film and Finding Neverland got the accolade for best musical score. Spider-Man 2 triumphed in the visual effects category, Ray won best sound mixing and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events picked up best make-up. Former British TV presenter Andrea Arnold, who hosted children's shows Motormouth and Number 73 in the 1980s, won best short film for Wasp. Comedian Chris Rock, who hosted the ceremony for the first time, received a standing ovation before getting the show under way.
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British stars denied major Oscars	"British hopes of winning major Oscars were dashed as UK stars failed to win acting and directing prizes.

Despite three nominations, Mike Leigh's Vera Drake failed to take the director or screenplay awards and there was no prize for star Imelda Staunton. Kate Winslet also lost to best actress Hilary Swank, while Clive Owen and Sophie Okonedo failed to win best supporting actor awards. The UK's Andrea Arnold won the short film award for her gritty drama Wasp.

Arnold, who presented children's television shows Number 73 and Motormouth in the 1980s, said it was ""totally overwhelming"" to win. Wasp tells the story of a single mother living on the breadline, beating films by fellow UK nominees Gary McKendry and Ashvin Kumar.

""Everyone worked extremely hard - they know who they are,"" Arnold said as she accepted the prize. ""The beers are on me when we get home."" Earlier British costume designer Sandy Powell won the Oscar for The Aviator, beating Finding Neverland's UK designer Alexandra Byrne in the process. ""I'm very thrilled for the film and all the people who worked with me,"" said Ms Powell. ""Hopefully I'll be staying up to celebrate - I've been sick for three days and want to make it through the night."" The British visual effects team behind Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban were less fortunate, however, losing the Oscar in that category to Spider-Man 2. Before Sunday's ceremony Owen was bookmakers' favourite for his role in romantic drama Closer that had already clinched him a Golden Globe award. It was the first time actress Okonedo had been shortlisted, chosen for her performance in Hotel Rwanda about the 1994 Rwandan genocide. It was also a debut nomination for Staunton, 49, who played abortionist Vera Drake in Mike Leigh's film.

Leigh had previously received three Oscar nominations for Secrets and Lies and Topsy Turvy. Winslet said she was ""ecstatic"" about the fourth Oscar nomination of her career, this time for her lead role in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Among other British talent nominated for Oscars, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Charles Hart were nominated for best original song for Learn To Be Lonely, from The Phantom of the Opera movie. That award was won by Al Otro Lado Del Rio from The Motorcycle Diaries. Cinematographer John Mathieson, who was nominated for Gladiator in 2001, was also up for The Phantom of the Opera but lost to The Aviator. Finding Neverland garnered another nomination for British talent, with Gemma Jackson shortlisted for the art direction prize. She lost in that category to The Aviator. A spokesman for the UK Film Council said: ""It is disappointing not to have more British winners."" He added: ""It was extraordinary to have 24 British nominees in the initial list of nominees.""
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Lee to create new film superhero	"Comic book veteran Stan Lee is to team up with producer Robert Evans to create a movie featuring a new superhero.

Foreverman will focus on a character who has to face problems in everyday life as well as using his special powers to save the world. Paramount Pictures, the studio behind the film, have revealed few details about the project but say it has the potential to spawn a series of films. Lee is best known for his work on Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk.

He is collaborating on the script with screenwriter Peter Briggs, who penned the recent comic book adaptation Hellboy. ""We believe it to be truly a whole new franchise,"" said Gill Champion, president and chief executive of Lee's POW! Entertainment. ""In this world where people are looking for something different, Stan's idea was to create a concept not seen before to become an evergreen franchise for Paramount."" Many of Lee's other creations, including X-Men and Daredevil, have been turned into films in the past five years. However, the Spider-Man series has been the biggest box office hit, with the 2002 original and its 2004 sequel taking almost $1.6bn (£857m) worldwide. A third Spider-Man film is scheduled for release in 2007. Another Marvel Comics adaptation, The Fantastic Four, will be released in cinemas this summer.
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Jackson film 'absolute disaster'	"A PR expert has told the Michael Jackson child abuse trial that the TV documentary at the heart of the case was an ""absolute disaster"".

Ann Kite told the court in the Californian town of Santa Maria she was hired to ""crisis manage"" the fallout after the programme had aired in 2003. Jurors saw the film, in which the pop star held hands with the alleged victim, on Tuesday. Mr Jackson denies 10 charges of child abuse and false imprisonment. If convicted, he could face up to 21 years in prison.

Ms Kite suggested Jackson's associates had been intent on launching a smear campaign against the accuser's family after the airing of Martin Bashir's film Living with Michael Jackson. She told the court that in the aftermath of the broadcast, a Jackson lawyer had told her the boy's mother would be made to look like a ""crack whore"". Jackson's defence questioned Ms Kite's credibility, pointing that she worked for the singer's team for less than a week before being fired, and had never met or spoken to the star.

Ms Kite said she received a phone call on 13 February 2003 from a Jackson associate, Marc Schaffel, who said the boy and his family had left the Neverland ranch where they had been staying.

Ms Kite told the court she had later asked Jackson's lawyer, David LeGrand, what had happened. ""I said, `Don't make me believe that these people were hunted down like dogs and brought back to the ranch',"" she said. Ms Kite began to work for Mr Jackson in February 2003, after the controversial film was televised in the US and Europe. The documentary sparked a media storm and the subsequent investigation into Mr Jackson's relationship with the boy. In the film, the singer said he did not see anything wrong with sharing a bed with a child.

Questioned by the prosecution, Ms Kite said her plan had been to move media coverage of the star away from a focus on his human frailties to concentrate more on his musical genius. Ms Kite said that an additional problem was the release of documents relating to a previous allegation of child abuse against Mr Jackson. The Smoking Gun website publication was ""beyond disaster"", Ms Kite said. Correspondents say the reference is important because it was unclear whether the prosecution would be able to bring up the previous case in front of the jury.

The judge is studying whether the prosecution's first witness, reporter Martin Bashir, is in contempt of court. The defence protested after Mr Bashir, who interviewed Jackson for the TV documentary, refused to answer nearly all their questions, citing a California ""shield"" law intended to allow journalists to protect their sources. In the prosecution's opening statement on Monday, Tom Sneddon told the court that Mr Jackson had shown the boy porn and plied him with wine, in order to molest him. He said the singer had visited sexually explicit websites and showed the boy - who was 13 at the time - and his younger brother pornography at his ranch.
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France set for new Da Vinci novel	"French booksellers are braced for a rush of interest after another book from the author of The Da Vinci Code is translated into French.

Angels and Demons, by US author Dan Brown, will go on sale on Wednesday. The Da Vinci Code is set in Paris - including the Louvre - and has sold around one million copies in France. The main character, Robert Langdon, also appears in Angels and Demons. The Da Vinci Code is being made into a film starring Tom Hanks. Angels and Demons was written before The Da Vinci Code, which has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, and been translated into more than 40 languages, since it was released in 2003. Angels and Demons is set mainly in Rome as symbologist Robert Langdon follows a 400-year-old trail to try to uncover a plot by an ancient brotherhood, The Illuminati, to blow up the Vatican.

The novel deals with moral issues such as the debate between science and religion and also seeks to uncover some of the mysteries surrounding the Pope. On his website, Brown wrote: ""I think the reason Angels and Demons is raising eyebrows right now is that it opens some Vatican closets most people don't even know exist. ""But I think most people understand that an organisation as old and powerful as the Vatican could not possibly have risen to power without acquiring a few skeletons in their closets."" Such is the success of The Da Vinci Code in France, special tours have been organised to trace Langdon's footsteps, including the the Louvre museum and the Saint Sulpice Church. The Louvre has also given permission for parts of the film version to be shot in the museum. The film, to be directed by A Beautiful Mind's Ron Howard, is due to start filming at the Paris museum in May and stars Hanks alongside French actress Audrey Tautou.
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UK Directors Guild nominees named	"Martin Scorsese and Clint Eastwood are among the nominees for the top prize at the Directors Guild of Great Britain awards, now in their second year.

The Oscar rivals will compete for the international film prize at the ceremony, to be held at the Curzon Mayfair cinema in London on 20 March. Other nominees include Bill Condon for Kinsey and Michel Gondry for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Mike Leigh's Vera Drake is among the nominees for best British film. The awards will see Eastwood and Scorsese once again competing for the directing prize, following last weekend's Oscars. Clint Eastwood won best director for Million Dollar Baby, beating Scorsese who was nominated for a fifth time for the Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator. Mike Leigh will compete for the British film prize with Shane Meadows for Dead Man's Shoes, Roger Michell For Enduring Love and My Summer Of Love director Pawel Pawlikowski.

Nominees for best foreign film include Spain's Pedro Almodovar for Bad Education and Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai for 2046. In the TV categories, comedy series Early Doors and The Alan Clark Diaries will compete for the best directing award for a 30-minute television show, while the directors of Shameless, Hustle and Bodies are all nominated for the 60-minute television prize. The directors of Omagh and Sex Traffic are among the nominees for a television movie or mini-series. American Beauty's Sam Mendes will receive a lifetime achievement award for his work in film and theatre, while theatre director Simon McBurney will be given an award for outstanding directorial achievement.
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Halloween writer Debra Hill dies	"Screenwriter and producer Debra Hill, best known for her work on the 70s horror classic Halloween, has died in Los Angeles aged 54.

Hill, who had been suffering from cancer, co-wrote the 1978 film, which starred Jamie Lee Curtis as a babysitter terrorised by a psychopath. Directed by John Carpenter, it made over $60m (£31.3m) worldwide - a record for independent film at that time. Hill also worked with Carpenter on Escape From New York and The Fog. Born in New Jersey, Hill began her career as a production assistant and worked her way through the ranks, becoming an assistant director and second-unit director before she began collaborating with Carpenter.

She was regarded by many as a pioneering woman in film, taking on jobs in the 70s that were more commonly taken by men. ""Back when I started in 1974, there were very few women in the industry,"" she said in 2003. ""I was assumed to be the make-up and hair person, or the script person. I was never assumed to be the writer or producer."" ""I took a look around and realised there weren't that many women, so I had to carve a niche for myself."" Carpenter said that working with Hill was ""one of the greatest experiences of my life"". ""The ground that she trailblazed in the beginning can now be followed by anyone. She was incredibly capable and talented,"" he said. Carpenter and Hill collaborated on a number of Halloween sequels, including Halloween II, Halloween: Resurrection and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers.

Later in her career, Hill formed a production company with her friend Lynda Obst, making a string of hit films including Oscar nominee The Fisher King and teen comedy Adventures In Babysitting. Other films included the Stephen King adaptation The Dead Zone in 1983 and 1985's Clue, a comedy based on the board game Cluedo. In the 90s she pursued work in TV, although she was reunited with Carpenter in 1996 for Escape From LA, the sequel to Escape From New York. At the time of her death she was working on a film about the last two men pulled from the rubble of the Twin Towers following the 11 September terror attacks in 2001. She was also co-producing the remake of The Fog, which is due for release early next year.
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Tarantino 'to make Friday sequel'	"Director Quentin Tarantino is in talks to write and direct a new instalment in the Friday the 13th horror franchise, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The film-maker will reportedly meet executives from New Line Cinema this week to discuss the 12th film in the long-running 'stalk and slash' series. The original film, released in 1980, has spawned ten sequels based around mask-wearing murderer Jason Voorhees. The most recent, Freddy Vs Jason, was released in summer 2003. That film saw Jason battle Freddy Krueger, star of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. According to the industry newspaper, New Line had been trying to make another sequel involving Ash, the hero of the Evil Dead movies, but was unable to agree terms with director Sam Raimi. Tarantino is said to be intrigued by the prospect of building a new film around one of the horror genre's most recognised figures. First, however, he is scheduled to direct the season finale of US television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Filming is due to start in early April. Tarantino's episode, for which he also wrote the original story, will be broadcast in the US on 19 May.
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Boogeyman takes box office lead	"The low-budget horror film Boogeyman has knocked Robert de Niro thriller Hide and Seek from the top spot at the UK box office.

The film, in which a young man is forced to revisit a traumatic childhood experience, took £788,439 in its first three days on release. Hide And Seek, which was knocked off the top of the US box office by Boogeyman last month, fell one place. Oscar nominee Hotel Rwanda was also a new entry in the chart, at number five. The film, which scored Oscar nominations for Don Cheadle and British actress Sophie Okonedo, made £507, 596 in its first week of nationwide release.

Comedy sequel Meet The Fockers and Shall We Dance?, starring Jennifer Lopez and Richard Gere, completed the top five. Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby re-entered the charts at number eight, following its recent success at the Oscars. The boxing drama, which won four awards including best film and best director, has made £4.4m to date. Two other new entries, a remake of the 1965 film Flight of the Phoenix, and the teen comedy Harold and Kumar Get The Munchies, debuted outside the top 10.
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Lost Doors frontman movie found	"Historians in Florida have discovered a 40-year-old clip of a clean-cut Jim Morrison appearing in a promotional film for his university.

The 1964 film shows the Doors frontman, who died aged 27 in 1971, playing the part of a young man who had been rejected by Florida State University. Morrison is seen quizzing a college administrator on why he was refused. ""But what happened? How come my parents and the state and the university didn't look ahead?"" he is seen asking.

""It's incredible. He's so clean cut and soft-spoken,"" said Florida state archivist Jody Norman. ""We know he was at Florida State University for a period of time and he did some acting when he was there,"" Norman added. The Doors were one of the most influential bands of the 1960s, with hits including Light My Fire and Riders On The Storm. Morrison was notorious for his wild lifestyle - and was accused of exposing himself and simulating a sex act at a Miami concert in 1969. He was found dead in the bath of his Paris apartment and died from heart problems, aggravated by alcohol. A coroner recorded a verdict of death by natural causes and his grave at the city's Pere Lachaise ceremony has become a shrine for fans.
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Last Star Wars 'not for children'	"The sixth and final Star Wars movie may not be suitable for young children, film-maker George Lucas has said.

He told US TV show 60 Minutes that Revenge of the Sith would be the darkest and most violent of the series. ""I don't think I would take a five or six-year-old to this,"" he told the CBS programme, to be aired on Sunday. Lucas predicted the film would get a US rating advising parents some scenes may be unsuitable for under-13s. It opens in the UK and US on 19 May. He said he expected the film would be classified PG-13 - roughly equivalent to a British 12A rating.

The five previous Star Wars films have all carried less restrictive PG - parental guidance - ratings in the US. In the UK, they have all been passed U - suitable for all - with the exception of Attack of The Clones, which got a PG rating in 2002. Revenge of the Sith - the third prequel to the original 1977 Star Wars film - chronicles the transformation of the heroic Anakin Skywalker into the evil Darth Vader as he travels to a Hell-like planet composed of erupting volcanoes and molten lava. ""We're going to watch him make a pact with the devil,"" Lucas said. ""The film is much more dark, more emotional. It's much more of a tragedy.""
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French honour for director Parker	"British film director Sir Alan Parker has been made an officer in the Order of Arts and Letters, one of France's highest cultural honours.

Sir Alan received his decoration in Paris on Wednesday from French Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres. ""You have explored the possibilities of film with an immense talent,"" Mr de Vabres said as he presented the award. Parker praised French films, saying: ""Hollywood, which created modern cinema, uses it only as a commodity."" He told the minister: ""I am honoured to be thus distinguished by France, the flag carrier of cinema throughout the world."" Sir Alan's films include Oscar-winning Fame plus Midnight Express and The Commitments.

A founding member of the Director's Guild of Great Britain, he is a former chairman of the UK Film Council and on the board of the British Film Institute. ""Through your work and your campaigns, you have shown us how the artist occupies an essential place in our contemporary society,"" Mr de Vabres said. ""Through your dreams which you show us, through the links that you weave, you question the world through the mirror of your work."" He also cited the director's 2003 film The Life of David Gale, in which Kevin Spacey played a man on Death Row, as proof of his ""veritable artistic commitment against the death sentence"".
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Robots march to US cinema summit	"Animated movie Robots has opened at the top of the US and Canada box office chart, taking $36.5m (£19m) on its first weekend on release.

Featuring the voices of Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry, Robin Williams and Mel Brooks, Robots follows a robot inventor who moves to a big city. Vin Diesel's family comedy The Pacifier fell to the number two spot, taking $18.1m (£9.4m). New Bruce Willis movie Hostage opened at number four with $9.8m (£5.1m).

However, a recut version of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, which featured less violence than last year's original movie, took just $239,850 (£125,000), despite opening in 957 cinemas. The new version of the film received little publicity and the original version is available across the US on DVD. ""We certainly had higher expectations than what we got,"" said Rob Schwartz, head of distribution for Newmarket Films, which released The Passion of the Christ. ""We were trying to get the film out there, hoping it would reach an audience that it didn't quite reach the first time around. It doesn't seem to have worked out quite as well as we had hoped."" Meanwhile, Will Smith comedy Hitch has become the top film at the global box office after taking an estimated $30.1m (£15.6m) over the weekend at cinemas outside North America, according to industry website Screen Daily. It has taken $65.5m (£34.1m) so far, buoyed by opening at number one in the UK last weekend and a successful run in Germany. The movie, which cost a reported $70m (£36.4m) to make, has taken $138m (£72m) in the US so far.
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Hobbit picture 'four years away'	"Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson has said that it will be up to four years before he starts work on a film version of The Hobbit.

The Oscar winner said on a visit to Sydney there was a ""desire"" to make it, but not before lengthy negotiations. ""I think it's gonna be a lot of lawyers sitting in a room trying to thrash out a deal before it will ever happen,"" said the New Zealander. The rights to JRR Tolkien's book are split between two major film studios. Jackson, who is currently filming a remake of Hollywood classic King Kong, said he thought that the sale of MGM studios to the Sony Corporation would cast further uncertainty on the project. The 43-year-old was in the Australian city to visit a Lord of the Rings exhibition, which has attracted 140,000 visitors since it opened in December.

The film-maker recently sued film company New Line Cinema for undisclosed damages over alleged withheld profits and lost revenue from the first part of the Middle Earth trilogy. The Fellowship of The Ring from 2001 went on to make worldwide profits of $291 million (£152 million). Jackson is thought to have secured the most lucrative film directing deal in history to remake King Kong, which is currently in production in Wellington. The picture, which stars Naomi Watts and Oscar winner Adrien Brody, is due to be released in December. Jackson has also committed to making a film version of Lovely Bones, based on the best-selling book by Alice Sebold.
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Buffy creator joins Wonder Woman	"The creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is to take on a new female superhero after signing up to write and direct the Wonder Woman movie.

Joss Whedon described the DC Comics character as ""the most iconic female heroine of our time"". ""In a way, no one has met her yet,"" he said. ""What I love most about icons is finding out what's behind them, exploring the price of their power."" Linda Carter played the character in the 1970s TV series. The character of Wonder Woman, famed for her red and gold costume, was born on Paradise Island, and was blessed with the powers of strength and flight. The film is being produced by Joel Silver, producer of the Matrix trilogy.

""There's no one better than Joss to adapt the legendary Wonder Woman comic book character created in the 1940s into a dynamic feature film for 21st Century audiences,"" said Silver. ""Wonder Woman was the first great female superhero to emerge from comic books and later inspire millions of fans in her television incarnation... but this groundbreaking heroine has yet to be reinvented for the feature film arena."" Whedon created the character of Buffy in the screenplay for the 1992 film. He distanced himself from the movie because of the direction it eventually took, and the film bombed. But he did not give up on the Slayer and went on to write and executive produce seven seasons of the cult TV series. He also produced the spin-off Angel series. He is currently directing the film Serenity, based on his short-lived sci-fi series Firefly.
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Claxton hunting first major medal	"British hurdler Sarah Claxton is confident she can win her first major medal at next month's European Indoor Championships in Madrid.

The 25-year-old has already smashed the British record over 60m hurdles twice this season, setting a new mark of 7.96 seconds to win the AAAs title. ""I am quite confident,"" said Claxton. ""But I take each race as it comes. ""As long as I keep up my training but not do too much I think there is a chance of a medal."" Claxton has won the national 60m hurdles title for the past three years but has struggled to translate her domestic success to the international stage. Now, the Scotland-born athlete owns the equal fifth-fastest time in the world this year. And at last week's Birmingham Grand Prix, Claxton left European medal favourite Russian Irina Shevchenko trailing in sixth spot.

For the first time, Claxton has only been preparing for a campaign over the hurdles - which could explain her leap in form. In previous seasons, the 25-year-old also contested the long jump but since moving from Colchester to London she has re-focused her attentions. Claxton will see if her new training regime pays dividends at the European Indoors which take place on 5-6 March.
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O'Sullivan could run in Worlds	"Sonia O'Sullivan has indicated that she would like to participate in next month's World Cross Country Championships in St Etienne.

Athletics Ireland have hinted that the 35-year-old Cobh runner may be included in the official line-up for the event in France on 19-20 March. Provincial teams were selected after last Saturday's Nationals in Santry and will be officially announced this week. O'Sullivan is at present preparing for the London marathon on 17 April. The participation of O'Sullivan, currentily training at her base in Australia, would boost the Ireland team who won the bronze three years agio. The first three at Santry last Saturday, Jolene Byrne, Maria McCambridge and Fionnualla Britton, are automatic selections and will most likely form part of the long-course team. O'Sullivan will also take part in the Bupa Great Ireland Run on 9 April in Dublin.
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Greene sets sights on world title	"Maurice Greene aims to wipe out the pain of losing his Olympic 100m title in Athens by winning a fourth World Championship crown this summer.

He had to settle for bronze in Greece behind fellow American Justin Gatlin and Francis Obikwelu of Portugal. ""It really hurts to look at that medal. It was my mistake. I lost because of the things I did,"" said Greene, who races in Birmingham on Friday. ""It's never going to happen again. My goal - I'm going to win the worlds."" Greene crossed the line just 0.02 seconds behind Gatlin, who won in 9.87 seconds in one of the closest and fastest sprints of all time. But Greene believes he lost the race and his title in the semi-finals. ""In my semi-final race, I should have won the race but I was conserving energy. ""That's when Francis Obikwelu came up and I took third because I didn't know he was there. ""I believe that's what put me in lane seven in the final and, while I was in lane seven, I couldn't feel anything in the race.

""I just felt like I was running all alone. ""I believe if I was in the middle of the race I would have been able to react to people that came ahead of me."" Greene was also denied Olympic gold in the 4x100m men's relay when he could not catch Britain's Mark Lewis-Francis on the final leg. The Kansas star is set to go head-to-head with Lewis-Francis again at Friday's Norwich Union Grand Prix. The pair contest the 60m, the distance over which Greene currently holds the world record of 6.39 seconds. He then has another indoor meeting in France before resuming training for the outdoor season and the task of recapturing his world title in Helsinki in August. Greene believes Gatlin will again prove the biggest threat to his ambitions in Finland. But he also admits he faces more than one rival for the world crown. ""There's always someone else coming. I think when I was coming up I would say there was me and Ato (Boldon) in the young crowd,"" Greene said. ""Now you've got about five or six young guys coming up at the same time.""
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IAAF launches fight against drugs	"The IAAF - athletics' world governing body - has met anti-doping officials, coaches and athletes to co-ordinate the fight against drugs in sport.

Two task forces have been set up to examine doping and nutrition issues. It was also agreed that a programme to ""de-mystify"" the issue to athletes, the public and the media was a priority. ""Nothing was decided to change things - it was more to have a forum of the stakeholders allowing them to express themselves,"" said an IAAF spokesman. ""Getting everyone together gave us a lot of food for thought."" About 60 people attended Sunday's meeting in Monaco, including IAAF chief Lamine Diack and Namibian athlete Frankie Fredericks, now a member of the Athletes' Commission. ""I am very happy to see you all, members of the athletics family, respond positively to the IAAF call to sit together and discuss what more we can do in the fight against doping,"" said Diack. ""We are the leading Federation in this field and it is our duty to keep our sport clean."" The two task forces will report back to the IAAF Council, at its April meeting in Qatar.
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Dibaba breaks 5,000m world record	"Ethiopia's Tirunesh Dibaba set a new world record in winning the women's 5,000m at the Boston Indoor Games.

Dibaba won in 14 minutes 32.93 seconds to erase the previous world indoor mark of 14:39.29 set by another Ethiopian, Berhane Adera, in Stuttgart last year. But compatriot Kenenisa Bekele's record hopes were dashed when he miscounted his laps in the men's 3,000m and staged his sprint finish a lap too soon. Ireland's Alistair Cragg won in 7:39.89 as Bekele battled to second in 7:41.42. ""I didn't want to sit back and get out-kicked,"" said Cragg. ""So I kept on the pace. The plan was to go with 500m to go no matter what, but when Bekele made the mistake that was it. The race was mine."" Sweden's Carolina Kluft, the Olympic heptathlon champion, and Slovenia's Jolanda Ceplak had winning performances, too. Kluft took the long jump at 6.63m, while Ceplak easily won the women's 800m in 2:01.52.
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Isinbayeva claims new world best	"Pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva broke her own indoor world record by clearing 4.89 metres in Lievin on Saturday.

It was the Russian's 12th world record of her career and came just a few days after she cleared 4.88m at the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham. The Olympic champion went on to attempt 5.05m at the meeting on France but failed to clear that height. In the men's 60m, former Olympic 100m champion Maurice Greene could only finish second to Leonard Scott. It was Greene's second consecutive defeat at the hands of his fellow American, who also won in Birmingham last week. ""I ran my race perfectly,"" said Scott, who won in 6.46secs, his best time indoors. ""I am happy even if I know that Maurice is a long way from being at his peak at the start of the season.""
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O'Sullivan commits to Dublin race	"Sonia O'Sullivan will seek to regain her title at the Bupa Great Ireland Run on 9 April in Dublin.

The 35-year-old was beaten into fourth at last year's event, having won it a year earlier. ""I understand she's had a solid winter's training down in Australia after recovering from a minor injury,"" said race director Matthew Turnbull. Mark Carroll, Irish record holder at 3km, 5km and 10km, will make his debut in the mass participation 10km race. Carroll has stepped up his form in recent weeks and in late January scored an impressive 3,000m victory over leading American Alan Webb in Boston. Carroll will be facing stiff competition from Australian Craig Mottram, winner in Dublin for the last two years.
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Hansen 'delays return until 2006'	"British triple jumper Ashia Hansen has ruled out a comeback this year after a setback in her recovery from a bad knee injury, according to reports.

Hansen, the Commonwealth and European champion, has been sidelined since the European Cup in Poland in June 2004. It was hoped she would be able to return this summer, but the wound from the injury has been very slow to heal. Her coach Aston Moore told the Times: ""We're not looking at any sooner than 2006, not as a triple jumper."" Moore said Hansen may be able to return to sprinting and long jumping sooner, but there is no short-term prospect of her being involved again in her specialist event. ""There was a problem with the wound healing and it set back her rehabilitation by about two months, but that has been solved and we can push ahead now,"" he said. ""The aim is for her to get fit as an athlete - then we will start looking at sprinting and the long jump as an introduction back to the competitive arena."" Moore said he is confident Hansen can make it back to top-level competition, though it is unclear if that will be in time for the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne next March, when she will be 34. ""It's been a frustrating time for her, but it has not fazed her determination,"" he added.
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Off-colour Gardener storms to win	"Britain's Jason Gardener shook off an upset stomach to win the 60m at Sunday's Leipzig International meeting.

Gardener clocked 6.56 seconds to equal the meeting record and finished well ahead of Germany's Marc Blume, who crossed the line in 6.67 secs. The world indoor champion said: ""I got to the airport and my stomach was upset and I was vomiting. I almost went home. ""I felt a little better Sunday morning but decided I'd only run in the main race. Then everything went perfectly."" Gardener, part of the Great Britain 4x100m quartet that won gold at the Athens Olympics, will now turn his attention to next weekend's Norwich Union European Indoor trials in Sheffield.

""Given I am still off-colour I know there is plenty more in the tank and I expect to get faster in the next few weeks,"" he said. ""It's just a case of chipping away as I have done in previous years and the results will come."" Scotland's Ian Mackie was also in action in Leipzig. He stepped down from his favoured 400m to 200m to finish third in 21.72 secs. Germany's Alexander Kosenkow won the race in 21.07 secs with Dutchman Patrick van Balkom second in 21.58 secs. There were plenty of other senior British athletes showing their indoor form over the weekend. Promising 60m hurdler

clocked a new UK record of 7.98 seconds at a meeting in Norway. The 24-year-old reached the mark in her heat but had to settle for joint first place with former AAA champion Diane Allahgreen in the final.

, who broke onto the international scene at the Olympic Games last season, set an indoor personal best of 16.50m in the triple jump at a meeting in Ghent. That leap - 37cm short of Brazilian winner Jadel Gregorio's effort - was good enough to qualify for the European Indoor Championships. At the same meeting,

finished third in 7.27 seconds in a high-class women's 60m. The event was won by European medal favourite Christine Arron of France while Belgium rival Kim Gevaert was second. Britain's Joice Maduaka finished fifth in 7.35. Olympic bronze heptathlon medallist

made a low-key return to action at an indoor meeting in Birmingham. The 28-year-old cleared 1.76m to win the high jump and threw 13.86m in the women's shot put.
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Collins to compete in Birmingham	"World and Commonwealth 100m champion Kim Collins will compete in the 60m at the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham on 18 February.

The St Kitts and Nevis star joins British Olympic relay gold medallists Jason Gardener and Mark Lewis-Francis. Sydney Olympic 100m champion and world indoor record holder Maurice Greene and Athens Olympic 100m silver medallist Francis Obikwelu will also take part. Collins ran in Birmingham at the 2003 World Indoor Championships. ""I'm looking forward to competing against such a strong field,"" he said. ""I got a great reception form the crowd at the NIA when I won my 60m world indoor silver medal in 2003 and it will be really exciting to return to this venue."" The world champion says he's in good shape but he isn't underestimating the home competition. ""Jason Gardener and Mark Lewis-Francis are Olympic gold medallists now and I'm sure they'll be aiming to win in front of their home supporters. ""I'm looking forward to competing against Britain's best sprinters and I'm sure the 60 metres will be one of the most exciting races of the evening."" Collins was sixth in the Olympic final in Athens but is hoping for a better result at the World Championships in Finland this summer. ""This will be a big year for me and I plan to defend my 100m world title in Helsinki in August. Before then I want to perform well over 60m indoors and start my year in winning form.""
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Radcliffe yet to answer GB call	"Paula Radcliffe has been granted extra time to decide whether to compete in the World Cross-Country Championships.

The 31-year-old is concerned the event, which starts on 19 March in France, could upset her preparations for the London Marathon on 17 April. ""There is no question that Paula would be a huge asset to the GB team,"" said Zara Hyde Peters of UK Athletics. ""But she is working out whether she can accommodate the worlds without too much compromise in her marathon training."" Radcliffe must make a decision by Tuesday - the deadline for team nominations. British team member Hayley Yelling said the team would understand if Radcliffe opted out of the event. ""It would be fantastic to have Paula in the team,"" said the European cross-country champion. ""But you have to remember that athletics is basically an individual sport and anything achieved for the team is a bonus. ""She is not messing us around. We all understand the problem."" Radcliffe was world cross-country champion in 2001 and 2002 but missed last year's event because of injury. In her absence, the GB team won bronze in Brussels.
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Edwards tips Idowu for Euro gold	"World outdoor triple jump record holder and BBC pundit Jonathan Edwards believes Phillips Idowu can take gold at the European Indoor Championships.

Idowu landed 17.30m at the British trials in Sheffield last month to lead the world triple jump rankings. ""It's all down to him, but if he jumps as well as he did in Sheffield he could win the gold medal,"" said Edwards. ""His ability is undoubted but all his best performances seem to happen in domestic meetings.""

Idowu made his breakthrough five years ago but so far has only a Commonwealth silver medal to his name. Edwards himself kept Idowu off top spot at the Manchester Games. But he believes the European Indoors in Madrid represent a chance for the 26-year-old to prove his credentials as Britain's top triple jumper. ""He has to start producing at international level and here is the beginning,"" said Edwards. ""Phillips still needs to be much more consistent. I'm sure a victory in Madrid will build up his confidence and self-belief that he can be best in the world."" The qualifying round of the men's triple jump in Madrid takes place on Friday with the final scheduled for Saturday. Olympic champion Christian Olsson will not be taking part as he is out for the entire indoor season with an ankle injury.
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Kenya lift Chepkemei's suspension	"Kenya's athletics body has reversed a ban on marathon runner Susan Chepkemei after she made an official apology.

Athletics Kenya (AK) had suspended the two-time London Marathon runner-up for failing to turn up to a cross-country team training camp in Embu. ""We have withdrawn the ban. Chepkemei has given a reason for her absence,"" said AK chief Isaiah Kiplagat. ""She explained she had a contract with the organisers of the race in Puerto Rice and we have accepted her apology.""

The Kenyan coaching team will now decide whether Chepkemei can be included in the team for this month's world cross country championships. The 29-year-old would be a strong contender at the event in France and is hopeful she will be granted a place in the 32-strong squad. ""I am satisfied that the whole saga has been brought to an end,"" Chepkemei said. ""I am ready and prepared to represent my country. ""I will be disappointed if I am not given a chance to compete at the world cross country championships."" AK had insisted it was making an example of Chepkemei by banning her from competition until the end of 2005. But the organisation came under intense international and domestic pressure to reverse its decision. The 29-year-old took part in the 2002 and 2003 London Marathons and was edged out by Radcliffe in an epic New York Marathon contest last year.

The two-time world half-marathon silver medallist will be back to challenge Radcliffe at this year's London event in April. AK also dropped its harsh stance on three-time world cross country 4km champion Edith Masai. Masai missed Kenya's world cross country trials because of an ankle problem but AK insisted it would take disciplinary action unless she could prove she was really injured. ""Subject to our doctor's confirmation, we have decided to clear Masai,"" added Kiplagat.
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McIlroy aiming for Madrid title	"Northern Ireland man James McIlroy is confident he can win his first major title at this weekend's Spar European Indoor Championships in Madrid.

The 28-year-old has been in great form in recent weeks and will go in as one of the 800 metres favourites. ""I believe after my wins abroad and in our trial race in Sheffield, I can run my race from the front, back or middle,"" said McIlroy. New coach Tony Lester has helped get McIlroy's career back on track. The 28-year-old 800 metres runner has not always matched his promise with performances but believes his decision to change coaches and move base will bring the rewards. McIlroy now lives in Windsor and feels his career has been transformed by the no-nonsense leadership style of former Army sergeant Lester. Lester is better known for his work with 400m runners Roger Black and Mark Richardson in the past but under his guidance McIlroy has secured five wins this indoor season.

McIlroy now claims he is in his best shape since finishing fourth for Ireland at the outdoor European Championships in 1998. ""That was my last decent year,"" said McIlroy, who temporarily retired last August before returning to the sport under Lester's shrewd guidance. ""Before, every race was like trying to climb Mount Everest and I now know you can't do it on your own. ""Trying to succeed saw me sometimes standing half-dead and terrified on the starting line, which became a bit too much."" McIlroy, who was compared to the likes of Sebastian Coe, Steve Cram and Steve Ovett in his younger days, is now competing without the benefit of National Lottery funding. That situation could change if he maintains his current form and repeats the world-class times he produced in the 800m and 1000m at major races in Erfurt and Stuttgart earlier this season. Russian Dmitriy Bogdanov won at the same Madrid venue last week and then claimed the European Championship race would be between himself, Dutchman Arnoud Okken and Antonio Reina of Spain but McIlroy is unfazed.

He admitted: ""He looked quite good in his win and fair enough everyone has the right to their own opinion. ""I never write myself off and let's face it, I haven't or looked like being beaten this season."" And McIlroy, whose time of one minute 46.68seconds in Erfurt elevated him to sixth place on the UK All-Time list, is also already looking beyond Madrid. He said: ""I've been much more focused this year about my career and having such a good team around me has been very important. ""Ultimately of course, this weekend is a means to an end and that is getting prepared for the summer's world championships. ""That ambition has meant that I've had only two nights out since last August. The rest of my time has seen me just concentrating on rebuilding my career.""
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UK Athletics agrees new kit deal	"UK Athletics has agreed a new deal with adidas to supply Great Britain squads of all ages with their kit for the next four years.

The German-based firm kitted out Team GB at the 2004 Olympics and has deals with 20 other national Olympic bodies. UK Athletics chief David Moorcroft said: ""The Athens experience can now be extended to more major championships. ""In the year ahead these include the European indoor and World outdoor championships. We are delighted."" Moorcroft added: ""It is hugely beneficial to the sport that the adidas commitment will also provide for officials and other personnel at our world-class series of live televised events."" This week, UK Athletics also agreed a four-year deal with energy drink company, Red Bull, who will be supplying the product to athletics at major domestic meetings and in high performance centres.
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Verdict delay for Greek sprinters	"Greek athletics' governing body has postponed by two weeks the judgement on sprinters Costas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou for missing doping tests.

The pair are facing lengthy bans for the missed tests, including one on the eve of last year's Athens Olympics. They were set to learn their fate by the end of February, but late evidence from them has pushed the date back. ""A decision is now expected by around mid-March,"" said one of their lawyers, Michalis Dimitrakopoulos. Kenteris, 31, who won the men's 200m title at the 2000 Sydney Games and Thanou, 30, who won the women's 100m silver medal in Sydney, face a maximum two-year ban if found guilty. The athletes, who spectacularly withdrew from the Athens Olympics, have been suspended by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) for missing the three tests. The IAAF said the sprinters had failed to provide samples for tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens and ordered Greek athletic's governing body, Segas, to hold a disciplinary inquiry. The athletes also face a criminal hearing in Greece over the missed drugs tests and have been charged with faking a motorcycle accident on the day of the Athens test, which led to them spending four days in hospital. Following the final hearing in late January, the athletes sounded confident they would be acquitted. ""I am confident and optimistic,"" Thanou had said at the time. ""We presented new evidence to the committee that they were not aware of."" It was not clear what this new evidence was.
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Call for Kenteris to be cleared	"Kostas Kenteris' lawyer has called for the doping charges against the Greek sprinter to be dropped.

Gregory Ioannidis has submitted new evidence to a Greek athletics tribunal which he claims proves the former Olympic champion has no case to answer. Kenteris and compatriot Katerina Thanou were given provisional suspensions in December for failing to take drugs tests before the Athens Olympics. The Greek tribunal is expected to give its verdict early next week. Kenteris and Thanou withdrew from the Athens Olympics last August after missing drugs tests on the eve of the opening ceremony. They were also alleged to have avoided tests in Tel Aviv and Chicago before the Games.

But Ioannidis said: ""Everything overwhelmingly shows that the charges should be dropped."" Ioannidis also said he has presented evidence that will throw a different light on the events leading up to the pair's sensational withdrawal from the Athens Games. The lawyer added that he has proof the authorities ""knew"" Kenteris was in Germany at the time he was alleged to have missed a test in Chicago. Nick Davies, spokesman for athletics' ruling body the IAAF, which handed out the provisional bans, said: ""We can't comment because we were not present at the hearing and don't know what was said behind closed doors. ""We expect a verdict from the Greek Athletics Federation before the end of February and will obviously be making a statement then."" Kenteris won 200m gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, while Thanou won silver in the 100m.
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Merritt close to indoor 400m mark	"Teenager LaShawn Merritt ran the third fastest indoor 400m of all time at the Fayetteville Invitational meeting.

The world junior champion clocked 44.93 seconds to finish well clear of fellow American Bershawn Jackson in Arkansas. Only Michael Johnson has gone quicker, setting the world record of 44.63secs in 1995 and running 44.66secs in 1996. Kenyan Bernard Lagat missed out on the world record by 1.45secs as he ran the third quickest indoor mile ever to beat Canada's Nate Brannen by almost 10secs. The Olympic silver medallist's time of three minutes 49.89secs was inferior only to the 1997 world record of Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj and former world record holder Eamonn Coghlan of Ireland's 3:49.78. Lagat was on course to break El Guerrouj's record through 1200m but could not maintain the pace over the final 400m. Ireland's

continued his excellent form by winning a tight 3,000m in 7:40.53. Cragg, who recently defeated Olympic 10,000m champion Kenenisa Bekele in Boston, held off Bekele's Ethiopian colleague Markos Geneti by only 0.19secs to secure his victory. Mark Carroll, who will join Cragg in the European Indoor Championships next month, finished a solid third in 7:46.78. Olympic 200m gold medallist

of Jamaica ran the fastest women's 60m in the world this year as she equalled her personal best of 7.09secs. World indoor 60m hurdles champion

also won, improving his season-leading time to 7.51secs.
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London hope over Chepkemei	"London Marathon organisers are hoping that banned athlete Susan Chepkemei will still take part in this year's race on 17 April.

Chepkemei was suspended from all competition until the end of the year by Athletics Kenya after failing to report to a national training camp. ""We are watching it closely,"" said London race director David Bedford. ""There is a long way to go before the race and we are hoping the situation will be satisfactorily resolved."" The camp in Embu was to prepare for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships later this month. Chepkemei however took part and finished third in last Sunday's world best 10K race in Puerto Rico. The 29-year-old has finished second to Paula Radcliffe in the 2002 and 2003 London races as well as in November's New York City marathon.
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Edwards tips Idowu for Euro gold	"World outdoor triple jump record holder and BBC pundit Jonathan Edwards believes Phillips Idowu can take gold at the European Indoor Championships.

Idowu landed 17.30m at the British trials in Sheffield last month to lead the world triple jump rankings. ""It's all down to him, but if he jumps as well as he did in Sheffield he could win the gold medal,"" said Edwards. ""His ability is undoubted but all his best performances seem to happen in domestic meetings.""

Idowu made his breakthrough five years ago but so far has only a Commonwealth silver medal to his name. Edwards himself kept Idowu off top spot at the Manchester Games. But he believes the European Indoors in Madrid represent a chance for the 26-year-old to prove his credentials as Britain's top triple jumper. ""He has to start producing at international level and here is the beginning,"" said Edwards. ""Phillips still needs to be much more consistent. I'm sure a victory in Madrid will build up his confidence and self-belief that he can be best in the world."" The qualifying round of the men's triple jump in Madrid takes place on Friday with the final scheduled for Saturday. Olympic champion Christian Olsson will not be taking part as he is out for the entire indoor season with an ankle injury.
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Chepkemei hit by big ban	"Kenya's athletics body has suspended two-time London Marathon runner-up Susan Chepkemei from all competition until the end of the year.

Athletics Kenya (AK) issued the ban after Chepkemei failed to turn up for a cross country training camp in Embu. ""We have banned her from all local and international competitions,"" said AK chief Isaiah Kiplagat. ""We shall communicate this decision to the IAAF and all meet directors all over the world."" The 29-year-old finished second to Paula Radcliffe in the 2002 and 2003 London races, and was also edged out in an epic New York Marathon contest last year.

But the ban will prevent the two-time world half-marathon silver medallist from challenging Radcliffe at this year's London event in April. Global Sports Communications, Chepkemei's management company, said she had wanted to run in the World Cross Country Championships in March. But AK maintained it was making an example of Chepkemei as a warning to other Kenyan athletes. ""We are taking this action in order to salvage our pride,"" said Kiplagat. ""We have been accused of having no teeth to bite with and that agents are ruling over us."" KA has also threatened three-time women's short-course champion Edith Masai with a similar ban if reports that she feigned injury to avoid running at the cross country world championships are true. Masai missed the national trials in early February, but was included in the provisional team on the proviso that she ran in a regional competition. She failed to run in the event, citing a leg injury.
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Holmes secures comeback victory	"Britain's Kelly Holmes marked her first appearance on home soil since winning double Olympic gold with 1500m victory at the Norwich Union International.

Holmes hit the front just before the bell in front of a sell-out crowd in Glasgow and cruised to victory in a time of four minutes 14.74 seconds. ""It was nice to get that out of the way. I was nervous about whether I would actually be able to get round. ""I felt good. I just had to relax and use my racing knowledge,"" said Holmes. ""It was all about winning in front of my home crowd. The time is irrelevant. ""I got round in one piece and didn't disgrace myself. Now it's about going forward. ""The reception I've had since the Olympics has been amazing and that's why I wanted to keep running this year, because I get a buzz from the crowd."" Holmes ran a tactically perfect race to finish clear of France's Hind Dehiba and Russia's Svetlana Cherkasova. The Olympic 800m and 1500m champion's time was inside the qualifying mark for the European Indoor Championships in Madrid in March. But the 34-year-old would not reveal whether she intended to run or not, having previously indicated she would leave a decision until after the Birmingham Grand Prix on 18 February.
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Greek pair attend drugs hearing	"Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou have appeared before an independent tribunal which will decide if their bans should stand.

They were given provisional suspensions by athletics' ruling body the IAAF in December for failing to take drugs tests before the Athens Olympics. The pair arrived with former coach Christos Tzekos to give evidence at the Hellenic Olympic Committee's offices. A decision is expected to be announced before the end of February. Whatever the ruling, all parties will have the right to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Yiannis Papadoyiannakis, who was head of the Greek Olympic team at the Athens Games last year, also testified at the tribunal, along with other Greek sports officials and athletes. ""I believe the tribunal will reach a decision that will uphold the standing of the institution,"" said Papadoyiannakis. ""Whatever the athletes have done, we must not forget that they have offered us great moments."" Kenteris won 200m gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, while Thanou won silver in the 100m.

They withdrew from the Athens Games last August after missing drugs tests on the eve of the opening ceremony. The pair spent four days in a hospital, claiming they had been injured in a motorcycle crash. The five-member tribunal, assembled by the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics, is also examining allegations that Kenteris and Thanou avoided tests in Tel Aviv and Chicago before the Games. Tzekos was also banned for two years by the IAAF. He faces charges of assisting in the use of prohibited substances and tampering with the doping inspection process. All three, who have repeatedly denied the allegations, have also been charged by a Greek prosecutor and face trial for doping-related charges. A trial date has not been set. In imposing two-year suspensions on the duo on 22 December, the IAAF described their explanations for missing the tests as ""unacceptable"". But Kenteris' lawyer Gregory Ioannidis told BBC Sport earlier this week he was confident the sprinters would be cleared of the charges of failing to give information on their location and refusing to submit to testing. ""We refute both charges as unsubstantiated and illogical,"" he said. ""There have been certain breaches in the correct application of the rules on behalf of the sporting authorities and their officials, and these procedural breaches have also violated my client's rights. ""There is also evidence that proves the fact that my client has been persecuted.""
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Chepkemei joins Edinburgh line-up	"Susan Chepkemei has decided she is fit enough to run in next month's Great Edinburgh International Cross Country.

The Kenyan was initially unsure if she would have recovered from her gruelling tussle with Paula Radcliffe in the New York Marathon in time to compete. But she has declared herself up to the task and joins a field headed by World cross country champion Benita Johnson. Race director Matthew Turnbull said: ""Susan will add even more strength in depth to the world-class line up."" Chepkemei, who won the six kilometre event three years ago when it was staged in Newcastle, endured an epic battle with Radcliffe in the Big Apple until the Briton outsprinted her in the final 400m. Tirunesh Dibaba of Ethiopia will defend the title she won last year in Tyneside - before the race was moved north of the border. Recently-crowned European cross country champion Briton Hayley Yelling also competes in Edinburgh on 15 January, as does in-form Scot Kathy Butler.
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El Guerrouj targets cross country	"Double Olympic champion Hicham El Guerrouj is set to make a rare appearance at the World Cross Country Championships in France.

But the Moroccan, who has not raced over cross country for 15 years, will not decide until two weeks before the event which starts on 19 March. ""If I am to compete in it, it is only if I feel I can win,"" said the 30-year-old, who is retiring in 2006. ""Otherwise there is not much point in me going."" El Guerrouj achieved a lifetime ambition last August when he clinched his first Olympic titles over 1500m and 5,000m. But the four-time world 1500m champion is still hungry for more success before calling time on his career. The 30-year-old has set his sights on clinching the world 5,000m crown in Helsinki this summer. And he is aiming to break 10,000m Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele's 5,000m and 10,000m world records.

El Guerrouj could meet Bekele in March as the Ethiopian is the defending world cross country champion over both the long and short courses. But the Moroccan will not commit himself to the St Galmier event until he assesses how well his winter training is going. ""The return to training was very difficult because I accepted a lot of invitations these past few months,"" said El Guerrouj. ""I am almost a month behind but I am on the right track.""


 - Britain's Paula Radcliffe has also not ruled out competing in the World Cross Country Championships. ""I haven't quite decided what events I will compete in prior to London but the World Cross Country is an event which is also special to me and is a definite possibility,"" said the two-time champion.
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Collins appeals against drugs ban	"Sprinter Michelle Collins has lodged an appeal against her eight-year doping ban with the North American Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The 33-year-old received the ban last month as a result of her connection to the federal inquiry into the Balco doping scandal. She is the first athlete to be banned without a positive drugs test or an admission of drugs use. CAS has said that a ruling is normally given within four months of an appeal. Collins was suspended by the US Anti-Doping Agency based on patterns observed in her blood and urine tests as well as evidence in the Balco investigation. As well as being hit with the ban, Collins was stripped of her 2003 world and US indoor 200m titles. The San Francisco-based Balco laboratory is at the centre of the scandal which has rocked the sport. The company has been accused of distributing illegal performance-enhancing drugs to elite athletes.
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Holmes feted with further honour	"Double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes has been voted European Athletics (EAA) woman athlete of 2004 in the governing body's annual poll.

The Briton, made a dame in the New Year Honours List for taking 800m and 1,500m gold, won vital votes from the public, press and EAA member federations. She is only the second British woman to land the title after- Sally Gunnell won for her world 400m hurdles win in 1993. Swedish triple jumper Christian Olsson was voted male athlete of the year. The accolade is the latest in a long list of awards that Holmes has received since her success in Athens. In addition to becoming a dame, she was also named the BBC Sports Personality of the Year in December. Her gutsy victory in the 800m also earned her the International Association of Athletics Federations' award for the best women's performance in the world for 2004. And she scooped two awards at the British Athletics Writers' Association annual dinner in October.
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Campbell to extend sprint career	"Darren Campbell has set his sights on running quicker than ever after deciding not to retire from sprinting.

Campbell, who won Olympic 4x100m relay gold, had been unsure about his future. But he told Five Live's Sportsweek: ""I had to get back into training before I could decide because if I didn't have the same hunger I'd have to walk away. ""I've started back and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. I'm looking forward to it. I've got to run under 10 seconds (for 100m) and under 20 seconds (for 200m)."" Campbell was part of the British quartet who shocked the Americans to win relay gold in Athens in August.

The Newport-based athlete and team-mates Jason Gardener, Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis-Francis were rewarded with MBEs in the New Year Honours List. Campbell's relay triumph made up for his disappointing displays in the individual 100m and 200m events in Athens, when he failed to reach the finals. The 31-year-old, who won Olympic 200m silver in Sydney in 2000, said during the Games that a hamstring injury had stopped him from running at his best.

He was criticised at the time by former Olympic champion Michael Johnson, who cast doubt on Campbell's injury claims. ""To go to Athens and finally get the gold I've been trying to get for 24 years was a big relief,"" said Campbell. ""It was a chance for me to prove that if I'd been fit I would have been challenging for the (individual) medals. ""Every season I go and challenge for the medals so why would last season have been any different? ""It's just unfortunate that I picked up that injury just before the Olympics."" Campbell set his 100m personal best of 10.04secs when he won the European title in Budapest in 1998. And he ran 20.13secs in the quarter-finals of the 200m in Sydney on the way to Olympic silver.
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Isinbayeva heads for Birmingham	"Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva has confirmed she will take part in the 2005 Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham on 18 February.

""Everybody knows how much I enjoy competing in Britain. I always seem to break records there,"" said Isinbayeva. ""As Olympic champion there will be more attention on me this year, but hopefully I can respond with another record in Birmingham."" Kelly Holmes and Carolina Kluft are among other Athens winners competing. The organisers are hoping that Isinbayeva's main rival, fellow Russian Svetlana Feofanova, will also take part in the event. The pair had a thrilling battle in Athens which ended with Isinbayeva finally jumping a world record of 4.91m to claim the gold medal. Isinbayeva, 22, has set 10 world records in the pole vault, three of which have come on British soil.
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2004: An Irish Athletics Year	"2004 won't be remembered as one of Irish athletics' great years.

The year began with that optimism which invariably and unaccountably, seems to herald an upcoming Olympiad. But come late August, a few hot days in the magnificent stadium in Athens told us of the true strength of Irish athletics - or to be more accurate, the lack of it. Sonia O'Sullivan's Olympic farewell apart, there was little to stir the emotions of Irish athletics watchers. But after the disastrous build-up to the games, we shouldn't have been surprised. At the start of the year, an O'Sullivan had been earmarked as Ireland's best medal prospect but as it turned out, walker Gillian never even made it to the start line because of injury. Less than a week before the Olympics, the sport was rocked by news that 10,000m hope Cathal Lombard had tested for the banned substance EPO. Lombard's shattering of Mark Carroll's national 10,000m record in April had already set tongues wagging but even the most cynical of observers, were surprised when he was rumbled after an Irish Sports Council sting operation. The Corkman quickly held his hands up in admission and was promptly handed a two-year ban from the sport.

Back at pre-Olympic ranch in Greece, it must have seemed that things couldn't have got any worse but they very nearly did with walker Jamie Costin lucky to escape with his life after being involved in a car crash near Athens. Once the track and field action began in Athens, a familiar pattern of underachievement emerged although Alistair Cragg's performance in being the only athlete from a European nation to qualify for the 5,000m final did offer hope for the future. Our beloved Sonia scraped into the women's 5K final as a fastest loser and for a couple of days, the country attempted to delude itself into believing that she might be in the medal shake-up. As it happened, she went out the back door early in the final although there was nothing undignified about the way that she insisted on finishing the race over a minute behind winner Meseret Defar. It later transpired that Sonia had been suffering from a stomach bug in the 48 hours before the final although typically, the Cobhwoman played down the effects of the illness. Amazingly, she was back in action a couple of weeks later when beating a world-class field at the Flora Lite 5K road race in London and while her major championship days may be over, it's unlikely that we have seen the last of her in competition. At least Sonia managed to make it to Athens. At the start of the year, several Northern Ireland athletes had genuine hopes of qualifying for the Games but come August, an out-of-form and injured Paul Brizzel was the lone standard bearer for the province. The Ballymena man gave it a lash but his achilles problem, and a bad lane draw, meant a time of 21.00 and an early exit.

James McIlroy, Gareth Turnbull, Zoe Brown and Paul McKee all had to be content with watching the Athens action on their television screens. 800m hope McIlroy never got near his best during the summer and a fourth place in the British trials effectively ended his hopes of making the plane. The injury-plagued Turnbull gamely travelled round Europe in search of the 1500m qualifying mark but 3:39 was the best he could achieve, after missing several months training during the previous winter. A lingering hamstring probem and a virus wrecked McKee's Athens ambitions and both he and Turnbull deserve a slice of better fortune in 2005. Pole vaulter Brown had hoped for a vote of confidence from the British selectors after she had achieved the Athens B standard but the call never came. As the summer ended, stalwarts Catherina McKiernan and Dermot Donnelly hung up their competitive spikes. McKiernan had to candidly acknowledge that time had crept up on her after several injury-ravaged years. Donnelly and his Annadale Striders team-mates later suffered tragedy when their friend and clubman Andy Campbell was found dead at his home on 18 December. A large turnout of athletics-loving folk turned out in west Belfast to offer their respects to the Campbell family and Andy's many friends. As only death can, it put the year's athletics happenings in a sharp perspective.
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Sprinter Walker quits athletics	"Former European 200m champion Dougie Walker is to retire from athletics after a series of six operations left him struggling for fitness.

Walker had hoped to compete in the New Year Sprint which is staged at Musselburgh Racecourse near Edinburgh on Tuesday and Wednesday. The 31-year-old Scot was suspended for two years in 1998 after testing positive for nandrolone. ""I had intended to race but I'm running like a goon,"" said Walker. He told the Herald newspaper: ""I'm not in great shape, after missing about a month of training. ""I missed a big chunk of speed work over about three weeks, and then another week working in America. ""If I'd had a half-decent mark it might have motivated me more, but I won't be racing. ""I still enjoy training, but feel it's time to move on, and concentrate on a career.""
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Bekele sets sights on world mark	"Olympic 10,000m champion Kenenisa Bekele is determined to add the world indoor two mile record at February's Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham.

The 22-year-old will again be chasing a record held by his compatriot and mentor Haile Gebrselassie, who set the mark at the same meeting in 2003. ""I am still as hungry to do as much as I can in this sport,"" said Bekele. ""And aiming for the two mile world record in Birmingham is the next of those targets."" Gebrselassie's current record stands at eight minutes, 04.69 seconds. And Bekele is no stranger to overhauling world marks at the National Indoor Arena. The Ethiopian broke the world indoor 5,000m record on his debut at the meeting last year. Compatriots Mulugeta Wondimu, Abiyote Abate and Markos Geneti, the world indoor bronze medallist over 3000m, will race against Bekele on 18 February. The meet has already attracted a crop of Olympic talent. Britain's 800m and 1500m champion Kelly Holmes is taking part in the 1000m. Swedish heptathlon gold medallist Carolina Kluft will contest the 60m hurdles. While men's 4x100m relay gold medallists Jason Gardener and Mark Lewis-Francis will go head-to-head in the 60m.
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Greek sprinters suspended by IAAF	"Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou have been suspended after failing to take drugs tests before the Athens Olympics.

Athletics' ruling body the IAAF said explanations from the pair and their former coach as to why they missed the tests were ""unacceptable"". It added that Kenteris and Thanou had been ""provisionally suspended pending the resolution of their cases"". They face two-year bans if found guilty by the Greek Athletics Federation. The suspension also covers the athletes' controversial coach, Christos Tzekos. Kenteris, the 2000 Olympic 200m champion, and Thanou, the women's 100m silver medallist from the same Games in Sydney, also face a criminal hearing in Greece over the missed tests. They failed to appear to give samples in Chicago and Tel Aviv shortly before the Athens Games and again in Athens on 12 August, the eve of the opening ceremony. Greek prosecutors have also charged them with faking a midnight motorcycle crash which led to them spending four days in hospital. Some medical staff have been charged with writing false medical reports. Wednesday's statement said the Greek Federation (SEGAS) would convene a disciplinary hearing for the trio to determine whether there had been doping violations.

""There will be a final right of appeal from the decision of the Greek Federation to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,"" the IAAF said. Tzekos insisted he and the runners had nothing to hide. ""The IAAF's decision means nothing,"" he said. ""We'll be presenting all our arguments to SEGAS - we're innocent.""
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Athens memories soar above lows	"Well, it's goodbye to another Olympic year and as usual there were plenty of highs and lows in Athens.

Obviously, there's no getting away from the differing fortunes of Kelly Holmes and Paula Radcliffe. But I want to remind you of a few more events that made 2004 another year to remember - or forget - for athletics. 

 

One of my favourite Olympic moments was Kelly's success in the 800m.

Winning that race was the key to her success because if she won that then the 1500m would be a bit of a formality. Kelly had been full of ""should I, shouldn't I?"" thoughts about going for the double in Athens. I thought why wouldn't you do the 800m, it's your best event? It was such good fun to commentate on her 1500m and it was nice to be able to be part of her Athens story. 

 

The victory for the British men's 4x100m relay team was a bit of a surprise but a great climax to the Games. I think the four of them - Jason Gardener, Darren Campbell, Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis-Francis - knew deep down that it was their best chance of a medal. The lads had run poorly in the individual sprints so maybe they did lift their game when they knew something was really at stake. 

 

Hicham El Guerrouj's Olympic double is a much bigger achievement than Kelly's on a global scale.

He was the first man since for 80 years to win both the 1500m and 5,000m titles. As soon as he had added the 5,000m crown and I had finished commentating, I jumped up, ran down the stairs, pushed everyone out the way and just gave him a big hug. He is one of the few African runners who has embraced the tradition of the mile and he loves to hear all the Roger Bannister stories. Hicham is someone I enjoy having a bit of time with, even though my French and his English are not very good. 

 

What happened to Paula in Athens this year is the obvious low on a personal level and for the expectations of the nation as well. There were a set of circumstances around Athens that conspired to produce a very dramatic ending which I think has been greatly misunderstood. Dropping out of the marathon was the right thing to do but starting in the 10,000m five days later was not wise. That was her heart and not her head reacting. Paula had a lot of little things going wrong in her preparation and on the day.

Things like niggling injuries, not being able to do all her running sessions and feeling the pressure of the race looming ahead of her. I think she came to the start line in Athens physically and emotionally drained. And if even the smallest thing doesn't feel right when you are preparing to race a marathon, 10 miles down the road it will hit you like a brick wall. The positive thing to take from Paula's Olympics it that she will have learned a lot from it and so will a lot of people - including me. 

 

Purely as a race, Paula's victory in the New York Marathon has to go down as one of the most thrilling. It was so nip-and-tuck between her and Kenya's Susan Chepkemei and you don't usually get that kind of excitement in marathons. It was also a real delight for all athletics fans because, to use one of my favourite words, Paula showed real ""bouncebackability"". And it was a bit of a rarity for me too because I genuinely did not have an inkling how the race was going to pan out. 

 

Kelly and the 4x100m boys' victories papered over the cracks in the general performance of the British team. We should be concerned that we're not producing enough people who are capable of reaching finals at senior level.

The only individual men's finalist on the track was Michael East in the 1500m. I am beginning to look down and wonder where are the new breed? And that's where things begin to look even gloomier for British athletics as we did not win any medals at the world junior championships in Italy. Dani Barnes came fourth in the 1500m and she was the highest finisher for Team GB. The thing is if we don't have athletes getting into the finals at junior level then it really doesn't look good for the Beijing Olympics and beyond. 

 

I tell you what I really enjoyed this year, Benita Johnson winning the world cross country championships back in March. In the absence of Paula, we tend to think of the event as something of an African preserve. So to have an Australian come up and deliver such a surprise was something special. 

 

To be honest, I'm getting bored with all the drug scandals, especially Balco. I just wish the whole thing would come to a head so we can move on.

Having said that, I'm always pleased when drugs cheats are caught because it shows the sport is standing up to it and not turning a blind eye anymore. And one of the positive things to come out of Balco is people are starting to blow the whistle. We need more people to come forward and help the authorities kick out the cheats. As regards the case against Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou, well suspicions have been hanging over Kenteris for a while. The bottom line is we cannot keep letting drugs damage the sport because if we do then it stops everyone enjoying it.
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Collins banned in landmark case	"Sprinter Michelle Collins has received an eight-year ban for doping offences after a hearing at the North American Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

America's former world indoor 200m champion is the first athlete to be suspended without a positive drugs test or an admission of drugs use. Collins' ban is a result of her connection to the federal inquiry into the Balco doping scandal. The 33-year-old was found guilty of using performance-enhancing drugs. The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) decided to press charges against Collins in the summer. The sprinter has consistently protested her innocence but the CAS has upheld USADA's findings. ""The USADA has proved, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Collins took EPO, the testosterone/epitestosterone cream and THG,"" said a CAS statement. ""Collins used these substances to enhance her performance and elude the drug testing that was available at the time."" So far a total of 13 athletes have been sanctioned for violations involving drugs associated with the Balco doping scandal. World record holder Tim Montgomery is also facing a lifetime ban after being charged by the USADA. His hearing before the CSA has been rescheduled for June next year.

Drug enforcement chiefs in the US have vowed to crack down on cheats. USADA chief executive officer Terry Madden said the action taken against Collins was further proof of that. ""The CAS panel's decision confirms that those who violate the rules will be sanctioned as part of USADA's ongoing efforts to protect the rights of the overwhelming majority of US athletes that compete drug-free,"" said Madden. The USADA has built its cases on verbal evidence given to the federal investigation into Balco rather than test results. The San Francisco-based Balco laboratory faces steroid distribution and money laundering charges. The trial is expected to open next March.
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Jones doping probe begins	"An investigation into doping claims against Marion Jones has been opened by the International Olympic Committee.

IOC president Jacques Rogge has set up a disciplinary body to look into claims by Victor Conte, of Balco Laboratories. Jones, who says she is innocent, could lose all her Olympic medals after Conte said he gave her performance-enhancing drugs before the Sydney Olympics. But Rogge said it was too early to speculate about that, hoping only that ""the truth will emerge"".

Any decision on the medals would be taken by the IOC's executive board and could hinge on interpretation of a rule stating that Olympic decisions can only be challenged within three years of the Games closing. The Sydney Olympics ended more than four years ago, but World Anti-Doping Agency chief Dick Pound said the rule may not apply because the allegations are only coming out now. ""We will find a way to deal with that,"" Pound said. In a statement released through her attorney Rich Nichols, Jones repeated her innocence and vowed she would be cleared. ""Victor Conte's allegations are not true and the truth will be revealed for the world to see as the legal process moves forward,"" she said. ""Conte is someone who is under federal indictment and has a record of issuing contradictory, inconsistent statements.""
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Johnson accuses British sprinters	"Former Olympic champion Michael Johnson has accused Britain's top sprinters of lacking pride and ambition.

""At the moment, the biggest factor on the mind of British sprinters is to be number one in Britain,"" the world 200m and 400m record holder told Five Live. ""Athletics at the moment is all about international competitions and they need to show a little more pride."" However, Linford Christie countered: ""It's easy to criticise when you haven't gone through the system here."" Johnson was involved in a verbal spat with Britain's Darren Campbell earlier this year. The American had cast doubt on Campbell's claims he had torn a hamstring in the wake of his failure to reach the Olympic 100m and 200m finals.

And the American remains highly critical of aspects of British sprinting. ""The only time you see British sprinters getting upset or riled is when there is a debate as to which one is better than the other,"" he claimed. ""Athletes here have to compete more outside the UK. Their focus has to be on being the best in the world and not just on being the top British sprinter."" Speaking at an elite coaches' conference in Birmingham, Johnson also argued that although there has been more investment in the sport in Britain, it had not necessarily reaped the rewards. ""You can't fix everything with money,"" he admitted. ""You contrast the situation here to that of some US athletes who have no funding. ""Those who aren't funded might be hungrier and more motivated because their road to success is a lot more difficult and challenging. ""So when they get to the top they are more appreciative.""
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Radcliffe proves doubters wrong	"This won't go down as one of the greatest marathons of Paula's career. But as a test of character, it was the toughest race she's ever taken part in.

A win in the New York marathon doesn't make up for the disappointment of Athens in any shape or form, but it will offer hope and reassurance for next year. If Paula's last experience of the year had been Athens, it would have been very difficult to look forward with any optimism. She can now draw a line under this year and make plans about her future. Even if she'd lost this race, there would have been a lot of positives to take out of it. She knows she can dig deep if she needs to. It was a strong field, with a number of the girls going into the race with expectations of winning. And although two hours 23 minutes wasn't one of Paula's best times, it wasn't far off the record on a difficult course.

I was speaking to Paula in the lead-up to this race and she said that in many ways she was facing a no-win situation. She thought that if she won, people would say ""why couldn't she do that in Athens?"" And if she lost, people would say her career was over. And a lot of people were wondering what would happen if Paula was forced to drop out of this race, as she did in the marathon and 10,000m in Athens. But that was never on the cards. She might have been beaten, but she would have kept running. The reasons she was forced to pull out in Athens - the niggling injuries, her lack of energy and the oppressive conditions - weren't at play here. The only question was what position she could finish in. Most important of all, despite all the hype in the media ahead of this race, there were never doubts in Paula's mind. If she wasn't confident, she wouldn't have run. After all, if you're the best in the world at an event, you'll always have expectations of winning.

Now Paula will take part in the Run London 10km race in London at the end of the year, have a well-earned rest over Christmas and go into next year with a lot of optimism.
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Jones medals 'must go if guilty'	"World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) chief Dick Pound says Marion Jones should be stripped of all her medals if found guilty of taking banned substances.

Victor Conte, of Balco Laboratories, claims the American sprinter regularly used drugs to enhance her performance. ""If she is found guilty she should be stripped of all her medals and banned for two years,"" said Pound. Asked if there was a timescale as to what medals could be taken, Pound said: ""That is not an issue at all."" However, under International Olympic Committee (IOC) rules, athletes can only be stripped of their medals if caught within three years of the event. Jones, who won five medals at the 2000 Olympics, denies using drugs and says she will take legal action over Conte's allegations. Balco Laboratories is the firm at the centre of a wide-reaching investigation into doping in the US. Pound continued: ""If she has indeed taken drugs it is going to be a big disappointment for a lot of people.""
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Radcliffe tackles marathon tasks	"Paula Radcliffe faces arguably the biggest test of her career in the New York City Marathon on Sunday.

Back under the spotlight of public scrutiny she will attempt to erase the double disappointment of the Athens Olympics, where she failed to finish the marathon and then the 10,000m. BBC Sport examines the challenges facing Radcliffe ahead of the big race. 

The ability to run a gruelling 26.2 miles relies largely upon an athlete's belief that they can do it. Every runner will hit the wall at some stage and see written on it, ""Are you strong enough to finish?""

The question could hit Radcliffe hard after she was unable to complete her last two races in high-profile and emotional circumstances. Sports psychologist Hugh Richards says the 30-year-old must draw on her past achievements to conquer a potential crisis of confidence. ""There is an old adage, 'get straight back on the horse that threw you,'"" Richards told BBC Sport. ""Paula has got all those great runs in her history as well as the two upsets in Athens. ""She must not lose faith in what has already been proven is a very effective strategy for distance running. ""If she were to change her preparation and tactics that would be madness. ""She wants to start rebuilding her confidence through performance accomplishment."" 

For much of the watching media and public there can only be two possible outcomes in New York - win or lose. If Radcliffe crosses the line first she will have proved her critics wrong. But if she fails to triumph, she risks being labelled a has-been and her profile will suffer. And for any athlete that can have repercussions in terms of sponsorship, appearance fees as well as further self esteem issues.

""Athletes need to try and stay focused on their internal controls and ignore external questions,"" explains Richards, who has worked with past Olympians. ""She must not get caught up in someone else's agenda."" Radcliffe's best friend and fellow distance runner Liz Yelling revealed the 30-year-old is already aware she will be exposing herself to more public scrutiny in New York. ""She just thought, 'well, they can't think any worse of me now,'"" Yelling told BBC Sport. ""She's just doing what she wants to do and not thinking about the consequences of it."" 

Radcliffe described her decision to enter the New York marathon as ""impulsive"" but she is certain to have a tick-list of personal goals. Her aims could be as simple as completing a race and making sure she is still enjoying running but Richards says she must avoid more emotional targets, such as redemption. ""You can't change history,"" warned Richards. ""Only one person can win the marathon but lots of people can be successful. ""Paula has to figure out what sort of things will she feel satisfied achieving by the end of the race."" 

The course from Staten Island to Central Park is renowned as one of the toughest in the world. It is also not the kind of fast course that tends to suit Radcliffe better, with the undulating finish through the park testing the legs' final reserves.

Radcliffe has never raced there before and will enter the unknown just 77 days after the Athens marathon. ""It's suggested after a major marathon you take a full month off and start building up again,"" said Yelling, herself a marathon runner. ""But that is only for long-term health and fitness. ""When you finish a marathon you are still very fit and can recover quickly. So physically it is possible for Paula."" Richards also points out conditions in New York will be more conducive to a strong physical display from Radcliffe. ""The heat stress was the primary factor that tripped her up in Athens,"" he said. ""And that just isn't going to be there in New York, that's been taken out of the equation."" 



Radcliffe concedes she will probably learn a lot from her bad experiences in Athens in time. And Richards and Yelling agree she could turn the trauma to her advantage, starting in New York. ""How you respond to adversity is what marks you out as elite or not,"" argues Richards.

""One of the challenges of massive set backs is how you turn them into opportunities."" And Yelling says: ""I think this will probably make Paula."" ""I think it will drive her on and she'll come out of it a better athlete.""
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Gatlin and Hayes win Owen awards	"American Olympic stars Justin Gatlin and Joanna Hayes have been named the winners of the 2004 Jesse Owens Awards, USA Track & Field's (USATF) top honour.

Gatlin, 22, won the closest 100m final in Games history with a career-best time of 9.85 seconds in Athens. He also won bronze in the 200m and silver in the 4x100m relay, becoming the only male athlete to win three athletics medals this summer. Hayes, 27, set an Olympic record of 12.37 in winning the 100m hurdles. Established in 1981, the Jesse Owens Awards - named in honour of the late Olympic great who won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Games - are presented annually to the outstanding US male and female track and field performers.

The 2004 awards will be presented on 3 December in conjunction with the USATF annual meeting in Portland. ""It is such a great honour to win the Jesse Owens Award,"" said Gatlin. ""It is one of the biggest honours in track and field and it is a great end to a great year. "" Hayes said: ""Knowing some of the great people who have won this award before me and knowing what it represents, I feel a sense accomplishment and pride which lets me know that everything that I have worked for is and always will be worth it.""
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Radcliffe enjoys winning comeback	"Paula Radcliffe made a triumphant return to competitive running with victory in the New York Marathon.

The Briton, running for the first time since dropping out of the Olympic marathon and 10,000m, held off Kenyan Susan Chepkemei in a thrilling finish. The pair were locked together for the last few miles before Radcliffe finally sprinted clear to win in two hours, 23 minutes and 10 seconds. ""It's a good way to end the year,"" she said. ""I'm ready for a good rest now."" Radcliffe decided only recently to run in the race and many had doubted whether she had sufficiently recovered from her Olympic ordeal just 11 weeks ago. But the world record-holder was prominent at the head of the field for the whole race as her rivals slowly dropped off the pace. Just Chepkemei and Radcliffe were left in contention as the race came into the final few miles. The Kenyan put in several bursts of speed to throw off Radcliffe but the Briton managed to hang in. Both runners looked to be suffering as they reached the final mile in Central Park. But it was Radcliffe who managed to dredge up a final sprint to see off Chepkemei in the closest finish in the race's history and in the process make a huge step in erasing the disappointment she suffered in Athens.


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Collins named UK Athletics chief	"UK Athletics has ended its search for a new performance director by appointing psychologist Dave Collins.

Collins, who worked with the British teams at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, takes over from Max Jones. Six candidates were interviewed for the job, including Denise Lewis' coach Charles van Commenee and former British triple jumper Keith Connor. ""We've searched long and hard to ensure we have found the right person,"" said UKA chief executive David Moorcroft. ""We have thoroughly tested the candidates. I believe David will make a great leader and I have great faith in what he will achieve."" Collins said: ""It's a great challenge. Over the next few months I will spend time listening to those who already make a significant contribution to athletics and other elite sports in the UK."" Collins, who has worked with javelin thrower Steve Backley in the past, started his career as a Royal Marine before becoming a PE teacher. He is currently professor of physical education and sport performance at Edinburgh University, where he helps competitors across many sports, including rugby, athletics, judo and football.

He has specialised in helping competitors fulfil their potential through psychology and has worked with the Great Britain women's curling team, who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Mark Lewis-Francis sought Collins' advice in Athens when he was looking for inspiration before he ran the final leg of Britain's surprise triumph in the 4x100m relay. Collins has played rugby at regional level, was captain of the Great Britain American Football team, and competed at national level in judo and karate. He arrives with British athletics at a crossroads. Despite Kelly Holmes' golden double and the success of the sprint relay squad, the GB team failed to live up to expectations in Athens. Many older competitors have retired or are coming to the end of their careers, and Britain failed to win a single medal at the world junior championships in Italy this year. Collins will not have day-to-day coaching contact with the athletes, but will be expected to make changes to the system and coaching set-up in order to secure medals at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The appointment of a new performance director was one of the main recommendations in Sir Andrew Foster's review of the sport, which was published in May. It was commissioned by UK Sport and Sport England, which wanted UK Athletics to justify funding of more than £40m from the Government following the failure to hang on to the 2005 World Championships, which are now being held in Helsinki. Van Commenee dropped out of the selection process to take on the same role with the Dutch Olympic Committee, while Connor's application was rejected after an arduous interview process. Foster, however, declared himself satisfied with how the appointment was made. ""The appointment of David Collins, with his strong mix of leadership skills and managerial experience, is testament to the professional and detailed recruitment process,"" he said.
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White admits to Balco drugs link	"Banned American sprinter Kelli White says she knowingly took steroids given to her by Bay Area Lab Co-Operative (Balco) president Victor Conte.

Conte faces a federal trial next year on charges of distributing steroids and tax evasion, and White said at first he tried to cover up what he was doing. ""He's the one who told me that it wasn't what he said it was,"" White said in the San Francisco Chronicle. But she added: ""It was my decision to go to him, not anybody else's."" White said Conte at first told her the substance was flaxseed oil, only to change his story later. White failed a drugs test after winning the 100m and 200m titles at the 2003 world athletics championships. She was subsequently handed a two-year ban in May this year and has admitted taking the stimulant modafinil. At first, White claimed she took the drug to combat narcolepsy but she now takes full responsibility for her actions.

""My whole belief about Victor is that he was selling a product,"" White said in the LA Times. ""Whether it be a good product or a bad product, he was selling a product."" White was introduced to Conte through her coach Remy Korchemy, who is also a defendant in the Balco case. The 27-year-old believes doping is so common in sport she felt compelled to cheat herself if she was to have any chance of winning. ""I have no clue what it's going to take to change that,"" said White. ""I would say I made a mistake and I would never, ever go back. ""I would never recommend anyone to take that route.""
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Trial date is set for Balco case	"A US judge has set a preliminary trial date for the Balco steroid distribution case which has rocked athletics.

US district court judge Susan Ilston rejected an attempt by the defence team to have the case dismissed at a pre-trial hearing in San Francisco. And she set a March date for the case of the four men accused of distributing illegal performance-enhancing drugs to elite athletes to be heard. A firm decision on whether the trial takes place is expected in January. The judge said that she may conduct hearings in January into whether federal agents illegally searched the Balco headquarters and wrongfully obtained statements from the company's founder Victor Conte and its vice-president James Valente. The two men - along with personal trainer Greg Anderson and athletics coach Remy Korchemny - were all indicted earlier this year but have pleaded their innocence. The outcome of those hearings could result in some or all of the charges being dismissed. Conte said that he would be telling his side of the story on an American TV show on Friday.

""The world deserves to know the truth about performance-enhancing drugs,"" he said. Balco (The Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative) is the company at the centre of the scandal. The company has been accused by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) of being the source of the banned steroid THG and modafinil. The USADA claims that 10 athletes have received sanctions for testing positive for THG and modafinil. Former double world champion Kelli White and Olympic relay star Alvin Harrison have both been banned on the basis of materials discovered during the Balco investigation. Britain's former European 100m champion Dwain Chambers is currently serving a two-year ban after testing positive for THG in an out-of-competition test in 2003.
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Radcliffe eyes hard line on drugs	"Paula Radcliffe has called for all athletes found guilty on drugs charges to be treated as criminals.

The marathon world record holder believes more needs to be done to rid athletics of the ""suspicions and innuendoes"" which greet any fast time. ""Doping in sport is a criminal offence and should be treated as such,"" the 30-year-old told the Sunday Times. ""It not only cheats other athletes but also cheats promoters, sponsors and the general public.""

Radcliffe's comments come at a time when several American sports stars are under suspicion of steroid use. ""Being caught in possession of a performance-enhancing drugs should carry a penalty,"" she added.

""The current system does not detect many of the substances being abused by athletes. ""This means that often athletes do not know if they are competing on a level playing field, if their hard work and sacrifice is being trumped by an easier scientific route. ""Often, when an athlete puts in a good performance, they are subjected to suspicions and innuendoes instead of praise. ""Having been on the receiving end of accusations like this I can testify as to how much this hurts.""
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Kenteris denies faking road crash	"Greek sprinter Kostas Kenteris has denied claims that he faked a motorbike crash to avoid a doping test days before the start of the Olympics.

Kenteris and fellow sprinter Katerina Thanou are set to learn if they will face criminal charges this week. Part of the investigation has centred on whether they staged the crash. Kenteris insisted: ""The accident happened. I went crazy when I found out I had supposedly missed a test and I wanted to rush to the Olympic village."" Kenteris, speaking on Greece's Alter Television station, also claimed that he asked to be tested for banned substances in hospital after the crash. ""I told the hospital, which was an Olympics-accredited hospital, to call the IOC and have me tested on the spot but no-one came.""

After a drama which dominated newspaper headlines in Greece as Athens prepared for the start of the Athens Games, Kenteris and Thanou eventually withdrew. But Kenteris has continually protested his innocence - and on Sunday blamed Greek Olympic Committee officials and his former coach Christos Tzekos for failing to inform him of the test. The 31-year-old insisted he will be happy if he is charged so he can clear his name. ""If a decision is taken to have charges filed against me, I will accept it gladly. ""A prosecution means that the case will be cleared... I want to go to the end and then we'll see who's right and who isn't."" Kenteris, a Greek hero after winning gold in the 200m at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, also confirmed that he was due to light the flame at the Athens opening ceremony. ""I had even rehearsed lighting the cauldron,"" he said.
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Greek pair set for hearing	"Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou will fight the provisional two-year bans imposed on them by the IAAF at an independent tribunal this weekend.

Athletics' ruling body took action against the pair for failing to take drugs tests before the Athens Olympics. An independent tribunal of the Greek Track and Field Federation will meet to decide whether to ratify the sanction. The sprint duo face charges of failing to give information on their location and refusing to submit to a drugs test. Kenteris' lawyer Gregory Ioannidis told BBC Sport: ""We refute both charges as unsubstantiated and illogical. ""There have been certain breaches in the correct application of the rules on behalf of the sporting authorities and their officials, and these procedural breaches have also violated my client's rights. ""There is also evidence that proves the fact that my client has been persecuted."" Ioannidis, who is a law lecturer at the University of Buckingham, added: ""One of the important rights and foundations of law and justice - that the accused should be presumed innocent unless proved otherwise - has been tarnished."" The panel will also decide on the two-year ban imposed on the athletes' controversial coach Christos Tzekos by the IAAF. Kenteris, the 2000 Olympic 200m champion, and Thanou, the women's 100m silver medallist from the same Games in Sydney, quit the Olympics on 18 August after failing to give samples on the eve of the opening ceremony.

Testers could not find them at the Olympic village and the duo were later admitted to hospital after claiming to have been involved in a motorcycle accident. They also missed tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens before the Games. In imposing two-year suspensions on the duo on 22 December, the IAAF described their explanations for missing the tests as ""unacceptable"". Whatever the findings of the independent tribunal, all parties will have the right to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The tribunal hearing will take place at the Hellenic Olympic Committee building. It will start at 1200 GMT on Saturday and is expected to finish early next week. The tribunal panel will consist of five members - president Konstantinos Panagopoulos and Panagiotis Dimakos, Haralabos Hrisanthakis, Stilianos Perakis and Ioannis Karmis. Kenteris and Thanou also face criminal charges in Greece for allegedly faking the motorcycle accident. Eight criminal charges have been laid against the sprinters as well as Tzekos, an eyewitness to the accident and hospital officials. But there has been speculation that the charges could be dropped.
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Jones files Conte lawsuit	"Marion Jones has filed a lawsuit for defamation against Balco boss Victor Conte following his allegations that he gave her performance-enhancing drugs.

The Sydney Olympic gold medallist says Conte damaged her reputation and she is seeking $25m (£13m) in the suit. Conte, whose company is at the centre of a doping investigation, made the claims in a US television programme. He and three others were indicted in February by a federal grand jury for a variety of alleged offences. In an email to the Associated Press on Wednesday, Conte said: ""I stand by everything I said"". Jones won three gold medals and two bronzes in Sydney in 2000. Her lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in San Francisco, said the sprinter had passed a lie detector test and that she ""has never taken banned performance-enhancing drugs"". Conte's statements, the suit added, were ""false and malicious"". After the ABC television program earlier this month, Jones' lawyer Richard Nicholls said: ""Marion has steadfastly maintained her position throughout: she has never, ever used performance-enhancing drugs. ""Victor Conte is a man facing a 42-count federal indictment, while Marion Jones is one of America's most decorated female athletes. Mr Conte's statements have been wildly contradictory. ""Mr Conte chose to make unsubstantiated allegations on television, while Marion Jones demanded to take and then passed a lie detector examination.

""Mr Conte is simply not credible. We challenge him to submit to the same lie detector procedure that Marion Jones passed."" The sport's ruling body, the IAAF, is taking a cautious approach to Conte's allegations but contacted the US Anti-Doping Agency. Communications director Nick Davies said the IAAF would seek to contact Conte ""for further information"". But Davies stressed it would be up to the American authorities to decide whether they will take action against Jones in light of Conte's television interview and the world governing body would monitor the situation closely. ""If it is felt there is case to answer, it would be for its national governing body (USA Track and Field) to take the appropriate disciplinary action,"" he added. ""The US Anti-Doping Agency has proved itself to be very diligent in its anti-doping war. ""And I am sure, like ourselves, they will be watching the television programme with great interest."" Jones, who is under investigation for steroid use by the US Anti-Doping Agency, has continually denied ever taking illegal substances since being investigated in the Balco scandal, although she praised a zinc supplement Conte marketed. Jones, who did not win any medals in Athens in August, has never failed a drugs test. Meanwhile, Conte, who has been charged along with three other men of distributing illegal steroids and money laundering, is due to face trial in March.
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IAAF awaits Greek pair's response	"Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou are yet to respond to doping charges from the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).

The Greek pair were charged after missing a series of routine drugs tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens. They have until midnight on 16 December and an IAAF spokesman said: ""We're sure their responses are on their way."" If they do not respond or their explanations are rejected, they will be provisionally banned from competition. They will then face a hearing in front of the Greek Federation, which will ultimately determine their fate. Their former coach Christos Tzekos has also been charged with distributing banned substances. Under IAAF rules, the athletes could receive a maximum one-year suspension. Kenteris and Thanou already face a criminal trial after being charged with avoiding a drug test on the eve of the Athens Olympics and then faking a motorcyle crash.

No date for the trial has yet been set and again Tzekos is also facing charges. The IAAF issued an official warning to the trio last year after they were discovered training in Qatar rather than in Crete, where they had said they would be. All athletes must inform their national federations where they are at all times, so they can be available for out-of-competition drugs tests. But Kenteris and Thanou then went on to skip tests in Tel Aviv and Chicago, when they decided to fly back to Greece early. Then just before the Olympics, the pair dramatically missed another test in Athens and withdrew from the Games.
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IAAF to rule on Greek sprint pair	"Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou are expected to find out on Wednesday if they will be banned for missing drugs tests this summer.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) council held a conference call on Tuesday and are set to announce their decision. Kenteris and Thanou could be suspended for up to two years. The duo withdrew from the Olympics after missing a test but claimed they had suffered a motorcycle crash. The Greek authorities have also brought criminal charges against the sprinters for avoiding a drugs test and faking an accident. Their former coach Christos Tzekos is also facing charges and all three are awaiting a trial date.

However, the IAAF will determine the sprinters' future on the track after carefully considering all the evidence. The sport's ruling body is expected to direct the Greek federation in what action it should take against the sprinters. Kenteris and Thanou can appeal against any decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The sprinters both sent written explanations to the IAAF, which have been taken into account. The IAAF sent an official warning to the sprinters and coach Tzekos after they were discovered training in Qatar rather than in Crete, where they had said they would be. But Kenteris and Thanou then went on to skip tests in Tel Aviv and Chicago, when they decided to fly back to Greece early. Just before the Olympics, the pair dramatically missed another test in Athens before withdrawing from the Games. Kenteris, 31, won gold in the 200m at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, where Thanou, 29, won silver in the 100m.
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Holmes starts 2005 with GB events	"Kelly Holmes will start 2005 with a series of races in Britain.

Holmes will make her first track appearance on home soil since winning double Olympic gold in January's Norwich Union International in Glasgow. She will also run in the Grand Prix in Birmingham in February and may defend her indoor AAA 800m title in Sheffield earlier that month. ""I am still competitive and still want to win,"" she said. ""I'm an athlete and I can't wait to get back on the track."" She added: ""These events are also a great opportunity to thank the British public for the enormous levels of support they have given me from the moment I stepped off that plane from Greece."" The Glasgow meeting will see Holmes compete over 1500m in a five-way match against Sweden, France, Russia and Italy.
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Gebrselassie in London triple bid	"Double Olympic 10,000m champion Haile Gebrselassie will race in the London Marathon for the next three years.

The Ethiopian legend won Sunday's Almeria half-marathon in Spain on his return from an operation on his Achilles tendon. He was third in London in 2002 in his first serious attempt at the marathon. ""It is a coup for us to secure Haile's presence for the next three years and it guarantees a quality race,"" said race director David Bedford. Gebrselassie will face Olympic champion Stefano Baldini, world champion Jaouad Gharib, and arch-rival Paul Tergat, the current world record holder. ""If I didn't think I could win I would not be here,"" said Gebrselassie, who has set world records on 18 occasions in his illustrious career and is keen to add the marathon record to his collection. ""There are a lot of fantastic runners in the race but I shall be doing my utmost to upset them.""
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Thanou bullish over drugs hearing	"Katerina Thanou is confident she and fellow sprinter Kostas Kenteris will not be punished for missing drugs tests before the Athens Olympics.

The Greek pair appeared at a hearing on Saturday which will determine whether their provisional bans from athletics' ruling body the IAAF should stand. ""After five months we finally had the chance to give explanations. I am confident and optimistic,"" said Thanou. ""We presented new evidence to the committee that they were not aware of.""

The athletes' lawyer Grigoris Ioanidis said he believed the independent disciplinary committee set up by the Greek Athletics Federation (SEGAS) would find them innocent. ""We are almost certain that the charges will be dropped,"" said Ioanidis.

""We believe that we have presented [a case] that the charges are unreasonable."" Thanou, the 2000 Olympic women's 100m silver medallist, and Sydney 200m champion Kenteris were suspended by the IAAF for missing three drugs tests. The third was supposed to take place on the eve of the Athens Games last August, but the pair could not be found in the athletes' village. They were later taken to hospital after claiming to have been involved in a motorcycle accident. Thanou's coach Christos Tzekos was also suspended by the IAAF. ""We were asked [by the disciplinary committee] all kinds of questions about the night of 12 August,"" said Tzekos. ""We did not leave any gaps. As far as I am concerned there is no such issue [of refusing to be tested], and I am very optimistic."" Tzekos, Thanou and Kenteris, who have all denied the charges, can expect a decision within a month. ""Deliberations will start after some additional documents are brought in by Thursday,"" said committee chairman Kostas Panagopoulos. ""I estimate that the final ruling will be issued by the end of February.""
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Holmes is hit by hamstring injury	"Kelly Holmes has been forced out of this weekend's European Indoor Athletics Championships after picking up a hamstring injury during training.

The double Olympic champion said: ""I am very disappointed that I have been forced to withdraw. ""I can hardly walk at the moment and I won't be able to do any running for two or three weeks although I'll be keeping fit as best I can."" Holmes will have now have intensive treatment in South Africa.

The 34-year-old made a cautious start to the season but looked back to her best when she stormed to the 1,000m title at the Birmingham Grand Prix 10 days ago. After that race and more progress in training, Holmes revealed she had decided to compete at the European Indoors before her plans were wrecked last weekend. ""On Saturday night I pulled my hamstring running the last bend on my final 200m of the night,"" said Holmes. ""I was going really, really well when I felt a massive spasm in my left leg and my hamstring blew. ""I saw the doctor here and he has said it is not serious but it's frustrating missing Madrid when I knew I was in great shape."" Holmes has now been advised by her coach Margot Jennings not to rush back into training and it is unlikely she will compete again until the summer. Helen Clitheroe now goes to Madrid as the only British competitor in the women's 1500m while there will be no representative in the 800m.
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Kluft impressed by Sotherton form	"Olympic heptathlon champion Carolina Kluft was full of admiration for Britain's Kelly Sotherton as the pair prepared to clash in Birmingham.

Both will be in action on Friday in the 60m hurdles and long jump ahead of the European Indoor Championships later this month in Madrid. Sotherton finished third behind the Swede in Athens, and Kluft said: ""I knew about her, she's a great girl. ""She looked very good early in the season and was competing really well."" Kluft showed impressive early-season form on Tuesday in Stockholm's GE Galan meeting, winning the sprint hurdles, the long jump and the 400m. Sotherton has also displayed promise, with a new high jump personal best in Sheffield at the combined Norwich Union European trials and AAA Championships, and a second place in the long jump behind Jade Johnson.
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What now for Kelly Holmes?	"Last April, Kelly Holmes spoke to the BBC Sport website about her loneliness, her fight to stay fit and her decision not to contest both the 800m and 1500m at the Olympics.

It just goes to show even the most meticulous and measured athletes cannot predict what fate has in store for them. Four months later, Holmes stormed to double Olympic gold and has since been made a Dame, won the BBC Sport Personality of the Year and written a book whilst still finding time to coach aspiring athletes. With so much time spent in the spotlight, Holmes has increasingly dropped hints that her ambition on the track has begun to wilt. And when asked about her plans for both the indoor and outdoor seasons ahead, the 34-year-old has repeatedly chosen to tick the ""don't know"" box. Holmes has now pulled out of this weekend's European Indoor Championships, where she was selected for both the 800m and 1500m, because of a hamstring injury. But should we be surprised if the Olympic champion over both those distances decides she just does not feel like racing anymore? ""Well, it's a lot easier being the double Olympic champion, being feted by everybody, than training to be at the top in middle distance running,"" points out former Olympian and BBC pundit Steve Cram. ""You have to have a real strong desire to carry on doing it even if you're very talented.""

Holmes' drive and determination have always been unquestionable - that is the reason she has battled back from a string of injuries that threatened to see her finish her career empty-handed. But alarm bells start ringing when the Kent athlete begins questioning herself. ""Will I have as much commitment, desire and energy to go through a major championship?"" Holmes asked in the New Year. ""That is what I don't know."" At 34, Holmes will also be aware that time is running out. US 400m and 200m legend Michael Johnson, a five-time Olympic gold medallist, retired shortly after his 34th birthday as did Britain's double Olympic champion decathlete Daley Thompson. The physical demands of the day-to-day grind will only get harder for Holmes, who has already admitted she ""doesn't like the training anymore."" Whilst out on the circuit the allure of defeating a double Olympic champion will spur her opponents on. Holmes will not want to needlessly suffer the indignity of being beaten. Unless she is certain she has a strong chance of winning any race, she will not step onto the track. But if the Kent athlete finds the form that fuelled her ambitions last summer, there are more prizes up for grabs. The day after completing her double in Athens, the 34-year-old revealed she would still like to win her first indoors title.

Holmes' wish could easily be met in Madrid before she goes on to prepare for the outdoor season where there are still scores to be settled, such as a first gold at the World Championships in Helsinki. There is just one small truth which could gnaw away at Holmes' motivation - the realisation that no matter how hard she trains, nothing she wins now can surpass her achievements in Athens. On the other hand, if those achievements cannot be matched shouldn't they be at least shared and celebrated? ""You don't get the chance very often in your career to step onto the track as the double Olympic champion,"" agreed Cram. ""You want to be able to take your bow in front of the fans because it's a fantastic feeling. ""I think deep down Kelly wants to run. I think she will compete and run races on the circuits but whether or not she runs in the major championships is much less certain.""

Athletics fans had every reason to believe they would see the new-look Kelly Holmes tearing up the track again. After her Olympic glory she emphatically denied she planned to retire. So, why is Holmes dragging her heels about making a decision on where, when or whether to even bother competing again? ""That's just Kelly,"" explains Cram. ""She's always been like that. ""She enjoys people trying to guess what she is going to do next. She knows every time she makes a pronouncement now it's headline news. ""Kelly has to figure out for herself what it is she wants and that will be based on athletics decisions, whether she can be competitive, if she is fit enough to put her neck on the line. ""And if she decides not to run again, no-one is going to turn round and say 'you're making the wrong decision.'""
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Gardener battles to narrow win	"Jason Gardener fought all the way to the line to narrowly claim the men's 60m title at the Norwich Union Indoor trials and AAAs Championships.

The world 60m champion got off to a rolling start and had to dig deep to dip ahead of Mark Findlay and Darren Chin, who both set personal bests. ""It was a close race,"" admitted Gardener. ""I stumbled out the blocks but my experience told through. ""I still feel there's more life in me and I believe I can go faster."" Gardener's performance in Sheffield could have been affected by the news, which he heard before his semi-final, that his European record had been broken Frenchman Ronald Pognon, who will be a real threat at the European Championships, set a new time of 6.45, one-hundreth of a second faster than Gardener's previous mark. Favourite

delivered a powerful performance to take the women's 60m title in 7.27 seconds. ""You'll see me in Madrid and I feel there is a lot more to come along,"" said the 22-year-old. Katherine Endacott battled hard to take second and dip under the European qualifying mark. Defending champion Joice Maduaka had pulled out of the final with a chest infection.

was on record-breaking form as she stormed to the women's 60m hurdles crown. The 25-year-old set a new British record for the second time in seven days, clocking 7.96 seconds to finish ahead of rival Diane Allahgreen. ""I'm so happy,"" a tearful Claxton told BBC Sport. ""All the years I've been running and I'm getting recognition."" Claxton's time was also good enough to qualify for the European Championships.

The men's 800m went to form in Sheffield as

dominated the race from start to finish. The Northern Ireland athlete went off at a startling pace but had to hold off the challenge of Welshman Jimmy Watkins over the final 200m to win in one minute, 47.96 seconds. Both McIlory and Watkins, who set a life-time best of 1:48.32, had already booked their places in Madrid and were again well within the qualifying time. ""I had to go out and go through all the gears before the Europeans and I won't run again until then,"" said McIlroy.

could not reach the European mark in the women's race as she crossed the line to win in 2:04.45. Olympic bronze heptathlon medallist

rounded off a useful weekend with two more personal bests in Sheffield. The 28-year-old reached 1.80m in the high jump and clocked 8.47secs in the heats of the 60m hurdles. ""I've surprised myself,"" said Sotherton. ""I'm starting to thrive on the pressure but if I don't perform then it's not the end of the world."" Pole vaulter

made a winning return to major competition after a drugs ban. The Trafford athlete, who has served a two-year ban after testing positive for anabolic steroids, clinched the title with a championship record 4.25m.

also set a new championship mark in the men's triple jump title in Sheffield. The 26-year-old, who has been training in Australia over the winter, landed 17.30m with his final effort - the longest leap in the world this year. ""I didn't have a clue,"" said Idowu. ""I've not jumped indoors before and I just wanted the qualifying mark. ""But this isn't a bad start and hopefully I'll come back from Madrid with a gold medal."" Nathan Douglas continued his steady progress this season as he set a life-time best of 16.76m in second while Jonathan Moore took third.

and

resumed their rivalry in the long jump competition, both achieving the European standard. Commonwealth champion Morgan reached a personal best of 7.96m on his very first jump and then promptly retired with a bruised heel. Olympian Tomlinson tried to play catch up with his six jumps but had to settle for a season's best jump of 7.91m. ""I was advised not to jump by my doctor and so I'm pleased to come here and get the qualifying mark,"" said Tomlinson.

, now based at Loughborough, sprinted past front runner Catherine Murphy in the final 100m to steal the women's 400m title. The 21-year-old ran a personal best of 53.45 seconds to win her first indoor title. Wall's time was just short of the qualifying mark - something Murphy already has. Ireland's

took the men's title in 46.46 ahead of promising Channel Islands decathlete Dale Garland. Sudanese 18-year-old Rabah Yusuf, who is seeking British citizenship, showed his raw talent as he burst through in third.

cleared the required 1.90m to qualify for the European championships and claim the AAAs title in the women's high jump. In the men's 3,000m,

powered to a new personal best of seven minutes, 56.86 seconds to defend his AAAs title in style. It was the first time in 11 years the eight-minute barrier has been broken at the championships and was just within the European mark.

took the women's 1500m AAAs title in the absence of Kelly Holmes. Her time of 4:19.11 was not good enough to qualify for Madrid but Ovens had already opted out of the championships. The men's race was won by

, who had to fight off a closing pack to claim the title in 3:45.87.
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European medal chances improve	"What have the European Indoor trials told us? Well, I think we could be heading to the European Championships with half a dozen medal prospects.

It was good to see athletes beginning to make steps forward, to see a few new faces and there were lots of personal bests kicking around.

The best performance on the track for me was Sarah Claxton's win in the 60m hurdles. Running sub-eight seconds twice in a week puts her right up there and if she repeats that in Madrid she will be close to picking up a medal. But what was great about Sunday's performance was that she was under pressure to produce the goods when it counted. Diane Allahgreen has been our best hurdler for some time now and I think she was surprised to be beaten by Sarah. And knowing that she got the better of Diane in a head-to-head race will give Sarah confidence. In the men's race on Saturday, Allan Scott was right in there and there is definitely more to come from him. In fact, the men's 60m hurdles is so strong, I think the selectors will pick three hurdlers to go to Madrid.

Phillips Idowu lit up the field events, not only with his hair, but also with his leap of 17.30m, which puts him at the top of the world rankings. I had a chat with him before the competition and he was really looking forward to getting out there. He feels he is in great shape and has some big jumps inside him - but then Phillips always has. A lot of the athletes said the runway was not very helpful, so for Phillips to jump like that is a good performance. He is such a huge talent but just needs some consistency - and if he does that then the big jumps will get even further. Across the board I thought Kelly Sotherton had a great weekend and continued to show she is developing. She picked up three personal bests in the long jump, high jump and 60m hurdles and you can't ask for more than that. Kelly will be up against Carolina Kluft in the pentathlon at the European Championships but she has every chance of a medal on the basis of what we've seen so far.

She has a complicated training regime where different people help her with different disciplines but it seems to be working really well. It wasn't all good news in Sheffield. I thought both the 60m races were disappointing in different ways. Jason Gardener may have won but he wasn't at his best. I chatted to him afterwards and he knows it was an off-day for him. He's there to be shot at and the other lads nearly got a big scalp out there. In the women's race, Jeanette Kwayke was hoping to run against defending champion Joice Maduaka. The pair are enjoying a bit of rivalry but Joice had to pull out with a chest infection. If she had made the final I think Jeanette would have gone a bit quicker.

Janine Whitlock competed well in the pole vault on her return following a two-year drugs ban. But the most disappointing thing in the wider view is that she is our best pole vaulter by a long way and that shouldn't be the case. The event has moved on immensely since Janine has been away and if there was more domestic competition I think that would help her. A couple of other interesting topics to look out for are the citizenship issues surrounding Mark Findlay and Rabah Yusuf. Findlay is a Londoner who has chosen to represent Trinidad and Tobago but has never run for them so he could still compete for Great Britain. Yusuf, who came third in the 400m, is from the Sudan but is trying to gain British citizenship. He came to Britain as a high jumper but damaged his toe, started doing more running and found his talent. So we shall have to see what happens to both of them.
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McIlroy wins 800m indoor title	"James McIlroy motored to the AAA's Indoor 800m title in Sheffied on Sunday in a time of one minute, 47.97 seconds.

The Larne athlete dominated the race from start to finish although he had to hold off a late challenge from Welshman Jimmy Watkins in the final 100 metres. ""I had to go out and go through all the gears before the Europeans and I won't run again until then,"" said McIlroy. ''I though if I got lucky I'd get close to the British record but I blew up in the end.'' McIlroy has been in superb form at the start of the season and will now start his build-up for the European Indoors at Madrid on 4-6 March. Meanwhile, Paul Brizzel and Anna Boyle reached the semi-finals of the 60m hurdles with Boyle setting a season's best of 7.48. In the women's 60m final, Ailis McSweeney broke Michelle Carroll's long-standing Irish record by clocking 7.37 which left her in third place. David Gillick showed that he is a genuine medal contender in the European Indoor Championships by claiming an impressive 400m victory. Gillick was more than half-a-second clear when taking gold in 46.45 - .02 outside his personal best set in Saturday's semi-finals.

The Irishman is now the fastest European this season. Derval O'Rourke broke her own Irish 60m hurdles record by clocking 8.06 which left her third behind new British record holder Sarah Claxton (7.96). James Nolan (3:46.04) took second in the men's 1500m behind Neil Speaight (3:45.86) but the Offaly man was outside the European Indoor standard. Colin Costello was seventh in the 1500m final in 3:48.82). Deirdre Ryan was second in the women's high jump with a clearance of 1.87m while Aoife Byrne took silver in the 800m in a personal best of 2:06.73. Lisburn's Kelly McNeice Reid (4:31.34) was seventh in the women's 1500m while Gary Murray (8:11.22) was 11th in the men's 3000m. Meanwhile, Stephen Cairns and Jill Shannon claimed the individual titles at Saturday's Northern Ireland Cross Country Championship in Coleraine. Cairns came in ahead of Paul Rowan and Allan Bogle in the men's race. Willowfield claimed their first men's team title in 72 years while Shannon helped Lagan Valley win the women's team honours.
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Johnson edges out rival Sotherton	"Jade Johnson edged out rival Kelly Sotherton with her last effort to claim the AAAs long jump title at the Norwich Union European Indoor trials.

Olympic heptathlon bronze medallist, Sotherton, led the event with her first leap of 6.43m - a personal best. But Johnson, who has not competed indoors for five years, leapt to a life-time best of 6.50m in her last jump, after four fouls. Both Johnson and Sotherton passed the European Championships qualifying mark. Although Sotherton's main aim in Madrid next month will be the pentathlon where she will take on Olympic heptathlon champion Carolina Kluft. Ireland's

delivered a shock in the men's 200m as he stormed to his first major title in 21.01 seconds. British favourite Chris Lambert had to settle for second place while defending champion Ireland's Paul Brizzel took third. There was some consolation for Lambert as he set a personal best of 20.94 in the first round - good enough to qualify for Europe.

Two-time AAAs champion Allyn Condon and Ian Mackie had no such luck as they were disqualified in the heats. There was plenty of hot action in the men's 60m hurdles where Scotland's

was vying for top spot with Olympian Andy Turner. Scott, 22, smashed his personal best on the way to the final, where he broke it again to win the AAAs title in 7.58 seconds. Turner finished second in 7.82 after previously setting a personal best on the 7.83 in the semi-finals, while Damien Greaves did not finish the final. The trio of athletes have reached the European qualifying mark this season though one of them is set to miss out on a call-up to the British squad.

comfortably defended her 3,000m title, clocking eight minutes, 49.87 seconds to easily surpass the European qualifying mark. The European cross country bronze medallist is ranked number one in Europe this season and will go to Madrid with high hopes. Helen Clitheroe was agonisingly close to the 9:05.00 qualifying mark as she claimed the runners-up spot in a personal best of 9:05.73. In the men's 800m heats,

qualified fastest in the 800m heats to lay down a challenge to in-form

. The Welsh runner attacked the last 200m to come through ahead of James Thie in one minute, 49.87 seconds. McIlroy, who is third in the European rankings, eased across the finish in 1:50.87 to set up a showdown in Sunday's final in Sheffield. Both Watkins and McIlroy have already achieved the European qualifying mark. Scotland's Susan Deacon stole

's thunder in the final of the women's 200m. Fraser became the fastest British woman over the distance this season when she qualified for the final in 23.68 seconds - though that time is outside the European standard. But Deacon claimed her first AAAs title over the distance, edging Fraser into second in 23.67. In the women's shot put veteran

claimed her fourth AAAs title with a throw of 15.27m. But that mark was not good enough for the 39-year-old to book her place at next month's European Indoor Championships in Madrid. Sotherton finished fifth after producing two throws of 13.77m. In the absence of injured British number one Carl Myerscough,

claimed the men's shot put title with a throw of 17.64m, which was below the qualifying mark.

Sale's Robert Mitchell climbed to a season's best of 2.20m - just 3cm short of the European standard - to claim the British indoor high jump title.

could only clear 2.16m to finish in fourth but the 27-year-old's disappointment will be tempered as he had already achieved the qualifying mark at a meeting in Slovenia on Tuesday. There was bad luck for British number one

in the pole vault as he failed to clear the bar after deciding to come in at 5.45m. The AAAs indoor title went instead to Ashley Swain, who climbed to a season's best of 5.25m And Ireland's Taniesha Scanlon set a new national record of 13.28m in the women's triple jump.
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Brizzel to run AAA's in Sheffield	"Ballymena sprinter Paul Brizzel will be among eight of Ireland's European Indoor hopefuls competing in this weekend's AAA's Championships.

US-based Alistair Cragg and Mark Carroll are the only Irish athletes selected so far for the Europeans who will not run in Sheffield. Brizzel will defend his 200m title in the British trials. In-form James McIlroy will hope to confirm his place in the British team for Madrid by winning the 800m title. McIlroy has been in tremendous form on the European circuit in recent weeks. He is one of the fastest 800m runners in the world this winter and already seems assured of a place in Madrid. Corkman Mark Carroll confirmed in midweek that he would join Cragg in the European Championships. Carroll is ranked number three in the world 3000m ranking at the moment with Cragg occupying top spot. Meanwhile, nine-times champion Dermot Donnelly will not be coming out of retirement to compete in the Northern Ireland Cross Country Championships in Coleraine on Saturday. An injury crisis in the Annadale Striders squad led to Donnelly being entered by coach John McLaughlin but the athlete told BBC Sport on Friday evening that he would not be running. Willowfield's Paul Rowan will go in as individual favourite but Annadale could have a tough job holding on to their team title as Andrew Dunwoody and Noel Pollock are unlikely to run.
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Holmes urged to compete at Worlds	"Jolanda Ceplak has urged Britain's Kelly Holmes to continue competing at the major championships.

Double Olympic gold medallist Holmes has strongly hinted she will not run in this year's Worlds and is undecided about next month's European Indoors. But World Indoor 800m record holder Ceplak said: ""There is never an easy race when she is in the field. There is only excitement at what might happen. ""It is good for the sport. She always fetches the best out of everyone."" Ceplak has been a great rival of Holmes' during the Briton's career and the pair fell out when Holmes questioned the manner of the Slovenian's runaway 800m victory at the 2002 European Championships. But the controversy has since been forgotten, with Ceplak acting as pacemaker for Holmes' failed attempt on the British Indoor 1500m record at the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham in 2003.

Ceplak added: ""I like running against her - you know the race is always going to be fast. ""That is the sort of competition that I like. She is special to me. She was like my idol from the beginning of my career."" Meanwhile, Ceplak will be looking to follow up last Saturday's win in Boston with a fast time and victory in Friday's Night of Athletics in Erfurt, Germany. Britain's Jason Gardener had been expected to defend his 60m title in Erfurt but instead he will save himself for a competition in Leipzig on Sunday. Gardener's decision means Scotland's 400m man Ian Mackie will carry British hopes in what looks sure to be a tough preparation for next weekend's Norwich Union European trials in Sheffield.
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McIlroy continues winning streak	"James McIlroy stormed to his second international victory in less than a week, claiming the men's 800m at the TEAG indoor meeting in Erfurt.

The Northern Ireland runner set a new personal best of one minute, 46.68 seconds - a time good enough to qualify for the European Indoor Championships. ""I'm qualified now and that's what matters most,"" said the 28-year-old. McIlroy is now hoping to gain a late entry into Sunday's international indoor meeting in Leipzig. The Northern Irishman is hoping manager Ricky Simms can swing it for him to compete after he initially withdrew after contracting a cold. After three successive wins over the past fortnight, McIlroy is brimming with confidence. ""I've been waiting over six years for this to happen and now I'm certain my career has turned the corner."" On Friday, McIlroy delivered an impressive run despite suffering from his bad cold. The AAA indoor and outdoor champion accelerated away from the field in the final 300m, beating German Wolfram Mulle by 0.90 seconds. McIlroy set a world-leading mark for 1,000m at the Sparkassen Cup in Stuttgart last weekend. And his time in Erfurt makes him third fastest over 800m in the world this year.
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Radcliffe will compete in London	"Paula Radcliffe will compete in the Flora London Marathon this year after deciding her schedule for 2005.

The 31-year-old won the race in 2002 on her marathon debut, defended her title 12 months later and will now seek a third title in the 17 April race. ""It doesn't get any better than this for the 25th anniversary,"" said race director David Bedford. ""After announcing the greatest men's field ever we now have the greatest women's distance runner ever."" Three years ago Radcliffe smashed the women's world record in two hours 18 minutes 15 seconds.

The Bedford star returned to London 12 months later, lowering her mixed-race world record of 2:17:18, which she set in Chicago in October 2003, by one minute 53 secs. Radcliffe's career took a setback when she failed to complete the Olympic marathon and later dropped out of the Athens 10,000m last August. But the 31-year-old bounced back to win the New York Marathon in November. Radcliffe, however, passed up the chance to go for the ""Big City"" marathon grand slam. With wins in Chicago, London and New York, only the Boston Marathon remains to be conquered but that takes place a day after London. ""Boston is definitely a race I want to do at some point, but London is very special to me,"" said Radcliffe. ""I don't pick races thinking about things like pressure. I pick the ones in my heart I really want to do. ""I love the atmosphere, crowds and course and know it will always be a great quality race. ""It is also the 25th anniversary this year which adds to the occasion.""
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Britain boosted by Holmes double	"Athletics fans endured a year of mixed emotions in 2004 as stunning victories went hand-in-hand with disappointing defeats and more drugs scandals.

Kelly Holmes finally fulfilled her potential by storming to double gold on the track at the Olympic Games. Holmes helped erase the gloom hanging over Team GB after their biggest medal hope, Paula Radcliffe, dropped out of the marathon and then the 10,000m. Britain's men's 4x100m relay team also did their bit by taking a shock gold. Holmes had started the year in disappointing style, falling over in the final of 1500m at the World Indoor Championships where she was favourite. Her Olympic build-up was clouded by self doubt but that proved unfounded as she overhauled rival Maria Mutola to win the 800m - her first global title. Just five days later, the 34-year-old made it double gold in the 1500m. It was the first time in 84 years a Briton has achieved the Olympic middle-distance double. While Holmes left Athens as the star of Team GB, it was Radcliffe who carried expectations before the August Games.

The 30-year-old marathon world record holder went into the Athens event as favourite but an exhausted Radcliffe dropped out after 23 miles in tears. Her decision to enter the 10,000m five days later also backfired as she again pulled out with eight laps remaining.

But Radcliffe helped put her Olympic trauma behind her with a thrilling win in November's New York Marathon. The 4x100m team grabbed some last-gasp glory for the British men's Olympic squad after a poor start to the Games.

It seemed as though Athens would be the first Games where the men would fail to win a medal with Michael East the only individual track finalist in the 1500m. But Darren Campell, Jason Gardener, Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis-Francis made amends in the sprint relay. The quartet held off favourites the USA to win Britain's first relay medal since 1912 in 38.07 seconds. Gardener added the Olympic relay crown to his World Indoor title over 60m and, just like Holmes, finally lived up to his promise in 2004. Kelly Sotherton completed Team GB's athletics medal haul in Athens with a surprise bronze in the heptathlon. The 28-year-old won her first championship medal since becoming a full-time athlete in 2003.

But it was a different story for Britain's defending champion Denise Lewis, who withdrew on day two of the competition after some poor results. Lewis, who was troubled by injury, has ruled out retiring while Sotherton is tipped to build on her success. The Athens Olympics proved to be a landmark occasion for Steve Backley, who retired from competition after finishing fourth in the javelin. The battling 35-year-old leaves the sport with a vast medal haul including two silvers and one Olympic bronze.

And Backley's departure was balanced by the return of injury-hit decathlete Dean Macey, who came fourth in Athens.

The continued improvement of sprinter Abi Oyepitan and long jumper Chris Tomlinson also boosted Team GB. Sadly, the 2004 Olympics did not escape the problems of drugs misuse. On the eve of the Games, Greek sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou missed a drugs test and claimed to have been involved in a road crash.

Kenteris, the 200m champion in 2000, and Thanou have since been charged by the Greek authorities and await trial. At the Games, Adrian Annus (hammer), Robert Fazelas (discus) and Irina Korzhanenko (shot) were all stripped of their titles because of doping issues. Hungarian compatriots Annus and Fazelas both refused to give urine samples while Russian Korzhanenko tested positive for the steroid stanozolol.

The fallout from the THG scandal, which rocked the sport in 2003, continued to impact in Olympic year. Britain's 4x100m team took gold without the services of Dwain Chambers, who was handed a two-year ban in February after testing positive for steroid THG.

American Kelli White was suspended and stripped of her world 100m and 200m titles after failing a drugs test. And world 400m champion Jerome Young landed a life ban from US chiefs after a second doping offence. Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva provided some light relief by smashing the world record seven times on her way to the World Indoor and Olympic titles. Her rivalry with compatriot Svetlana Feofanova livened up the field events. Morocco's Hicham El Guerrouj also delighted fans by racing to a historic Olympic double in the 1500m and 5,000m.

And though there was no Paula Radcliffe in the London Marathon, there was plenty of drama as Kenyans Evans Rutto and Margaret Okayo took the titles. Rutto held on to win despite slipping on some cobblestones and tumbling into a barrier. Okayo also had to battle back after mistiming her tactics but clinched victory on her debut.
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Lewis-Francis eyeing world gold	"Mark Lewis-Francis says his Olympic success has made him determined to bag World Championship 100m gold in 2005.

The 22-year-old pipped Maurice Greene on the last leg of the 4x100m relay in Athens to take top honours for Team GB. But individually, the Birchfield Harrier has yet to build on his World Junior Championship win four years ago. ""The gold medal in Athens has made me realise that I can get to the top level and I want to get there again. It can happen, I don't see why not,"" he said. Lewis-Francis has still to decided what events will feature in his build-up to the worlds - with one exception. He has confirmed his participation in the Norwich Union Grand Prix in Birmingham on 18 February, where he will take on another member of Britain's victorious men's relay team - Jason Gardener - over 60m. He added: ""It's a bit too early to make any predictions for Helsinki, but I have my eyes open and I know I can be the best in the world.""
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GB select Holmes for double bid	"Kelly Holmes has been chosen for both the 800m and 1500m at next month's European Indoor Championships - despite not yet confirming her availability.

The double-Olympic champion is still undecided about whether to compete in her first European Indoors in Madrid. But UK Athletics chief Max Jones believes it is likely Holmes will race. He said: ""It's worth a punt, isn't it? She's gone back to training. If she's confident she will pick one (distance). The programme does not permit both."" If Holmes does take her place in the GB side, she has already indicated that 1500m will be her favoured distance. Under championship rules, she does not have to decide until 24 hours before the event begins in Madrid on 4 March. Jones added: ""She was pleased with her run in Birmingham (at last weekend's Grand Prix). ""I am inclined to think she will (compete). It could depend on how training goes and she will have to be close to top form."" And he admitted Holmes' presence would be a great boost to the rest of the Norwich Union GB team. ""She is a very good team member and is very good to have there,"" he added. Meanwhile, there is no surprises in the rest of the Great Britain team announced on Tuesday.

Defending 60m champion Jason Gardener is included and will be chasing his third successive gold medal. He will be joined in the event by Mark Lewis-Francis - runner-up behind him three years ago in Vienna - and new boy Darren Chin. Kelly Sotherton has been invited by championship organisers to compete against Carolina Kluft in the pentathlon. Sotherton finished third in the Olympic heptathlon in Athens, where the Swede took gold. There are 16 newcomers at this level of competition in GB's 46-strong team. The championships will be the last to be attended by Jones before he retires to be succeeded by Dave Collins. Jones said: ""The Olympic Games is the overwhelming target for UKA and therefore it is beneficial to start the next four-year cycle with a not-so-pressurised major games. ""The European Indoor Championships always provide a chance for the young and inexperienced to make a name for themselves and the current indoor season has produced some exciting new talent. ""Madrid is the first small step on a long journey to Beijing and the 2008 Olympics but for some of the emerging athletes, this will be a very important step.""

60m: D Chin (Belgrave Harriers), J Gardener (Wessex and Bath), M Lewis-Francis (Birchfield Harriers).

T Abeyie (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies), C Lambert (Belgrave Harriers).

D Garland (Channel Islands AC).

J McIlroy (Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC), Jimmy Watkins (Cardiff AAC).

Ed Jackson (Aldershot, Farnham and District), N Speaight (Belgrave Harriers), J Thie (Cardiff AAC).

A Baddeley (Harrow AC), M Farah (Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC), J Mayock (Barnsley AC).

D Greaves (Newham and Essex Beagles), A Scott (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers), A Turner (Notts AC).

B Challenger (Belgrave Harriers). Pole vault: N Buckfield (Crawley AC).

N Morgan (Birchfield Harriers), C Tomlinson (Newham and Essex Beagles).

L Achike (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers), N Douglas (Oxford City AC), P Idowu (Belgrave Harriers).

D Cossins (Birchfield Harriers), R Davenport (Gloucester AC), D Garland (Channel Islands AC), R Preddy (Gloucester AC), G Warburton (Cardiff AAC).

K Endacott (City of Plymouth AC), J Kwakye (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies), J Maduaka (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies).

K Wall (Basildon AC).

K Holmes (Ealing, Southall and Middlesex AC).

H Clitheroe (Preston Harriers), K Holmes (Ealing, Southall and Middlesex AC).

J Pavey (Exeter Harriers).

D Allahgreen (Trafford AC), S Claxton (Belgrave Harriers).

J Crane (Sale Harriers Manchester), S Jones (Trafford AC).

J Whitlock (Trafford AC).

J Johnson (Herne Hill Harriers).

K Sotherton (Birchfield Harriers).

D Fraser (Croydon Harriers), L McConnell (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers), C Murphy (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies), M Purkiss (Southampton AC).
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Holmes back on form in Birmingham	"Double Olympic champion Kelly Holmes was back to her best as she comfortably won the 1,000m at the Norwich Union Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix.

The 34-year-old, running only her second competitive race of the season, shook off the rust to win in two minutes, 35.39 seconds. But she is still undecided about competing in the European Championships in Madrid from 4-6 March. ""I'll probably be entered and make my mind up at the last minute,"" she said. ""My training hasn't gone as well as expected but I've got two weeks to decide. ""I need to take my time and make sure I feel good about what I'm doing. ""I felt very good here but with the crowd behind you, you feel like you can do anything."" American

was the eventual winner of the men's 60m race which almost ended in farce. Three athletes were disqualified for false starting, including Britain's Mark Lewis-Francis, who was the first man guilty of coming out of his blocks too quickly. World 100m champion Kim Collins clinched second spot ahead of world 60m record holder and Scott's training partner Maurice Greene. Jason Gardener's unbeaten run came to an end as he came fifth and he will need to improve if he is to defend his European title in Madrid. ""You can't win them all,"" said Gardener afterwards. ""And I was very disappointed as I know I'm capable of doing better."" Russian

was back on record-breaking form in the pole vault at the National Indoor Arena.

The Olympic champion set a new world mark of 4.88m to break her own record - which she set just six days ago - and beat Russian rival Svetlana Feofanova. It was Isinbayeva's 11th world record - indoors or out - since July 2003. ""I'm so happy and I will do my best to break the 5m barrier soon,"" the 22-year-old told BBC Sport. Jamaica's

stormed to a personal best of 7.13 seconds to claim the women's 60m sprint. Belgian Kim Gevaert, who will be one of the favourites for next month's European title, took second while American Muna Lee was third. There was disappointment for British pair Jeanette Kwakye and Joice Maduaka who finished seventh and eighth respectively.

Jamaican

stretched her unbeaten record to 25 races as she effortlessly claimed the 200m. The Olympic champion set a new indoor personal best of 22.38 seconds - the fastest time in the world this season.

fought off fellow Briton Tim Abeyie to take the men's 200m in a personal best of 20.88.

continued her outstanding start to the season, beating a strong international field, which included two-time Olympic 100m hurdles bronze medallist Melissa Morrison, to claim the women's 60m hurdles. The 25-year-old Briton clocked 7.98 seconds while pre-European Championships favourite Russian Irina Shevchenko finished down in sixth. Ethiopia's

failed in her bid to smash compatriot Berhane Adere's world 3,000m record but still won the event in emphatic style. The Olympic 5,000m champion was inside record pace but dropped off over the final third, finishing in eight minutes, 33.05 seconds - the fourth fastest time ever recorded for the event. Britain's Jo Pavey bravely decided to go with Defar as she strode away from the field and took second in a season's best 8:41.43. Kenyan

also missed out on the indoor 1500m world record, which Hicham El Guerrouj has held for the last eight years.

Lagat settled for silver behind El Guerrouj in Athens and was almost four seconds short of the Moroccan's world best, clocking 3:35.27 in Birmingham. And

was still struggling to find his form after the death of his fiancee this year. The Olympic 10,000m champion had comfortably led the men's two mile race after his younger brother Tariku had set the pace. But fellow Ethiopian

appeared ominously on Bekele's shoulder with two laps to go before surging past him at the bell to win in 8:14.28. Jamaican

made the most of a blistering start to take the men's 400m title in 45.91 seconds. World indoor champion, Alleyne Francique, faded badly and finished in fourth while American duo Jerry Harris and James Davis took second and third respectively. Swede

showed her class in the long jump as she stole top spot from Jade Johnson with the very last jump of the competition. The Olympic heptathlon gold medallist reached 6.66m to better Johnson's mark of 6.52m - her second personal best inside a week. ""I was quite surprised because I didn't think I'd end up with second place,"" said Johnson, who wore London's 2012 Olympic bid slogan, ""Back the Bid"", on her shorts. ""But I'm pleased and hopefully I'll get a bit better for the Europeans. I really want to win a medal.""

won the men's event with a season's best of 7.95m, taking the scalp of world indoor champion Savante Stringfellow of the USA.
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Record fails to lift lacklustre meet	"Yelena Isinbayeva may have produced another world pole vault record, but her achievement could not hide the fact it was not the best meet we have ever seen in Birmingham.

And hey, there are not many meets that go by without the Russian breaking a world record.

Apparently, Isinbayeva has cleared five metres in training and I would just love her to put us out of our misery and have a go at it rather than extending the indoor record by one centimetre at a time. Athletics to me is all about pushing the barriers and being the best you can, and I would like to see her have a go at 5m in competition. Mind you, every time she breaks the record she gets $30,000 so she can afford to be deliberate about it. World records aside, I thought it was a very encouraging evening's work for Kelly Holmes. She looked good and was very positive. Agnes Samaria, who came second, is in very good shape and is in the world's top three 800m runners this season. Yes, Samaria let Kelly get away, but there was no coming back over the last 200m as Kelly dominated the race, so beating Samaria is a bit of a benchmark for Kelly. My gut feeling is that Kelly would like to run in the European Indoor Championships, but she just hasn't convinced herself she is fit enough to do so. On the other hand, I think Jason Gardener is struggling to come near what is going to be required to win the men's 60m in Madrid. He started well in the final but still could not stay with the front-runners. Jason has a lot of experience indoors but for some reason he is struggling to maintain his pace through to the finish.

It would have been nice to see what Mark Lewis-Francis could have done in the final, if only he hadn't got himself disqualified. He was blatantly playing the false-start game to his advantage, but it tripped him up and made him look a bit silly. My view is you're meant to go when the gun goes and not before. And if you try to unsettle your rivals by employing the false-start tactic you have to remember not to false start yourself again. Having said that, Mark is looking in much better shape. But I haven't seen anything from Mark or Jason yet which suggests France's Ronald Pognon - who has run 6.45 seconds - will be under threat at the Europeans. From a British point of view, Sarah Claxton's victory in the 60m hurdles was the best thing to come out of the meet.

Something else that probably went unnoticed was Melanie Purkiss winning the women's national 400m race in a new personal best of 52.98 seconds. AAAs champion Kim Wall came second in another lifetime best so we have a very strong 4x400m squad going to the European Championships. Scotland's Lee McConnell is probably going to run too, so we have a real prospect of a medal. From an international perspective, I thought Meseret Defar was disappointing in the 3,000m, but I don't think the pace-making was great. Canadian Heather Hennigar set a fast early pace but could not maintain it and if Jo Pavey had been in last year's shape she would have given Defar a real run for her money. She had a go but just could not hang in there. We were also expecting a bit more from Bernard Lagat in the men's 1500m. But he has only just come over from the USA, so he may not be that sharp and I still think he is in great shape. As for Kenenisa Bekele, he was well beaten by Markos Geneti. But we only had half expectations for Bekele as he has been struggling this season. It was very hot in the National Indoor Arena and I felt uncomfortable in the commentary box. I think those conditions affected the distance runners and in fact Defar complained to her coach after the race that she could not get her breath properly.
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Tomlinson stays focused on Europe	"Long jumper Chris Tomlinson has cut his schedule to ensure he is fully fit for the European Indoor Championships.

The 23-year-old has a minor injury and has pulled out of international meets in Madrid and Lievin this week as well as warm-weather training in Lanzarote. ""It's nothing serious,"" said his coach Peter Stanley. ""He strained a muscle in his abdomen at the Birmingham meeting but is back in full training."" Sprinter Mark Lewis-Francis will also not compete in Madrid on Thursday. The Birmingham athlete, who clocked a season's best of 6.61 seconds over 60m in Birmingham last week, also prefers to focus his attentions on next month's European Indoor Championships.

Lewis-Francis, who was runner-up to British team-mate Jason Gardener at the Europeans three years ago, will continue his training at home. Meanwhile, Tomlinson is still searching for this first major medal and this season he has shown he could be in the sort of form to grab a spot on the podium in Madrid. The Middlesbrough athlete jumped a season's best of 7.95m at the Birmingham Grand Prix - good enough to push world indoor champion Savante Stringfellow into second.
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Running around the Olympics	"It was back to official duties last week in my role as an ambassador to London's 2012 Olympic bid. But I still managed to do all my marathon training.

All the sporting people on the capital's bid team think I'm mad to be taking part in the London Marathon. The bid chairman, Lord Coe, admitted he would never dream of running a marathon, even though he was an Olympic middle-distance runner.

Kelly Holmes, former hurdler Alan Pascoe and former sprinter Frankie Fredericks - who is now an IOC member - all wanted to know why anyone would want to run that far. You'd have thought all these athletes, who have been running for most of their lives, wouldn't think it would be that bad. But the only person who was positive about my intentions was Tanni Grey Thompson, who has won the London Marathon wheelchair race six times. Even though it was a very busy week entertaining the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Evaluation Commission, I actually found my running schedule easier to follow. When I'm at home, I get distracted by all sorts of things but for the five days I was in London, I was in a pressurised situation, but I found it easy to relax by running.

On Wednesday, the presentations to the IOC team did not finish until the early evening, so I just managed to squeeze in a 45-minute run. We had an early start on Thursday because we had to visit all the Olympic sites around London, that was pretty shattering, but when we got back to the hotel, I got back on the treadmill. On Friday evening I went along to the special dinner at Buckingham Palace which was a nice occasion. I never feel guilty about eating, especially when I'm exercising. And because it was a rest day I didn't have to feel bad about missing my training either. Anyway, I managed to do another quick run on Saturday ahead of the final IOC presentations, before heading home for my daughter's birthday.

When I was in London I did all of my runs on the treadmill, which isn't the same as exercising outdoors. One of the IOC's technical staff from Australia ran alongside me one day. We talked about the Sydney Olympics and that made the time go past more quickly. I do find it quite comfortable running in the gym because there is more cushioning. But when you're gearing up to running on the road you need your body to get used to that jarring feeling when your feet hit the pavement. It was good to get out on the road for my long run on Sunday. After the week I'd had I was a bit concerned I wouldn't be able to complete it. But I coped with it very well and, even though it was bitterly cold, I put in 15-and-a-half miles - only another 11 to go then.

- This year Steve will donate all the proceeds from his London Marathon efforts to victims of the tsunami.Steve will be writing a regular column on the ups and downs of his marathon training for the BBC Sport website.He will be raising money through the Steve Redgrave Trust which supports the Association of Children's Hospices, the Children With Leukaemia charity, and the Trust's own project which aims to provide inner-city schools with rowing equipment.
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Johnson uncertain about Euro bid	"Jade Johnson is undecided about whether to contest next month's European Indoor Championships in Madrid despite winning the AAAs long jump title on Saturday.

The 24-year-old delivered a personal best of 6.50m to win the European trials but had to wait until her final jump after four failures. ""I don't want to go if I am not going to get a medal,"" said Johnson. ""I will have to see how I am jumping in the next competition and I'll have to have a conversation with my coach."" Johnson, who finished seventh in last year's Olympic Games, has not competed indoors since 2000. And the Commonwealth and European silver medallist believes her lack of experience in the early part of the season has knocked her confidence. ""It's the stress,"" said Johnson. ""I am not used to feeling this, this early. I am just used to training. ""But if I'm doing this kind of thing, then I will have to see how it goes."" Johnson next competes in the high-class Birmingham Grand Prix on 18 February.
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Pavey focuses on indoor success	"Jo Pavey will miss January's View From Great Edinburgh International Cross Country to focus on preparing for the European Indoor Championships in March.

The 31-year-old was third behind Hayley Yelling and Justyna Bak in last week's European Cross Country Championships but she prefers to race on the track. ""It was great winning bronze but I'm wary of injuries and must concentrate on the indoor season,"" she said. ""Because of previous injuries I don't even run up hills in training."" Pavey, who came fifth in the 5,000m at the Athens Olympics, helped the British cross country team win the team silver medal in Heringsdorf last week. She is likely to start her 3,000m season with a race in either Boston or Stuttgart at the end of January.
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Gardener wins double in Glasgow	"Britain's Jason Gardener enjoyed a double 60m success in Glasgow in his first competitive outing since he won 100m relay gold at the Athens Olympics.

Gardener cruised home ahead of Scot Nick Smith to win the invitational race at the Norwich Union International. He then recovered from a poor start in the second race to beat Swede Daniel Persson and Italy's Luca Verdecchia. His times of 6.61 and 6.62 seconds were well short of American Maurice Greene's 60m world record of 6.39secs from 1998. ""It's a very hard record to break, but I believe I've trained very well,"" said the world indoor champion, who hopes to get closer to the mark this season. ""It was important to come out and make sure I got maximum points. My last race was the Olympic final and there was a lot of expectation. ""This was just what I needed to sharpen up and get some race fitness. I'm very excited about the next couple of months.""

Double Olympic champion

marked her first appearance on home soil since winning 1500m and 800m gold in Athens with a victory. There was a third success for Britain when

edged out Russia's Olga Fedorova and Sweden's Jenny Kallur to win the women's 60m race in 7.23secs. Maduaka was unable to repeat the feat in the 200m, finishing down in fourth as

took the win for Russia. And the 31-year-old also missed out on a podium place in the 4x200m relay as the British quartet came in fourth, with Russia setting a new world indoor record. There was a setback for Jade Johnson as she suffered a recurrence of her back injury in the long jump. Russia won the meeting with a final total of 63 points, with Britain second on 48 and France one point behind in third.

led the way for Russia by producing a major shock in the high jump as he beat Olympic champion Stefan Holm into second place to end the Swede's 22-event unbeaten record.

won the triple jump with a leap of 16.87m, with Britain's Tosin Oke fourth in 15.80m.

won the men's pole vault competition with a clearance of 5.65m, with Britain's Nick Buckfield 51cm adrift of his personal best in third. And

won the women's 800m, with Britain's Jenny Meadows third. There was yet another Russian victory in the women's 400m as

finished well clear of Britain's Catherine Murphy. Chris Lambert had to settle for fourth after fading in the closing stages of the men's 200m race as Sweden's

held off Leslie Djhone of France. France's

won the men's 400m, with Brett Rund fourth for Britain.

took victory for Sweden in the women's 60m hurdles ahead of Russia's Irina Shevchenko and Britain's Sarah Claxton, who set a new personal best. Italy grabbed their first victory in the men's 1500m as

kicked over the last 200 metres to hold off Britain's James Thie and France's Alexis Abraham. A botched changeover in the 4x200m relay cost Britain's men the chance to add further points as France claimed victory.
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African double in Edinburgh	"World 5000m champion Eliud Kipchoge won the 9.2km race at the View From Great Edinburgh Cross Country.

The Kenyan, who was second when Newcastle hosted the race last year, was in front from the outset. Ethiopian duo Gebre Gebremariam and Dejene Berhanu made last-gasp efforts to overtake him, but Kipchoge responded and a burst of speed clinched victory. Gavin Thompson was the first Briton in 12th place while Nick McCormick held of his British rivals to win the 4km race. The Morpeth Harrier led from the end of the first lap and ended Mike Skinner and Andrew Baddeley's hopes with a surge in the lasp lap. ""My training has gone so well I wasn't really worried about the opposition asI knew I was in great shape,"" said McCormick, who now hopes to earn a 1,500m place in the British team for the World Championships in Helsinki. In the women's race, Ethiopia's Tirunesh Dibaba won a battle with world cross country champion Benita Johnson to retain her title. Australian Johnson, who shocked her African rivals in Brussels last March, looked to be on course for another win in the 6.2km race. But world 5000m champion Dibaba make a telling strike for the finishing line in the final 20 metres. Britons Kathy Butler and Hayley Yelling were out of contention early on.
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Yelling takes Cardiff hat-trick	"European cross-country champion Hayley Yelling completed a hat-trick of wins in the Reebok Cardiff Cross Challenge in Bute Park on Sunday afternoon.

The part-time maths teacher beat Irish international Jolene Byrne by 40 metres in the six-kilometre race. Another Great Britain international, Louise Damen, finished third as part of the contingent representing England. Peter Riley, who secured bronze for the GB men's team at last month's European Championships, won the men's 9km race. Riley, representing England, moved away over the last two kilometres to win by 25 metres from Ireland's Gary Murray. Glynn Tromans - the reigning UK Inter-Countries and England Cross-Country champion - came in third place as he continues his comeback from a five-month injury lay-off.
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Butler strikes gold in Spain	"Britain's Kathy Butler continued her impressive year with victory in Sunday's 25th Cross Internacional de Venta de Banos in Spain.

The Scot, who led GB to World Cross Country bronze earlier this year, moved away from the field with Ines Monteiro halfway into the 6.6km race. She then shrugged off her Portuguese rival to win in 20 minutes 38 seconds. Meanwhile, Briton Karl Keska battled bravely to finish seventh in the men's 10.6km race in a time of 31:41. Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia - the reigning world long and short course champion - was never troubled by any of the opposition, winning leisurely in 30.26. Butler said of her success: ""I felt great throughout the race and hope this is a good beginning for a marvellous 2005 season for me."" Elsewhere, Abebe Dinkessa of Ethiopia won the Brussels IAAF cross-country race on Sunday, completing the 10,500m course in 33.22. Gelete Burka then crowned a great day for Ethiopia by claiming victory in the women's race.
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Wada will appeal against ruling	"The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) will appeal against the acquittal of Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou on doping charges, if the IAAF does not.

The pair were cleared of charges relating to missing dope tests by the Greek Athletics Federation last week. Wada chairman Dick Pound said: ""I am convinced the IAAF will appeal against the decision, and we will support them. ""But if they accept the federation's ruling we will go before the Court of Arbitration for Sport,"" he added. Kenteris's lawyer, Gregory Ioannidis, reacted angrily to Pound's comments. ""Comments like these only help to embarrass the sporting governing bodies, create a hostage situation for the IAAF and strengthen our case further,"" he told BBC Sport. Kenteris, 31, and Thanou, 30, had been charged with avoiding drugs tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens and failing to notify anti-doping officials of their whereabouts before the Olympics. They withdrew from the Athens Games after missing a drugs test at the Olympic village on 12 August.

But an independent tribunal ruled that the duo had not been informed that they needed to attend a drugs test in Athens.

However, their former coach Christos Tzekos was banned for four years by the tribunal. Kenteris and Thanou still have to face trial on charges brought separately by Greek prosecutors of missing the drugs tests and faking a motorcycle accident to avoid testing at the Athens Games.
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Greek sprinters 'won't run again'	"The careers of sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou are over, says the boss of the organisation that cleared them of missing a drugs test.

Greek Athletics Federation boss Vassilli Sevastis told the country's parliament: ""I believe Kenteris and Thanou won't race again. ""The damage to their commercial interests has been done,"" he added. Athletics bosses are considering its reponse to the ruling, while the athletes face a trial in a Greek court. Greek prosecutors have brought spearate charges of missing the drugs test and faking a motorcycle accident. Speaking to the Greek Parliament on Tuesday, Sevastis said that the evidence sent by the International Olympic Committee and athletics governing body the IAAF was not strong enough for the Greek Association to find the sprinters guilty.

""We were given the task of getting the snake out if its hole but we were not given any evidence to do it with,"" he said. ""So how can you as a Greek with your hand on your heart try the athletes?"" he added. The athletes are technically free to compete while the IAAF reviews its response to the decision to clear Kenteris and Thanou. But Sevastis said: ""It does not matter if they are found guilty at the Court of Arbitration for Sport and the current decision is reversed.""
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IAAF will contest Greek decision	"The International Association of Athletics Federations will appeal against the acquittal of Greek athletes Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou.

The high-profile duo were cleared of doping offences by the Greek Athletics Federation (Segas) last month. Now the IAAF will lodge an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and has suspended both athletes. An IAAF statement said: ""The Doping Review Board concluded that the decision is erroneous."" The statement continued: ""Both athletes' cases will be refered to arbitration before the CAS. The decision in both cases will be final and binding.""

Segas said the IAAF appeal was ""expected"" and ""understandable."" ""Now we are going to await the final result, which we cannot prejudge,"" said Segas chairman Vassilis Sevastis. Kenteris, who won Olympic 200m gold at the 2000 Olympics, and Thanou were suspended by the IAAF last December after failing to take routine drugs tests before the Athens Games. However, the independent tribunal overturned those bans, clearing the sprinters of avoiding tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens and failing to notify anti-doping officials of their whereabouts before the Olympics.

Kenteris' lawyer Gregory Ioannidis described the IAAF's decision as ""not unexpected"" but told BBC Sport he did not expect the organisation to take action so quickly. ""The IAAF's timing is extremely surprising and it creates concerns and questions,"" said Ioannidis. ""The IAAF has not yet received the complete file of proceedings which include statements, testimonies, the closing speeches of defence counsel... and nine audio tapes.

""We have the evidence and it is time the world discovered the truth."" Kenteris and Thanou dramatically withdrew from last summer's Olympics after missing a drugs test at the Olympic Village on 12 August. The pair then spent four days in a hospital, claiming they had been injured in a motorcycle crash. It was the International Olympic Committee who demanded the IAAF investigate the affair. Thanou and Kenteris still face a criminal trial later this year for allegedly avoiding the test and then faking a motorcycle accident
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Greek duo cleared in doping case	"Sprinters Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou have been cleared of doping offences by an independent tribunal.

The duo had been provisionally suspended by the IAAF for allegedly missing three drugs tests, including one on the eve of the Athens Olympics. But the Greek Athletics Federation tribunal has overturned the bans - a decision which the IAAF can now contest at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The pair's former coach, Christos Tzekos, has been banned for four years. Kenteris, 31, and Thanou, 30, had been charged with avoiding drug tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago and Athens and failing to notify anti-doping officials of their whereabouts before the Olympics. They withdrew from the Olympics after missing a drugs test at the Olympic Village on 12 August.

The pair then spent four days in a hospital, claiming they had been injured in a motorcycle crash. It was the International Olympic Committee's demand that the IAAF investigate the affair that led to the hearing of the Greek tribunal. The head of that tribunal, Kostas Panagopoulos, said it had not been proven that the athletes refused to take the test in Athens. ""The charge cannot be substantiated,"" he said. ""In no way was he (Kenteris) informed to appear for a doping test. The same goes for Thanou."" Kenteris's lawyer, Gregory Ioannidis, said: ""The decision means Mr Kenteris has been exonerated of highly damaging and unfounded charges which have been extremely harmful for his career.

""He has consistently maintained his innocence and this was substantiated by further evidence we were able to submit to the tribunal following its deliberations in January. ""This evidence shows Mr Kenteris was never asked to submit to a test by the International Olympic Committee so he could not possibly have been guilty of deliberately avoiding one. It shows he has no case to answer. ""Mr Kenteris should now be given the opportunity he deserves to rebuild his career in the full knowledge that there is no stain on his character. ""He has suffered greatly throughout this ordeal that has exposed both himself and his family to enormous pressures."" But the IAAF said it was ""very surprised"" by the verdict. Spokesman Nick Davies said: ""We note the decision of the Greek authorities with interest. ""Our doping review board will now consider the English version of the decision.""
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Johnson too strong for GB runners	"Britain's Kathy Butler and Hayley Yelling were no match for Benita Johnson in the 51st Cross International Zornotza in Amorebieta, Spain.

Butler and Yelling finished fourth and fifth as Australian world champion Johnson romped to a five-second victory in the 6km race ahead of Edith Masai. Masai's fellow Kenyan Alice Timbilil finished third. Johnson said: ""I ran comfortably for the first 3km and then I tried to leave the others but it wasn't an easy task."" Butler clocked a time of 22 minutes 45 seconds - 22secs behind the winner but four ahead of Yelling, who last month succeeded Paula Radcliffe as European champion. Johnson, will be one of the star attractions at the Great EdinburghInternational Cross Country on 15 January.
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Holmes starts 2005 with GB events	"Kelly Holmes will start 2005 with a series of races in Britain.

Holmes will make her first track appearance on home soil since winning double Olympic gold in January's Norwich Union International in Glasgow. She will also run in the Grand Prix in Birmingham in February and may defend her indoor AAA 800m title in Sheffield earlier that month. ""I am still competitive and still want to win,"" she said. ""I'm an athlete and I can't wait to get back on the track."" She added: ""These events are also a great opportunity to thank the British public for the enormous levels of support they have given me from the moment I stepped off that plane from Greece."" The Glasgow meeting will see Holmes compete over 1500m in a five-way match against Sweden, France, Russia and Italy.
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Tulu to appear at Caledonian run	"Two-time Olympic 10,000 metres champion Derartu Tulu has confirmed she will take part in the BUPA Great Caledonian Run in Edinburgh on 8 May.

The 32-year-old Ethiopian is the first star name to enter the event. Tulu has won the Boston, London and Tokyo Marathons, as well as the world 10,000m title in 2001. ""We are delighted to have secured the services of one the most decorated competitors the sport has ever seen,"" said race director Matthew Turnbull. ""Her record speaks for herself and there are few other women distance runners who would dare compare their pedigree with Tulu's,"" he added. ""She might be 33 next month, but that didn't stop her winning the Olympic 10,000m bronze medal last summer. She's an ultra-consistent championships racer.""
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Disappointed Scott in solid start	"Allan Scott is confident of winning a medal at next week's European Indoor Championships after a solid debut on the international circuit.

The 22-year-old Scot finished fourth in the 60m hurdles at the Jose M Cagigal Memorial meeting in Madrid. ""It was definitely a learning curve and I certainly haven't ruled out challenging for a medal next week,"" said the East Kilbride athlete. The race was won by Felipe Vivancos, who equalled the Spanish record.

Sweden's Robert Kronberg was second, with Haiti's Dudley Dorival in third. Scott was slightly disappointed with his run in the final. He won his heat in 7.64secs but ran 0.04secs slower in his first IAAF Indoor Grand Prix circuit final. ""I should have done better than that,"" he said. ""I felt I could have won it. I got a poor start - but I still felt I should have ran faster."" Vivancos slashed his personal best to equal the Spanish record with a time of 7.60secs while Kronberg and Dorival clocked 7.62secs and 7.63secs respectively.
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GB quartet get cross country call	"Four British athletes have been pre-selected to compete at the World Cross Country Championships in March after impressive starts to the season.

Hayley Yelling, Jo Pavey, Karl Keska and Adam Hickey will represent Team GB at the event in France. Yelling clinched the women's European cross country title last month and Pavey followed up with bronze. Keska helped the men's team to overall third place while Hickey finished in 10th place on his junior debut. ""Winning the European cross country title meant so much to me,"" said Yelling. ""And being pre-selected for the Worlds means that I can focus on preparing in the best way possible."" The 32-year-old will race alongside Olympic 5,000m finalist Pavey in the women's 8km race on 19 March. Keska, who has made a successful return from a long-term injury lay-off, contests the men's 12km race on 20 March, while 16-year-old Hickey goes in the junior men's 8km on the same day. The rest of the team will be named after the trials at Wollaton Park in Nottingham, which take place on 5 March.
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Jones files lawsuit against Conte	"Marion Jones has filed a lawsuit for defamation against Balco boss Victor Conte following his allegations that he gave her performance-enhancing drugs.

The Sydney Olympic gold medallist says Conte damaged her reputation and she is seeking $25m (£13m) in the suit. Conte, whose company is at the centre of a doping investigation, made the claims in a US television programme. He and three others were indicted in February by a federal grand jury for a variety of alleged offences. In an email to the Associated Press on Wednesday, Conte said: ""I stand by everything I said"". Jones won three gold medals and two bronzes in Sydney in 2000. Her lawsuit, filed in the US District Court in San Francisco, said the sprinter had passed a lie detector test and that she ""has never taken banned performance-enhancing drugs"". Conte's statements, the suit added, were ""false and malicious"". After the ABC television program earlier this month, Jones' lawyer Richard Nicholls said: ""Marion has steadfastly maintained her position throughout: she has never, ever used performance-enhancing drugs. ""Victor Conte is a man facing a 42-count federal indictment, while Marion Jones is one of America's most decorated female athletes. Mr Conte's statements have been wildly contradictory. ""Mr Conte chose to make unsubstantiated allegations on television, while Marion Jones demanded to take and then passed a lie detector examination.

""Mr Conte is simply not credible. We challenge him to submit to the same lie detector procedure that Marion Jones passed."" The sport's ruling body, the IAAF, is taking a cautious approach to Conte's allegations but contacted the US Anti-Doping Agency. Communications director Nick Davies said the IAAF would seek to contact Conte ""for further information"". But Davies stressed it would be up to the American authorities to decide whether they will take action against Jones in light of Conte's television interview and the world governing body would monitor the situation closely. ""If it is felt there is case to answer, it would be for its national governing body (USA Track and Field) to take the appropriate disciplinary action,"" he added. ""The US Anti-Doping Agency has proved itself to be very diligent in its anti-doping war. ""And I am sure, like ourselves, they will be watching the television programme with great interest."" Jones, who is under investigation for steroid use by the US Anti-Doping Agency, has continually denied ever taking illegal substances since being investigated in the Balco scandal, although she praised a zinc supplement Conte marketed. Jones, who did not win any medals in Athens in August, has never failed a drugs test. Meanwhile, Conte, who has been charged along with three other men of distributing illegal steroids and money laundering, is due to face trial in March.
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Thanou desperate to make return	"Greek sprinter Katerina Thanou says she is eager to compete again after being cleared of missing a drugs test by an independent Greek tribunal.

Thanou, 30, was provisionally suspended for missing a test before the Olympics, but the decision was overturned. ""The IAAF will decide if we can compete again in Greece and abroad,"" Thanou told To Vima newspaper in her first interview since the Athens Olympics. ""If given the green light I will run again - that's the only thing I want."" Thanou, 30, and her compatriot Kostas Kenteris were provisionally suspended by the IAAF in December for missing three drugs tests. The third was alleged to have been on the eve of the opening ceremony of the Athens Olympics.

But an independent tribunal of the Greek Athletics Federation overturned the provisional ban on 18 March. The IAAF - which said it was ""very surprised"" by the decision of the Greek tribunal - is deciding whether to appeal against the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. However, Dick Pound, the chairman of the World Anti-Doping Authority, has said he will appeal against the decision if the IAAF does not. And Thanou and Kenteris face a criminal trial later this year for allegedly avoiding the test and then faking a motorcycle accident. Thanou said: ""I can see how people can think the accident seemed like a childish excuse. ""I cannot deny that we made a lot of mistakes during that time. I always said we needed a PR person. ""An athlete would have to be very stupid to take illegal substances when he or she knows that they will undergo tests at any given moment. ""I am a champion. I cannot risk everything I've achieved in such a silly way.""
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Relay squad thrilled with honours	"Jason Gardener says being made an MBE in the New Year Honours List underlines the achievement of Great Britain's 4x100m relay squad at the Olympics.

Gardener, Darren Campbell, Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis-Francis have all been awarded MBEs after beating pre-race favourites USA to gold. ""I think this award reinforces what we did on that fantastic night,"" he said. ""This recognition is really inspiring and makes me want to have more success,"" said Lewis-Francis. The British sprint quartet produced a string of faultless baton changes in the final to put pressure on the Americans.

And when the USA stumbled with a poor switch between Justin Gatlin and Coby Miller at the 300m stage, Britain edged ahead going into the final bend. Then, on cue, Lewis-Francis ran a textbook final leg, holding off Maurice Greene to bring Team GB home in 38.07 seconds - just one hundredth of a second ahead of their rivals. ""Winning the gold medal was the highlight of my athletics career so far,"" said the Birchfield Harrier. ""This award is not just for me, but for all my friends, family and the people who have helped me to get to this level in my sport."" Gardener added: ""All of us had worked very hard for a long, long time to carry off what most believed was an impossible task. ""Of course this award is very special, but for me nothing will ever take away winning an Olympic gold medal. It's all I ever wanted. ""All my life that is what I dreamed of doing. Life since then has been fantastic."" Campbell agreed receiving the honour capped off what has been a difficult year for the sprinter. ""I think the MBE is important because the people closest to me know my journey,"" said the Newport-based athlete. ""I've not just stumbled upon this. ""It gives me a lot of joy and satisfaction to know the stuff you do for your country does mean something.""

- There was also recognition for James Clarke, chairman of the London Marathon. He becomes an OBE.
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Balco case trial date pushed back	"The trial date for the Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative (Balco) steroid distribution case has been postponed.

US judge Susan Illston pushed back a preliminary evidentiary hearing - which was due to take place on Wednesday - until 6 June. No official trial date has been set but it is expected to begin in September. Balco founder Victor Conte along with James Valente, coach Remy Korchemny and trainer Greg Anderson are charged with distributing steroids to athletes.

Anderson's clients include Barry Bonds, and several other baseball stars have been asked to appear before a congressional inquiry into steroid use in the major leagues. The Balco defence team have already lost their appeal to have the case dismissed at a pre-trial hearing in San Francisco but will still argue the case should not go to trial. The hearing in June will focus on the admissibility of evidence gathered during police raids on Balco's offices and Anderson's home. Conte and Anderson were not arrested at that point but federal agents did obtain statements from them. The defence are expected to challenge the legality of those interviews and if Ilston agrees she could could reject all the evidence from the raids. Balco has been accused by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) of being the source of the banned steroid THG and modafinil.

Former double world champion Kelli White and Olympic relay star Alvin Harrison have both been banned on the basis of materials discovered during the Balco investigation. Britain's former European 100m champion Dwain Chambers is currently serving a two-year ban after testing positive for THG in an out-of-competition test in 2003. And American sprinter Marion Jones has filed a lawsuit for defamation against Conte following his allegations that he gave her performance-enhancing drugs.
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Collins calls for Chambers return	"World 100m champion Kim Collins says suspended sprinter Dwain Chambers should be allowed to compete in the Olympics again.

Chambers was banned for two years after testing positive for the anabolic steroid THG and his suspension runs out in November this year. But Collins says the British Olympic Association should reverse the decision to ban him from the Olympics for life. ""It was too harsh,"" Collins told Radio Five Live. ""They should reconsider."" Chambers has been in America learning American football but has not ruled out a return to the track. Collins added: ""He is a great guy and I have never had any problems with him. We are friends. ""I would like to see Dwain come back and compete again. He is a good person. ""Even though he made a mistake he understands what he did and should be given a chance once more.""
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Costin aims for comeback in 2006	"Jamie Costin should be paralysed.

He says so himself in a matter-of-fact way as he recalls the car accident which occurred nine days before he was scheduled to step out into the Olympic Stadium in Athens for the 50K Walk. There is an ironic chuckle as he talks of his immediate thoughts after a lorry, driving on the wrong side of the road, had ploughed into his rental car. ""I was in a lot of pain and I guessed that one of my toes was broken,"" says the Waterford man. ""But I was thinking maybe with a cortisone injection you never know. ""In my back, it felt as though all the muscles had been ripped off my pelvis but I was thinking maybe we could do something with laser therapy and ultra sound and hopefully I'd be able to race."" It took over 10 hours before Jamie knew with certainty that he would not be competing in his second Olympics. ""My back had been broken in two places and with one of my vertebrae, the bottom part had exploded so I'm fierce lucky not be paralysed. ""I'd fractured my big toe as well which was on the brake."" Jamie didn't finally arrive at hospital in Athens until some nine and a half hours after the accident.

""For the first nine hours, I had no pain killers which was ridiculous in 35 degrees heat. ""But once I got the scans and saw them it was a case of moving on and thinking:'OK, I've got a different set of circumstances now'."" Within three days he was arriving back in Ireland by air ambulance. Doctors in Athens had wanted to operate on Jamie's back immediately but he insisted on delaying any surgery until he arrived back home - something he is now very relieved about. ""The Greek doctors were going to put three or four inch titanium rods either side of my spinal cord up through my vertebrae. ""That would have fused all my lower back and I would never have been able to race again. They were really putting a lot of pressure on me to agree to the surgery. ""But when I got to the Mater in Dublin they said it was possible for it to heal totally naturally which is giving me the chance to get back into competition which is very important to me. The people at the Mater have been absolutely fantastic."" Jamie had to wear a body cast for three and a half months after the accident and spent most of that time flat on his back.

He then progressed to crutches for six weeks until he was finally able to walk unaided on 10 January. ""Walking without the crutches seemed like something finally really measurable in terms of my recovery."" Physio sessions with Johnston McEvoy in Limerick have been a vital part of his recovery. ""Johnston uses an advanced type of acupuncture and it's very effective. ""Needles get put right close up to my spine. A two and a half inch needle went in yesterday and I'm fairly incapacitated today as a result."" Jamie has also travelled to receive treatment at the Polish training centre in Spala where he has trained with triple Olympic champion Robert Korzeniowski over the past five years. ""I was there for over a fortnight earlier this month and underwent a fair extreme treatment called cryotherapy. ""Basically, there's a small room which is cooled by liquid nitrogen to minus 160 degrees centigrade and it promotes deep healing.""

Jamie heads to Poland again on Sunday where he will be having daily cryotherapy in addition to twice-daily physio sessions and pool-work. All these sessions are small steps on the way to what Jamie hopes will be a return to racing in 2006. ""It's all about trying to get mobility in my back. Lying down for three and a half months didn't really help with the strength. ""There's a lot of work involved in my recovery. I'm doing about six hours a day between physio and pool work. ""I'm also going to the gym to lift very light weights to try and build up my muscles. I'm fairly full on with everything I do. ""I'd hope to be training regularly by March. But training is just part of the process of getting back. ""At the moment, every time I go and do a big bit of movement, my whole pelvic area all down my lower back just tightens up. ""It's a case of waiting and seeing how it reacts. Hopefully, after four or five months my back won't tighten up as much.""
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Lewis-Francis turns to Christie	"Mark Lewis-Francis has stepped up his preparations for the new season by taking advice from British sprint icon Linford Christie.

The 22-year-old is set to compete at Sheffield this weekend and will then take on Maurice Greene and Kim Collins in Birmingham on 18 February. ""Training in Wales and getting advice from Linford Christie is broadening my mind,"" said Lewis-Francis. The sprinter has also shed weight since winning relay gold at the Athens Games. ""Last year I was 91kg, now I am 86.9kg - hopefully my times will come down,"" he said. ""This has been brought about by eating the right foods and cutting out the snacks. It is just discipline and being more focused about what I am doing.

""I am still keeping up my weights work and I can see the improvement in my running."" Despite playing his part in Britain's successful 4x100m relay team, Lewis-Francis still feels the frustration of missing out on the individual 100m final at the 2004 Olympics. ""That was heartbreaking, but I had made it to the semi-final and for me, on a personal level, that was an achievement. ""I just have to be patient and build up for the next Olympics. That is my goal and whatever I do between now and then will be geared to making the final.""
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Man Utd stroll to Cup win	"Wayne Rooney made a winning return to Everton as Manchester United cruised into the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Rooney received a hostile reception, but goals in each half from Quinton Fortune and Cristiano Ronaldo silenced the jeers at Goodison Park. Fortune headed home after 23 minutes before Ronaldo scored when Nigel Martyn parried Paul Scholes' free-kick. Marcus Bent missed Everton's best chance when Roy Carroll, who was later struck by a missile, saved at his feet.

Rooney's return was always going to be a potential flashpoint, and he was involved in an angry exchange with a spectator even before kick-off. And Rooney's every touch was met with a deafening chorus of jeers from the crowd that once idolised the 19-year-old. Everton started brightly and Fortune needed to be alert to scramble away a header from Bent near the goal-line. But that was the cue for United to take complete control with a supreme passing display on a Goodison Park pitch that was cutting up. Fortune gave United the lead after 23 minutes, rising to meet Ronaldo's cross from eight yards after the Portuguese youngster had been allowed too much time and space by the hapless Gary Naysmith. United dominated without creating too many clear-cut chances, and they almost paid the price for not making the most of their domination two minutes before half-time. Mikel Arteta played a superb ball into the area but Bent, played onside by Gabriel Heintze, hesitated and Carroll plunged at his fee to save. United almost doubled their lead after 48 minutes when Ronaldo's low drive from 25 yards took a deflection off Tony Hibbert, but Martyn dived to save brilliantly. And Martyn came to Everton's rescue three minutes later when Rooney's big moment almost arrived as he raced clean through, but once again the veteran keeper was in outstanding form. But there was nothing Martyn could do when United doubled their lead after 57 minutes as they doubled their advantage. Scholes' free-kick took a deflection, and Martyn could only parry the ball out for Ronaldo, who reacted first to score easily. Everton's problems worsened when James McFadden limped off with an injury. And there may be further trouble ahead for Everton after goalkeeper Carroll required treatment after he was struck on the head by a missile thrown from behind the goal. Rooney's desperate search for a goal on his return to Everton was halted again by Martyn in injury-time when he outpaced Stubbs, but once again Martyn denied the England striker.

- Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson: ""It was a fantastic performance by us. In fairness I think Everton have missed a couple of players and got some young players out. ""The boy Ronaldo is a fantastic player. He's persistent and never gives in. ""I don't know how many fouls he had He gets up and wants the ball again, he's truly a fabulous player."" Everton: Martyn, Hibbert, Yobo, Stubbs, Naysmith, Osman, Carsley, Arteta, Kilbane, McFadden, Bent. Subs: Wright, Pistone, Weir, Plessis, Vaughan. Manchester United: Carroll, Gary Neville, Brown, Ferdinand, Heinze, Ronaldo, Phil Neville, Keane, Scholes, Fortune, Rooney. Subs: Howard, Giggs, Smith, Miller, Spector. Referee: R Styles (Hampshire)
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Van Nistelrooy set to return	"Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy may make his comeback after an Achilles tendon injury in the FA Cup fifth round tie at Everton on Saturday.

He has been out of action for nearly three months and had targeted a return in the Champions League tie with AC Milan on 23 February. But Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson hinted he may be back early. He said: ""There is a chance he could be involved at Everton but we'll just have to see how he comes through training."" The 28-year-old has been training in Holland and Ferguson said: ""Ruud comes back on Tuesday and we need to assess how far on he is. ""The training he has been doing in Holland has been perfect and I am very satisfied with it."" Even without Van Nistelrooy, United made it 13 wins in 15 league games with a 2-0 derby victory at Manchester City on Sunday. But they will be boosted by the return of the Dutch international, who is the club's top scorer this season with 12 goals. He has not played since aggravating the injury in the 3-0 win against West Brom on 27 November. Ferguson was unhappy with Van Nistelrooy for not revealing he was carrying an injury. United have also been hit by injuries to both Alan Smith and Louis Saha during Van Nistelrooy's absence, meaning Wayne Rooney has sometimes had to play in a lone role up front. The teenager has responded with six goals in nine games, including the first goal against City on Sunday.
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Moyes U-turn on Beattie dismissal	"Everton manager David Moyes will discipline striker James Beattie after all for his headbutt on Chelsea defender William Gallas.

The Scot initially defended Beattie, whose dismissal put Everton on the back foot in a game they ultimately lost 1-0, saying Gallas overreacted. But he has had a rethink after looking over the video evidence again. He said: ""I believe that I should set the record straight by conceding that the dismissal was right and correct."" Moyes added: ""My comments on Saturday came immediately after the final whistle and at a point when I had only had the opportunity to see one, very quick re-run of the incident.""

The club website also reported that Beattie, who seemed unrepentant after Saturday's match, insisting Gallas ""would have stayed down a lot longer"" if he had headbutted him, has now apologised. Moyes continued: ""Although the incident was totally out of character - James has never even been suspended before in his career - his actions were unacceptable and had a detrimental effect on his team-mates. ""James did issue a formal apology to myself, his team-mates and to the Everton supporters immediately after the game and that was the right thing to have done. He will now be subjected to the normal club discipline. ""He is a competitive player but a fair player and I know how upset he is by what has happened. However, I must say that I do still believe the Chelsea player in question did go down too easily."" Speaking immediately after the game, Moyes said: ""I don't think it was a sending-off, I have been a centre-half in my time and I would have been ashamed to have gone down as easily as that.

""Not in a million years would John Terry have gone down in the same way. I have never heard of anybody butting somebody from behind while you are running after them. ""What has happened to big, strong centre-halves? I thought it was a push initially and I still don't think it was a sending-off."" An angry Beattie initially said: ""He (Gallas) would have stayed down a lot longer if I had headbutted him. ""I can tell you it wasn't an intentional headbutt. We were chasing a ball into the corner and William Gallas was looking over his shoulder and blocking me off. ""He was stopping as we were running and I said to myself 'if you're going to stay in my way I'll go straight over you'. Our heads barely touched and it wasn't an intentional headbutt.""
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Ronaldo considering new contract	"Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo said he is close to agreeing to a new contract at Old Trafford.

The Portugal star, who joined in August 2003 on a five-year-deal, is a regular in the United first-team. ""The United board have already made an offer to renew the contract but I'm trying not to think about it,"" he told the News of the World. ""My agent has spoken with the club and it will be resolved soon. I think we'll reach a good agreement for both sides."" Ronaldo refused to commit his long-term future to the club.

""Nobody knows what will come tomorrow. I like being here, but who knows,"" he added. ""There aren't many bigger and better clubs than this one. It's my ambition to be at a big club. I'm happy but nobody knows the future.""
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Smith keen on Home series return	"Scotland manager Walter Smith has given his backing to the reinstatement of the Home International series.

Such a plan is to be proposed by the new chief executive of the Northern Irish FA, Howard Wells, at the next meeting of the four home countries. The English FA has expressed doubt as to whether the fixtures could be accommodated at the end of each season. But Smith said: ""Bringing it back would add meaning to friendly games and that's something that's needed."" The Home International series was done away with in 1984, with the traditional Scotland-England fixture continuing until 1989. That game is one Smith would be delighted to see reinstated. ""The Scotland v England match was a highlight of the end of the season,"" he added. ""I was in Italy for their friendly with Russia last week and they made seven substitutions while only around 20,000 fans turned up to watch. ""England were criticised for the 0-0 draw against Holland - the way Scotland were slammed in the past for poor results in friendlies. ""You have to put a performance on in friendly games. If you don't, they can be de-motivating. ""It can be a dangerous road to go down, if players don't apply themselves in the manner they should. ""So I would support the return of the home internationals - the only problem would be fitting them in to the fixture schedule.""
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Mido makes third apology	"Ahmed 'Mido' Hossam has made another apology to the Egyptian people in an attempt to rejoin the national team.

The 21-year-old told a news conference in Cairo on Sunday that he is sorry for the problems that have led to his exclusion from the Pharaohs since July last year. Mido said: ""There isn't much I have to say today, all there is to say is that I came specially from England to Egypt to rejoin the national team and to apologise for all my mistakes."" Mido was axed by former coach Marco Tardelli after failing to answer a national call-up, claiming he had a groin injury. But he then played in a friendly for his club AS Roma within 24 hours of a World Cup qualifying match at home to Cameroon last September. Mido added: ""It's not my right to give orders and say when I want to play ... at the same time I will always make sure that I put the national's team's matches as my top priority. ""I feel that the national players are playing with a new spirit as I saw them play against Belgium (Egypt won 4-0 on Wednesday) and I simply want to add to their success. ""I do confess that I was rude to the Egyptian press at times but now I have gained more experience and know that I will never go anywhere without the press's support. ""Many of the international stars like David Beckham and (Zinedine) Zidane had the press opposing them. ""So I'm now used to the fact that the press can be against me at times and I don't have to overreact when this happens. Meanwhile, Egypt FA spokesman Methat Shalaby welcomed the apology and said no one had exerted pressure on Mido to apologise. ""Mido's apology today does not negatively affect Mido in anyway, on the contrary it makes him a bigger star and a role model for all football players,"" Shalaby said. Shalaby earlier said that after an apology Mido would be available for the national side if coach Hassan Shehata chose him. Mido joined Tottenham in an 18-month loan deal near the end of the January transfer window, scoring twice on his debut against Portsmouth.
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Man City 0-2 Man Utd	"Manchester United reduced Chelsea's Premiership lead to nine points after a scrappy victory over Manchester City.

Wayne Rooney met Gary Neville's cross to the near post with a low shot, which went in via a deflection off Richard Dunne, to put United ahead. Seven minutes later, the unfortunate Dunne hooked a volley over David James' head and into his own net. Steve McManaman wasted City's best chance when he shot wide from three yards in the first half. In the opening 45 minutes United had looked unlikely to earn the win they needed to maintain any chance of catching Chelsea in the title race. Their approach play was more laboured than patient and they managed to fashion just one chance - a Paul Scholes header over the bar. And City seemed to be content to sit back and try and hit their rivals on the break as the game settled into a tepid pattern. Only Shaun Wright-Phillips appeared capable of interrupting the monotony, looking lively down the right and causing Gabriel Heinze problems.

Wes Brown also found Wright-Phillips to be a difficult opponent when the tricky winger embarrassed him near the touchline. Wright-Phillips' sublime skill and pace took him past Brown and he delivered a pin-point centre to the feet of McManaman. But the former Liverpool player demonstrated why he has never scored against United by side-footing the easy chance wide. John O'Shea was forced off after an earlier clash with Sylvain Distin and Cristiano Ronaldo came on to replace him. He immediately caused Ben Thatcher some discomfort and looked set to inject some much-needed pace into the United attack. Rooney was being well marshalled by Dunne - but that was all about to change. After the break, United poured forward and there was a renewed urgency about their play. And when Neville delivered a cross in a carbon copy of City's best first-half chance, Rooney showed McManaman how to do it - even if he needed the help of Dunne's leg. Worse was to come for Dunne, who had been having a fine match. On 75 minutes, he scored a horrible own goal when attempting to volley clear Rooney's cross and United seemed home and dry. However, City did fight back and Fowler missed another great chance from close range. And United keeper Roy Carroll saved well from Kiki Musampa. But United could have a had a third late on when substitute Ryan Giggs hit the post.

- Manchester City boss Kevin Keegan: ""We had a great chance to take the lead and the first goal was always going to be crucial. ""We started off with a good tempo but then we allowed them to dictate the pace a bit too much. ""But we still had four good chances, two after we'd gone 2-0 down, the one McManaman missed was very similar to the one Wayne Rooney scored from."" 
 - Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson: ""It wasn't our best performance of the last three months but I think we're deserved winners. ""At times, especially in the first half, we didn't play with enough speed. But with (Cristiano) Ronaldo and (Ryan) Giggs on, the speed improved. ""Derby games can be like that, they can be scrappy, dull, horrible and it was maybe like that."" Man City: James, Mills (Bradley Wright-Phillips 83), Dunne, Distin, Thatcher, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Barton (Macken 68), Sibierski, McManaman, Musampa, Fowler. Subs Not Used: Weaver, Onuoha, Flood. Booked: Fowler, Sibierski. Man Utd: Carroll, Gary Neville, Ferdinand, Brown, Heinze, O'Shea (Ronaldo 33), Keane, Fortune, Fletcher (Giggs 64), Rooney, Scholes (Phil Neville 84). Subs Not Used: Howard, Bellion. Booked: Rooney, Scholes, Keane. Goals: Rooney 68, Dunne 75 og. Att: 47,111 Ref: S Bennett (Kent).
"	sport
Gerrard plays down European hopes	"Steven Gerrard has admitted that Liverpool have little chance of winning the Champions League this season.

The 24-year-old Reds skipper spoke out ahead of Tuesday's first leg at home to Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16, which he will miss through suspension. ""Let's be realistic, there are some fantastic teams left in the Champions League,"" he told BBC Radio Five Live. ""We are just going to try to stay in as long as possible but we realise that maybe it is not our year this year."" Gerrard has made no secret of his desire to be involved in Europe's premier club competition.

Last season he described qualification for the Champions League as the ""be all and end all"" - and rumours persist that he will leave Anfield if the Reds fail to secure a place in the competition. He has consistently been linked with a move away from Liverpool, with Chelsea the favourites to snap up the England midfielder. And Blues boss Jose Mourinho backed Gerrard's view that Rafael Benitez's team could struggle to progress this season. ""Rafa has still time in front of him to build an even better team, maybe he's a little bit behind (right now),"" he told BBC Radio Five Live.

Gerrard, who fired Liverpool into the last 16 of this season's competition with a brilliant goal in December's win over Olympiakos, insisted he was still fully focused on helping Liverpool to glory this season. The Reds are currently fifth in the Premiership table, five points off the crucial fourth spot, which brings Champions League qualification - and they face Chelsea in Sunday's Carling Cup final. ""It's big couple of months for Liverpool,"" he added. ""We're fighting for the fourth spot for the Champions League for next season but we are still involved in two cup competitions, which are very important. ""We are confident we can upset Chelsea in the Carling Cup final and get to the last eight of the Champions League because, financially, it is big for the club and, personally for myself, it is very good.""
"	sport
Duff ruled out of Barcelona clash	"Chelsea's Damien Duff has been ruled out of Wednesday's Champions League clash with Barcelona at the Nou Camp.

Duff sustained a knee injury in the FA Cup defeat at Newcastle and manager Jose Mourinho said: ""He cannot run. His injury is very painful, so he is out."" But Mourinho has revealed defender Willian Gallas and striker Didier Drogba will be in the starting line-up. The Blues boss took the unusual step of naming his side a day before the match, with Jole Cole named in midfield. Mourinho said: ""We have one more session but I think Drogba will play, and Gallas will play. ""Drogba trained on Monday with no problems and will do the same on Tuesday. Gallas feels he can play and wants to play. We are protecting him still but he will be okay to play."" Drogba, Chelsea's £24m striker, has missed the last three weeks through injury.

Cech, Ferreira, Carvalho, Terry, Gallas, Tiago, Makelele, Lampard, Cole, Drogba, Gudjohnsen.
"	sport
Chelsea clinch cup in extra-time	"(after extra-time - score at 90 mins 1-1)

John Arne Riise volleyed Liverpool ahead after 45 seconds but Steven Gerrard scored a 79th-minute own goal. Blues boss Jose Mourinho was sent off for taunting Liverpool fans after the goal and he watched on television as his side went on to win the game. Drogba and Kezman scored from close range before Antonio Nunez's header made for a tense finale. It was an amazing climax which gave Mourinho his first silverware as Chelsea manager. Yet it was controversial too, after Mourinho's sending off, apparently for putting his finger to his lips to hush the Liverpool fans. There was no hushing them after the extraordinary opening in which the Reds took a stunning lead inside the first minute.

Riise could not have connected any better with Morientes' cross as he smashed a left-foot volley past Petr Cech. The goal, the quickest-ever in a League Cup final, stunned a Blues side whose previously rock-solid confidence had been shaken by consecutive losses to Newcastle and Barcelona in the previous week. The Blues' attacking chances were limited, and Jerzy Dudek was equal to Frank Lampard's powerfully-struck drive and Drogba's low shot. Despite their frustration, Chelsea began to dominate midfield without seriously threatening to break Liverpool's well-organised defence.

Joe Cole had a shot blocked and a promising Damien Duff break was halted by a good tackle from Djimi Traore, but the Reds reached half-time without any major scares. The Blues began the second half with more urgency and pegged Liverpool back. Nevertheless, Liverpool were living dangerously and they needed a fantastic double save from Dudek on 54 minutes, first at full stretch from Gudjohnsen's header, then to smother William Gallas' follow-up. And despite Chelsea's possession, it was Liverpool who fashioned the next clear opportunity as Luis Garcia fed Dietmar Hamann whose shot forced a superb save from Cech. And the Blues' increasingly adventurous approach saw Liverpool earn another chance on the break on 75 minutes as Paulo Ferreira denied Gerrard with a last-ditch tackle. But Gerrard was on the scoresheet minutes later - in the most unfortunate fashion - as he inadvertently deflected Ferrerira's free-kick past his own keeper and in off the post to bring Chelsea level. That prompted Mourinho's reaction which saw him sent off, but Chelsea still pressed and Duff had a chance to win the game with seven minutes remaining. Dudek saved bravely at the Irishman's feet, while Milan Baros shot wildly at the other end to ensure extra time. Drogba almost headed Chelsea in front two minutes into extra-time but the striker saw the ball rebound off the post. But seconds after the half-time interval, Drogba made no mistake, picking the ball up from Glen Johnson's long throw inside the six-yard box and sidefooting home. And Kezman appeared to have made the game safe as he netted from close range after Gudjohnsen's cross in the 110th minute. There was still drama as Nunez beat Cech to a high ball with six minutes remaining to head his side level, but despite Liverpool's desperate attacks, Chelsea clung on to win.

Dudek, Finnan, Carragher, Hyypia, Traore (Biscan 67), Luis Garcia, Gerrard, Hamann, Riise, Kewell (Nunez 56), Morientes (Baros 74).

Subs Not Used: Pellegrino, Carson.

Hyypia, Traore, Hamann, Carragher.

Riise 1, Nunez 113.

Cech, Paulo Ferreira, Ricardo Carvalho, Terry, Gallas (Kezman 74), Jarosik (Gudjohnsen 45), Lampard, Makelele, Cole (Johnson 81), Drogba, Duff.

Subs Not Used: Pidgeley, Tiago.

Lampard, Kezman, Drogba, Duff.

Gerrard 79 og, Drogba 107, Kezman 112.

78,000

S Bennett (Kent).
"	sport
Newcastle 2-1 Bolton	"Kieron Dyer smashed home the winner to end Bolton's 10-game unbeaten run.

Lee Bowyer put Newcastle ahead when he fed Stephen Carr on the right flank, then sprinted into the area to power home a header from the resultant cross. Wanderers hit back through Stelios Giannakopoulos, who ended a fluid passing move with a well-struck volley. But Dyer had the last word in a game of few chances, pouncing on a loose ball after Alan Shearer's shot was blocked and firing into the top corner. Neither side lacked urgency in the early stages of the game, with plenty of tackles flying in, but opportunities in front of goal were harder to come by. Bolton keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen had to make two saves in quick succession midway through the first-half - keeping out Shearer's low shot and Dyer's close-range header - but that was the only goalmouth action of note. And it was almost out of nothing that the Magpies took the lead on 35 minutes. Bowyer found space with a neat turn on the half-way line and striding forward picked out Carr to his right. He then continued his run and with perfect timing made his way into the box where he met Carr's cross with a downward header into the far corner. Bolton had produced little going forward at this point but they responded well.

They were level within six minutes thanks to a smart finish from Giannakopoulos. Jay-Jay Okocha twisted and turned on the edge of the area and after a neat exchange of passes involving Kevin Davies and Gary Speed, the Greek striker found the bottom corner with a first-time strike. The Magpies were opened up again before half-time as Davies set Giannakopoulos in space and Given had to block at his near post. But the home side survived, and they should have re-taken the lead with the first meaningful attack of the second half. Fernando Hierro cynically chopped down Dyer on the edge of the area with the midfielder clean through. But the veteran defender escaped with a booking as there were other defenders nearby, and from the resultant free-kick Laurent Robert curled the ball just wide. Bolton were creating little going forward and they seemed content to frustrate the Magpies. Their strategy seemed to be working until the 69th minute. Alan Shearer's snap-shot was charged down and Dyer reacted first to smash the ball past the despairing Jaaskelainen from six yards.

- Bolton boss Sam Allardyce ""I am bitterly disappointed with the result, but I am probably more disappointed with the second-half performance. ""In the first half we had put them under a lot of pressure, and our goal matched theirs in quality. ""I thought it would lift us and that they might be tired after playing a lot of games, but unfortunately we were not up for the battle in the second half. ""We allowed them to heap too much pressure on us, and in the end we cracked."" 
 - Newcastle boss Graeme Souness ""We deserved the win. We had a really good second half. ""Bolton are a difficult side to play. You have to match them physically first but we did that, and then we played some football. ""We had a slow first 45 minutes when we looked a bit tired but we got going after that. The scoreline flattered them and we could have had one or two more goals."" Newcastle: Given, Carr, Boumsong, Bramble, Babayaro, Dyer, Faye, Bowyer, Robert (Jenas 77), Ameobi, Shearer. Subs Not Used: Butt, Harper, Milner, Hughes. Goals: Bowyer 35, Dyer 69. Bolton: Jaaskelainen, Hunt (Fadiga 14), N'Gotty, Ben Haim, Candela, Giannakopoulos, Okocha (Vaz Te 77), Hierro (Campo 64), Speed, Gardner, Davies. Subs Not Used: Jaidi, Poole. Booked: Ben Haim, Hierro. Goals: Giannakopoulos 41. Att: 50,430 Ref: S Dunn (Gloucestershire).
"	sport
Middlesbrough 2-2 Charlton	"A late header by teenager Danny Graham earned Middlesbrough a battling draw with Charlton at the Riverside.

Matt Holland had put the visitors ahead in the 14th minute after his shot took a deflection off Franck Queudrue. But Middlesbrough peppered the Charlton goal after the break and Chris Riggott stroked home the equaliser. Shaun Bartlett's strike put Charlton back in front but that lead lasted just six minutes before Graham rushed onto Queudrue's pass to head home. The match burst to life from the whistle and Charlton defender Hermann Hreidarsson had sight of an open goal after just six minutes. Hreidarsson received Danny Murphy's free-kick from the right but he crashed his free header wide of the far post. The Iceland international looked such a danger the Boro bench could be heard issuing frantic instructions to mark him.

Charlton's early pressure paid off when Bartlett received a long ball from Talal El Karkouri in the box and laid it off to Holland who buried his right-footed strike. Szilard Nemeth, recalled in place of Joseph-Desire Job, was twice denied his chance to get Middlesbrough back on level terms by Dean Kiely. The striker played a great one-two with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink only to see Kiely get down well to smother his shot before directing a header straight into the keeper's arms. Boro had plenty of time on the ball but the Addicks comfortably mopped up the pressure - with Kiely tipping a Hasselbaink header over the bar - to take their lead into half-time.

It was all one-way traffic after the break at the Riverside as Middlesbrough poured forward and Kiely even saved Hreidarsson's blushes when he palmed the ball away to prevent a Charlton own goal. But the Addicks keeper could do nothing about Riggott's equaliser in the 74th minute. The Boro defender looked suspiciously offside as he got on the end of Gareth Southgate's misdirected effort, but despite the Charlton protests his goal stood. The Addicks did not let their heads drop and Bartlett left the Boro defence standing, picking up Hreidarsson's cross to easily sink his right-footed strike. But substitute Graham was on hand to grab a share of the points for the home side. The 19-year-old striker nodding home the equaliser - and his first Premiership goal - with five minutes left on the clock.

""I felt we did enough to win the game even though the first half was lacklustre. ""We dominated after the break, the players showed a fantastic response and we should have gone on to win. ""But for (Charlton goalkeeper) Dean Kiely, who made three tremendous saves, we could have scored five or six.""

""To take the lead and then to get penned back, it feels a little bit like a defeat,"" admitted Kiely. ""We were winning but Middlesbrough kept knocking on the door. But we stood up and credit to us we didn't capitulate. ""We'll kick on now. Our short-term ambition is to progress from the seventh place finish from last year.""

Nash, Reiziger (Graham 82), Riggott, Southgate, Queudrue, Parlour (Job 86), Doriva, Nemeth (Parnaby 87), Zenden, Downing, Hasselbaink.

Subs Not Used: Cooper, Knight.

Riggott 74, Graham 86.

Kiely, Hreidarsson, Perry, El Karkouri, Young, Konchesky, Murphy (Euell 78), Holland, Kishishev, Thomas (Johansson 72), Bartlett.

Subs Not Used: Fish, Jeffers, Andersen.

Konchesky, Hreidarsson, Perry.

Holland 14, Bartlett 80.

29,603

M Riley (W Yorkshire).
"	sport
Dundee Utd 4-1 Aberdeen	"Dundee United eased into the semi-final of the Scottish Cup with an emphatic win over Aberdeen.

Alan Archibald prodded United ahead in 19 minutes and James Grady made it two from close range 10 minutes later. Richie Byrne's header gave Aberdeen a way back into the game, but Stevie Crawford restored United's lead from 18 yards before half time. The scoring was completed by Grady just after the break - a superb shot on the turn making it 4-1. Tony Bullock in the United goal was called into action for the first time with just over a quarter-of-an-hour on the clock. Noel Whelan laid the ball off to Jamie Winter on the edge of the box, but his first-time effort was gathered by the United keeper. Moments later though, the home side took the lead. Barry Robson whipped in a free kick from the right, which Stevie Crawford caught on the volley. Russell Anderson failed to deal with it and Whelan's clearance off the line landed kindly at the feet of Archibald, who poked the ball into the net. United doubled their lead after 29 minutes when Grady tapped the ball into an empty net after Robson had headed Mark Wilson's cross off the angle of post and bar. But only three minutes later Aberdeen clawed their way back into the match. A free kick from the left by Winter was met powerfully by the head of Byrne at the back post, leaving Bullock helpless.

United restored their two-goal lead four minutes before the end of a highly entertaining first half. Jason Scotland played a perfectly-weighted pass into the path of the onrushing Crawford and he coolly beat Ryan Esson from 18 yards. United ended the game as a contest just two minutes after the interval. Grady received a pass from Crawford with his back to goal on the edge of the box and after taking one touch, he spun to volley the ball past the despairing dive of Esson. The home side were in complete control and it required a good stop from Esson to keep out Robson's drive after 62 minutes. The keeper denied the same player again 10 minutes later, beating away his fierce shot from the left of the penalty area. Robson saw another long-range effort tipped round the post before a cute lob was headed off the line.

Bullock, Duff, Wilson, Ritchie, Archibald, Scotland (Samuel 63), Brebner, Kerr (Cameron 87), Robson, Crawford, Grady.

Colgan, Dodds, Kenneth.

Brebner.

Archibald 19, Grady 29, Crawford 41, Grady 47.

Esson, Hart, Anderson, Diamond, Byrne (Morrison 75), McNaughton, Heikkinen (Foster 27), Winter, Clark (Stewart 51), Mackie, Whelan.

Blanchard, McGuire.

: Anderson, Diamond.

Byrne 33.

8,661

K Clark
"	sport
Clyde 0-5 Celtic	"Celtic brushed aside Clyde to secure their place in the Scottish Cup semi-final, but only after a nervy and testing first half.

The home side's Craig Bryson had a goal chopped off before Stan Varga headed Celtic into the lead. Alan Thompson scored from the penalty spot at the start of the second half after Shaun Maloney had been fouled. Stilian Petrov slid in a third, Varga tapped in his second and Craig Bellamy completed the rout with a fine drive. Bryn Halliwell was the busier keeper early on, saving from Bellamy, Chris Sutton and Juninho. Clyde had the ball in the net after half-an-hour through a tremendous strike from Bryson, but the referee had already blown for a foul by Petrov. From the resulting free kick, Darren Sheridan curled the ball round the Celtic wall only for the post to deny him. Back at the other end, Halliwell did well to come off his line and block Bellamy's effort to lift the ball over him. The keeper misjudged a corner that Stephane Henchoz headed wide, but a similar scenario five minutes before the break led to the opening goal. The ball was delivered from the left and Halliwell was left floundering as Varga glanced the ball into the net.

Maloney replaced the injured Sutton at half time and he marked his first competitive appearance after a year out injured by helping his side take a two-goal lead just after the break. The young striker fired a free kick straight into the Clyde wall but as he collected the rebound, he was tripped by Bryson and Thompson converted the penalty. Sheridan and Bellamy were involved in something of a flare-up that led to both being booked after the intervention of the assistant referee. Juninho brought out another good save from Halliwell and then Petrov saw a tremendous effort come off the top of the bar. But Petrov and Juninho combined brilliantly to allow the Bulgarian to make it 3-0 on the hour mark - a quick one-two giving him the time and space to steer the ball past Halliwell from 12 yards. Varga got his second goal of the game as Celtic drove home their advantage - Thompson whipped in a corner from the right and the unmarked defender simply tapped the ball over the line from a couple of yards out. Celtic were utterly dominant by this stage and Bellamy opened his scoring account for the club after a fine move involving Aiden McGeady, Jackie McNamara and Maloney culminated in the Welshman hammering the ball into the net. Halliwell kept the deficit at five by pushing a McGeady shot wide as the game petered out.

Halliwell, Mensing, Bollan, Balmer, Potter, Sheridan (Burns 61), Arbuckle (Gilhaney 61), Gibson, Bryson (Jones 78), Malone, Harty.

Morrison, Wilson.

Mensing, Sheridan.

Douglas, Henchoz, McNamara, Balde, Varga, Juninho Paulista, Thompson, Lennon (Lambert 70), Sutton (Maloney 45), Petrov (McGeady 70), Bellamy.

Marshall, Laursen.

Thompson, Bellamy.

: Varga 40, Thompson 48 pen, Petrov 60, Varga 68, Bellamy 72.

8,200

C Thomson
"	sport
Hearts 2-1 Livingston	"Hearts wrapped up their Scottish Cup quarter-final tie against Livingston with two goals in the first 10 minutes.

Lee Miller scored inside the opening 60 seconds, heading over Colin Meldrum and into the net from a Jamie McAllister free kick. McAllister himself scored the second when he met Saul Mikoliunas' cross at the back post to put the game beyond the visitors. Craig Easton headed in a controversial goal after an hour but Hearts held on. The opening goal came after Gus Bahoken had clumsily fouled Miller 35 yards from goal. McAllister floated the free kick into the Livi box and Miller outjumped the static visiting defence to loop his header from 10 yards over Meldrum. With just 10 minutes on the clock, the home side doubled their lead. Mikoliunas sprinted down the right, crossed to the back post where McAllister raced in to head past Meldrum. Moments later Miller came close to grabbing his second with a first-time drive from 16 yards, which skimmed the bar.

Then McAllister picked up a pass from Stephen Simmons and drove an angled shot from 20 yards narrowly past Meldrum's far post. The impressive Mikoliunas twice went close before half time - a low drive was comfortably gathered by Meldrum and then he curled a left-footed shot past the keeper's right-hand post. Livi manager Richard Gough made three changes at the interval, bringing on defender Goran Stanic, midfielder Gabor Vincze, and striker Ferenc Horvath for Bahoken, Derek Lilley and Mark Wilson. But, in the opening stages of the second period, little changed. However, the West Lothian side gave themselves a lifeline with a controversial goal. Eric Deloumeaux sent Jason Dair away on the right and he tried to give the ball to McPake, who looked to be in an offside position. The Livi striker ignored the pass, however, and Dair ran on to it and played Easton in at the back post and he headed home from close range. The home side called for offside against McPake but referee Alan Freeland ignored their claims and pointed to the centre-circle. Livi went all out for the equaliser. In the 87th minute, Burton O'Brien was hauled back at the edge of the box by Neil MacFarlane, but Dair sent his shot just inches wide.

Gordon, Webster, Miller, Hartley, Neilson, McAllister, Simmons (MacFarlane 64), Berra, Burchill (Wyness 82), Mikoliunas (Cesnauskis 77), Wallace.

Moilanen, Kizys.

Berra, Webster.

Miller 1, McAllister 10.

Meldrum, McNamee, Bahoken (Stanic 45), Deloumeaux, Strong, Dair, Easton, Mark Wilson (Vincze 45), Lilley (Horvath 45), O'Brien, McPake.

McKenzie, Hand.

: Vincze, Horvath.

Easton 60.

9,796

A Freeland
"	sport
Kenyon denies Robben Barca return	"Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon has played down reports that Arjen Robben will return for the Champions League match against Barcelona.

""He's been responding well to treatment and started running on Friday, but we'll have to wait and see,"" he told BBC Five Live's Sportsweek. ""We're looking to getting him back as soon as possible, but he'll be back when it's right for him and for us. ""There's no plans at the moment around the Barcelona game."" His comments contradict those of chiropractor Jean Pierre Meersseman who treated the Dutchman after he fractured his foot at the start of February. Robben had been expected to be out for six weeks, but Meersseman hinted that the winger could be fit for the vital Stamford Bridge game on 8 March. ""I hope he can be back and I will try to help him make that happen,"" Meersseman told the Mail on Sunday. ""I put everything right with Arjen's foot the last time I saw him 12 days ago. It was an obvious correction and easy to perform. ""I know he was pleased with what I did and now that he is running again. I am due to see him one more time again in the next few days."" Meersseman is the medical co-ordinator at Italian side AC Milan.
"	sport
Bridge could miss rest of season	"Chelsea left-back Wayne Bridge could miss the rest of the season with a suspected broken ankle.

The England international, 24, was hurt in an innocuous challenge with Alan Shearer during the Londoners' FA Cup defeat at Newcastle on Sunday. ""We think it's a big injury,"" said Jose Mourinho, whose Chelsea team this week meet Barcelona in the Champions League and Liverpool in the Carling Cup final. William Gallas and Damien Duff could also miss the Barcelona game. France defender Gallas and Ireland winger Duff both picked up their injuries in the closing stages of Chelsea's 1-0 defeat at St James' Park.

With Bridge having gone off after Mourinho used all three substitutes, those knocks plus Carlo Cudicini's red card meant Chelsea finished the game with seven able-bodied players. Cudicini would not have played against Barcelona, but had been promised a game in the Carling Cup final, although he will now miss the Cardiff showpiece through suspension. The manager is not planning to add any new names to his squad ahead of the trip to Barcelona, even though he has few options to replace Bridge at left-back.

Celestine Babayaro left the club in January, ironically to join Newcastle, and although Gallas has deputised at left-back before, he is struggling to be fit himself. It could be that Paulo Ferreira, usually a right-back, is switched to left-back with Glen Johnson, who ended the Newcastle game in goal, playing on the right. Youngsters Ben Hudell, Joe Keenan and Sam Tillen would be options should Mourinho decide to call up a replacement, but it is unlikely he would risk an untried prospect in a Champions League tie. Bridge's injury also means Mourinho, who reportedly wants to sign Ashley Cole from Arsenal, will not have a specialist, senior left-back for the run-in to the season.

""He (Bridge) has no chance of playing against Barcelona, probably will not play against Liverpool (in the Carling Cup final) and maybe not for the rest of the season,"" he said. ""The medical department will try to do everything to recover Gallas and Duff. We will have to wait and see, but I won't cry about injuries because we will have 11 players to play on Tuesday."" Shearer said he was unsure what caused Bridge's injury. ""I don't know what happened."" he said. ""It was just a shame. I don't think we even touched each other. ""By all accounts it's pretty serious. I went into the dressing-room after the game and wished him all the best."" Mourinho, whose team are chasing three trophies, has already lost winger Arjen Robben to a serious injury.
"	sport
Parry firm over Gerrard	"Listen to the full interview on Sport on Five and the BBC Sport website from 1900 GMT.

But Parry, speaking exclusively to BBC Sport, also admits Gerrard, who has been constantly linked with Chelsea, will have the final say on his future. He told BBC Five Live: ""Steven is above money. He is the future of Liverpool. ""It doesn't matter if it's £30m, £40m or £50m, we will not accept offers. But we are also realistic enough to know we can't keep Steven against his will."" On the subject of Liverpool's finances, Parry also revealed the club is ready to explore the possibility of a sponsorship deal for its proposed new stadium.

And responding to criticism from BBC Sport pundit and former Liverpool stalwart Alan Hansen, he insisted talks on new investment are ongoing, but added the door has not closed on shareholder and lifelong fan Steve Morgan. Parry joined Liverpool as chief executive in July 1998 from a similar role at the Premier League. There have been several highs and lows during his time in charge at Anfield - and he had a busy summer, overseeing the arrival of new manager Rafael Benitez and managing to hold on to Steven Gerrard.

On the subject of Liverpool's captain and prize asset, Parry revealed Real Madrid

did

ask for an option on the England midfield man during negotiations for striker Fernando Morientes. He said: ""They were looking for ways of saying they got more out of the deal for Fernando Morientes, but the response to Real Madrid was the same - Steven is not for sale."" But when asked if Gerrard would be a Liverpool player on the first day of next season, Parry said: ""I sincerely hope he will be. Steven knows my views. He knows Rafa's views. ""We have re-affirmed recently to Steven that we are trying to build a team around him. We crave success as much as he does. We know he's ambitious and nobody can argue with that.

""I think Steven would dearly love to win things with Liverpool more than he'd like to do anything else. ""We all want to see progress by next season. He's not alone in that. There are a lot of other players who feel the same, so we all have a common aim."" It is expected Chelsea will test Liverpool with a £30m-plus bid in the summer - but Parry claims he will be in no mood to listen. ""There have been a lot of open secrets about Steven, most of which have been complete myths. It is suggested we had a deal tied up last summer. We didn't had an offer last summer,"" Parry explained. ""We had told Chelsea that as far as we were concerned he was not for sale and we didn't want to sell him. In reality it didn't go beyond that. ""Maybe there will be an offer in the summer. Maybe there won't.

""Our position is we want Steven to stay, but we are also realistic enough and have enough respect for Steven - and he has enough respect for us - to know that it is his decision that will be crucial. ""You are not going to keep a player like Steven against his will. That just doesn't work, but any idea we are going to accept offers for Steven and then tell him 'by the way we've decided to sell you' is not on the agenda. You can forget that."" Parry is currently in the process of finalising funding for Liverpool's new stadium in Stanley Park, which is set to open in 2007. And he confessed Arsenal's £100m deal with Emirates to sponsor their new ground - complete with naming rights - has given the Anfield club serious food for thought. He said: ""I have to say historically it is something I have been against, and I have been on record as saying that, but I think the size of the Arsenal deal is a real eye-opener.

""I would say in the past deals have been done frankly far too cheaply and it just hasn't even been worth contemplating. ""But the Arsenal deal is the sort of deal that causes you to draw breath and say 'wow - that's interesting.' ""My personal point of view is that I would find it a hell of a lot more palatable than a shared stadium."" Some Liverpool fans would find such a move highly controversial, but Parry countered: ""I recognise it would be an emotive issue for many supporters, but you look at the amount of money available and it could go into the team. ""If it was the right partner how strong an issue is it? Time will tell. ""I think the stadium will always be Anfield, not least because of where it is, but do we need to investigate the possibilities of sponsorship? I think it would be remiss not to. ""That's not to say we have made a decision that we will go down that road, but I think it is clearly something we have to explore.""

On the subject of possible new investment, Parry revealed Liverpool are still in negotiations with a mystery investor, with rumours of interest from the Middle East. That prompted the withdrawal of tycoon Steve Morgan, who got frustrated by failed bids and what he claimed was indecision by the board. He also accused Liverpool of using him as ""a stalking horse"" to attract other bids, but Parry explained: ""Steve has never been used as a stalking horse. There's no need, and that is not the way we do business. ""We had discussions with Steve over the course of 2004. I think we came close to concluding a deal in the summer but it didn't happen. ""Quite genuinely, the new interest did appear relatively late in the day just prior to the AGM in December, and as I have said it was of such potential magnitude, and that potential is so exciting, we felt we had to evaluate it. We are still evaluating it. ""Steve's interest was taken very much on its own merits. His enthusiasm for the club is there for all to see and who knows what the next few months will hold? ""The door isn't closed on anything. We had a perfectly sensible dialogue with Steve last year. ""We have a common interest in making Liverpool successful. That's a dream we all share, so as far as I'm concerned the door is not closed.""

I would take £50m if we had no investment, but if we did, keep him. As for the stadium, if it gets us cash what difference does it make really?

£50m for Gerrard? I don't care who you are, the Directors would take the money and it is the way it should be. We cannot let that sum of money go, despite Gerrard's quality.

Through a cleverly worded statement, the club has effectively forced Gerrard to publicly make the decision for himself, which I think is the right thing to do.

Critical time for Liverpool with regards to Gerrard. Ideally we would want to secure his future to the club for the long term. I am hoping he doesn't walk out of the club like Michael Owen did for very little cash.

£50m realistically would allow Rafa to completely rebuild the squad, however, if we can afford to do this AND keep Gerrard we will be better for it. I would however be happy with Gerrard's transfer for any fee over £35m.

Parry's statements are clever in that any future Gerrard transfer cannot be construed as a lack of ambition by the club to not try and keep their best players. Upping the ante is another smart move by Parry.

I would keep Gerrard. No amount of money could replace his obvious love of the club and determination to succeed.

The key is if Gerrard comes out and says that he is happy. Clearly, if he isn't, then we would be foolish not to sell. The worrying thing is who would you buy (or who would come) pending possible non-Champions League football.
"	sport
Wright-Phillips to start on right	"England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has revealed Shaun Wright-Phillips will start against the Netherlands.

But Wright-Phillips will not make his first start for England playing on the left, as had been widely expected. ""Shaun Wright-Phillips will probably start the game,"" said Eriksson. ""But I'm not going to start Wright-Phillips on the left."" Eriksson also revealed that Wes Brown will start alongside Jamie Carragher in the injury-hit centre of defence. When asked if Brown and Carragher would start Eriksson replied: ""I could tell you yes. ""It's a blow that four or five central defenders are away because of injuries. ""On the other hand it's good for Carragher and Brown to show what they can do at this level. That's positive."" The England coach said that he had been impressed by Wright-Phillips' form for Manchester City. ""He deserves his chance. He has been playing well all season and I look forward to seeing him."" And he added that Andy Johnson and Stewart Downing - the other two new players in the squad - would also get a chance to impress. ""Wright-Phillips, Downing and Johnson will start or get the chance to play some part. ""Johnson was not in my plans a year ago but he is doing a great season and scoring a lot of goals. ""Downing is another one making a great season. He is young, talented and there are not too many left-footed players in the squad.""
"	sport
Robben sidelined with broken foot	"Chelsea winger Arjen Robben has broken two metatarsal bones in his foot and will be out for at least six weeks.

Robben had an MRI scan on the injury, sustained during the Premiership win at Blackburn, on Monday. ""Six weeks is the average time to heal this injury and then I need a few more weeks to be completely fit again,"" he told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad. ""I had a feeling it was serious but because of the swelling it was impossible to make a final diagnosis."" The 21-year-old missed the first three months of the season with a similar injury after a challenge with Roma's Olivier Dacourt. And he added: ""It felt different then last summer when I had the same injury on my other foot. ""Then I could walk already after three days but I stayed sidelined for a long period. I hope that it will now take me six to eight weeks."" Chelsea physio Mike Banks was hopeful that Robben could return at some point in March. ""The fractures are tiny and he could be playing next month,"" Banks told the club's website. ""One is a chip on the side of his foot, the other is a small break on the third metatarsal. ""But this is not the traditional metatarsal that has become so famous since the last World Cup and which has kept Scott Parker out for two months.""

David Beckham suffered a broken metatarsal in the build up to the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan. Robben, who has been a key part of the Blues' push for four trophies, claims he knew instantly something was wrong when he was felled by Blackburn midfielder Aaron Mokoena. ""I felt my leg go,"" he said. ""I felt it straight away after Mokoena hit me with a wild kick on my left foot.""
"	sport
Giggs handed Wales leading role	"Ryan Giggs will captain Wales as he wins his 50th cap in Wednesday's friendly against Hungary in Cardiff.

John Toshack, in his first game as coach after succeeding Mark Hughes, admits he is surprised that Giggs has only just reached the landmark. ""With the games he's played for United, proportionately it doesn't seem that many for Wales,"" Toshack said. ""But he's one of the greatest of all Welsh internationals and on his 50th cap it's appropriate he's captain."" Giggs admits he had briefly considered retirement from the international game, but is now targetting playing for Wales in the 2008 European Championships. The Manchester United wing revealed how club manager Sir Alex Ferguson talked him into extending his Wales career. ""I briefly discussed my international future with Sir Alex, but he urged me to carry on,"" Giggs said. ""He feels, like myself, that I have no weight problems and keep myself fit, so in three or four years' time I will be able to play in the European finals if we get there. ""The manager has always wanted me to play for my club and country and he was keen for me to continue because I am fit enough.""

Giggs admits he was wavering and considering joining the likes of former Wales skipper Gary Speed and United team-mate Paul Scholes in committing the remaining years of his career to club football. But Giggs is now focussed on making the Toshack era even more successful than the time Hughes spent at the helm. The Manchester United winger won his first cap as a 17-year-old in 1991, an away loss to Germany, and now faces his landmark appearance at the age of 31. With Giggs leading Wales out against Hungary, there is every chance that he will become the permanent successor to Speed. However, Toshack refused to reveal whether he sees Giggs as a long-term option. ""For this particular game I think it is appropriate that Ryan Giggs will be captain, it's his 50th cap and he's known for some time about that,"" Toshack said. On Wednesday night Toshack takes charge of his first match since replacing Hughes, and Giggs said: ""It's my 50th cap and I am looking forward to it, and I hope to play a lot more times from here on in. ""It's important to be here, all the players feel the same. It's a new start and all the top players certainly see it as important. ""I see myself leading by example, it is something I have taken on for Wales as well as United these past few seasons. ""The way John is looking at things, he is aiming to build his side around the experienced lads right up to the next tournament, the Euro 2006 event. ""I have told John I will be around for the next European tournament, by then I will be 35 so hopefully I will still be okay. ""A lot can happen, but I'm hoping to be around."" Giggs' own personal future at Old Trafford is still up in the air as he has yet to reach agreement on a new contract, with Manchester United offering one extra year and Giggs seeking two. ""I have put the contract thing to the back of my mind at the moment,"" said Giggs. ""It is an important period for the club and I am just concentrated on that. ""I've heard the suggestions, hopefully there is a two-year deal about to be offered because that is what I am looking for, to get it sorted out. ""I'm enjoying my football, the way United have been playing and my own form, you have to enjoy it. ""We have massive games coming up: Manchester City this week, then the Everton cup tie, followed by AC Milan in the Champions League, and my first Wales game under John Toshack, so it's an important time.""
"	sport
Bosvelt optimistic over new deal	"Manchester City's Paul Bosvelt will find out ""within a month"" whether he is to be offered a new one-year deal.

The 34-year-old Dutch midfielder is out of contract in the summer and, although his age may count against him, he feels he can play on for another season. ""I told the club I would like to stay for one more year. They promised me an answer within the next month so I am waiting to see,"" he said. ""The main concern is my age but I think I have proved I am fit enough. Bosvelt joined City from Feyenoord in 2003 and at first he struggled to adapt to life in England. But his professionalism and dedication impressed manager Kevin Keegan. ""He realised the pace of the game was faster than anything he was used to but he drove himself back into the team. He is an unsung hero,"" said Keegan.
"	sport
Sociedad set to rescue Mladenovic	"Rangers are set to loan out-of-favour midfielder Dragan Mladenovic to Real Sociedad, despite the closure of the January transfer window.

Sociedad have been given special permission by the Spanish FA to sign a player due to an injury crisis. Mladenovic will effectively replace former Rangers midfielder Mikel Arteta, who has been loaned to Everton. Sociedad say they will pay Rangers £150,000, with an option to buy the Serbia & Montenegro international. Mladenovic's loan move is subject to him passing a medical. The 28-year-old, who joined Rangers from Red Star Belgrade for £1.2m in the close season, is expected in San Sebastian later this week following his national side's game against Bulgaria. Sociedad are in 15th place in the 20-strong Primera Liga, just two points above the relegation zone. Special permission from the Spanish FA came after an injury to central defender Igor Jauregi. The versatile Mladenovic can also play in the back four. His agent said last month that Rangers had told him to find the player a new club. Mladenovic's time at Ibrox has been plagued with injury and he has made just six starts in six months with the Glasgow club.
"	sport
Parry relishes Anfield challenge	"BBC Sport reflects on the future for Liverpool after our exclusive interview with chief executive Rick Parry.

Chief executive Parry is the man at the helm as Liverpool reach the most crucial point in their recent history. Parry has to deliver a new 60,000-seat stadium in Stanley Park by 2007 amid claims of costs spiralling above £120m. He is also searching for an investment package of a size and stature that will restore Liverpool to their place at European football's top table. But it is a challenge that appears to sit easily with Parry, who has forged a reputation as one of football's most respected administrators since his days at the fledgling Premier League.

Liverpool have not won the championship since 1990, a fact that causes deep discomfort inside Anfield as they attempt to muscle in on the top three of Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal. Throw in the small matter of warding off every top club in world football as they eye captain Steven Gerrard, and you can see Parry is a man with a lot on his plate. But in the comfort of a conference room deep inside Liverpool's heartbeat - The Kop end - Parry spoke to us with brutal honesty about the crucial months ahead. He only dodged one question - when asked to reveal the name of the mystery investor currently courting Liverpool, a polite smile deflected the inquiry. But to his credit, he met everything else head on in measured tones that underscore the belief that Liverpool still mean business.

By business he means becoming title challengers again, and locking the pieces together that will help return the trophy to Liverpool is Parry's mission. Parry has already successfully put one of those planks in place in the form of new manager Rafael Benitez. And his enthusiasm for the Spaniard's personality and methods is an indication of his clear feeling that he has struck gold. Benitez's early work has given Parry renewed optimism about the years ahead. But it remains a massive task at a club with a unique history and expectations. This will not come as news to Parry, a lifelong Liverpool supporter, but his quiet determination suggests he is no mood to be found wanting...

Captain Gerrard is central to Liverpool's plans and Parry's insistence that all offers will be refused is a firm statement of intent. As ever, the player will have the final say, and Parry acknowledges that, but he is determined to provide the framework and environment for Liverpool and Gerrard to flourish.

In terms of the search for new investment, Hawkpoint were appointed as advisors to flush out interest in March 2004. Thailand Prime Minister Thaksin Shiniwatra came and went, while the most serious statement of intent came from tycoon and lifelong fan Steve Morgan. Morgan had a succession of bids rejected, having come close in the summer only for talks to break down over potential costs for the new stadium. BBC Sport understands Morgan is still ready and willing to invest in Liverpool, and Parry has kept the door ajar despite currently seeking investment elsewhere.

Morgan, however, has had no formal contact with Liverpool or their advisors since last December, blaming indecision at board level as he publicly withdrew his £70m offer. He was also convinced his interest was being used to lure in others, so any new approach would now have to come from Liverpool. Morgan will certainly not be making another call. So speculation continues about the new benefactor, with trails leading to the Middle East and America, but all met with an understandable veil of secrecy from Anfield.

Parry meanwhile sees the new ground as crucial to Liverpool's future, but is refusing to become emotionally attached to the idea. He is determined the ground will only be built on an affordable basis and will not make future Liverpool management hostages to the new stadium. Parry will pull back the moment the figures do not stack up, but there has been a vital new development in North London that has re-shaped Liverpool's thinking.

Liverpool have publicly refused to entertain the idea of stadium sponsorship and potential naming rights - but the realism of Arsenal's stunning £100m deal for their new Emirates Stadium at Ashburton has changed the landscape. Parry labelled the deal ""an eye-opener"" and admits Liverpool would be missing a trick not to explore the possibilities. He knows some traditionalist Liverpool fans will reel at any attempt to call the new stadium anything other than just 'Anfield', but the maths of modern-day football decree that multi-millions for stadium and team could ease the pain.

I would take £50m if we had no investment, but if we did, keep him. As for the stadium, if it gets us cash what difference does it make really?

£50m for Gerrard? I don't care who you are, the Directors would take the money and it is the way it should be. We cannot let that sum of money go, despite Gerrard's quality.

Through a cleverly worded statement, the club has effectively forced Gerrard to publicly make the decision for himself, which I think is the right thing to do.

Critical time for Liverpool with regards to Gerrard. Ideally we would want to secure his future to the club for the long term. I am hoping he doesn't walk out of the club like Michael Owen did for very little cash.

£50m realistically would allow Rafa to completely rebuild the squad, however, if we can afford to do this AND keep Gerrard we will be better for it. I would however be happy with Gerrard's transfer for any fee over £35m.

Parry's statements are clever in that any future Gerrard transfer cannot be construed as a lack of ambition by the club to not try and keep their best players. Upping the ante is another smart move by Parry.

I would keep Gerrard. No amount of money could replace his obvious love of the club and determination to succeed.

The key is if Gerrard comes out and says that he is happy. Clearly, if he isn't, then we would be foolish not to sell. The worrying thing is who would you buy (or who would come) pending possible non-Champions League football.
"	sport
Time to get tough on friendlies?	"For an international manager, a friendly provides an important opportunity to work with your players.

The only problem is that the game itself can often be a farce. Some people have been saying it would be better to get the players together for the week, and do away with the 90 minutes at the end.

I would say it's 50-50 whether you should have these games or not, and if you look at it that way you would probably say you're better not doing so. It would certainly keep club managers happy, as it would reduce the risk of players returning to domestic duty injured. But international bosses will tell you that scrapping friendlies is counterproductive because the only way for a team to get better is by playing. The more you play together, the easier it is when it comes to the crunch in games like World Cup quarter-finals against Brazil. Often in friendlies, though, a manager will play his strongest side for the first 45 minutes and then send out an entirely different one in the second half. And it's very difficult for any player to come on as substitute in a side with a few changes, let alone a whole team's worth. The debate will rage on, and I'm not sure there is a satisfactory solution. One manager who has got it right this week is Walter Smith. The new Scotland manager has decided to have a training camp instead of a friendly for his first international week since replacing Berti Vogts. It is the sort of move you would expect from Walter, who is a canny manager.

The players have had such a hard time recently that he is better off getting them together in a relaxed atmosphere and trying to generate some team spirit before the next World Cup qualifiers. If he had sent them out on Wednesday and they had been badly beaten, it would have done them no good whatsoever. John Toshack has his first game in charge of Wales, and it will be important for him to get a decent result against Hungary. He will have his own ideas on individuals and how to play and will probably look more at the performance, but the public wants results. It's extremely difficult to get the balance for friendlies. If you win, people forget them, but if you lose it becomes a stat that can be used against you. England's game against Holland is a good example. It looks like a good opportunity to try out players like Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing or Crystal Palace striker Andy Johnson. But you have got to remember Sven-Goran Eriksson's side were given a lesson by Spain in the last game they played.

The injury problems in defence should at least give the likes of Wes Brown and Jamie Carragher a chance to impress. For the club managers, it will simply be a case of waiting at home with fingers crossed.
"	sport
Barcelona title hopes hit by loss	"Barcelona's pursuit of the Spanish title took a blow on Sunday as they fell to a 2-0 defeat at home to Atletico Madrid.

Fernando Torres gave Athletico an ideal start with a goal in the first minute. Ronaldino wasted a second-half chance to equalise for Barca when he put a penalty wide, but Torres made no such mistake with a last-minute spot-kick. The defeat, coupled with Real Madrid's 4-0 win over Espanyol on Saturday, reduces Barca's lead to four points. Former Everton midfielder Thomas Gravesen scored his first goal for Real in the comfortable victory at the Bernabeu. Zinedine Zidane had opened the scoring before Raul bagged a brace. Gravesen, who replaced Zidane, completed the scoring in the 84th minute with a low shot. David Beckham, watched by Sven-Goran Eriksson, came off in the 67th minute with a shoulder injury but should be fit for England's game against Holland. England team-mate Michael Owen came on for Raul after 76 minutes with the game already won. Real have now won six consecutive Primera Liga games since coach Wanderley Luxemburgo took charge.
"	sport
Parry puts Gerrard 'above money'	"Listen to the full interview on Sport on Five and the BBC Sport website from 1900 GMT.

But Parry, speaking exclusively to BBC Sport, also admits Gerrard, who has been constantly linked with Chelsea, will have the final say on his future. He told BBC Five Live: ""Steven is above money. He is the future of Liverpool. ""It doesn't matter if it's £30m, £40m or £50m, we will not accept offers. But we are also realistic enough to know we can't keep Steven against his will."" On the subject of Liverpool's finances, Parry also revealed the club is ready to explore the possibility of a sponsorship deal for its proposed new stadium.

And responding to criticism from BBC Sport pundit and former Liverpool stalwart Alan Hansen, he insisted talks on new investment are ongoing, but added the door has not closed on shareholder and lifelong fan Steve Morgan. Parry joined Liverpool as chief executive in July 1998 from a similar role at the Premier League. There have been several highs and lows during his time in charge at Anfield - and he had a busy summer, overseeing the arrival of new manager Rafael Benitez and managing to hold on to Steven Gerrard.

On the subject of Liverpool's captain and prize asset, Parry revealed Real Madrid

did

ask for an option on the England midfield man during negotiations for striker Fernando Morientes. He said: ""They were looking for ways of saying they got more out of the deal for Fernando Morientes, but the response to Real Madrid was the same - Steven is not for sale."" But when asked if Gerrard would be a Liverpool player on the first day of next season, Parry said: ""I sincerely hope he will be. Steven knows my views. He knows Rafa's views. ""We have re-affirmed recently to Steven that we are trying to build a team around him. We crave success as much as he does. We know he's ambitious and nobody can argue with that.

""I think Steven would dearly love to win things with Liverpool more than he'd like to do anything else. ""We all want to see progress by next season. He's not alone in that. There are a lot of other players who feel the same, so we all have a common aim."" It is expected Chelsea will test Liverpool with a £30m-plus bid in the summer - but Parry claims he will be in no mood to listen. ""There have been a lot of open secrets about Steven, most of which have been complete myths. It is suggested we had a deal tied up last summer. We didn't had an offer last summer,"" Parry explained. ""We had told Chelsea that as far as we were concerned he was not for sale and we didn't want to sell him. In reality it didn't go beyond that. ""Maybe there will be an offer in the summer. Maybe there won't.

""Our position is we want Steven to stay, but we are also realistic enough and have enough respect for Steven - and he has enough respect for us - to know that it is his decision that will be crucial. ""You are not going to keep a player like Steven against his will. That just doesn't work, but any idea we are going to accept offers for Steven and then tell him 'by the way we've decided to sell you' is not on the agenda. You can forget that."" Parry is currently in the process of finalising funding for Liverpool's new stadium in Stanley Park, which is set to open in 2007. And he confessed Arsenal's £100m deal with Emirates to sponsor their new ground - complete with naming rights - has given the Anfield club serious food for thought. He said: ""I have to say historically it is something I have been against, and I have been on record as saying that, but I think the size of the Arsenal deal is a real eye-opener.

""I would say in the past deals have been done frankly far too cheaply and it just hasn't even been worth contemplating. ""But the Arsenal deal is the sort of deal that causes you to draw breath and say 'wow - that's interesting.' ""My personal point of view is that I would find it a hell of a lot more palatable than a shared stadium."" Some Liverpool fans would find such a move highly controversial, but Parry countered: ""I recognise it would be an emotive issue for many supporters, but you look at the amount of money available and it could go into the team. ""If it was the right partner how strong an issue is it? Time will tell. ""I think the stadium will always be Anfield, not least because of where it is, but do we need to investigate the possibilities of sponsorship? I think it would be remiss not to. ""That's not to say we have made a decision that we will go down that road, but I think it is clearly something we have to explore.""

On the subject of possible new investment, Parry revealed Liverpool are still in negotiations with a mystery investor, with rumours of interest from the Middle East. That prompted the withdrawal of tycoon Steve Morgan, who got frustrated by failed bids and what he claimed was indecision by the board. He also accused Liverpool of using him as ""a stalking horse"" to attract other bids, but Parry explained: ""Steve has never been used as a stalking horse. There's no need, and that is not the way we do business. ""We had discussions with Steve over the course of 2004. I think we came close to concluding a deal in the summer but it didn't happen. ""Quite genuinely, the new interest did appear relatively late in the day just prior to the AGM in December, and as I have said it was of such potential magnitude, and that potential is so exciting, we felt we had to evaluate it. We are still evaluating it. ""Steve's interest was taken very much on its own merits. His enthusiasm for the club is there for all to see and who knows what the next few months will hold? ""The door isn't closed on anything. We had a perfectly sensible dialogue with Steve last year. ""We have a common interest in making Liverpool successful. That's a dream we all share, so as far as I'm concerned the door is not closed.""

I would take £50m if we had no investment, but if we did, keep him. As for the stadium, if it gets us cash what difference does it make really?

£50m for Gerrard? I don't care who you are, the Directors would take the money and it is the way it should be. We cannot let that sum of money go, despite Gerrard's quality.

Through a cleverly worded statement, the club has effectively forced Gerrard to publicly make the decision for himself, which I think is the right thing to do.

Critical time for Liverpool with regards to Gerrard. Ideally we would want to secure his future to the club for the long term. I am hoping he doesn't walk out of the club like Michael Owen did for very little cash.

£50m realistically would allow Rafa to completely rebuild the squad, however, if we can afford to do this AND keep Gerrard we will be better for it. I would however be happy with Gerrard's transfer for any fee over £35m.

Parry's statements are clever in that any future Gerrard transfer cannot be construed as a lack of ambition by the club to not try and keep their best players. Upping the ante is another smart move by Parry.

I would keep Gerrard. No amount of money could replace his obvious love of the club and determination to succeed.

The key is if Gerrard comes out and says that he is happy. Clearly, if he isn't, then we would be foolish not to sell. The worrying thing is who would you buy (or who would come) pending possible non-Champions League football.
"	sport
Bees handed potential Man Utd tie	"Brentford face a home tie against holders Manchester United in the FA Cup sixth round if they can come through their replay against Southampton.

The League One side held the Saints at St Mary's in their fifth-round tie and were rewarded with a potential draw against Sir Alex Ferguson's side. Newcastle will be at home to either Tottenham or Nottingham Forest. Bolton host Arsenal or Sheffield United and Leicester will visit the winners of the Burnley and Blackburn replay. The ties will be played on the weekend of 12-13 March.

was delighted to be paired with United, although he admitted they still have plenty of work to do to set up a dream tie. ""We've got our work cut out next Tuesday but you can't deny it's exciting,"" he said.

""It would be a sell-out. It will probably be on television. We have financial problems and the revenue it could bring in would certainly help our situation. ""We're happy to be in the draw but we've still got to beat a Premiership team. ""We've got to beat Southampton first and that's going to be a hard game but if we do there will be some celebration.""

welcomed the opportunity to face United. ""We're not counting on anything yet,"" he said. ""It is obviously going to be a difficult replay judging by the way Brentford came back at us on Saturday and the fact that United have come out of the hat will give them even more incentive. ""But I've been drawn against United so many times in cups and beaten them at both Bournemouth and West Ham. ""There are no easy ties in the FA Cup and I'm sure nobody is counting on one.""

Newcastle v Tottenham or Nottingham Forest

Southampton or Brentford v Manchester United

Bolton v Arsenal or Sheffield United

Burnley or Blackburn v Leicester
"	sport
England's defensive crisis grows	"England's defensive worries have deepened following the withdrawal of Tottenham's Ledley King from the squad to face Holland.

Chelsea's John Terry and Wayne Bridge are also out, leaving coach Sven-Goran Eriksson with a real problem for Wednesday's match at Villa Park. Injured Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell were both left out of the squad, and Matthew Upson has already pulled out. Wes Brown and Jamie Carragher are likely to be the makeshift partnership. Terry, the captain of Chelsea as they push for the Premiership title, would have been a certain starter in the absence of Campbell and Ferdinand. But now he has pulled out with a bruised knee and is likely to be replaced by Carragher, alongside Brown.

Manchester United's Brown last played for England in the defeat by Australia at Upton Park in February 2003. The 25-year-old was only called into the squad on Sunday night as cover following the enforced withdrawal of Upson, who has a hamstring injury. And Brown now looks certain to add to his tally of seven senior appearances for England. King was forced to pull out after his groin injury was assessed by England's medical staff. Eriksson has still not decided whether to call up any further back-up, having already summoned Phil Neville after Bridge pulled out with a foot injury.
"	sport
Ferdinand casts doubt over Glazer	"Rio Ferdinand has said he is unsure of Malcolm Glazer's motives after the American billionaire launched a new offer to buy Manchester United.

The club have confirmed that the Glazer Family Partnership have submitted proposals of a third bid. ""A lot of people want the club's interest to be with people who have grown up with the club and have got its interests at heart,"" said Ferdinand. ""No one knows what this guy will be bringing to the table."" The central defender added on BBC Radio Five Live: ""We will have to wait and see what Glazer comes with. ""I would like to see the situation resolved either way. ""I think people are getting bored with him coming in and out of the news with new proposals. ""The other stuff off the pitch takes the shine off what is going on the pitch.""

Glazer, currently owns a 28.1% stake in the club, and United's statement to the stock exchange said: ""The board has noted the recent press speculation on this subject. ""The board can confirm that it has now received a detailed proposal subject to various pre-conditions which may form the basis of an offer for Manchester United from Glazer. ""A further announcement will be made in due course."" Glazer's previous bids for the club, which United supporters opposed, were rejected by the board because of the high level of debt they would incur. But it is believed that Glazer has substantially reduced the borrowing required for his latest move. He will still need the approval of major shareholders John Magnier and JP McManus, who own 28.9% of the club to succeed. But the Irish duo have cut off talks with Glazer over the proposed sale of their stake, while fans remain opposed to his involvement.
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Premier League planning Cole date	"The Premier League is attempting to find a mutually convenient date to investigate allegations Chelsea made an illegal approach for Ashley Cole.

Both Chelsea and Arsenal will be asked to give evidence to a Premier League commission, but no deadline has been put on when that meeting will convene. ""It's hard to put a date on it,"" a Premier League spokesman confirmed to BBC Sport. ""It's not a formal situation where they've got so much time to respond."" Arsenal and England defender Cole reportedly met Blues boss Jose Mourinho and chief executive Peter Kenyon in a London hotel 11 days ago. Chelsea have yet to officially confirm or deny the meeting, which would be in breach of Premier League rule K3.

Now the Gunners have asked for an inquiry to look into claims that their player has been ""tapped up"". Both clubs have pledged to co-operate with the inquiry which will be conducted on a single day as opposed to being run as an ongoing evaluation. Cole is in negotiations with the Gunners over extending his current deal which ends in 2007. And his Arsenal team-mate Robert Pires has urged the England left-back to stay at Highbury. Pires told the Evening Standard: ""He has been at Arsenal for ever. He is a very attacking left-back and I think he is enjoying his football because at Arsenal he plays in an offensive team. ""I am not sure he will get the same pleasure at Chelsea, even though they are doing so well at the moment. ""I have built a fantastic playing relationship with Ashley. ""We play together so well - we could do it with our eyes shut. ""But you have to respect the decision of the player. Everybody has that right.""
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McCall earns Tannadice reprieve	"Dundee United manager Ian McCall has won a reprieve from the sack, with chairman Eddie Thompson calling for an end to speculation over his future.

It is understood that McCall would have been sacked if Sheffield Wednesday manager Paul Sturrock had been willing to return to Tannadice. But Sturrock has distanced himself from the position. ""We're in a difficult situation. We must get out of it through the efforts of current personnel,"" said Thompson. ""Ian McCall and I have had a long and detailed talk about a number of areas including the current league position and the manner of the exit from the League Cup,"" he added. ""However, the continuing speculation is doing no one any good, especially as we have several crucial games coming up. ""The minds of the coaching staff and the players have to be on those games and those games only. ""Our season would of course improve considerably if in the next few weeks we achieved some improved league results and there is also the potential of another cup semi-final, subject to the draw.

""All that matters at the present time - is us all having a total focus on the games ahead and a positive series of results being achieved."" Dundee United players had expressed their solidarity with McCall after their side's 3-0 Scottish Cup win over Queen of the South. ""We want the boss to stay, we don't want someone else coming in,"" said Jim McIntyre. ""Hopefully now he gets the chance to stay."" Keeper Tony Bullock echoed McIntyre's sentiments. ""I think all the boys are behind Ian McCall,"" he added. ""At the moment it is all speculation and we have got to rise above all that and do a job on the pitch.""

On Saturday, Sturrock insisted that he had unfinished business with Wednesday, who are fourth in League One. ""I've only been here five months and I don't expect to be leaving very, very soon,"" he said. ""I can appreciate the rumours because I've emphasised my thoughts and ambitions to go back to Dundee United. ""I can assure you the timescale is not the right one. ""It (Dundee United) is my team. I had five years there as a coach, six as a player, two years as a manager - once you've done that kind of thing, it's the result you look for. ""The important thing now is I've come here to do a job and I'm going to try to finish it.""
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Kewell waits as injury drags on	"Liverpool winger Harry Kewell is struggling to recover from his Achilles tendinitis problem and may not recover until March, claims his agent.

Kewell, 26, had hoped to play against Fulham last weekend and to be ready for the Champions League tie against Bayer Leverkusen on 22 February. But Bernie Mandic said: ""He's had scans which don't show anything substantial. ""But despite his best efforts at the moment he simply can't shake off the discomfort and get back on the park.""

Mandic continued in the Sydney Morning Herald: ""Harry's struggling a bit but the club are doing everything they can to get him right. ""Harry was desperate to be fit for the Fulham game as part of his plan to play himself in for the Leverkusen match."" Kewell has not played since December 19 and misses out on international duty this week, with Australia facing South Africa in Durban on Wednesday.
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Smith aims to bring back respect	"Scotland manager Walter Smith says he wants to restore the national team's respectability in world football.

Smith has joined his first squad for a three-day get-together near Manchester in preference to playing a friendly. While qualification for the 2006 World Cup appears to be beyond Scotland, Smith is anxious that the remainder of the campaign should be positive. ""I think we have got to try to get a bit of respectability back in whatever way we can,"" he said. ""We will have to approach each game differently. Obviously we will have to approach the Italian game away from home in a different manner to Moldova at home. ""We have to meet the challenge of each match."" Smith, meeting a number of his squad for the first time, brought them together on Monday to outline his ideas for improving the nation's fortunes.

He said: ""I pointed out how I see the international team going forward and that was the main topic. ""This is a relaxed gathering and I don't think there is a lot of doom and gloom about the squad that a lot of people think exists."" A 25-man squad will spend the next three days based at the Mottram Hall hotel in Cheshire and will train at Manchester United's nearby Carrington complex. Smith will be absent for the final sessions, however, as he is due to fly out to Sardinia on Wednesday to watch Italy's friendly with Russia.
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Injury doubts beset Wales squad	"Wales have a clutch of injury worries before Wednesday's international friendly against Hungary in Cardiff.

West Ham's Gavin Williams (ankle) looks certain to be out, so uncapped Wrexham defender Stephen Roberts is drafted in. Defenders Danny Gabbidon and Gareth Roberts, plus Ryan Giggs have hamstring concerns, while there are also doubts over Robbie Savage (groin). However, Manchester United winger Giggs is expected to recover in time to earn his 50th cap at the Millennium Stadium. There were also doubts over Gabbidon's fellow Cardiff defender Rhys Weston, but the full-back appears to have shrugged off the knock he picked up in the Bluebirds' 1-0 loss to West Ham on Sunday. The news leaves Wales boss John Toshack short in defence for his first game in charge, with Aston Villa's Mark Delaney injured and James Collins with the Under-21s. That could clear the way for new faces Danny Collins and Dave Partridge to make their Wales debuts.

Coyne (Burnley), Jones (Wolves), Roberts (Wrexham), Collins (Sunderland), Edwards (Wolves), Gabbidon (Cardiff), Page (Cardiff), Partridge (Motherwell), Ricketts (Swansea), Roberts (Tranmere), Weston (Cardiff), Davies (Tottenham), Fletcher (West Ham), Giggs (Man Utd), Koumas (West Brom), Robinson (Sunderland), Savage (Blackburn), Williams (West Ham), Bellamy (Newcastle), Earnshaw (West Brom), Hartson (Celtic).
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Weir poised for Sunderland move	"Larne's teenage star Robbie Weir is poised to join Sunderland after turning down a move to Stoke City.

The 17-year-old Irish League midfielder was also being chased by Rangers and Fulham, but Mick McCarthy's side appear to have won the race. But Larne boss Jimmy McGeough has yet to confirm that Weir is on his way from Inver Park. ""I heard on Sunday that he has joined Sunderland, but not from the lad himself,"" he said. ''Robbie has an agreement with Larne that he can negotiate with interested clubs.

''Personally, I would rather see him making an impact at local level to build up his physique before moving into the full-time game. ''He has been on trial with a number of clubs. But it would be great to see him making it at Sunderland.''
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Newry to fight cup exit in courts	"Newry City are expected to discuss legal avenues on Friday regarding overturning their ejection from the Nationwide Irish Cup.

The IFA upheld its original decision to throw Newry out of the cup following the Andy Crawford registration row. ''A law firm will put a case forward for Newry FC, and see what the legal implications of all this is are,'' said Newry boss Roy McCreadie. ''This is a big issue, now that we have an appeal pending,'' On Wednesday, a fresh IFA hearing into Crawford registration saga, ruled that last week's original verdict had been correct. It meant that Bangor, beaten 5-1 by Newry on the field, will take on Portadown in the sixth round. Newry had claimed they had uncovered ""fresh evidence"", in respect of the dates relating to the registration. But McCreadie is not further annoyed that full details of Wednesday's meeting was not relayed to the club. ''Even to this day, we have as much information about what happened during the meeting on Wednesday as that told to the media. We are being kept in the dark,'' McCreadie told the

News Letter

. ''We want an explanation. There is no good sending us the same fax message the press people received. ''It's a real sad case. If we are not back in the Irish Cup after our appeal, and guided by our legal advise, we will seek to lodge an injunction in the courts to stop Bangor playing Portadown.''
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Republic to face China and Italy	"The Republic of Ireland have arranged friendlies against China and Italy which will take place at Lansdowne Road in March and August.

Brian Kerr's side will face the 54th ranked Chinese on 29 March - just three days after the World Cup qualifier against Israel in Tel Aviv. Italy will visit on 17 August in what will be a warm-up game ahead of the autumn World Cup qualifiers. In their last meeting, the Irish beat Italy in the 1994 World Cup Finals. However, that is the Republic's only victory in eight attempts against the Italians who have won all the other seven games. The 29 March game will be the second time the Republic have played China - the previous encounter back in June 1984 with the Irish winning 1-0 in Sapporo, Japan. Brian Kerr said: ""China have made great progress over the last few years and will provide difficult opposition. ""We all witnessed the performances of the Asian teams in the last World Cup, and China play a similar type of football. ""As for Italy, they make a welcome return to Dublin and will be a massive attraction because they are one of the great traditional powers in the world. ""The game will be ideal preparation for the three important World Cup qualifiers in the autumn."" Ireland round off their World Cup campaign with games against France on 7 September, Cyprus on 8 October and Switzerland on 12 October.
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Finnan says Irish can win group	"Steve Finnan believes the Republic of Ireland can qualify directly for the World Cup finals.

After Saturday's superb display in the draw in Paris, Ireland face minnows the Faroe Islands in Dublin on Wednesday. The versatile Finnan, who starred against the French, is confident the group is Ireland's for the taking. ""There is a chance for us now to go on, win our home games and why not win the group, even though it's a tough one,"" said the Liverpool player. Switzerland, Ireland, France and Israel are all now tied on five points from three matches - although the Republic look to have a slight edge after claiming away draws in Basel and Paris. ""In Basel we did not play great football, but when you to go to these places the other teams are going to have the majority of the game. ""In Paris, we looked good throughout the team and a point was the least we deserved because we had a number of chances.

""Looking back, we had an opportunity to get the three points, but we are happy with a point and that will give us confidence going into Wednesday's game. ""On paper, we have got the toughest matches out of the way and we have set standards for ourselves. ""Automatic qualification is there. It would certainly be good to avoid a play-off, but on the back of a couple of good results I don't see why we can't win the group."" Manager Brian Kerr was keen to mention the contribution of Stephen Carr and Finnan on Ireland's right flank at the Stade de France. Finnan's normal position is right-back but he looked assured in a more advanced position against the French. ""As I play on the right for my club and being a natural right-back, it was something he (Kerr) looked at because France play strongly down the left-hand side. ""So I was happy to play and Stephen Carr and I enjoyed the game, particularly as the defence and midfield held together well and nullified their attacks.""
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Irish finish with home game	"Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr has been granted his wish for a home game as the final World Cup qualifier.

Ireland will close their bid to reach the 2006 finals by playing Switzerland in Dublin on 12 October 2005. The Republic met the Swiss in their final Euro 2004 qualifier, losing 2-0 away and missing out on a place in the finals in Portugal. The Group Four fixtures were hammered out at a meeting in Dublin on Tuesday. The Irish open their campaign on 4 September at home to Cyprus and wrap up the 10-match series on 12 October 2005, with the visit of Switzerland. Manager Brian Kerr and FAI officials met representatives from Switzerland, France, Cyprus, Israel and the Faroe Islands to arrange the fixture schedule. Kerr had hoped to finish with a clash against France, but got the reigning European champions as their penultimate home match on 7 September 2005. The manager got his wish to avoid a repeat of finishing their bid to qualify with too many away matches.

Republic of Ireland v Cyprus; France v Israel; Switzerland v Faroe Islands.

Switzerland v Republic of Ireland; Israel v Cyprus; Faroe Islands v France.

France v Republic of Ireland; Israel v Switzerland; Cyprus v Faroe Islands.

Republic of Ireland v Faroe Islands; Cyprus v France.

Cyprus v Israel.

France v Switzerland; Israel v Republic of Ireland.

Switzerland v Cyprus; Israel v France.

Republic of Ireland v Israel; Faroe Islands v Switzerland.

Faroe Islands v Republic of Ireland. August 17 - Faroe Islands v Cyprus.

France v Faroe Islands; Switzerland v Israel.

Republic of Ireland v France; Cyprus v Switzerland; Faroe Islands v Israel.

Switzerland v France; Israel v Faroe Islands; Cyprus v Republic of Ireland.

France v Cyprus; Republic of Ireland v Switzerland.
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Israeli club look to Africa	"Four African players, including Zimbabwe goalkeeper Energy Murambadoro, are all ready to play for Israeli club Hapoel Bnei Sakhnin in the Uefa Cup.

Bnei Sakhnin are the first Arab side ever to play in European competition and will play English Premiership side Newcastle United in the first round. Warriors' goalkeeper Murambadoro, who made a name for himself at the African Nations Cup finals in Tunisia, helped Bnei Sakhnin overcome Albania's Partizani Tirana 6-1 in the previous round. Murambadoro moved to Israel recently after a brief stint with South African club Hellenic. The club won the Israeli Cup final last season and are based in Sakhnin, which is near Haifa. The club have a strong ethic and are high profile promoters of peace and co-operation within Israel. The three other Africans at the club are former Cameroon defender Ernest Etchi, DR Congo's Alain Masudi and Nigerian midfielder Edith Agoye, who had a stint with Tunisian side Esperance.
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Iranian misses Israel match	"Iranian striker Vahid Hashemian will not travel to Israel for Bayern Munich's Champions League match against Maccabi Tel Aviv on Wednesday.

The German club said the player had pulled out because of a back injury. Iran refuses to recognise Israel's right to exist and does not allow its citizens to travel to the country. A Bayern spokesman said on Monday that the decision not to take Hashemian to Israel had been motivated only by his physical condition. ""He's got back pain and he couldn't train,"" the spokesman said. ""It would have made no sense for him to go."" Iran gave judo world champion Arash Miresmaeili a $125,000 reward when he refused to fight an Israeli at the Athens Olympics. The International Judo Federation considered taking action against Miresmaeili but concluded he had been overweight for the fight and could not have taken part.
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Highbury tunnel players in clear	"The Football Association has said it will not be bringing charges over the tunnel incident prior to the Arsenal and Manchester United game.

Arsenal's Patrick Vieira had earlier denied accusations that he threatened Gary Neville before the 4-2 defeat. Vieira also clashed with opposing skipper Roy Keane and referee Graham Poll had to separate them. ""The referee has confirmed that he is satisfied he dealt with the incident at the time,"" said an FA statement. It means United's win will pass off without further intervention from the governing body, whose new chief executive Brian Barwick was in the Highbury stands.

""I didn't threaten anybody. They are big enough players to handle themselves,"" said Vieira. ""I had a talk with Roy Keane and that's it. Gary Neville is a big lad, he can handle himself. ""They just played better than us and deserved to win."" Neville admitted there had been incidents before the game, but insisted it had not distracted his focus. ""There were a couple of things that did happen before the game which disappoint you,"" he said. ""Especially from players of that calibre, but it's a tough game and we've been around a long time."" Neville admitted that he had not enjoyed the match, which was punctuated by fouls and the sending off of Mikael Silvestre for head-butting Freddie Ljungberg . ""I thought it was a horrible game in the first half, and it was not much better in the second,"" he said. ""There is no way that should have happened in a football match.""

After the match, Keane accused Vieira of starting the row. ""Patrick Vieira is 6ft 4in and having a go at Gary Neville. So I said, 'have a go at me',"" he said. ""If he wants to intimidate our players and thinks that Gary Neville is an easy target, I'm not having it."" Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson added: ""Vieira was well wound up for it. ""I've heard different stories. Patrick Vieira has apparently threatened some of our players and things like that.""
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Bellamy under new fire	"Newcastle boss Graeme Souness has reopened his dispute with Craig Bellamy after claiming the Welshman was ""not good enough"" for the Magpies. Bellamy left Newcastle to join Celtic on loan after a major row with Souness. Souness - who refused to refer to the 25-year-old by name - said Bellamy did not score enough goals ""The chap that's just gone has scored 9.3 goals a season in his time in senior football - half of those weren't even in the top flight,"" said Souness. ""That's not good enough for a striker at a club like this. ""We need to have two strikers who are near 20 goals on a regular basis.""

Bellamy turned down a move to Birmingham in favour of joining Celtic after a disagreement about the Welsh international playing out of position quickly escalated. Earlier in the week, Souness had said that he risked losing the confidence of the players and damaging his own reputation if he had not taken a hard line after Bellamy accused him of lying.

""There are certain things you can forgive and forget,"" said Souness. ""But if I'd been seen to be weak in this case there was no future for me with the players in the dressing room or any job I have after Newcastle."" He could then return to St James' Park - and he says that he wants to. However, it would seem unlikely he will play for Newcastle again as long as Souness remains in charge.
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Chelsea denied by James heroics	"A brave defensive display, led by keeper David James, helped Manchester City hold the leaders Chelsea.

After a quiet opening, James denied Damien Duff, Jiri Jarosik and Mateja Kezman, while Paul Bosvelt cleared William Gallas' header off the line. Robbie Fowler should have scored for the visitors but sent his header wide. Chelsea had most of the possession in the second half but James kept out Frank Lampard's free-kick and superbly tipped the same player's volley wide. City went into the game with the proud record of being the only domestic team to beat Chelsea this season. And there was little to alarm them in the first 30 minutes as Chelsea - deprived of Arjen Robben and Didier Drogba through injury - struggled to pose much of a threat. Indeed, it was the visitors who looked likelier to enliven a drab opening played at a lethargic pace. Shaun Wright-Phillips - watched by England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson - showed his customary trickery to burst into the right of the area and deliver a dangerous ball, which was blocked by John Terry. But Chelsea suddenly stepped up a gear and created a flurry of chances. First, Duff got round Ben Thatcher and blasted in a shot that James parried to Kezman, who turned the ball wide.

Soon afterwards, Jarosik found space in the area to powerfully head Lampard's corner goalwards but James tipped the ball over. Chelsea were now looking more like Premiership leaders and James kept out Kezman's fierce drive before Bosvelt and James combined to clear Gallas' header from Duff's corner. City broke swiftly up the field and the last chance of a frenetic spell should have resulted in Fowler celebrating his 150th Premiership goal. Wright-Phillips raced down the left and crossed to Fowler but City's lone man up front, left free by Terry's slip, contrived to head wide when it seemed a breakthrough was certain. The second half started as quietly as the first, although James was forced to divert a cross from the lively Duff away from Eidur Gudjohnsen's path. There was a nasty moment for Petr Cech, looking for a ninth straight clean sheet in the league, when a series of ricochets saw Fowler chase a loose ball in the area and collide accidently with the Czech Republic stopper. Another quiet spell followed, which Duff interrupted with a surging run that was halted illegally on the edge of the penalty area by Bosvelt. Lampard stepped up to blast a shot through the wall and James somehow blocked it with his legs. Another timely challenge, this time from Richard Dunne in time added on, prevented Gudjohnsen from getting in a shot. There was still time for James to produce a sensational save to tip Lampard's volley round the post.

Cech, Paulo Ferreira, Gallas, Terry, Bridge, Jarosik (Tiago 56), Lampard, Makelele, Duff, Gudjohnsen, Kezman (Cole 63).

Subs Not Used: Johnson, Smertin, Cudicini.

Makelele, Gudjohnsen.

James, Mills, Distin, Dunne, Thatcher, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Bosvelt, Barton, Sibierski (McManaman 85), Musampa, Fowler.

Subs Not Used: Macken, Weaver, Onuoha, Jordan.

Bosvelt.

42,093

H Webb (S Yorkshire).
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Chelsea ridiculed over complaint	"Barcelona assistant coach Henk Ten Cate has branded Chelsea's expected complaint to Uefa as ""pathetic"".

The Blues are poised to complain about an alleged half-time incident during Wednesday's 2-1 loss at the Nou Camp. The source of Chelsea's anger was an alleged talk between Barca boss Frank Rijkaard and referee Anders Frisk, who later dismissed Didier Drogba. ""To react the way Chelsea have is pathetic. Mourinho lied with the line-ups, and now this,"" Ten Cate said. Uefa has said its own tunnel representative witnessed nothing unusual out of the ordinary during the half-time break. Spokesman William Gaillard said: ""Frisk says Rijkaard greeted him and apologised he had not had the opportunity to say hello before the game. ""We had two Uefa officials there and neither witnessed it. The referee's dressing room was locked and he and his assistants were the only people allowed in."" Indeed, it is the Londoners who could be on the receiving end of any punishment after failing to turn up for the compulsory press conference after the defeat.

Uefa delegate Thomas Giordano added: ""The only unusual thing that happened as far as we are concerned is that Chelsea failed to present themselves in the press conference."" The referee is not expected to include any of the alleged incidents in his report to Uefa - weakening Chelsea's case. Rijkaard was critical of Mourinho's decision not to speak to the media after the match. ""There was a lot of talking before the game and now surprisingly there is a lot of talking after the game. It is not good behaviour after a match,"" he said. ""Maybe they want to start something and make it worse than than it is. I really don't understand it. I am very calm about it.""

Barca midfielder Deco, formerly managed by Mourinho at Porto, agreed that it was not typical of his fellow Portuguese to lodge a protest. ""It's not normal behaviour on his part. It was not logical he did not give a news conference,"" he said. Rijkaard added: ""Chelsea is the team which has conceded fewest goals in the English league and they defend very well so I am very pleased with the win. ""My men deserved victory and I am pleased to have won this match. I congratulate my players.""
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Benitez issues warning to Gerrard	"Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has ordered captain Steven Gerrard not to play down their Champions League ambitions and be more positive.

Gerrard told the BBC Liverpool were unlikely to win the trophy this year. Benitez responded: ""I spoke to Steven and said to him that in future it's better to think we can win the Champions League. Why not?"" He said: ""We need winners here and everyone thinking only of winning. I always want to win.""

Benitez added: ""When we lose I only think of solutions. If you only think about winning the next game, you don't know what the draw will be. ""If we can win the next game, maybe we will draw a side that isn't so strong, or a side with injuries or suspensions."" Benitez is hoping to win his first trophy since arriving at Liverpool from Valencia when they play Chelsea in the Carling Cup on Sunday in Cardiff.
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Owen determined to stay in Madrid	"England forward Michael Owen has told the BBC he is happy in Spain and has no plans to quit Real Madrid to return to the Premiership in the near future.

But the 25-year-old, who has spent much of his time coming off the bench in La Liga, did not rule out a return to the Premiership at some stage. ""I'm pleased with the start I've made here,"" he told BBC Radio Five Live. ""England is my country. It's definitely part of me but who knows whether, if or when I'll be playing there again."" Owen, who moved to the Bernabeu from Liverpool last summer, has grabbed 11 goals for Real but has been unable to replace Raul or Ronaldo in the starting line-up. However, he said he was delighted with the way his time in Spain was going and dismissed criticism of his decision to join Real. ""When I first came there was a lot of scepticism back in England, any maybe some out here,"" he said. ""People were saying 'fourth-choice striker, what are you going there for? You'll be sat on the bench all the time'.

""But as much as our press like to build it up as if I've permanently had my backside on the bench, I've played as many games as anyone else in the team this year. ""For a fourth-choice striker at the start I'm more than happy with the way I've settled in."" Recent speculation has linked Owen with a move back to England, with Newcastle expressing their interest, but the England striker said he is not ready to return home. He added: ""I've got nothing against the Premiership, I mean that's where I first performed, that's where I made my name.

""I can't keep my eyes off the Premiership on television when I'm at home."" When asked if it would have to be Liverpool if he returned Owen said: ""I've not really given it much thought. ""I've got great memories of Liverpool. No matter what happens it'll always be a club I have fond memories of and it will always have a place in my heart. ""It's very flattering to be linked to top clubs in England - I'm glad that no-one is forgetting me! ""But I couldn't have wished for a better start in Madrid.""

- Listen to the full interview with Garry Richardson on BBC Radio Five Live's Sportsweek at 0900 GMT on Sunday.
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Wenger handed summer war chest	"Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has been guaranteed transfer funds to boost his squad the summer.

The club's managing director, Keith Edelman, stressed that the development of their new £350m stadium had no affect on Wenger's spending power. ""The money is there. Don't worry we've got it,"" Edelman told BBC Sport. ""Hopefully, we'll spend it this summer and in the coming years. Arsene attends all our board meetings and he knows our finances are very strong.""

Edelman added that it was pointless having a brand new stadium if the team did not match the surroundings. ""Its great to have nice, new surroundings, but if the team aren't performing on the pitch, then there isn't great respect in having a fabulous stadium,"" he said. ""It's important that we had sufficient funds for our team in place, before we began on the stadium.""
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Souness delight at Euro progress	"Boss Graeme Souness felt Newcastle were never really in danger of going out of the Uefa Cup against Heerenveen.

An early own goal followed by an Alan Shearer strike earned them a 2-1 win and a place in the Uefa Cup last 16. ""Obviously with winning in the first leg it gave us a great advantage,"" he said after the 4-2 aggregate victory. ""We got our goals early and in the minds of some players the job was done but then they got a goal and perhaps made us a bit nervous."" Shearer's goal moved him within 12 of Jackie Milburn's club scoring record of 200 for the Magpies. But Souness said he did not think beating the record would have any bearing on his decision to retire at the end of the season. ""I think if he got it this year he would want to stay next year anyway,"" he added.

""He struck the ball very well - he always has done - and I think it was the power and pace that beat the goalkeeper."" Souness also paid tribute to Laurent Robert, who was at the heart of much of United's attacking play. ""In the first half he did really well and did everything you want from a wide player. More of the same in future please,"" he said.
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Downing injury mars Uefa victory	"Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren hopes that Stewart Downing did not seriously damage his hamstring during the 2-1 Uefa Cup win over Graz AK.

The winger was carried off on a stretcher in the closing stages as Boro booked their place in the last 16. McClaren said: ""Stewart has tweaked a hamstring, which is a blow for us. We will assess it in the morning. ""But I'm delighted with the match result. They say in sport you can win ugly - and we certainly did."" McClaren was relieved to make it through after a tough encounter at The Riverside.

""To be fair to Graz, they had a gameplan - they knocked the ball forward, especially in the first half, and we struggled to deal with it. ""In the second half we were better but it was frustrating because we got the goal - but one slip and they were back in it."" Boro face Sporting Lisbon for a place in the quarter-finals after the Portuguese side saw off Feyenoord on Thursday. And McClaren added: ""Sporting are technically very good - Portuguese sides always are. ""But the journey goes on for us and we will now go to their magnificent stadium - after the first game here - we'll look forward to it."" Goalscorer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink added: ""It wasn't a particularly beautiful match to watch - but they made it difficult for us. ""We didn't play well at all. But you need a little bit of luck and I think we got that when my shot went through the legs of their goalkeeper. ""I would have liked to play in Holland - that would have been a little bit special to me. ""But so is going back to Portugal - I'll be playing against some lads I played with at Boavista.""
"	sport
Rangers seal Old Firm win	"Goals from Gregory Vignal and Nacho Novo gave Rangers a scrappy victory at Celtic Park that moves them three points clear of the champions.

Rangers had rarely threatened until Celtic goalkeeper Rab Douglas let defender Vignal's 25-yard drive slip through his grasp and into the net. Opposite number Ronald Waterreus had been Rangers' hero, saving superbly from Craig Bellamy and John Hartson. Striker Novo secured victory, lobbing Douglas with eight minutes remaining. It ended Celtic's 11-game unbeaten run at home in Old Firm derbies and gave Rangers manager Alex McLeish his first victory at the home of his Glasgow rivals. Celtic had won their last six meetings on their home pitch, including twice already this season. They started confidently, with new signing Bellamy, on loan from Newcastle United, given his Celtic debut up front with Wales international colleague John Hartson and Chris Sutton dropping into midfield. It took Bellamy just four minutes to threaten, taking on Marvin Andrews before delivering a low drive that was held by Waterreus at the second attempt. He had an even better chance after Hartson dispossesed Sotiris Kyrgiakos and sent his strike partner clear with only the goalkeeper to beat. But Waterreus did well to beat away Bellamy's disappointing low drive from 16 yards. Waterreus came to the rescue again when the ball fell to Hartson just inside the box and the Dutch goalkeeper made a brave block. It was an Old Firm return for Barry Ferguson as McLeish stuck by the side that thumped four goals past Hibernian. But Rangers found Celtic harder to break down and Douglas was not threatened until 10 minutes after the break. Dado Prso turned inside Neil Lennon only for the Celtic goalkeeper to beat away his powerful 18-yard drive. A great defensive header by Andrews prevented Hartson pouncing from five yards out. Hartson foxed Vignal at the edge of the Rangers box, but the striker's shot on the turn was again beaten away by Waterreus. Rangers were beginning to dominate the midfield and Vignal, collecting a knock back from Fernando Ricksen, broke the deadlock, Douglas somehow letting the Frenchman's dipping drive slip through his grasp. Novo pounced on a moments' hesitation in the Celtic defence to latch on to a long ball from Ricksen and lob the ball over the advancing Douglas. Ricksen appeared to be hit by a coin, but it could not prevent Rangers' celebrations at the final whistle.

: Douglas, McNamara, Balde, Varga, Laursen, Petrov, Lennon, Sutton, Thompson, Bellamy, Hartson.

Subs: Marshall, Henchoz, Juninho Paulista, Lambert, Maloney, Wallace, McGeady.

: Waterreus, Hutton, Kyrgiakos, Andrews, Ball, Buffel, Ferguson, Ricksen, Vignal, Prso, Novo.

Subs: McGregor, Namouchi, Burke, Alex Rae, Malcolm, Thompson, Lovenkrands.

: M McCurry
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SFA awaits report over Mikoliunas	"The Scottish Football Association is awaiting referee Hugh Dallas's report before acting against Hearts winger Saulius Mikoliunas.

Mikoliunas, 20, barged linesman Andy Davis, who had advised Dallas to award Rangers an injury-time penalty in Hearts's 2-1 defeat at Tynecastle. ""He was sent off for violent conduct in the 90th minute but we don't know if he did something else after the whistle. ""We don't know how many red cards he was shown,"" said an SFA statement. Hearts could also face action after three fans were arrested for throwing coins on the pitch. Rangers' striker Dad Prso was also sent off during the same incident when he received a second yellow card for wrestling the ball away from Craig Gordon and leaving the Hearts keeper on the ground. The SFA said: ""Once the referee's report comes in then we'll immediately look at things.

""We don't normally get the reports until a couple of days after the game but we're well aware of what happened here. ""Prso was sent off for two cautions, and that will just be a one-match suspension."" The SFA is certain to come down hard on Mikoliunas after Southampton's David Prutton was banned for 10-games on Wednesday by the English FA for shoving referee Alan Wiley. Hearts' boss John Robertson said: ""Mikoliunas has thrown his chest against the assistant referee's chest and got a red card for it. ""The officials have got to take into account the fact he's a young lad. ""But people have got to take into account why he was incensed. Why were 10,000 Hearts fans incensed? ""Why did nobody from the Rangers' bench claim for a penalty kick?"" Rangers' boss Alex McLeish accepted referee Dallas had no option but to send Prso off. McLeish said: ""I'm glad to see the spirit of the players fighting to the very end - literally with Dado trying to get the ball back from Craig Gordon. ""But it was over-zealousness and I don't think Hugh had any option.""
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Palace threat over Cantona masks	"Manchester United fans wearing Eric Cantona masks will not be allowed in Selhurst Park on Saturday.

United fans are planning to mark the 10th anniversary of Cantona's infamous kung-fu kick on Crystal Palace fan Matthew Simmons by wearing the masks. But Palace stadium manager Kevin Corner has warned: ""If they wear them inside Selhurst Park they will be immediately rejected on safety grounds. ""And no fans wearing Cantona masks will be allowed entry to the stadium."" United fans had declared Saturday as 'Cantona Day' and had planned to wear masks, that were popular during the Frenchman's time as a player at the Old Trafford club. Cantona received a nine-month ban following the incident and Palace are keen to avoid an incident that would stir up ill feeling between the two sets of supporters. Four months after the Cantona incident a Palace fan, Paul Nixon, was killed prior to an FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park.
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Legendary Dutch boss Michels dies	"Legendary Dutch coach Rinus Michels, the man credited with developing ""total football"", has died aged 77.

Referred to in the Netherlands as ""the General"", Michels led the Dutch at the 1974 World Cup - when they reached the final only to lose 2-1 to Germany. However, he guided his side to the 1988 European Championship title with a 2-0 win over the Soviet Union in the final. Michels played for Ajax and coached the side to four national titles between 1965-71 and a European Cup in 1971. His 1970s Dutch team was built around Johan Cruyff and Johan Neeskens and introduced the concept of 'total football' to the world. The strategy was to foster team coherence and individual imagination - with all players possessing the skills to play in any part of the pitch. Cruyff was the on-field organiser of a team whose players rotated in and out of defence at will and was encouraged to play creative attacking football. Michels had recently undergone heart surgery and Dutch football federation (KNVB) spokesman Frank Huizinga said: ""He was one of the best coaches we had in history."" The no-nonsense coach also enjoyed spells at Barcelona, who he took to a Spanish title in 1974, FC Cologne and Bayer Leverkusen. Michels, named coach of the century by world football's governing body Fifa in 1999, also won five caps for the Netherlands as a bruising centre forward. Dutch sports minister Clemence Ross-van Dorp said: ""He was the man who, together with Cruyff, made Dutch football big.""
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Jol joy at 'professional' Cup win	"Tottenham manager Martin Jol acclaimed his players for their patience in their 3-0 FA Cup fifth-round victory over a determined Nottingham Forest side.

""We had the initiative but it wasn't easy. It was a professional sort of performance,"" the Dutchman said. ""Forest played with a lot of players behind the ball in the first half, but at 2-0 they were dead and buried."" Looking ahead to the quarter-final, Jol said: ""Newcastle have got a very good side and they are always difficult."" However, he added that his side, who are four places above the Magpies in the Premiership, were ""not afraid of anyone"". Robbie Keane, skipper for the night and scorer of the crucial second goal, echoed his manager's sentiments on the last-eight match. ""They're on a high, but we're confident and in the last few games we've played well and hopefully we can go there and get the win,"" he said.

He conceded the win over Forest, which included goals from Noe Pamarot and Mido, was not pretty to watch. ""It wasn't the best display but it's all about the result,"" the Irishman said. ""We knew it was going to be difficult with the conditions. The pitch wasn't the best but we still tried to pass it. ""We dug in and the gaffer said to us at half-time to keep being patient and that the goal will come."" Forest manager Gary Megson conceded his team did not deserve anything after a poor performance. ""If you play like we did and concede two goals from corners you're going to have an uphill battle against a very good team,"" he said. ""If we defend in the Championship like we did we'll not get another point. ""We were organised but I felt at times we thought the system would be enough but we didn't look like scoring.""
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Owen delighted with Real display	"Michael Owen revelled in his return to the to the Real Madrid starting line-up and inspired a 3-1 win over Real Betis on Wednesday by scoring the first goal.

He said: ""I am happy I could play a game from the start again. ""I felt good all though the game and it is obvious that I am happy to have scored another goal. ""People have talked a lot about my performances and I think I have had some months that were not so good and others that were very good."" Owen, starting his third successive La Liga match, converted a low cross from Santiago Solari. Robert Carlos made it 2-0 at the break, smashing home an indirect free-kick. Midfielder Edu reduced the deficit after half-time but Ivan Helguera headed past keeper Antonio Doblas to seal victory for his team. Victory took Real to within six points of leaders Barcelona and Owen is confident Real can close the gap. He added: ""We had several chances against Betis and I think we can get back in touch with Barcelona. ""It is only six points between Barcelona and us and that is nothing. If we can beat them at the Bernabeu (on 10 April), then it will be just three."" Owen has scored nine league goals, one behind Real's top scorer Ronaldo. Real had lost their previous two league games.
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Ferguson fears Milan cutting edge	"Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said his side's task against AC Milan would not be made any easier by the absence of Andriy Shevchenko.

Milan's talismanic European footballer of the year misses Wednesday's Champions League first-leg tie after fracturing his cheekbone. ""It's a loss (to Milan), but it could be worse if they didn't have such quality to bring in,"" Ferguson said. ""How much they miss him I think they'll know tomorrow night."" Ferguson said Milan's front line would still represent a formidable challenge for his defenders. ""They can play Rui Costa and play Kaka forward. They can bring Serginho in and they can play (Jon Dahl) Tomasson,"" he said. Ferguson's own goalscoring talisman Ruud van Nistelrooy is fit again, but the Scot admitted he was unsure whether to start the Dutchman, who has not played for three months.

""Ruud is the best striker in Europe. What I have to judge is whether he will struggle with the early pace after being out for so long,"" he said. ""His ability puts him in with a big shout but it is a major decision."" Ferguson, though, is confident his young players, particularly Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, are up to the task. ""We have an opportunity to win this cup this year, no question about that,"" he declared. ""With the maturity we see every week in Ronaldo and Rooney, the return of Van Nistelrooy and the form of Roy Keane, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs, we must have a fantastic chance."" It is a view shared by Rooney, who believes ""if we can get past Milan, we have a great chance"". ""As soon as I knew we were playing Milan, I got excited. Looking at the draw, it is anyone's trophy but we have every chance. ""Hopefully, we can get to that final in Turkey and bring the cup back to Manchester."" Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said his team were looking forward to returning to the venue where they lifted Europe's most prestigious club title two seasons ago. Milan beat Juventus in a penalty shootout after a 0-0 tie at Old Trafford and Ancelotti said: ""We are all very happy to return (to Old Trafford) to play in the Champions League and this will give us great motivation."" Ancelotti said he was aware of the threat United posed to his hopes of Champions League glory. ""It's fundamental that we don't allow them to take control of the game. Our intention is not to adapt to their play but to play our game,"" he said. ""They have great quality in attack, they use the wings a lot and we will have to make sure we stop them.""
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Rush future at Chester uncertain	"Ian Rush's future as Chester manager is uncertain after he and assistant Mark Aizlewood refused a severance package.

Chester have won only two of their last 10 League games but Chairman Steve Vaughan claims he cannot afford to sack the 43-year-old Liverpool legend. Vaughan said: ""I offered a financial settlement so they could resign with dignity but an obvious action is to dismiss them. ""I haven't because of the finances, so technically they're still employees."" Vaughan claimed that Aizlewood had ""verbally agreed"" to the offer. But the Chester chairman added: ""After they discussed the offer with their solicitor, who also acts as their agent, they decided to withdraw the verbal agreement, which was disappointing."" Rush was appointed at the end of August following the departure of former Liverpool team-mate Mark Wright, who guided Chester to the Conference title last season. Chester were bottom of League Two when Rush took over but the former Liverpool striker enjoyed an impressive start to managerial life, taking the club into the third round of the FA cup and winning the manager-of-the-month award for October. Chester's downturn in form culminated in a 5-0 defeat at Shrewsbury that leaves them hovering just above the League Two relegation zone.
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Reyes tricked into Real admission	"Jose Antonio Reyes has added to speculation linking him with a move from Arsenal to Real Madrid after falling victim to a radio prank.

The Spaniard believed he was talking to Real Madrid sporting director Emilio Butragueno when he allegedly berated his team-mates as ""bad people"". ""I wish I was playing for Real Madrid,"" the 21-year-old told Cadena Cope. ""Hopefully it could happen. I love the way Madrid play. I'm not happy with the way things are."" The striker joined the Gunners from Seville for £17m at the start of 2004, but it has frequently been reported that he is homesick. He began the season in superb form but has struggled to maintain his high standards as Arsenal have gradually lost the Premiership initiative to Manchester United and Chelsea. ""If I'm not (playing for Real) I'm going to have to carry on playing with some bad people,"" he added.

""I'm sure there are none in the Real dressing room. ""I'm happy Madrid is interested in me because it has always been my dream since I was little to play there."" Before the story surfaced, Reyes had moved to play down reports linking him with the Spanish giants, issuing a statement through Arsenal describing the speculation as ""flattering"". ""I have seen the stories in the media linking me with Real Madrid,"" he had said on Thursday lunchtime. ""But not only am I under contract at Arsenal, I am happy here and committed to helping the team win more trophies."" Butragueno, meanwhile, was angry at being impersonated by the radio disc jockey. ""It is a disgrace, there is no foundation to this,"" he said. ""He is an Arsenal player and we have to be respectful. We have to be careful because of the rumours that appear in the news.""
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Benitez joy as Reds take control	"Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez was satisfied after his team's 3-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen despite conceding a goal in the last minute.

""Before the game if you had said the score will be 3-1 I would have happily accepted that,"" said Benitez. ""But you must realise that you have to concentrate right to the very last seconds of a game at this level. ""I have confidence that we can complete the task in Germany. I am always confident and we must be positive.""

Benitez defended goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, whose failure to hold on to Dimitar Berbatov's weak drive allowed Franca to score with the last kick of the game - and give the German team a lifeline for the second leg. ""For me it was not Jerzy Dudek's fault,"" added Benitez. ""He had played a very good game - and had we scored our other chances, nobody would be talking about about their goal. It would not have mattered. ""If we had scored our other chances it would not have been worth remembering that last goal. ""In my opinion Jerzy played well, made two very fine saves - and I am happy with him. ""If we lose 2-0 we are out but I think we can score in Germany - certainly one, and that will make all the difference."" And the Liverpool boss is looking forward to having skipper Steven Gerrard, who was suspended for the Anfield leg, back for the return in Germany.

""Steven Gerrard is a key player for us,"" said Benitez. ""When he is on the pitch he makes everyone else play better - and the opposition pay special attention to him - which gives space for others. ""Steven is one of the best players in the world, but I need a team that is not about just one player. There must be 11 players on the pitch all doing well.""
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Souness eyes summer move for Owen	"Newcastle boss Graeme Souness is lining up a summer move for England and Real Madrid striker Michael Owen.

He sees Owen as the ideal replacement for Alan Shearer, who is due to retire in the summer, although he hopes to persuade Shearer to carry on. ""Michael is in the category of players who would excite the fans and we're monitoring him,"" he told BBC Newcastle. ""He is a great centre-forward and only 25 but I don't think we're the only ones monitoring the situation at Real."" Souness has also hinted he thinks Shearer may carry on despite his stated intent to retire at the end of the season. He believes the prospect of breaking Jackie Milburn's club scoring record may influence the striker's decision.

Milburn scored 200 league and cup goals between 1946 and 1957, while Shearer currently has 187 goals to his name. ""Without giving too much away, I am confident he will be here next season,"" said Souness. ""I can't imagine him leaving without breaking Jackie Milburn's scoring record."" Souness also revealed he tried to bring back Nolberto Solano during the January transfer window. The Peruvian international was sold to Aston Villa a year ago but in the phone-in for BBC Newcastle, Souness said tried to re-sign him, but Villa were not interested in selling.

The former Rangers and Liverpool boss is also looking to bring in a number of new acquisitions once the current campaign has been completed. ""I'm after three, four or five new players in the summer - we have got lots of targets,"" he said. ""Don't think we will wait to the last day of the season to say: `Who are we going to target now?""'
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Wenger dejected as Arsenal slump	"Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger claimed their display in the 3-1 defeat against Bayern Munich was ""our worst peformance in the Champions League"".

Kolo Toure's late goal gives the Gunners hope for the second leg, but Wenger said: ""The only positive is that we are still in the tie. ""The players are really down in the dressing-room. I feel we really turned in a bad performance. ""At 3-0 we faced a real struggle, but 3-1 at least gives us a chance.""

Goalscorer Toure was also at fault for two goals, and Wenger said: ""We need to help Toure rebuild his confidence as he is low at the moment."" Wenger also tried to stay upbeat himself, adding: ""But there is enough time for crying. I could cry - maybe it would be easier - but life goes on. ""In this job, you have good and bad nights. This was a bad night - but I still have confidence in the quality of my players, as well as their spirit and desire."" But Wenger's Bayern counterpart Felix Magath was in no mood to celebrate either. He said: ""I am far from happy despite the win. My players failed to try and score a fourth to kill the tie and then conceded the late goal.

""Arsenal are fully capable of scoring several goals against us on their own turf."" Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann, whose personal rivalry with Bayern goalkeeper Oliver Kahn was not helped by the result, said: ""Do I blame myself for the third goal? As a goalkeeper, I always blame myself. ""I just know the goals were very easy against us. In my time here, we have never conceded three easy goals like that - but sometimes it happens. ""It would have been impossible to go through at 3-0 - but with the goal we have chances. Everything is now possible.""
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Stam spices up Man Utd encounter	"AC Milan defender Jaap Stam says Manchester United ""know they made a mistake"" by selling him in 2001.

The sides meet at Old Trafford in the Champions League game on Wednesday and the 32-year-old's Dutchman's presence is sure to add spice to the fixture. ""United made a mistake in selling me,"" Stam told Uefa's Champions magazine. ""I was settled at Manchester United, but they wanted to sell me. If a club want to sell you, there is nothing you can do. You can be sold like cattle."" Sir Alex Ferguson surprised the football world - and Stam - by selling the Dutchman to Lazio for £16.5m in August 2001. The decision came shortly after Stam claimed in his autobiography that Ferguson had tapped him up when he was at PSV Eindhoven. But Ferguson insisted he sold the defender because the transfer fee was too good to refuse for a player past his prime. The affair still rankles with the Dutchman.

""I was settled at Manchester United, I had even just ordered a new kitchen, but they wanted to sell me,"" he said. ""In what other industry can a good employee be ushered out the door against their wishes? ""Of course, you can refuse to go, but then the club have the power to put you on the bench. I don't agree that players control the game. ""There have been opportunities to confront them in the newspapers, but I have turned them down. What's the point?""

Wednesday's game at Old Trafford will provide an intriguing confrontation between United's young attackers Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo and Milan's veteran defence of Stam, Paolo Maldini, Cafu and Alessandro Costacurta. Stam says Rooney's teenage stardom is in stark contract to his own start in the game. ""We can't all be Wayne Rooneys - at his age I was training to be an electrician and thought my chance of becoming a professional footballer had gone,"" he said. ""Starting late can be a good thing. Some kids who start early get bored. ""I had my youth - having fun, drinking beers, blowing up milk cannisters. It sounds strange but it's a tradition where I grew up in Kampen - and I had done all the things I wanted to do.""
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Mourinho defiant on Chelsea form	"Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has insisted that Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger would swap places with him.

Mourinho's side were knocked out of the FA Cup by Newcastle last Sunday before seeing Barcelona secure a 2-1 Champions League first-leg lead in the Nou Camp. But he denied his club was suffering a dip in form which league rivals Arsenal and Manchester United could exploit. ""They cannot speak to us about blips because they're not in a better position than us,"" Mourinho said. ""Do they want to change positions with us? We are top of the league by nine points and in the Carling Cup final. ""The only thing they can say they are in a better position than us in is the FA Cup. ""In the Champions League all three teams can either go through or go out but the one team that is in the best position is still Chelsea.""

Mourinho said it was important to keep his team's results in perspective. ""Don't try to put pressure on me because I am never under pressure,"" he warned. ""We have lost one important game this week - at Newcastle - and we're out of the FA Cup but I don't think a defeat in a first-leg tie is a real defeat. We are just 2-1 down at half-time."" Asked if his Chelsea honeymoon was now over, Mourinho replied: ""I have had 20 years of honeymoons with my wife. ""The day that this club is not happy with me is the day that I go.""
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Hodgson relishes European clashes	"Former Blackburn boss Roy Hodgson says the Premiership should follow the rest of Europe and have a winter break - but insists that a gruelling domestic schedule will not damage the English elite's bid for Champions League glory.

Hodgson - now in charge at Viking Stavanger - was at Liverpool's clash with Bayer Leverkusen at Anfield on Tuesday as a member of Uefa's technical committee. Hodgson is a fierce advocate of the winter break employed throughout Europe, although not in England - where the Champions League contenders have ploughed through a heavy fixture list. But Hodgson told BBC Sport that while he believes the Premiership should embrace the idea, he does not expect it to cost the English representatives in the last 16 of the Champions League. ""I just feel it is very difficult to say with certainty that teams who have had the break will have a definite edge. ""I am a fervent supporter of the break. It gives players the chance to recharge their batteries midway through the season, which some suggest will give teams an advantage in the Champions League. ""The other school of thought suggests having a break then coming back to it puts you at a disadvantage. ""The bigger discussions around the winter break should be to do with the nature of football today, the needs of football players and the way the Premiership has developed, rather than one or two matches in the Champions League in February."" Hodgson believes a winter break carries many advantages, explaining: ""As I said, it is the perfect chance to recharge batteries.

""And certainly if I was still a manager in England I would be supporting any calls for its introduction. ""In pre-season you get a lot of enthusiasm and energy but by the time you get towards Christmas many players, having also played plenty of international matches for club and country and travelled a lot, find themselves getting very jaded. ""The break gives them a chance to recover that energy and enthusiasm and, perhaps more importantly, recover their mental strength during the break and get ready for the games ahead. ""The mental side is by far the most important thing."" Hodgson added: ""The length of breaks can vary. In Italy the break was very short. You just took Christmas and New Year. ""It was so short you didn't do anything. You gave the players a week or 10 days off, then you were training for a week or 10 days and then went into a game. ""If it is longer, it is important those responsible for physical fitness give the players a programme to follow to ensure the physical strength they have accumulated stays with them."" And Hodgson believes a winter break would be a positive step in the Premiership. He said: ""If we talk about football at elite level, which the Premiership is, then I would support a winter break. ""If you examine the demands of the Premier League and, in particular on players who play international football for their club and country, then a break would do them the world of good - physically and mentally.""
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Coach Ranieri sacked by Valencia	"Claudio Ranieri has been sacked as Valencia coach just eight months after taking charge at the Primera Liga club for the second time in his career.

The decision was taken at a board meeting following the side's surprise elimination from the Uefa Cup. ""We understand, and he understands, that the results in the last few weeks have not been the most appropriate,"" said club president Juan Bautista. Former assistant Antonio Lopez will take over as the new coach. Italian Ranieri took over the Valencia job in June 2004 having been replaced at Chelsea by Jose Mourinho.

Things began well but the Spanish champions extended their winless streak to six after losing to Racing Santander last weekend. That defeat was then followed by a Uefa Cup exit at the hands of Steaua Bucharest. Ranieri first took charge of Valencia in 1997, guiding them to the King's Cup and helping them to qualify for the Champions League. The 54-year-old then moved to Atletico Madrid in 1999, before joining Chelsea the following year.
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Cole faces lengthy injury lay-off	"Aston Villa's Carlton Cole could be out for six weeks with a knee injury.

The striker, who is on a season-long loan from Chelsea, picked up the knock in an England Under-21 match against Holland earlier this month. ""Carlton will be out of action for four to six weeks after a bad challenge,"" said Villa boss David O'Leary. ""I won't be able to tell you whether he will need an operation until maybe next week. Whether he has an operation has got to be left to Chelsea."" Cole, who also struggled with an ankle problem earlier in the season, was unable to rest because O'Leary had a shortage of strikers. The return to fitness of Darius Vassell after four months out with a broken ankle and the emergence of Luke Moore has alleviated some of the Villa's manager's problems in that department.
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Arsenal through on penalties	"Arsenal win 4-2 on penalties

The Spanish goalkeeper saved from Alan Quinn and Jon Harley as Arsenal sealed a quarter-final trip to Bolton with a 4-2 victory on penalties. Lauren, Patrick Vieira, Freddie Ljungberg and Ashley Cole scored for Arsenal, while Andy Gray and Phil Jagielka were on target for the Blades. Michael Tonge and Harley wasted chances for the underdogs, but Paddy Kenny was inspired to keep Arsenal at bay. Arsenal, stripped of attacking talent such as Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, partnered 17-year-old Italian striker Arturo Lupoli with Ljungberg up front. It was a revamped Arsenal line-up, and they were almost a goal behind within seconds as Tonge wasted a glorious chance. Gray ran free down the right flank, and his cross left Tonge with the simplest of chances, but he blazed over the top from six yards.

Arsenal were barely seen as an attacking force in the opening 45 minutes, although Ljungberg turned a half-chance wide after good work by Cesc Fabregas. Arsene Wenger introduced Quincy Owusu-Abeyie for the ineffective Lupoli at half-time, and the pacy Dutch youngster had an immediate impact. He ran clear after good work by Mathieu Flamini, but his finish was tame and Kenny saved easily. Owusu-Abeyie then fired in a testing cross, which was met by Fabregas, and it needed a desperate clearance by Kenny's legs to save the Blades. Arsenal were now totally dominant, and were desperately unlucky not to take the lead after 62 minutes when Fabregas crashed a rising drive against the bar from 20 yards. It then took a brilliant tackle by Jagielka to deny Ljungberg as he was poised to strike. Arsenal continued to press, and once again Kenny was called into action with eight minutes left, diving low to clutch another close-range effort from Fabregas. Neil Warnock's side almost snatched victory in the dying seconds when Derek Geary's cross found Harley at the far post, but his diving header was brilliantly turned over by Almunia. Owusu-Abeyie's pace was causing all sorts of problems for the Blades, and as extra-time began, another surging run into the penalty area almost set up a chance for Ljungberg. Pascal Cygan missed Arsenal's best chance after 106 minutes, blazing across the face of goal when he was unmarked at the far post. Arsenal sent on Jeremie Aliadiere with seven minutes of extra-time left, and he almost broke the deadlock with his first touch. Kolo Toure's misplaced free-kick landed at his feet, but Kenny once again blocked from a tight angle. Arsenal laid siege to Sheffield United's goal in the dying minutes, but they somehow held on to force penalties. Almunia was then Arsenal's hero as another brave Blades cup campaign came to a losing end.

Kenny, Geary, Morgan, Bromby, Harley, Liddell, Montgomery, Jagielka, Thirlwell, Tonge (Quinn 97), Gray.

Subs Not Used: Francis, Kabba, Shaw, Haystead.

Morgan.

Almunia, Lauren, Cygan, Senderos, Cole, Fabregas (Toure 90), Vieira, Flamini (Aliadiere 113), Clichy, Lupoli (Owusu-Abeyie 45), Ljungberg.

Subs Not Used: Eboue, Taylor.

Clichy, Lauren, Senderos.

27,595

P Dowd (Staffordshire).
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Ajax refuse to rule out Jol move	"Ajax have refused to reveal whether Tottenham's boss Martin Jol is on the Dutch champions' shortlist to become the Amsterdam club's new coach.

Jol, who has coached in his native Holland, has guided Spurs to the Premiership's top eight. An Ajax spokesman told BBC Sport: ""The coach must fit our profile - a coach who understands the Dutch league and offensive and distinctive football. ""We need to find a solution soon, so someone is in place for next season."" Ronald Koeman quit as Ajax boss last week after their exit from the Uefa Cup. Jol has been linked with the vacant post at Ajax, with reports saying he has fallen out with Spurs' sporting director Frank Arnesen. But in a statement on Spurs' website, Jol said: ""I'm happy here, I'm not in discussion with anyone else, I don't want to go elsewhere."" Ajax have enlisted the help of Dutch legend Johann Cruyff, currently a consultant at Barcelona, to help find a new head coach. Cruyff has admitted he has been impressed by the way former RFC Waalwijk coach Jol has turned round Spurs' fortunes since taking over from Jacques Santini. Tonny Bruins Slot and Ruud Krol are currently in charge of Ajax, who are third in the Dutch league.
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Unclear future for striker Baros	"Liverpool forward Milan Baros is uncertain whether he remains part of boss Rafa Benitez's plans after being dropped for the Carling Cup final.

Baros, who is Liverpool's leading scorer this season, denied reports of a row with Benitez but claims he is mystified at being left on the bench. He told Czech newspaper Daily Sport: ""I don't know why I didn't play on Sunday. I didn't argue with anybody. ""I was disappointed but I am not thinking of leaving right now."" The Czech international came on as a substitute after 74 minutes but could not prevent his side losing 3-2 to Chelsea after extra-time.

Baros denied suggestions he wanted to leave the Millennium Stadium before the match upon learning of his omission from the starting line-up. But his admission that he ""guessed something like this was going to happen on Saturday"", will do little to quell claims of a falling-out with Benitez. And although Baros insisted thoughts of quitting Anfield are ""not in my mind right now"", he admitted ""everything is possible"".
"	sport
Prutton poised for lengthy FA ban	"Southampton's David Prutton faces a possible seven-match ban when he goes before the Football Association.

The 23-year-old has admitted two charges of improper conduct following his dismissal against Arsenal. The first charge relates to his failure to leave the field promptly, pushing referee Alan Wiley and remonstrating with assistant referee Paul Norman. And the second charge is for using threatening words and/or behaviour to a match official during the 1-1 draw.

Paolo di Canio was given a seven-match suspension when he pushed referee Paul Alcock over in a Premiership game between Sheffield Wednesday and Arsenal in 1998. Prutton will be joined at Wednesday's hearing by Saints boss Harry Redknapp, who believes that the FA will throw the book at his player. Redknapp himself sprinted along the touchline to help physio Jim Joyce and coach Denis Rofe shepherd the enraged Prutton away from referee's assistant Norman. ""David has made a big mistake and he knows it. I can't condone what he's done. He was out of order but he knows that,"" said Redknapp. ""He's a decent lad. He over-reacted badly for some reason - he had a rush of blood from somewhere. Off the pitch you couldn't meet a nicer lad."" Prutton has apologised publicly for his actions and to Arsenal's Robert Pires, who was injured in a wild tackle by the Saints' midfield man.

He said: ""It's an horrendous situation. I apologise to the ref and linesman, who were only doing their job. ""I've also seen what happened to Pires' leg and I'm sorry for that as well."" ""I apologise for the people who saw it. I know you get lots of kids going to the match now and they don't pay money to see that sort of thing. ""It's not a cop-out, but it was all a bit of a blur. Sometimes you react and it's beyond your control, "" added Prutton.
"	sport
Robben plays down European return	"Injured Chelsea winger Arjen Robben has insisted that he only has a 10% chance of making a return against Barcelona in the Champions League.

The 21-year-old has been sidelined since breaking a foot against Blackburn last month. Chelsea face Barcelona at home on 8 March having lost 2-1 in the first leg. And Robben told the Daily Star: ""It is not impossible that I will play against Barcelona but it is just a very, very small chance - about 10%.""

Robben has been an inspirational player for Chelsea this season following a switch from PSV Einhoven last summer. He added: ""My recovery is going better than we expected a few weeks ago but I think the Barcelona game will come too soon. ""I won't take any risks and come back too soon.""
"	sport
Adriano's Chelsea link rejected	"Adriano's agent Gilmar Rinaldi has insisted that he has had no contact with Chelsea over the striker.

Chelsea were reported to have made inquiries about Inter Milan's 22-year-old Brazilian star. Rinaldi told BBC Sport from Rio de Janeiro: ""I can assure you that Chelsea have had no dealings whatsoever with either me or Adriano. ""Parma and Real Madrid are interested but there's nothing new there. Their interest has been known for some time."" Adriano has scored 14 goals in 20 Serie A appearances this season. And Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho had claimed that he was in Milan talking to Adriano on the day he is alleged to have held a clandestine meeting with Arsenal defender Ashley Cole. Mourinho said he was ""just practising my Portuguese with him because I don't need strikers"". Rinaldi told BBC Sport: ""I have to say that nobody from Chelsea or any other London club has contacted me. ""If they want to, that's fine. I can tell them what the situation is. ""If Chelsea are interested then they must make an offer."" Inter are reported to have slapped a price tag in the region of £40m on the head of Adriano, who joined them just over a year ago from Parma. Real Madrid view him as a natural replacement for compatriot Ronaldo. But Rinaldi said: ""I cannot give you a price that Inter would accept for Adriano. That's something that would have to be negotiated between the interested clubs.""
"	sport
FA decides not to punish Mourinho	"The Football Association will take no action against Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho following his sending-off in Sunday's Carling Cup final.

Mourinho, who was sent from the touchline for appearing to taunt Liverpool fans, has been ""reminded of his responsibilities to the game"". But the FA confirmed: ""There will be no further action taken in this matter."" Mourinho claimed his 'silence' gesture was aimed at the media, although they were on the other side of the ground. The former Porto coach was forced to watch the climax of his side's 3-2 victory over Liverpool on television after being ushered away from the touchline by fourth official Phil Crossley. His gesture came after Chelsea's equaliser on 79 minutes courtesy of a Steven Gerrard own goal. Mourinho still faces an FA investigation into his allegation that Manchester United's players 'cheated' during January's Carling Cup semi-final at Stamford Bridge.

And Uefa could also launch disciplinary action following Mourinho's failure to attend a compulsory post-match press conference after Chelsea's Champions League defeat at Barcelona last week. In addition, some time this month, Chelsea must also answer a charge of failing to control their players during the Premiership win at Blackburn in February. And a charge of failing to control their supporters following a Carling Cup meeting with West Ham earlier this season is still to be heard. The Premier League is also continuing investigations into allegations Chelsea officials tapped up Arsenal defender Ashley Cole in January.
"	sport
Aragones angered by racism fine	"Spain coach Luis Aragones is furious after being fined by The Spanish Football Federation for his comments about Thierry Henry.

The 66-year-old criticised his 3000 euros (£2,060) punishment even though it was far below the maximum penalty. ""I am not guilty, nor do I accept being judged for actions against the image of the sport,"" he said. ""I'm not a racist and I've never lacked sporting decorum. I've never done that and I have medals for sporting merit."" Aragones was handed the fine on Tuesday after making racist remarks about Henry to Arsenal team-mate and Spanish international Jose Reyes last October.

The Spanish Football Federation at first declined to take action against Aragones, but was then requested to do so by Spain's anti-violence commission. The fine was far less than the expected amount of about £22,000 or even the suspension of his coaching licence. Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who was fined £15,000 in December for accusing Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy of cheating, believes that Aragones' punishment was too lenient. ""You compare his fine and my fine, and if you consider his was for racist abuse, then you seem to get away with it more in Spain than you should,"" Wenger said. ""He shouldn't have said what he said, and how much money is enough, I don't know but it doesn't look a big punishment."" However, Aragones insists the fine is unjustified and unfair. ""I have been treated like Islero (the bull that killed famous bullfighter Manolete),"" said Aragones on hearing he had been fined for his actions. ""I have not liked one thing about this whole affair and I do not agree with the sanction. They have looked for a scapegoat."" Spain's anti-violence commission must now ratify the Spanish FA's decision and has until next week to announce its verdict. Aragones has 10 days to appeal, and the commission can also appeal. Alberto Flores, president of the Spanish FA's disciplinary committee, said no-one in the committee felt Aragones was a racist nor had ""acted in a racist way."" ""A fine, the highest we could apply, is sufficient punishment. Suspension would have been a bit exaggerated,"" Flores told sports daily Marca.
"	sport
Boro suffer Morrison injury blow	"Middlesbrough midfielder James Morrison has been ruled out for up to eight weeks after an operation on Tuesday.

The 18-year-old, who has played in 13 of the club's last 14 games, had surgery to repair a double hernia. A club spokesman confirmed: ""It is a bilateral sportsman's hernia, which was operated on yesterday."" Morrison was sent for scans after being substituted at half-time during Boro's 2-1 UEFA Cup win over Graz AK in which he scored the equaliser. His injury is the latest blow for the Teessiders, who have been without Gaizka Mendieta, George Boateng and Mark Viduka for extended periods. Meanwhile, the kick-off time for Boro's Uefa Cup match at Sporting Lisbon on 17 March has been brought forward from 2115 GMT to 1945 GMT.
"	sport
Mourinho receives Robson warning	"Sir Bobby Robson has offered Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho some advice on coping under pressure.

The pair worked together at Barcelona and Porto and Robson had a word of warning for his protege. ""It has all gone for him just lately and that is marvellous, but sometimes you have to have a bit of humility and learn how to lose,"" said Robson. ""It is when it goes against you and you get a bit of bad luck that you learn, and he'll get it straight."" Robson was speaking after being formally granted the freedom of the city of Newcastle. ""Jose is doing very well at the moment,"" Robson added of the man who worked for him for six years. ""He has got one pot - possibly two to follow - a big game against Barcelona to come and I cannot see them losing their lead in the Premiership. ""They are in a good position and I would expect them to go on and win it, which is a wonderful achievement.

""What has occurred over the last couple of weeks will stand him in very good stead for the future. If he is intelligent, he will take it on board - and he is very intelligent. ""He will have learned more in the last fortnight than the last eight months. Before that, it was all about winning."" Robson also admitted he would relish the chance to get back into management and test his skills against Mourinho. ""I am not in a hurry to take the wrong job, but I am ready to take the right job and I feel there is another job in me,"" he added. ""I know the area I am capable of working in and of course I would like a job in the Premiership if one was available. ""It would not worry me if I had to pit my wits against Jose. ""But it is not just a case of him and me against one another. It would be his team against my team - but I would not be afraid of that.""
"	sport
QPR keeper Day heads for Preston	"Queens Park Rangers keeper Chris Day is set to join Preston on a month's loan.

Day has been displaced by the arrival of Simon Royce, who is in his second month on loan from Charlton. QPR have also signed Italian Generoso Rossi. R's manager Ian Holloway said: ""Some might say it's a risk as he can't be recalled during that month and Simon Royce can now be recalled by Charlton. ""But I have other irons in the fire. I have had a 'yes' from a couple of others should I need them.""

Day's Rangers contract expires in the summer. Meanwhile, Holloway is hoping to complete the signing of Middlesbrough defender Andy Davies - either permanently or again on loan - before Saturday's match at Ipswich. Davies impressed during a recent loan spell at Loftus Road. Holloway is also chasing Bristol City midfielder Tom Doherty.
"	sport
Cudicini misses Carling Cup final	"Chelsea goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini will miss Sunday's Carling Cup final after the club dropped their appeal against his red card against Newcastle.

The Italian was sent off for bringing down Shola Ameobi in the final minute of Sunday's match. Blues boss Jose Mourinho had promised to pick Cudicini for the final instead of first-choice keeper Petr Cech. The 31-year-old will now serve a one-match suspension commencing with immediate effect.

Cudicini kept a club record 24 clean sheets last season for Chelsea, but Petr Cech has established himself as first choice for Mourinho since moving to Stamford Bridge in summer 2004. The 22-year-old Czech Republic international has set a new Premiership record of 961 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal, a mark which is still running. But Mourinho has used Cudicini regularly in the Carling Cup, and the Italian has only let in one goal in his four appearances during Chelsea's run to the final.
"	sport
Beattie return calms attack fears	"Everton striker James Beattie has been declared fit for training on Tuesday, despite suffering an alleged assault last Saturday.

Beattie, 27, is not believed to be as seriously hurt as some reports have suggested after being ""the victim of an unprovoked assault"" in Birmingham. He was on a night out with his girlfriend and two friends following Everton's 3-1 win over Aston Villa. ""He was shaken but not badly injured,"" said Everton spokesman Ian Ross. He added: ""He did speak to the police but will not be pressing charges. ""He has spoken to manager David Moyes about what happened."" Beattie was suspended for the win at Aston Villa after his red card against Chelsea and he will be available again for the Merseyside derby at Liverpool on 20 March.
"	sport
Keegan hails comeback king Fowler	"Manchester City boss Kevin Keegan has praised striker Robbie Fowler for his landmark return to form.

The 29-year-old, out of favour at City earlier this season, took his Premiership goal tally past 150 with a brace in Monday's 3-2 win at Norwich. ""He is still a quality player and knows where the net is - we have just got to supply him with ammunition and, in the end, we did,"" Keegan said. ""He has worked hard to get back to where he is now."" The former Liverpool striker, who moved to City in 2003 after a poor stint at Leeds, has battled back into first-team contention after struggling with fitness at the start of the season.

Fowler overtook Les Ferdinand on Tuesday evening to become the third highest scorer of all time in the Premiership, with 151 goals, and he only trails Alan Shearer (250) and Andy Cole (173). And Keegan believes there is still more to come from the former England forward. ""He can get better if we can supply him better,"" added Keegan. ""People want to write him off but if he has kept the articles of those people who have written him off he could throw them back at them and they would be left with a bit of egg on their face."" Fowler's double strike helped City come back from two goals down to clinch a dramatic win at Carrow Road and Keegan sympathised with Norwich boss Nigel Worthington afterwards. ""I feel a bit for Nigel Worthington,"" he said. ""His team have got great character, they have a lot of drive and enthusiasm. ""I know it is a killer blow for Norwich but I really think they have brought something to the Premiership. ""The stadium and the atmosphere is great, it is just a tough league to stay in - as they are finding out and as we know.""
"	sport
Thompson says Gerrard should stay	"Liverpool legend Phil Thompson has pleaded with Steve Gerrard to reject any overtures from Chelsea.

The ex-Reds assistant boss also warned that any honours won at Chelsea would be cheapened by the bid to buy success. He told BBC Radio Five Live: ""Liverpool would think about any bid made but it will all be down to Steve in the end. ""But it wouldn't have that same sweet feeling at Chelsea, where it's all money-orientated and about simply buying the best."" Thompson reacted sharply to some Liverpool supporters, who criticised Gerrard's performance in the Carling Cup final against Chelsea. A number of fans questioned Gerrard's commitment and sarcastically branded his own goal in Liverpool's 3-2 defeat as his first goal for Chelsea.

Thompson added: ""I heard those comments from so-called supporters and they were diabolical, absolutely outrageous. ""Stevie carried the club last year and this year. He's always put Liverpool first."" Thompson, who savoured seven title-winning seasons and two European Cup triumphs during his Anfield playing career, is confident that the lure of Champions League football will keep Gerrard at Anfield. ""I hope Champions League football will beckon for Liverpool - either as winners or as finishing fourth in the Premiership - and he will commit himself. ""There has been a lot of soul-searching the way things have gone lately. ""I hope he's hardening to the fact he will have big decisions to make but I hope it is to the benefit of Steven Gerrard and I hope it is worthwhile for Liverpool.""
"	sport
Cole refuses to blame van Persie	"Ashley Cole has refused to blame Robin van Persie for leaving Arsenal with no fully-fit strikers for the FA Cup fifth round replay at Sheffield United.

Van Persie is suspended alongside Dennis Bergkamp and Jose Antonio Reyes after being sent off at Southampton when Arsenal had a numerical advantage. Thierry Henry is ruled out with an Achilles tendon injury but Cole said: ""No-one is putting the blame on Robin. ""It's just something that happens on the spur of the moment."" Cole added: ""I've done it before and I hope they didn't blame me for anything. ""Of course he'll learn. I've been sent off a couple of times now and it's just one of those things when you go a bit crazy for one or two seconds. Freddie Ljungberg is likely to be used in an emergency striking role and will be partnered by either Arturo Lupoli, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie or Jeremie Aliadiere. Gunners boss Arsene Wenger said: ""Freddie is an option but we need a second striker. ""I have to decide whether it will be Aliadiere, Quincy or Lupoli who will start with him up front. Those three will be involved."" Arsenal are also without winger Robert Pires, who sustained an ankle injury at St Mary's. Wenger added: ""It doesn't look like anything is fractured, but it is a good ankle sprain. ""It does not look like Pires will be ready for two to three weeks.""
"	sport
Blackburn v Burnley	"Ewood Park

Tuesday, 1 March

2000 GMT

Howard Webb (South Yorkshire)

home to Leicester in the quarter-finals

But defender Andy Todd is suspended and could be replaced by Dominic Matteo - if he recovers from a hamstring injury. Burnley have major injury concerns over Frank Sinclair and John McGreal. Michael Duff looks set to continue at right-back with John Oster in midfield and Micah Hyde is expected to recover from a knee injury.

- Blackburn boss Mark Hughes: ""Burnley are resolute and have individual talent but I fully expect us to progress. ""I thought we were comfortable in the first game and never thought we were under pressure. ""It's a competition we want to progress in and we are doing okay. If we beat Burnley, we have a home tie against another lower league club (Leicester)."" 
 - Burnley boss Steve Cotterill: ""They will be fresh and we'll be tired. That is an honest opinion but our lads just might be able to get themselves up for one more big game. ""The atmosphere at the last game was very hot - a good verbal contest. ""Our fans will not need whipping up for this game. I just want them to help us as much as they can in a positive way."" KEY MATCH STATS 
 - BLACKBURN ROVERS against Bolton is part two of an East Lancashire hotpot that didn't turn out to be that spicy when first staged on a Sunday lunchtime the weekend before last, and resulted in a scrappy goalless draw. 
 - Rovers, who are aiming to win the Cup for a seventh time in their history and first time in 77 years, face another replay against Championship opposition after eventually disposing of Cardiff at Ewood Park in the third round. But they've not been beaten in the competition by a club outside the Premiership for nine years, since Ipswich - then in the second tier - defeated them 0-1 after extra time in a third round replay at Ewood Park on 16 January 1996. History is on Rovers side. When they last met their near neighbours in the FA Cup 45 years ago, it also required an Ewood Park replay, which the home side won 2-0, and when they last met in the League, Rovers did the double. They first won their Nationwide Division One trip to Turf Moor 0-2 four seasons ago, and then thrashed the Clarets on home soil 5-0. 
 - Manager Mark Hughes, who won the Cup four times as a player, is aiming to steer Rovers into the quarter-finals for the second time in 12 years, and first time since the 2000/2001 season. Success here, and victory home to Leicester in the next round, could see Rovers in the semi-finals without having played Premiership opposition. 
 - BURNLEY make the eight mile journey to their fierce rivals, determined to send Blackburn the same way as Liverpool in the third round. But having failed to pull off another shock at Turf Moor, it could be that the Championship outfit - 17 places inferior on the League ladder - have missed their best opportunity. Having said that, Burnley are yet to concede a goal in this Cup run. 
 - Steve Cotterills' Clarets have been knocked out in the fifth round four times in the last seven years, and have made only one appearance in the sixth round in 21 years. That was in the season before last, when they disposed of Premiership Fulham at this fifth round stage. 
 - While Blackburn have not played since the fifth round tie, Burnley have had two League outings away from home, drawing 1-1 at Derby and losing 1-0 at Preston. That takes their winless run to four games. The combatants from one-time prosperous mill towns, are both founder members of the Football League. HEAD TO HEAD

16th PREM

WINNERS (six times)

13th Championship

WINNERS (once)
"	sport
Brentford v Southampton	"Griffin Park

Tuesday, 1 March

1945 GMT

Barry Knight (Kent)

home to Manchester United in the quarter-finals

Midfielder Andrew Frampton and striker Deon Burton are both slight doubts with hamstring injuries, but should be fit Saints are missing their entire first-choice midfield of Jamie Redknapp, Graeme Le Saux, Nigel Quashie and David Prutton. Anders Svensson and Matt Oakley are likely replacements with Kevin Phillips also scheduled to start, with Henri Camara rested.

- Brentford boss Martin Allen: ""After conceding eight goals in our last three matches, I have to admit I'm not very confident. ""There's no doubt we're the underdogs and after defending so poorly recently it's not looking good. ""Southampton have just drawn with the Premiership champions and that makes our task harder than it was already."" 
 - Southampton boss Harry Redknapp: ""We know they can give us problems. ""Brentford have done well but we are the Premiership side and should have the better players. ""Staying in the Premiership is our priority. We want to win, of course we do. We'll battle but if it comes to a football match I think we'll win."" KEY MATCH STATS 
 - BRENTFORD are the lowest ranked club left in the FA Cup. They're on their best run in the competition since reaching the quarter-finals for the fourth time in their history 16 years ago. Now they have the carrot of the plum draw in the last eight dangling before them. Victory over Premiership strugglers Southampton, would bring the mighty Manchester United to Griffin Park and a gigantic pay day for the sole League One survivors. 
 - Martin Allen's brave side came back from two goals down at St Mary's to earn a deserved replay. Southampton striker Henri Camara scored twice from close range to put the Saints in command, but Isaiah Rankin hit back just before half time, and Sam Sodje headed past a creaky defence on 58 minutes. 
 - The Londoners have conceded six goals in their two subsequent League outings - three each in losing away to Hartlepool and drawing at home to Sheffield Wednesday. But they haven't lost in six League and Cup games on home turf - winning three and drawing three since the reverse to Torquay on Boxing Day. 
 - SOUTHAMPTON go into this tie on the back of an eventful Premiership match with Arsenal on Saturday. An angry David Prutton pushed referee Alan Wiley after being shown the red card, but his side still came back to draw 1-1. It was Saints' fourth stalemate in succession in all competitions, but didn't lift them out of the relegation zone. The retention of their ever present Premier League status must be the number one priority, irrespective of the rewards that success against Brentford would bring. 
 - Victory here would set up a repeat of the 1976 final, when Saints astounded the football world by defeating Tommy Docherty's Manchester United courtesy of Bobby Stokes' famous winner. They also knocked out the Red Devils in 1991 on penalties in the fourth round. But to write another chapter in their FA Cup history, the Solent side must avoid succumbing to lower division opposition for the first time since Rotherham, from the second level, beat them 2-1 in a third round tie at Millmoor on 16 January 2002. Southampton were last humbled by a club from the third tier six years ago. Fulham were then in the Second Division, when they won a third round replay at Craven Cottage 1-0 on 13 January 1999. 
 - To get to within two matches of a second visit to the Millennium Stadium in three years for the final, Harry Redknapp must guide his side past a club 36 places inferior on the League ladder, and a manager 19 years his junior, who played under him at West Ham. HEAD TO HEAD

10th League One

QUARTER-FINALS (four times)

18th PREM

WINNERS (once)
"	sport
Desailly backs Blues revenge trip	"Marcel Desailly insists there is no chance of history repeating itself when Chelsea take on Barcelona on Wednesday.

The French star was part of the Chelsea side crushed 5-1 at the Nou Camp in the Champions League quarter-final second leg in 2000. ""Things will be totally different this time,"" he told BBC Sport. ""Now everyone knows about Chelsea and is a little bit afraid of them. They are one of the major clubs in Europe and the pressure will be on Barcelona."" Chelsea have not played Barcelona since that quarter-final tie five years ago. The Blues had looked destined to progress after winning the first leg at Stamford Bridge 3-1, courtesy of two goals from Tore Andre Flo and one by Gianfranco Zola. But they collapsed in the second leg, going down to strikes from Rivaldo (2), Luis Figo, Dani and Patrick Kluivert.

Former Chelsea captain Desailly, who is now playing for Al-Gharafa in Qatar, says there is no comparison between that side and the current Blues team, who are top of the Premiership. ""Mentally they are much stronger, even though a lot of their players are young,"" the 36-year-old said. ""We made some mistakes at the Nou Camp in 2000 - a lot of them were individual mistakes. ""It would not happen now. This team has a new motivation and a different mentality."" World Cup winner Desailly saw huge changes during his time at Stamford Bridge. He was signed for £4.6m from AC Milan in 1998 by Ruud Gullit and went on to play under Gianluca Vialli and Claudio Ranieri. But the biggest change occurred when billionaire Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003. Desailly says the Russian's arrival helped to instil a winning mentality at the club as well as a demand for success. ""The whole of Chelsea is different now - the chairman, the manager and all the players,"" he said.

""Everything is new and there is a huge determination to win. ""Since that game in 2000, Chelsea have gained more experience in Europe and were very close to reaching the Champions League final last season."" Desailly is one of the most decorated players in the history of football. He won the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship with France, the Champions League in 1993 with Marseilles and 1994 with AC Milan, two Serie A titles and the FA Cup in 2000 with Chelsea. He is now winding down his career in Qatar, alongside the likes of Frank Lebeouf, Josep Guardiola, Titi Camara, Gabriel Batistuta and Christophe Dugarry. So he is full of admiration for two of his colleagues from the great Milan side of the mid-90s who are likely to line up against Manchester United on Wednesday - Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta. ""I'm happy that they have managed to play so long at a high level,"" he said. ""I made a vow to Costacurta that as long as he plays, I will continue to play. ""And it's amazing that Paolo has managed to play at such a high level for such a long time.""
"	sport
Desailly backs Blues revenge trip	"Marcel Desailly insists there is no chance of history repeating itself when Chelsea take on Barcelona on Wednesday.

The French star was part of the Chelsea side crushed 5-1 at the Nou Camp in the Champions League quarter-final second leg in 2000. ""Things will be totally different this time,"" he told BBC Sport. ""Now everyone knows about Chelsea and is a little bit afraid of them. They are one of the major clubs in Europe and the pressure will be on Barcelona."" Chelsea have not played Barcelona since that quarter-final tie five years ago. The Blues had looked destined to progress after winning the first leg at Stamford Bridge 3-1, courtesy of two goals from Tore Andre Flo and one by Gianfranco Zola. But they collapsed in the second leg, going down to strikes from Rivaldo (2), Luis Figo, Dani and Patrick Kluivert.

Former Chelsea captain Desailly, who is now playing for Al-Gharafa in Qatar, says there is no comparison between that side and the current Blues team, who are top of the Premiership. ""Mentally they are much stronger, even though a lot of their players are young,"" the 36-year-old said. ""We made some mistakes at the Nou Camp in 2000 - a lot of them were individual mistakes. ""It would not happen now. This team has a new motivation and a different mentality."" World Cup winner Desailly saw huge changes during his time at Stamford Bridge. He was signed for £4.6m from AC Milan in 1998 by Ruud Gullit and went on to play under Gianluca Vialli and Claudio Ranieri. But the biggest change occurred when billionaire Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003. Desailly says the Russian's arrival helped to instil a winning mentality at the club as well as a demand for success. ""The whole of Chelsea is different now - the chairman, the manager and all the players,"" he said.

""Everything is new and there is a huge determination to win. ""Since that game in 2000, Chelsea have gained more experience in Europe and were very close to reaching the Champions League final last season."" Desailly is one of the most decorated players in the history of football. He won the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship with France, the Champions League in 1993 with Marseilles and 1994 with AC Milan, two Serie A titles and the FA Cup in 2000 with Chelsea.

He is now winding down his career in Qatar, alongside the likes of Frank Lebeouf, Josep Guardiola, Titi Camara, Gabriel Batistuta and Christophe Dugarry. So he is full of admiration for two of his colleagues from the great Milan side of the mid-90s who are likely to line up against Manchester United on Wednesday - Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta. ""I'm happy that they have managed to play so long at a high level,"" he said. ""I made a vow to Costacurta that as long as he plays, I will continue to play. ""And it's amazing that Paolo has managed to play at such a high level for such a long time.""
"	sport
Mourinho expects fight to finish	"Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho expects the Champions League clash with Barcelona to be a fight to the finish.

Mourinho is relishing the first leg of the tie against his former club in the last 16 in the Nou Camp. He said: ""I wouldn't be surprised if nothing had been decided by the last minute of the return leg and the match had to go into extra time. ""I have to defend what is mine and the Champions League is mine at the moment. I'm the last manager to have won it."" Mourinho never coached Barcelona, assisting both Sir Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal. But he is not envious, insisting: ""I don't have to be jealous about Barcelona because they have 100 years of history and have won the European Cup once.

""I have been managing for five years and I have the same amount of Champions League trophies to my name."" Barcelona star Ronaldinho admitted: ""I think that it is going to be a difficult match for us because Chelsea have a good team full of big stars. ""I have seen Chelsea a few times on television, tactically they are very good and they are very strong on the counter-attack. ""They pressure very well and keep possession of the ball so it will be important that we play our own game. ""I believe they are the two strongest teams in Europe. Nevertheless, Barcelona are accustomed to playing big games at the Nou Camp, where they have to face the likes of Real Madrid each season. ""It is a special game, the atmosphere in the city changes, there are lots of journalists but inside the dressing room there is not a lot of difference,"" Ronaldinho added. ""We are only thinking of winning the match with all respect to the opposition.""
"	sport
Cup holders Man Utd visit Everton	"Holders Manchester United and Premiership leaders Chelsea both face difficult away ties against Premiership opposition in the FA Cup fifth round.

United were drawn against Everton, while Chelsea face a trip to Newcastle. Brentford and Hartlepool - the only sides left from outside the top two divisions - will replay for the right to travel to Southampton. Burnley's reward for a place in the last 16 was a home tie against Lancashire rivals Blackburn. The tie between Manchester United and Everton could see the return of teenage striker Wayne Rooney to his former club for the first time since his acrimonious £27m move.

Nottingham Forest boss Gary Megson could face a trip back to old club West Brom if they come through their fourth-round replay against Tottenham. Arsenal were handed a potential home tie against fellow Londoners West Ham, providing the Hammers come through their replay against Sheffield United. Charlton will play Leicester and Bolton await the winners of the Derby-Fulham replay.

: Bolton v Derby or Fulham

West Bromwich Albion or Tottenham v Nottingham Forest

Everton v Manchester United

Charlton Athletic v Leicester City

Burnley v Blackburn

Southampton v Brentford or Hartlepool

Newcastle v Chelsea

Arsenal v West Ham or Sheffield United

Ties to be played on 19/20 February.
"	sport
Candela completes Bolton switch	"Bolton boss Sam Allardyce has signed Roma defender Vincent Candela on a five-month deal.

The 31-year-old former France international gave his last press conference as a Roma player on Monday, anouncing his move to Bolton. ""I have signed a five-month contract with Bolton,"" said Candela, who will travel to England on Tuesday. ""In June I will decide whether to continue to play for Bolton or retire from professional football."" Allardyce hopes Candela's arrival will relieve Bolton's injury crisis after defender Nicky Hunt limped out injured during Oldham's 1-0 win against Oldham in the FA Cup on Sunday. ""In light of what has happened to Nicky Hunt, with his injury, it might be a blessing in disguise that we can bring in a highly-experienced full-back to help with our injuries at the back,"" Allardyce said. ""He has an outstanding pedigree in the game and has won honours at the highest level including the World Cup in 1998. ""He has not played regular football this year but is eager to impress in the Premiership. ""He can play in any position at the back and despite him being predominately right-footed he has played the majority of his career at left-back."" Candela, who was a member of the Roma side that won the title in 2001, has made only seven league appearances this season for Luigi del Neri's side.
"	sport
Stuart joins Norwich from Addicks	"Norwich have signed Charlton midfielder Graham Stuart until the end of the season for an undisclosed fee.

""It was a very easy decision to make,"" the 34-year-old told Norwich's website. ""The attraction for me was to continue to play in the Premiership."" Canaries boss Nigel Worthington added: ""I'm delighted that Graham will be joining us until the end of the season. ""He's gives us a wealth of experience. Hopefully, he can be part of keeping us in the Premier League."" Stuart has extensive top-flight experience with Everton, Chelsea and Charlton and can play across the midfield positions. He joins Norwich with the Norfolk club second-from-bottom in the Premiership, but Stuart is confident that the Carrow Road outfit have a bright future. ""I've been very impressed with the facilities here. It's obviously a very well run football club with excellent facilities and I've always enjoyed playing at Carrow Road,"" he added. ""It's a nice compact ground with a good atmosphere and hopefully I can help give the fans something else to cheer.""

Stuart, a former England Under-21 international, made 110 appearances for Chelsea, scoring 18 goals, before joining Everton. He won the FA Cup with the Toffees in 1995 and remains a hero at Goodison Park after his 81st-minute winner against Wimbledon saved Everton from relegation in 1994. Stuart spent just over four years at Goodison Park, making 125 senior appearances and scoring 25 goals, before signing for Sheffield United - where he scored 12 goals in 68 appearances. After signing for Charlton he made 164 appearances, scoring 23 times, but recently he has been battling a back problem and had not played for the Londoners for three months before heading to Norwich.
"	sport
Celtic make late bid for Bellamy	"Newcastle striker Craig Bellamy is discussing a possible short-term loan move to Celtic, BBC Sport understands.

The Welsh striker has rejected a move to Birmingham after falling out with Magpies manager Graeme Souness. The Toon boss vowed Bellamy would not play again after a bitter row over his exclusion for the game against Arsenal. Celtic are in no position to match Birmingham's £6m offer but a stay until the end of the season could suit Bellamy while he considers his future. According to Bellamy's agent, the player dismissed a permanent move to Birmingham. And it is unlikely that Newcastle would allow the player to go on loan to another Premiership club.

Bellamy was fined two weeks' wages after a live TV interview in which he accused Souness of lying, following a very public dispute about what position Bellamy should play in the side. Souness said: ""He can't play for me ever again. He has been a disruptive influence from the minute I walked into this football club. ""He can't go on television and accuse me of telling lies."" Chairman Freddy Shepherd described Bellamy's behaviour as ""totally unacceptable and totally unprofessional"".
"	sport
Campbell lifts lid on United feud	"Arsenal's Sol Campbell has called the rivalry between Manchester United and the Gunners ""bitter and personal"".

Past encounters have stirred up plenty of ill-feeling between the sides and they meet again at Highbury on Tuesday. ""It is just more bitter and personal against United,"" the defender told The Guardian newspaper. ""There's an edge. ""After all that has happened, if we beat them it will be one of our sweetest ever wins, especially because of how we lost to them up there."" Last October, Arsenal lost 2-0 at Old Trafford, which ended a record 49-match unbeaten league run and sparked a mini-crisis, with the Gunners winning only three of their next 10 games.

""It had a psychological impact on us, but again because of the way we were defeated,"" added the 30-year-old, referring to a controversial penalty award for United's first goal. ""That was far more upsetting, losing like that, because they just seem to get away with it. You try and balance out over the course of a season but I've had so many rough decisions against them you begin to wonder."" With tensions spilling over afterwards - United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was allegedly pelted with pizza in the players' tunnel - there is little surprise that so much is riding on the return encounter on. ""Everyone at Arsenal has been waiting for this game,"" said Campbell. ""We are up for this one.""

Speaking on his long-term plans, Campbell signalled his intent to move abroad before he turns 35. ""I'm 30 now and in five years' time I won't be in this country - that's definite. ""Italy looks good to me because it would suit my kind of football. Spain is an option but the idea of tasting a new culture and learning another language excites me the most. I'm starting a little with French, of course.""
"	sport
Rovers reject third Ferguson bid	"Blackburn have rejected a third bid from Rangers for Scotland captain Barry Ferguson, BBC Sport has learnt.

It is thought Blackburn want £6m for the midfielder but chief executive John Williams has confirmed the club are still ""in dialogue"" with Rangers. The 26-year-old has already handed in a transfer request at Ewood Park as he seeks a return to Ibrox. But the clubs have been unable to reach agreement over a fee for Ferguson, who moved to Lancashire in 2003 for £6.5m. On Thursday Rangers said they would not be increasing their offer of £4m.

Blackburn have said all along that they want £6m for the midfielder and Williams has rejected proposals from Rangers over a player-swap deal. Williams said: ""We are in dialogue with Glasgow Rangers but we have no agreement."" The negotiations will have to be concluded by midnight on Monday, when the winter transfer window shuts. Williams conceded any deal for Ferguson was looking ""unlikely"" before the close of the transfer window but Rangers still had a chance to seal the deal. ""We have no comment to make other than we have not got an agreement with Glasgow Rangers,"" he added. ""The way things are looking, I think it is unlikely we are going to. ""The ball is in their court but we have not got an offer that is acceptable at this moment."" It is understood that Blackburn accepted a £5m offer for Ferguson from Everton at the weekend. But the player is determined to return to Scotland and rejected a move to Goodison Park. Ferguson did not play in the FA Cup win over Colchester on Saturday despite recovering from a groin injury with Rovers boss Mark Hughes claiming it had been an ""emotional and difficult time"" for the player.
"	sport
SA return to Mauritius	"Top seeds South Africa return to the scene of one of their most embarrassing failures when they face the Seychelles in the Cosafa Cup next month.

Last year Bafana Bafana were humbled in the first by minnows Mauritius who beat them 2-0 in Curepipe. Coach Stuart Baxter and his squad will return to Curepipe face the Seychelles in their first game of the new-look regional competition. The format of the event has been changed this year after the entry of the Seychelles, who have taken the number of participants to 13. The teams are now divided into three group of four and play knock-out matches on successive days to determine the group champions. Mauritius host the first group, and their opponents are Madagascar, the Seychelles and South Africa. Bafana Bafana play the Seychelles before Mauritius take on Madagascar in a double-header on 26 February. The two winners return to the New George V stadium the next day and the victor of the group decider advances to August's final mini-tournament. The second group will be hosted in Namibia in April. It comprises Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique and the hosts. In June, former champions Zambia will host Lesotho, Malawi and Swaziland in the third group in Lusaka. The three group winners will then join title holders Angola for the last of the mini-tournaments in August, where the winners will be crowned.

Seychelles v South Africa

Mauritius v Madagascar

Winners meet in final match

Mozambique v Zimbabwe

Namibia v Botswana

Winners meet in final match

Lesotho v Malawi

Zambia v Swaziland

Winners meet in final match
"	sport
Tottenham bid £8m for Forest duo	"Nottingham Forest have confirmed they have received an £8m bid from Tottenham for Andy Reid and Michael Dawson.

Reid rejected a move to Southampton after Forest accepted a cash-plus-players offer while Spurs had made previous bids for the 22-year-old. Spurs had also made an undisclosed offer for 21-year-old defender Dawson. Forest chief executive Mark Arthur said: ""We've received an £8m bid from Spurs for the two players and we're considering the offer."" Southampton's offer for Republic of Ireland international Reid comprised £3m-plus and two players - Brett Ormerod and Darren Kenton.

Spurs had seen previous bids of £3m, £4m and £5m for Reid rejected by the Championship club.
"	sport
Redknapp's Saints face Pompey tie	"New Southampton manager Harry Redknapp faces an immediate reunion with his old club Portsmouth after they were drawn together in the FA Cup fourth round.

Exeter City face a home tie against Middlesbrough if they can see off holders Manchester United in a replay. Oldham's reward for beating Manchester City is a home tie with Bolton, while Yeovil will be away to Charlton. Chelsea host Birmingham, Tottenham travel to West Brom and Arsenal will entertain Championship side Wolves. Saints boss Redknapp was upbeat about the draw despite having to face the club he walked out on just six weeks ago. ""I've said before, I can walk away from Portsmouth with my head held high, I'm proud of what I did there and no one can take that away from me,"" said Redknapp. ""Maybe I'll be in for some stick, there's always some of that but we'll get on with it and it's only a game of football."" Birmingham manager Steve Bruce admitted their trip to Stamford Bridge to face Premiership leaders Chelsea was the toughest draw possible. Bruce said: ""I'm still in shock. We've given good accounts of ourselves against Chelsea in the past and played well when we lost 1-0 at home at the start of the season - but that's the past. ""But it's the best competition in the world as far as I am concerned and we will give it our best shot."" Brentford boss Martin Allen remained cautious despite his side's favourable draw - a home tie with either Hartlepool or Boston. ""The best thing is, it's a home game. However, we know that whoever we play it is going to be a really tough game,"" said Allen. ""But it's not about the opposition, it's about us. We all want to get through to the next round and face a massive team, that's the way it is.""

Meanwhile, the BBC has confirmed it will be televising Exeter's replay with Man Utd live on Wednesday 19 January, from 1930 on BBC One.

Derby v Watford or Fulham

Man Utd or Exeter v Middlesbrough

Cardiff or Blackburn v Colchester

Chelsea v Birmingham

West Ham v Sheff Utd

Oldham v Bolton

Arsenal v Wolverhampton

Everton v Sunderland

Nottm Forest v Peterborough

Brentford v Hartlepool or Boston

Reading or Swansea v Leicester or Blackpool

Burnley or Liverpool v Bournemouth

Southampton v Portsmouth

West Brom v Tottenham

Newcastle v Coventry

Charlton v Yeovil
"	sport
Real in talks over Gravesen move	"Real Madrid are closing in on a £2m deal for Everton's Thomas Gravesen after the Dane's agent travelled to Spain to hold talks about a move.

John Sivabaek told BBC Sport: ""I'm here to listen to what Real have to say. Nothing has been agreed, but this is a big opportunity for any player."" The 28-year-old's contract expires in the summer, but Real want a quick deal. Sivabaek added: ""I will be meeting Real on Wednesday. There is serious interest, but it is Everton's hands."" Everton must decide whether to cash in now on the Denmark midfield man, or risk losing him for nothing in the summer. Manager David Moyes has defiantly claimed that he expects Gravesen to still be at Everton when the transfer window closes at the end of January.

Moyes said: ""I speak to Tommy regularly and we know where we are at. ""There's been no contact. We don't want to lose him."" Real Madrid general manager Arrigo Sacchi is the driving force behind the move, convincing vice-president Emilio Butragueno and new coach Wanderley Luxemburgo that Gravesen is the right man for the Bernabeu. Everton must weigh up whether it is worth taking the money on offer for Real and risk their own ambitions for European football. Gravesen has been outstanding as Everton have established themselves in the Premiership's top four this season.
"	sport
Klinsmann issues Lehmann warning	"Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann has warned goalkeeper Jens Lehmann he may have to quit Arsenal to keep his World Cup dreams alive.

Lehmann is understudy to Oliver Kahn in the German squad, but has lost his place to Manuel Alumnia at Highbury. Klinsmann said: ""It will be difficult for any of our players if he is not a first-choice at his club. ""If Jens is not Arsenal's number one keeper, that is a problem for me. He must be playing regularly."" Lehmann is desperate to keep his place in the Germany squad when the country hosts the World Cup in 2006. Klinsmann added: ""If he is not playing regularly he cannot be Germany's number one keeper, or even number two keeper. ""The situation for Jens is that he is currently the number two keeper at Arsenal. This could be critical if it remains the same during next season.""
"	sport
Juninho demand for O'Neill talks	"Juninho's agent has confirmed that the player is hoping for talks with Martin O'Neill as the Brazilian midfielder comes closer to departing Celtic.

Brian Hassell says no official approach has been received from Manchester City but that the English club had been earmarked as a possible destination. But it was being stressed to BBC Sport that Juninho would prefer to remain with the Scottish champions. Juninho wants assurances that he will return to O'Neill's first-team plans. He has become frustrated with his lack of first-team action since his move from Middlesbrough in the summer. Hassel says Juninho, who has just bought a new home, would ""desperately like to stay at Celtic"" but will seek a move if it is made clear that he is not wanted.

The agent also stressed that nothing should be read into the 30-year-old's father being in Scotland and talk of a move back to Botafogo in Brazil. Juninho's father was simply in the country to see his son and grandchildren. ""I know there is interest from a Brazilian club, but I know Juninho doesn't want to go there,"" said Hassel. ""He wants to stay in Britain. In fact, he wants to stay at Celtic."" Hassall made it clear that a move to Manchester City, who are badly in need of a midfield play-maker, was more of a possibility than Botafogo, or Mexican outfit Red Sharks Veracruz, who also expressed an interest. ""It was a thought at one stage,"" he said. ""If you are not going to get a game under one manager, you look for another whose style of play suits you. ""He is a fan of Kevin Keegan's style of play. It would not be a bad move for him."" Juninho had earlier told the Daily Record: ""The manager has had a lot of chances to put me in his team but it hasn't happened. ""If that is the case then this is the opportunity for me to go. That would be good for the club and good for me. ""If I have no part in his plans, there is no point in remaining here waiting for a chance that never comes."" The attacking midfielder also claims he has not had the backing of boss Martin O'Neill since his move to Celtic Park. ""I can't understand why I am in this situation,"" he continued. ""When a manager brings a new player to the club, he gives that player support.""
"	sport
Wenger signs new deal	"Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has signed a new contract to stay at the club until May 2008.

Wenger has ended speculation about his future by agreeing a long-term contract that takes him beyond the opening of Arsenal's new stadium in two years. He said: ""Signing a new contract just rubber-stamps my desire to take this club forward and fulfil my ambitions. ""I still have so much to achieve and my target is to drive this club on. These are exciting times for Arsenal.""

The 55-year-old Frenchman told Arsenal's website www.arsenal.com: ""My intention has always been clear. I love this club and am very happy here."" Wenger has won the title and the FA Cup three times each during his reign. Chairman Peter Hill-Wood said: ""We are absolutely delighted that Arsene has signed an extension to his contract. ""Since his arrival in 1996, he has revolutionised the club both on and off the pitch. ""As well as the six major honours he's won during his time here, Arsene has been a leading influence behind all the major initiatives at the club including the construction of our new training centre and also our new stadium.

""The club has continued to reap the benefits of Arsene's natural eye for unearthing footballing talent. ""We currently have a fantastic crop of young players coming through the ranks together with a number of world-class players who are playing a wonderful brand of football."" Meanwhile, Arsenal director Danny Fiszman is looking for Wenger to stay beyond 2008. ""When we come towards the end of his contract we will both review the situation. I'm sure we will want him to stay on and I hope he will too,"" said Fiszman.
"	sport
FA probes crowd trouble	"The FA is to take action after trouble marred Wednesday's Carling Cup tie between Chelsea and West Ham.

Police in riot gear were confronted by a section of the West Ham support after the match which the Blues won 1-0. Mateja Kezman, the scorer of Chelsea's goal, needed treatment on a head injury during the match after being hit by a missile, believed to be a coin. A spokeswoman for Chelsea said the club would await the referee's report before deciding on its course of action. Kezman was forced off the field to receive treatment on a cut above his eye but was able to continue.

Chelsea assistant boss Steve Clarke said: ""I would rather talk about the football but we think it was something thrown from the crowd. He did not require stitches."" West Ham boss Alan Pardew said: ""It's a shame because I thought there was good English banter in the crowd. ""There's big rivalry between the two clubs and it is a shame if that's happened. From where I was standing I didn't see any trouble."" Former Hammers star Joe Cole also had a plastic bottle thrown at him, while Frank Lampard was pelted with coins as he was preparing to take a penalty. Lampard's spot-kick was saved to the delight of the Hammers' fans, who have still not forgiven him for leaving Upton Park. The FA will seek reports from the clubs and the police, and will review video evidence and the referee's report. Police in riot gear battled with West Ham fans in the Matthew Harding stand and at least one supporter required treatment. Fans are also thought to have clashed outside the ground after the game. Scotland Yard said there had been 11 arrests for alleged public order, drugs and offensive weapon offences.

The FA is already looking into the trouble at Tuesday's heated Carling Cup tie between Millwall and Liverpool.
"	sport
Edu describes tunnel fracas	"Arsenal's Edu has lifted the lid on the scenes that followed Manchester United's win over the Gunners.

The Brazilian confirmed tempers had flared but could shed no light on reports that food was thrown at United boss Sir Alex Ferguson. ""I saw people being pulled apart, people pushing, pointing and shouting,"" he told Uefa's official website. ""The United players were trying to wind us up about the result but I didn't see any soup being thrown at anyone."" However, Edu tried to play down the incidents, adding: ""There was nothing that I haven't seen in Brazilian derbies. ""Derby matches in Brazil are worse. I like to play in games like this with this intense rivalry."" But Edu was highly critical of the ferocity of some of United's challenges during the game, particularly on Jose Antonio Reyes. ""I think we were a lot fairer in the tackles than United,"" he said. ""Reyes was being kicked all over the park - they were beating up the boy and Gary Neville was tackling in such a way that he should have been sent off."" Following the game, the Football Association said it would look into events in the tunnel. It also charged Ruud van Nistelrooy with serious foul play while Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has been asked to explain comments he made about the referee.
"	sport
Chelsea sack Mutu	"Chelsea have sacked Adrian Mutu after he failed a drugs test.

The 25-year-old tested positive for a banned substance - which he later denied was cocaine - in October. Chelsea have decided to write off a possible transfer fee for Mutu, a £15.8m signing from Parma last season, who may face a two-year suspension. A statement from Chelsea explaining the decision read:""We want to make clear that Chelsea has a zero tolerance policy towards drugs."" Mutu scored six goals in his first five games after arriving at Stamford Bridge but his form went into decline and he was frozen out by coach Jose Mourinho. Chelsea's statement added: ""This applies to both performance-enhancing drugs or so-called 'recreational' drugs. They have no place at our club or in sport. ""In coming to a decision on this case, Chelsea believed the club's social responsibility to its fans, players, employees and other stakeholders in football regarding drugs was more important than the major financial considerations to the company. ""Any player who takes drugs breaches his contract with the club as well as Football Association rules. ""The club totally supports the FA in strong action on all drugs cases."" Fifa's disciplinary code stipulates that a first doping offence should be followed by a six-month ban. And the sport's world governing body has re-iterated their stance over Mutu's failed drugs test, maintaining it is a matter for the domestic sporting authorities. ""Fifa is not in a position to make any comment on the matter until the English FA have informed us of their disciplinary decision and the relevant information associated with it,"" said a Fifa spokesman. Chelsea's move won backing from drug-testing expert Michelle Verroken. Verroken, a former director of drug-free sport for UK Sport, insists the Blues were right to sack Mutu and have enhanced their reputation by doing so. ""Chelsea are saying quite clearly to the rest of their players and their fans that this is a situation they are not prepared to tolerate. ""It was a very difficult decision for them and an expensive decision for them but the terms of his contract were breached and it was the only decision they could make. ""It is a very clear stance by Chelsea and it has given a strong boost to the reputation of the club."" It emerged that Mutu had failed a drugs test on October 18 and, although it was initially reported that the banned substance in question was cocaine. The Romanian international later suggested it was a substance designed to enhance sexual performance. The Football Association has yet to act on Mutu's failed drugs test and refuses to discuss his case.
"	sport
Ferguson urges Henry punishment	"Sir Alex Ferguson has called on the Football Association to punish Arsenal's Thierry Henry for an incident involving Gabriel Heinze.

Ferguson believes Henry deliberately caught Heinze on the head with his knee during United's controversial win. The United boss said it was worse than Ruud van Nistelrooy's foul on Ashley Cole for which he got a three-game ban. ""We shall present it to the FA and see what they do. The tackle on Heinze was terrible,"" he said. Clubs are permitted to ask the FA to examine specific incidents but information is expected to be provided within 48 hours of the game. The clash occurred moments before half-time when a Freddie Ljungberg challenge left Heinze on the ground on the left touchline. Henry, following the ball, attempted to hurdle the Argentine but his knee collided with the back of Heinze's head.

The striker protested his innocence - and referee Mike Riley deemed the collision accidental. Ferguson was also upset by Arsenal's overall discipline during the heated encounter between the two arch-rivals and praised his own side's behaviour. ""Edu produced a terrible tackle on Scholes that was a potential leg-breaker,"" he said. ""There were 24 fouls in the game by Arsenal, seven on Heinze, five on Ronaldo, six by Vieira - and it was only his sixth foul that got him booked. Phil Neville got booked for his first challenge. ""I am proud of my players for the way they handled that pressure. ""We have always been good at being gracious in defeat. What happened on Sunday overshadowed our achievement, but then they do it all the time, don't they?""
"	sport
Wenger offers Mutu hope	"Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger would consider signing Adrian Mutu once the striker has served his drugs ban.

Mutu was sacked by Chelsea on Friday after testing positive for cocaine - a move Wenger has backed. But he said: ""I don't even wonder if that could happen because I think he will be suspended for a long period. ""But once he has served his suspension, he has the right again to start from zero. I would then meet the player and see what he tells me."" Mutu faces a ban of between six months and two years when the Football Association decides on his punishment. Chelsea decided to act before his case was heard and sacked the striker on grounds of gross misconduct after it was revealed that he had failed a drug test.

But Mutu has hit out at the club's decision, saying: ""Chelsea have destroyed me."" He told the Sunday Mirror: ""I don't know what I'm going to do. I am shocked and surprised by their decision. ""I didn't expect them to pay me while I was suspended but I never thought they would sack me either. ""Why didn't they wait to do this? Now my career is in ruins. ""I might as well walk away from football. What is there left for me?""

Chelsea have been criticised for their stance, with the Professional Footballers' Association accusing the club of failing in their duty of care to the player. And Mutu agreed, adding: ""It is unfair. If they were going to sack me they should have done it afterwards. ""Why did they go public? To make an example of me? It makes it very difficult for me now.""
"	sport
Santini resigns as Spurs manager	"Tottenham manager Jacques Santini has resigned for ""personal reasons"".

The former France manager moved to White Hart Lane this summer but now wants to return to France. Santini said: ""My time at Tottenham has been memorable and it is with deep regret that I take my leave. I wish the club and the supporters all the best. ""Private issues in my personal life have arisen which caused my decision. I very much hope that the wonderful fans will respect my decision."" He added: ""I should like to thank (sporting director) Frank Arnesen and (chairman) Daniel Levy for their understanding."" Assistant coach Martin Jol has been put in temporary charge and will take care of team affairs for Saturday's Premiership match against Charlton.

Arnesen said the club were sad to see Santini go: ""We are obviously disappointed that Jacques is leaving us. We fully respect his decision. ""I can assure you that the club will act swiftly to minimise the impact of Jacques' departure. ""Our priority is to ensure that this season's performance remains unaffected by this move. ""I shall make a further statement on Monday, clarifying our position. We wish Jacques well.""
"	sport
Mutu to hold talks with Juventus	"Disgraced former Chelsea striker Adrian Mutu is to begin talks with Juventus as he looks for a new club.

""Mutu will be in our club's main stand to watch the match between Juventus and Fiorentina,"" said a Juventus official, who declined to be named. ""Then he will meet some important people of the club,"" he added. Mutu, 25, sacked by Chelsea and banned for seven months for taking cocaine, is now represented by Alessandro Moggi, son of Juve manager Luciano Moggi. Mutu, banned by the English FA, can resume playing next May. He is to undergo a drug education and rehabilitation programme. Mutu wants to train with Romanian side Dinamo Bucharest whilst serving his ban, say the Bucharest side.
"	sport
Uefa approves fake grass	"Uefa says it will allow European matches to be played on artificial pitches from the start of next season.

European football's governing body made the decision at a meeting of its Executive Committee on Wednesday. Uefa explained that the move ""follows comprehensive studies into the sporting and medical aspects of using artificial playing surfaces."" They can be used subject to complying with Uefa quality criteria but there use will not be made obligatory. Luton, Preston, Queens Park Rangers and other clubs used to have plastic pitches during the the 1980s but, after a two-year study, Uefa insists the surfaces have moved on. International matches can also be played on such pitches, although games at major tournaments have to be contested on grass. Uefa spokesman Rob Faulkner said: ""People in England have bad memories of the artificial pitches of Luton and QPR in the 1980s, but the latest generation are completely different and are much more like grass. ""We have sanctioned its use from the start of next season but only as long as it is the latest generation of artificial turf and meets a whole series of standards."" Several leading clubs from Scandinavia, Russia and eastern Europe - especially those who only play Champions League or Uefa Cup matches in winter - are now expected to instal artificial pitches.
"	sport
Yeading face Newcastle in FA Cup	"Premiership side Newcastle United face a trip to Ryman Premier League leaders Yeading in the FA Cup third round.

The game - arguably the highlight of the draw - is a potential money-spinner for non-League Yeading, who beat Slough in the second round. Conference side Exeter City, who knocked out Doncaster on Saturday, will travel to Old Trafford to meet holders Manchester United in January. Arsenal were drawn at home to Stoke and Chelsea will play host to Scunthorpe. The only other non-League side in the draw are Hinckley United, who held Brentford to a goalless draw on Sunday. They will meet League One leaders Luton if they win their replay against Martin Allen's team at Griffin Park.

A number of Premiership teams face difficult away games against Championship sides on the weekend of 8/9 January. Third-placed Everton visit Plymouth, Liverpool travel to Burnley, Crystal Palace go to Sunderland, Fulham face Carling Cup semi-finalists Watford, Bolton meet Ipswich, while Aston Villa were drawn against Sheffield United. Premiership strugglers Norwich, Blackburn, West Brom are away at West Ham, Cardiff and Preston North End respectively. Southampton visit Northampton, having already beaten the League Two side in the Carling Cup earlier this season. Middlesbrough were drawn away against either Swindon or Notts County, while Spurs entertain Brighton at White Hart Lane.

Arsenal v Stoke

Swindon/Notts Co v Middlesbrough

Man Utd v Exeter

Plymouth v Everton

Leicester v Blackpool

Derby v Wigan

Sunderland v Crystal Palace

Wolves v Millwall

Yeading v Newcastle

Hull v Colchester

Tottenham v Brighton

Reading v Stockport/Swansea

Birmingham v Leeds

Hartlepool v Boston

Milton Keynes Dons v Peterborough

Oldham v Man City

Chelsea v Scunthorpe

Cardiff v Blackburn

Charlton v Rochdale

West Ham v Norwich

Sheff Utd v Aston Villa

Preston v West Brom

Rotherham v Yeovil

Burnley v Liverpool

Bournemouth v Chester

Coventry v Crewe

Watford v Fulham

Ipswich v Bolton

Portsmouth v Gillingham

Northampton v Southampton

QPR v Nottm Forest

Luton v Hinckley/Brentford

Matches to be played on weekend of 8/9 January.
"	sport
Anelka 'eyes Man City departure'	"Striker Nicolas Anelka reportedly wants to leave Manchester City in search of Champions League football.

Anelka, 25, is in talks over a contract extension beyond 2007 with City but is believed to fear his career will go stale if he stays at the club. The News of the World reports that Anelka told a French magazine: ""I either decide to win titles or to have an easy life. ""I think I will always choose football, if a great club makes me an offer."" He added: ""To win titles you need players who have the capability of doing so. If we stagnate between eighth and 15th place it's impossible to progress. ""If I am going to score goals and not win, there is a risk it is going to create a feeling of being fed up."" Anelka has earned a reputation for being a difficult character to handle after spells at Arsenal, Real Madrid and Paris St Germain and he feels that is now coming back to haunt him.

""I am in talks to sign an extension to my contract,"" he said. ""I am well here but the sporting aspect also comes into account. ""Playing for eighth place is good but I miss the Champions League. ""I won it with Real Madrid in 2000 and I need to be playing in it - and I should be playing in it. ""I'm not in it because of things that have happened in the past and had nothing to do with football. ""But I don't blame anyone. It's a bit my fault.""
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Arnesen denies rift with Santini	"Tottenham sporting director Frank Arnesen has denied that coach Jacques Santini resigned because of a clash of personalities at White Hart Lane.

There had been newspaper speculation that Santini had felt undermined by Arnesen's role at the club. ""It is absolutely not true,"" Arnesen told BBC Radio Five Live. ""There is only one thing that made him resign and that is his own personal problems. ""He has talked to me recently and said this matter is absolutely for himself."" Arnesen said he was unable to throw any light onto the problems that caused Santini to quit after just 13 games in charge. He added: ""Jacques has never gone into exactly what it was. But I trust him in that; you have to accept it. I think we should respect it.

""The plan is now that over the weekend we will have talks with the board and then on Monday we will clarify the situation."" Arnesen countered criticism at the timing of the announcement, coming less than 24 hours before Tottenham's Premiership fixture with Charlton. ""When it comes down to personal problems, I don't think we should talk about timing,"" he said. And he also denied reports that Santini had been given a £3m pay-off. ""That is absolute nonsense. He is the one who said 'I will go' and so he went'"", said the Spurs sporting director. Tottenham's structure of having a sporting director working alongside a coach is based on a continental model and Arnesen sees no reason why they should change it.

""I have confidence in this structure. I am confident that we have started something here in July and I still have a lot of confidence in Tottenham and what we are doing,"" he said. However, former Spurs and England defender Gary Stevens said he would not be surprised if the system had caused a rift. ""I think the problems go a lot deeper, between the director of football at White Hart Lane and Santini,"" Stevens told Five Live. ""On paper they could have worked together. But Frank Arnesen was a very creative, forward-thinking and expansive player - whereas I think Santini was very much the opposite, more a case of being organised, disciplined and happy not conceding goals. ""That sort of arrangement can work if the two people have the same principles and ideals and work very closely. But it seems that has not happened.""
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Souness backs Smith for Scotland	"Graeme Souness believes Walter Smith would be the perfect choice to succeed Berti Vogts as Scotland manager.

Souness's former assistant at Rangers is hot favourite to take over from Vogts, who resigned on Monday. ""Walter is most definitely the ideal candidate for that job. He'd be perfect for it,"" Souness told BBC Sport. The Scottish Football Association has appointed Tommy Burns as provisional caretaker-boss for the friendly against Sweden on 17 November. ""He fits the bill because of his knowledge and understanding of the Scotland team and football. He is experienced and has been successful."" Souness added: ""Walter is a real football person, as I know from working with him at Ibrox. ""On top of all that he is a proper human being who would command the instant respect of the players and everyone involved in Scottish football."" Souness joined Sir Alex Ferguson in backing Smith's claims. The Scottish Football Association is about to embark on the search for Vogts successor after appointing Tommy Burns in a caretaker capacity. Ferguson said: ""He (Smith) would be the outstanding candidate as far as I'm concerned. ""You need somebody who knows what they're doing and Walter would bring a wealth of experience to the job."" The Man Utd boss continued: ""I don't know what credentials are needed to do the job but it's a job that needs a lot of experience. ""He was my assistant with Scotland and here at Manchester United and he has also managed Glasgow Rangers. ""He would need to change the whole shape of Scottish football and radical changes are needed."" Smith was assistant to Ferguson at the World Cup in Mexico in 1986. The former Everton and Rangers boss has been out of the game since a spell as Manchester United assistant last term. BBC Sport understands that Smith would be willing to discuss taking over if he was approached by the Scottish FA.

If he is tempted to take over, it seems almost certain Smith's long-time right-hand man Archie Knox would also play a part in the national team set-up. Smith already has the backing of many pundits and fans, including former Scotland manager Craig Brown. Brown said: ""Walter is an outstanding candidate without doubt. ""He would be admirable choice. I spoke to him on Sunday and I got the impression he would take it. He was asking me about it and I was positive."" Other candidates for the job include former Scotland midfielders Gordon Strachan and Gary McAllister and Vogts' assistant Tommy Burns.
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Gallas sees two-horse race	"Chelsea's William Gallas believes they will battle it out with Arsenal for the Premiership in the coming months.

""It'll be a two-horse race all the way to the end of the season because we are both going to give it everything,"" he told BBC Sport. ""You need to be good and you need a lot of luck. You need a bit of both but it will be as hard for the Arsenal players as it is for the Chelsea boys."" ""We know that we have got the power in our hands just now,"" added Gallas.

""But you never know what is going to happen in football - two seasons ago Manchester United picked up so many points towards the end of the season when they won the title. ""Obviously, nobody at Chelsea wants to come second but you never know what happens in football. ""We will be challenging to come first as much as every Arsenal player will be challenging to come first."" Gallas has been given extra confidence by the impact manager Jose Mourinho has had since taking over as manager during the summer.

And the French international defender believes Mourinho is perfectly suited to boss the squad of Chelsea stars and says his managerial expertise will prevent any player revolt. ""It's only normal when you have got a team put together of such big names that you put the finishing touch to it and the finishing touch at Chelsea is a fantastic manager like Mourinho,"" he said. ""He is the icing on the cake at the club. He has this fantastic knack of thinking of everything. ""Another incredible quality that Mourinho has is that every player, even though the fans may consider them to be a stars, within the dressing-room they are absolutely equal. ""Mourinho reminds everyone but he doesn't have to because he has created a wonderful atmosphere where everybody is playing and laughing every day. ""It is a changed dressing-room from the atmosphere there was last year.""

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Tevez - an Argentine in Brazil	"Some 65 years ago Bernardo Gandulla left Boca Juniors in his native Argentina and headed for Brazil.

He arrived at the Vasco da Gama club with considerable prestige - which he failed to live up to. He left an impression, but not for reasons he would have wanted. The only thing of note he did was to throw the ball back when it went out of play. Even today, 'gandula' is the term used in Brazil for ballboy. Brazilians delighted in the failure of Gandulla then, and many will delight now if history is repeated. Another Boca Juniors player is coming to Brazil. 'The new Maradona' - Carlos Tevez - is joining Corinthians for nearly $20m in a strong candidate for the strangest move of the year. Corinthians - or the London-based company who have just entered into partnership with them - appear to have paid well above the odds for Tevez. It is particularly strange as - until last week - Tevez was not even an especially big name in Brazil, where the Argentine Championship is not shown.

Presumably there is some financial logic behind the move. What is harder to work out is why Tevez should be interested in heading north, rather than across the Atlantic. Argentina's brightest new star hit top form in August as he spearheaded the charge towards the Olympic gold medal. But the subsequent months have not been easy for Tevez. Boca re-signed Martin Palermo, forcing Tevez to vacate his favoured centre forward role. And off the pitch he gave the press plenty to report - Atletico Madrid gave up on him after declaring his private life to be 'disorganized.' Hounded by the press, Tevez grew tired of his life in Buenos Aires. So now he says that he is heading for Corinthians in search of 'tranquillity.' Anyone acquainted with the city of São Paulo will relish the nonsense of this declaration. Brazil's biggest city is a sprawling, ugly, restless metropolis. Once it shared with Buenos Aires the same melancholy air of a city of Italian immigrants.

But that world now lies buried under skyscrapers. The most turbulent place in this frenetic city is Sport Club Corinthians. It is the most passionately supported club in Brazil. Pelé scored reams of goals against them, reasoning that unless he did something special the Corinthians fans were capable of winning the game on their own. That passion can also be turned against the team - especially nowadays, when the level of urban violence gives a hysterical edge to life in Brazil's big cities. Corinthians fans have invaded the dressing room or ambushed the team coach to attack the players. Tevez, then, can kiss tranquillity goodbye. He can also say farewell to the Copa Libertadores, South America's Champions League. Corinthians have not qualified. Indeed, he will have a long wait for a worthwhile match. Next year's Brazilian Championship only gets underway at the end of April. Until then he will have to make do with the foolish São Paulo State Championship, an appalling waste of his talent. There will be matches in small towns on poor pitches with plenty of defenders keen to kick him all the way back to Argentina. Like so many of the top South American players, Tevez has the gift of being able to surprise - to feint right and go left, to pass when he was expected to dribble, to shoot and catch the goalkeeper unawares. But his choice of destination is the biggest surprise of all.
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Edu blasts Arsenal	"Arsenal's Brazilian midfielder Edu has hit out at the club for stalling over offering him a new contract.

Edu's deal expires next summer and he has been linked with Spanish trio Real Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia. He told BBC Sport: ""I'm not sure if I want to stay or not because the club have let the situation go on this far. ""If they had really wanted to sign they should have come up with an offer six months before indicating they wanted to sign me and that's made me think."" Edu's brother and representative Amadeo Fensao has previously said that Arsenal's current offer to the midfielder was well short of what he was seeking. And Edu, 26, added: ""My brother is due to come to London on Thursday.

""There is a meeting planned for 6 or 7 January to sort it out with Arsenal. ""Now I have a choice to stay or go. I want to sort it out as soon as possible, that's in the best interests of both the club and myself. ""I'm going to make my decision after the meeting later this week."" Edu is now able to begin negotiations with other clubs because Fifa regulations allow players to start talks six months before their contracts expire. The midfielder, who broke in to the Brazilian national side in 2004, admitted he had been flattered to have been linked with the three Spanish giants. Edu said: ""I've just heard stories from the news that the Madrid president Florentino Perez, the Valencia people, as well as Barcelona are interested.

""That's nice, but I've never talked to them, so I can't say they want me sign 100%."" Last month Wenger said he we was hopeful Edu would sign a new deal and played down suggestions that the lure of a club like Real Madrid would be too strong for Edu. Edu added that he had been encouraged by Wenger's support for him. ""I still have a good relationship with Arsene Wenger - he's always said he wants me to sign.""
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Can Smith work Scottish wonders?	"The worst kept secret in Scottish football was revealed on Thursday when Walter Smith was named as the new national manager.

From the moment Berti Vogts' miserable tenure in charge of Scotland ended, the former Rangers and Everton boss has been the overwhelming favourite for the post. But is Smith the man for what must be one of the hardest jobs in football? The 56-year-old takes over at a time when the national side is in the doldrums. Scotland have not reached a major finals since the World Cup in 1998 and reaching Germany 2006 looks near impossible, having picked up just two points from the opening three games in the qualifying race. And the Fifa rankings see Scotland listed at an all time low of 77th, below the likes of Estonia, Ghana, Angola and Thailand. Scotland are not blessed with quality players with experience at the top level, so Smith will have to get the best out of meagre resources. Smith's track record make impressive reading and he is widely respected within the game. The man who was Alex Ferguson's assistant when Scotland played at the 1986 World Cup won seven league titles with Rangers. And his appointment has been widely endorsed by many of the games' top names, including Ferguson and Graeme Souness, who took him to Ibrox as his assistant in 1986. Characters like Souness, Ferguson and current Ibrox manager Alex McLeish all cite Smith's experience and his expansive knowledge of the Scottish game.

Much was made of Vogts' inability to express himself to the players and media. That will certainly not be the case with Smith. The former Dundee United and Dumbarton full-back is from the managerial old school - straight talking and never slow to let players know when he expects better (often with the use of some colourful invective). But it should be remembered Vogts came to Scotland with an impressive curriculum vitae - a World Cup winner as a player and a European Championships winner as a manager. Smith will inherit the same problems Vogts had - a callow squad of players with no exceptional talents. And it remains to be seen if Smith will experience the rash of call-offs that blighted so much of Vogts' preparation work. A fresh start for the Scottish national team was imperative and Smith is widely regarded as a safe pair of hands. But will a safe pair of hands be enough when the adroit hands of a magician might be required...
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Jansen suffers a further setback	"Blackburn striker Matt Jansen faces three weeks out after surgery to treat a cartilage problem.

But central defender Lorenzo Amoruso is moving closer to fitness following a knee operation. Rovers' assistant manager Mark Bowen said: ""Matt had a small operation to trim knee cartilage. ""It's a tiny piece of work, which should be a fairly quick recovery. Lorenzo is also jogging for the first time, along with kicking a ball."" Jansen's career has been dogged by injury since a freak scooter accident two years ago.

He returned to first-team action soon after Mark Hughes' appointment as Blackburn boss and marked it with a goal against Portsmouth in his first appearance of the season. Bowen added: ""I'm guessing, but I reckon maybe two to three weeks before he is back in action completely."" The Rovers assistant boss forecast a longer time spell for Amoruso's availability for first-team duties. Bowen said: ""There's still some scar tissue present so it will be some weeks. ""It's a case of see how he goes. You can't put a real time on a comeback, we'll see how he progresses.""
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Mansfield 0-1 Leyton Orient	"An second-half goal from Andy Scott condemned Mansfield to a ninth successive game without a win.

Early in the second half Wayne Carlisle's cross was met by Scott and he blasted the ball home from just outside the penalty area. As Orient chased a second, Mansfield had to clear Alan White's header off the line and Kevin Pilkington saved well from Michael Simpson. By the end Mansfield fans were chanting for the head of chairman Keith Haslam.

Pilkington, Talbot, Buxton, Dimech, Artell, Corden, Murray, Curtis, Neil, Warne, Barker. Subs Not Used: White, McIntosh, Wood, Lloyd, Herron.

Harrison, Lockwood, Donny Barnard, White,Mackie, Scott, Saah, Simpson, Carlisle, Lee Barnard, Ibehre. Subs Not Used: Morris, Wardley, Newey, Zakuani, McMahon.

Scott 51.

3,803

S Mathieson (Cheshire).
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Zambia confident and cautious	"Zambia's technical director, Kalusha Bwalya is confident and cautious ahead of the Cosafa Cup final against Angola on Saturday in Lusaka.

Bwalya said: ""Nothing short of victory will do."" However Bwalya warned his side not to be too complacent. ""I don't want my team to be too comfortable or too sure of victory as it is going to be a difficult game. ""For me the main aim of the game is to enjoy and to win."" Zambia have shown their determination to win this final by recalling nine of their foreign-based players. However the 41 year-old Bwalya, who became the oldest player to appear in the competition when he played and scored against Mauritius, is uncertain whether he will take to the field or not. The Chipolopolo fans however are not being so cautious with a 'victory' concert already scheduled for after the match featuring some of the country's top musicians. Both sides are hoping to win the competition for a record third time, and so keep the trophy for good. The Chipolopolo won the first two editions of the regional tournament for Southern African nations in 1997 and 1998. They were prevented from a third straight win by Angola who knocked out the Zambians at the semi-final stage in 1999. That victory for Angola also marked a first defeat in 14 years for Zambia at Lusaka's Independence stadium, where Saturday's game is being played. Angola named just four overseas-based players in their preliminary squad. The Palancas Negras have been unable to secure the release of many of their Portugal-based players.
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Reaction from Spanish press	"England's 1-0 defeat to Spain on Wednesday dominated the back and front pages of the country's press on Thursday.

Controversy was in no short supply, with racist abuse of England's black players, Wayne Rooney's petulance and England's inept performance. But what did the Spanish press make of the affair? BBC Sport looks at the reaction. 

 

There is little coverage of the racist chanting on Wednesday night's game. But AS does cover the English reaction to the pre-match comments from Spain coach Luis Aragones, who highlighted Britain's colonial past when probed about his own remarks regarding Thierry Henry in October. Journalist Guillem Balague writes: ""In our country, where multi-culturalism is a new thing, we are in nappies dealing with these things, and have a naivety which makes the English nervous.""

Marca refers in passing to the booing of England's black players - but only after referring to the cheers of ""ole"" which greeted the long periods of Spanish possession. Aragones' ""no comment"" to questions about racism after the match is also highlighted, as Marca focuses on the Spanish coach's praise for his players. Serbia & Montenegro's 2-0 World Cup qualifying win in Belgium - which could make qualification tougher for Spain - seems to be of greater importance.

Elsewhere, the Spanish media criticises its English counterparts for stoking up the racism issue. ""Were there racist chants against some players? This hasn't happened in the Spanish league and Spain for many years,"" said Spanish Federation press officer Fernando Garrido. ""So you (English reporters) should ask yourselves what you have done to contribute to all this."" And Spanish daily ABC accuses English reporters of launching a witch-hunt against Aragones. ""Perhaps it was because their team had played so poorly and they wanted to divert attention towards this muddled issue,"" the paper says. 

 

""What the boy in the Bernabeu did was odd... Rooney seemed intent to kick any Spanish player who approached him."" Yet Rooney is seen only as the worst example of many England miscreants, with Gary Neville criticised for continuing the feud between Manchester United and Arsenal for his tackles on Jose Reyes. Ashley Cole's treatment of Joaquin, and a Frank Lampard foul on Reyes are also lambasted for their ""ugliness"".

Marca's headline says it all: ""Wayne Rooney se volvió loco en el Bernabéu (Wayne Rooney became crazy in the Bernabeu)"" Rooney's display alarms the writer, in particular three ""chilling"" fouls on Joaquin, Casillas and Marchena, which ""could well have left them in the infirmary."" And like AS, Marca criticises Gary Neville for ""leaving a message on Reyes' ankle"" to remind him of the Manchester United-Arsenal clash this month. 

 

Spain's first-half performance is showered with praise, with Xavi singled out as the biggest star. ""Xavi did things on Wednesday which were worthy of Maradona,"" the paper beams, adding, ""What a work-rate, what dynamism, what vision, what leadership, what a midfield player!"" On a controversial evening, AS offers one seemingly undeniable viewpoint: ""Spanish football players played better football than the English.""

More plaudits are given to the home team, with Jaime Vargas lauding the manner in which ""Spain dominated England with order and quality"". The paper adds: ""The bad thing about Spain v England was that it lasted only 65 minutes after which a succession of changes prevented any real competition."" Vargas does not mention England's two Galacticos, simply adding in a PS: ""I have not forgotten to speak of Beckham and Owen. They forgot to play.""
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Kerr frustrated at victory margin	"Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr admitted he was frustrated his side did not score more than one goal in their friendly win over Croatia.

Robbie Keane took his Republic record to 24 with a first-half goal which proved enough for victory. ""We had more good chances. It is just a shame we did not take them against such a technically gifted team,"" said Kerr. ""But, given the conditions and the standard of the Croatian team, we should be very happy with the win."" The Republic side kept a clean sheet for the eighth time in 11 matches and are unbeaten in 14 home games since Kerr succeeded Mick McCarthy. Kerr applauded the decisive move which earned the victory. ""It was a brilliant goal, fantastic skill by Damien Duff. Robbie might have scuffed it a little but it was a good goal."" Matchwinner Keane was another full of praise for Duff's role in the goal. ""It was great play from Damien,"" said the Tottenham striker.

""I always try to be sniffing around because you know nine times out of 10 Duffer is going to get it in the box. ""Playing three up was something different. Brian Kerr wanted to try it out and it was good to see young Stephen Elliott getting a run-out. ""The conditions were difficult but he did well and is definitely one for the future. It is nice to see young players coming through."" Man-of-the-match Duff explained what went wrong when he fluffed a chance to make it 2-0 midway through the second half. He opted to bring Steve Finnan's cross down and shoot against the bar when a close-range header looked the best option. ""I would have headed that every time but I completely lost it in the lights,"" said the Chelsea star. ""I was desperate to get on the scoresheet myself but the result is the important thing. ""We have had a good year and are going nicely in the qualifiers. Hopefully that can continue in 2005.""
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Mourinho plots impressive course	"Chelsea's win at Fulham - confirming their position at the Premiership summit - proves that they now have everything in place to mount serious challenges on all fronts this season.

They have got strength in depth, great players, an outstanding manager in Jose Mourinho and finances no other club in the world can match. All they need to add now is the big prizes which, as we all know, is the most difficult part of all. One thing is certain - they have put themselves in a position to make that leap to success very impressively indeed. They beat a very tough Everton at Stamford Bridge, won at Newcastle in the Carling Cup, and then won 4-1 at Fulham, which was a great result given that they had been showing good form. As I said, winning the major honours is the hardest task of all, but in Mourinho they have a manager who will make it a whole lot easier to handle the anticipation and expectation that will come their way now. Mourinho has won the biggest club prize of all, the Champions League, and that track record and confidence transmits itself to top players. It is a priceless commodity. No-one can be anything other than highly-impressed by Mourinho. He is regarded as a touch arrogant by some people, and maybe he can appear that way, but he has the silverware to back up the talk. Mourinho doesn't simply talk a good game - he's won some very big games such as the Champions League final with Porto. Some may criticise his talk, but the words are backed up with actions. I've also found him to be very realistic whenever I've heard him. He's spent a lot of money and it seems to be working, and we should remember lots of managers have spent money and it has not worked. The buys are now integrating, and in Arjen Robben he has the player who is giving them that extra dimension.

In the early games he was slaughtered for defensive tactics, and yet he was winning games. You cannot win titles early on in the season, but you can certainly lose them and those points on the board were vital. I also thought the criticism was very harsh, because even though they were not scoring goals they were creating chances by the hatful. Now they are taking those chances, have the double threat of Robben and Damien Duff, and things are looking good. I just wonder if they lack a predator, particularly with Didier Drogba injured. He was starting to look the part before he was sidelined, but you have to feel if Chelsea had a Ruud van Nistelrooy they would be even more of a safe bet for the title. Chelsea also have all the tools to go far in the Champions League. I felt they would never have a better chance than last season, but they have swept all before them in Europe so far this season. It will now be very interesting to see how Mourinho prioritises things, but his life will be made easier by the size of Chelsea's squad. I have said I believed Chelsea would win the league this season, even when Arsenal were flying at the start, and I have seen nothing to make me change me mind.

If anything, what I have seen has confirmed my early impressions. And Chelsea would have taken encouragement from Arsenal's rocky defensive display at Spurs, even though they ran out 5-4 winners. Mourinho had his say on that game, complaining: ""Five-four is a hockey score, not a football score. ""In a three-against-three training match, if the score reaches 5-4 I send the players back to the dressing rooms as they are not defending properly. ""So to get a result like that in a game of 11 against 11 is disgraceful.""

On a more serious note, it was a game that merely confirmed the importance of Sol Campbell to Arsenal. Much criticism has been aimed at Pascal Cygan, but I believe the problem lies with the absence of Campbell and its overall effect on Arsenal's defence. Confidence is a crucial factor in defending. When you start conceding goals, you suddenly get a chill in the bones every time the ball comes into the penalty area. You think ""oh no"" - then find your worst fears confirmed. Arsenal need to reverse the process, with or without Campbell, and get some clean sheets on the board. But the return of Campbell is key. He solidifies the unit, has pace and is powerful in the air and on the deck. He is vastly experienced and has a calming influence on all around him. Campbell pulls it all together at the back and gets the defence playing as a unit. Chelsea have no such problems at present, which is why I would still place my money on them to edge out Arsenal as champions this season.
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Hearts of Oak 3-2 Cotonsport	"Hearts of Oak set up an all Ghanaian Confederation Cup final with a 3-2 win over Cameroon's Cotonsport Garoua in Accra on Sunday.

The win for Hearts means they will play Asante Kotoko in the two-leg final, after the Kumasi team qualified from Group A on Saturday. In the other Group B game Cameroon's

beat

of South Africa 3-2 in Douala, neither side could have qualified for the final. Hearts of Oak started the game needing a win to qualify for the final while Cotonsport only needed to avoid defeat to go through. Louis Agyemang scored the first two goals for Hearts either side of half time before Ben Don Bortey scored the third. Hearts looked set for a comfortable win but Cotonsport staged a late fight back scoring twice late on. First of all Boukar Makaji scored in the 89th minute and then 3 minutes into injury time at the end of the game Andre Nzame III was on target. But it was too little too late for the Cameroonians and Hearts held on to win the game and a place in the final. The first leg of the final will be played in Accra on the weekend of 27-28 November and the second leg two weeks later on the 11 December in Kumasi. In the other Group B game Cameroon's Sable Batie took the lead in the 35th minute through Kemadjou before Santos equalised on the hour mark thanks to Thokozani Xaba . Bernard Ngom put Sable ahead just five minutes later and then Ernest Nfor settled the game on 68 minutes. Ruben Cloete scored the South African sides consolation with just three minutes left on the clock.
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Curbishley delight for Johansson	"Charlton manager Alan Curbishley paid tribute to two-goal striker Jonatan Johansson after beating Norwich.

Curbishley said after the 4-0 win: ""There was talk about Norwich being interested in the summer but I have a lot of faith in Jonatan. ""When there was talk of other clubs I just told him he was going nowhere. ""He's part of our squad and he got us a couple of important goals early on. I'm sure he's happy here, but I was delighted with all the players."" Curbishley was subjected to criticism from Charlton fans recently, and he said: ""The thing about this club is that we have got where we are by all pulling in the same direction. ""That's happened for however long I've been here and we don't want people taking sides.""
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Lennon brands Rangers favourites	"Celtic's Neil Lennon admits Rangers could be considered ""slight favourites"" for the Old Firm CIS Cup clash, but insists his side can still win.

Lennon concedes Rangers are in good form at the moment, but they have failed to beat Celtic in their last seven meetings. ""Rangers are on the up and have been on a good run in recent weeks,"" he said. ""But it's a game we believe we're capable of winning if we play our best,"" he told the Evening Times. ""All the boys are looking forward to it because they are brilliant games to be involved in. ""Without playing at the top of our game, we have still been winning matches. ""At the minute, we are at the top of the league and still in with a chance of staying in Europe, so I don't think it is the crisis people have been trying to make out. ""Of course, it is a concern when you are losing goals, because we have been notorious for being a team that is hard to beat and keeping clean sheets, but hopefully we are over that wee run. ""Considering we lost Henrik Larsson at the end of last season, we have still been scoring a lot of goals, which is pleasing.""
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McClaren hails Boro's Uefa spirit	"Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren has praised the way his side have got to grips with European football after the 2-0 Uefa Cup win against Lazio.

Boro, who are playing in Europe for the first time in their 128-year history, are top of Group E with maximum points. ""I think we have taken to Europe really well,"" said McClaren. ""We got about Lazio, didn't let them settle or play. And in possession, we controlled it and looked threatening every time we went forward."" Before the match, McClaren had said that a win over the Italian giants would put Boro firmly on the European footballing map. And after they did just that he said: ""It was a perfect European night. For the team to give the fans a performance like that was the icing on the cake. ""There have been many good performances but this was something special.

""You can see that the experience we have in the squad is showing. To win in Europe you need to defend well, and we have done that because we have conceded only one goal in four games. ""We can also score goals, and again that is something you can see from the performances we have had, so we have good balance. McClaren's only criticism of his side was that their dominance should have been resulted in more goals. ""It should have been more convincing,"" said McClaren. ""But I had watched Lazio in recent weeks and I saw them score a late equaliser against Inter Milan on Saturday so I knew we needed a second goal.

""No matter what anybody says, Lazio are favourites to win this competition."" Middlesbrough forward Boudewijn Zenden said he did not expect such a comfortable match after he scored both goals. ""We didn't expect it to be that one-sided,"" said Zenden. ""We did quite well in the first half, we pressured them and they didn't cope with that. ""I think we played quite well and it was a very good game, especially in the first half."" The Holland international said Boro are confident of progressing in the competition after winning their first two group games. ""We've got a very good feeling, there is a good spirit, all the lads work hard for each other and it's a squad of friendly players, which I think you can see on the pitch,"" he added.
"	sport
Benitez delight after crucial win	"Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez admitted victory against Deportivo La Coruna was vital in their tight Champions League group.

Jorge Andrade's early own goal gave Liverpool a 1-0 win. And Benitez said: ""We started at a very high tempo and had many chances. It is a very important win for us and we could have scored more goals. ""We were very good defensively and also good on the counter attack. We are pleased but move on to the next game."" Igor Biscan was outstanding in midfield after replacing injured Xabi Alonso, and Benitez said: ""He played very well. ""It is important to have all the players ready and a good squad so you can play more games at a high level."" Benitez added: ""It is all back in our own hands now, it was a great win for us and I was delighted with what I feel was the best Liverpool I have seen. ""As far as my feelings about winning in Spain, that is really not important. ""I want to see us win away matches in the Champions League, that it was in Spain was not my first consideration. ""As far as I am concerned it is important for Liverpool to win, it is not important in what country it is in."" Benitez added: Benitez said: ""We had a problem before the start, it was decided that Xabi could not play more than 45 minutes. ""But in the end because of the way that (Dietmar) Hamann and (Igor) Biscan performed, we did not need to change things until right at the end of the match. ""Depor are a good team and if you allow them to keep possession they can be very dangerous indeed. ""But we knew that if we hit them on the counter-attack it would make them nervous, and that is how it worked out."" Deportivo coach Javier Irureta said: ""Liverpool played very well and we just could not break them down. ""I know we have now gone six games at home in Europe without scoring, but that does not reflect our overall performances. ""But this time we did not play well and we lacked imagination. ""The goal was a bad mistake and a big blow to our confidence. Players who usually want the ball at that stage did not want it. ""I know we are bottom of the group, but as long as there is hope of qualifying, we will hang on to that.""
"	sport
Bristol City 2-1 Milton Keynes	"Leroy Lita took his goal tally to 13 for the season as his double earned City an LDV Vans Trophy win.

The striker finished off Scott Murray cross from close range just seconds before half-time. Lita then made it 2-0 on 52 minutes, but Dons' substitute Serge Makofo then netted a great volley to make it 2-1. The visitors almost took the tie to extra time with a late 30-yard bullet from Richard Johnson which was well held by Steve Phillips.

Phillips, Amankwaah, Coles, Hill, Fortune, Murray (Anyinsah 59), Doherty (Harley 45), Dinning, Bell, Lita (Cotterill 72), Gillespie. Subs Not Used: Orr, Brown.

Hill.

Lita 45, 52.

Bevan, Oyedele, Ntimban-Zeh, Crooks, Puncheon, Kamara (Makofo 64), Chorley, Herve (McKoy 45), Tapp (Johnson 45), Mackie, Pacquette. Subs Not Used: Martin, Palmer.

Pacquette, Chorley, Johnson, McKoy.

Makofo 66.

3,367

J Ross (Essex).
"	sport
Hereford 1-1 Doncaster	"Hereford win 3-1 on penalties.

Rovers took the lead on 59 minutes as Michael McIndoe's corner found Adriano Rigoglioso, whose stunning volley soared into the top right of the net. Danny Williams equalised for the hosts after 72 minutes with a crisp finish from just insist the penalty box. McIndoe saw an extra-time penalty saved, giving Mills the chance to net the winning penalty.

Mawson, Travis, Mkandawire, James, Robinson, Daniel Williams, Stanley, Hyde (Pitman 105), Purdie (Mills 83), Brown, Stansfield (Green 102). Subs Not Used: Smith, Scott.

James.

Daniel Williams 72.

Ingham, Mulligan, Fenton, Morley, Priet (Ryan 79), McIndoe, Ravenhill (Price 90), Rigoglioso, Tierney (Jackson 79), Beardsley, Coppinger. Subs Not Used: Warrington, Maloney.

Rigoglioso 59.

1,375

T Parkes (W Midlands).
"	sport
Wolves appoint Hoddle as manager	"Glenn Hoddle will be unveiled as the new Wolves manager on Tuesday.

The club have confirmed that the former England coach will be unveiled as the successor to Dave Jones at a news conference at Molineux at 1100 GMT. Hoddle has been linked with a return to former club Southampton but Wolves have won the race for his services. He has been out of the game since being sacked at Spurs in September 2003 and worked alongside Wolves caretaker boss Stuart Gray at Southampton. Hoddle began his managerial career as player-boss with Swindon before moving on to Chelsea and then taking up the England job.

His spell in charge of the national side came to an end after the 1998 World Cup when he made controversial remarks about the disabled in a newspaper interview. The 47-year-old later returned to management with Southampton, where he again succeeded Jones - as he has now done at Wolves. He engineered an upturn in Saints' fortunes before being lured to White Hart Lane by Tottenham - the club where he made his name as a player. That relationship turned sour at the start of the last campaign and he left the London club early last season. Since then he has applied unsuccessfully for the post of France manager and had also been linked with a return to Southampton. Wolves are currently 17th in the Championship and have a home game against Millwall on Tuesday.
"	sport
Wenger keeping faith with Almunia	"Arsene Wenger has pledged to keep faith with stand-in keeper Manuel Almunia for the crunch week which could define Arsenal's season.

Almunia will start Tuesday's Champions League group tie against Rosenborg and is likely to face Chelsea on Sunday. Wenger said: ""You don't think I would take out one goalkeeper for just one game, do you? I don't do that. ""I have to give him a run for a few games. It's just that I don't want to make this story bigger than it is."" Wenger insists he has complete faith in the 27-year-old Spaniard, who was signed last summer from Celta Vigo as back-up to Jens Lehmann.

""If you look at my career, you will see that I have left many big players out for a long time. I've done it with Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu, everybody. ""It's because it's a goalkeeper, that's all. It's a usual situation for me. You put your best team out, no matter who it is. ""For me, it was not a big mistake at Old Trafford and I wasn't alarmed by what happened against Birmingham either. ""It's nothing against Lehmann. I think he's a great keeper, as is Almunia. You can only play one of them. ""These people are not robots - they have good periods and less good periods. Just because Lehmann doesn't play for two or three weeks, or longer or shorter, it doesn't mean I've lost faith in him.""

But former Arsenal keeper David Seaman believes Lehmann has been harshly treated. Seaman told the Daily Mail: ""Jens is a fantastic keeper. He deserves another chance. ""He has made a few mistakes but on form he deserves to be the first-team choice."" With Arsenal hit by injuries and suspension, inexperienced midfield pair of Mathieu Flamini and Cesc Fabregas will line up against Rosenborg but Wenger is confident they will prove more than capable. ""It puts a lot of pressure on them but it's a good learning process,"" said Wenger. ""I'm not worried as they are both mentally strong and will put in the needed workrate.""

The Gunners go into the game boosted by the news that defender Sol Campbell is on the verge of signing a new deal with the club. And the 30-year-old, whose current contract runs out in the summer, has made it clear he is determined to achieve Champions League success with Arsenal. Campbell said: ""It means a lot to me to go through, it's everything. We want to carry on in this competition. ""That's where the best teams in Europe are. To be in there, playing against these guys and trying to win the trophy, is the first thing in my mind.""

Meanwhile, Thierry Henry believes he will be blamed if Arsenal fail to qualify for the next stage of the Champions League. Henry will captain the side in place of the suspended Patrick Vieira as the Gunners seek the required victory over Rosenborg. And the striker said: ""If we don't win and we go out of the competition, like it or not, it's going to be my fault. That's the way it is. ""If the team don't win I know I will be criticised, no matter how I play.""
"	sport
Houllier praises Benitez regime	"Former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier has praised the work of his Anfield successor Rafael Benitez.

Houllier was angry at reports that he has been critical of Benitez since the Spaniard took over at Liverpool. But Houllier told BBC Sport: ""In private and in public, I have stressed I believe Rafa is doing a good job. He is the right man at the right place. ""Rafa is a good coach and a good man. I've spoken to him since he has been at Liverpool and never criticised him."" Houllier also revealed he is now ready to return to the game after leaving Liverpool in May following six years at Anfield.

The former France boss has been linked with a host of jobs and pulled out of the race to succeed Mark Hughes as Wales national coach. He has been working for Uefa, covering the Premiership for French television and also coaching in Brazil with national coach Carlos Alberto Perreira. Houllier said: ""If a good club comes up at the right time then yes, I am ready to come back. ""It has been interesting to watch games from a different perspective and I have learned things. ""I have been involved in football since leaving Liverpool and my batteries are recharged.""

Houllier has been impressed with the quality in the Premiership after watching as a pundit - particularly with Jose Mourinho's work at leaders Chelsea. He said: ""Chelsea are doing very well. They have some very good creative players in Damien Duff and Arjen Robben and Didier Drogba showed he can change the face of a game when he came on against Newcastle. ""They have got a good team spirit and are strong mentally. They have shown they can cope with all the pressure put on them because of the expectations and cope well with Jose's principles. ""Jose had results before he came to Chelsea and I think he will have an impact in the Premiership because he manages his team very cleverly."" And Houllier, away from his brief at Liverpool, has been hugely impressed with the Premiership. He said: ""It is a very exciting league. It is entertaining, goals are scored and teams are always trying to win. ""It has been very interesting to watch the game from a different perspective. ""Games switch from end-to-end and there is more pace to the Premiership than other leagues. It is a very good product.""
"	sport
McClaren targets Champions League	"Middlesbrough boss Steve McClaren believes his side can clinch a top-four spot in the Premiership and secure qualification for the Champions League.

After their 3-2 win over Manchester City, McClaren said: ""We are playing exciting football, it's a magnificent result to keep us in the top five. ""But how well we do depends how often we can get our best team out. ""Once we got the third goal it should have been four or five but we nearly paid for it in the end."" McClaren also praised winger Stewart Downing and strikers Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Mark Viduka, who both ended barren runs in front of goal. He added: ""If Stewart keeps playing like this Sven-Goran Eriksson has got to pick him. ""And the strikers scored great goals, the combination play between them shows they want to play with each other and they are trying.""
"	sport
Hitzlsperger waiting on O'Leary	"Aston Villa's Thomas Hitzlsperger is waiting to learn the future of manager David O'Leary before committing himself to a new contract with the club.

O'Leary has been in talks over a new deal and he said: ""I had a message from Thomas' agent asking me what the news was on myself. ""He wants to find out before he goes into discussions over Thomas. ""The reason Thomas is not speaking to the club is because the agent wants to see the outcome of what happens to me."" Hitzlsperger's current deal expires in the summer and he has been offered a new deal by the Midlands club. The German international is understood to be keen to remain at Villa, despite interest in his native country from Hamburg. But he wants assurances that O'Leary will also be committing himself long-term because negotiations over a new three-and-a-half-year contract appear to have stalled.

O'Leary wants his backroom staff - assistant manager Roy Aitken and fitness coach Steve McGregor - to also be given satisfactory deals, which will tie them to Villa until the summer of 2008.
"	sport
Mourinho to escape FA charge	"Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will not face any Football Association action over the comments he made after their Carling Cup tie with Manchester United.

Mourinho intimated that United boss Sir Alex Ferguson influenced referee Neale Barry after the duo walked down the tunnel together at half-time. But an FA spokesman told BBC Sport: ""We are not taking action over Mourinho. ""We have looked at the comments and we have decided that no further action is required. That is the end of it."" Mourinho was concerned that Ferguson's conversation with Barry was followed by an inconsistent display by the official. ""I see one referee in the first half and another in the second,"" said Mourinho. ""If the FA ask me what happened, I will tell them. What I saw and felt made it easier to understand a few things.

""Maybe when I turn 60 and have been managing in the same league for 20 years and have the respect of everybody I will have the power to speak to people and make them tremble a little bit. ""The referee controlled the game in one way during the first half but in the second they had dozens of free-kicks. It was fault after fault, dive after dive. ""But I know the referee did not walk to the dressing rooms alone at half-time. He should only have had his two assistants and the fourth official with him, but there was also someone else."" Referees chief Keith Hackett believes Mourinho should retract his comments about Ferguson and Barry as he believes the Blues boss has questioned their integrity. ""I'm hoping he might reconsider his comments, unfortunately this is the nature of the game,"" said Hackett. ""I don't want referees or myself getting in the psychological warfare between two managers. For the second leg we have an experienced referee, and we should be talking about the quality of that game rather than the refereeing. ""Sometimes managers have grounds for comments, and I note that, but a referees integrity has been questioned, that is offensive and should be avoided. Mr Mourinho should look at the facts."" Mourinho added that the match was entertaining for a goalless draw and insisted his team could still reach the final. ""It's 0-0, so if we win we go through and if we get a draw we go to extra time,"" he said. ""We have exactly the same chance we had before this game. ""We are confident of getting a result but we know what Manchester United is, a footballing power. It'll be difficult for us, but also for them.""
"	sport
Wolves appoint Hoddle as manager	"Glenn Hoddle has been unveiled as the new Wolves manager.

The ex-England coach has been given a six-month contract to succeed Dave Jones, who was sacked after the club's poor start to the season. Wolves chairman Rick Hayward said: ""We're delighted Glenn is here. He has a six-month contract so we can test each other out and see if it works."" Hoddle, who will work alongside Stuart Gray, has been out of the game since he was sacked by Spurs in 2003. Gray, who has been caretaker manager, was assistant boss when Hoddle was manager at Southampton. ""I'm delighted to be here,"" said Hoddle.

""I saw the massive potential that Wolves have got and their desire and amibition to get back into the Premiership parallels my ambitions. ""Stuart Gray has done a fantastic job as caretaker manager. We've worked together at Southampton and I'm delighted to be back with him."" Wolves chief executive Jez Moxey defended the decision to give Hoddle a short-term contract. ""We hope it will work out for both parties and we extend it for the long term,"" he said. ""Most managers want a four-year contract and then expect it to be paid off if it doesn't work out. ""For somebody of Glenn's calibre to come in on a short-term contract and put his reputation on the line, it demonstrates his commitment and self-belief and the potential he thinks is here."" Hayward revealed that Hoddle was one of the first to be approached after Jones' departure. ""He was not available at the time because he was looking at various other things,"" he explained. ""Five weeks later we're back on track and this a tremendous opportunity for Wolves.""

Hoddle began his managerial career as player-boss with Swindon before moving on to Chelsea and then taking up the England job. His spell in charge of the national side came to an end after the 1998 World Cup when he made controversial remarks about the disabled in a newspaper interview. The 47-year-old later returned to management with Southampton, where he again succeeded Jones - as he has now done at Wolves. He engineered an upturn in Saints' fortunes before being lured to White Hart Lane by Tottenham - the club where he made his name as a player. That relationship turned sour at the start of the last campaign and he left the London club early last season. Since then he has applied unsuccessfully for the post of France manager and had also been linked with a return to Southampton. Wolves are currently 17th in the Championship and have a home game against Millwall on Tuesday.
"	sport
Redknapp poised for Saints	"Southampton are set to unveil Harry Redknapp as their new manager at a news conference at 1500 GMT on Wednesday.

The former Portsmouth boss replaces Steve Wigley, who has been relieved of first-team duties after just one win in 14 league games in charge. Redknapp, 57, quit his Fratton Park position on 24 November and vowed: ""I will not go down the road - no chance."" Pompey coach Kevin Bond is poised to join Redknapp, who will be Saints' third boss of the season. Redknapp's first game in charge will be at home to Middlesbrough on Saturday. Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric said he was ""disappointed"" by the news and claimed Redknapp had been in talks with Southampton for ""some time"".

""It would appear that negotiations over this have been going on for some time,"" Mandaric said on Portsmouth's official website. ""I am surprised and a little shocked that the chairman of Southampton has not picked up the phone and kept me informed."" According to Mandaric, Redknapp vowed he would not join their South coast rivals when he left Portsmouth. ""I said to Harry 'I hope you don't go to Southampton', and he told me 'absolutely not',"" he said. ""I'm wouldn't say I'm bitter, disgusted or angry, just disappointed, but it's Harry's life and it's his decision."" Redknapp became a cult hero after leading Portsmouth into the Premiership for the first time, and then masterminding their survival in their debut season. But he left the club claiming he needed a break from football, though many believed he was upset with Mandaric's decision to bring in Velimir Zajec as executive director.

Southampton chairman Rupert Lowe was desperate to give former academy director Wigley, who replaced Paul Sturrock just two games into the season, every chance to succeed at St Mary's. But results under Wigley have been poor and Southampton are deep in trouble near the foot of the table. When Redknapp's appointment is confirmed, he will be Saints' ninth manager in eight years.
"	sport
FA charges Liverpool and Millwall	"Liverpool and Millwall have been charged by the Football Association over crowd trouble during their Carling Cup match on 26 October.

Millwall, who lost the match 3-0, have also been charged over alleged racist behaviour by their supporters. During the match at Millwall's new Den Stadium, seats were ripped up and four people were ejected from the ground. A disabled fan was injured at the perimeter of the pitch and riot police were needed to control the situation. Liverpool fans claimed the trouble was sparked by chants about the Hillsborough disaster, where 96 supporters were crushed to death in April 1989. But Lions chairman Theo Paphitis has denied the claims. He has said CCTV footage showed the catalyst for the trouble was a Liverpool fan attacking a Millwall fan in the west stand. However, Millwall have been charged with two breaches of FA rules. They have been charged with failing to ensure that fans refrained from racist and/or abusive behaviour and for failing to prevent spectators throwing missiles onto the pitch. Liverpool have been charged with one breach for failing to prevent their fans conducting themselves in threatening and/or violent and/or provocative behaviour. Both clubs have until 23 December to respond.
"	sport
Wenger steps up row	"Arsene Wenger has stepped up his feud with Sir Alex Ferguson by claiming the Manchester United manager is guilty of bringing football into disrepute.

The pair's long-running row was put back in the headlines on Saturday when Ferguson said his Arsenal counterpart was ""a disgrace"". Wenger initially refused to bite back, saying only: ""I will never answer any questions any more about this man."" But now he claims Ferguson should be punished by the Football Association. The latest twist in the Ferguson-Wenger saga came on Saturday when the United boss, in an interview with The Independent newspaper, discussed the events after the game between the two sides in October. United won 2-0 that day, at Old Trafford, but the game was followed by a now notorious food fight which saw Ferguson's clothes covered in soup and pizza. The sides meet again at Highbury on 1 February. ""In the tunnel Wenger was criticising my players, calling them cheats, so I told him to leave them alone and behave himself,"" Ferguson said on Saturday. ""He ran at me with hands raised saying 'what do you want to do about it?' ""To not apologise for the behaviour of the players to another manager is unthinkable. It's a disgrace, but I don't expect Wenger to ever apologise, he's that type of person.""

Those allegations were put to Wenger after Saturday's game at Bolton, which Arsenal lost to slip 10 points behind Chelsea in the title race. At first he said only: ""I've always been consistent with that story and told you nothing happened. ""If he has to talk, he talks. If he wants to make a newspaper article, he makes a newspaper article. ""He doesn't interest me and doesn't matter to me at all. I will never answer to any provocation from him any more. ""He does what he likes in England anyway. He can go abroad one day and see how it is."" But later on Saturday, according to The Independent, Wenger spoke to a smaller group of reporters and expanded on his reaction. ""I have no diplomatic relations with him,"" the Arsenal boss is quoted as saying. ""What I don't understand is that he does what he wants and you (the press) are all at his feet.

""The situation (concerning the food fight) has been judged and there is a game going on in a month. ""The managers have a responsibility to protect the game before the game. But in England you are only punished for what you say after the game. ""Now the whole story starts again. I don't go into that game. We play football. I am a football manager and I love football above all ... no matter what people say."" Reminded that Ferguson called him ""a disgrace"", Wenger added: ""I don't respond to anything. In England you have a good phrase. It is 'bringing the game into disrepute'. ""But that is not only after a game, it is as well before a game.""

Ferguson had also claimed that United chief executive David Gill and Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein had agreed at boardroom level not to discuss the incident in public. But Ferguson added: ""In the ensuing weeks all you got was a diatribe from Arsenal about being kicked off the pitch and all that nonsense. Gill phoned Dein three times to complain but nothing was done. ""The return is on 1 February and they will come out with another diatribe. ""David Gill and I feel we should set the record straight because Arsenal have not written to us to apologise and we would not let that happen here."" Meanwhile, the League Managers Association have offered to act as peacemakers in the hope of resolving the on-going row. During that stormy game in October, United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy caught Arsenal's Ashley Cole with one particularly strong tackle. Wenger later accused Van Nistelrooy of ""cheating"" and was fined £15,000 and ""severely reprimanded"" by the Football Association. Ferguson admitted on Saturday that Van Nistelrooy's tackle, which earned the Dutchman a ban, ""could have given (Cole) a serious injury"", but he believes Arsenal were the main aggressors.

""Wenger is always complaining the match was not played in the right spirit,"" he added. ""They are the worst losers of all time, they don't know how to lose. Maybe it is just Manchester United, they don't lose many games to other teams. ""We tend to forget the worst disciplinary record of all time was Arsenal's up until last season. In fairness it has improved and now they are seen as paragons of virtue. ""But to Wenger it never happens, it is all some dream or nightmare.""
"	sport
Liverpool revel in night of glory	"Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez said their qualification for the next stage of the Champions League was ""one of the proudest nights of my career.""

The Reds beat Olympiakos 3-1 with a late Steven Gerrard strike and Benitez said: ""It was a really great night. ""The players ran hard all the time and you see how much it means to the fans. ""We knew before the game that it was very important for the club to gain these extra finances. For Liverpool, this result is very, very important."" Benitez hailed Gerrard for his match-winning strike four minutes from time and also the Anfield crowd for sticking by their side after they had fallen a goal behind at the interval. The Reds scored three second-half goals in a sensational comeback capped by Gerrard's 20-yard drive. He added: ""Steven can play all over the pitch and he influences every part of the game.

""I have said to him many times that he has the freedom because he has talent and is very important to us. ""I felt that the difference between the sides was really our supporters, I cannot thank them enough. ""I want to say thank-you to the supporters, they were magnificent to help us achieve this result."" Gerrard admitted he thought they were going out of the Champions League after trailing 1-0 at half-time. He said: ""I'd be lying if I thought we were going through when we were losing at half-time.

""We had a mountain to climb, but we have climbed it and credit to everyone. ""That was one of the best goals I have scored, I caught it sweet, I haven't caught one like that for ages. It was a massive night for me and the team."" Liverpool's win means all four of England's Champions League representatives have reached the knockout stages for the first time.
"	sport
English clubs make Euro history	"All four of England's Champions League representatives have reached the knockout stages for the first time.

Arsenal and Chelsea are seeded as group winners, while runners-up Manchester United and Liverpool are not. Rules stipulate that teams from the same country or group will be kept apart in the draw on 17 December. The favourites are Chelsea and Barcelona, and Real Madrid, the two Milan sides, Juventus and Bayern Munich are among the 16 still in the hat.

Steven Gerrard's last-gasp wonder-strike secured qualification for

against Olympiakos on Wednesday evening.

AC Milan, Bayer Leverkusen, Internazionale, Juventus, Lyon.

who had already qualified, fielded a second-string side and went down 3-0 to Fenerbahce.

AC Milan, Bayer Leverkusen, Internazionale, Juventus, Monaco.

On Tuesday,

finished top of their group with a 5-1 win over the Rosenborg after drawing four of their first five matches.

Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Porto, Real Madrid, Werder Bremen

, who had already qualified lost 2-1 to Porto as Jose Mourinho made an unhappy return to his former club.

Barcelona, Bayern Munich, PSV Eindhoven, Real Madrid, Werder Bremen.
"	sport
Ferguson puts faith in youngsters	"Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said he has no regrets after his second-string side lost 3-0 away at Fenerbahce in the Champions League.

Ferguson said: ""The good thing about being manager is that you are in control of which team to pick. ""I care about United, that's important, so while I am disappointed at the result I am not at the team I selected. ""This game was important for the young lads. They will remember it and next time they come they will be better."" Ferguson admitted his side were well-beaten by the Turks, a result which meant they finished second in Group D behind Lyon. He added: ""They'll know not to play like that again. We showed a lack of strength. But I have no complaints about the scoreline. ""In the second half we had some good moments in attack. And in that situation, you have to take one chance. ""But we didn't do that, so the game just petered out for us. ""I didn't think it made much difference whether we won the group or finished second and I still don't. ""We could get Inter, AC Milan and Juventus but Bayern, Barcelona and Real Madrid were among the runners-up. All we can do is let fate decide how it works out.""
"	sport
Beckham relief as Real go through	"David Beckham expressed his relief at Real Madrid's passage to the Champions League knockout phase.

After Real's 3-0 win at Roma, the England skipper admitted another season of under-achievement would not be tolerated at the Bernabeu stadium. Beckham said: ""It's expected of Madrid to get through, but it's a relief for the club and players to have won. ""We lost momentum last season but we cannot afford to to go another season without winning anything."" Real's finish as runners-up in their Champions League group means they cannot face his old club Manchester United in the next round. But Real could be drawn against other Premiership hopefuls, Arsenal or Chelsea, who won their respective groups. ""It's going to be great whoever we play, even if we don't get either of the two English teams.""
"	sport
Man Utd through after Exeter test	"Manchester United avoided an FA Cup upset by edging past Exeter City in their third round replay.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored the opener, slipping the ball between Paul Jones' legs after just nine minutes. United wasted a host of chances to make it safe as Jones made some great saves, but Wayne Rooney put the tie beyond doubt late on with a cool finish. Exeter had chances of their own, Sean Devine twice volleying wide and Andrew Taylor forcing Tim Howard to save. United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was taking few chances after their 0-0 draw in the first game and he handed starts to Paul Scholes and Ryan as well as Ronaldo and Rooney. Exeter began brightly with Devine and Steve Flack seeing plenty of the ball, but it did not take United long to assert their authority and the hosts soon found themselves a goal down. Scholes played a lovely pass in to Ronaldo on the left-hand side of the six-yard box and the Portuguese winger slid the ball between the legs of Jones to open the scoring.

United sensed a chance to finish the tie as a contest early on and Ronaldo blazed over before Jones saved well from Scholes and then Rooney. The visitors' pressure by now was incessant and Rooney had another shot blocked while Ronaldo slammed well over the bar again from a good position. Just before the break Giggs had a golden chance to double the advantage, but the Welshman dragged a left-foot effort badly wide from 10 yards. In stoppage time Exeter created their best chance as Alex Jeannin swung in a cross from the left that Devine managed to flick goalwards, but the ball flew wide of Howard's goal. The Grecians came out after the break in determined fashion and Howard had to show safe hands to collect two searching crosses into the United box. Rooney looked like he might have sealed the result with a turn and shot but the ball stuck in the St James Park mud and Jones raced back to gather on the goalline. Moments later Devine had the chance to make himself a hero, but he could only volley Jeannin's brilliant cross wide of Howard's goal after being left unmarked six yards out. After Rooney had completely messed up a free-kick 20 yards out Taylor showed him how it should be done, his stunning drive from distance forcing a flying stop from Howard. The home crowd were baying for a goal and they did get the ball into the net only for Devine's low effort to be ruled out for an obvious offside. The persistent Rooney eventually rounded Jones with three minutes to go and slotted into an empty net to book a home tie with Middlesbrough in the fourth round.

Jones, Hiley, Sawyer, Gaia, Jeannin, Moxey, Taylor (Martin 89), Ampadu (Afful 69), Clay, Flack (Edwards 74), Devine. Subs Not Used: Rice, Todd.

Ampadu, Clay.

Howard, Phil Neville, Gary Neville, O'Shea, Fortune, Giggs (Saha 70), Miller (Fletcher 66), Scholes, Djemba-Djemba (Silvestre 80), Ronaldo, Rooney. Subs Not Used: Ricardo, Bellion.

Ronaldo 9, Rooney 87.

9,033.

P Dowd (Staffordshire).
"	sport
Hamm bows out for US	"Women's football legend Mia Hamm has played her final game.

Hamm, 32, who officially retired after this year's Athens Olympics, took to the field for the last time to help the US claim a 5-0 win over Mexico. Hamm ends her career as the most prolific scorer - male or female - in international football, with 158 goals in 276 games for the US. She was twice Fifa women's player of the year and won the World Cup in 1991 and 1999 and two Olympic golds. On her retirement, Hamm said: ""There are mixed emotions. There are things in your life that you have had to put on the back-burner and you can focus more time and energy on that now. ""I have to see what is out there and not commit to everything at the beginning."" The friendly also saw the end of Julie Foudy and Joy Fawcett's US careers. Hamm will now embark on a new life with husband, Chicago Cubs shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, who was in the stands to watch her final game. He has just agreed a new deal with the Cubs after joining them in July.
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Wenger rules out new keeper	"Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says he has no plans to sign a new goalkeeper during the January transfer window.

Wenger has brought in Manuel Almunia for the last three games for the out-of-form Jens Lehmann - but the Spaniard himself has been prone to mistakes. There have been suggestions that Wenger will swoop for a high-quality shot-stopper in the New Year. But he told the Evening Standard: ""I don't feel it will be necessary to bring in a new goalkeeper in January."" The Gunners manager refused to comment on the difficult start that 27-year-old Almunia has made to his career at Highbury. And he would not be drawn on whether Lehmann would return for the top-of-the table clash with Chelsea on Sunday.

Almunia was at fault for Rosenborg's goal in Arsenal's 5-1 Champions League win on Tuesday and had some hairy moments in last week's win over Birmingham. But Wenger said earlier this week that his indifferent form was down to pressure caused by being under scrutiny from the media. ""The debate has gone on too long. Everyone has an opinion and I do not have to add to it,"" Wenger added. Arsenal have been linked with Middlesbrough keeper Mark Schwarzer, Fulham's Edwin van der Sar and Parma's Sebastien Frey. And Wenger has no immediate plans to recall former England Under-21 international Stuart Taylor from his loan spell at Leicester.
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Liverpool pledge to keep Gerrard	"Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry insists the club will never sell Steven Gerrard amid reports Chelsea will renew their bid to lure him from Anfield.

Gerrard reiterated his desire to win trophies with the Reds after his superb Champions League winner on Wednesday. And Parry has moved to scotch claims that Chelsea could launch a £35m bid. ""There is no chance of Stevie going in January,"" said Parry. ""That just won't happen. Our intention is that we will never let him go."" Gerrard scored a spectacular late goal to give Liverpool a 3-1 win over Olympiakos and book their place in the knockout stages. ""Of course he is ambitious but so are we,"" Parry added. ""We firmly believe that if we can satisfy his ambition he will remain a Liverpool player. ""We have an open and straightforward relationship. We both know where we stand and that played a big part in his decision to stay last summer. If he was not so committed to Liverpool he would have gone by now."" Gerrard had said before Wednesday's game he would consider leaving if the club was knocked out of Europe, with Real Madrid also believed to be monitoring his situation.

""The main point I have made is I want to be in a Liverpool side which challenges for the Champions League and the title all the time,"" he said afterwards. ""I want to be winning things with Liverpool, not somewhere else. ""I am a fan as well and I think what I have said the supporters will agree with. ""We have to build on wins like that, not just settle for a great win and then not progress any further. ""My goal was one of the most important I have ever scored and I hope it turns out to be one of the most important for the club for a long time. ""I know I put a lot of pressure on myself because of what I said, and I felt I needed a big performance, but I am not going to go around telling lies about how I feel.""

Reds manager Rafael Benitez believes Gerrard can win everything he wants to without moving clubs. ""Steven can win all he wants with us and we need him. He has seen that we have a good team and we can do more things in the future,"" said Benitez. ""But if we want to win more games, important games, we need Steven in the team. ""We need his strength, the strong mentality he has and his quality. I think he likes and wants the responsibility of leading this team.""
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Pearce keen on succeeding Keegan	"Joint assistant boss Stuart Pearce has admitted he would like to succeed Kevin Keegan as manager at Manchester City.

Keegan has decided to step down as City manager when his contract comes to an end in 18 months. ""You don't have to be Einstein to realise there will be a manager's job available at a really good club,"" Pearce told BBC GMR. ""I will certainly be applying for it, although whether the board deem me good enough to take it, I do not know."" Pearce initially joined City as a player under Keegan in 2001 before becoming part of the coaching staff. He was promoted to joint assistant-manager following the departure of Arthur Cox last summer.

The former England defender had a year as player-boss with Nottingham Forest eight seasons ago but has made no secret of his desire to have another crack at the job. He was linked with the manager's job at Oldham and Keegan has stated he would not get in the way if Pearce wanted to leave. But it now appears Pearce is keen to wait for his chance at City. He added: ""By that time, I will have been here for five years so at least they will have had a good look at me and they are aware of my feelings with regard to being Kevin's successor. ""Obviously, the issue is out of my hands but it is a fantastic job for anybody - I just hope it will be me.""
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Bomb threat at Bernabeu stadium	"Spectators were evacuated from Real Madrid's Bernabeu stadium on Sunday following a bomb scare during the game between the hosts and Real Sociedad.

More than 70,000 people abandoned the ground with the score at 1-1 and only three minutes left to play. The Basque newspaper Gara apparently received a telephone call saying a bomb was due to explode at 2100 local time. But after searching the stadium with sniffer dogs, the police said that no explosive device had been found.

""The police have said they have completed their search and have not found anything,"" said Real Madrid president Florentino Perez. ""The best thing we can all do now is to put this nightmare behind us."" Madrid midfielder Guti told private Spanish radio station Cadena Ser: ""I have never seen this before and sport should be above it all."" Real took the lead just before the break when Brazilian striker Ronaldo cracked home with his left foot. Sociedad levelled the match midway through the second half when Turkish striker Nihat Kahveci smashed home with an acrobatic finish. It is not yet clear if the remaining three minutes of the game will be played at a later date or if the result will be allowed to stand.

If the result remains at 1-1, Real will drop to third place in the standings, 11 points behind leaders Barcelona, who snatched a late 2-1 win at Albacete on Saturday. Initial reports suggested the Basque separatist group ETA may be responsible for the bomb threat after issuing similar warnings before a series of small explosions in recent days. The Bernabeu was targeted by ETA on 1 May, 2002, when Madrid were about to play FC Barcelona in a Champions League semi-final. A car bomb exploded in a street outside the stadium and 17 people were slightly injured.
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Chelsea hold Arsenal	"A gripping game between Arsenal and Chelsea ended with the honours finishing even at Highbury.

Thierry Henry produced a sublime strike to put Arsenal ahead but John Terry levelled with a powerful header. Henry's quickly-taken free-kick put Arsenal back in front but Eidur Gudjohnsen equalised with a header from William Gallas' knockback. Henry missed a golden chance when he blazed a shot high late on and Arsenal also had a penalty appeal rejected. Henry's opener had given Arsenal the perfect start and set up an enthralling affair. The French striker headed a long Cesc Faregas ball back to Jose Antonio Reyes from the edge of the Chelsea area and immediately saw it headed back into his path from the Spaniard. And, with his back to goal, Henry finished with aplomb when he took one touch, turned and struck an angled strike past the despairing dive of keeper Petr Cech. Henry epitomised a determination about the Arsenal side but Chelsea appeared unruffled and equalised after 16 minutes.

Gunners keeper Manuel Almunia, who got the nod ahead of Jens Lehmann, did well to save a well-struck Frank Lampard shot. But he could not keep out Terry's powered header from the resultant corner as Arsenal's weakness at set-pieces was again exposed. Almost immediately, Henry went close and Chelsea gathered the loose ball before going straight up the other end where Gudjohnsen fluffed an effort. Gudjohnsen did not make the same error minutes later when he struck a sweet shot only for Almunia to be equal to the task and save. The homes side regained the lead in controversial fashion when Robert Pires won a dubious free-kick. And, given the option to take the 25-yard set-piece quickly, Henry curled in a shot with Cech still organising his wall.

This time Arsenal did not allow Chelsea to level so soon as they went into the break ahead. Chelsea brought striker Didier Drogba on to partner Gudjohnsen up front after the interval and the move reaped immediate reward. Lampard swung in a cross which Gallas knocked back across goal and a deft header from Gudjohnsen levelled matters again. Chelsea's main threat was coming from crosses and Lampard missed a great opportunity as he headed wide when left unmarked at the far post. The second half failed to live up to the thrilling pace of the opening period but there were flashes of brilliance. One of them came from the enigmatic Robben when he jinked his way through two Arsenal defenders only to see his poked shot saved by Almunia.

Arsenal ended the match the stronger and worked a excellent chance for Henry who put a left-foot shot high from eight yards. Subtitute Robin van Persie could also have nicked a win for the Highbury outfit but frustratingly sidefooted just wide. Matthieu Flamini had a late penal appeal waved away before the final whistle which maintained Chelsea five-point Premiership lead over Arsenal.

Almunia, Lauren, Toure, Campbell, Cole, Pires, Flamini, Fabregas, Reyes (Clichy 82), Bergkamp (Van Persie 82), Henry. Subs Not Used: Senderos, Hoyte, Lehmann.

Cole.

Henry 2, 29.

Cech, Paulo Ferreira, Ricardo Carvalho (Drogba 45), Terry, Gallas, Duff, Tiago (Bridge 45), Makelele, Lampard, Robben, Gudjohnsen (Parker 77). Subs Not Used: Kezman, Cudicini.

Robben, Drogba, Lampard.

Terry 17, Gudjohnsen 46.

38,153

G Poll (Hertfordshire).
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Real will finish abandoned match	"Real Madrid and Real Socieded will play the final six minutes of their match, which was abandoned on Sunday because of a bomb scare.

The Bernabeu was evacuated with the score at 1-1 and two minutes of normal time remaining in the game. The teams will now play the final two minutes, plus four minutes of injury time, on 5 January. Brazilian Ronaldo and England captain David Beckham had to wait in the street in their kit after the abandonment. Real Sociedad president Jose Luis Astiazaran said: ""We thought the best thing was to play the time remaining.""

Hundreds of fans streamed across the pitch on their way to the exits after the game was called off. Tourists and fans took advantage of the opportunity for a photograph between the famous stadium's goalposts. The two clubs met the Spanish FA on Monday and Astiazaran added: ""We thought about giving the game as concluded but after talking with the FA we decided there was no precedent for that and the best thing was to play the time that was remaining."" Real Madrid director of sport Emilio Butragueno praised the spectators inside the ground for their conduct. ""I'd like to highlight the behaviour of the fans, who showed great maturity and it was an example of good citizenship,"" he said. Butragueno confirned, before confirming that Tuesday's charity match - which has been billed as ""Ronaldo's friends against Zidane's friends"" - will go ahead as planned. ""I'd also like to take the chance to say that tomorrow's game will take place,"" Butragueno declared of the ""Partido contra la Pobreza"" (Game Against Poverty). He added: ""Football is important for society and we want to show that. ""We also think that football should be a fiesta, we had programmed and people deserve to enjoy the game.""
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Poll explains free-kick decision	"Referee Graham Poll said he applied the laws of the game in allowing Arsenal striker Thierry Henry's free-kick in Sunday's 2-2 draw with Chelsea.

Keeper Petr Cech was organising his defensive wall when Henry's quick free-kick flew in, which angered Chelsea. ""The whistle doesn't need to be blown. I asked Henry 'do you want a wall?'. He said 'can I take it please?' He was very polite. I said 'yes',"" said Poll. ""I deal with the laws of the game. I deal with fact."" Poll added: ""I gave the signal for him to take it. That's what he did. ""The same thing happened when I refereed Chelsea against West Ham in an FA Cup replay two years ago - when Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink scored - and I don't remember them complaining about that."" Henry explained why he paused before striking the ball for the goal, which put Arsenal 2-1 ahead.

Henry told BBC Radio Five Live: ""The ref asked me if I wanted 10 yards or if I wanted to take it straight away and I said that I wanted to take it straight away. He said to me, 'go'. ""It looks a bit strange because I took my time. I was waiting for Eidur Gudjohnsen to move and give me some space. ""At one point, he turned and that's when I tried it."" Former referees' chief Philip Don backed Poll's decision to allow the strike. ""The advantage should go to the non-offending team. On this occasion it was Arsenal,"" Don told BBC Radio Five Live. ""Referees have been told to ask the player 'do you want to take the quick free-kick?' or 'do you want me to get the wall back 9.15 metres?' ""If they say 'quick', the referee tends to move away and allow the kick."" Don was head of the referees for the Premier League and revealed all clubs were informed of free-kick options. ""We spoke to all the Premier League clubs as well as all the Football League clubs in the summer of 2003 explaining what the situation was,"" he added ""We gave them the option of either the quick free-kick or the 'ceremonial' free-kick. Players and clubs were aware of what referees were doing.""
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Solskjaer raises hopes of return	"Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said he hoped to return next season following a career-threatening injury to his right knee.

The 31-year-old Norway international had surgery in Sweden in August to transplant cartilage into the joint. ""I'm in no doubt that I'll play again,"" Solskjaer told Aftenposten Daily. ""The problem will be the speed but we're talking about eight months' time. It's going as it should with the knee. I'm slavishly following a programme."" Solskjaer last played for United as a late substitute in May's FA Cup final win over Millwall. His contract with United runs out in 2006, by which time he will have been at the Premier League club for 10 years.
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Dunne keen to commit to Man City	"Richard Dunne is ready to commit his long-term future to Manchester City after turning his career around.

He was once threatened with the sack by City boss Kevin Keegan but has since responded with impressive performances, prompting interest from other clubs. Early talks have taken place and the defender said: ""Hopefully something will be sorted out as soon as possible. ""I definitely want to stay at City because I have really improved as a player here."" Newcastle boss Graeme Souness is said to have been impressed enough by Dunne's turnaround in form to be ready to make a bid for the big stopper in the January transfer window. But the 25-year-old Dubliner underlined his intention to stay at Eastlands. He added: ""It's nice to be linked with top clubs but the important thing is this one and what we do. ""I really enjoy it at City and I want to keep that going."" Keegan is expected to be told there will be no funds to bring in fresh faces in January. Dunne's professionalism was famously questioned by Keegan, who ordered the defender home after he allegedly turned up for training in a dishevelled state.

But Dunne is keen to put that period of his life behind him and said: ""I've grown up a lot and the manager sees me as one of the most experienced players in the squad. ""I've played more games than any other outfield players this season so I can't be regarded as being a kid any more. ""I have to use that as added pressure to perform and apart from the games at Newcastle and Middlesbrough, defensively we've done quite well."" Keegan is set for another boost when goalkeeper Nicky Weaver makes his long-awaited return in a reserve game at Blackburn on Tuesday. Former England Under-21 keeper Weaver has missed nearly three full seasons with a succession of knee injuries, which eventually needed pioneering transplant surgery earlier this year.
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Bates seals takeover	"Ken Bates has completed his takeover of Leeds United.

The 73-year-old former Chelsea chairman sealed the deal at 0227 GMT on Friday, and has bought a 50% stake in the club. He said: ""I'm delighted to be stepping up to the mantel at such a fantastic club. I recognise Leeds as a great club that has fallen on hard times. ""We have a lot of hard work ahead to get the club back where it belongs in the Premiership, and with the help of our fans we will do everything we can."" Bates bought his stake under the guise of a Geneva-based company known as The Forward Sports Fund. He revealed that part of his plan is to buy back Leeds' Elland Road stadium and Thorp Arch training ground in due course.

""It's going to be a tough jon and the first task is to stabilise the cash flow and sort out the remaining creditors,"" Bates added. ""But there is light at the end of a very long tunnel. For the past year it has been a matter of firefighting - now we can start running the club again."" Outgoing Leeds chairman Gerald Krasner said: ""This deal ensures the medium to long term survival of the club and I believe Mr Bates' proposals are totally for the benefit of the club. ""We are content that under Mr Bates, Leeds United will continue to consolidate and move forward. ""When we took over Leeds United in March 2004, the club had a debt of £103m, since that date, my board has succeeded in reducing the debt to under £25m. ""We worked tirelessly to solve all of the problems at Leeds United. ""Eighty percent of the problems have already been overcome and we came to this agreement with Mr Bates to secure its ongoing success."" Krasner revealed that his consortium has been asked to remain in the background at the club for an undisclosed period to help ensure a smooth hand-over. He will stay on in an unpaid capacity while Peter Lorimer will continue in his role as director and point of contact for the fans and Peter McCormick will serve as a consultant to the incoming board. The other outgoing directors have agreed to leave their loans of £4.5m in the company for the next four years. On Leeds' new-look board it is understood that Lorimer will be joined by former Chelsea finance director Yvonne Todd and Bates' lawyer Mark Taylor.

Krasner refused to give any details of the finances involved in the takeover. He told BBC Five Live: ""I am not going into the figures. If Ken wants to give them up that is up to him. I can not tell you what the money will be used for. ""This dea l is not about money for the current board. In the last four months I never saw any cheques until this week from one person. I am not stretching figures, we don't discuss internal arrangements."" Bates stepped down as Chelsea chairman in March last year following Roman Abramovich's £140m takeover at Stamford Bridge. In May, he made a proposal to invest £10m in Sheffield Wednesday, but this was rejected by the club. Sebastien Sainsbury had been close to a takeover of Leeds but withdrew his £25m offer last week.

His efforts failed after he revealed it would take £40m to stage a takeover, and that the club will also lose £10m over the next six months. The club was on the brink of administration - and the deduction of 10 points by the Football League - before Bates' arrival but his investment has spared them that prospect.
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Ferguson rues failure to cut gap	"Boss Sir Alex Ferguson was left ruing Manchester United's failure to close the gap on Chelsea, Everton and Arsenal after his side's 1-1 draw with Fulham.

Premiership leaders Chelsea and the Gunners endured a 2-2 stalemate on Sunday, giving United the chance to make up some ground in the league. But Ferguson said: ""I think what makes it so bad is that both our rivals dropped points at the weekend. ""It was a great opportunity - and we haven't delivered."" United went ahead through Alan Smith in the 33rd minute before Bouba Diop's superb 25-yard strike cancelled out the visitors' lead in the 87th minute. Ferguson described the result as an ""absolute giveaway"" after United had earlier missed a host of opportunities to finish off the encounter. He said: ""It was a good performance - some of the football was fantastic - but we just didn't finish them off. ""In fairness, it's a fantastic strike from the Fulham player."" The result leaves Ferguson's side fourth in the league on 31 points - four points behind Arsenal and a further five back from Chelsea.
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Old Firm pair handed suspensions	"Celtic's Henri Camara and Nacho Novo of Rangers have both been suspended for offences missed by the referee in a recent Old Firm game.

Both were given automatic one-match bans and 12 additional disciplinary points for their actions. That means Novo will miss a further two games because of his prior record. Camara will miss one additional game. Novo was found guilty of stamping on Celtic's Stephen Pearson. Camara was punished for kicking Gregory Vignal. ""I'm extremely disappointed. I don't know if there's a lot to add to that,"" said Rangers manager Alex McLeish of Novo's punishment. ""But what I will say is that I'm at a loss as to why that incident should be picked up and highlighted when there were so many other incidents during the game."" Both players will miss this weekend's games when Celtic host Dundee United and Rangers visit Kilmarnock unless they decide to appeal.

The additional bans come into effect from 28 December meaning Camara will also be unavailable for the home game against Livingston while Novo will miss the meetings with Dundee United and Dunfermline. An SFA spokesman said: ""They have seven days to appeal but with matches coming along at the weekend they would need to do so before Friday. ""But if they do appeal it won't be heard before this weekend because it takes a bit of time to seat up an appeals tribunal."" Meanwhile, Bob Malcolm and Rangers have been informed by letter as to the outcome of the hearing regarding his reaction to Rangers being awarded a penalty in the same game. Malcolm, a substitute on the day, was taken from the Rangers dug-out and spoken to by police about an alleged gesture he made. But the SFA would not detail what, if any, punishment Malcolm would receive. ""Once Rangers receive our letter we will be in a position to make a comment on the findings,"" added the spokesman.
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Anelka apologises for criticism	"Manchester City striker Nicolas Anelka has issued an apology for criticising the ambitions of the club.

Anelka was quoted in a French newspaper as saying he would like to play in the Champions League for a bigger club. But chairman John Wardle said: ""I've spoken to Nicolas and he's apologised for anything that might have been mistakenly taken from the French press. ""We are a big club. Nicolas told me that he agrees with me that we are a big club."" Wardle was speaking at the club's annual general meeting, where he also confirmed the club had not received any bids for the former Arsenal and Real Madrid striker. The club still owe French club PSG £5m from the purchase of Anelka in May 2002. He has been linked with a move to Barcelona and Liverpool, and Reds skipper Steven Gerrard also revealed he is an admirer from his time on loan at Anfield. But Wardle added: ""There's been no bids for Nicolas Anelka. No-one has come to me and said I would like to buy Nicolas Anelka.

""If a bid comes in for Nicolas Anelka I will speak to the board and then speak to Kevin Keegan. ""If there was a bid and it was a bid of substance and worth taking then between us we'd decide. ""We still owe some money on Nicolas which we have clear out, so it would have to be above that."" Wardle did stress that the club was not inviting any offers for England winger Shaun Wright-Phillips. He added: ""I've no intention of selling Shaun Wright-Phillips. ""If someone comes with a silly bid I'll have to discuss it. ""But we're not putting him on the shelf to sell. He is the heart and soul of this club and has his heart and sole in this club, and he would be very upset if I put him in the shop window. ""He was an academy kid here, he's just signed a new four-year deal, I don't think he'd do that unless he wanted to play for Manchester City Football Club."" City recently announced debts of £62m, but Wardle confirmed they would try and find funds to bring in players in the January transfer window. He said: ""Like Kevin I'd like to see some players come in. We've got to see what we can do - whether it's a on a Bosman or not. ""We will try to be creative to generate some funds. But maybe we have to start looking at clubs like Everton and Bolton to see how they have been dealing in the transfer market and do a similar type of thing.""
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Ferguson rues failure to cut gap	"Boss Sir Alex Ferguson was left ruing Manchester United's failure to close the gap on Chelsea, Everton and Arsenal after his side's 1-1 draw with Fulham.

Premiership leaders Chelsea and the Gunners endured a 2-2 stalemate on Sunday, giving United the chance to make up some ground in the league. But Ferguson said: ""I think what makes it so bad is that both our rivals dropped points at the weekend. ""It was a great opportunity - and we haven't delivered."" United went ahead through Alan Smith in the 33rd minute before Bouba Diop's superb 25-yard strike cancelled out the visitors' lead in the 87th minute. Ferguson described the result as an ""absolute giveaway"" after United had earlier missed a host of opportunities to finish off the encounter. He said: ""It was a good performance - some of the football was fantastic - but we just didn't finish them off. ""In fairness, it's a fantastic strike from the Fulham player."" The result leaves Ferguson's side fourth in the league on 31 points - four points behind Arsenal and a further five back from Chelsea.
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Everton's Weir cools Euro hopes	"Everton defender David Weir has played down talk of European football, despite his team lying in second place in the Premiership after beating Liverpool.

Weir told BBC Radio Five Live: ""We don't want to rest on our laurels and say we have achieved anything yet. ""I think you start taking your eye off the ball if you make statements and look too far into the future. ""If you start making predictions you soon fall back into trouble. The only thing that matters is the next game."" He said: ""We are looking after each other and hard work goes a long way in this league. We have definitely shown that. ""Also injuries and suspensions haven't cost us too badly and we have a lot of self-belief around the place.""
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Spain coach faces racism inquiry	"Spain's Football Federation has initiated disciplinary action against national coach Luis Aragones over racist comments about Thierry Henry.

If found guilty Aragones could lose his job or face a fine of about £22,000. The federation had initially declined to take action against Aragones after comments he made during a national team training session in October. But its president Angel Maria Villar changed his mind after a request by Spain's anti-violence commission. Aragones insisted the comments, made to Henry's Arsenal club-mate Jose Antonio Reyes, were meant to motivate the player, and were not intended to be offensive.

""I never intended to offend anyone, and for that reason I have a very easy conscience,"" he said at the time. ""I'm obliged to motivate my players to get the best results. ""As part of that job, I use colloquial language, with which we can all understand each other within the framework of the football world. "" England's players made a point of wearing anti-racism t-shirts when training before their friendly against Spain in Madrid last month.

But the storm increased following racist chanting by Spanish fans at England's black players during the game, which Spain won 1-0. Spain's minister of sport Jaime Lissavetzky was quick to give his backing to the Federation's decision. ""Everyone who has a public function has to consider their declarations, and make sure they do not give a negative image,"" he said. ""We are going to have zero tolerance in questions of racism.""
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Spain coach faces racism inquiry	"Spain's Football Federation has initiated disciplinary action against national coach Luis Aragones over racist comments about Thierry Henry.

If found guilty Aragones could lose his job or face a fine of about £22,000. The federation had initially declined to take action against Aragones after comments he made during a national team training session in October. But its president Angel Maria Villar changed his mind after a request by Spain's anti-violence commission. Aragones insisted the comments, made to Henry's Arsenal club-mate Jose Antonio Reyes, were meant to motivate the player, and were not intended to be offensive.

""I never intended to offend anyone, and for that reason I have a very easy conscience,"" he said at the time. ""I'm obliged to motivate my players to get the best results. ""As part of that job, I use colloquial language, with which we can all understand each other within the framework of the football world. "" England's players made a point of wearing anti-racism t-shirts when training before their friendly against Spain in Madrid last month.

But the storm increased following racist chanting by Spanish fans at England's black players during the game, which Spain won 1-0. Spain's minister of sport Jaime Lissavetzky was quick to give his backing to the Federation's decision. ""Everyone who has a public function has to consider their declarations, and make sure they do not give a negative image,"" he said. ""We are going to have zero tolerance in questions of racism.""
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Benitez deflects blame from Dudek	"Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has refused to point the finger of blame at goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek after Portsmouth claimed a draw at Anfield.

Dudek fumbled a cross before Lomana LuaLua headed home an injury-time equaliser, levelling after Steven Gerrard put Liverpool ahead. Benitez said: ""It was difficult for Jerzy. It was an unlucky moment. ""He was expecting a cross from Matthew Taylor and it ended up like a shot, so I don't blame him for what happened."" Benitez admitted it was a costly loss of two points by Liverpool, who followed up their derby defeat against Everton with a disappointing draw. He said: ""We had many opportunities but didn't score and, in the end, a 1-0 lead was not enough. ""If you don't have any chances you have to think of other things, but when you are creating so many chances as we are there is nothing you can say to the players. It was a pity. ""We lost two points, but we have one more point in the table. Now we have another difficult game against Newcastle and we have to recover quickly from that.""
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Bellamy fined after row	"Newcastle have fined their Welsh striker Craig Bellamy two weeks' wages - about £80,000 - following his row with manager Graeme Souness.

But Bellamy, 25, has not been put on the transfer list, although he did not train with the first team on Tuesday. Magpies chairman Freddy Shepherd told the Newcastle Evening Chronicle: ""It is not about money. It is about a player thinking he is bigger than this club. ""No individual is, be it the chairman, the manager or a player."" Souness dropped Bellamy for Sunday's game against Arsenal, claiming the Welshman had feigned injury after being asked to play out of position. ""When I heard what the manager was saying I was in shock,"" Bellamy said. ""I thought 'not only has he gone behind my back, he's lying',"" he said in response to Souness' remarks. And the Wales international refused to apologise. ""I won't apologise because I have done nothing wrong,"" he told the Evening Chronicle. ""There's no doubt about it, I am out of here."" The difficult relationship between Souness and Bellamy boiled over at the weekend, and has led to a war of words in the media.

Bellamy's claim that Souness had lied about the background to the bust-up was strongly denied by Shepherd, who accused the striker of ""cheating"" the club. ""I wish to put the record straight regarding the Bellamy situation,"" said Shepherd. ""Craig walked off the training ground saying his hamstring was tight (on Friday), but what he failed to reveal was that he had told other members of the squad before training that he intended to feign injury. ""When Graeme discovered this he immediately ordered Bellamy to attend a meeting in my office. ""At that meeting Bellamy admitted to Graeme and I that he had told the players that he was going to ""fake"" an injury in training and walk off. ""He also agreed at that meeting to apologise to his team-mates for his behaviour. He didn't do this which resulted in the action taken by the manager at the weekend, which I fully support. ""In my book this is cheating on the club, the supporters, the manager and his own team-mates. ""He is paid extremely well and I consider his behaviour to be totally unacceptable and totally unprofessional.""

Bellamy's latest outburst would appear to make his chances of a first-team recall remote. But even before Newcastle said the player would not be sold, Bellamy insisted he had no intention of handing in a transfer request. ""I don't want the fans to think for one minute that I wouldn't play for this club,"" he said. ""I'd play anywhere for this club, even in goal. ""It's a very difficult situation for me at the moment but I'd never ask to leave this club. ""This club means so much to me. I couldn't do it because I know I couldn't come back here and play against Newcastle. It would hurt too much.""
"	sport
McClaren eyes Uefa Cup top spot	"Steve McClaren wants his Middlesbrough team to win their Uefa Cup group by beating Partizan Belgrade.

Boro have already qualified for the knockout stages alongside Partizan and Villareal, at the expense of Lazio. But boss McClaren is looking for a victory which would mean they avoid a team that has played in the Champions League in Friday's third-round draw. ""To need a win to finish top is fantastic, but it is going to be a tough one,"" McClaren said. ""When the draw was made, I thought it was the toughest group of them all - and so it has proved. ""Lazio were favourites, Villarreal have been semi-finalists, and Partizan have fantastic experience in Europe. ""The pleasing thing is we did the business in the first two games. ""Winning those two has put us in a great position and it has been a fantastic experience playing these teams.""
"	sport
Spurs to sign Iceland U21 star	"Tottenham are primed to snap up Iceland Under-21 international Emil Hallfredsson after he impressed on trial at White Hart Lane.

The 20-year-old midfielder, who plays for FH Hafnarfjordur, also starred in the Uefa Cup match against Scottish side Dunfermline earlier this season. Spurs have agreed a fee for the player, who has yet to agree personal terms. ""He had offers from two other clubs but he decided to come to Tottenham,"" said Spurs sporting director Frank Arnesen. ""He is a left-sided player, a position we have been looking at and he showed so much talent in his time here that we decided to take him. ""It's down the road of bringing in talent, good prospects and giving them a place at Tottenham where they can improve.""
"	sport
McLeish ready for criticism	"Rangers manager Alex McLeish accepts he is going to be criticised after their disastrous Uefa Cup exit at the hands of Auxerre at Ibrox on Wednesday.

McLeish told BBC Radio Five Live: ""We were in pole position to get through to the next stage but we blew it, we absolutely blew it. ""There's no use burying your head in the sand, we know we are going to get a lot of criticism. ""We have to take it as we have done in the past and we must now bounce back."" McLeish admitted his team's defending was amateurish after watching them lose 2-0 to Guy Roux's French side.

""I'm very disappointed because we didn't give ourselves a chance, losing the first goal from our own corner. It was amateur,"" he added. ""The early goal in the second half gave us a mountain to climb and we never created the same kind of chances as we did in the first half. ""It's difficult to take positives from the game. We've let the fans down.""
"	sport
O'Leary agrees new Villa contract	"Aston Villa boss David O'Leary signed a three-and-a-half year contract extension on Thursday, securing his future at the club until summer 2008.

O'Leary's future was in question, but Villa chairman Doug Ellis said he was happy to secure the deal. ""David's record since his arrival in 2003 is excellent and he shares the board's amibitions in taking this club forward,"" he told Villa's website. ""For this reason it was important we got this right."" O'Leary put pen to paper after deals were sorted for his right-hand men Roy Aitken and Steve McGregor. ""It was important to me Roy and Steve, an integral part of my team, should stay for the same time,"" O'Leary said on Thursday ahead of signing his new deal. ""Someone has to try and put Aston Villa back where they should belong and I'm up for the challenge.""Earlier in December, there were rumours O'Leary would quit if he is not offered a new deal before the end of the season.

But he denied that, saying he was happy to take on the challenge of improving Villa's fortunes in the long term. ""I want to make sure by the end of the five years I would have been in charge that Villa are achieving top six finishes in the Premiership on a regular basis,"" said O'Leary, who took over at Villa Park in May 2003. ""But to achieve that, and take the next step forward, we do need to bring in quality players. ""I would like a couple next month if at all possible to set us on the way."" Meanwhile, O'Leary has rapped skipper Olof Mellberg for his comments before Sunday's derby with Birmingham.

Mellberg spoke of his dislike of Villa's rivals ahead of the match, which Steve Bruce's side won 2-1. ""I've had more than a quiet word with Olof. It's been said within the whole group, not as a one-to-one,"" he told Villa's website. ""You shouldn't leave yourself open to be shot down. You shouldn't give people the chance to take cheap shots at you and he set himself up for that.""
"	sport
Gronkjaer agrees switch to Madrid	"Jesper Gronkjaer has agreed a move to Atletico Madrid from Birmingham City.

The 27-year-old winger spent just five months at St Andrews following a £2.2m move from Chelsea in July after playing for Denmark at Euro 2004. He is set to move during the January transfer window in a deal rumoured to be about £1.4m, subject to a medical. ""We will meet with the player's representative to finalise the contract and decide when he will sign,"" said Atletico sporting director Toni Munoz. Gronkjaer has been targeted by Blues fans and was sarcastically applauded when taken off against Everton last month. Boss Steve Bruce had said that he would be happy to let the Danish international go if the price was right. He added: ""I'm not going to say the decision to let him go is down to the fans' reaction towards him.

""He has had a tough time since the summer with the loss of his mother and finding it difficult to adjust to a new club and a different area. ""He has been terrific and not missed a day's training and is someone if your daughter brought them home you would be delighted. ""It just hasn't quite worked out here for him. But we'd like to get back most of what we spent.""
"	sport
Benitez 'to launch Morientes bid'	"Liverpool may launch an £8m January bid for long-time target Fernando Morientes, according to reports.

The Real Madrid striker has been linked with a move to Anfield since the summer and is currently behind Raul, Ronaldo and Michael Owen at the Bernabeu. Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is keen to bolster his forward options with Djibril Cisse out until next season. ""If there is an attractive propostition it could be I would be keen to leave,"" admitted the 28-year-old Morientes. He added: ""Unfortunately, I'm not in control of the situation. I'm under contract to Real and they will make any decisions."" The fee could put Liverpool off a prospective deal but Real are keen to net the cash as they are reported to be preparing a massive summer bid for Inter Milan striker Adriano. The Reds are currently sixth in the Premiership, 15 points behind leaders Chelsea.
"	sport
Robertson out to retain Euro lure	"Hearts manager John Robertson hopes a place in the knock-out stages of the Uefa Cup could help keep some of his out-of-contract players at the club.

""It could help. If we get through and have another European tie it may encourage players to stay at least until the end of the season,"" he said. ""If we manage to get through it shows how well the club's progressing. ""They have to think whether they are going to get other clubs like that should they decide to move on."" A win for Robertson's side against Ferencvaros would put them through to the last 32 if Basle fail to beat Feyenoord. ""It's very much the player's prerogative but the fact that we've been playing European football for the last three or four years is obviously an incentive,"" added Robertson. ""But we want players who want to play for the football club, who are committed and a run in Europe always helps a little bit."" With the game being played at Murrayfield instead of Tynecastle because of Uefa regulations, Robertson sees both positive and negative aspects to the change of venue.

""The pitch is not in the greatest condition. The Heineken Cup game was there at the weekend and the pitch is a bit threadbare,"" he said. ""It's not ideal but it's the same for both teams so we just have to go out and there and perform. That's the most important thing."" But he added: ""If Tynecastle could have hosted 30,000 it would have been fantastic but that's one of the benefits of Murrayfield - it allows us to bring even more of our supporters into it. ""There will be a good atmosphere and the Hearts fans have an important role to play. ""We need their encouragement, we need them to get right behind the side and make it as good an atmosphere as possible. ""Hopefully the players will respond to that and I know they will because it's a fantastic European night for the club.""
"	sport
Campbell rescues Arsenal	"Sol Campbell proved to be an unlikely match-winner to earn Arsenal a hard-fought win at Portsmouth.

The England defender lashed home a 25-yard shot for his first goal in 16 months to take Arsenal back into second spot, five points behind Chelsea. But before Campbell scored the best two chances of the game fell to Pompey striker Ricardo Fuller. In the first half he blasted wide when clear, and his control let him down in the second half when well placed. Portsmouth got plenty of bodies behind the ball to deny Arsenal space in the early stages. But their marking was slack at a corner and Patrick Vieira should have done better when the ball fell to him 16 yards out. A mistake by Arjan de Zeeuw let Thierry Henry in behind the Pompey defence on 17 minutes but as he bore down on goal Linvoy Primus got in a saving tackle. With just Fuller as an out-and-out striker, Portsmouth's shape made life difficult for Arsenal. But a delightful touch by Robin van Persie gave Henry a sight of goal, although the angle was too tight for his shot to trouble Jamie Ashdown.

Ashdown caused hearts to flutter on 28 minutes when he missed his punch at a corner and Kolo Toure headed just wide and, as Arsenal began to press, Van Persie blasted over a good opportunity after Henry had set him up. Henry took a quick return pass from Vieira but Ashdown was out quickly to block, and there were some anxious seconds for Pompey as the ball ran loose before Matthew Taylor cleared. After playing second fiddle, Portsmouth should have taken the lead on 34 minutes. Referee Howard Webb played a good advantage to allow Steve Stone to send Gary O'Neil away but, having shrugged off Toure, the Pompey midfielder planted his shot wide from 10 yards. As half-time approached, Henry teased a shot through a ruck of players and inches wide. At the other end, Fuller broke clear but failed to hit the target as Toure closed him down.

Fuller was given the best chance of the match so far on 48 minutes when Patrik Berger's break and slipped pass played him clear. But a poor first touch lost him the opportunity and even when he checked back and went down under Vieira's challenge, referee Webb was not interested. Fuller paid the price when he gave way on 55 minutes to Aiyegbeni Yakubu, who returned after six weeks out with a knee injury. But it needed alert reflexes and safe handling from Ashdown to cling on to Van Persie's shot as Henry sniffed for scraps.

Portsmouth were growing in confidence and keeper Manuel Almunia had to stand his ground to beat away a powerful shot from Berger. Arsenal were struggling to find their rhythm but took the lead through the unlikely source of Campbell. The England defender needed little invitation as Pompey backed off to stride forward and lash a ferocious shot past Ashdown. Arsenal might have stretched their lead two minutes later when Mathieu Flamini escaped his marker to flash a header wide from Henry's free-kick. Almunia went full length to grab Berger's long-range shot, while Ashdown palmed away substitute Dennis Bergkamp's shot.

Ashdown, Griffin, De Zeeuw, Primus, Taylor, Stone, O'Neil, Faye (Berkovic 83), Berger, LuaLua, Fuller (Yakubu 55).

Subs not used: Hislop, Quashie, Cisse.

Almunia, Lauren, Toure, Campbell, Cole, Pires, Flamini, Vieira, Clichy, Van Persie (Bergkamp 68), Henry.

Subs not used: Lehmann, Fabregas, Senderos, Hoyte.

Cole.

Campbell 75.

20,170.

H Webb (S Yorkshire).
"	sport
Reds sink 10-man Magpies	"Titus Bramble's own goal put Liverpool on the comeback trail as injury-hit Newcastle were well beaten at Anfield.

Patrick Kluivert's close-range finish put Newcastle ahead after 31 minutes, but they were pegged back as Bramble headed in Steven Gerrard's corner. Neil Mellor gave Liverpool the lead before half-time from Milan Baros' pass before the Czech added a third after rounding Shay Given on the hour. Newcastle then had Lee Bowyer sent off for two bookable offences. Liverpool brought back Luis Garcia after a hamstring injury, while Newcastle were forced to draft in Kluivert after Craig Bellamy was a late withdrawal with a back injury sustained in the warm-up. And Garcia should have crowned his return with a goal inside the opening minute when he took a pass from Baros but shot wildly over the top from eight yards. Olivier Bernard was only inches away from giving Newcastle the lead after 20 minutes, when he fired just wide from a free-kick 25 yards out. But Souness's side did go ahead 11 minutes later in highly controversial circumstances.

Kluivert looked suspiciously offside when Kieron Dyer set Bowyer free, but the Dutchman was then perfectly placed to score from six yards. The lead lasted three minutes, with Liverpool back on terms as Bramble headed Gerrard's corner into his own net under pressure from Sami Hyypia. And Liverpool were ahead after 37 minutes when Baros slid a perfect pass into Mellor's path for the youngster to slip a slide-rule finish into Given's bottom corner. Garcia's finishing was wayward, and he was wasteful again in first-half injury time, shooting tamely at Given after good work by Xabi Alonso. Any hopes of a Newcastle recovery looked to be snuffed out on the hour when a brilliant turn and pass by Harry Kewell set Baros free and he rounded Given to score. Jermaine Jenas then missed a glorious chance to throw Newcastle a lifeline, shooting over from just eight yards out from Shola Ameobi's cross. Then Bowyer, who had already been booked for a foul on Alonso, was deservedly shown the red card by referee Graham Poll for a wild challenge on Liverpool substitute Florent Sinama-Pongolle.

Dudek, Finnan, Hyypia, Carragher, Riise, Luis Garcia (Nunez 73), Gerrard, Alonso, Kewell (Traore 85), Baros, Mellor (Sinama Pongolle 75).

Subs not used: Hamann, Harrison.

Bramble 35 og, Mellor 38, Baros 61.

Given, Andrew O'Brien, Elliott, Bramble, Bernard, Bowyer, Dyer (Ambrose 80), Jenas, Milner (N'Zogbia 72), Kluivert (Robert 58), Ameobi.

Subs not used: Harper.

Bowyer (77).

Bowyer, Elliott, Bernard.

Kluivert 32.

43,856.

G Poll (Hertfordshire).
"	sport
Strachan turns down Pompey	"Former Southampton manager Gordon Strachan has rejected the chance to become Portsmouth's new boss.

The Scot was Pompey chairman Milan Mandaric's first choice to replace Harry Redknapp, who left Fratton Park for rivals Saints earlier in December. ""I think it's a fantastic job for anybody apart from somebody who has just been the Southampton manager,"" Strachan told the BBC. Club director Terry Brady held initial talks with Strachan on Saturday. The former Scotland international added that joining Southampton's local rivals would not be a wise move. ""It's got everything going for it but I've got too many memories of the other side and I don't want to sour those memories,"" he said. ""Everything's right - it's 10 minutes away, there are good players there, a good set-up, a good atmosphere at the ground. ""There's lots to do but it's not right for somebody who has just been the Southampton manager."" Since Redknapp's departure, executive director Velimir Zajec and coach Joe Jordan have overseen first-team affairs.

The duo had gone five matches unbeaten until Sunday's 1-0 defeat at home to champions Arsenal, but the club are still in a respectable 12th place in the Premiership table. Strachan left St Mary's in February, after earlier announcing his intention to take a break from the game at the end of the 2003-04 season. His previous managerial experience came at Coventry, whom he led for five years from 1996 to 2001.
"	sport
Henry tipped for Fifa award	"Fifa president Sepp Blatter hopes Arsenal's Thierry Henry will be named World Player of the Year on Monday.

Henry is on the Fifa shortlist with Barcelona's Ronaldinho and newly-crowned European Footballer of the Year, AC Milan's Andriy Shevchenko. Blatter said: ""Henry, for me, is the personality on the field. He is the man who can run and organise the game."" The winner of the accolade will be named at a glittering ceremony at Zurich's Opera house. The three shortlisted candidates for the women's award are Mia Hamm of the United States, Germany's Birgit Prinz and Brazilian youngster Marta.

Hamm, who recently retired - is looking to regain the women's award, which she lost last year to striker Prinz. Fifa has changed the panel of voters for this year's awards. Male and female captains of every national team will be able to vote, as well as their coaches and Fipro - the global organisation for professional players.
"	sport
Newcastle to join Morientes race	"Newcastle have joined the race to sign Real Madrid striker Fernando Morientes and scupper Liverpool's bid to snap up the player, according to reports.

Liverpool were reported to have bid £3.5m for the 28-year-old Spanish international this week. But the Liverpool Echo newspaper has said Anfield boss Rafa Benitez will avoid a bidding war and instead turn his attentions to Nicolas Anelka. Real are believed to still want £7m before selling Morientes. Monaco are also in the race for the player they had on loan last season. Reports suggest Liverpool will lift their offer to £5m - the highest they are willing to go before bowing out of any deal.

On Tuesday, Morientes had said: ""I like Liverpool and I am pleased that a club of their stature want to buy me. I have told Madrid that I want it to happen. ""Madrid know my situation and they know they must do something about me. They must sort out the situation by being sensible. ""I am in a position where I want to play, and I will have to look elsewhere to do that. If Madrid do not want me then it's in the best interests of everyone that they are realistic.

""I haven't spoken to Rafa Benitez but I have always appreciated his work and I would like to play for him. But Benitez could yet turn his attentions to the younger Anelka should Morientes be reluctant to pledge his future to Liverpool. Anelka previously played at Anfield under Gerard Houllier before sealing his permanent switch to Manchester City.
"	sport
Blues slam Blackburn over Savage	"Birmingham have confirmed Blackburn made a bid for Robbie Savage - but managing director Karen Brady has called it ""derisory"".

Rovers have reportedly offered £500,000 up front for the Wales star, 30, with the fee rising to £2.2m. But Brady told The Sun the bid was ""a waste of fax paper and my time"". She added: ""The way things are going all this could affect the relationship between the clubs. They've got into Robbie's head. But he's not for sale."" Savage's future at Birmingham has been the source of speculation for several weeks, with some fans criticising his performances for the club earlier in the season. However, good displays against West Brom and Aston Villa have impressed Blues fans. ""The crowd gave me a massive standing ovation when I came off on Saturday which was nice,"" he said. ""It was fantastic even though I was criticised by a number of them in recent weeks and on Saturday it showed how much I mean to them. ""It's not for me to say (about transfer rumours), it's between the two clubs. ""I haven't created the speculation myself, I haven't phoned every national newspaper saying, 'Blackburn are trying to buy me'. It's not up to me."" Birmingham manager Steve Bruce insists he does not want to sell Savage. ""A lot is said and written about Sav but he has been terrific for Birmingham City the last two and a half years,"" he said.

""The fans love him because he epitomises them. He works hard, They like people like that and there are not many like him. ""And why the hell should I sell him to someone else? I am not interested.""
"	sport
Gerrard happy at Anfield	"Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has reiterated his desire to stay at Anfield and win trophies with the club.

The 24-year-old England midfielder is determined to see out his contract, despite reported interest from Chelsea. He said: ""I'm signed here for this season and another two so there is no situation. There's a lot of speculation but that's not down to me. ""As club captain all I want to do is help us get back up the table and into the Champions League again."" Gerrard looked set to move to Chelsea during the summer and speculation of a switch to Stamford Bridge has again arisen, with the January transfer window approaching. He raised doubts about his Reds future when he said he wanted the club to prove they were title challengers in the very near future or he might leave. Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has insisted that Gerrard has promised him he wants to stay at Anfield. Benitez said: ""I said to Steven that I was sure he wanted to stay here and he said 'I do'.

""I then said to him 'Look, if you want to win titles, you want medals and you want Liverpool to have these things then I am going to need your help'. ""I really think he wants to stay so now what we must do is make the squad stronger for him."" Meanwhile, Gerrard has urged the Anfield board to sign Real Madrid striker Fernando Morientes in the January transfer window. Morientes, 28, has already expressed a willingness to come to England. Gerrard added: ""He's a great player. He scores goals in the league, in cup competitions and also in the Champions League. ""I don't think he'd be able to play for us in Europe this season but if we are able to get hold of him, we'd be getting ourselves a great player.

""He'd have Spanish coaches, a Spanish manager and we have got three or four Spanish players here now so they'll help him settle in. ""Rafael Benitez knows what he wants and he knows how to strengthen the squad he's got and if the right players become available at the right price I am sure we will strengthen. ""It would certainly be nice to see a few new faces in January to freshen things up.""
"	sport
Beckham rules out management move	"Real Madrid midfielder David Beckham has no plans to become a manager when his playing career is over.

""I am not interested in being a coach but I would like to have football schools,"" the England captain said on television station Canal Plus. ""I have wanted to do that since I went to the Bobby Charlton school. I'm going to open one in London and one in LA. ""My second passion is charity work - I am an ambassador for Unicef and it gives me great pride."" But Beckham revealed that his immediate priority was winning the Spanish league title with Real Madrid.

Real slipped to 13 points behind leaders Barcelona with a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Sevilla on Wednesday. Beckham admitted: ""It's disappointing and frustrating to see the results, considering the team we have. ""I would really like to win La Liga with Real Madrid - I have been here two years and we still have not done it."" In a wide-ranging interview, Beckham also revealed that his sending-off against Argentina - and the resulting media storm - had been the most significant moment in his career. Asked for his worst memory, he said: ""To be sent off against Argentina - it was not for the sending-off but for what happened afterwards. ""I was lucky because I had a manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, who supported me and a strong family behind me but I believe that changed me. ""I believe it changed me for the better.""
"	sport
Mexicans tracking unhappy Juninho	"Mexican outfit Red Sharks Veracruz hope to sign Juninho if the Brazilian decides to leave Celtic frustrated at his lack of first-team action.

Their president, Gustavo Parente Sanchez, says Juninho ""does not wish to remain in Scottish football anymore"". Agent Brian Hassell insists that the 31-year-old Brazilian midfielder is determined to win back his place. ""But, if the manager is not going to pick him, that's a different ball game,"" he told The Sun. ""That's something we'd have to look at. Juninho deserves respect. He is not a little kid."" Hassell warns that Juninho could reconsider his future at Celtic unless he is given a run of games by the end of the January transfer window.

Juninho was signed from Middlesbrough during the summer, but he has failed to live up to high expectations and has lost his place to 18-year-old Aiden McGeady. ""He has 50 caps for Brazil and he's the best signing Celtic ever made,"" insisted Hassell. ""He wants to play for Martin O'Neill, but does Martin O'Neill want to play him? ""Juninho is not someone who has come through the Celtic ranks. He deserves much more respect."" Sanchez is bullish about his hopes of prising Juninho from the Scottish champions, although Hassell believes Mexico would not be his preferred destination. ""We have already spoken with Juninho and he said, if he has no firm offer from a club in Spain, Veracruz will be his destination,"" Sanchez told his club's official website. Celtic manager O'Neill is no respecter of reputations. ""The onus is on Juninho to force his way into the team,"" he said. ""Players get a game on merit. That's the way it has always been and that is certainly the case at Celtic Park.""
"	sport
Celtic unhappy over Bulgaria date	"Martin O'Neill hopes to block Stilian Petrov's call-up by Bulgaria during Celtic's busy festive programme.

The Celtic manager does not view the friendly against Valenciana - a region of Spain - on 28 December as important. ""I can't say I was overly pleased at the fixture being played just after Christmas,"" said O'Neill. ""We will have to speak with the Bulgarian FA. It's their prerogative for them to arrange a fixture and our prerogative how we handle it."" Bulgaria's game comes between Celtic's Boxing Day meeting with Hearts and their 2 January fixture against Livingston. O'Neill believes the extra game will not help a midfielder whose season has already been affected by injury. ""They have organised a game at a rather awkward time,"" he added. ""When we were out playing Barcelona, I spoke with the Bulgarian manager, Hristo Stoichkov, and he mentioned this game to me. ""We pay his wages, we are the ones that if an awkward fixture is going to be played at some stage or another it should be to our benefit, rather than anyone else. ""I have said this before, but Bulgaria are the one nation who seem to organise a lot of friendly games.""
"	sport
Robben and Cole earn Chelsea win	"Cheslea salvaged a win against a battling Portsmouth side just as it looked like the Premiership leaders would have to settle for a point.

Arjen Robben curled in a late deflected left-footed shot from the right side of Pompey's box to break the home side's brave resistance. Chelsea had been continually frustrated but Joe Cole added a second with a 20-yard shot in injury-time. Nigel Quashie had Pompey's best chance when his effort was tipped over. The Fratton Park crowd were in good voice as usual and, even though Portsmouth more than held their own, Chelsea still managed to carve out two early chances. Striker Didier Drogba snapped in an angled shot to force home keeper Shaka Hislop into a smart save while an unmarked Frank Lampard had a strike blocked by Arjan De Zeeuw. But Pompey chased, harried and unsettled a Chelsea side as the south-coast side started to gain the upper hand and almost took the lead through Quashie.

The midfielder struck a swerving long range shot which keeper Petr Cech tipped over at full stretch. Pompey stretched Arsenal to the limit recently and were providing a similarly tough obstacle to overcome for a Chelsea team struggling to exert any pressure. Velimir Zajec's players stood firm as the visitors came out in lively fashion after the break but, just as they took a stranglehold of the match, the visitors launched a counter-attack. Drogba spun to get a sight of goal and struck a fierce shot which rocked keeper Hislop back as he blocked before Arjan de Zeeuw cleared the danger.

The home side were also left breathing a sigh of relief when a Glen Johnson header fell to Gudjohnsen who had his back to goal in a crowded Pompey goalmouth. The Icelandic forward tried to acrobatically direct the ball into goal but put his effort over. But, just like against Arsenal, Portsmouth let in a late goal when Robben's shot took a deflection off Matthew Taylor on its way past a wrong-footed Hislop. And Cole put a bit of gloss on a hard-fought win when he put a low shot into the bottom of the Pompey net.

Hislop, Griffin, Primus, De Zeeuw, Taylor, Stone (Cisse 76), Quashie (Berkovic 83), Faye, O'Neil, Kamara (Fuller 65), Yakubu.

Subs Not Used: Berger, Ashdown.

Kamara.

Cech, Paulo Ferreira, Gallas, Terry, Johnson, Duff, Makelele, Smertin (Cole 73), Lampard, Robben (Geremi 81), Drogba (Gudjohnsen 58).

Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Bridge.

Paulo Ferreira, Robben, Lampard.

Robben 79, Cole 90.

20,210

A Wiley (Staffordshire).
"	sport
Newcastle line up Babayaro	"Newcastle manager Graeme Souness is closing in on signing Chelsea defender Celestine Babayaro when the transfer window reopens.

Souness is bidding to bolster his defence and, according to reports, contract negotiations are at an advanced stage with the player. Babayaro has been in the Premiership since 1997 when he moved to Chelsea for £2.25m from Anderlecht. But the 26-year-old has been surplus to requirements this season. Souness would not be drawn on specifics over individual players.

But he said: ""All I can tell you is that the chairman has worked really hard in the last couple of months to try to do deals. ""We have said from day one we want to strengthen, and that is what we are hoping to do in the coming weeks.""
"	sport
Mourinho takes swipe at Arsenal	"Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has attempted to pile the pressure on title rivals Arsenal ahead of the Gunners facing Newcastle on Wednesday.

Arsenal will play the Magpies a day after Chelsea beat Portsmouth during a busy festive programme. And Mourinho said: ""They always seem to have two or three days' rest in which to recover. Perhaps it's something to do with the television schedule. ""All my players are tired, especially John Terry.""

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho admitted his side were ""lucky"" to win at Fratton Park but is still unhappy with the amount of games in such a short space of time during this time of year. He added: ""We have had to play two matches in three days which is foreign to many of my players and, although I understand the traditions of football here at this time of year, it is not good for your health to do it.

""You can sit back and smoke cigars, one after another, and it is a good life, but it is not actually good for you. ""Playing so many games is certainly not healthy, especially for teams who still have European commitment.""
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Wenger shock at Newcastle dip	"Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has admitted he is at a loss to explain why Newcastle are languishing in the bottom half of the table.

The Gunners travel to St James' Park on Wednesday, with Newcastle 14th in the Premiership after a troubled season. And Wenger said: ""At the beginning of the season you would expect them to be fighting for the top four. ""I don't know how they got to be where they are. It looks to me from the outside that they have many injuries.""

Arsenal go into the game on the back of a 2-0 victory over Fulham on Sunday. And Wenger added: ""The best way to prepare for a game is to win the previous one. We will go to Newcastle in good shape. ""Fatigue won't play too big a part in the next few weeks as we have players coming back so I can rotate a bit more. ""We do not play a season with 11 players and I believe that all of our squad deserve a chance in the team."" Striker Thierry Henry, along with Robert Pires, scored against Fulham. And Henry afterwards described the display as ""beautiful to watch"". He said: ""What matters is winning and the three points, of course. That is the only thing that really matters. But it is more enjoyable when you play like we did against Fulham. ""We are playing as a team and that is important because there were some games when we maybe were not there as a team and suffered for that. Those were games we lost.""
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Ferguson hails Man Utd's resolve	"Manchester United's Alex Ferguson has praised his players' gutsy performance in the 1-0 win at Aston Villa.

""That was our hardest away game of the season and it was a fantastic game of football, end-to-end with lots of good passing,"" said the Old Trafford boss. ""We showed lots of character and guts and we weren't going to lose. ""I look at that fixture and think we've been there and won, while Arsenal and Chelsea have yet to come and Villa may have some players back when they do."" Ferguson also hailed senior stars Ryan Giggs and Roy Keane, who came off the bench for the injured John O'Shea. ""Roy came on and brought a bit of composure to the midfield which we needed and which no other player has got. ""Giggs was a tremendous threat and he brings tremendous penetration. ""All we can do is maintain our form, play as we are and we'll get our rewards.""
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TV calls after Carroll error	"Spurs boss Martin Jol said his team were ""robbed"" at Manchester United after Pedro Mendes' shot clearly crossed the line but was not given.

""The referee is already wearing an earpiece so why can't we just stop the game and get the decision right,"" said Jol after the 0-0 draw. ""But at the end of the day it's so obvious that Pedro's shot was over the line it's incredible. ""We feel robbed but it's difficult for the linesman and referee to see it."" Mendes shot from 50 yards and United goalkeeper Roy Carroll spilled the ball into his own net before hooking it clear. Jol added: ""We are not talking about the ball being a couple of centimetres or an inch or two over the line, it was a metre inside the goal. ""What really annoys me is that we are here in 2005, watching something on a TV monitor within two seconds of the incident occurring and the referee isn't told about it.

""We didn't play particularly well but I am pleased - even now - with a point, although we should have had three."" Mendes could not believe the 'goal' was not given after seeing a replay. He said: ""My reaction on the pitch was to celebrate. ""It was a very nice goal, it was clearly over the line - I've never seen one so over the line and not given in my career. ""It's really, really over. What can you do but laugh about it? It's a nice goal and one to keep in my memory even though it didn't count. ""It's not every game you score from the halfway line."" Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson sympathised with Tottenham and said the incident highlighted the need for video technology. ""I think it hammers home what a lot of people have been asking for and that's that technology should play a part in the game,"" Ferguson told MUTV. ""What I was against originally was the time factor in video replays. ""But I read an article the other day which suggested that if a referee can't make up his mind after 30 seconds of watching a video replay then the game should carry on.

""Thirty seconds is about the same amount of time it takes to organise a free-kick or take a corner or a goal-kick. So you wouldn't be wasting a lot of time. ""I think you could start off by using it for goal-line decisions. I think that would be an opening into a new area of football."" Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger also used the incident to highlight the need for video technology. ""When the whole world apart from the referee has seen there should be a goal at Old Trafford, that just reinforces what I feel - there should be video evidence,"" said Wenger. ""It's a great example of where the referee could have asked to see a replay and would have seen in five seconds that it was a goal.""
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Hodgson shoulders England blame	"Fly-half Charlie Hodgson admitted his wayward kicking played a big part in England's 18-17 defeat to France.

Hodgson failed to convert three penalties and also missed a relatively easy drop goal attempt which would have given England a late win. ""I'm very disappointed with the result and with my myself,"" Hodgson said. ""It is very hard to take but it's something I will have to get through and come back stronger. My training's been good but it just didn't happen."" Hodgson revealed that Olly Barkley had taken three penalties because they were ""out of my range"" but the centre could not convert his opportunities either, particularly the drop goal late on. ""It wasn't a good strike,"" he added. ""I felt as soon as it hit my boot it had missed. It's very disappointing, but I must recover."" Andy Robinson said he would ""keep working on the kicking"" with his squad. However, the England coach added that he would take some positives from the defeat.

""We went out to play and played some very good rugby and what have France done?"" he said. ""They won the game from kicking penalties from our 10m line. ""It's very frustrating. The lads showed a lot of ambition in the first half, they went out to sustain it in the second but couldn't build on it. ""We took the ball into contact, and you know when you do that it is a lottery whether the referee is going to give the penalty to your side or the other side. ""We have lost a game we should have won. There is a fine line between winning and losing, and for the second week we've been on the wrong side of that line and it hurts.""

England went in at half-time with a 17-6 lead but they failed to score in the second half and Dimitri Yachvili slotted over four penalties as France overhauled the deficit. England skipper Jason Robinson admitted his side failed to cope with France's improved second-half display.

""We controlled the game in the first half but we knew that they would come out and try everything after half-time,"" he said. ""We made a lot of mistakes in the second half and they punished us. They took their chances when they came. ""It's very disappointing. Last week we lost by two points, now one point.""
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Vickery out of Six Nations	"England tight-head prop Phil Vickery has been ruled out of the rest of the 2005 RBS Six Nations after breaking a bone in his right forearm.

Vickery was injured as his club side, Gloucester, beat Bath 17-16 in the West country derby on Saturday. He could be joined on the sidelines by Bath centre Olly Barkley, who sat out the derby due to a leg injury. Barkley will have a scan on Sunday and might miss England's trip to Six Nations leaders Ireland next weekend. The news is just the latest blow for coach Andy Robinson, who has seen his side lose their opening two matches in the 2005 Six Nations. Robinson is already without World Cup winners Jonny Wilkinson, Will Greenwood, Mike Tindall, Richard Hill and Trevor Woodman through injury. Vickery has broken the radius, a large bone in his forearm. He only returned to the England side last weekend after a long-term back injury, which was followed by a fractured eye socket. And the Gloucester prop was only recalled after Leicester tight-head Julian White suffered a neck injury which has already seen him ruled out of the Ireland game.

Bath prop Matt Stevens is the only remaining tight-head in England's training squad and could be involved against Ireland. But he has to play second fiddle at club level to Duncan Bell, who excelled for England A against France and may now be called into the squad. The extent of Barkley's injury is not yet clear but Bath boss John Connolly rates him no better than ""50-50"" to face Ireland. Barkley played at inside cente in England's defeat by France and if he is unable to play, England's constantly-changing midfield will once again have to be altered.

Robinson could choose to recall Mathew Tait or Henry Paul, although Tait endured a nightmare for Newcastle against Leicester on Saturday and Paul limped off with an ankle injury against Bath. In-form Leicester centre Ollie Smith is the other outstanding candidate, and two tries against Newcastle will have boosted his chances. Fly-half Andy Goode is also a strong contender for the match-day 22 after an immaculate kicking display on Saturday. England, fourth in the Six Nations table with zero points, play Ireland, top of the table, in Dublin on 27 February, kick-off 1500 GMT.
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Yachvili savours France comeback	"France scrum-half Dimitri Yachvili praised his team after they fought back to beat England 18-17 in the Six Nations clash at Twickenham.

Yachvili kicked all of France's points as they staged a second-half revival. ""We didn't play last week against Scotland and we didn't play in the first half against England,"" he said. ""But we're very proud to beat England at Twickenham. We were just defending in the first half and we said we had to put them under pressure. We did well."" Yachvili admitted erratic kicking from England's Charlie Hodgson and Olly Barkley, who missed six penalties and a drop goal chance between them, had been decisive. ""I know what it's like with kicking. When you miss some it's very hard mentally, but it went well for us,"" he said. France captain Fabien Pelous insisted his side never doubted they could secure their first win against England at Twickenham since 1997. France were 17-6 down at half-time, but Pelous said: ""No-one was down at half-time, we were still confident. ""We said we only had 11 points against us, which was not much. ""The plan was to keep hold of possession and pressure England to losing their composure."" France coach Bernard Laporte accepted his side had not played well. ""We know we have to play better to defend the title,"" he said. ""I'm not happy we didn't score a try but we're happy because we won.""
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Laporte tinkers with team	"France coach Bernard Laporte has made four changes to the starting line-up that beat England for Saturday's Six Nations clash with Wales.

He opted for Yannick Nyanga in the back row instead of Grand Slam winner Imanol Harinordoquy, who is back in the squad. Other changes see Julien Laharrague win his first cap at full-back, Aurelien Rougerie return after injury on the wing and Yannick Jauzion in at centre. But Laporte has resisted fan pressure to start Frederic Michalak at fly-half. The dependable Yann Delaigue keeps the number 10 jersey, despite clamours for the flair of Michalak. The 26-year-old Laharrague gets his chance despite playing on the wing for his club Brive.

""We are launching him into the great international level,"" said team manager Jo Maso. ""He is young and this is a great opportunity for us and above all for him. ""There are 25 matches left before the World Cup so we must see as many players as possible. The competition is very high and open."" Jauzion, France's player of the year in 2004, would probably have played in the first two matches instead of the South African-born Liebeneberg had he been fit. The Stade Toulousain star wins his 23rd cap and is reunited with Damien Traille, with whom he forged an effective midfield in 2004. ""The return of Jauzion is going to be a plus for us,"" said Laporte. ""We are going to test him at an international level.""

Julien Laharrague (Brive), Aurelien Rougerie (Clermont), Yannick Jauzion (Stade Toulousain), Damien Traille (Biarritz), Christophe Dominici (Stade Francais), Yann Delaigue (Castres), Dimitri Yachvili (Biarritz), Julien Bonnaire (Bourgoin), Yannick Nyanga (Beziers), Serge Betsen (Biarritz), Jerome Thion (Biarritz), Fabien Pelous (Stade Toulousain, capt), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Sebastien Bruno (Sale), Sylvain Marconnet (Stade Francais)

Replacements: William Servat (Stade Toulousain), Olivier Milloud (Bourgoin), Gregory Lamboley (Stade Toulousain), Imanol Harinordoquy (Biarritz), Pierre Mignoni (Clermont), Frederic Michalak (Stade Toulousain), Jean-Philippe Grandclaude (Perpignan)
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Lewsey puzzle over disallowed try	"England's Josh Lewsey has claimed he was denied a late try in his side's Six Nations loss to Ireland.

The Wasps wing insisted he grounded the ball when he was bundled over the line and said referee Jonathan Kaplan had made a wrong decision. ""I'm positive I touched the ball down over the line,"" Lewsey told BBC Sport. ""It certainly wasn't a turnover. ""I was driven over and I put the ball on the ground. The whistle went and I let go of the ball."" Lewsey added: ""One of the Irish players scooped it back after the whistle and to our surprise the referee then gave a turnover. ""As far as I'm concerned, that incident and Mark Cueto's effort from Charlie Hodgson's cross-field kick that led to what looked like a good try were the two key elements in the game.""

Cueto was also puzzled as to why his try had been disallowed by Kaplan. ""I don't think I could have been offside for, without a doubt, I was behind the ball,"" said the Sale player. ""The move was a planned technique, it was not off the cuff. We rehearse it time and time again. ""I wouldn't say we were robbed, some decisions go with you and some go against you. Today they went against us and that's tough at international level.""
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Fuming Robinson blasts officials	"England coach Andy Robinson insisted he was ""livid"" after his side were denied two tries in Sunday's 19-13 Six Nations loss to Ireland in Dublin.

Mark Cueto's first-half effort was ruled out for offside before the referee spurned TV replays when England crashed over in the dying minutes. ""[I'm] absolutely spitting. I'm livid. There's two tries we've been cost,"" Robinson told BBC Sport. ""We've got to go back to technology. I don't know why we didn't."" South African referee Jonathan Kaplan ruled that Cueto was ahead of Charlie Hodgson when the fly-half hoisted his cross-field kick for the Sale wing to gather.

Kaplan then declined the chance to consult the fourth official when Josh Lewsey took the ball over the Irish line under a pile of bodies for what could have been the game-winning try. ""I think Mark Cueto scored a perfectly legal try and I think he should have gone to the video referee on Josh Lewsey,"" said Robinson. ""It is how we use the technology. It is there, and it should be used. ""I am still trying to work out the Cueto try. I have looked at both, and they both looked tries. ""We are very disappointed, and this will hurt, there is no doubt about that. ""We are upset now, but the referee is in charge and he has called it his way and we have got to be able to cope with that.

""We did everything we could have done to win the game. I am very proud of my players and, with a couple of decisions, this could have been a very famous victory. ""I thought we dominated. Matt Stevens had an awesome game at tighthead prop, while the likes of Charlie Hodgson, Martin Corry and Lewis Moody all came through well. ""Josh Lewsey was awesome, and every one of the forwards stood up out there. Given the pressure we were under, credit must go to all the players. ""We have done everything but win a game of rugby, but Ireland are a good side. They defended magnificently and they've got every chance of winning this Six Nations."" England have lost their first three matches in this year's Six Nations and four out of their six games since Robinson took over from Sir Clive Woodward in September.
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O'Gara revels in Ireland victory	"Ireland fly-half Ronan O'Gara hailed his side's 19-13 victory over England as a ""special"" win.

The Munster number 10 kicked a total of 14 points, including two drop goals, to help keep alive their Grand Slam hopes. He told BBC Sport: ""We made hard work of it but it's still special to beat England. ""I had three chances to win the game but didn't. We have work to do after this but we never take a victory over England lightly."" Ireland hooker Shane Byrne echoed O'Gara's comments but admitted the game had been England's best outing in the Six Nations. Byrne said: ""It was a really, really hard game but from one to 15 in our team we worked really, really hard. ""We just had to stick to our defensive pattern, trust ourselves and trust those around us. All round it was fantastic."" Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll, who scored his side's only try, said: ""We are delighted, we felt if we performed well then we would win but with England also having played very well it makes it all the sweeter. ""We did get the bounce of the ball and some days that happens and you've just got to jump on the back of it.""

Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan was surprised that England coach Andy Robinson said he was certain Mark Cueto was onside for a disallowed try just before the break. ""Andy was sitting two yards from me and I couldn't see whether he was offside or not so I don't know how Andy could have known,"" said O'Sullivan.

""What I do know is that England played well and when that happens it makes a very good victory for us. ""We had to defend for long periods and that is all good for the confidence of the team. ""I think our try was very well worked, it was a gem, as good a try as we have scored for a while."" O'Sullivan also rejected Robinson's contention England dominated the forward play. ""I think we lost one lineout and they lost four or five so I don't know how that adds up to domination,"" he said. O'Driscoll also insisted Ireland were happy to handle the pressure of being considered favourites to win the Six Nations title. ""This season for the first time we have been able to play with the favourites' tag,"" he said. ""Hopefully we have proved that today and can continue to keep doing so. ""As for my try it was a move we had worked on all week. There was a bit of magic from Geordan Murphy and it was a great break from Denis Hickie.""
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Thomas out of Six Nations	"Wales captain Gareth Thomas has been ruled out of the rest of the Six Nations with a broken thumb.

The full-back will have surgery on Monday after fracturing his thumb in the 24-18 win over France on Saturday. But Welsh legend Phil Bennett insisted Wales can cope without Thomas as they chase a first Grand Slam in 27 years. Bennett told BBC Sport: ""Such is the spirit in the camp, they'll put Kevin Morgan at 15, Rhys Williams at wing and just carry on."" Thomas will miss the match against Scotland on 13 March, and what promises to be a huge encounter against the Irish six days later. Bennett added: ""It's a setback. He's a great captain, he leads from the front and the boys love him."" Thomas was replaced at half-time by Williams as his side turned around a 15-6 deficit in Paris.

""With Gareth missing I would think Michael Owen will be our captain,"" said Wales coach Mike Ruddock. ""He did a great job in the second half in France. He has been vice-captain all along throughout the championship."" Wales travel to Edinburgh to take on Scotland in a fortnight and then host Ireland in Cardiff in the final round of matches in what could be the Grand Slam and championship decider. Bennett, an inspirational fly-half for Llanelli and Wales in the 1970s, insisted the national team were entering a new golden period. ""It was a great game and a magnificent result for Wales,"" Bennett told BBC Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme.

""The way this young team are blending, the glory days are on their way back. ""We couldn't get possession early on and France dominated and scored two tries. ""Had they been ruthless, Wales could have gone into the interval 30 points down. But they didn't take their chances. ""Wales defended fairly well but you cannot give that sort of quality ball to good sides. ""The All Blacks would have been ruthless and buried us in the first half. But the character we showed in the second half was quite outstanding.""
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Wales coach elated with win	"Mike Ruddock paid tribute to his Wales side after they came from 15-6 down to beat France 24-18 in the Six Nations.

""After going two tries down in 12 minutes we had to show character,"" said the national team coach. ""I didn't have to tell them anything at half-time because those players have stared down the barrel of a gun before. ""They decided they didn't want to do that again and came out fighting. It was a great team effort and we showed great character to come back."" Man-of-the-match Stephen Jones, who kicked three penalties, a drop goal and conversion, was ecstatic following after the win at Stade de France.

""It's just a special moment. Two years ago we didn't win a single game in the Six Nations. But we're a very happy camp now,"" he said. ""We worked hard as a squad and I'm a proud Welshman. We've got hard matches to come, so we're just happy with the start."" Double try scorer Martyn Williams was keen not to talk about a possible Grand Slam for Wales. ""We've got more self-belief these days. Two or three years ago we might have collapsed after going behind so early. ""There's no mention of a Grand Slam among the players. We've got a tough game against Scotland at Murrayfield. They could bring us crashing down to earth.""
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Newcastle 27-27 Gloucester	"Newcastle centre Mathew Tait answered his critics as he scored one try and made another, but he could not stop Gloucester grabbing a draw.

The Falcons were 22-6 down at the break before Tait, recently axed by England after just one Six Nations outing, inspired his side to a 27-22 lead. A last-gasp touchdown from Luke Narraway pulled the visitors level. But Gloucester missed out on victory when Henry Paul fluffed the conversion and Seti Kiole was denied a late try. Newcastle had a couple of chances at the start of the second half with line-outs in the corner. But they failed to make them count until Joe Shaw found Dave Walder, who released Mark Mayerholfer in his own 22.

The former All Black broke clear and popped the ball up for Tait on halfway. He chipped ahead for Michael Stephenson to scorch through for the try, which Walder converted to give Newcastle a lifeline. They grabbed it with both hands, Mayerhofler breaking through and Tait making a brilliant early run to cut inside and race 30m to score. Walder converted to make it 22-20 before he was just wide with a 40m penalty in the 70th minute.

Mayerhofler then scythed through the middle for a try after Hall Charlton popped the ball up, and Walder's conversion took Newcastle 27-22 ahead. With three minutes of normal time left, Narraway was driven over for a try in the corner which levelled the scores at 27-27. Henry missed the conversion but Gloucester nearly won it when Kiole broke through only to be hauled down by Charlton and Tom May.

Walder; May, Tait, Mayerhofler, Stephenson; Wilkinson, Grindal; Isaacson, Long, Ward; Gross, Hamilton; McCarthy, Harris, Dowson.

Replacements: Peel, Wilson, Thompson, Parling, Sititi, Charlton, Shaw.

Goodridge; Garvey, Simpson-Daniel, Fanolua, Kiole; Paul, Gomarsall; Wood, Curnier, Powell; Eustace, Brown; Forrester, Buxton, Balding.

Replacements: Elloway, Sigley, Cornwell, Narraway, Page, Davies, Mauger.
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London Irish 19-33 Wasps	"Wasps made light of the absence of several internationals to sink London Irish with a trio of second-half tries.

Rob Hoadley returned to haunt his old club at the Madejski Stadium, scoring the opening try in the 43rd minute. Tom Voyce powered through the Irish defence for Wasps' second try before Richard Birkett went over unchallenged. Mark van Gisbergen added 18 points. Irish replied with three penalties and a Mark Mapletoft drop goal before Scott Staniforth ran in a consolation try. Barry Everitt, who replaced Mapletoft late in the game, added the conversion to become the fourth Premiership player to reach 1,000 points. He joins Jonny Wilkinson, Tim Stimpson and Paul Grayson in achieving that target. Wasps piled on the pressure in an attempt to grab a fourth try which would have secured them a bonus point, but they were denied by some desperate defending from Irish. Director of rugby Warren Gatland revealed that harsh words at half-time inspired his Wasps side to raise their game after the restart.

""They got a roasting and it was a good second-half performance when they came out and played to instructions,"" he said. Gatland also singled out stand-in flankers Tom Rees and John Hart for special praise. ""They did very well. The back row played some fantastic rugby,"" he added. London Irish coach Gary Gold felt the result exposed his side's lack of consistency.

Irish trailed by just two points at the break and Gold said: ""For 55 minutes we lived with the best but we have got to get back for the full 80 minutes."" Gold will now turn his attention to next week's Powergen Cup semi-final at struggling Leeds. ""We've got a good chance but with Leeds facing possible relegation they're going to come out firing,"" he added.

Horak, Staniforth, Penney, Nordt, Bishop; Mapletoft, Edwards; Hatley, van der Walt, Hardwick; Kennedy, Casey; Gustard, Dawson, Murphy.

Replacements: Everitt for Mapletoft (53), Hodgson for Edwards (77), Wheatley for Hatley (71), Paice for van der Walt (60), Strudwick for Kennedy (60), Danaher for Gustard (66), Reid for Murphy (47)

Van Gisbergen; Voyce, Erinle, Hoadley, Roberts; King, Richards; Payne, Greening, Dowd; Shaw, Purdy; Hart, Rees, Dallaglio.

Replacements: Priscott for Roberts (71), Green for Dowd (71), Skivington for Shaw (71), Birkett for Hart (57), Gotting for Rees (39). Not used: Fury, Brooks
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Murray returns to Scotland fold	"Euan Murray has been named in the Scotland training squad after an eight-week ban, ahead of Saturday's Six Nations match with Ireland.

The Glasgow forward's ban for stamping ended on 2 February. ""I'm just happy to be back playing and be involved with the squad,"" said Murray on Monday. ""Hopefully I can get a couple of games under my belt and I might have a chance of playing later in the Six Nations. I'm just glad to be part of it all.""

Backs: Mike Blair (Edinburgh Rugby), Andy Craig (Glasgow Rugby), Chris Cusiter (The Borders), Simon Danielli (The Borders), Marcus Di Rollo (Edinburgh Rugby), Phil Godman (Edinburgh Rugby), Calvin Howarth (Glasgow Rugby), Ben Hinshelwood (Worcester Warriors), Andrew Henderson (Glasgow Rugby), Rory Lamont (Glasgow Rugby), Sean Lamont (Glasgow Rugby), Dan Parks (Glasgow Rugby), Chris Paterson (Edinburgh Rugby), Gordon Ross (Leeds Tykes), Hugo Southwell (Edinburgh Rugby), Simon Webster (Edinburgh Rugby) Forwards: Ross Beattie (Northampton Saints), Gordon Bulloch (captain, Glasgow Rugby), David Callam (Edinburgh Rugby), Bruce Douglas (The Borders), Jon Dunbar (Leeds Tykes), Iain Fullarton (Saracens), Stuart Grimes (Newcastle Falcons), Nathan Hines (Edinburgh Rugby), Allister Hogg (Edinburgh Rugby), Gavin Kerr (Leeds Tykes), Nick Lloyd (Saracens), Scott Lawson (Glasgow Rugby), Euan Murray (Glasgow Rugby), Scott Murray (Edinburgh Rugby), Jon Petrie (Glasgow Rugby), Robbie Russell (London Irish), Tom Smith (Northampton Saints), Jason White (Sale Sharks).
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Fear will help France - Laporte	"France coach Bernard Laporte believes his team will be scared going into their game with England on Sunday, but claims it will work in their favour.

The French turned in a stuttering performance as they limped to a 16-9 win against Scotland in the opening match of the Six Nations on Saturday. ""We will go to Twickenham with a little fear and it'll give us a boost,"" said the French coach. He added: ""We are never good enough when we are favourites."" Meanwhile, Perpignan centre Jean-Philippe Granclaude is delighted to have received his first call-up to the France squad. ""It's incredible,"" the youngster said. ""I was not expecting it at all. ""Playing with the France team has always been a dream and now it has come true and I am about to face England at Twickenham in the Six Nations."" Laporte will announce his starting line-up on Wednesday at the French team's training centre in Marcoussis, near Paris.
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Davies favours Gloucester future	"Wales hooker Mefin Davies is likely to stay with English side Gloucester despite reported interest from the Neath-Swansea Ospreys.

BBC Wales understands the Ospreys are interested in the 32-year-old, but that he would prefer to stay where he is. Davies, one of the stars of Saturday's RBS Six Nations win over England, is only on a year contract at Kingsholm. But the hooker has proved his worth to the Zurich Premiership side and is likely to get a new deal next season. The summer demise of the Celtic Warriors region left Davies in the cold and forced him to take a semi-professional contract with Neath RFC. Although he got match time with the Ospreys at the request of the Wales management, he admitted before his move to Gloucester that he was angry with the way he was treated. ""The WRU didn't give me any help off the field, it was very disappointing,"" Davies said at the time. ""It was a hard time throughout the summer, then deciding whether to accept an offer from Stade Francais which would have ended my Wales career.""
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Ref stands by Scotland decisions	"The referee from Saturday's France v Scotland Six Nations match has defended the officials' handling of the game after criticism by Matt Williams.

The Scotland coach said his side were robbed of victory by poor decisions made by the officials. But Nigel Williams said: ""I'm satisfied the game was handled correctly."" Meanwhile, Matt Williams will not be punished by the Scottish Rugby Union for allegedly using bad language in his comments about the officials. He denies having done so. Nonetheless, he was furious about several decisions that he felt denied his side a famous victory. But Nigel Williams told the Scottish Daily Mail: ""I spoke to Matt Williams at the post-match dinner. ""He made no mention of the disallowed try or any other refereeing decisions whatsoever. ""If Matt has issues with the match officials, then he is very welcome to phone me and discuss them. ""Ultimately there is a match assessor at every international game to give an impartial and objective view of the performance of the officials. ""That is the beginning and end of it.""
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Robinson ready for difficult task	"England coach Andy Robinson faces the first major test of his tenure as he tries to get back to winning ways after the Six Nations defeat by Wales.

Robinson is likely to make changes in the back row and centre after the 11-9 loss as he contemplates Sunday's set-to with France at Twickenham. Lewis Moody and Martin Corry could both return after missing the game with hamstring and shoulder problems. And the midfield pairing of Mathew Tait and Jamie Noon is also under threat. Olly Barkley immediately allowed England to generate better field position with his kicking game after replacing debutant Tait just before the hour. The Bath fly-half-cum-centre is likely to start against France, with either Tait or Noon dropping out.

Tait, given little opportunity to shine in attack, received praise from Robinson afterwards, even if the coach admitted Cardiff was an ""unforgiving place"" for the teenage prodigy. Robinson now has a tricky decision over whether to withdraw from the firing line, after just one outing, a player he regards as central to England's future. Tait himself, at least outwardly, appeared unaffected by the punishing treatment dished out to him by Gavin Henson in particular. ""I want more of that definitely,"" he said. ""Hopefully I can train hard this week and get selected for next week but we'll have to look at the video and wait and see. ""We were playing on our own 22 for a lot of the first half so it was quite difficult. I thought we defended reasonably well but we've just got to pick it up for France.""

His Newcastle team-mate Noon hardly covered himself in glory in his first major Test. He missed a tackle on Michael Owen in the build-up to Wales' try, conceded a penalty at the breakdown, was turned over in another tackle and fumbled Gavin Henson's cross-kick into touch, all inside the first quarter. His contribution improved in the second half, but England clearly need more of a playmaker in the inside centre role. Up front, the line-out remains fallible, despite a superb performance from Chris Jones, whose athleticism came to the fore after stepping into the side for Moody. It is more likely the Leicester flanker will return on the open side for the more physical challenge posed by the French forwards, with Andy Hazell likely to make way. Lock Ben Kay also justified his recall with an impressive all-round display on his return to the side, but elsewhere England positives were thin on the ground.
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Bell set for England debut	"Bath prop Duncan Bell has been added to England's 30-man squad to face Ireland in the RBS Six Nations.

And with Phil Vickery sidelined for at least six weeks with a broken arm and Julian White out with a neck injury, Bell could make his England debut. Bell, 30, had set his sights on an international career with Wales. But last December, the International Rugby Board confirmed that he could only be eligible for England as he had travelled on tour with them in 1998. England coach Andy Robinson could take a gamble and call inexperienced Sale Sharks prop Andrew Sheridan into his front row. But Sheridan favours the loosehead side of the scrum and a more likely scenario is for uncapped Bell - who was among the tryscorers when England A beat France A 30-20 nine days ago - to be drafted in. Robinson also has an injury worry over centre Olly Barkley, who withdrew from Bath's starting line-up to face Gloucester last weekend.

He was due to have a hospital scan on Monday, while Gloucester centre Henry Paul, who started at fly-half against Bath, limped out at Kingsholm because of an ankle problem. Despite Barkley's three missed penalties in the 18-17 defeat against France, he is expected to retain his place at inside centre, although Leicester's in-form prospect Ollie Smith would be an obvious replacement. Bath coach John Connolly rates Barkley as no better than a 50/50 chance to make the Dublin trip. Uncapped fly-half Andy Goode has been named in a 30-man training squad for the Ireland game, and he strengthened his selection claims by kicking 28 points during Leicester's record 83-10 win against Newcastle on Sunday. England's players are due to meet at their Surrey training base on Monday.
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O'Sullivan quick to hail Italians	"Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan heaped praise on Italy after seeing his side stutter to a 28-17 victory in Rome.

""It was a hell of a tough game,"" said O'Sullivan. ""We struggled in the first half because we hadn't the football. ""Italy played really well. They handled the ball well in terms of kicking it, if that's not an oxymoron. ""We said before the game that it might take until 10 minutes from the end for this game to be won, and that's how it turned out."" Ireland struggled to cope with Italy's fierce start and were indebted to skipper Brian O'Driscoll, who set up tries for Geordan Murphy and Peter Stringer. ""We had our first attack in the Italian half after 22 minutes,"" said O'Sullivan. ""We had a good return, with three first-half possessions in their half and we scored twice. ""The second half was about spending more time in their half."" Scrum-half Peter Stringer was also glad that Ireland escaped wtih a victory. ""All credit to them,"" he told BBC Sport. ""We knew it would be tough coming to Rome. They always give us a tough game here and they showed a lot of spirit. ""They had a lot of ball in the first half but we got a few scores when we got into their 22.""
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Italy 17-28 Ireland	"Two moments of magic from Brian O'Driscoll guided Ireland to a workmanlike victory against Italy.

A pair of classic outside breaks from the Ireland captain set up tries for Geordan Murphy and Peter Stringer. Italy led 9-8 early in the second half but Stringer's try gave Ireland a lead they never lost. The hosts cut the gap to 18-12 with 10 minutes left and nearly scored through Ludovico Nitoglia, but Denis Hickie's try ensured an Irish victory. Italy came flying out of the blocks and took the lead through a Luciano Orquera penalty after seven minutes.

It could have been better for the hosts but the fly-half missed two kickable penalties and Ireland drew level with a Ronan O'Gara penalty midway through the first half. The Italians were driving at the heart of the Irish defence and, for the first quarter, the Irish pack struggled to secure any ball for their talented backs.

When they finally did, just before the half-hour mark, O'Driscoll promptly created a sparkling try for Murphy. The Ireland captain ran a dummy scissors and made a magical outside break before drawing the full-back and putting the diving Murphy in at the corner. O'Gara missed the twice-taken conversion and the visitors found themselves trailing once again. Roland de Marigny took over the kicking duties for Italy from the hapless Orquera, and he landed a penalty either side of the break to edge Italy into a 9-8 lead.

The only Ireland player offering a real threat was O'Driscoll, and it was his break that set up the second try for the visitors. Shane Horgan threw an overhead pass as he was about to be forced into touch and Stringer scooted over, with O'Gara landing the tricky conversion. A penalty apiece saw Ireland leading 18-12 as the game entered the final quarter, but they were lucky to survive when Italy launched a series of attacks. Winger Nitoglia dropped the ball as he reached for the line and Italy nearly rumbled over from a driving maul.

An O'Gara penalty put Ireland more than a converted try ahead and they made the game safe when Hickie latched onto an inside pass from Murphy and crossed for a converted try. O'Driscoll limped off late on, joining centre partner Gordon D'Arcy on the sidelines, and the final word went to Italy. Prop Martin Castrogiovanni powered over for a try which was fitting reward for an Italian pack which had kept the Irish under pressure throughout.

De Marigny; Mi Bergamasco, Canale, Masi, Nitoglia; Orquera, Troncon; Lo Cicero, Ongaro, Castrogiovanni; Dellape, Bortolami; Persico, Ma Bergamasco, Parisse.

Perugini, Intoppa, Del Fava, Dal Maso, Griffen, Pozzebon, Robertson.

Murphy, Horgan, O'Driscoll, D'Arcy, Hickie, O'Gara, Stringer, Corrigan, Byrne, Hayes, O'Kelly, O'Connell, S Easterby, Leamy, Foley.

Sheahan, Horan, O'Callaghan, Miller, G Easterby, Humphreys, Dempsey.

P O'Brien (New Zealand)
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Jones happy with Henson heroics	"Wales fly-half Stephen Jones admitted he was happy to hand Gavin Henson responsibility for taking the match-winning kick against England.

Jones had missed three earlier shots at goal when Wales, 9-8 down, were awarded a long-range penalty with four minutes left in Cardiff. ""I knew the percentages of Gavin reaching it were far higher than me,"" Jones said. ""When he said he wanted it, there were no problems."" Jones had seen a long-range effort fall a whisker under the crossbar on the hour, before Charlie Hodgson put England in front with 10 minutes left. ""I looked at where it was and I knew I was going to struggle to make it,"" Jones added. ""I said to Gareth (Thomas, the Wales captain) 'This is touch and go.' It was out of my range and obviously Gavin is phenomenal when it comes to distance. He was confident and fancied it. ""There were no questions that he'd miss it the way he was playing. He had a superb game."" Jones was happy to hail Henson's heroic contribution to Wales' first win over England in Cardiff since 1993. ""Physically he's a specimen: he's a balanced player, he glides when he runs and obviously he's got a great kicking game as well,"" Jones said.

""His defence was superb, he made some great hits and he had a great game. ""I'm glad he's Welsh."" Victory over England for the first time since 1999 will no doubt fuel expectations of what Wales might achieve in this year's Six Nations. But they now face three away fixtures in Italy, France and Scotland before completing their campaign against Ireland in Cardiff. ""People all over the world want to see Wales back at the top table of world rugby,"" said a proud coach Mike Ruddock. ""But we are not there yet. The next step is finding the consistency to get further wins. ""We have to travel this week and we can't afford to get too giddy about this result. ""We have got to be professional and keep focused on facing Italy.""

None more so than Henson, who can now expect to have the same sort of spotlight thrust upon him as the likes of Jonny Wilkinson and Brian O'Driscoll. The confident 23-year-old is undaunted by the prospect of dealing with such weighty expectations however. ""I'm the sort of player who likes pressure on me,"" he said. ""It makes me more concentrated and I think I perform better under more pressure. ""I set a high standard against England and I've got to back it up next week. ""Two years ago when we played Italy I wasn't involved and we lost, so we've got to put that right next week.""
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Double injury blow strikes Wales	"Wales centre Sonny Parker and number eight Ryan Jones will miss Saturday's game with Italy because of injury.

Parker has not recovered from a trapped nerve in his neck that kept him out of the win over England, and Tom Shanklin is expected to continue at centre. Jones damaged his collar bone after coming on as a replacement against England and joins flanker Colin Charvis (foot injury) on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Mike Ruddock may make Gavin Henson his first-choice kicker in Rome. The centre was Wales' hero in the 11-9 Six Nations win over England, landing a huge late penalty from wide out to clinch the game. First-choice kicker Stephen Jones handed over responsibility because of Henson's greater kicking range, but the fly-half had already missed a number of shots at goal. ""Our first aim was to get Gavin settled into the team, but giving him the kicks is something we'll talk about in selection this week,"" Wales coach Mike Ruddock told BBC Sport Wales. Henson himself says he is relishing all the media hype that has been heaped on him since last Saturday's game. ""I thrive on it and think it makes me perform better,"" he said. ""I'm glad it's a short week before the Italy game. There was so much build-up before England, but we fly out to Rome on Thursday and we'll be back playing again.""
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Kirwan demands Italy consistency	"Italy coach John Kirwan has challenged his side to match the performance they produced in pushing Ireland close when they meet Wales on Saturday.

Despite losing 28-17 in Sunday's Six Nations encounter, the Italians confirmed their continuing improvement. ""Our goal is to match every side we face and against Ireland we showed we could do that,"" said Kirwan. ""But the most important thing is that we build on that performance when we play Wales on Saturday."" Italy's half-backs had a mixed afternoon, with recalled scrum-half Alessandro Troncon impressing but fly-half Luciano Orquera having an off-day with the boot. Kirwan said: ""I was very happy with Troncon. He had an incredible game - he was very good in attack and defence. ""Orquera's kicking was off but he showed great courage in defence. ""He also followed the game plan. We have to give him confidence because he has the capability to do well.""
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Fit-again Betsen in France squad	"France have brought flanker Serge Betsen back into their squad to face England at Twickenham on Sunday.

But the player, who missed the victory over Scotland through injury, must attend a disciplinary hearing on Wednesday after being cited by Wasps. ""Serge has a good case so we are confident he will play,"" said France coach Bernard Laporte. The inexperienced Nicolas Mas, Jimmy Marlu and Jean-Philippe Grandclaude are also included in a 22-man squad. The trio have been called up after Pieter de Villiers, Ludovic Valbon and Aurelien Rougerie all picked up injuries in France's 16-9 win on Saturday.

Laporte said he was confident that Betsen would be cleared by the panel investigating his alleged trip that broke Wasps centre Stuart Abbott's leg. ""If he was to be suspended, we would call up Imanol Harinordoquy or Thomas Lievremont,"" said Laporte, who has dropped Patrick Tabacco. ""We missed Serge badly against Scotland. He has now recovered from his thigh injury and played on Saturday with Biarritz."" France's regular back-row combination of Betsen, Harinordoquy and Olivier Magne were all missing from France's side at the weekend because of injury. Laporte is expected to announce France's starting line-up on Wednesday.

Forwards: Nicolas Mas, Sylvain Marconnet, Olivier Milloud, William Servat, Sebastien Bruno, Fabien Pelous, Jerome Thion, Gregory Lamboley, Serge Betsen, Julien Bonnaire, Sebastien Chabal, Yannick Nyanga. Backs: Dimitri Yachvili, Pierre Mignoni, Frederic Michalak, Yann Delaigue, Damien Traille, Brian Liebenberg, Jean-Philippe Grandclaude, Christophe Dominici, Jimmy Marlu, Pepito Elhorga.
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Wales critical of clumsy Grewcock	"Wales coach Mike Ruddock says England lock Danny Grewcock needs to review his actions after he kicked Dwayne Peel.

Trouble flared at a ruck in the first half of Wales' 11-9 win in Cardiff as Grewcock came recklessly over the top with his boot, leaving Peel bloodied. Grewcock was sin-binned with Wales captain Gareth Thomas for retaliation. ""It's up to the citing commissioner,"" said Ruddock. ""I'm not saying it's deliberate, but Grewcock did a similar thing for Bath against Leinster."" Last June Grewcock was banned from rugby for two months for reckless use of a boot in a match against New Zealand.

Six years earlier, also in New Zealand, Grewcock became only the second England player to be sent off in Tests. The player himself and his captain Jason Robinson have both said that the clash with Peel was accidental. ""If the ball is at the back of the ruck and I feel I can step over and disrupt it then I will do that,"" said Grewcock. But Ruddock feels that the England man should be more careful. ""The boy himself should look at his actions, it was a clumsy piece of footwork,"" he said. ""He's a great player and I don't want to knock him, we won't be calling for the match commissioner to review the incident. ""I'm not going to go too far with the lad. It could just be a clumsy action and Dwayne had just a minor cut. ""The referee's interpretation was that Grewcock was attempting to step over the ruck."" Ruddock also warned his RBS 6 Nations Championship rivals that his team can make massive improvements. ""We created more opportunities and also squandered them by taking more contact and playing more individually,"" said the coach. ""We've looked through things on the video debrief and there were definitely a lot of chances that we wasted."" In the forthcoming games, Ruddock may use penalty hero Gavin Henson as his first-choice kicker in place of Stephen Jones. ""Our first aim was to get Gavin settled into the team, but it's something we'll talk about in selection this week,"" said Ruddock.
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Henson stakes early Lions claim	"The Six Nations may be a glittering prize in itself but every player from the four Home Unions will also have one eye on a possible trip to New Zealand with the Lions this summer.

The player who staked the biggest claim for a place in the starting XV over the weekend was Gavin Henson. He's very confident. You just had to listen to his interview afterwards - he beamed with confidence - but although there's an element of arrogance it's good arrogance. He certainly showed some nice touches. He once showed a clean pair of heels to Mathew Tait when he got outside him, his defence was very good and he made some great kicks out of hand. And that's without even mentioning his majestic match-winning penalty. But I think we need to wait and see what happens because he needs to be put to the test. He needs to come up against Brian O'Driscoll or a big French midfield. Wales fly-half Stephen Jones was another player who impressed me. He gave good direction, he was very confident and he was a nice general for his side. He showed he can control a game. With Jonny Wilkinson not playing at the moment due to inury the number 10 shirt could be up for grabs and Jones, or maybe even Henson, could make the Lions team at fly-half.

Jones stuck his hand up and he certainly looks a better bet than Charlie Hodgson after Saturday's game. Some of the Wales forwards surprised me because I thought they would be out-muscled in the tight five. England prop Julian White is a capable player but when it comes down to selection Gethin Jenkins is now going to have the upper hand because he came out on top. However, I still think White and Phil Vickery will be in the frame. Some English players did their cause no harm. I thought Joe Worsley had a solid game and Jason Robinson and Josh Lewsey both did nothing wrong. But it looked too soon for young Mathew Tait and I think it will be a while before we see him again. Despite being written off beforehand several Scots caught my eye against France.

Tom Smith has been there and done it before, but the likes of Chris Cusiter, Jason White and Ally Hogg all made their mark. Hogg made a couple of good runs while White had a pretty robust game - his defence is right up there. Cusiter looked very lively and he could be a very good option for Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward. The star of Ireland's win over Italy in Rome looks like a certainty to make the starting XV against New Zealand. Brian O'Driscoll is a class act. He ran some good lines against Italy, made the breaks and fed his outside backs, although Italy defended man on man which made it easy for him. Gordon D'Arcy was unlucky to go off injured early on but I think you could get a Henson, D'Arcy, O'Driscoll combination in the Lions midfield. Paul O'Connell just needs to add a hard edge to his game and Malcolm O'Kelly keeps on going and seems to be putting his hand up, while Shane Byrne seems to be a lively character. But they will be a bit worried after the Italian pack drove them off their own ball on Sunday, although I used to play in Italy and I know how difficult it can be. One player who didn't impress me was Wales scrum-half Dwayne Peel. He choked late on in the second half when Wales were trailing. They had good possession and he kicked the ball away - I wouldn't want him as my Lions scrum-half after that.
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Murphy: That was a bruising battle	"That's what I call a tough game. It was very physical and fair play to the Italians they made us work very hard for our victory.

Their organisation was very, very good and they proved again that they are getting better and better as the years go by. It is by far the strongest Italian team that we have faced. We knew all along that we would be a huge threat particularly the first game in the Championship. It was not like the days gone by when you could get scores on the board early. We had to work our socks off and try and build our scores gradually. It was really hard work out there and the players have plenty of bumps and bruises to prove it. I'm not too bad, but there are one or two others who will be feeling it a bit on Monday morning. In the backs, we were not frustrated at such, but the new rucking laws were a little bit problematical. The different interpretations between the referee and the players was a little difficult. But we managed to get the ball in our hands and I got a try near the end of the first half. It's always good to score. It was great work by Brian and I always knew I had scored even though it went upstairs to the video referee. Eddie (O'Sullivan) was very calm at half-time even though we were only 8-6 ahead. He spelled out what we needed to do and advocated getting the ball out of our own territory.

That new ruck law made it a bit more difficult to get out of our own half. We were penalised a lot at the breakdown, and if they had kicked all their chances at goal we would have been behind at the break. So really we went back to playing a territory game and simplifying things and having more patience on the ball. Every one was a little down after the game following the injuries to Brian and Gordon. As yet we do not know the full extent of the injuries, but it does not that good. Now we have to focus on Scotland and only six days to recover. It's a big ask after such a bruising encounter. I was very impressed the way the Scots played against the French on Saturday. It could so easily have gone their way but for a couple of decisions. We will be under no illusions it is going to be tough for us. In the meantime, when in Rome ... .
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Wales make two changes for France	"Wales coach Mike Ruddock has made two changes from the team that beat Italy 38-8 for Saturday's trip to France.

Kevin Morgan takes over from his injured Newport-Gwent Dragons colleague Hal Luscombe on the right wing. And in the pack Neath-Swansea Ospreys forward Ryan Jones is preferred at blindside flanker to Jonathan Thomas. Thomas, a try-scorer in Rome, drops down to the bench instead of Ian Gough, while Cardiff back Rhys Williams steps up in place of Morgan. Luscombe is sidelined by a hamstring problem sustained during the Six Nations game against Italy last weekend.

However, the experienced and in-form Morgan was already pushing hard for a start at Stade de France. ""Due to his impressive performances from the bench, Kevin was very much in the selection mix anyway, and the unfortunate injury to Hal gives him the chance to start,"" said Ruddock. ""Now that Ryan Jones has recovered from injury, we have increased the options in the back row. ""Jonathan Thomas is unlucky to lose his spot after performing well against Italy and scoring a try, but such is the competition for places that every position is debated in detail. ""For this particular game, we felt we might not always be afforded the open spaces out wide we were able to exploit against Italy, so an extra big ball-carrier in the back-row is thought to be necessary on this occasion. ""Obviously, it's a 22-man game these days, and there is every chance that Jonathan will be making an impact from the bench."" Wales have beaten France on two of their last three visits to Paris, and another victory this time around would keep them firmly on course for a first Five or Six Nations title triumph since 1994. ""Graham Henry (former Wales coach) said a couple of years ago that we should 'be bold' when going to France, and he was proved right,"" said Ruddock. ""That is a great way to approach the game, and something we will further endorse with the players this week.""

G Thomas (Toulouse, capt); K Morgan (Newport-Gwent), T Shanklin (Cardiff), G Henson (Neath-Swansea), S Williams (Neath-Swansea); S Jones (Clermont Auvergne), D Peel (Llanelli); G Jenkins (Cardiff), M Davies (Gloucester), A Jones; (Neath-Swansea), B Cockbain (Neath-Swansea), R Sidoli (Cardiff); R Jones (Neath-Swansea), M Williams (Cardiff), M Owen (Newport-Gwent).

Replacements: R McBryde (Llanelli), J Yapp (Cardiff), J Thomas (Neath-Swansea), R Sowden-Taylor (Cardiff), G Cooper (Newport-Gwent), C Sweeney Newport-Gwent), R Williams (Cardiff).
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Ireland surge past Scots	"Ireland maintained their Six Nations Grand Slam ambitions with an impressive victory over Scotland at Murrayfield.

Hugo Southwell's try gave the Scots an early 8-0 lead but scores from locks Malcolm O'Kelly and Paul O'Connell put the visitors in command by half-time. A third try from wing Denis Hickie and third penalty from Ronan O'Gara, who kicked 13 points, extended the lead. Jon Petrie scored a second try for Scotland but late scores from John Hayes and Gavin Duffy sealed victory. After two hard-earned away victories, Eddie O'Sullivan' side can now look forward to welcoming England to Lansdowne Road in a fortnight. Scotland will try to give their coach Matt Williams a first Six Nations victory when Italy come to Edinburgh, but they again struggled to turn pressure into points. The home side started with tremendous intensity and dominated territory and possession in the opening 10 minutes. A powerful charge from flanker Jason White was carried on by Ali Hogg and when Ireland conceded a penalty close to their own line, Scotland kicked it to touch. The Irish defence foiled the home side on that occasion, but a stray hand in a ruck allowed Paterson to stroke over a penalty in the eighth minute.

If that was a paltry reward for their early pressure, Scotland got the try they deserved when Paterson's searing break and Andy Craig's pass sent Southwell streaking to the right corner. Paterson was off target with the conversion and fly-half Dan Parks then missed a presentable drop-goal attempt. Ireland got themselves on the scoreboard with an O'Gara penalty and by the 24th minute the visitors were ahead. Stuart Grimes pulled down O'Kelly at a line-out, Ireland kicked the penalty to touch and from the set-piece, the big lock was driven over by the rest of his pack.

O'Gara added the conversion and a further penalty, after Shane Horgan almost grabbed a second try from O'Gara's chip to the corner, only for the ball to spill from his hand. But Ireland still delivered a hammer blow to Scotland's hopes just before the interval. O'Connell - skipper in the absence of Brian O'Driscoll - powered through Parks' weak tackle after a free-kick from a scrummage to burrow over.

Scotland suffered a further blow on the resumption when Ireland flanker Johnny O'Connor won another vital turnover, and O'Gara's basketball pass sent Hickie over in the left corner. O'Gara converted and then thumped over a 40m penalty to give the visitors a commanding 28-8 advantage. Scotland looked bereft of ideas but a half-break from Paterson sparked them back to life just before the hour. Stuart Grimes won a line-out and a well-worked move saw Petrie scuttle round the side of the ruck to dive over in the left corner. But it proved a false dawn, and Ireland reasserted their authority in the final 10 minutes. Peter Stringer and O'Kelly combined to put giant prop Hayes over in the right corner before replacement Gavin Duffy scorched away on the left, David Humphreys adding the final flourish with a touchline conversion.

: C Paterson; S Danielli, A Craig, H Southwell, S Lamont; D Parks, C Cusiter; T Smith, G Bulloch (capt), G Kerr; S Grimes, S Murray; J White, A Hogg, J Petrie.

R Russell, B Douglas, N Hines, J Dunbar, M Blair, G Ross, B Hinshelwood.

G Murphy; G Dempsey, S Horgan, K Maggs, D Hickie, R O'Gara, P Stringer; R Corrigan, S Byrne, J Hayes, M O'Kelly, P O'Connell, S Easterby, J O'Connor, A Foley.

F Sheahan, M Horan, D O'Callaghan, E Miller, G Easterby, D Humphreys, G Duffy.

Joel Jutge (France)
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Wales win in Rome	"Wales secured their first away win in the RBS Six Nations for nearly four years with a six-try victory in Rome.

Tries from Jonathan Thomas, Tom Shanklin and Martyn Williams gave the visitors a 19-5 half-time advantage. Luciano Orquera did reply with one for Italy but second-half efforts from Brent Cockbain, Shane Williams and Robert Sidoli sealed victory. Fly-half Stephen Jones added four conversions as Wales maintained their superb start to this year's tournament. Starting full of confidence after their victory over England, the visitors scored the opening try after just four minutes. Diminutive wing Shane Williams fielded a kick ahead and danced past the onrushing Andrea Masi and Aaron Persico into the Italian half. His pass to Tom Shanklin appeared forward but when the centre was held up short, the ball was switched left and Michael Owen's long cut-out pass gave the lurking Thomas an easy run-in.

Stephen Jones, who retained the kicking duties despite Gavin Henson's heroics against England, slotted an excellent conversion from wide out. Wales twice threatened further scores but failed to find the crucial pass, and Italy hit back out of the blue in the 11th minute.

Henson, sporting gold boots rather than the silver variety that did for England, beat two players with ease out on the left touchline. But his attempted chip ahead was charged down by Orquera, who snaffled the loose ball and hared away from halfway to score in the right corner. With the Welsh line-out stuttering and Italy twice turning the visitors' scrum, the home side's forward power brought them back into it. But a clever high kick from Henson almost brought a try for Hal Luscombe when Roland de Marigny and Ludovico Nitoglia made a hash of claiming it as the ball bounced into touch.

Wales regained control with a second try in the 21st minute, Henson lobbing up a high kick to the left corner where Shanklin jumped higher than Nitoglia to dot down his 15th Test try. Jones was unable to convert and De Marigny then hit the upright with a penalty attempt for Italy. Henson was also narrowly short with a long-range effort at goal, but Wales ended the half with a vital third score to give themselves some breathing space.

Henson sent Luscombe streaking away and when he off-loaded to Martyn Williams, the flanker showed his nous to ground the ball against the padding of the post, Jones adding the conversion. Italy, who lost flanker Mauro Bergamasco with a head knock before half-time, built up a head of steam on the resumption. De Marigny landed a penalty to make it 19-8 and a Nitoglia break through the middle threatened a try only for the move to break down with a knock-on. But Wales put the outcome beyond doubt with two superb tries in four minutes before the hour. Their fourth after 53 minutes was sparked by another mazy run from Shane Williams, who beat several players with ease, and finished with a powerful angled run from lock Cockbain. Before Italy could recover from that blow, a strong surge from Gareth Thomas and great off-loads from Martyn Williams and replacement Kevin Morgan saw Shane Williams scamper over.

With Jones converting both for a 33-8 lead, Wales had the luxury of sending on five more replacements for the final quarter. The icing on the cake came with a sixth try after more superb support work, Shane Williams and Ceri Sweeney combining to send Sidoli over in the left corner. The only downside for Wales was a hamstring injury suffered by Luscombe. But after back-to-back wins at the start of the tournament for the first time in 11 years, they will travel to Paris in a fortnight looking like genuine contenders.

R de Marigny; Mirco Bergamasco, W Pozzebon, A Masi, L Nitoglia; L Orquera, A Troncon; A Lo Cicero, F Ongaro, M Castrogiovanni, S Dellape, M Bortolami (capt), A Persico, Mauro Bergamasco, S Parisse.

G Intoppa, S Perugini, CA del Fava, D dal Maso, P Griffen, M Barbini, KP Robertson.

G Thomas (capt); H Luscombe, T Shanklin, G Henson, S Williams; S Jones, D Peel; G Jenkins, M Davies, A Jones; B Cockbain, R Sidoli; J Thomas, M Williams, M Owen.

R McBryde, J Yapp, I Gough, R Sowden-Taylor, G Cooper, C Sweeney, K Morgan.

Andrew Cole (Australia).
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White prepared for battle	"Tough-scrummaging prop Julian White is expecting a resurgent Wales to give him a rough ride in England's Six Nations opener in Cardiff on Saturday.

The Leicester tight-head is in the form of his life, making the England number three shirt his own. But he knows Wales will put his technique under immense scrutiny. ""The Welsh scrum is a force to be reckoned with,"" he told BBC Sport. ""They have made a lot of changes for the better over the last few years."" White is also impressed with the Welsh pack's strength in depth. ""Gethin Jenkins is starting at loose-head for them. He has played a bit at tight-head but I think his favoured position is loose-head and he is very good,"" he added. The 31-year-old has made a massive contribution to the England and Leicester cause of late and is arguably the form tight-head prop in the world.

He destroyed South Africa's Os du Randt in the scrum at Twickenham last autumn to give England the platform for an impressive 32-16 victory. Leicester, who signed White from Bristol when the West Country side were relegated from the Zurich Premiership in the summer of 2003, have also been aided by White's presence this season. The Tigers are sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership table and have also booked their place in the last eight of the Heineken Cup. ""I am pleased with my form,"" he said. ""But my form is helped by the people I play with at Leicester - people like Martin Johnson and Graham Rowntree. ""It's been a good season so far and to be in the starting XV for the first game of the Six Nations is what every player wants. ""I am delighted with the way things have gone but we have to get it right this weekend."" White is now one of the more experienced members of the England squad which takes to the field on Saturday. Injuries have taken their toll and coach Andy Robinson has been deprived of Richard Hill, Jonny Wilkinson, Martin Corry, Mike Tindall, Will Greenwood and Stuart Abbott.

And with 27 caps and a World Cup winner's medal to his name, White is now in a position to offer his experience to youngsters such as centres Matthew Tait and Jamie Noon. ""I don't know how much experience a tight-head can give a centre but you are there to give them a pat on the back if things go wrong or to be there if they want to talk in any way,"" he added. ""When I first came into the squad, people like Jason Leonard and Martin Johnson were the first to come over and talk through things and help out.

""It gives you a lot of confidence when people like that speak to you. ""I was in awe of a lot of them so to sit down and speak with them and realise you are on the same wavelength is good."" White missed the vast majority of last year's Six Nations because of a knee injury and is raring for the 2005 event to get going. And that is despite the opening game taking place amid the red-hot atmosphere in Cardiff. ""I enjoy the atmosphere. The Millennium Stadium is probably one of the best stadiums in the world,"" he said. ""To go down there and hear the shouting and the singing - it's one of my favourite places to play. ""This is probably the most even Six Nations for a long time. England, Ireland, France and Wales are all contenders. ""On form, Ireland should be favourites but you just don't know - that's the great thing about this tournament.""
"	sport
O'Driscoll saves Irish blushes	"Two moments of magic from Brian O'Driscoll guided Ireland to a workmanlike victory against Italy.

A pair of classic outside breaks from the Ireland captain set up tries for Geordan Murphy and Peter Stringer. Italy led 9-8 early in the second half but Stringer's try gave Ireland a lead they never lost. The hosts cut the gap to 18-12 with 10 minutes left and nearly scored through Ludovico Nitoglia, but Denis Hickie's try ensured an Irish victory. Italy came flying out of the blocks and took the lead through a Luciano Orquera penalty after seven minutes.

It could have been better for the hosts but the fly-half missed two kickable penalties and Ireland drew level with a Ronan O'Gara penalty midway through the first half. The Italians were driving at the heart of the Irish defence and, for the first quarter, the Irish pack struggled to secure any ball for their talented backs.

When they finally did, just before the half-hour mark, O'Driscoll promptly created a sparkling try for Murphy. The Ireland captain ran a dummy scissors and made a magical outside break before drawing the full-back and putting the diving Murphy in at the corner. O'Gara missed the twice-taken conversion and the visitors found themselves trailing once again. Roland de Marigny took over the kicking duties for Italy from the hapless Orquera, and he landed a penalty either side of the break to edge Italy into a 9-8 lead.

The only Ireland player offering a real threat was O'Driscoll, and it was his break that set up the second try for the visitors. Shane Horgan threw an overhead pass as he was about to be forced into touch and Stringer scooted over, with O'Gara landing the tricky conversion. A penalty apiece saw Ireland leading 18-12 as the game entered the final quarter, but they were lucky to survive when Italy launched a series of attacks. Winger Nitoglia dropped the ball as he reached for the line and Italy nearly rumbled over from a driving maul.

An O'Gara penalty put Ireland more than a converted try ahead and they made the game safe when Hickie latched onto an inside pass from Murphy and crossed for a converted try. O'Driscoll limped off late on, joining centre partner Gordon D'Arcy on the sidelines, and the final word went to Italy. Prop Martin Castrogiovanni powered over for a try which was fitting reward for an Italian pack which had kept the Irish under pressure throughout.

De Marigny; Mi Bergamasco, Canale, Masi, Nitoglia; Orquera, Troncon; Lo Cicero, Ongaro, Castrogiovanni; Dellape, Bortolami; Persico, Ma Bergamasco, Parisse.

Perugini, Intoppa, Del Fava, Dal Maso, Griffen, Pozzebon, Robertson.

Murphy, Horgan, O'Driscoll, D'Arcy, Hickie, O'Gara, Stringer, Corrigan, Byrne, Hayes, O'Kelly, O'Connell, S Easterby, Leamy, Foley.

Sheahan, Horan, O'Callaghan, Miller, G Easterby, Humphreys, Dempsey.

P O'Brien (New Zealand)
"	sport
Barkley fit for match in Ireland	"England centre Olly Barkley has been passed fit for Sunday's Six Nations clash with Ireland at Lansdowne Road.

Barkley withdrew from Bath's team for Friday's clash with Gloucester after suffering a calf injury in training. Gloucester centre Henry Paul has also been cleared to play after overcoming an ankle injury. England coach Andy Robinson, who names his team on Wednesday, has called up Bath prop Duncan Bell following Phil Vickery's broken arm. With Vickery sidelined for at least six weeks and Julian White out with a neck injury, Bell could make his England debut. Bell, 30, had set his sights on an international career with Wales. But last December, the International Rugby Board confirmed that he could only be eligible for England as he had travelled on tour with them in 1998. ""I thought I'd burned all my bridges with England when I expressed an interest in wanting to play for Wales, so it's fantastic to get this opportunity,"" he said. Bell, who featured in the England A side which beat France 30-20 10 days ago, added: ""I recognise that I got into the England A squad because of injuries. ""And it's the same again in getting into the senior squad. But now that I have this opportunity I intend to take it fully if selected and play my heart out for my country.""

England coach Andy Robinson could take a gamble and call inexperienced Sale Sharks prop Andrew Sheridan into his front row. But Sheridan favours the loosehead side of the scrum and a more likely scenario is for uncapped Bell - who was among the try-scorers when England A beat France A 30-20 nine days ago - to be drafted in.
"	sport
Wales stars need a rest - Ruddock	"Wales coach Mike Ruddock has defended his decision not to release any of the international stars for this weekend's regional Celtic League fixtures.

Ruddock says the players will benefit from the rest, and their absence will give youngsters a chance to impress. ""We've got the WRU charter in place now which outlines exactly what happens,"" Ruddock told BBC Wales Sport. ""Once we're in the Six Nations, the players will only be released in his and the WRU's best interests."" The Ospreys and Scarlets say they are happy to support the Wales cause, but the Dragons have expressed disappointment at not being able to use their national squad players in Friday's game with Ulster. Ceri Sweeney, Gareth Cooper, Ian Gough and Kevin Morgan have been used sparingly by Ruddock in the opening two Six Nations wins and captain Jason Forster believes they would benefit from a game with the Dragons.

""I'm sure the guys would want to come back to get some game time,"" Forster told BBC Wales Sport. ""It would also be a timely reminder to Mike [Ruddock] as to what they can do. ""And the supporters want to see the star players - no disrespect to the other guys - performing on the pitch."" Ruddock, though, is keen to protect his players from injury and fatigue. ""At this stage, there's nothing more [the players] can do in games to impress me further. ""We've got to look at it at another angle and see the opportunities that are provided for the younger players in the region. ""For example, the Dragons might use James Ireland this weekend. I've been looking at the lad - he's a great prospect for the future."" French and English clubs have requested to have all their international players available which means Stephen Jones, Gareth Thomas and Mefin Davies will play this weekend. The majority of Ireland and Scotland players have also been released for provincial duty.
"	sport
Munster Cup tie switched to Spain	"Munster's Heineken Cup quarter-final tie against Biarritz on 3 April has been switched to Real Sociedad's Paseo de Anoeta stadium in San Sebastian.

Real's ground holds 32,000 whereas the Parc des Sports Aguilera in Biarritz has a capacity of just 12,667. The Irish province will be given at least 8,000 tickets. ""The decision to move was a difficult one, but as we considered the fans as one of our primary objectives,"" said Biarritz chairman Marcel Martin. ""We hope we will be rewarded as a huge crowd behaving in the best rugby tradition."" The match will be the first Heineken Cup fixture to be played in Spain, and is expected to attract the biggest-ever attendance for a rugby match in the country. Ulster were the last Irish team to play at the Paseo de Anoeta stadium where they faced a Euskarians side during a pre-season tour in 1998.
"	sport
Williams says he will never quit	"Defiant Matt Williams says he will not quit as Scotland coach even if his side slump to a new low with defeat by Italy at Murrayfield.

That would leave the Scots as favourites to win the Wooden Spoon for the second year running. ""I have never quit anything in my life, apart from maybe painting the kitchen,"" he told BBC Sport. ""The support we have been given from Murrayfield in my whole time here has been 100%."" Williams has yet to experience an RBS Six Nations victory after seven attempts and Scotland have lost 12 of their 14 games under his leadership. But he rejected the comparison made in some media sources with Berti Vogts, recently sacked as Scotland football manager after a poor run of results.

""How can a German football coach and an Australian rugby coach have anything in common?"" he asked. ""It is a bizarre analogy. It is so absurd that it borders on the humorous."" Williams insists that he is revelling in the pressure, despite the possibility of a second Six Nations series without a victory. ""That is not beyond the realms of possibility,"" he admitted. ""There's nothing much between the teams, so we could win the next three games or lose them. ""But I actually really enjoy seeing how you cope with such pressure as a coach. ""It helps the team grow and helps you grow as a coach. ""We could have won in Paris but for the last five minutes and now we have two defeats, but we were confident for those two first games and we are confident we can beat Italy too.""
"	sport
Pountney handed ban and fine	"Northampton coach Budge Pountney has been fined £2,000 and banned from match-day coaching for six weeks for calling a referee ""a disgrace"".

Pountney was found guilty of bringing the game into disrepute at a Rugby Football Union disciplinary hearing in London on Thursday night. Pountney criticised referee Steve Lander's performance in Northampton's defeat by Saracens on 5 February. The last two weeks of the six-week ban are suspended. Pountney pleaded guilty to the offence before a panel consisting of chairman Robert Horner, Nigel Gillingham and Jeff Probyn. The ban means former Scotland international Pountney cannot enter the playing enclosure, technical areas or go near the touchline, tunnel or players and officials' areas on the day of a game.
"	sport
France v Wales (Sat)	"Stade de France, Paris

Saturday, 26 February

1600 GMT

BBC1, Radio 4 LW and this website

France may have beaten Scotland and England but they were tedious and uninspired throughout both matches. Wales, on the other hand, have played some fine rugby and have made their best start since they last won the title in 1994. They also have a good record at the Stade de France, having won their first two games there, in 1999 and 2001. Wales have made two changes from the team that thrashed Italy 38-8 in Rome.

Kevin Morgan takes over from his injured Newport-Gwent Dragons colleague Hal Luscombe on the right wing. In the pack Neath-Swansea Ospreys forward Ryan Jones bas been brought on the blind-side flank to beef up the Wales back row in place of Jonathan Thomas. Wales coach Mike Ruddock is determined that his team will not go into their shells after their promising start to the championship. ""Graham Henry (former Wales coach) said a couple of years ago that we should 'be bold' when going to France, and he was proved right,"" said Ruddock. ""That is a great way to approach the game, and something we will further endorse with the players this week.""

Despite their stuttering displays in their first two games defending champions France are also unbeaten. Under-pressure coach Bernard Laporte has made four changes, with Yannick Nyanga, the debutant Julien Laharrague, Aurelien Rougerie and Yannick Jauzion coming into the side. France have been criticised for the absence of traditional ""French flair"" as they have ground their way to victory so far this year but captain Fabien Pelous sees hope on the horizon. ""I get the impression we are getting better,"" he said. ""Against Wales, which is different from the teams we have beaten, I hope we can show our proper game.""

J Laharrague; A Rougerie, Y Jauzion, D Traille, C Dominici; Y Delaigue, D Yachvili; S Marconnet, S Bruno, N Mas; F Pelous (capt), J Thion; S Betsen, Y Nyanga, J Bonnaire (Bourgoin).

W Servat, O Milloud, G Lamboley, I Harinordoquy, P Mignoni, F Michalak, J-P Grandclaude.

G Thomas (capt); K Morgan, T Shanklin, G Henson, S Williams; S Jones, D Peel; G Jenkins, M Davies, A Jones; B Cockbain, R Sidoli; R Jones, M Williams, M Owen.

R McBryde, J Yapp, J Thomas, R Sowden-Taylor, G Cooper, C Sweeney, R Williams.
"	sport
Woodward eyes Brennan for Lions	"Toulouse's former Irish international Trevor Brennan could be one of Clive Woodward's many surprises when the 44-man Lions tour squad is announced.

Brennan, who last played for Ireland against Samoa in 2001, is held in high esteem by the former England coach. ""If you speak to the players there's a huge amount of respect for the guy,"" Woodward told the Sunday Independent. ""Players tend to know better than most coaches. It's not just the Irish, but Welsh and English players as well."" The 31-year-old former Dublin milkman moved from Leinster to Toulouse in 2003 and immediately picked up a Heineken Cup winner's medal in an all-French final against Perpignan at Lansdowne Road.

Brennan is highly-rated at Stade Toulousain, where he is used anywhere in the back five. Woodward is ensuring his preparations for the trip to New Zealand in June are as thorough as possible. ""I've spoken to quite a few players, and they probably don't know what they're actually saying when we're having these conversations,"" he told the newspaper. ""But you talk about certain players and they'll say if they think they're up to scratch or that they don't want them in their team. ""I haven't heard a bad word said against Trevor, which, considering he has a pretty tough guy reputation, is, to me, impressive.""
"	sport
Scotland v Italy (Sat)	"Murrayfield, Edinburgh

Saturday, 26 February

1400 GMT

BBC1, Five Live and this website

Victory for the Azzurri in Rome last year saw Scotland end their campaign without a victory. And the pressure is on Scotland coach Matt Williams as he seeks a first Six Nations victory at the eighth attempt. Italy have lost both their opening games at home to Ireland and Wales, but travel to Edinburgh with high hopes.

Their coach John Kirwan has warned his side they must eradicate the errors that blighted their loss to Wales however or risk suffering a third successive defeat. ""If the defeat against Wales has taught us anything, it's that at this level we can't make any mistakes,"" Kirwan said. ""In the Six Nations, every error you make will come at a high price. ""We have to be aggressive for 80 minutes, keep calm in every situation and display great maturity on the pitch.

""It will be fundamental to keep cool in the difficult moments - in the key situations of the game."" Kirwan has recalled the experienced Cristian Stoica at centre and drafted in David dal Maso at open-side after star flanker Mauro Bergamasco was ruled out for the rest of the tournament. Scotland have also made two changes, Simon Webster replacing Simon Danielli on the wing and Simon Taylor returning for his first Test in a year, for injured flanker Jason White. Taylor's recovery from a serious knee injury is a major boost to Scottish hopes. ""He is one of the world-class players in the tournament and you want them in your team,"" acknowledged Williams.

Despite a record of only two victories from 14 Tests, Williams insists he is revelling in the pressure. ""I actually really enjoy seeing how you cope with such pressure as a coach,"" he said, optimistic despite opening defeats to France and Ireland. ""We were confident for those two first games and we are confident we can beat Italy too,"" he added.

: C Paterson; S Webster, A Craig, H Southwell, S Lamont; D Parks, C Cusiter; T Smith, G Bulloch (capt), G Kerr; S Grimes, S Murray; S Taylor, J Petrie, A Hogg.

R Russell, B Douglas, N Hines, J Dunbar, M Blair, G Ross, B Hinshelwood.

R de Marigny; Mirco Bergamasco, C Stoica, A Masi, L Nitoglia; L Orquera, A Troncon; A Lo Cicero, F Ongaro, M Castrogiovanni; S Dellape, M Bortolami (capt); A Persico, D Dal Maso, S Parisse.

G Intoppa, S Perugini, CA del Fava, S Orlando, P Griffen, R Pedrazzi, KP Robertson.
"	sport
Preview: Ireland v England (Sun)	"Lansdowne Road, Dublin

Sunday, 27 February

1500 GMT

BBC1, Radio 4 LW and this website

Ireland are going for their first Grand Slam since 1948 after two opening wins, and England represent their sternest test of the Championship so far. England were sloppy and leaderless in the defeats against Wales and France and another loss would be unthinkable. The pressure is on coach Andy Robinson and his side have to deliver.

Despite England's dramatic dip in form since the World Cup final - they have lost eight of their last 13 matches - Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan says his side should not underestimate the visitors. ""Had they kicked their points they would have beaten France and that would have created a different landscape for Sunday,"" he said. ""This is England we are talking about. They have a depth of talent and a very good record against Ireland. ""They will target a victory in Dublin as the turning point in their Six Nations."" The differences between the sides is also highlighted in the team selections for the Dublin encounter.

Ireland, despite having Gordon D'Arcy still out injured, have been boosted by the return of star skipper Brian O'Driscoll who missed the Scotland game with a hamstring injury. ""The knowledge that the England game was coming up really helped during rehabilitation,"" he said. ""The will to play in this game was enormous. It doesn't get much bigger than England at home."" As well as entering the tournament without players like Jonny Wilkinson, Mike Tindall and Richard Hill, England have now lost two tighthead props in Julian White and Phil Vickery while blind-side flanker Lewis Moody is a major concern. Robinson, who received a lot of flak for the inclusion and then dropping of centre Mathew Tait, has kept faith with kicking fly-half Charlie Hodgson despite his horror show at Twickenham. If England slump in Dublin, it will be their worst run of results in the Championship since 1987.

But Robinson was bullish during the week about the game, saying that his side ""are going there to get in their faces"", and has identified the line-out and tackle area as the key to England's chances. And despite the recent results, skipper Jason Robinson believes there is nothing wrong with the mood in the camp. ""There is no lack of confidence in the team,"" said the Sale full-back. ""We have had a good week's training and we are all looking forward to the challenge. ""I still believe in this team. I know if we get our game right we will win the games.""

G Murphy; G Dempsey, B O'Driscoll, S Horgan, D Hickie; R O'Gara, P Stringer; R Corrigan, S Byrne, J Hayes; M O'Kelly, P O'Connell; S Easterby, J O'Connor, A Foley.

F Sheahan, M Horan, D O'Callaghan, E Miller, G Easterby, D Humphreys, K Maggs.

J Robinson (capt); M Cueto, J Noon, O Barkley, J Lewsey; C Hodgson, H Ellis; G Rowntree, S Thompson, M Stevens; D Grewcock, B Kay; J Worsley, L Moody, M Corry.

A Titterrell, D Bell, S Borthwick, A Hazell, M Dawson, A Goode, O Smith.
"	sport
Leeds v Saracens (Fri)	"Headingley

Friday, 25 February

2000 GMT

The Tykes have brought in Newcastle prop Ed Kalman and Tom McGee from the Borders on loan while fly-half Craig McMullen has joined from Narbonne. Raphael Ibanez is named at hooker for Saracens in one of four changes. Simon Raiwalui and Ben Russell are also selected in the pack while Kevin Sorrell comes in at outside centre.

- Friday's game at Headingley got the go-ahead on Friday after passing an early pitch inspection. Leeds: Balshaw; Rees, Christophers, Bell, Doherty; McMullen, Dickens; McGee, Rawlinson, Gerber; Murphy, Palmer (capt), Morgan, Parks, Popham. Replacements: Kalman, Regan, Hyde, Rigney, McMillan, Rock, Vickerman. Saracens: Bartholomeusz; Castaignede, Sorrell, Harris, Vaikona; Jackson, Bracken; Yates, Ibanez, Visagie; Raiwalui, Fullarton; Randell, Russell, Vyvyan (capt). Replacements: Cairns, Lloyd, Broster, Chesney, Johnston, Rauluni, Little.
"	sport
Worcester v Sale (Fri)	"Sixways

Friday, 25 February

2000 GMT

They make just one change, with Tim Collier replacing Phil Murphy in the second row. In contrast, Sale are missing 14 players due to a combination of international call-ups and injuries. John Payne and Chris Rhys Jones come into the centres while scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth looks set to play on the wing.

Delport; Pieters, Rasmussen, Lombard, O'Leary; Brown, Powell; Windo, Van Niekerk, Horsman; Collier, Gillies; Hickey, Sanderson, MacLeod- Henderson.

Replacements: Fortey, Murphy, Daly, Vaili, Cole, Hayes, Trueman.

Hanley; Mayor, Payne, Rhys Jones, Wigglesworth; Hercus, Redpath (capt); Turner, Roddam, Stewart; Day, Schofield; Caillet, Carter, Chabal.

Replacements (from): Bozzi, Coutts, Anglesea, Lund, Martens, Riley, Duffy, C Jones.
"	sport
Robinson answers critics	"England captain Jason Robinson has rubbished suggestions that the world champions are a team in decline.

England were beaten 11-9 by Wales in their Six Nations opener in Cardiff last week and face current champions France at Twickenham on Sunday. Robinson said: ""We are certainly not on the decline. You lose one game and it doesn't make you a bad team. ""I have no doubt in the players we've got. We have still got the team to go out and beat anyone on our day."" England find themselves striving to avoid a third successive championship defeat for the first time since 1987. But full-back Robinson believes the new-look England team can stop the rot against France.

""Last weekend we should have won the game,"" he said. ""But if we can under-perform and lose by only two points then I am sure if we play well this week we will get the win we need. ""We proved that in the autumn - when we put in some excellent performances - and we just need to build on that.

""It was a disappointing start against Wales and we might be down on that. ""But we are certainly not out. We will come out fighting this week."" Robinson also had words of comfort for 18-year-old Newcastle centre Mathew Tait, who made his international debut against Wales but has been demoted from the squad to face France.

""I have had a word with Mathew,"" said Robinson. ""I still believe in him. He is an outstanding player but we have gone for Olly (Barkley) because of the kicking. ""Mathew has just got to take it on the chin, keep working hard like he is doing and I'm sure he will feature in some of the games.""
"	sport
Sella wants Michalak recall	"Former France centre Philippe Sella believes coach Bernard Laporte must recall Frederic Michalak to give his side any chance of beating Ireland.

Sella admitted he had been impressed by current fly-half Yann Delaigue in the RBS Six Nations to date. But he told BBC Sport: ""Michalak is the answer both now and for the future. Delaigue deserved his chance but the time has come to bring back Michalak. ""He does have weaknesses but has the all-round game to upset Ireland."" The 22-year-old Michalak has spent much of the tournament on the bench after Delaigue impressed for Castres early in the season. With Michalak overlooked, the French stuttered to narrow wins over Scotland and then England before ironically playing their best rugby in the defeat to Wales. ""The Wales game was amazing to watch but never did I think the French could lose that game at half-time,"" said Sella.

""Their only mistakes were that they didn't score enough points in the first half and were a little bit less focused in the second... but only a little bit."" Sella, however, insisted the pressure had eased on the under-fire Laporte, despite the defeat at the Stade de France. ""This season is very important for shaping a team for the 2007 World Cup,"" said Sella, ""which Laporte is doing very well. The French get better every game. ""It's difficult, though, when you change a team and you change your tactics as everything has to gel. ""But he has the players and the talent to take them all the way to World Cup victory. ""As a result, it is important that people give him time. It may not seem good now that we're not winning the Grand Slam but no one will care in two years time if we're world champions.""

The majority of media criticism centred on the way in which France produced a performance devoid of running rugby in their opening two games. But while Sella admitted he liked the more flowing style employed against Wales, he said ""the win was most important"". ""Winning is all that matters,"" he added. ""Ok, the flair may not have been so good, but the discipline, organisation and defence was there, which are all important ahead of 2007."" France play what Sella believes is their hardest game of the Six Nations against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday 12 March. The French go into the game as clear underdogs. But Sella added: ""People forget that France can still win the Six Nations and they'll be focused on that. ""But Ireland will be going for even more in front of their home crowd. It's going to be tough.""
"	sport
Umaga ready for Lions	"All Blacks captain Tama Umaga has warned the British and Irish Lions will be his most fearsome opponents yet ahead of their summer tour.

But Umaga, in England for Saturday's IRB Rugby Aid match, also backed New Zealand to win the three-Test series against the Lions. He told BBC Sport: ""It's potentially the most fearsome line-up I've ever come up against. They're awesome. ""But I'd back us all the way to beat them when they come over."" Lions boss Sir Clive Woodward is set to announce his squad for the June-July tour next month.

When Woodward was appointed last year, it was widely believed he would rely heavily on his former England players. But Umaga said: ""He'd be hard pushed to do that now considering the shape of the Six Nations. ""Don't get me wrong, England have got a lot of talented guys and I'm sure there are some of them who'll make the Lions Test XV. ""But you can't disguise Wales and Ireland in particular. Some of the tries they've scored have been great. I'll admit it'll be fairly awesome lining up against the likes of Brian O'Driscoll.""

Umaga will meet O'Driscoll in Saturday's Rugby Aid match at Twickenham, with the Irish captain leading the Northern Hemisphere side. O'Driscoll is among a host of players in the Northern Hemisphere squad, coached by Woodward, that are tipped for Lions call-ups. ""It'll be good for us to get an early idea of some of these guys, although a lot can change between now and June,"" Umaga said. The 31-year-old admitted interest in the Lions tour was immense, calling it ""the biggest thing to hit New Zealand since Lord of the Rings"". He added: ""As players, it's enough for us to be driven by the rarity of playing the Lions. In fact, it's not just us All Blacks - it's the talk of the country.""

Umaga admitted the fear of injury weighed on his mind ahead of Saturday's charity game, which features a host of big names including George Gregan, Andrew Mehrtens and Chris Latham. But he admitted the value of the cause - proceeds of the match will go to aiding victims of the tsunami - easily won him over. ""The second [Southern Hemisphere coach] Rod Macqueen made the approach, I didn't hesitate. It was great when New Zealand Rugby then gave me the all clear. ""Thankfully I didn't know anyone that was involved in the tragedy of the tsunami but you couldn't miss all the horrific reports on the news. ""There are so many people that were affected, are still affected and will be affected for a long time. It's just good to know we can do something minor to help out.""

- The match will be televised on BBC One at 1400 GMT on Saturday.
"	sport
"Umaga ready for ""fearsome"" Lions"	"All Blacks captain Tama Umaga has warned the British and Irish Lions will be his most fearsome opponents yet ahead of their summer tour.

But Umaga, in England for Saturday's IRB Rugby Aid match, also backed New Zealand to win the three-Test series against the Lions. He told BBC Sport: ""It's potentially the most fearsome line-up I've ever come up against. They're awesome. ""But I'd back us all the way to beat them when they come over."" Lions boss Sir Clive Woodward is set to announce his squad for the June-July tour next month.

When Woodward was appointed last year, it was widely believed he would rely heavily on his former England players. But Umaga said: ""He'd be hard pushed to do that now considering the shape of the Six Nations. ""Don't get me wrong, England have got a lot of talented guys and I'm sure there are some of them who'll make the Lions Test XV. ""But you can't disguise Wales and Ireland in particular. Some of the tries they've scored have been great. I'll admit it'll be fairly awesome lining up against the likes of Brian O'Driscoll.""

Umaga will meet O'Driscoll in Saturday's Rugby Aid match at Twickenham, with the Irish captain leading the Northern Hemisphere side. O'Driscoll is among a host of players in the Northern Hemisphere squad, coached by Woodward, that are tipped for Lions call-ups. ""It'll be good for us to get an early idea of some of these guys, although a lot can change between now and June,"" Umaga said. The 31-year-old admitted interest in the Lions tour was immense, calling it ""the biggest thing to hit New Zealand since Lord of the Rings"". He added: ""As players, it's enough for us to be driven by the rarity of playing the Lions. In fact, it's not just us All Blacks - it's the talk of the country.""

Umaga admitted the fear of injury weighed on his mind ahead of Saturday's charity game, which features a host of big names including George Gregan, Andrew Mehrtens and Chris Latham. But he admitted the value of the cause - proceeds of the match will go to aiding victims of the tsunami - easily won him over. ""The second [Southern Hemisphere coach] Rod Macqueen made the approach, I didn't hesitate. It was great when New Zealand Rugby then gave me the all clear. ""Thankfully I didn't know anyone that was involved in the tragedy of the tsunami but you couldn't miss all the horrific reports on the news. ""There are so many people that were affected, are still affected and will be affected for a long time. It's just good to know we can do something minor to help out.""

- The match will be televised on BBC One at 1400 GMT on Saturday.
"	sport
Campese berates whingeing England	"Former Australian wing David Campese has told England to stop whingeing in the wake of their defeat to Ireland.

England coach Andy Robinson lambasted referee Jonathan Kaplan for costing them the game after disallowing tries from Mark Cueto and Josh Lewsey. But Campese told BBC Sport: ""Robinson is living up to England's reputation as whingeing Poms. ""Stop going on about it as who really cares? They're acting like they're the first team to be cheated of a win.""

England are contemplating a complaint to the International Rugby Board after potential ""tries"" by Cueto in the first half and Lewsey late on were ruled out without recourse to the video referee. But Campese added: ""Scotland could have beaten France in the same way, but do you see them whingeing? ""Basically, things didn't go England's way and, in typical fashion, they make more of it when they believe they've lost unfairly.""

England are second bottom in the Six Nations table following defeats by Wales, France and Ireland. But although Campese admitted he was surprised about their current predicament, he insisted England were ""no longer world class"". ""England are beginning to realise that being world champions doesn't mean you deserve to win every game,"" he said. ""They lost a few key players and suddenly everyone's realised the ones on the fringes were not all that good in the first place. ""Added to that, the senior players aren't standing up and they can't do anything when the pressure mounts.""

Campese, a veteran of 101 international caps, said full-back Jason Robinson would now be the sole Englishman in his World XV. Robinson has been blamed for poor leadership in the tournament, while his coach has been castigated for appointing a full-back captain. ""I agree that you can't captain from full-back,"" said Campese. ""You need someone in the thick of the action, and it's very hard to give orders from all the way back there. ""Some people are leaders and some aren't. He's not but there's no one who stands out in England's pack - no clear-cut leaders."" Campese, though, defended coach Andy Robinson, who he believes was the ""only choice"" after Sir Clive Woodward's resignation.

But he blamed ""a lack of talent in the England camp"" for making the current coach look poor. England face a potential wooden spoon match against Italy on 12 March. And the ex-Wallaby added: ""If England lost that, they'd be in bloody turmoil. That said, I don't think they will."" Campese has tipped Wales to win both the Six Nations and Grand Slam come the end of the tournament. ""It's been a surprising tournament,"" he said, ""and maybe Ireland have a little bit more talent overall. ""But playing at home is a major boost. And the possible Grand Slam decider at the Millennium Stadium will be just too much for the Irish.""
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O'Driscoll/Gregan lead Aid stars	"Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll will lead the Northern Hemisphere team in the IRB Rugby Aid match at Twickenham.

O'Driscoll heads a star-studded cast for the contest to raise funds for the tsunami appeal. The South will be led by George Gregan, one of four Wallabies, alongside five Springboks and four All Blacks including captain Tana Umaga. South African flanker Schalk Burger has shaken off a leg injury to take his place in the starting line-up. He will join fellow Springboks John Smit, Cobus Visagie and Victor Matfield in the South pack, with Jacque Fourie among the centres. The North side have been hit by the withdrawals of Scotland duo Gordon Bulloch and Chris Cusiter, plus France captain Fabien Pelous.

But Leicester's England centre Ollie Smith has been added to the squad, giving him an opportunity to impress Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward, who takes charge of the North side. ""I think it's fantastic for Ollie,"" Tigers coach John Wells told BBC Radio Leicester. ""He was probably going to have the weekend off this week and I hope Clive gets the chance to see the qualities that Leicester and England have been seeing all year."" Woodward will also assess other potential Lions candidates such as Scotland pair Simon Taylor and Chris Paterson, Wales scrum-half Dwayne Peel and Ireland lock Paul O'Connell. ""I'm looking forward to working with such outstanding players,"" Woodward said. ""Both teams are fielding top-quality sides and I really hope that the rugby public and community get behind this game to raise as much money as possible for such a deserving cause."" Despite the withdrawal of Wales wing Rhys Williams, who is required for the Blues' Celtic League match with Munster, three other members of their Six Nations squad - Ceri Sweeney, John Yapp and Jonathan Thomas - will also play. ""Not only it is for a good cause but it gives these players the opportunity to play with and against some of the best players in the world,"" said WRU general manager Steve Lewis. Supporters can watch the teams train for free at Twickenham on Friday, 4 March. Woodward will put his North team through their paces at 1030 GMT, with the South side, coached by former Wallabies coach Rod Macqueen, due at the stadium at 1330.

C Paterson (Scotland), B Cohen (England), B O'Driscoll (Ireland, capt), D Traille (France), O Smith (England), C Sweeney (Wales), D Humphreys (Ireland), D Peel (Wales); A Lo Cicero (Italy), P de Villiers (France), J Yapp (Wales), R Ibanez (France), P O'Connell (Ireland), M Bortolami (Italy), J Thomas (Wales), S Taylor (Scotland), L Dallaglio (England), S Parisse (Italy), Others to be added.

C Latham (Australia); B Lima (Samoa), J Fourie (SA) T Umaga (New Zealand), S Bobo (Fiji); A Mehrtens (NZ) G Gregan (Aus, capt); C Hoeft (NZ), J Smit (SA), C Visagie (SA), S Maling (NZ), V Matfield (SA), S Burger (SA), P Waugh (Aus), T Kefu (Aus).

E Taukafa (Tonga), E Guinazu (Argentina), S Sititi (Samoa), O Palepoi (Samoa), M Rauluni (Fiji), T Delport (SA), A N Other.
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Harinordoquy suffers France axe	"Number eight Imanol Harinordoquy has been dropped from France's squad for the Six Nations match with Ireland in Dublin on 12 March.

Harinordoquy was a second-half replacement in last Saturday's 24-18 defeat to Wales. Bourgoin lock Pascal Pape, who has recovered from a sprained ankle, returns to the 22-man squad. Wing Cedric Heymans and Ludovic Valbon come in for Aurelien Rougerie and Jean-Philippe Grandclaude.

Rougerie hurt his chest against Wales while Grandclaude was a second-half replacement against both England and Wales. Valbon, capped in last June's Tests against the United States and Canada, was a second half replacement in the win over Scotland.

France coach Bernard Laporte said Harinordoquy had been axed after a poor display last weekend. ""Imanol has been dropped from the squad because the least I can say is that he didn't make a thundering comeback against Wales,"" said Laporte. ""We know the Ireland game will be fast and rough and we also want to be able to replace both locks during the game if needed, and Gregory Lamboley can also come on at number seven or eight. ""The Grand Slam is gone but we'll go to Ireland to win. ""It will be a very exciting game because Ireland have three wins under their belt, have just defeated England and have their eyes set on a Grand Slam."" France, who lost to Wales last week, must defeat the Irish to keep alive their hopes of retaining the Six Nations trophy. Ireland are unbeaten in this year's tournament and have their sights set on a first Grand Slam since 1948.

Dimitri Yachvili (Biarritz), Pierre Mignoni (Clermont), Yann Delaigue (Castres), Frederic Michalak (Stade Toulousain), Damien Traille (Biarritz), Yannick Jauzion (Stade Toulousain), Ludovic Valbon (Biarritz), Christophe Dominici (Stade Francais), Cedric Heymans (Stade Toulousain), Julien Laharrague (Brive)

Sylvain Marconnet (Stade Francais), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Olivier Milloud (Bourgoin), Sebastien Bruno (Sale/ENG), William Servat (Stade Toulousain), Fabien Pelous (Stade Toulousain, capt), Jerome Thion (Biarritz), Pascal Papé (Bourgoin), Gregory Lamboley (Stade Toulousain), Serge Betsen (Biarritz), Julien Bonnaire (Bourgoin), Yannick Nyanga (Béziers)
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Parker misses England clash	"Tom Shanklin will start in the centre for Wales against England in Cardiff on Saturday after Sonny Parker failed to recover from a trapped neck nerve.

Shanklin was first-choice wing in the autumn Tests, but prefers centre and will face England debutant Mathew Tait. Dragons three-quarter Hal Luscombe takes Shanklin's wing berth. Up front, Mefin Davies plays at hooker, open-side Martyn Williams is fit to start and lock Rob Sidoli replaces veteran Gareth Llewellyn. Davies wins the vote ahead of Robin McBryde, who sits on the bench having recently returned to action for the Scarlets following a neck injury.

Sidoli is back for the first time since last season's Six Nations, the Blues second row back to form after a niggling groin problem. Williams, Sidoli's team-mate at Cardiff, is set to win his 50th cap, replacing the injured Colin Charvis after making a quicker-than-expected recovery from a neck disc problem. ""Initially when I had the diagnosis it was a case of trying to get fit for the Italy game next week, but fortunately my recovery has been a lot quicker than we all hoped,"" Williams told BBC Sport Wales. ""I haven't started a game since 1 January and would have preferred to have a couple of games in the lead-up to this, but the good thing with the injury is that I have kept up my fitness levels. ""I feel quite fresh and I just can't wait to play again."" Williams says he expects a torrid time from an England loose-forward trio of Lewis Moody, Joe Worsley and Andy Hazell. ""They are three top-class players, especially Worsley and Moody. They have been there and done it,"" Williams added. ""They were back-ups behind Richard Hill, Neil Back and Lawrence Dallaglio, but now they have come forward and proved what good players they are - there are no weaknesses there."" Luscombe gets the nod on the wing ahead of Dragons team-mate Kevin Morgan, who wins a place on the bench alongside uncapped Blues prop John Yapp.

G Thomas (Toulouse (capt); H Luscombe (Dragons), T Shanklin (Blues), G Henson (Ospreys), S Williams (Ospreys); S Jones (Clermont Auvergne), D Peel (Scarlets); G Jenkins (Blues), M Davies (Gloucester), A Jones (Ospreys), B Cockbain (Ospreys), R Sidoli (Blues), D Jones (Scarlets), M Williams (Blues), M Owen (Dragons).

R McBryde (Scarlets), J Yapp (Blues), J Thomas (Ospreys), R Jones (Ospreys), G Cooper (Dragons), C Sweeney (Dragons), K Morgan (Dragons).
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Stevens named in England line-up	"England have named Bath prop Matt Stevens in the starting line-up for their Six Nations match against Ireland at Lansdowne Road on Sunday.

Fellow Bath prop Duncan Bell will start on the bench, as coach Andy Robinson makes just one change to the team that was beaten by France. It will be Stevens' first start after two caps as a replacement against the All Blacks last year. Leicester duo Ollie Smith and Andy Goode have been drafted onto the bench. Stevens takes over from Phil Vickery, who suffered a broken arm playing for Gloucester last weekend. ""I'm confident Matt will grasp this opportunity and make his mark against Ireland,"" said Robinson.

""All three players have shown outstanding form of late, most recently in the England A win against France A and for their club,"" added Robinson. ""Selection beckons when players demonstrate such consistent ability. ""This game against Ireland will be massive. We recognise it's a must-win game for us this season."" England confirmed that Sale Sharks prop Andrew Sheridan was not considered for selection because of an injury he picked up to the back of his ankle during last Friday's match against Leeds.

J Robinson (Sale Sharks, capt); M Cueto (Sale Sharks), J Noon (Newcastle), O Barkley (Bath), J Lewsey (Wasps); C Hodgson (Sale Sharks), H Ellis (Leicester); G Rowntree (Leicester), S Thompson (Northampton), M Stevens (Bath), D Grewcock (Bath), B Kay (Leicester), J Worsley (Wasps), L Moody (Leicester), M Corry (Leicester).

A Titterrell (Sale Sharks), D Bell (Bath), S Borthwick (Bath), A Hazell (Gloucester), M Dawson (Wasps), A Goode (Leicester), O Smith (Leicester).
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Bortolami predicts dour contest	"Italy skipper Marco Bortolami believes Saturday's Six Nations contest against Scotland will be a scrappy encounter.

With both sides looking for their first win of the championship, the third-round game at Murrayfield has been billed as a wooden-spoon decider. And Bortolami feels the Edinburgh contest could end up being a bruising battle of the packs. ""It will not be a pretty game because both teams are desperate to gain their first win,"" said the lock forward. Italy have only recorded three wins since they joined the Six Nations in 2000, but two of those have come against Scotland. This year, Italy opened up with a stubborn display against Ireland but ended up losing 28-17.

However, they were thoroughly outplayed by an impressive Welsh side in Rome last time out. Now the Italians travel to Edinburgh hoping to claim their first away win in the Six Nations. ""Scotland played extremely well against France in Paris but not so well when Ireland came to Edinburgh,"" said Bortolami. ""We are still very disappointed with our last game against Wales in Rome and we are thoroughly determined to right the wrongs. ""As a nation, our quest is to be respected as a team worthy of a place in this tournament and we can only do this by winning games.""
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Corry backs skipper Robinson	"England forward Martin Corry says Jason Robinson is the right man to lead the national team back to winning ways.

After losses to Wales and France, critics have started to wonder whether Robinson can captain from full-back. But Corry has backed Robinson, who was given the role after the injury to fly-half Jonny Wilkinson, ahead of this weekend's trip to Ireland. ""Jason is doing a tremendous job. Every week my respect for him goes up,"" Corry told BBC Radio Five Live. ""He is an inspirational captain. When he talks with the squad he talks with a lot of sense. ""The players have a lot of respect for him. It's an honour to be in the England side and an honour to play under him.""

England are under immense pressure following their poor start to the year and victory is vital if they are to rescue their Six Nations campaign. But Corry insists England are in the right frame of mind for the contest. ""There is apprehension going into every game,"" he added. ""But you have to use that fear and put it into a positive mindset. ""When the whistle goes on Sunday, what has happened in the past does not count for anything.

""We have not performed but if we put in a performance on Sunday then we can start turning results around. ""There are a lot of changes taking place with England and we are at the start of something. We have not got off to the greatest of starts but you need to experience the bad the before you can fully appreciate the good.""

A trip to Lansdowne Road is daunting at any time, especially against an Ireland side that are flying high after two impressive wins. They are the form team of the tournament and are tipped to claim their first Grand Slam since 1948. But Corry is relishing the prospect of taking on the Irish in their own backyard. ""They are full of confidence and are playing a great team game,"" he said. ""The forwards are creating a great platform and they have explosive runners out wide. ""If you look at the team on paper, they have stars from one to 15. It's a huge task but it is a great opportunity for us. ""Lansdowne Road is a tremendous venue to play in and we have to use it to our advantage.""
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Prop Jones ready for hard graft	"Adam Jones says the Wales forwards are determined to set the perfect attacking platform for the backs by dominating the powerful France pack in Paris.

The prop said: ""If we get stuffed in the front five our backs have had it. ""The mentality of the French is 'scrum, scrum, scrum'. We will see how good France are and the scrum is the key. ""I just hope [the backs] carry on where they left off against Italy. It's just up to us in the forwards to win the ball and give them the opportunity."" Wales have won two of their last three visits to Stade de France, having secured back-to-back wins under Graham Henry in 1999 and 2001. And with the likes of Shane Williams and Gavin Henson finding top form at the right time, Mike Ruddock's team is now one of international rugby's most potent attacking threats. ""Gavin is ridiculously talented. He has been bouncing around the place this week, so he is up for it,"" warned Jones.

France have been criticised for their uncharacteristic one-dimensional play in their victories over Scotland and France. Captain Fabien Pelous has acknowledged his side needs to show more attacking flair, but stressed the game with be won or lost up front. The lock believes the Welsh forwards are not big enough to trouble his side in the scrum or line-out, but Jones insisted his fellow front-row colleagues have nothing to fear.

""Gethin [Jenkins] won't be intimidated tomorrow, none of us will,"" said Jones, who will be facing France for the first time. ""We will go out there and front up and hopefully get the ball out to the backs. ""Me and Gethin are quite young so it is good to have someone of Mefin's experience in there. ""Mefin is a good thinker who puts things across. But what is the saying? If you are good enough you are old enough and Gethin certainly is. ""He is a really good player and I imagine he will be on the Lions tour [to New Zealand this summer].""
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Moody joins up with England	"Lewis Moody has flown to Dublin to join England's camp ahead of their RBS Six Nations game against Ireland on Sunday.

Despite joining the squad, the Leicester flanker only has a ""slim"" chance of playing because of an infection in his finger. A decision will be taken on Saturday as to whether the 26-year-old will be declared fit. If he fails to recover in time for the game, his place at the back of the pack will be taken by Andy Hazell. Chris Jones will then start the game on the bench. ""The chances of him playing are very slim,"" said coach Andy Robinson. ""The infection is deeper than was thought.""

Moody had to be put on a drip in an attempt to force antibiotics through his infected finger. He suffered the cut playing against France at Twickenham and it became infected during a 10-minute outing as a replacement for Leicester against Newcastle last Saturday. ""The mud got into it,"" Robinson added. ""He has had a big course of antibiotics but they haven't done the job we hoped they would."" Robinson has already been forced to make one change to the starting line-up with Bath prop Matt Stevens coming in for the injured Phil Vickery.

The 22-year-old has only made 10 starts for his club but has made 49 appearances from the bench. ""It can be frustrating but I've had a lot more game time this season and I'm ready for it,"" Stevens said. ""I've been on tour with these boys and I've been in the England set-up for two years so I know the calls and the way they play."" Stevens will be winning his third cap on Sunday after coming on twice as a replacement on the tour to New Zealand last year.

Robinson has confirmed that fly-half Charlie Hodgson will be the first-choice kicker despite his three missed penalties and a drop goal against France. ""Charlie's state of mind is very good,"" said Robinson. ""Obviously, we are all disappointed we lost the French game and the circumstances in which we did. ""But he responded well last week in his goalkicking for Sale and he will be our first-choice kicker this week.""

Robinson also admits his side must improve their line-out work against Irish duo Malcolm O'Kelly and Paul O'Connell, one of the most effective partnerships in the game. ""In each game we've missed a number of line-outs,"" he added. ""It cost us the game against Wales but it has improved. ""It was better against France and will have to go up another notch against Ireland. It will be a huge battle. ""Look at the way they tore us apart last year. If it doesn't function, we will be in for a torrid time.""
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Captains lining up for Aid match	"Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll is one of four Six Nations captains included in the Northern Hemisphere squad for the IRB Rugby Aid match on 5 March.

France's Fabien Pelous, Gordon Bullock of Scotland and Italy's Marco Bortolami are also in the Northern party. Sir Clive Woodward will coach the Northern team against Rod Macqueen's Southern Hemisphere team in a tsumani fund-raising match at Twickenham. ""I'm looking forward to working with such outstanding players,"" he said. It will be a chance for Woodward to assess some of his options before unveiling his British and Irish Lions touring party, who will visit New Zealand in the summer. ""The game promises to be a great spectacle,"" he said. ""Both teams are fielding top-quality sides and I really hope that the rugby public and community get behind this game to raise as much money as possible for such a deserving cause.""

L Dallaglio (England), B Cohen (England), A Rougerie (France), D Traille (France), F Pelous (France), R Ibanez (France), P de Villiers (France), B O'Driscoll (Ireland, capt), P O'Connell (Ireland), D Humphreys (Ireland), C Paterson (Scotland), C Cusiter (Scotland), G Bullock (Scotland), S Taylor (Scotland), A Lo Cicero (Italy), M Bortolami (Italy), S Parisse (Italy), D Peel (Wales), C Sweeney (Wales), J Thomas (Wales), R Williams (Wales), J Yapp (Wales).

C Latham (Australia); R Caucaunibuca (Fiji), J Fourie (S Africa) T Umaga (New Zealand), S Bobo (Fiji); A Mehrtens (New Zealand) G Gregan (Australia, capt); T Kefu (Australia), P Waugh (Australia), S Burger (S Africa); I Rawaqa (Fiji), V Matfield (S Africa); K Visagie (S Africa), J Smit (S Africa), C Hoeft (New Zealand). Reserves: B Reihana (New Zealand), B Lima (Samoa), E Taukafa (Tonga), O Palepoi (Samoa), S Sititi (Samoa), M Rauluni (Fiji), A N Other.
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Castaignede fires Laporte warning	"Former France fly-half Thomas Castaignede has warned the pressure is mounting on coach Bernard Laporte following their defeat by Wales.

France suffered a shock loss against the Welsh at the weekend after looking on course for an easy win. Castaignede told BBC Sport: ""The pressure is big on Laporte after a huge loss to New Zealand, a slim win over Scotland and a miracle against England. ""But the French have to get behind him and the team at Lansdowne Road."" Following victories over South Africa and Australia in November, France were deemed by many to be the world's leading side. But they were then trounced 45-6 by New Zealand and only just beat Scotland after the Scots had a try disallowed in their Six Nations opener. It then took some woeful spot kicking from Charlie Hodgson and Olly Barkley to help them to victory against England at Twickenham. <

Castaignede said: ""You can't say any of those results have eased the pressure on Laporte. ""Had England's kickers not been so bad, the position in the Six Nations would be very different now."" Laporte has been criticised for France's negative tactics in their wins over Scotland and England. But his side played a more free-flowing style against Wales, making a mockery of the opposition's defence in the first half before suffering a shock turnaround in fortunes after the interval. ""All the chat in France has been about how France will play against Ireland,"" said Castaignede ahead of the 12 March tie. ""Everyone wants to see the sort of play we saw against Wales. But everyone also wants a win."" Castaignede, a veteran of 43 international caps, admitted the French would go in as underdogs against Ireland.

""Going to Ireland is never easy but the way they're playing right now, it's harder than ever,"" said Castaignede. ""They're very experienced and don't often lose at home. They've got some great forwards and some electric runners on the break."" Despite praising the Irish he claimed the Welsh had the upper hand in the Six Nations run-in. ""Ireland have such a good pack but Wales are something else on the break,"" he added. ""At the weekend they were simply awesome. As a Frenchman it was disappointing to see, but you had to admire it. ""Their commitment to every cause can make them win this championship."" The 30-year-old also tipped Yann Delaigue to start ahead of Frederic Michalak at number 10 after an impressive display in Paris last weekend. ""Delaigue played really well and admittedly Michalak played well too,"" said Castaignede. ""I'm just glad I'm not the one who has to make the decision.""
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Charvis set to lose fitness bid	"Flanker Colin Charvis is unlikely to play any part in Wales' final two games of the Six Nations.

Charvis has missed all three of Wales' victories with an ankle injury and his recovery has been slower than expected. ""He will not figure in the Scotland game and is now thought unlikely to be ready for the final game,"" said Wales physio Mark Davies. Sonny Parker is continuing to struggle with a neck injury, but Hal Luscombe should be fit for the Murrayfield trip. Centre Parker has only a ""slim chance"" of being involved against the Scots on 13 March, so Luscombe's return to fitness after missing the France match with hamstring trouble is a timely boost.

Said Wales assistant coach Scott Johnson: ""We're positive about Hal and hope he'll be raring to go. ""He comes back into the mix again, adds to the depth and gives us other options. "" Replacement hooker Robin McBryde remains a doubt after picking up knee ligament damage in Paris last Saturday. ""We're getting that reviewed and we should know more by the end of the week how Robin's looking,"" added Johnson. ""We're hopeful but it's too early to say at this stage."" Steve Jones from the Dragons is likely to be drafted in if McBryde fails to recover.
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Robinson out of Six Nations	"England captain Jason Robinson will miss the rest of the Six Nations because of injury.

Robinson, stand-in captain in the absence of Jonny Wilkinson, had been due to lead England in their final two games against Italy and Scotland. But the Sale full-back pulled out of the squad on Wednesday because of a torn ligament in his right thumb. The 30-year-old will undergo an operation on Friday but England have yet to name a replacement skipper.

Robinson said: ""This is very disappointing for me as this means I miss England's last two games in the Six Nations at Twickenham and two games for my club, Sale Sharks. ""But I'm looking to be back playing very early in April.""

Robinson picked up the injury in the 19-13 defeat to Ireland at Lansdowne Road on Saturday. And coach Andy Robinson said: ""I am hugely disappointed for Jason. ""As England captain he has been an immense figure during the autumn internationals and the Six Nations, leading by example at all times. I look forward to having him back in the England squad."" The announcement is the latest setback for Robinson's injury-depleted squad.

Among the key figures already missing are Jonny Wilkinson, Mike Tindall, Will Greenwood, Julian White and Phil Vickery - a list which leaves Robinson short on candidates for the now vacant captaincy role. Former England skipper Jeremy Guscott told BBC Radio Five Live his choice would be Matt Dawson, even though he is does not hold a regular starting place.

""The obvious choice is Dawson"" said Guscott. ""Especially given that Harry Ellis did not have his best game at scrum-half on Saturday. ""Dawson has the credentials and the experience, even though his winning record at captain is not great. ""The other option in Martin Corry, who is the standout forward at the moment. ""Unfortunately England cannot rely on leaders on the field at the moment."" England will announce their squad for the 12 March game against Italy on Saturday.
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England coach faces rap after row	"England coach Andy Robinson is facing disciplinary action after criticising referee Jonathan Kaplan in his side's Six Nations defeat to Ireland.

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) will investigate Robinson after deciding not to lodge a complaint against Kaplan. Robinson may even have to apologise for his comments in order to avoid sanction from the International Rugby Board. Robinson had said he was ""livid"" about Kaplan's decisions on Saturday to disallow two England ""tries."" The England coach went on to claim that ""only one side was refereed"".

After reviewing tapes of the match, the RFU decided not to formally complain to the IRB over the standard of Kaplan's refereeing. Instead the RFU said in a statement they would, ""set out any concerns the England team management may have in a confidential manner"".

An IRB spokesman said on the matter: ""We take all breaches of the code very seriously. ""Should the RFU resolve the issue to our satisfaction, as happened last month when the Scotland coach Matt Williams apologised for remarks made, it would be the end of the matter.""

Kaplan has vigorously defended his performance in England's 19-13 defeat at Landsdowne Road and admitted he was ""very disappointed"" with Robinson's remarks. And the South African has been appointed to take charge of Scotland's match against Wales on 13 March.

The RFU recently fined Northampton coach Budge Pountney £2,000 and imposed a six-week ban for his criticism of referee Steve Lander after a Premiership match.
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Harinordoquy suffers France axe	"Number eight Imanol Harinordoquy has been dropped from France's squad for the Six Nations match with Ireland in Dublin on 12 March.

Harinordoquy was a second-half replacement in last Saturday's 24-18 defeat to Wales. Bourgoin lock Pascal Pape, who has recovered from a sprained ankle, returns to the 22-man squad. Wing Cedric Heymans and Ludovic Valbon come in for Aurelien Rougerie and Jean-Philippe Grandclaude.

Rougerie hurt his chest against Wales while Grandclaude was a second-half replacement against both England and Wales. Valbon, capped in last June's Tests against the United States and Canada, was a second half replacement in the win over Scotland.

France coach Bernard Laporte said Harinordoquy had been axed after a poor display last weekend. ""Imanol has been dropped from the squad because the least I can say is that he didn't make a thundering comeback against Wales,"" said Laporte. ""We know the Ireland game will be fast and rough and we also want to be able to replace both locks during the game if needed, and Gregory Lamboley can also come on at number seven or eight. ""The grand slam is gone but we'll go to Ireland to win. ""It will be a very exciting game because Ireland have three wins under their belt, have just defeated England and have their eyes set on a Grand Slam."" France, who lost to Wales last week, must defeat the Irish to keep alive their hopes of retaining the Six Nations trophy. Ireland are unbeaten in this year's tournament and have their sights set on a first Grand Slam since 1948.

Dimitri Yachvili (Biarritz), Pierre Mignoni (Clermont), Yann Delaigue (Castres), Frederic Michalak (Stade Toulousain), Damien Traille (Biarritz), Yannick Jauzion (Stade Toulousain), Ludovic Valbon (Biarritz), Christophe Dominici (Stade Francais), Cedric Heymans (Stade Toulousain), Julien Laharrague (Brive)

Sylvain Marconnet (Stade Francais), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Olivier Milloud (Bourgoin), Sebastien Bruno (Sale/ENG), William Servat (Stade Toulousain), Fabien Pelous (Stade Toulousain, capt), Jerome Thion (Biarritz), Pascal Papé (Bourgoin), Gregory Lamboley (Stade Toulousain), Serge Betsen (Biarritz), Julien Bonnaire (Bourgoin), Yannick Nyanga (Béziers)
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Wilkinson return 'unlikely'	"Jonny Wilkinson looks set to miss the whole of the 2005 RBS Six Nations.

England's World Cup-winning fly-half said last week he was hoping to recover from his latest injury in time to play some role in the championship. But Rob Andrew, coach of Wilkinson's club side Newcastle, said that with only two games left to play Wilkinson was unlikely to be fit in time. ""It would be irresponsible to put him straight into a Test match,"" Andrew told the Times. Wilkinson is recovering from a knee injury which followed long-term neck and arm injuries. He has not played for England since the World Cup final in November 2003, since when the stuttering world champions have lost nine of their 14 matches. Wilkinson is aiming to make his third start to the season in the Zurich Premiership match against Harlequins on 13 March.

That game is the day after England play Italy in the Six Nations and six days before their final match of the championship against Scotland. ""We are hoping Jonny will be ready in a fortnight, but it is touch and go,"" said Andrew. ""His recovery is going very well and the key now is how he is reintroduced to playing and with it goal-kicking. ""He will probably have to come off the bench to start and it would be ridiculous and irresponsible to put him straight back into a Test match. ""We can't afford to get it wrong with a knee injury. We are in touch with England and they are relaxed about it."" Despite not playing for England, Wilkinson is still hoping to make the Lions tour to New Zealand this summer. Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward has not set a deadline for when Wilkinson has to start playing again in order to be considered for selection.
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England 'to launch ref protest'	"England will protest to the International Rugby Board (IRB) about the referee's performance in the defeat by Ireland, reports the Daily Mail.

England coach Andy Robinson has called on ex-international referees Colin High and Steve Lander to analyse several of Jonathan Kaplan's decisions. ""I want to go through the tape with Colin and Steve,"" Robinson told the Daily Mail. ""I want to speak to the IRB about it. I think only one side was refereed."" High, the Rugby Football Union's referees' manager, claimed Kaplan made three major errors which changed the outcome of Sunday's match. England were beaten 19-13 by the Irish in Dublin, their third straight defeat in the 2005 Six Nations. ""The International Rugby Board will be disappointed,"" High told the Daily Mail. ""Jonathan Kaplan is in the top 20 in the world but that wasn't an international performance. ""It would not have been acceptable in the Zurich Premiership. ""If one of my referees had done that, I would have had my backside kicked for making the appointment. ""If any English referee refereed like that in a European match, there would be an inquest. No question about that. ""If someone had performed like that, he would have been pulled from the next game.""
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Moore questions captaincy	"Brian Moore believes the England captain should not be a full-back.

Jason Robinson has led the team during their opening three defeats in the Six Nations tournament, in the absence of fly-half Jonny Wilkinson. The world champions have struggled since the retirement of former captain Martin Johnson, a lock forward. And former England captain Moore told the BBC: ""Full-backs are too far away from the action. That's not a reflection on Robinson personally."" He added: ""I just think the point of influence needs to move closer to the pack - which is, after all, where games usually start and finish."" Moore says a lack of cohesion in the forwards is one of the reasons why England have lost against Wales, France and Ireland in this year's tournament. ""Assertiveness in the pack isn't there, we're not getting enough people into the breakdowns,"" he explained. ""Wer'e not getting quick ball, which means the backs are being stifled. Their creativity depends on quick ball and we're not getting that.""

With injuries depriving him of key players like Wilkinson, coach Andy Robinson has given youngsters such as Harry Ellis and Jamie Noon a chance. And Moore believes the last two games against Italy and Scotland are a good opportunity to experiment further. ""The problem is the players that are around to replace the icons which have been lost because of retirement and injury don't have the requisite experience,"" Moore added. ""You can't do anything about that but play them. There are players who have been knocking on the door, it's time for them to be looked at in these last two games because there's nothing on them. ""We then go into next season with a greater certainty of who can and cannot handle the pressure of international rugby.""
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Owen set for skipper role	"Wales number eight Michael Owen says replacing Gareth Thomas as Wales' captain will be straightforward because of the leadership quality in the squad.

""You dream about playing for Wales, but it never enters your head that you will one day captain your country,"" he said. ""It's an easy job really because there are so many experienced players in the side, but it will be a massive honour."" Coach Mike Ruddock says the 24-year-old should take the armband from broken thumb victim Thomas against Scotland. Ruddock praised Owen's contribution as vice-captain and pack leader in this year's wins over England, Italy and France, notably his role in the second-half in Paris following Thomas' injury. The 22-cap Dragons man says that Thomas will be badly missed, though. ""Gareth is going to be a massive loss because he is a brilliant player and he has done a fantastic job since he has been captain,"" said Owen. ""He has put his own unique stamp on things. We are going to miss him but the strength of the squad is shown when you have someone like Kevin Morgan to step in.""

Owen admitted the Grand Slam had been mentioned within the squad but that no-one was getting carried away with the three victories over England, Italy and France. ""We can't get ahead of ourselves,"" he said. ""We have a massive game next up and we are just looking forward to preparing for that. ""Scotland are improving all the time. Like us they did well in France and were unlucky not to get a win. ""Against Ireland they played fantastically well in the first 15 minutes before falling away. ""They are probably going on a similar journey to the one we have been on in the last couple of years.""
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Italy aim to rattle England	"Italy coach John Kirwan believes his side can upset England as the Six Nations wooden spoon battle hots up.

The two sides, both without a win, meet on 12 March at Twickenham and Kirwan says his side will be hoping to make the most of England's current slump. ""We have to make sure the England and France games are tough for them. ""England have not been having the best of championships. That is a big one for us and them and I am sure my players will rise to the occasion,"" he said. But Kirwan admits that a lot of hard work will be needed with his kickers before the trip to London. Roland de Marigny and Luciano Orquera had a miserable time with the boot in the dire defeat to Scotland as Chris Paterson stole the show to give the hosts a much-needed 18-10 victory. Kirwan said: ""The kicking was the decisive factor in Scotland which cost us and it could go down to the kicking again next time. ""But I have a lot of confidence in my players and I am positive we can put everything together against England."" England, meanwhile, are licking their wounds and rueing what might have been had two decisions from referee Jonathan Kaplan not gone against them in the second half in Dublin. First Mark Cueto was judged offside as he chased fly-half Charlie Hodgson's kick, and then Kaplan opted not to call upon video evidence to see if Josh Lewsey had touched down after being driven over Ireland's line.

But centre Jamie Noon believes the side at least showed better form than their previous two defeats. ""We definitely improved against an in-form Irish side,"" he said. ""We went to Dublin quietly confident that we would be able to compete, and I think we showed that. ""We have got to make sure we now take the form and positives into the Italy game. We are under no illusions that it is going to be easy, but we definitely need a win."" England have now equalled an 18-year low of four successive championship defeats, including France in Paris last season, and have lost four in a row under Andy Robinson. His predecessor, Sir Clive Woodward, began his seven-year reign with three defeats and two draws.
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Dal Maso in to replace Bergamasco	"David dal Maso has been handed the task of replacing the injured Mauro Bergamasco at flanker in Italy's team to face Scotland on Saturday.

Alessandro Troncon continues at scrum-half despite the return to fitness of Paul Griffen. The experienced Cristian Stoica is recalled at centre at the expense of Walter Pozzebon. ""We are going to Scotland for the first away win and nothing else,"" said manager Marco Bollesan. ""I really believe this is the team who will have all our faith for Saturday's game. ""We lost a player like Mauro Bergamasco who has been important for us, but (coach) John (Kirwan) has put together the best team at present, if not ever.

R de Marigny (Parma); Mirco Bergamasco (Stade Francais), C Stoica (Montpellier), A Masi (Viadana), L Nitoglia (Calvisano); L Orquera (Padova), A Troncon (Treviso); A Lo Cicero (L'Aquilla), F Ongaro (Treviso), M Castrogiovanni (Calvisano), S Dellape (Agen), M Bortolami (Narbonne, capt), A Persico (Agen), D dal Maso (Treviso), S Parisse (Treviso).

G Intoppa (Calvisano), S Perugini (Calvisano), CA Del Fava (Parma), S Orlando (Treviso), P Griffen (Calvisano), R Pedrazzi (Viadana), K Robertson (Viadana).
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Teenager Tait picked for England	"Newcastle's teenage centre Mathew Tait has been named as a centre in England's team to face Wales in the Six Nations opener in Cardiff on Saturday.

The 18-year-old will play alongside Falcons' team-mate Jamie Noon in England's midfield. Scrum-half Matt Dawson is also recalled, despite been left out of the initial squad after a row over clashing TV and training commitments. Bath lock Danny Grewcock will also start, pending a possible citing. England coach Andy Robinson has also awarded Gloucester flanker Andy Hazell his first Six Nations start. In another change to the side that lost to Australia in November, Leicester lock Ben Kay replaces Bath second row Steve Borthwick. Robinson was already without Jonny Wilkinson, Mike Tindall, Stuart Abbott, Richard Hill and Will Greenwood, while Mike Catt had been left out of England's squad.

J Robinson (Sale Sharks, capt); M Cueto (Sale Sharks), M Tait (Newcastle), J Noon (Newcastle), J Lewsey (Wasps); C Hodgson (Sale Sharks), M Dawson (Wasps); G Rowntree (Leicester), S Thompson (Northampton), J White (Leicester), D Grewcock (Bath), B Kay (Leicester), L Moody (Leicester), A Hazell (Gloucester), J Worsley (Wasps). Replacements: A Titterrell (Sale Sharks), P Vickery (Gloucester), S Borthwick (Bath), J Forrester (Gloucester), H Ellis (Leicester), O Barkley (Bath), B Cohen (Northampton).
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Wood - Ireland can win Grand Slam	"Former captain Keith Wood believes Ireland can win only their second Grand Slam - and first since 1948 - in this year's RBS Six Nations Championship.

After claiming their first Triple Crown for 19 years last season, Wood tips his former team-mates to go one better. ""Things have been building up over the past few years and I think this is the year for Ireland,"" he told BBC Sport. ""There is a great chance to win a Grand Slam. A lot of things are in our favour with England and France at home."" Ireland have finished runners-up three times, including last year, since the old Five Nations became Six in 2000, and not finished outside the top three in the past five years.

Despite being without flanker Keith Gleeson, coach Eddie O'Sullivan has not had to contend with the sort of casualty lists that have hit England and Scotland in particular prior to the tournament. ""For Ireland to win it we need to stay relatively injury free, and fortunately we are one of the few teams that have done that so far,"" Wood added. ""It is going to be tough and we need to take all the luck and opportunities that come our way."" Ireland's last game of the tournament is against Wales in Cardiff - a fixture they have not lost since 1983.

But despite their traditional hospitality when the Irish are visiting, Wood believes Wales might end their four-match losing run against England in Cardiff. ""So many of the major England players have either retired in the last year or are injured that I think it will be very hard for them down in Cardiff,"" Wood added. ""Wales have had four brilliant games in the last year or so and lost all four, so the time is right for them now to beat one of the major teams.""
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Scots suffer another injury blow	"Scotland's back row crisis has worsened ahead of the RBS Six Nations with news that Scott Gray will miss out on the opening matches.

The Borders flanker has a knee injury and joins Donnie Macfadyen and Allister Hogg on the sidelines. Star number eight Simon Taylor will miss at least the first two games after damaging an ankle during his comeback. Scott MacLeod (ankle ligaments) and Jon Petrie (cartilage) are also doubtful for the opener in Paris on 5 February. Gray, 26, who won his first cap against Australia at Murrayfield last year, was hurt in club action at the weekend. Scotland doctor James Robson said: ""A scan has shown damage to the medial ligaments of Scott's right knee ruling him out of the first part of the Championship. ""We will seek further specialist advice in due course to determine just how long Scott may be out for."" Another potential option, Glasgow flanker Andrew Wilson, has been ruled out for a month after damaging ligaments in both knees against Northampton recently.

Flanker Jason White and prop Tom Smith have also been suffering from flu and missed this week's training sessions. ""We have got plenty of good, young players coming through and we have got to look at the opportunities it represents for them, rather than the negatives,"" Williams added. Williams could now turn to Edinburgh pair Alasdair Strokosch and Simon Cross. Leeds Tykes flanker Jon Dunbar also trained with the squad but is still awaiting verification of his eligibility to qualify for Scotland.
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O'Sullivan keeps his powder dry	"When you are gunning for glory and ultimate success keeping the gunpowder dry is essential.

Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan appears to have done that quite successfully in the run-up to this season's Six Nations Championship. He decreed after the 2003 World Cup that players should have a decent conditioning period during the year. That became a reality at the end of last summer with a 10-week period at the start of the this season. It may have annoyed his Scottish, and in particularly Welsh, cousins who huffed and puffed at the disrespect apparently shown to the Celtic League. We will say nothing of Mike Ruddock ''poaching'' eight of the Dragons side that faced Leinster on Sunday. But, like O'Sullivan, he was well within his rights, particularly when you are talking about the national side and pride that goes along with it. The IRFU has thrown their weight behind O'Sullivan, who must be glad that in the main, there is centrally-controlled contracts. Bar Keith Gleeson who is just returning from a broken leg, everyone of O'Sullivan's squad is fit, fresh and standing at the oche ready to launch this season's campaign.

But I doubt whether O'Sullivan is going to gloat about the handling of his players. He is not that sort of person. However, he may look at the overworked and injury-hit England, Wales and France squads whose players have been overworked, and then pat himself on the back for his foresight. But there is still the question of turning up and transferring that freshness into positive results when the referee signals the start of the game. Already Ireland are being earmarked as hot favourites in many quarters to go the whole hog this season. A first Grand Slam since Karl Mullen's led the team to a clean sweep in 1948. With England and France visiting Lansdowne Road for the last time before the old darling is pulled down, everything looks perfectly placed. But in the days of yore that frightened the life out of any Irishman.

Under the burden of great expectations, Ireland have crumpled. Take the Triple Crown-winning side of 1985 under Mick Doyle. They were expected to up the ante further for a Grand Slam, only the second in Ireland's history. What happened in 1986? Whitewashed. You see, Ireland, in any sport, love to be downsized. Then they can go out and prove a point to the contrary. It is the nature of the beast. But O'Sullivan's side are very capable of proving a salient point this season. After their first Triple Crown for 19 years, they can live up to their success and take a further step up the ladder. O'Sullivan has kept faith and displayed loyalty to his players, and they have repaid him in spades ... and there is more to come. He has some old dogs in his squad, but he will come to this season's championship with a different box of tricks, and a new verve to succeed. Ireland can indeed succeed, but just whisper it.
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Wales get Williams fitness boost	"Wales are hopeful that openside flanker Martyn Williams could be fit for Saturday's RBS 6 Nations championship opener against England in Cardiff.

Williams was expected to miss the match with a disc problem in his neck, but has been making a speedy recovery. ""He will have tests in the next 48 hours and we are pretty optimistic he is getting there,"" Wales' team physiotherapist Mark Davies said. ""It has been frustrating but he is on the mend, he has made good progress."" Last week Williams, along with fellow flanker Colin Charvis - who is unlikely to play for at least a month while he recovers from a foot injury - was all but ruled out of the Millennium Stadium clash. With Williams initially thought to be struggling, the signs pointed towards Wales coach Mike Ruddock handing a first cap to former Wales Under-21 skipper Richie Pugh.

Cardiff Blues flanker Williams, 29, offers considerable experience and if he is declared fit then Ruddock might be tempted to include him in the back row. Charvis will be reviewed by the Wales medical staff next Monday, but Davies admitted that there was only an ""outside chance"" of him being fit to face France in Wales' third championship game on 26 February. Wales' other injury concern is Pugh's fellow Neath-Swansea Ospreys player Sonny Parker, as the centre has a trapped nerve in his neck. ""Sonny's injury is still an issue,"" Davies said. ""It is still painful and irritable. We will run the rule of thumb over him in the next couple of days."" Ruddock will name his starting line-up for the England game at 1830 GMT on Tuesday evening, as Wales target their first victory in Cardiff over the world champions since 1993.
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Dawson joins England injury list	"Scrum-half Matt Dawson is an injury doubt for England's Six Nations opener against Wales next weekend.

The World Cup winner missed Wasps' 12-9 loss to Bath on Saturday after injuring his right calf. Wasps coach Warren Gatland said: ""He's got a fitness test in the week but he's got a good chance of playing."" Gloucester's Andy Hazell and Leicester star Lewis Moody also received knocks during their respective league matches, but should be fit for Wales next week. If Dawson is not fit to face Wales, Robinson will have to choose from Gloucester's Andy Gomarsall or Leicester youngster Harry Ellis.

Jamie Noon is another player on the sidelines after he limped off in the first half against Saracens on Friday with a dead leg. The centre, who is in line for a first Six Nations start against Wales, will have to wait 48 hours before knowing the state of his injury.
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Wales want rugby league training	"Wales could follow England's lead by training with a rugby league club.

England have already had a three-day session with Leeds Rhinos, and Wales are thought to be interested in a similar clinic with rivals St Helens. Saints coach Ian Millward has given his approval, but if it does happen it is unlikely to be this season. Saints have a week's training in Portugal next week, while Wales will play England in the opening Six Nations match on 5 February. ""We have had an approach from Wales,"" confirmed a Saints spokesman. ""It's in the very early stages but it is something we are giving serious consideration to."" St Helens, who are proud of their Welsh connections, are obvious partners for the Welsh Rugby Union, despite a spat in 2001 over the collapse of Kieron Cunningham's proposed £500,000 move to union side Swansea. A similar cross-code deal that took Iestyn Harris from Leeds to Cardiff in 2001 did go through, before the talented stand-off returned to the 13-man code with Bradford Bulls. Kel Coslett, who famously moved from Wales to league in the 1960s, is currently Saints' football manager, while Clive Griffiths - Wales' defensive coach - is a former St Helens player and is thought to be the man behind the latest initiative. Scott Gibbs, the former Wales and Lions centre, played for St Helens from 1994-96 and was in the Challenge Cup-winning team at Wembley in 1996.
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Saint-Andre anger at absent stars	"Sale Sharks director of rugby Philippe Saint-Andre has re-opened rugby's club-versus-country debate.

Sale host Bath in the Powergen Cup on Friday, but the Frenchman has endured a ""difficult week"" with six players away on England's Six Nations training camp. ""It's an important game but we've just the one full session. It's the same for everyone but we need to manage it. ""If five players or more are picked for your country they should move the date of the game,"" he told BBC Sport. Unless the authorities agree to make changes, Saint-Andre believes England's national team will suffer as clubs opt to sign foreigners and retired internationals. ""That's not good for the politics of the English team or for English rugby,"" he argues. It is an issue he has taken up before, most notably during the autumn internationals when Sale lost all three Zurich Premiership matches they played.

Now he fears it could derail the club's hopes of cup silverware after eight players, including captain Jason Robinson and fly-half Charlie Hodgson, were away with their countries. ""We're in the quarter-finals, it's always better to play at home than away and it's a great opportunity,"" he added. ""But we have to be careful. Bath have just been knocked out of Europe and will make it a tough game. It also comes at the end of a very, very difficult week. ""Sebastien Bruno's been with France, Jason White with Scotland and there are six with England, that's eight players plus injuries - 13 players out of a squad of 31. ""We'll have just one session together and will have to do our best to make that a good one on Thursday afternoon.""

Gloucester have also been caught in a club-versus-country conflict after England sought a second medical opinion on James Simpson-Daniel's fitness. The winger is carrying a shoulder injury and the national team management believe he requires time on the sidelines. As a result he misses the Cherry and White's quarter-final at home to Bristol. ""Under the Elite Player Squad agreement, England wanted a second opinion, which they can do,"" director of rugby Nigel Melville told the Gloucester Citizen.

""They obviously want him for international rugby and we want him for club rugby in what is a very important game for us. There is a conflict of interests. ""The surgeon who carried out his operation said he was fine for us but England say he is still vulnerable to be damaged again and want him on a full rehab programme."" Simpson-Daniel added: ""I've said to Nigel I want to be back playing and that means if everything goes well this week, I can target the Worcester game (on 29 January) for a return.""
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Ruddock backs Yapp's credentials	"Wales coach Mike Ruddock says John Yapp has what it takes as an international.

The 21-year-old Blues prop is the only uncapped player in Wales' Six Nations squad, gaining a chance in the absence of Ospreys loose-head Duncan Jones. ""John is a young man with a big future. He has been playing with the Blues for two years and has racked up mileage on his playing clock,"" said Ruddock. ""He has international size, is a big, physical lad and a good ball-carrier with a high tackle-count."" Ruddock's assessment was backed up by Yapp's coach at the Blues, former Wales and Lions prop Dai Young.

""John's been on an upward curve all season and is going from strength to strength,"" Young told BBC Sport Wales. ""His ball carrying gives us good go-forward, he impresses in defence and his work-rate is excellent. ""He's working hard on his scrummaging technique, which he is keen to improve to become a destroyer on the loose-head. ""To be fair to him he's not quite there with the scrummaging yet, but nobody can fault his effort, commitment and attitude. ""John's a very strong man and is eager for the challenge, if he's pitched in he won't let anyone down. ""He's developing quickly, but I hope he isn't pushed too quickly in a way that would hurt his development.""

Ruddock hopes that the selection of Yapp and Dragons lock Ian Gough - out of the international reckoning since falling out with former coach Steve Hansen - will send a message to other players in Wales. ""John and Ian have been rewarded for impressing during the Heineken Cup competition,"" said Ruddock. ""Both of them have played well, and we want to send a message out that consistently playing well gets you in the squad. ""We believe this is an exciting squad representing traditional values of Welsh rugby, and based on the performances in the November internationals. ""We have strength and experience up front, and well-recognised talent, pace and skill behind. ""The management team just want to get hold of the players and get out on the training pitch at the moment. ""They are all due in on Sunday, and that's when the hard work starts.""
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Player burn-out worries Robinson	"England coach Andy Robinson says English rugby has to act now to prevent injury destroying players' careers.

He will be without a host of big names for the Six Nations as the intensity of professional rugby union hits players. ""Injuries are part of the sport but we have to have a look at the amount of injuries that occur in the English season,"" Robinson told BBC Sport. ""I think players are probably going to have three or four years taken off their careers."" Robinson will be missing an entire midfield for the Six Nations with the likes of Jonny Wilkinson, Mike Tindall and Will Greenwood injured.

Rugby union has become far more physically demanding since the game went professional nearly 10 years ago. As a result three of the major stakeholders in English rugby have launched an ""injury audit"" to find out how players are coping. The audit is jointly funded by the Professional Rugby Players' Association, the Rugby Football Union and Premier Rugby. As far as Robinson is concerned its findings must not be ignored. ""I think there's an injury audit coming out in March that's got some great information in there that I think everybody in the English game has got to look at,"" he said. ""If we don't the situation is going to get worse and not better, so I think rugby as a whole has got to look at this.""
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Hodges announces rugby retirement	"Scarlets and USA Eagles forward Dave Hodges has ended his playing career to pursue a coaching role in the States.

The 36-year-old, who has 54 caps, was Llanelli's player of the season in 2001/2, but has battled injury for the last two of his seven years at Stradey. He tore a pectoral muscle against the Ospreys on Boxing Day, an injury that would have kept him out for the season. ""Realising I would be unable to play this season, the club and I agreed to end my contract early,"" said Hodges.

""It allows me to move back to the US and pursue opportunities there and allows the Scarlets to look to the next generation."" The Scarlets have begun to rebuild their squad for next season after a disappointing Heineken Cup campaign, with plenty more signings and departures expected in the coming weeks.

Scarlets chief executive Stuart Gallacher confirmed that 17 of the current squad would be out of contract in the summer. ""We have a deliberate policy whereby around half the squad are coming out of contract and they know they won't all be re-signed, it's a chance to invigorate the squad,"" he said. ""I'm positive about the future of the Scarlets both on and off the field."" Gallacher was keen to pay tribute to the role back-five forward Hodges has played at Stradey Park, though. ""David has been a highly influential member of our squad for seven years,"" said Gallacher. ""He is a real professional and we thank him for the part he has played in our success. ""I am sure he has an enormous contribution to make to the development of rugby in the US and we wish him and his family well."" Hodges described his years at Stradey as ""the best time of my life.""
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Funding cut hits Wales Students	"The Wales Students rugby side has become a casualty of the Welsh Rugby Union's reorganisation at youth level.

An amalgamated Under-18 side formed from separate schools and national youth teams plays its first match on Thursday, against Italy at the Gnoll. But that move has seen the WRU decide to end its funding of representative sides such as Wales Students. As a result, traditional international fixtures against England and France in the New Year have been cancelled. The Welsh Students Rugby Football Union feels that it is unable to properly prepare for or stage the matches. The secretary of the Welsh Students Rugby Football Union, Reverend Eldon Phillips, said: ""It is a shame that fixtures cannot be maintained this year. ""The competition provided by the strong English and French teams has enabled the Welsh Students to test themselves in high quality matches. ""The increasing number of young rugby players entering Higher Education look for the biggest challenge, that is representative rugby, but this year that opportunity will be denied them. Players who have played for Wales Students before going on to win full senior representative honours include Robert Jones, Rob Howley, Jon Humphreys, Darren Morris, Martyn Williams and Ceri Sweeney.
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Calder fears for Scottish rugby	"Former Scotland international Finlay Calder fears civil war at the SRU could seriously hamper his country's RBS Six Nations campaign.

Four members of the executive board, including the chairman, David Mackay, have resigned after a simmering row. And Calder said: ""This is terrible news for every level of Scottish rugby. ""David is a successful businessman and I thought that if anybody could transform the negative atmosphere and rising debt level, it was him."" Mackay's executive board has been in a power struggle with the general committee, which contains members elected by Scotland's club sides. ""He has been driven out by people who seem happier waging civil war than addressing the central issue that professional rugby can't be run by amateurs,"" said Calder.

""In fact, I don't understand why we are still having this argument 10 years after professionalism arrived. ""But I don't believe the rest of the SRU will take this lying down. ""I think the banks will be dismayed at this decision and, ultimately, it is them who pull the strings. ""So I wouldn't be surprised if they reviewed their position. But, in the wider picture, what message does this send out?"" He thought the work of Scotland's coaches, who have been attempting to arrest the decline of the national side, would be made much more difficult. ""Matt Williams and Willie Anderson must be wondering, 'what have we walked into here?'"" said Calder. ""And we can now expect weeks of arguments and acrimony just at a time when we should be looking forward to the Six Nations Championship. ""I am very, very disappointed, more than you can imagine. Why do so many Scots have this knack of turning on each other when the going gets tough?""
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A year to remember for Irish	"There used to be one subliminal moment during a year in Irish rugby that stood out more than most.

Well, at least there used to one. Now there is a handful to look back with a mixture of satisfaction, and sorrow. It has been quite a year for the Irish, and not just with Eddie O'Sullivan's Triple Crown winning international outfit either. Right down through the ranks Irish rugby is creating waves and upsetting the more established teams in the game. But most of the kudos will go to O'Sullivan and his merry band of warriors who not only collected their first Triple Crown for 29 years, but also finished their autumn campaign with a 100% record. For the second year in succession they also finished in the runners-up spot in the RBS Six Nations. But in the three games in November which included a victory over Tri-Nations champions and Grand Slam chasing South Africa, Ireland finsihed the year on a high. The 18-12 victory at Lansdowne Road was only their second victory over the Boks after the initial success back in 1965. That success was revenge for the consecutive defeats in Blomefontein and Cape Town in the summer. Those two reverses and the 35-17 flop against France, were the only dark patches in an otherwise excellent 12 months. But the big one, of course, was the 19-13 defeat of World Cup champions England on their precious Twickenham turf. The winning try was conceived in O'Sullivan's mind, perfectly executed by the team and finished immaculately by Girvan Dempsey. For me, the try of the Championship. O'Sullivan's career is now in vertical take-off mode. It is no wonder that Sir Clive Woodward has elevated the Galway-based coach to head the Lions Test side. Not only that, but a fair majority of the present Ireland side will be wearing red next June in New Zealand.

There can be no doubt that Ireland's representation will be the biggest ever, albeit in a proposed 44-man squad. In Brian O'Driscoll and Paul O'Connell, Ireland have now the two front-runners for the captaincy. Gordon D'Arcy, whose career began as a teenager back in 1999, finally arrived when he was named the Six Nations Player of the Tournament. But it was not only the senior squad that brought kudos to Ireland, the youngsters strutted their stuff on the big stage as well. The under-21 squad confounded the doubters as they went all the way to the World Cup final in Scotland only to be beaten by a powerful All Black side in the decider. The young Irish boys had stated their intentions earlier in the season when they finished runners-up to England in the Six Nations under-21 tournament. On the provincial front, Leinster, for second year in succession, blew it when the Heineken Cup looked a good wager. While Ulster finished runners-up in their very tight group for the second season in succession, it was Munster again flying the flag for the Irish. Looking to reach their third final, they went down 37-32 to eventual winners Wasps in what many beileve was the most competitive and thunderous game ever witnessed at Lansdowne Road. How Wasps recovered from that energy-sapping duel, and then go onto to defeat Toulouse in the final was anybody's guess. Ulster, meanwhile, just lost out to adding the inaugural Celtic Cup in winning the Celtic League when they were pipped at the post by the Scarlets in the final game.

Ulster, however, took time to start the new season under new coach Mark McCall. The once famous Ravenhill fortress was breached four times as Ulster only manged five wins from their first 12 outings in the Celtic League. Leinster are again looking the most potent outfit going into 2005, but whether they can take that final step under Declan Kidney is another thing. On the down side, Irish rugby was hit by a number of tragedies. Teenage star John McCall died while playing for the Ireland against New Zealand in the under-19 World Cup game in Durban. That happened only 10 days after he led Royal Armagh to their first Ulster Schools' Cup success since 1977. The death of former Ireland coach and Lions flanker Mike Doyle in a car crash in Northern Ireland shocked the rugby fraternity A larger than life character, Doyle had coached Ireland to the Triple Crown in 1985, the last time that goal had been achieved before this season. Ulster rugby also suffered the sudden deaths of well-known Londonderry YM player Jim Huey, Coleraine's Jonathan Hutchinson, and Belfast Harlequins lock Johnny Poole. They all passed away long before the full-time whistle.
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Williams stays on despite dispute	"Matt Williams insists he has no thoughts of quitting as national coach as a result of the power struggle currently gripping Scottish rugby.

The chairman, chief executive and three non-executive directors all departed in a row over the game's future direction. But Williams said: ""I want to make it clear that I'm committed totally to Scottish rugby. ""I've brought my family here and we've immersed ourselves in Scottish life. There's no way that I'm walking away."" However, he attempted to steer clear of taking sides in the dispute. ""I'd like to stress that the national team is separate to the political situation,"" he said.

""When you come to an undertaking like this and you are trying to make a difference then there are always people who will begrudge you, who are jealous and want to try to drag you down. ""When you have that situation, you have to have the courage of your convictions to see it through. ""There was some very unhelpful and uninformed comment that the national team had received a massive increase in budget at the expense of other parts of Scottish rugby and that is simply not the case. ""Like all good coaches, you go and ask for an increase. But we were told in no uncertain terms that the financial situation did not allow that. ""The idea that we are lighting cigars with £20 notes while the rest of Scottish rugby flounders is absolutely untrue. ""We also attracted criticism because of the number of days players spent with the national team. ""But let me give you the truth. Our Irish counterparts, whom we have to compete with in a few days' time, had 70 days together at the summer. ""They are currently in camp now and they will have another 21 days in camp before the Six Nations. ""That means they will have 91 days away from their club from July until the Six Nations. We, on the other hand, will have 16. ""There must be a win-win philosophy and attitude within Scottish rugby and that is what we are after - both groups winning, not competing.""
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Lomu relishing return to action	"Former All Black star Jonah Lomu says he cannot wait to run out on the pitch for former England rugby union captain Martin Johnson's testimonial on 4 June.

The 29-year-old had a kidney transplant in July 2004 but will play his first full match for three years, leading a southern hemisphere side at Twickenham. ""I actually started training three weeks after my operation but I was very limited until a few months ago. ""Now it's basically bring it on!"" said the giant winger. ""The match on 4 June will be my first 15-man game but I have a training schedule which is quite testing and combines with sevens and a whole lot of things,"" said Lomu. ""I have got so much energy since my operation that I train three times a day, six days a week.

""Mohammed Ali has always been my ideal. Coming back to rugby, people said 'you are dreaming' but it always starts off with a dream. ""It's up to you whether you want to make it a reality."" Opinion has been divided on whether Lomu should attempt to return to the game after such a major operation. But when Lomu was asked whether he was taking a risk he replied: ""As much as someone going down the road being hit by a bus. ""There are a lot of people in the world with one kidney who just don't know it. ""I have talked this over, had a chat with the donor and this is to set my soul at peace and finish something I started in 1994 [when he made his All Blacks debut]."" At his lowest ebb Lomu was so ill he could barely walk, but he says he is now getting stronger every day and his long-term target is to play for New Zealand again. ""The only person who saw me at my worst was my wife,"" he added. ""I used to take two steps and fall over but now I can run and it is all coming back, and a lot more quickly than I ever thought it would. ""To play for the All Blacks would be the highest honour I could get. That is the long-term goal and you have to start somewhere.""
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Johnson announces June retirement	"Former England captain Martin Johnson has announced he is to retire from rugby union at the end of the season.

Johnson, who captained England to World Cup glory in 2003, will play his final match in June. Johnson won 84 England caps and quit Test rugby at the start of 2004, just two months after leading Sir Clive Woodward's team to victory in Sydney. The 34-year-old Leicester lock's final match will be his testimonial at Twickenham on 4 June. ""I'm confident I have made the right decision to retire,"" said Johnson. ""I'm sure there will be times next season when I'll wish I was out there playing for the Tigers, but you know when the time is right to go and I feel this is the right time. ""I feel physically that I could play for another season, but playing week in and week out in the Premiership is a full-time occupation and I only want to be out there for the right reasons."" Johnson will always be revered by England fans for captaining England to their dramatic World Cup win against Australia in Sydney, but his list of achievements does not stop at that.

He is the only man to captain the Lions twice and he also led England to a Six Nations Grand Slam. Johnson also had huge success as captain of Leicester, guiding the Tigers to back to back Heineken Cup victories and several Premiership titles. Apart from his marvellous captaincy Johnson was also one of the finest second rows to ever play the game. Teak tough and physically intimidating, he ruled the rucks and mauls for the best part of a decade and was integral in England's rise to the top of the world game. His final appearance will be in his testimonial at Twickenham, where he will lead a team against a side captained by New Zealand winger Jonah Lomu. The All Black is aiming to return to action after a kidney transplant and Johnson expects it to be a memorable occasion. ""This game against Jonah will be a great way to end the season and end my career,"" said Johnson. Lomu, rugby union's first global superstar after his exploits in the 1995 World Cup, said he was proud to be part of Johnson's farewell. ""We hold him in such high esteem,"" said Lomu. ""He is such a great leader and I am just honoured to be on the same pitch.""
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A November to remember	"Last Saturday, one newspaper proclaimed that England were still the number one side in the world.

That statement was made to look a little foolish by events later that afternoon at Twickenham. But it illustrated the wonderful unpredictability of Test rugby at the highest level, at the end of a richly entertaining autumn series. The final weekend threw the world pecking order into renewed confusion, with Australia's triumph in London followed by France's capitulation to New Zealand. ""Clearly, there is no number one side in the world at the moment,"" declared Wallabies coach Eddie Jones on arrival back in Sydney. ""There are four, five or probably six sides all competing at the same level and on any given day the difference between one side and another is only about 1%.""

While that bodes well for rugby as a whole, it also sharpens the sense of excitement ahead of what could be the most open Six Nations Championship for a decade. While the Wallabies, All Blacks and Springboks hit the beach before turning their attention to Super 12 matters in the new year, Europe's finest have less than 10 weeks before they return to the international fray. And for the first time in more than a decade, it will not simply be a straightforward choice between England and France for the Six Nations title.

That owes much to Ireland's continued progress and the belief that Wales are on the verge of delivering a major scalp to cement the promise of their autumn displays.

, who secured a first Triple Crown in 19 years last season, could go one better and win their first Five/Six Nations title since 1985. They start with away games against Italy and Scotland, before England and France come to Lansdowne Road.

Their momentous victory over the Springboks can only bolster Ireland's self-belief, while Ronan O'Gara's late drop goal to deliver victory over Argentina was further proof that Eddie O'Sullivan's side can now close out tight games. Not that England or France, who have won nine of the last 10 Six Nations titles between them, will lay down quietly.

dismantling of the Springboks suggested that even after the loss of such influential figures as Martin Johnson and Lawrence Dallaglio, they still have the personnel to prosper.

The narrow defeat to Australia was a timely reminder that not everything is blooming in the red rose garden, but the fresh shoots of post-World Cup recovery have been sown by new head coach Andy Robinson. A fresh desire to regain former heights is evident, and if England emerge triumphant from an opening Six Nations engagement in Cardiff, a fourth title in six years is within reach.

are in familiar revival territory, but this time it appears there is substance behind the rediscovered style.

While South Africa's over-confidence in Cardiff made for a closer scoreline than expected, Wales could legitimately claim to have had victory within their grasp against the All Blacks in one of the best Tests in recent memory. If Mike Ruddock can coax a reliable set-piece platform from his pack, there is no reason why victories should not ensue come February. The last fortnight has left

in a state of bewilderment after an autumn series that began with a superb victory over Australia. A stunning defeat to Argentina, their first loss since the World Cup, could have been attributed to trademark French inconsistency.

But the manner of New Zealand's 45-6 demolition job in Paris has coach Bernard Laporte bemoaning a lack of young talent coming through to replace the old guard. Fortunately for the French, the opening match of the Six Nations sees them entertaining

in Paris. After two reasonable performances against Australia, the Scots' humbling by the Springboks forced coach Matt Williams to reassess his belief that a win over one of the major nations was imminent. While individuals such as Chris Cusiter and Ali Hogg enhanced their reputations, a lack of top-class players will continue to undermine their best efforts.

, who start with home games against Ireland and Wales before travelling to Scotland, are also hopeful of registering more than one victory for the first time in the Championship. As autumn gives way to winter and the Heineken Cup prepares to resume centre stage meantime, the joy of Six will keep the home fires burning until February.
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South Africa sweep top awards	"South Africa's Schalk Burger was named player of the year as the Tri-Nations champions swept the top honours at the International Rugby Board's awards.

The flanker topped a list which included Ireland star Gordon D'Arcy and Australian sensation Matt Giteau. Jake White claimed the coaching award while his side held off Grand Slam winners France to take the team award. England player Simon Amor beat team-mate Ben Gollings and Argentine Lucio Lopez Fleming to win the sevens award. Burger's award came just a week after he won the equivalent prize from his fellow international players and White, who also coached Burger at under-21 level, paid tribute to him. ""Schalk's emergence as a major force has meant a lot to South African rugby, but has also influenced world rugby,"" said White. ""He's become to South African rugby what Jonty Rhodes was to South African cricket. It's amazing what he has achieved in such a short time so far in his international career."" Amor, who will captain England in this season's opening IRB Sevens tournament, the Dubai Sevens, which start on Thursday, was delighted with his award. ""There are so many great sevens players on the circuit at the moment that this is a genuine honour,"" said the Gloucester fly-half.
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Robinson wants dual code success	"England rugby union captain Jason Robinson has targeted dual code success over Australia on Saturday.

Robinson, a former rugby league international before switching codes in 2000, leads England against Australia at Twickenham at 1430 GMT. And at 1815 GMT, Great Britain's rugby league team take on Australia in the final of the Tri-Nations tournament. ""Beating the Aussies in both games would be a massive achievement, especially for league,"" said Robinson. England have the chance to seal their third autumn international victory after successive wins over Canada and South Africa, as well as gaining revenge for June's 51-15 hammering by the Wallabies. Meanwhile, Great Britain could end 34 years of failure against Australia with victory at Elland Road. Britain have won individual Test matches, but have failed to secure any silverware or win the Ashes (with a series victory) since 1970.

""They have a great opportunity to land a trophy and it would be a massive boost for rugby league in this country if we won,"" said Robinson. ""I know the boys can do it - they've defeated the Aussies once already in the Tri-Nations."" But Robinson was not losing sight of the task facing his England side in their final autumn international. ""For us, we've played two and won two this November,"" he said. ""If we beat Australia it would be the end to a great autumn series for England. If we stumble then we'll be looking back with a few regrets. Robinson also revealed that the union side had sent the Great Britain team a good luck message ahead of the showdown in Leeds. ""We signed a card for them today and will write them an email on Saturday wishing them all the best,"" said Robinson. ""Everyone has signed the card - a lot of the guys watch league and we support them fully. ""Both games will be very tough and hopefully we'll both do well.""
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All Black magic: New Zealand rugby	"Playing colours:

All black

The Haka and more!

The All Blacks

Charles John Munro discovered rugby at London's Christ College, and on his return to Nelson he staged New Zealand's first game. Nelson Town met Nelson College on 14 May, 1870, the Town triumphing by two goals to nil, instigating a game that would become a national obsession and come to dominate the country's sporting passions. The game appealed to the Kiwi psyche and quickly spread, the native Maoris finding a particular empathy with the sport's warrior ethos. In 1888 a British team led by AE Stoddart toured New Zealand and Australia, and soon after a Maori named Joe Warbrick and an English ex-pat called Thomas Eyton decided to gather a combined New Zealand team.

Twenty-two Maori and four 'pakiha' formed the 'New Zealand Native Team,' who played a total of 107 matches in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. The integration of white and Maori was a reflecion of enlightened New Zealand rugby and society, even if the British press were somewhat mystified by the pre-match tradition of the Maori war dance, the Haka! The other great symbol of New Zealand rugby, the all black kit with the silver fern on the breast, was proposed by Tom Ellison at the first annual meeting of the New Zealand Rugby Football Union in 1893. New Zealand played their first international against Australia in 1903, the Kiwis triumphing 22-3 in Sydney, and the following year an official British touring team came to New Zealand for the first time. The tourists had gone through Australia undefeated but their captain, David Revell Bedell-Sivright, created animosity in New Zealand with his patronising attitude. The Kiwis shocked the rugby world with a 9-3 triumph in Wellington, sparking great celebrations across the country, but Bedell-Sivright churlishly suggested that the victors would have no chance when they visited the UK.

Their opportunity to prove him wrong came in 1905 with the first official New Zealand tour to Europe. The tourists won their early games with a quick-thinking, inventive approach, but press criticism began to grow over their 2-3-2 scrum formation that left a 'roving' forward free to disrupt opposition attacks. The tactic was effective, two late tries seeing the Kiwis to a 12-7 win over Scotland, before Ireland were despatched 15-0 in Dublin. A huge crowd at Crystal Palace convulsed with laughter at the sight of the Haka - but the smiles were soon wiped from their faces when the tourists ran in five tries in a 15-0 hammering of England. New Zealand headed to Wales to meet a country in the midst of its first 'Golden Age,' and the encounter would be the first in a series of controversial clashes between the sides. An excellent try on the left wing by Teddy Morgan sealed a 3-0 win in a hard-fought encounter at Cardiff Arms Park, but post-match talk was dominated by a Bob Deans try that was ruled out by Scottish referee John Dallas. Dallas said that Deans was tackled short, but the Kiwi said he was dragged back into the field of play after grounding a try - on his death-bed three years later he exclaimed: ""I did score that try in Cardiff.""

Four of the 1905 All Blacks went over to the newly formed 'All Golds' rugby league side soon after the tour, but New Zealand were strong enough to crush an Anglo-Welsh touring team in 1908. The first South Africa tour of New Zealand in 1921 saw honours shared in a three-Test series, starting the greatest rivalry in rugby - and the long-running controversy between the countries over the All Blacks' inclusion of Maori players. The awesome 1924-5 All Black tourists became known as 'The Invincibles' after winning all 30 of their games in France, Britain and Ireland, including a crushing 19-0 victory over Wales at St Helen's. Despite their success, the All Blacks' 2-3-2 scrum formation left them somewhat short of possession at times, and the flaws were exploited by the Springboks in South Africa in 1928. Employing the modern 3-4-1 scrum line-up against the New Zealand 'rover' system for the first time, South African teams defeated the All Blacks in five games and the Test series was drawn two-all. The controversial New Zealand scrum method finally disappeared after the 1930 Lions tour (a series won 3-1 by New Zealand), the Lions manager describing the tactic as 'cheating,' prompting the International Rugby Board to rule that three men had to pack down in the front row of the scrum.

The All Blacks' 1935 European tour started inauspiciously with an 11-3 loss to a Swansea side inspired by teenage, schoolboy half-backs Hayden Tanner and Willie Davies. A thrilling Test at Cardiff Arms Park went to Wales 13-12, although the winning try from Geoffrey Rees-Jones was controversial following an illegal Claude Davey tackle in the build-up. New Zealand's next visit to Wales in 1953 proved difficult as they lost 8-3 to Cardiff and drew 6-6 at Swansea. The All Blacks were on top in the Test with Wales at the Arms Park, but the teams were locked at 8-8 when a Clem Thomas cross kick was gathered by Ken Jones for a famous, match-winning try. The tourists made some amends with wins over the other home nations, before a 19-5 success over the Barbarians in an Arms Park thriller. New Zealand built from that tour, and by the time they returned in 1963-4 they were undoubtedly the leading side in the world.

That made the shock all the greater when a drop goal by student John Uzzell gave Newport an unlikely 3-0 win over the tourists at Rodney Parade. Wilson Whinneray's side rallied to beat Wales 6-0, their first win at the Arms Park in four attempts, and went unbeaten through the rest of the tour, but when they returned home the first question put to them was: ""What happened in Newport?"" The only blemish on the record of the awesome 1967 tourists was a draw with East Wales, as they beat the full Wales team 13-6 in Cardiff to take the lead in the series between the countries for the first time. That lead was increased with two comfortable wins for the home side in New Zealand in 1969, the first time Wales had toured the country as an independent team.

A ferocious game at the Arms Park in 1972 was edged 19-16 by the All Blacks, a measure of revenge for the defeat inflicted on New Zealand by the Carwyn James-inspired Lions of 1971.

James guided Llanelli to a famous 9-3 win over the tourists at Stradey Park, though, and in the final game of the tour the Barbarians defeated the All Blacks 23-11 in Cardiff in a game regarded by many as the greatest ever played. New Zealand defeated a Wales XV 12-3 at the Arms Park in a non-cap game in 1974, but it was the 1978 game in Cardiff that would reignite the history of controversy between the two countries.

Wales were leading 12-10 with one minute left when Andy Haden flew to the floor from a line-out. Television pictures clearly showed that he dived, but English referee Roger Quittenton was fooled and awarded a penalty, duly converted by Brian McKechnie for a 13-12 win. Since that infamous game, the competition has largely left Wales v New Zealand fixtures as the men in red have slipped from the pinnacle of the world game. A crushing 23-3 win for New Zealand in Cardiff in the Welsh Rugby Union's 1980 centenary game was a sign of things to come. The new professionalism in the southern hemisphere game that had left Europe behind was shown as the All Blacks swatted Wales aside 49-6 in Brisbane in the semi-final of the inaugural World Cup. The Kiwis went on to claim the Cup, and would inflict further misery on Wales on their ill-fated 1988 tour of New Zealand.

A young, talented Wales side left Britain full of confidence as Triple Crown winners, but one of the greatest ever New Zealand teams demolished them 52-3 and 54-9. After also taking some fearful beatings in the provincial games, Wales captain Jonathan Davies returned home calling for urgent change in the national game, but as his views were ignored he - along with a generation of Wales' best players - chose to head north to rugby league.

A 34-9 win in Cardiff followed for New Zealand in 1989, and at the 1995 World Cup Wales' big talk was made to look embarrassing as the All Blacks eased to victory in Johannesburg. A crushing 42-7 Kiwi triumph in Wembley followed in 1997, and as Wales' misery increased they turned to New Zealand for their salvation in the shape of coaches Graham Henry and Steve Hansen. There was a temporary resurgence in the Welsh game, but when an experimental New Zealand side came to Cardiff's new Millennium Stadium in 2002 they left with a 43-17 victory.

A bruising 55-3 defeat followed for Wales in Hamilton in 2003 as Hansen built towards the World Cup, but in Australia it was a remarkable performance against the All Blacks that gave his side renewed hope. Wales were given no chance going into the game, but in the course of the match they rediscovered the value of attacking flair to lead 37-33 early in the second half. New Zealand rallied to a 53-37 win, but the style shown by Wales has been used as an inspiration as they look to a better future. They now face an All Blacks team led by Henry and Hansen, coming to Europe with a weakened squad at the end of a long season. An encouraging display against South Africa has inspired a confident Wales camp to believe they can claim their first win over the men in black for over 50 years. They have a chance, but clearly history is not on their side.
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WRU proposes season overhaul	"The Welsh Rugby Union wants to restructure the Northern Hemisphere season into four separate blocks.

The season would start with the Celtic League in October, followed by the Heineken Cup in February and March, and the Six Nations moved to April and May. After a nine week break, the WRU then proposes a two-month period of away and home international matches. WRU chairman David Pickering said the structure would end problems of player availability for club and country. He added: ""We feel sure that spectator interest would respond to the impetus of high intensity rugby being played continuously rather than the fragmented timetable currently in operation. ""Equally, we suspect that the sponsors would prefer the sustained interest in a continuous tournament and hopefully, the broadcasters would also enjoy increased exposure."" Moving the Six Nations from its traditional February beginning should also ensure better weather conditions and ""stimulate greater interest in the games and generally provide increased skills and competition and attract greater spectator viewing"", Pickering argued. The plan will be put before the International Rugby Board next month, where four other plans drawn up by independent consultants for a global integrated season will also be discussed. Pickering added: ""It's very early days and there are a number of caveats associated with it - not least the revenue from the broadcasters, which is extremely important. ""We've got a good plan and one which should be judged on its merits.""
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Wilkinson to lead England	"Fly-half Jonny Wilkinson has been named as England's new rugby union captain for the three November Tests.

The 25-year-old Newcastle star takes over from Lawrence Dallaglio, who retired from internationals in August. England's acting head coach Andy Robinson said: ""He is a natural leader, holds the respect of the squad and is a formidable talent on the pitch. ""And he consistently demonstrates the energy and commitment I feel is essential to be captain of England."" Robinson added: ""There are several players in the squad I would feel comfortable in calling upon to be England captain but for me Jonny is in every way the right player to take on this challenge. ""Captaincy offers a challenging environment for any player, especially following in the footsteps of Lawrence Dallaglio and before him the World Cup captain, Martin Johnson.

""But I am confident Jonny has what it takes to do an outstanding job as we look ahead towards the next Rugby World Cup in France and I look forward to working with him."" Wilkinson, who has scored 817 points in 52 internationals, kicked the winning drop-goal in the final seconds of extra-time in England's 2003 Rugby World Cup triumph against Australia. But he then missed the entire 2004 Six Nations campaign while recuperating from shoulder surgery, before making his comeback for Newcastle in the Zurich Premiership in August. ""It's the ambition of so many players to one day be captain of England and today I have realised a dream,"" he said. ""I'm honoured Andy wants me to be his captain, and to follow Lawrence and Martin means a lot to me as they are inspirational men who have given so much to England rugby over many years.

""Getting my first England cap against Ireland six years ago was something I'll never forget because to play for your country is very special. Taking on the captaincy is another important step in my career and I do so with immense pride."" Wilkinson made his international debut in the 1998 Six Nations Championship against Ireland when he came off the bench to replace Paul Grayson.

He has been a regular in the England starting line-up ever since, played in all three Lions Tests in 2001 and all but one of England's games in the 2003 World Cup. He becomes the 117th captain of England since Fred Stokes held the position in 1871. England's first autumn Test is against Canada on 13 November, followed by the visit of Tri-Nations champions South Africa a week later and then a World Cup re-match with Australia.
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Hong Kong in 2011 World Cup bid	"Hong Kong is hoping to join Japan as co-host of the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Japan has applied to host the tournament on its own, with the aim of taking it outside rugby's traditional strongholds for the first time. But Hong Kong Rugby Football Union (HKRFU) chairman John Molloy has called for the territory to host one of the pools and a quarter-final. The Japanese Rugby Football Union (JRFU) says it has yet to receive a formal presentation from the HKRFU. ""At this stage, we are only considering hosting the event by ourselves,"" said JRFU secretary Koji Tokumasu. ""We cannot examine any proposal unless we get it in a definitive form."" Japan faces stiff competition in the form of South Africa and New Zealand to host the event in seven years' time.

""Until now, the World Cup has been held in countries from the Six Nations or Tri-Nations,"" said Tokumasu. ""We think, and the IRB thinks, that it is time for rugby to go global. ""Japan is ready to host the tournament and we are looking forward to welcoming the world of rugby to Japan."" Tokumasu added that the 2002 football World Cup, co-hosted by Japan and South Korea, had been a huge success. ""As well as having the infrastructure in place, Japan also has the commercial clout to host one of sport's top competitions,"" he said. Last year, Japan launched its first professional rugby league and it has the fourth largest number of registered players (125,508) in the world after England, South Africa and France.
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Dallaglio his own man to the end	"Controversy and Lawrence Dallaglio have never been very far away from each other throughout a glittering international career.

Even the end of his nine-year career came out of the blue, just four days before the start of the season. But then Dallaglio has always been his own man. Ever since emerging onto the international scene Dallaglio has polarised opinions. To supporters of England, Dallaglio could do no wrong. An integral part of a sustained period of success for England, Dallaglio's crowning glory was his part in the side that won the Rugby World Cup in 2003.

Rival fans, meanwhile, have tended to take an alternative view, seeing Dallaglio as the epitome of the less agreeable characteristics of English rugby. Never afraid to speak his mind, be it to the referee or the opposition on the pitch, or his coach or the media off it, Dallaglio has sometimes rubbed people up the wrong way. Dallaglio arrived as part of the unheralded England side which became the shock winners of the first Rugby Sevens World Cup in 1993. It took him another two years to graduate to the full England XV, but once there he proved to the manor born. Displaying maturity and physical power beyond his years, Dallaglio rapidly established himself as an automatic choice able to play any one of the three back-row positions at international standard.

Within two years of his debut, Dallaglio was offered the England captain's band, and his career continued to go from strength to strength as he made the 1997 Lions tour to South Africa. Although overlooked for the captaincy in favour of England team-mate Martin Johnson, he played a massive role in the 2-1 series victory. But after building up a seemingly unstoppable momentum, Dallaglio's career hit the buffers at speed in 1999.

First came the last-minute defeat to Wales in which Dallaglio's decision not to kick for goal in the dying minutes was blamed for costing England a Grand Slam. Worse was to follow though as an infamous newspaper sting cost him his treasured England captaincy. With sensational allegations of drug use - of which he was subsequently cleared - splashed across the front pages, a devastated Dallaglio stepped down as England skipper. But he bounced back, getting his head down at club level before returning to the England fold, albeit now as a lieutenant to new captain Johnson. As a member of a new-look England side on the long road to World Cup glory - a journey not without mishaps as a succession of Grand Slams opportunities were spurned - Dallaglio emerged as a key performer once again.

Yet another setback arrived in 2001 as a serious knee injury cut short Dallaglio's involvement on the Lions tour to Australia.

Rumours began to circulate that his career was over but, in typical Dallaglio style, he embarked on a punishing schedule of rehabilitation to return an even more fearsome physical specimen. One effect of the injury was to rob Dallaglio of much of his pace, but ever the pragmatist, he reinvented himself as a close quarters number eight of the highest calibre.

The only player to play every minute of England's World Cup triumph in Australia, Dallaglio could hardly have done more to secure England's historic win, and for that he will always be held in the highest esteem by England supporters. Following Johnson's retirement, Dallaglio's career came full circle as Woodward restored him as England captain. While England did not hit the heights in Dallaglio's second spell as captain, losing five of their eight post-World Cup Tests, Dallaglio led by example, leaving him as one of the few members of a squad lacking many World Cup stars to live up to expectations. Dallaglio walks away from the international game safe in the knowledge that he will go down as one of England's most accomplished players, if not one of the great captains despite his evident pride in leading his country.

The problem now for England is how to replace the almost irreplaceable. The likes of Matt Dawson, Jonny Wilkinson, Phil Vickery and Hill have all been mentioned as contenders for Dallaglio's role as captain. But it is as a player that England will really struggle to replace the 32-year-old. Although players like Joe Worsley and Chris Jones are more than capable of stepping up, the fact that there is no stand-out candidate speaks volumes about Dallaglio's massive influence on English rugby.
"	sport
Wasps 31-37 Leicester	"Leicester withstood a stunning Wasps comeback to win a pulsating Heineken Cup encounter at the Causeway Stadium.

The Tigers stormed 22-6 ahead within 18 minutes through tries from Lewis Moody, Geordan Murphy and Martin Corry. European champions Wasps fought back through a Josh Lewsey try and Mark van Gisbergen's boot, and they were level at 31-31 with five minutes remaining. But it was the visitors who kept their cool as Andy Goode kicked the Tigers to victory with a penalty and a drop goal. The closing moments saw desperate defence from Leicester as Wasps turned down several penalties to go for the try they needed. Wasps pounded the line and a penalty try looked likely before referee Nigel Williams controversially blew for full-time. Fly-half Goode was the Tigers hero, kicking 22 points in total, while Leicester's overwhelming domination in the scrums ultimately told. Even their lack of discipline in defence - which presented the admirable Van Ginsberg with 26 points - could not undo them as they held out for a famous win.

Lawrence Dallaglio's team have now got it all to do in the quest for a quarter-final place given that two of their last three games are away - against Leicester and Biarritz. However, Wasps rugby director Warren Gatland warned his side will will not relinquish their European title without a fight. ""If we lose next week, then we are struggling,"" said Gatland. ""But we don't want to give this trophy away. We worked so hard to win it last season, we will go down fighting. ""We have got to get our scrum right next week, it is the biggest cause for concern."" Leicester coach John Wells saluted the outstanding work of Graham Rowntree and Julian White, who were magnificent up front. ""They were the backbone of our performance today,"" said Wells. ""And to score three tries against the European champions at home was also something I am pleased about.""

Van Gisbergen; Lewsey, Erinle, Abbott, Voyce; King, Dawson; Dowd, Greening, Green; Shaw, Birkett; Worsley, O'Connor, Dallaglio (capt).

Replacements: Gotting, McKenzie, Lock, Hart, Biljon, Brooks, Hoadley.

Murphy; Rabeni, Smith, Gibson, Healey; Goode, Ellis; Rowntree, Chuter, White, M Johnson (capt), L Deacon; Moody, Back, Corry.

Replacements (from): Buckland/Cockerill, Morris, Kay, W Johnson/B Deacon, H Tuilagi, Bemand, A Tuiliagi, Lloyd, Vesty.
"	sport
Ireland 17-12 South Africa	"Ronan O'Gara scored all Ireland's points as the home side claimed only their second ever win over South Africa on an emotional day at Lansdowne Road.

O'Gara's first-half try, poached after a quick tap-penalty, helped the Irish to a 8-3 lead at half-time. Three further O'Gara penalties extended Ireland's lead to 17-6 as the game entered the final quarter. Two Percy Montgomery penalties set up a frantic finish but Ireland held out to claim a famous victory. Ireland began strongly and were never led, but the match was tense and closely fought throughout. Aware of the threat posed by the South Africans, Ireland pressed hard from the outset, and played some impressive rugby while searching for a breakthrough. Early on, Denis Hickie thought he was in for a try after a delightful backline move but Shane Horgan's pass was adjudged to have gone forward by referee Paul Honiss.

Ireland continued to press and they showed their intent by opting for a line-out in the 19th minute when three straight-forward points were on offer. Another South African infringement a minute later led to Ireland's first points - O'Gara took a quick tap-penalty and charged over the opposition line for an Irish try. The Springboks could feel hard done by as captain John Smit had his back to the play when O'Gara pounced after referee Honiss had told the skipper to warn his own players after consistent infringements. Stung by the score, the South Africans almost replied with a try of their own within 60 seconds with Geordan Murphy's ankle-tap tackle denying a certain try for Percy Montgomery. However, the Springboks did win a penalty a minute later which Montgomery easily slotted to cut Ireland's lead to 5-3.

Ireland got out of jail when the South Africans had a three-to-one overlap near the Irish line only to waste the chance. After the sustained Springboks pressure, the Irish produced an attack of their own in the 34th minute which culminated with O'Gara's clever drop-goal to restore his side's lead to five points which remained the margin at half-time. Sustained Irish pressure immediately after half-time was rewarded by another O'Gara penalty. However, Montgomery responded quickly by slotting over a superb penalty from near the right touchline to cut Ireland's lead to five points again. Montgomery then burst through the Irish defence in the 48th minute and it took a superb Girvan Dempsey tackle to prevent a try. The South Africans suffered a double-blow in the 52nd minute when Schalk Burger was sin-binned for the second week in a row after killing the ball and O'Gara punished the transgression by notching another penalty.

In the 61st minute, Hickie was left frustrated by a poor pass from Girvan Dempsey as a chance to seal the match was wasted. However, a late tackle on Brian O'Driscoll enabled O'Gara to notch another penalty in the 63rd minute which extended Ireland's lead to 17-6. However, two Montgomery penalties had Ireland's lead in peril again as the Springboks closed to within five points with seven minutes remaining. South Africa produced a huge effort in the closing minutes but Ireland held on to claim a deserved victory.

G Dempsey; G Murphy, B O'Driscoll (capt), S Horgan, D Hickie; R O'Gara, P Stringer; R Corrigan, S Byrne, J Hayes, M O'Kelly, P O'Connell, S Easterby, J O'Connor, A Foley.

F Sheahan, M Horan, D O'Callaghan, E Miller, G Easterby, D Humphreys, K Maggs.

: P Montgomery; B Paulse, M Joubert, De Wet Barry, A Willemse, J van der Westhuyzen; F Du Preez; O Du Randt, J Smit (captain), E Andrews, B Botha, V Matfield, S Burger, AJ Venter, J van Niekerk.

: H Shimange, CJ van der Linde, G Britz, D Rossouw, M Claassens, J de Villiers, G du Toit/J Fourie.

Paul Honiss (New Zealand)
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Ireland v USA (Sat)	"Saturday 20 November

Lansdowne Road, Dublin

1300 GMT

The Irish coach knows a repeat of the record 83-3 victory over the States in 2000 is not on the agenda and expects a real test at Lansdowne Road. ""Their coach Tom Billups will have them very organised,"" said O'Sullivan. ""They ran five tries past the French in the summer, so we will not take them for granted. We have guys coming into the team who are chomping at the bit."" The Irish line-up shows nine changes from the team which started against South Africa with winger Tommy Bowe and flanker Denis Leamy making their international debuts. The other changes see recalls for backs David Humphreys, Kevin Maggs and Guy Easterby with Eric Miller, Marcus Horan, Donnacha O'Callaghan and Frank Sheehan all returning to the pack.

O'Sullivan said the players coming in had the opportunity to stake claims for inclusion against Argentina on 27 November. Easterby gets a rare start at scrum-half while Humphreys, now effectively Ronan O'Gara's deputy at fly-half, wins his 65th cap. ""We have got to get the focus right on the day,"" said Ulster man Humphreys. ""The US may be classed as weaker opposition, but we will treat them with the respect they deserve."" The States lost 39-31 against France in their last international and are ranked 16th in world rugby. The Americans have made three changes, plus one positional switch from the game in July against the French. Lock Alec Parker, blind-side flanker Brian Surgener and right wing Al Lakomskis return and captain Kort Schubert of the Cardiff Blues shifts to number eight. Schubert is the only Eagles player remaining from the sides' meeting four years ago.

G Murphy; S Horgan, B O'Driscoll (capt), K Maggs, T Bowe; D Humphreys, G Easterby; M Horan. F Sheahan, J Hayes, D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell, S Easterby, D Leamy, E Miller.

S Byrne, S Best, L Cullen, A Foley, P Stringer, R O'Gara, G Dempsey.

Viljoen; Lakomskis, Emerick, Sika, Fee, Hercus, Timoteo; MacDonald, Wyatt, Waasdorp, Parker, Klerck, Surgener, Petruzzella, Schubert (capt).

Hobson, Osentowski, Gouws, Mo'unga, Williams, Sherman, Tuipulotu.
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Ireland call up uncapped Campbell	"Ulster scrum-half Kieran Campbell is one of five uncapped players included in Ireland's RBS Six Nations squad.

Campbell is joined by Ulster colleagues Roger Wilson and Ronan McCormack along with Connacht's Bernard Jackman and Munster's Shaun Payne. Gordon D'Arcy is back after injury while Munster flanker Alan Quinlan also returns to international consideration. ""The squad is selected purely on form. A lot of players put their hands up,"" coach Eddie O'Sullivan told BBC Sport. ""Kieran Campbell was just one of those players. He has been playing very well in the Heineken Cup and deserves his call-up. ""There is big competition in some departments and not so much in others. There were one or two players who were unfortunate just to miss out."" Back-row forwards David Wallace and Victor Costello are omitted, with O'Sullivan having Quinlan, Wilson, Simon Easterby, Anthony Foley, Denis Leamy and Johnny O'Connor vying for the three positions.

With David Humphreys, Kevin Maggs, Simon Best and Tommy Bowe again included, it is Ulster's biggest representation in a training panel for quite some time. Munster and Leinster have 12 and 11 players in the squad respectively while Jackman is the sole Connacht representative. Four British-based players are also included. Ulster forward Ronan McCormack said he was ""totally shocked"" to be included. ""I'm really looking forward to it,"" said McCormack. ""I played with guys like Brian O'Driscoll and Denis Hickie back in my school days in Leinster so I do know a few of them although not that well. ""It will be great to work with them.""

S Best (Ulster), S Byrne (Leinster), R Corrigan (Leinster), L Cullen (Leinster), S Easterby (Llanelli), A Foley (Munster), J Hayes (Munster), M Horan (Munster), B Jackman (Connacht), D Leamy (Munster), E Miller (Leinster), R McCormack (Ulster), D O'Callaghan (Munster), P O'Connell (Munster), J O'Connor (Wasps), M O'Kelly (Leinster), F Sheahan (Munster), R Wilson (Ulster), A Quinlan (Munster).

T Bowe (Ulster), K Campbell (Ulster), G D'Arcy (Ulster), G Dempsey (Leinster), G Duffy (Harlequins), G Easterby (Leinster), D Hickie (Leinster), A Horgan (Munster), S Horgan (Leinster), D Humphreys (Ulster), K Maggs (Ulster), G Murphy (Leicester), B O'Driscoll, (Leinster), R O'Gara (Munster), S Payne (Munster), P Stringer (Munster).

K Gleeson (Leinster), T Howe (Ulster), J Kelly (Munster), N McMillan (Ulster).
"	sport
Ireland 21-19 Argentina	"An injury-time dropped goal by Ronan O'Gara stole victory for Ireland from underneath the noses of Argentina at Lansdowne Road on Saturday.

O'Gara kicked all of Ireland's points, with two dropped goals and five penalties, to give the home side a 100% record in their autumn internationals. An impressive Argentina appeared in control until the dying seconds. The Pumas shocked the Irish early on with a try from Federico Aramburu, and Felipe Contepomi kicked 14 points. The well-drilled and sharper Pumas out-played and out-thought Ireland in the early stages. Indiscipline allowed Argentina's Leinster fly-half Contepomi to open the scoring in the third minute with a straightforward penalty. He was on the mark again two minutes later when Argentina shocked a ragged Ireland with the first try of the game. Ireland turned the ball over and Manuel Contepomi broke through an unstructured defence before feeding his midfield partner Aramburu to sprint in under the posts. O'Gara finally got Ireland on the board with a dropped goal in the ninth minute only for Contepomi to rifle over his second penalty two minutes later. Playing into a strong wind and rain, Ireland continued to come second best in tight situations, and turnovers began to mount up against a rugged defence. O'Gara managed to land his second penalty in the 36th minute, but once again Contepomi replied in kind four minutes into first-half injury time. The second-half started as the first had ended. O'Gara rifled over another penalty in the 45th minute, but Contepomi matched it three minutes later. The upper-body strength of the Pumas never allowed Ireland to take control up front, while the three-quarters had no space to manoeuvre. Ireland had to rely on O'Gara's boot to keep in touch rather than any contrived running plays. The Munsterman landed two more penalties - one of them from 48 metres - to bring his team to within four points with 13 minutes on the clock remaining. And Ireland's chance came when Argentina's number eight Gonzalo Longo was yellow carded with six minutes to go for an offence in the line-out. O'Gara made no mistake as he rifled over his fifth penalty to set up a tense final few minutes. But Ireland showed great composure to get themselves into a position to allow O'Gara to thump over a massive drop goal to complete a tremendous, if fortuitous, comeback.

"	sport
England claim Dubai Sevens glory	"England beat Fiji 26-21 in a dramatic final in Dubai to win the first IRB Sevens event of the season.

Having beaten Australia and South Africa to reach the final, England fell behind to an early try against Fiji. They then took charge with scores from Pat Sanderson, Kai Horstman, Mathew Tait and Rob Thirlby, but Fiji rallied to force a tense finale. Scotland were beaten 33-15 by Samoa in the plate semi-final and Ireland lost 17-5 to Tunisia in the shield final. Mike Friday's England side matched their opponents for pace, power and skill in the final and led 19-7 at half-time. But Neumi Nanuku and Marika Vakacegu touched down for Fiji, only for a needless trip by Tuidriva Bainivalu on Geoff Appleford to allow England to run down the clock. ""To be honest, England have wanted to win in Dubai for a very long time now, and the people here have wanted us to win for just as long,"" said Friday.

""We didn't want to put pressure on ourselves but we are thankful we have achieved that and brought through some young talent at the same time that can hopefully play for the England '15s' in a few years."" Portugal confirmed their impressive progress in Sevens rugby by recording a sudden-death win over France in the bowl final. Samoa won the plate title by edging out Argentina 21-19.

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Barbarians 19-47 New Zealand	"New Zealand proved too strong for an Australian-dominated Barbarians to round off their unbeaten northern hemisphere tour with an easy win.

Rico Gear ran in two of the All Blacks' seven tries in what was a predominantly second-string line-up. The Baa-Baas did threaten, scoring tries through Albert van den Bergh, Xavier Rush and Andrea Lo Cicero, but never looked like winning. All Black Aaron Mauger was in good form with the boot, adding 10 points. The All Blacks featured only two of the side which started last weekend's emphatic Test victory over France in Paris, while the Baa-Baas had nine Wallabies in their starting line-up. And New Zealand coach Graham Henry said: ""It was a quality performance against a very experienced side and a number of young guys came through very well. ""They learnt from the older players and this was a way of thanking the guys who had been mentoring them on the tour."" But the running rugby the crowd had been hoping for rarely materialised. Marty Holah got the All Blacks onslaught under way with his fifth-minute try before Rush hit back moments later. But New Zealand went ahead once more as Gear made use of the space vacated by a temporarily injured Chris Latham to slide in. Ma'a Nonu then found his way through the Barbarians defence to give his side a 19-7 half-time lead. The hosts failed to ignite in the second half and, the moment Gear scored his second just after the interval, there was only ever going to be one winner. Lo Cicero, the sole European for the Barbarians, bundled over for a try to briefly curtail the deficit. But the match was blighted by controversy moments later when Justin Marshall, was felled with a high tackle by Jimmy Cowan. Referee Andy Turner waved play on and Casey Laulala coasted in for his side's fifth try. Jermoe Keino and Piri Weepu both added tries to the All Blacks' tally before the final whistle, while van den Bergh gained some consolation for the Baa-Baas. After the match, Barbarians coach Bob Dwyer warned that South African flanker Schalk Burger needed a proper off-season break to maintain his standards. Burger, 21, was recently crowned player of the year by both his peers and the International Rugby Board, but has struggled for form in recent weeks. ""It's his first year at that level and he was phenomenal up until the end of the southern hemisphere season. ""I don't think he's played anywhere near that level on tour,"" he said.
"	sport
Dawson wins England squad recall	"Wasps scrum-half Matt Dawson has been recalled to England's training squad ahead of the RBS Six Nations and been reinstated in the Elite Player Squad.

Coach Andy Robinson dropped Dawson for the autumn Tests after he missed training to film 'A Question of Sport.' ""I always said I would consider bringing Matt back if I felt he was playing well,"" Robinson said. ""He merits his return on current form."" Newcastle's 18-year-old centre Mathew Tait is also in the training squad. ""It's obviously an honour to be asked to train with England,"" said Tait, who has burst into contention recently. ""I look forward to going down and doing the sessions, but the most important thing at the moment is Sunday's game against Newport, so I'm not looking any further than that."" Robinson has invited 42 players to attend a three-day session in Leeds next week, in which his squad will train in part with the Leeds Rhinos rugby league squad.

With Mike Tindall ruled out of the opening two matches and Will Greenwood sidelined for the entire Six Nations, Tait is one of six or seven contenders for the two centre berths. Stuart Abbott, Jamie Noon, Ollie Smith, Olly Barkley and Henry Paul - who retains his place despite his early substitution against Australia - are also in the mix. Ben Cohen could also be considered after switching from the wing for his club Northampton recently. Prop Phil Vickery and lock Simon Shaw both return to the squad after missing the autumn Tests through injury, while Wasps wing Tom Voyce is recalled. The group also includes Bath flanker Andy Beattie and Leicester hooker George Chuter. ""Beattie has matured greatly as a player these past two seasons,"" Robinson said. Jonny Wilkinson, Tindall and Martin Corry have all been included despite their unavailability for the opening two matches against Wales and France.

The revised 56-man elite squad includes Wasps hooker Phil Greening, who replaces the retired Mark Regan, and Sale wing Mark Cueto. Cueto was selected for the November internationals despite not being part of the group, but scored four tries in three England appearances. Leicester scrum-half Harry Ellis has also been promoted from the senior national academy, and will contest the number nine jersey with Dawson and Gloucester's Andy Gomarsall. The players in Robinson's elite squad can only play 32 matches for club and country. They can be called up for a total of 16 training days in addition to the recognised international weeks for each of the years leading up to the next World Cup.

Balshaw, Cohen, Cueto, Lewsey, Robinson, Simpson-Daniel, Voyce, Abbott, Noon, Paul, Smith, Tait, Tindall, Barkley, Hodgson, King, Wilkinson, Dawson, Ellis, Gomarsall.

Chuter, Thompson, Titterrell, Rowntree, Sheridan, Stevens, Vickery, White, Borthwick, Brown, L Deacon, Grewcock, Kay, Shaw, Beattie, Corry, Forrester, Hazell, Jones, Moody, Vyvyan, J Worsley.

Abbott, Balshaw, Borthwick, A Brown, Chuter, Cohen, Corry, Cueto, Dawson, Ellis, Flatman, Gomarsall, Greening, Greenwood, Grewcock, Hazell, Hill, Hodgson, Kay, King, Lewsey, Moody, Noon, Paul, Robinson, Rowntree, Shaw, Simpson-Daniel, Thompson, Tindall, Titterrell, Vickery, Vyvyan, White, Wilkinson, J Worsley, M Worsley.

Barkley, Beattie, Christophers, L Deacon, Forrester, C Jones, Palmer, Rees, Sheridan, Skinner, Smith, Stevens, Tait, Voyce.

Dowson, Haughton, Monye, Roques, P Sanderson.
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Borders 19-20 Ulster	"Ulster clung on for a morale-boosting Celtic League win over bottom club Borders at Netherdale on Friday night.

A late try by Borders substitute Jonny Weston had set up a dramatic finish, but the Scottish side could not complete the fightback. Ulster had led 20-6 with tries from Paul Steinmetz and Bryn Cunningham. But the Irish province failed to add to the tally in the second half and ended up relieved to get the win to lift them to eighth place in the table. Borders had edged ahead with a sixth-minute penalty by Charlie Hore - only to hand the visitors the initiative via a gift try. Calum MacRae surrendered possession before centre Steinmetz sent a chip into the danger zone. Substitute Joe Pattison - who had come on for the injured Gareth Morton - wrongly thought the ball was trickling out of play and eased up on the chase.

The speedy Steinmetz had other ideas and he raced up to get the vital touch in the nick of time, giving Adam Larkin an easy conversion. Ally Warnock clawed back three points for Borders, but they were soon hit by another double-blow. First, Mark Blair was yellow carded for killing the ball on the ground and then full-back Cunningham bagged the second touchdown in the wake of fine work by skipper Andy Ward. Larkin again added the extras. Even worse was to come for Borders when Larkin kicked two more penalties just before the break, the second of which also led to Kelly Brown being sin-binned. The hosts gave themselves a glimmer of hope immediately after the restart, however, when Warnock struck a penalty at the other end. And he repeated the feat to set up the tense finale. Ulster coach mark McCall said he was delighted to get the victory. ""Borders are a tougher proposition this year in spite of the fact that they have not had a victory in some time,"" said McCall. ""In the first 20 minutes we were edgy but in the second 20 minutes we played some of our best rugby this season and scored two good tries.""

Morton, Moffat, MacRae, Hore, Berthinussen, Warnock, Moore, Thomson, Ford, Douglas, Blair, Stewart, Gray, Brown, McEntee.

Kay, Parr, McGee, Rennick, Weston, Millar, Pattison.

Cunningham, Maxwell, Bell, Steinmetz, Howe, Larkin, Campbell, S. Best, Shields, Moore, Frost, McCullough, Ward, Feather, N. Best.

Brady, McCormick, Longwell, Browne, Doak, S. Young, Bowe.

Phil Fear (WRU)
"	sport
Lions blow to World Cup stars	"British and Irish Lions coach Clive Woodward says he is unlikely to select any players not involved in next year's RBS Six Nations Championship.

World Cup winners Lawrence Dallaglio, Neil Back and Martin Johnson had all been thought to be in the frame for next summer's tour to New Zealand. ""I don't think you can ever say never,"" said Woodward. ""But I would have to have a compulsive reason to pick any player who is not available to international rugby."" Dallaglio, Back and Johnson have all retired from international rugby over the last 12 months but continue to star for their club sides. But Woodward added: ""The key thing that I want to stress is that I intend to use the Six Nations and the players who are available to international rugby as the key benchmark. ""My job, along with all the other senior representatives, is to make sure that we pick the strongest possible team. ""If you are not playing international rugby then it's still a step up to Test rugby. It's definitely a disadvantage.

""I think it's absolutely critical and with the history of the Lions we have got to take players playing for the four countries."" Woodward also revealed that the race for the captaincy was still wide open. ""It is an open book,"" he said. ""There are some outstanding candidates from all four countries."" And following the All Blacks' impressive displays in Europe in recent weeks, including a 45-6 humiliation of France, Woodward believes the three-test series in New Zealand will provide the ultimate rugby challenge. ""Their performance in particular against France was simply awesome,"" said the Lions coach. ""Certain things have been suggested about the potency of their front five, but they're a very powerful unit."" With his customary thoroughness, Woodward revealed he had taken soundings from Australia coach Eddie Jones and Jake White of South Africa following their tour matches in Britain and Ireland.

As a result, Woodward stressed his Lions group might not be dominated by players from England and Ireland and held out hope for the struggling Scots. ""Scotland's recent results have not been that impressive but there have been some excellent individual performances. ""Eddie in particular told me how tough they had made it for Australia and I will take on board their opinions."" And Scotland forward Simon Taylor looks certain to get the call, provided he recovers from knee and tendon problems. ""I took lessons from 2001 in that they did make a mistake in taking Lawrence Dallaglio when he wasn't fit and went on the trip. ""Every player has to be looked at on their own merits and Simon Taylor is an outstanding player and I have no doubts that if he gets back to full fitness he will be on the trip. ""I am told he should be back playing by March and he has plenty of time to prove his fitness for the Lions - and there are other players like Richard Hill in the same boat.""
"	sport
Campbell to be Lions consultant	"Former government communications chief Alastair Campbell will act as a media consultant to Sir Clive Woodward's 2005 Lions on their tour to New Zealand.

Campbell, who left Downing Street earlier this year, will advise on media strategy before and during the tour. ""I hope I can contribute to the planning and preparation, and to ensuring the media and public get the most out of the tour itself,"" he said. ""I am also looking forward to going out for the later stages of the tour."" Woodward's decision to call in Prime Minister Tony Blair's former spin doctor springs from the deterioration in media relations on the last Lions tour of Australia in 2001, when New Zealander Graham Henry was the head coach. The furore surrounding the newspaper diaries of Matt Dawson and Austin Healey was compounded by other disillusioned players venting their frustration through the media. ""The Lions is a massive media event,"" said Woodward, who will be the head coach. ""There will be a huge level of interest from the travelling media, the fans that will go out in their thousands and the New Zealand public. ""We need to have the strategy and processes in place to deal with the pressures that will bring. ""[Alastair] will act as an advisor both in the build up to and on the tour itself. His role is to work closely with not only myself but (tour manager) Bill Beaumont, (media manager) Louisa Cheetham and (team manager) Louise Ramsay."" Campbell is due to resume working for the government in the new year in the build-up to an anticipated May general election. The Lions leave for New Zealand on 24 May, with the first Test match against the All Blacks in Christchurch on 25 June.
"	sport
Lions blow to World Cup winners	"British and Irish Lions coach Clive Woodward says he is unlikely to select any players not involved in next year's RBS Six Nations Championship.

World Cup winners Lawrence Dallaglio, Neil Back and Martin Johnson had all been thought to be in the frame for next summer's tour to New Zealand. ""I don't think you can ever say never,"" said Woodward. ""But I would have to have a compulsive reason to pick any player who is not available to international rugby."" Dallaglio, Back and Johnson have all retired from international rugby over the last 12 months but continue to star for their club sides. But Woodward added: ""The key thing that I want to stress is that I intend to use the Six Nations and the players who are available to international rugby as the key benchmark. ""My job, along with all the other senior representatives, is to make sure that we pick the strongest possible team. ""If you are not playing international rugby then it's still a step up to Test rugby. It's definitely a disadvantage.

""I think it's absolutely critical and with the history of the Lions we have got to take players playing for the four countries."" Woodward also revealed that the race for the captaincy was still wide open. ""It is an open book,"" he said. ""There are some outstanding candidates from all four countries."" And following the All Blacks' impressive displays in Europe in recent weeks, including a 45-6 humiliation of France, Woodward believes the three-test series in New Zealand will provide the ultimate rugby challenge. ""Their performance in particular against France was simply awesome,"" said the Lions coach. ""Certain things have been suggested about the potency of their front five, but they're a very powerful unit."" With his customary thoroughness, Woodward revealed he had taken soundings from Australia coach Eddie Jones and Jake White of South Africa following their tour matches in Britain and Ireland.

As a result, Woodward stressed his Lions group might not be dominated by players from England and Ireland and held out hope for the struggling Scots. ""Scotland's recent results have not been that impressive but there have been some excellent individual performances. ""Eddie in particular told me how tough they had made it for Australia and I will take on board their opinions."" And Scotland forward Simon Taylor looks certain to get the call, provided he recovers from knee and tendon problems. ""I took lessons from 2001 in that they did make a mistake in taking Lawrence Dallaglio when he wasn't fit and went on the trip. ""Every player has to be looked at on their own merits and Simon Taylor is an outstanding player and I have no doubts that if he gets back to full fitness he will be on the trip. ""I am told he should be back playing by March and he has plenty of time to prove his fitness for the Lions - and there are other players like Richard Hill in the same boat.""
"	sport
Wilkinson fit to face Edinburgh	"England captain Jonny Wilkinson will make his long-awaited return from injury against Edinburgh on Saturday.

Wilkinson, who has not played since injuring his bicep on 17 October, took part in full-contact training with Newcastle Falcons on Wednesday. And the 25-year-old fly-half will start Saturday's Heineken Cup match at Murrayfield on the bench. But Newcastle director of rugby Rob Andrew said: ""He's fine and we hope to get him into the game at some stage."" The 25-year-old missed England's autumn internationals after aggravating the haematoma in his upper right arm against Saracens. He was subsequently replaced as England captain by full-back Jason Robinson. Sale's Charlie Hodgson took over the number 10 shirt in the internationals against Canada, South Africa and Australia. Wilkinson's year has been disrupted by injury as his muscle problem followed eight months on the sidelines with a shoulder injury sustained in the World Cup final.
"	sport
Dallaglio eyeing Lions tour place	"Former England captain Lawrence Dallaglio still harbours hopes of a place on the British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.

Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward has made it clear he will pick his squad to tour next summer based on form shown in the Six Nations championship. But Dallaglio, who called time on England earlier this year, said: ""I assure you I wouldn't let anyone down. ""I know what it takes and what I have to offer,"" he told the Daily Telegraph. Dallaglio toured South Africa with the Lions in 1997 but was forced home early with a knee injury from the trip to Australia three years ago.

The 32-year-old also felt concentrating on club rugby could have prolonged his international shelf-life. He said: ""I'll be in good shape and fresh without another 10 Tests on the clock. ""From what I witnessed at close quarters on Sunday in our Heineken Cup match against Leicester, I certainly didn't feel out of place alongside those players, many of whom will be on the trip.

""If I'm fit and playing well, then I'm most certainly available. ""If Clive feels he has no need to look outside the international crop, then fine. If he does, then he won't need to look too far, will he?""
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Dawson set for new Wasps contract	"European champions Wasps are set to offer Matt Dawson a new deal.

The 31-year-old World Cup winning scrum-half has impressed since joining the London side from Northampton this summer on a one-year contract. Wasps coach Warren Gatland told the Daily Mirror: ""We have not yet offered Matt a new contract but we will be doing so. ""I'm very happy with his contribution and I think he's good enough to play for another couple of years."" Dawson played a vital part in England's World Cup win last year but has fallen out of favour with new coach Andy Robinson after missing a training session in September. However he hopes the new deal will help him regain his England place.

""Rugby is still my priority and there's still a burning desire within me to play the best rugby I possibly can,"" he said. ""I know within myself, if I was given the chance I could play for England again. ""I know I'm fit enough, I'm strong enough, I'm skilful enough.""
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Healey targets England comeback	"Leicester wing Austin Healey hopes to use Sunday's return Heineken Cup clash with Wasps as a further springboard to an England recall for the Six Nations.

Healey, who won 51 caps prior to the 2003 World Cup, has been in good form in the Tigers' resurgence this season. ""I definitely still have ambitions to play for England,"" Healey told the BBC. ""We will have to see what happens after the previous (autumn) Tests but when I look at the current squad I definitely feel there is a place there for me."" Healey, who has also played both half-back positions and full-back during his career, has reverted to the wing, where he won most of his England caps. After recovering from a trapped nerve in his back sustained at the end of September, the 31-year-old is relishing his role in the Tigers revival. ""I had six weeks out but fortunately I have resumed the sort of form I had before,"" he said.

""I am basically playing where it best suits Leicester. Obviously I can play scrum-half, fly-half or full-back at a moment's notice. ""But playing on the wing actually gives me a bigger free role to come in where I am not expected and influence things."" That has been apparent in parts one and two of the Wasps-Leicester trilogy in recent weeks. First, Healey came off his flank with an angled run to score an injury-time try that earned the Tigers a 17-17 draw in their Premiership meeting on 21 November. Then, in the first of their Heineken cup double header last Sunday, Healey slotted in at stand-off and delivered a superb cross-kick for Martin Corry to score the Tigers' third try. ""I caught 'Cozza's' eye a couple of phases before that and was hoping to get it to him on the full, but fortunately even with the bounce he managed to score,"" Healey recalled.

Healey, twice a Heineken Cup winner, believes last Sunday's match was ""up there"" with some of the biggest club contests he has played in. ""It was a very intense occasion and a very destructive game,"" he recalled. ""There was not a huge amount of rugby played but it was a great game to be involved in. ""After about 15 minutes I thought we might stride away with it but Wasps really came back into it and in the last couple of minutes it could have gone either way.""

The same outcome this Sunday would put Leicester in pole position to top their Heineken pool with a home game against Biarritz and away trip to Calvisano to come. But Healey insists the Tigers must summon the same desire if they are to deliver the knockout blow in what has been dubbed ""rugby's version of Rocky II"". ""There was a lot of satisfaction in the dressing room aftewards but it is really only a case of a job half done,"" he added. ""It was the first of a two-leg trip and if we lose at Welford Road it will negate all the positives we can take from result. ""I think it came down to who wanted it more and in the end I think we did. We have got to show the same desire again this week.""
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Scrum-half Williams rejoins Bath	"Bath have signed their former scrum-half Andy Williams on a short-term deal from the Neath-Swansea Ospreys.

Wales international Williams, whose contract with the Welsh region was due to expire in June, has agreed a contract until the end of the season. With Martyn Wood's injury likely to keep him out until February, Bath need experienced back-up to Nick Walshe. Said Williams: ""When this opportunity presented itself, I did not really have to think twice about it."" Williams, capped by Wales against Romania in 2003, should figure in the match squad for Monday's Zurich Premiership match at Sale Sharks. He lost his Ospreys starting place to New Zealander Jason Spice and has fallen further behind in the pecking order. The Welsh region has two outstanding young No 9 prospects in Richie Rees and Rhodri Wells. Bath director of rugby Jack Rowell, though, believes Williams fits the bill perfectly. ""He has been playing regular Heineken Cup and Celtic League rugby and he has a great affection for Bath,"" Rowell told Bath's official website. ""We are delighted to be able to welcome him back to the club.""
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Bath faced with Tindall ultimatum	"Mike Tindall's agent has warned Bath they have until next week to improve their contract offer to the England man or risk losing him to a rival club.

Dipo Alli says he has received an offer for Tindall which dwarfs Bath's deal and that two other clubs want to talk. ""Mike does not want to go into the Six Nations worrying about where he will be playing his club rugby next season,"" Alli told the Guardian newspaper. ""It is up to (Bath owner) Andrew Brownsword. He has to make it happen."" Tindall is out of contract at the end of the season but it is understood that Brownsword is unwilling to break the club's salary structure to accommodate the 26-year-old's demands. But Alli insists the player is worth more than Bath have put on the table. ""Mike has been at Bath for eight years and wants to remain with the club and his demands are anything but excessive,"" the agent added. ""But Brownsword has to recognise Mike's value and we want to resolve things by the end of next week.""
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Tindall wants second opinion	"England centre Mike Tindall is to seek a second opinion before having surgery on a foot injury that could force him to miss the entire Six Nations.

The Bath player was already out of the opener against Wales on 5 February because of a hand problem. ""Mike had a specialist review on a fracture in his right mid foot,"" said England doctor Simon Kemp. ""Before a final decision is made on surgery... medical teams have decided he should see a second specialist.""

England coach Andy Robinson is already without centre Will Greenwood and flanker Richard Hill while fly-half Jonny Wilkinson is certain to miss at least the first two games. Robinson is expected to announce his new-look England line-up on Monday for the match at the Millennium Stadium. And Newcastle's 18-year-old centre Mathew Tait is set to stand in for Tindall alongside club team-mate Jamie Noon.

Meanwhile, Tindall is targeting a return to action before the end of the regular Zurich Premiership season on 30 April. He will also aim to be back to full fitness before the Lions tour to New Zealand this summer.
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Paris promise raises Welsh hopes	"Has there been a better Six Nations match than Saturday's epic in Paris?

And can the Welsh revival continue all the way to a first Grand Slam since 1978? Those are the two questions occupying not just Wales supporters but rugby fans as a whole after a scintillating display in Paris. Welsh legend Mervyn Davies, a member of two of three Grand Slam-winning sides of the 1970s, hailed it as ""one of the great performances of the past three decades"". Martyn Williams, Wales' two-try scorer on the day, called it ""one of the most surreal games I have ever played in"". A crestfallen France coach, Bernard Laporte, simply observed: ""There was a French half and there was a Welsh half"". And what a half it was for the Red Dragonhood, transforming a 15-6 half-time deficit into an 18-15 lead within five mesmerising minutes of the second period. But while that passage of play showed the swelling self-belief of a side prepared to back its own spirit of adventure, the final quarter told us a whole lot more about this Welsh side. That they recovered from a battering in the first half-hour to first stem the tide before half-time, then reverse it on the resumption, was remarkable enough. But in resisting a seemingly unstoppable wave of French pressure in a nail-biting final five minutes, Wales showed not only their physical attributes but their mental resolve.

In international rugby, any of the top seven sides can beat each other on a given day, but the great sides are those that win the close contests on a consistent basis. England suffered some infamous Six Nations disappointments en route to World Cup glory, the pain of defeat forging bonds that ultimately led to victory when it really mattered. Wales have some way to go before they can be remotely considered in a similar light. But the signs are that players previously on the receiving end are learning how to emerge on the right side of the scoreline. Ten of the 22 on duty on Saturday were also involved when Wales were trounced 33-5 in Paris two years ago. But since they threw off the shackles against New Zealand in the 2003 World Cup, Wales have rediscovered much of what made them a great rugby nation in the first place.

""The confidence in the squad has been building and building since the World Cup and we now have young players who are becoming world class,"" noted coach Mike Ruddock. The likes of Michael Owen, Gethin Jenkins, Dwayne Peel and Gavin Henson are certainly building strong cases for inclusion on this summer's Lions tour to New Zealand. And players like Stephen Jones, Martyn Williams, Shane Williams and Gareth Thomas are proving it is not only the youngsters that are on an upward curve. Jones, after his superb man-of-the-match display, observed that ""we are a very happy camp now"". Ruddock and Thomas can take much of the credit for that, ensuring the tribal and regional divisions that have often scarred Welsh rugby do not extend to the national squad. The

joie de vivre

so evident in that magical second-half spell in Paris also stems from a style of play that first wooed supporters the world over in the 1970s.

If England had half the innate attacking exuberance Wales have produced in this championship, they would not be contemplating the debris of three consecutive defeats. Similarly, Wales have learnt that style alone does not win matches, and that forward power, mental toughness and good decision-making under pressure are equally important. So on to Murrayfield, where Wales have not won on their last three visits. While the hype in the Principality will go into overdrive, the players will set about the task of beating Scotland. Only then - with the visit of Ireland to finish - can they start thinking about emulating the hallowed players of the 1970s, and writing their own names into Welsh legend.
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Wales silent on Grand Slam talk	"Rhys Williams says Wales are still not thinking of winning the Grand Slam despite a third Six Nations win.

""That's the last thing on our minds at the moment,"" said Williams, a second- half replacement in Saturday's 24-18 win over France in Paris. ""We all realise how difficult a task it is to go up to Scotland and beat them. ""We've come unstuck there a couple of times recently so our focus is on that game and we'll worry about Ireland hopefully after we've beaten Scotland."" With captain Gareth Thomas ruled out of the rest of the campaign with a broken thumb, Williams is vying for his first start in the championship so far.

Kevin Morgan is probably favourite to replace Thomas at full-back, leaving Williams and Hal Luscombe to battle for the right wing berth. A hamstring injury denied Luscombe the opportunity to make a third successive start, but the Dragons winger is expected to be fit for the trip to Murrayfield on 13 March. Hooker Robin McBryde is doubtful after picking up a knee injury in Paris, but centre Sonny Parker and flanker Colin Charvis are set to recover from injury to be in contention for selection. Said Wales assistant coach Scott Johnson: ""They've worked through the weekend and the reports are a bit more positive. ""So we're getting a couple back and that adds to the depth of the squad."" Scotland secured their first win of the campaign on Saturday by grinding out an 18-10 win over Italy.

Matt Williams' side has shown little in attack, but Johnson insisted the Scots will be difficult opposition to break down. ""Italy are really brave opposition and sometimes it's very hard to win,"" he said. ""So an ugly win can be just as effective as a 30 or 40 point victory. ""Scotland are a hard side and very underrated so we're not taking anything for granted. ""We're not basking in the glory of winning our first three games. We've got to be diligent in our preparation. ""That's my job and we've got to make sure we're focused.""
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Sculthorpe wants Lions captaincy	"Paul Sculthorpe has admitted he would love to succeed Andy Farrell as Great Britain skipper if the Wigan star does switch codes to rugby union.

Sculthorpe was vice-captain in the Tri-Nations, and took the St Helens captaincy from Chris Joynt last year. ""I would definitely want the job - I make no bones about it,"" Sculthorpe told BBC Sport. ""It's something I've always wanted to do. I'd gladly take it if it was offered to me.""

The 27-year-old, who captained St Helens to Challenge Cup success last year, said following in the footsteps of Farrell would be a challenge. ""Andy would be a hard act to follow but it's something I'm confident of being up to,"" he said. ""The GB team isn't a one-man team. There are a lot of good young players who are pushing for places anyway.""

Sculthorpe said the rugby league world would understand if Farrell did decide to move to rugby union. ""It's a short career and you have to make of it what you can,"" said Sculthorpe. ""Nobody can blame him if he does go - he's done everything in the game of rugby league.

""Financially it could set him up for life. If he fancies a new challenge, then who could fault him?"" Sculthorpe also called on the rugby league authorities to have a serious look at the number of games the top players are being asked to play. Sean Long, Sculthorpe's Saints and Lions team-mate, has expressed doubts about his international future ""I think Sean's situation is to do with the sheer number of games we're playing,"" he said.

""The way he's looking at it is that if he can extend his career by a couple of years by not playing international rugby, then he's willing to do that. ""The RFL has got to do something about the fixtures. We're playing 42 weeks of the year and it's too much. ""A lot of the niggly injuries that I've suffered with over the last couple of years have come about because of the lack of rest time."" St Helens have been strongly linked with a move for brilliant young forward Sonny Bill Williams, and Sculthorpe said he would love the 19-year-old to come to Knowsley Road. ""He's a great player - a big strong lad who can certainly hit hard in defence, but who is also very skilful,"" he said. ""I'd love him to come to St Helens. Who knows what might happen? But you want the best players in your team, and he's certainly one of the best players in the world.""
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Tigers wary of Farrell 'gamble'	"Leicester say they will not be rushed into making a bid for Andy Farrell should the Great Britain rugby league captain decide to switch codes.

""We and anybody else involved in the process are still some way away from going to the next stage,"" Tigers boss John Wells told BBC Radio Leicester. ""At the moment, there are still a lot of unknowns about Andy Farrell, not least his medical situation. ""Whoever does take him on is going to take a big, big gamble."" Farrell, who has had persistent knee problems, had an operation on his knee five weeks ago and is expected to be out for another three months. Leicester and Saracens are believed to head the list of rugby union clubs interested in signing Farrell if he decides to move to the 15-man game.

If he does move across to union, Wells believes he would better off playing in the backs, at least initially. ""I'm sure he could make the step between league and union by being involved in the centre,"" said Wells. ""I think England would prefer him to progress to a position in the back row where they can make use of some of his rugby league skills within the forwards. ""The jury is out on whether he can cross that divide. ""At this club, the balance will have to be struck between the cost of that gamble and the option of bringing in a ready-made replacement.""
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Farrell saga to drag on - Lindsay	"Wigan chairman Maurice Lindsay says he does not expect a quick solution to the on-going saga of captain Andy Farrell's possible switch to rugby union.

Leicester and Saracens are leading the chase for the player, but Lindsay told the BBC it was not yet a done deal. ""As well as the Rugby Football Union, the league, the individual club and the England coaching team have a say, so it's not a quick decision,"" he said. ""He's given us 12 years service so if he wants to go, we'd support him."" The prospect of Farrell switching codes has been the main talking point of the Super League season so far. ""It came as a bolt out of the blue to us,"" admitted Lindsay. ""But he's a very loyal friend to the club, so there's no question that he's deserting us. He just fancies a challenge.""

Although the move would be a lucrative one for both Farrell and Wigan, Lindsay said money was not a motivating factor for the club. ""The money side of things hasn't been concluded, but it's not the point for Wigan,"" he told Radio Five Live. ""A shortage of money has never been a problem for us. ""Even if we did have it, under the salary cap we can't spend a penny of it anyway - we'd rather have the player.""

Lindsay also said he understood why rugby union was so interested in signing up Farrell. ""It'd be a great loss for us but a great boost for them,"" said the Warriors chief. ""This guy is an absolute sporting icon. He's been at the top for so long and has demonstrated so many attributes that you need to make it in a tough contact sport. ""Athletes like him - Ellery Hanley and Martin Johnson - don't come along very often. You're very lucky to have them whilst you've got them.""
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England given tough Sevens draw	"England will have to negotiate their way through a tough draw if they are to win the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Hong Kong next month.

The second seeds have been drawn against Samoa, France, Italy, Georgia and Chinese Taipei. The top two sides in each pool qualify but England could face 2001 winners New Zealand in the quarter-finals if they stumble against Samoa. Scotland and Ireland are in Pool A together with the All Blacks. England won the first event of the International Rugby Board World Sevens series in Dubai but have slipped to fourth in the table after failing to build on that victory.

However, they beat Samoa in the recent Los Angeles Sevens before losing to Argentina in the semi-finals. ""England have the ability and determination to win this World Cup and create sporting history by being the only nation to hold both the 15s and Sevens World Cups at the same time,"" said England sevens coach Mike Friday. ""England have a fantastic record in Hong Kong and have won there the last three years, but the World Cup is on a different level. ""Every pool contains teams who have caused upsets before and we will have to work hard to ensure we progress from our group. ""We have not performed consistently to our true potential so far in the IRB Sevens which has been disappointing - but we can only look forward."" England won the first Rugby World Cup Sevens in 1993 with a side that included the likes of Lawrence Dallaglio and Matt Dawson. In 1997 and 2001, England lost in the quarter-finals.

(seeds in brackets)

New Zealand (1), Scotland (8), Tonga, Ireland, Korea, USA.

England (2), Samoa (7), France, Italy, Georgia, Chinese Taipei.

Fiji (3), Australia (6), Canada, Portugal, Japan, Hong Kong.

Argentina (4), South Africa (5), Kenya, Tunisia, Russia, Uruguay.
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Wales hails new superstar	"One game into his Six Nations career, and Gavin Henson is already a Welsh legend.

A mesmeric display against England, topped off by his howitzer of a match-winning penalty, has secured life membership of that particular club. At 23, Henson has the rugby world at his silver-booted feet. And if his natural self-assurance and swagger is shared by his Wales team-mates, then a full-blown revival could be more than just a lot of hot air drifting up from the Valleys. The ""Red Dragonhood"" subdued the ""Red Rose Army"" in most areas of the field, but Henson's stellar performance ensured their efforts yielded the win they craved above all others. He announced himself in the game's opening salvo with a ""Welcome to Cardiff"" greeting for Mark Cueto on the gain line. And his defence was a major feature of the match, his principal victim poor old, or rather young, Mathew Tait. The England centre will have spent his 19th birthday on Sunday shuddering at the memory of how he was up-ended not just once, but twice, by Henson's all-enveloping tackles.

The second time, after the interval, single-handedly lifted the record Millennium Stadium crowd at a time when England were starting to show menace. Showing awesome strength, Henson nonchantly held the bewildered debutant in mid-air, a master predator toying with his helpless prey, savouring the kill. His kicking game also prospered, particularly when he moved to full-back for 10 minutes either side of half-time when his captain Gareth Thomas was in the sin-bin. One huge clearance from Tait's kick sent England retreating rapidly while another booming punt to the right corner kept the visitors pinned in their own half. Henson was also creativity personified: one little chip ahead for Shane Williams narrowly missed its target; a precise cross-kick forcing Jamie Noon to fumble the ball into touch. He also had a hand in the game's only try, finished superbly by Williams, and might have scored himself on the half-hour as he glided into space, only to be scragged by Tait. Henson was twice repelled as Wales laid siege to the English line after Charlie Hodgson's penalty had edged the visitors in front for the first time. But he was not to be denied as the crescendo rose to a deafening din, and the outcome of the match fell to him. Replacement Gareth Cooper made the most of a poor Welsh scrum by chipping into space, where Jason Robinson was penalised for holding on in the tackle.

Five metres in from the right touchline, 44 metres out, it was not a kick Stephen Jones, who had seen a long-range effort fall agonisingly under the bar, would have approached with confidence. ""It was out of Steve's range but I looked at Gavin, and he gave me a reassuring nod,"" said Thomas. Henson, surveying his date with destiny, positively relished the responsibility, and the chance to make himself a hero. Without further ado, he nervelessly slotted the kick that ended five years of English dominance and 12 years of waiting in Cardiff. ""I knew I was going to get it before I even took the kick,"" he said later, his distinct spikey locks freshly gelled into an appropriate star shape. ""I have been getting them from that distance all year so it wasn't a problem."" There were still four minutes for Wales to hold out, and the frenzy was such that Henson could not even hear Jones shouting instructions at him from three yards away. But it was Wales who finished the game on the attack, almost snatching a second try in a thunderous climax. ""Just Do It"" implored the front page headline on Saturday's Western Mail newspaper. And, thanks to Henson, Wales did.
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Sydney to host north v south game	"Sydney will host a northern versus southern hemisphere charity match in June or July, the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) said on Wednesday.

The match will include players from the Lions tour of New Zealand. ""The Australian Rugby Union has thrown its support behind a proposed North-South match to raise funds for the tsunami appeals,"" the ARU said. The date is yet to be decided but the most likely venue is Sydney's Olympic Stadium. ARU chief executive Gary Flowers said the world cricket charity match in Melbourne earlier this month had inspired the ARU. ""We still need to discuss the options with the IRB (International Rugby Board), the Lions and our SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby) partners, but June or July is seen as a better option than March to ensure we have the cream of southern hemisphere rugby available,"" he said. Wallabies captain George Gregan said the charity match was a ""great initiative"". Tri-Nations rivals Australia, New Zealand and South Africa would feature prominently in a southern team against a northern side comprised of Six Nations teams France, Ireland, England, Wales, Italy and Scotland. Coach Clive Woodward's Lions squad will tour New Zealand in June and July, including Tests on 25 June, 2 and 9 July.

Almost 80,000 fans packed into Melbourne Cricket Ground on 10 January for a charity match that raised £5.9m for victims of the Asian tsunami.
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Celts savour Grand Slam prospect	"The Six Nations has heralded a new order in northern hemisphere rugby this year and Wales and Ireland rather than traditional big guns France and England face a potential Grand Slam play-off in three weeks' time.

But before that game in Cardiff, Wales must get past Scotland at Murrayfield, while Ireland face the not insignificant task of a home fixture with the mercurial French. No-one knows what mood France will be in at Lansdowne Road on 12 March - sublime, as in the first half against Wales, or ridiculous, like in the same period against England at Twickenham. But how the mighty have fallen. England sat on rugby's summit 15 months ago as world champions and 2003 Grand Slam winners. But they have lost nine of their 14 matches since that heady night in Sydney. And they face the ignominy of what could amount to a Wooden Spoon play-off against Italy in a fortnight.

England are enduring their worst run in the championship since captain Richard Hill was dumped in favour of Mike Harrison after three straight losses in 1987. Coach Andy Robinson, who took over from the successful Sir Clive Woodward in September, has lost a phalanx of World Cup stars. And he is enduring the toughest of teething problems in bedding down his own style with a new team. The same year that England ruled the roost, a woeful Wales lost all five matches in the Six Nations. And they won only two games, against Scotland and Italy, in 2004. Wales' most recent championship title was in 1994, and their last Grand Slam success came in 1978 in the era of Gareth Edwards, Phil Bennett, JPR Williams et al.

But Welsh rugby fans remain on permanent tenterhooks for the blossoming of a new golden age. After several false dawns, coach Mike Ruddock may have come up with the team and philosophy to match expectations. The fresh verve is inspired by skipper Gareth Thomas, now out with a broken thumb, accurate kicking from either fly-half Stephen Jones or centre Gavin Henson, a rampant Martyn Williams leading the way up front, and exciting runners in the guise of Henson and Shane Williams. Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan and captain Brian O'Driscoll have got their side buzzing too, and they are close to shedding the ""nearly-men"" tag that has dogged them for the past few years. The men from the Emerald Isle have been Six Nations runners-up for the past two years, to France and England.

But they have not won the title since 1985 and last clinched a Grand Slam in 1948. As for Scotland, they have struggled this decade and the 2004 Wooden Spoon ""winners"" have not been in the top two since they lifted the title in 1999. Italy continue the elusive search for their first Six Nations away win, and can still only account for the scalps of Scotland (twice) and Wales since joining the elite in 2000. Coach John Kirwan is a passionate and dedicated believer in the Azzurri, but is lacking in raw materials. And so to France. Brilliant one minute, inept the next. But the reigning champions could quite easily turn on the style in Dublin and end up winning the title through the back door. Ireland, though, have won three times in their last five meetings. Welsh romantics would probably prefer a glorious victory in the Celtic showdown to crown their Grand Slam. But given that Ireland have beaten Wales in four of their last five meetings, the Welsh legions are likely to be behind Les Bleus on 12 March.
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Ireland win eclipses refereeing 'errors'	"The International Rugby Board may have to step in to stop frustrated coaches and players from publicly haranguing referees when things go belly-up.

It may have to go the whole way and have NFL-style video cameras all over the field, or slap the vociferous perpetrators over the knuckles. What the IRB does not want is a football scenario where the verbal slanging matches often overshadow the game itself. Sunday's explosive Six Nations clash at Lansdowne Road was a good example as Ireland took another step towards their first Grand Slam since 1948. The game was as exciting as it comes, with a much-improved England side enraged at a few decisions that did not go their way. One can understand that frustration. There was no doubt that Ireland had the rub of the green in their 19-13 victory, but the reaction from the England camp may not have endeared them to the sport's ""blazers"". Referee Jonathan Kaplan was not perfect by any means and two decisions in particular made him the villain of the piece. I doubt whether Kaplan would have been too pleased at the comments made. After all, he has no public recourse to criticism.

It was the same for Simon McDowell, the touch judge who was heavily criticised by Scotland coach Matt Williams after their defeat against France. As far as England were concerned, there were queries over Mark Cueto's first half-effort when he went over in the corner from a Charlie Hodgson kick.

England coach Andy Robinson referred to a similar case at Ravenhill in January when Ulster were playing Gloucester in the Heineken Cup. On that occasion, David Humphreys kicked to Tommy Bowe, who touched down in the corner only for the try to be wiped out. But you cannot have cameras at every conceivable angle to pick up such anomalies. Perhaps Robinson was right to say the referee should have gone upstairs when Josh Lewsey was driven over the Irish line near the end.

Lewsey claims he touched it down and was in full control. However, one has to credit Ireland flanker Johnny O'Connor for cleverly scooping the ball away and blocking any evidence of a touchdown. But in rugby, everything tends to even out over the 80 minutes. The referee also missed England's Danny Grewcock taking out Ronan O'Gara off the ball to allow Martin Corry a Sunday stroll to the line. Those were the stand-out moments in a classic game between the two old foes.

But there were many more, and one should not take away from those. Brian O'Driscoll's winning try was as well-conceived as they come, while Charlie Hodgson's brilliant kicking display was another highlight. And Ronan O'Gara's tremendous ability to control the game was also a crucial component. But the defining moments came with Ireland under the cosh in the final 15 minutes. Two outstanding pieces of defensive play denied England and allowed Ireland to hold on. The first was Denis Hickie's brilliant double tackle in the right-hand corner. He gobbled up Cueto from another Hodgson cross-field kick, then regained his feet to stop Lewsey from scoring a certain try. Ireland's second-row colossus Paul O'Connell was equally superb. England had turned Ireland one way then the other, and the defence cordon was slowly disintegrating. England prop Matt Stevens ran in at full steam to suck in a few more tacklers. Unfortunately he ran into O'Connell who hit him hard - very hard - and then wrestled the ball away for a crucial turnover. That spoke volumes about Ireland's back-foot display, with defensive coach Mike Ford taking a bow at the end. To win a game like that showed that Ireland have moved forward. It may be tries that win games, but it is defence that wins championships.
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Ireland 19-13 England	"Ireland consigned England to their third straight Six Nations defeat with a stirring victory at Lansdowne Road.

A second-half try from captain Brian O'Driscoll and 14 points from Ronan O'Gara kept Ireland on track for their first Grand Slam since 1948. England scored first through Martin Corry but had ""tries"" from Mark Cueto and Josh Lewsey disallowed. Andy Robinson's men have now lost nine of their last 14 matches since the 2003 World Cup final. The defeat also heralded England's worst run in the championship since 1987. Ireland last won the title, then the Five Nations, in 1985, but 20 years on they share top spot in the table on maximum points with Wales. And Eddie O'Sullivan's side banished the ghosts of 2003 when England were rampant 42-6 victors in claiming the Grand Slam at Lansdowne Road. In front of a supercharged home crowd on a dry but blustery day in Dublin, Ireland tore into the white-shirted visitors from the kick-off and made their intentions clear when O'Gara landed a fourth-minute drop-goal.

England took their time to settle but their first real venture into Ireland's half produced a simple score for Corry. The number eight picked up the ball from the back of a ruck and found an absence of green jerseys between himself and the Irish line, racing 25 yards to touch down. England fly-half Charlie Hodgson nailed the conversion from out on the left, but almost immediately O'Gara, winning his 50th cap, answered with two penalties in quick succession. England were awarded a penalty of their own on the halfway line after 20 minutes, and Hodgson, the villain at Twickenham, coolly bisected the posts. The first quarter was marked by periods of tactical kicking, but it was Ireland who were showing more willingness to spread the ball wide to their eager and inventive backs. A series of probes led by the talismanic O'Driscoll, back from hamstring injury, resulted in a penalty but Ireland chose to kick for touch.

From the line-out, the ball was recycled back to O'Gara, who stroked his second drop-goal, this time off the right upright. As the interval approached, wing Josh Lewsey was the catalyst for England's most promising attack. The Wasps star raced up his touchline and Hodgson's cross-kick put in Mark Cueto for an apparent score, but the Sale wing was ruled to have started in front of the kicker. England began the second half well and had Ireland pinned in their own half. But another English indiscretion on a rare Irish break-out awarded O'Gara a kick at goal, which he missed. England's pressure continued, and a wave of attacks saw centre Jamie Noon dragged down yards from the line before Hodgson landed a drop-goal.

The lead was shortlived, however. Ireland raced upfield, deft handling from the backs, including a clever dummy from Geordan Murphy on Hodgson, ending with O'Driscoll going over in the right corner and touching down close to the posts. O'Gara missed a penalty which would have put Ireland nine points clear, and the home crowd breathed a sigh of relief when Hodgson's cross-kick was fumbled by lock Ben Kay near the line. Anticipation of a home win sent the noise level sky-high, but O'Gara missed another chance to seal the game with a wayward drop-goal attempt. Inside the last 10 minutes, England poured forward, spurred on by scrum-half Matt Dawson, who replaced Leicester's Harry Ellis. But despite one near miss with the pack over the line - not checked on the TV replay by referee Jonathan Kaplan - England were unable to pull off a face-saving win. Ireland next face France at Lansdowne Road in two weeks' time before the potential title decider against Wales in Cardiff. England are still to meet Italy at Twickenham, in what is now a wooden spoon decider, and Scotland.

G Murphy; G Dempsey, B O'Driscoll, S Horgan, D Hickie; R O'Gara, P Stringer; R Corrigan, S Byrne, J Hayes; M O'Kelly, P O'Connell; S Easterby, J O'Connor, A Foley.

F Sheahan, M Horan, D O'Callaghan, E Miller, G Easterby, D Humphreys, K Maggs.

J Robinson (capt); M Cueto, J Noon, O Barkley, J Lewsey; C Hodgson, H Ellis; G Rowntree, S Thompson, M Stevens; D Grewcock, B Kay; J Worsley, L Moody, M Corry.

A Titterrell, D Bell, S Borthwick, A Hazell, M Dawson, A Goode, O Smith.
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Fuming Robinson blasts officials	"England coach Andy Robinson said he was ""livid"" after his side were denied two tries in Sunday's 19-13 Six Nations loss to Ireland in Dublin.

Mark Cueto's first-half effort was ruled out for offside before the referee spurned TV replays when England crashed over in the dying minutes. ""[I'm] absolutely spitting. I'm livid. There's two tries we've been cost,"" Robinson told BBC Sport. ""We've got to go back to technology. I don't know why we didn't."" South African referee Jonathan Kaplan ruled that Cueto was ahead of Charlie Hodgson when the fly-half hoisted his cross-field kick for the Sale wing to gather.

Kaplan then declined the chance to consult the fourth official when Josh Lewsey took the ball over the Irish line under a pile of bodies for what could have been the game-winning try. ""I think Mark Cueto scored a perfectly legal try and I think he should have gone to the video referee on Josh Lewsey,"" said Robinson. ""It is how we use the technology. It is there, and it should be used.

""I am still trying to work out the Cueto try. I have looked at both, and they both looked tries. ""We are very disappointed, and this will hurt, there is no doubt about that. ""We are upset now, but the referee is in charge and he has called it his way and we have got to be able to cope with that.

""We did everything we could have done to win the game. I am very proud of my players and, with a couple of decisions, this could have been a very famous victory. ""I thought we dominated. Matt Stevens had an awesome game at tighthead prop, while the likes of Charlie Hodgson, Martin Corry and Lewis Moody all came through well. ""Josh Lewsey was awesome, and every one of the forwards stood up out there. Given the pressure we were under, credit must go to all the players. ""We have done everything but win a game of rugby, but Ireland are a good side. They defended magnificently and they've got every chance of winning this Six Nations."" England have lost their first three matches in this year's Six Nations and four out of their six games since Robinson took over from Sir Clive Woodward in September.
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Scotland 18-10 Italy	"Six Chris Paterson penalties gave Scotland victory in a dour but clinical encounter against Italy at Murrayfield.

Coach Matt Williams' side were outmuscled and outplayed in a tense first half but led 6-3 at the break. Paterson slotted four more second-half penalties and Scotland were denied a try when wing Sean Lamont's touchdown was ruled out for a forward pass. A late Andrea Masi try was small consolation for Italy, chasing their first away win in the Six Nations. Scotland came out on top of the early exchanges and took a quick 3-0 lead through the boot of full-back Paterson. But the more powerful Azzurri pack eventually rumbled into life.

A series of drives into Scottish territory set up a penalty attempt, missed by full-back Roland De Marigny, and a wayward drop-goal effort from Luciano Orquera. Scotland defended the initial thrusts but on 20 minutes Italy, after coming up yards short of the line, equalised through a De Marigny penalty. Italy were offered another penalty when Scottish flanker Simon Taylor was offside but the left-footed De Marigny pushed his kick wide. Scotland finally made the most of a rare foray into the Italian half and snatched three points from Paterson when an Italian forward handled the ball in a ruck.

As the half wore on, both sides squandered promising spells of momentum with sloppy penalties, and the period fizzled out with Scotland numerically, if not psychologically, on top. Italy's De Marigny narrowly missed a chance to level the scores again shortly after the break but his long-range kick shaved the right upright. And Scotland capitalised with a third Paterson penalty on 50 minutes. Williams' side seemed to have found a spark from somewhere and, after a couple of probing attacks, Paterson was able to slot another three points to widen the gap.

With the pendulum of possession swinging towards Scotland, Lamont thought he had wriggled over in the left corner after 65 minutes but play was recalled for a marginal forward pass from Paterson. Another Paterson penalty on 70 minutes kept the pressure on the wilting visitors. But John Kirwan's men had the last laugh when Gordon Ross' attempted clearance was charged down and Masi pounced for the try, converted by De Marigny.

: C Paterson; S Webster, A Craig, H Southwell, S Lamont; D Parks, C Cusiter; T Smith, G Bulloch (capt), G Kerr; S Grimes, S Murray; S Taylor, J Petrie, A Hogg.

R Russell, B Douglas, N Hines, J Dunbar, M Blair, G Ross, B Hinshelwood.

R de Marigny; Mirco Bergamasco, C Stoica, A Masi, L Nitoglia; L Orquera, A Troncon; A Lo Cicero, F Ongaro, M Castrogiovanni; S Dellape, M Bortolami (capt); A Persico, D Dal Maso, S Parisse.

G Intoppa, S Perugini, CA del Fava, S Orlando, P Griffen, R Pedrazzi, KP Robertson.
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Bortolami predicts dour contest	"Italy skipper Marco Bortolami believes Saturday's Six Nations contest against Scotland will be a scrappy encounter.

With both sides looking for their first win of the championship, the third-round game at Murrayfield has been billed as a wooden-spoon decider. And Bortolami feels the Edinburgh contest could end up being a bruising battle of the packs. ""It will not be a pretty game because both teams are desperate to gain their first win,"" said the lock forward. Italy have only recorded three wins since they joined the Six Nations in 2000, but two of those have come against Scotland. This year, Italy opened up with a stubborn display against Ireland but ended up losing 28-17.

However, they were thoroughly outplayed by an impressive Welsh side in Rome last time out. Now the Italians travel to Edinburgh hoping to claim their first away win in the Six Nations. ""Scotland played extremely well against France in Paris but not so well when Ireland came to Edinburgh,"" said Bortolami. ""We are still very disappointed with our last game against Wales in Rome and we are thoroughly determined to right the wrongs. ""As a nation, our quest is to be respected as a team worthy of a place in this tournament and we can only do this by winning games.""
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O'Connell rejects Lions rumours	"Ireland and Munster lock Paul O'Connell has dismissed media reports linking him to the captaincy of the Lions tour to New Zealand this summer.

O'Connell is rumoured to be among the front-runners for the job, but says he is totally focused on Sunday's Six Nations crunch clash with England. ""I honestly don't think about these reports,"" he told BBC Sport. ""The Lions thing is all speculation and newspaper talk, nothing more. I just ignore it and get on with my job."" He added: ""The only thing that annoys me after reading some reports is what the opposition locks think. ""I can just imagine them saying 'I'm going to show this guy what's what about second row play'. That's the one thing that makes me cringe."" O'Connell, who made a try-scoring international debut against Wales two years ago, is enjoying his meteoric rise into rugby's shop window - but refuses to be drawn on the Lions.

""I have spoken to Sir Clive Woodward a few times, but not for very long, certainly nothing about summer holidays,"" he joked. He also said he remains wary of wounded England's abilities coming into Sunday's game after two straight defeats, dismissing predictions of a certain Irish victory. ""It's very dangerous to think that. This England team has so much experience and skill. You do not become a bad team overnight. ""They have two world class game-breakers in Josh Lewsey and Jason Robinson, while Charlie Hodgson is just ready to click into place."" He insisted Ireland will not make the mistake of being over-confident. ""That's not going to happen in our squad. No Ireland team lining up to play England will ever fall into that trap,"" he said. ""Every time we play England we know what a big task it is. Look at what they did to us two years ago. I remember that game all too well, and it was not a good feeling. ""I came on as a replacement and we were losing 13-6, and ended up getting hammered 42-6, so I know what can happen when England come to Dublin. ""They could so easily have been coming to Dublin with two wins and staring a Grand Slam in the face as well.""
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Taylor poised for Scotland return	"Simon Taylor has been named in the Scotland squad for Saturday's Six Nations clash with Italy.

The 25-year-old number eight made a scoring return for Edinburgh at the weekend - his first game in a year for the capital side. Taylor suffered knee ligament damage playing against Ireland in Dublin in the 2004 Six Nations championship. ""Simon is one of Scotland's truly world class players so it is a huge bonus,"" said team-mate Chris Paterson. ""He brings a whole new dimension to us, especially in defence and his ability to slow the opposition ball down could be key against Italy if he is involved."" Taylor has turned out for English side Saracens in recent weeks during a short-term loan to improve his fitness.

Edinburgh were not in action during the first two weeks of this season's Six Nations. So Taylor played the last 20 minutes of Saracens' win over Northampton and then 40 minutes in a friendly against South African Super 12 side The Cats. Scotland coach Matt Williams is due to name his match-day 22 on Thursday. Both Scotland and Italy have lost their opening two Six Nations games and, just like last season's encounter which Italy won, this weekend's game could turn out to be a battle to avoid the wooden spoon.

- M Blair (Edinburgh), A Craig (Glasgow), C Cusiter (Borders), S Danielli (Borders), M Di Rollo (Edinburgh), A Henderson (Glasgow), B Hinshelwood (Worcester), R Lamont (Glasgow), S Lamont (Glasgow), D Parks (Glasgow), C Paterson (Edinburgh), G Ross (Leeds), H Southwell (Edinburgh), S Webster (Edinburgh)

- R Beattie (Northampton), G Bulloch (Glasgow, capt), B Douglas (Borders), J Dunbar (Leeds), I Fullarton (Saracens), S Grimes (Newcastle), N Hines (Edinburgh), A Hogg (Edinburgh), G Kerr (Leeds), N Lloyd (Saracens), S Murray (Edinburgh), J Petrie (Glasgow), R Russell (London Irish), C Smith (Edinburgh), T Smith (Northampton), S Taylor (Edinburgh), J White (Sale).
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Vickery upbeat about arm injury	"England prop Phil Vickery is staying positive despite a broken arm ruling him out of the RBS Six Nations.

The 28-year-old fractured the radius in his right forearm during Gloucester's 17-16 win over Bath on Saturday. He will undergo an operation on Monday and is expected to be out for at least six weeks. He said: ""This isn't an injury that will stop me from working hard on the fitness elements and being around the lads."" He added: ""I've got the operation this afternoon and I could be back doing fitness work after a week."" ""As frustrating as it is, I've got to be positive.""

After the game, Vickery spoke with Bath prop David Barnes, who also broke his arm recently. ""I had a chat with David Barnes and it looks like a similar injury to him,"" he said. ""He said he had the operation and he was back running after a week. ""There's no doubt that I'm going to get involved and be around this place as soon as I can after the operation."" Gloucester director of rugby Nigel Melville said: ""Phil has broken his radius, which is the large bone in his forearm. ""I don't really know how it happened, but Phil will definitely be out of action for at least six weeks. ""I feel very sorry for him, as he has been in great shape. He really needed 80 minutes of rugby this weekend, and then this happened. Mentally, it must be very hard for him.""
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Dominici backs lacklustre France	"Wing Christophe Dominici says France can claim another Six Nations Grand Slam despite two lacklustre wins so far against Scotland and England.

The champions only just saw off the Scots in Paris, then needed England to self-destruct in last week's 18-17 win. ""The English played better than us but lost, whereas we are still in the race for the Grand Slam,"" said Dominici. ""We know our display was not perfect, but we can still win the Grand Slam, along with Ireland and Wales."" France , Ireland and Wales all remain unbeaten after two rounds of this year's RBS Six Nations, with the two Celtic nations playing by far the more impressive rugby.

France take on Wales at the Stade de France on 26 February and Ireland in Dublin on 12 March. But although France have yet to click, Dominici says that they can still win the hard way as long as scrum-half Dimitri Yachvili continues in his goalkicking form. ""If we have an efficient kicker on whom we can rely on, a solid defence and a team who play for their lives, we can achieve something,"" Dominici added. ""I said at the start of the competition that the winners would be clearer from the third matches, and that's exactly what is going to happen."" France coach Bernard Laporte will announce his starting line-up next Tuesday for the match against Wales.

Wing Jimmy Marlu is definitely out with the knee injury sustained at Twickenham, which is likely to sideline him for the rest of the tournament. Inspirational flanker Serge Betsen is a doubt with a thigh injury, but number eight Imanol Harinordoquy has shaken off his shoulder injury. In the backs, centre Yannick Jauzion and winger Aurelien Rougerie are all back in contention after injury, while Brive back Julien Laharrague has received his first call-up as a replacement for Pepito Elhorga.
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Llewellyn plans Wales retirement	"Wales record cap holder Gareth Llewellyn will retire from Test rugby at the end of the Six Nations.

The veteran lock, who is 36 at the end of February, told BBC Wales Scrum V that it is time for him to bring down the curtain on his 92-cap Wales career. Llewellyn is on a one-season deal with French club side Narbonne, but said he may consider retiring from all rugby. ""I don't know what I'll do next year, whether to carry on playing or make a change in my career,"" Llewellyn said. ""Narbonne are really keen for me to stay on for next year, so I've got to decide whether to stay on there or maybe go somewhere else, but ultimitely coaching is where I'd like to end up. ""I've done all the coaching awards and everything you can do in that respect, so it's just hopefully getting a chance somewhere."" Fellow locks Robert Sidoli and Brent Cockbain, who both scored tries in Saturday's Six Nations win in Italy, are Wales coach Mike Ruddock's preferred starters in the second row.

With the resurgence of the Dragons' Ian Gough and the adaptibility of lock-cum-flanker Jon Thomas on the bench, Llewellyn has not yet made a match-day squad this Six Nations campaign. But the former Neath and Ospreys player is still targetting one last outing in the red shirt. ""If I do get on the field then brilliant, although the boys are doing really well and I'm very pleased for them,"" Llewellyn added. ""We've had some really tough years in Wales and the players have been through a hell of a lot. ""Sometimes the easiest thing would have been to throw the towel in and walk away, but a few of us dug in there and it's really nice to see some of the boys getting the rewards now. ""I was going to retire at the end of the last Six Nations, I'd even told some of the boys in the squad about it. ""But Mike (Ruddock) asked me to carry on for another season, which I've done, still part of the squad, still trying to help them out as much as I can."" Llewellyn made his Wales debut in 1989 against New Zealand as a 20-year-old, having caught the selectors' eyes in the All Blacks' tour match against Neath. The 6ft 6in player has not looked back since, going on to break Neil Jenkins' Wales cap record on 12 June 2004 in the 50-44 loss in Argentina.

""There's been lots of highs - winning the Six Nations in '94, beating England in '93, I've been on some great tours and seen some fantastic countries,"" Llewellyn said. ""But I think the best thing of all for me was the time I spent with the players, I've met some great guys in rugby and made some great friends. ""It'll be a bit strange on international days having to find somewhere to watch Wales play, but at least I might have time to get my golf handicap down!"" Llewellyn captained Neath for seven seasons, while being an integral part of the Neath-Swansea Ospreys regional side's first season. But with the Ospreys building for the future, Llewellyn was eventually forced to look to France for employment - digging in his heels during contract negotiations to insist he must be allowed to play for Wales.
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England 17-18 France	"England suffered an eighth defeat in 11 Tests as scrum-half Dimitri Yachvili booted France to victory at Twickenham.

Two converted tries from Olly Barkley and Josh Lewsey helped the world champions to a 17-6 half-time lead. But Charlie Hodgson and Barkley missed six penalties between them, while Yachvili landed six for France to put the visitors in front. England could have won the game with three minutes left, but Hodgson pushed an easy drop goal opportunity wide. It was a dismal defeat for England, coming hard on the heels of an opening Six Nations loss in Wales. They should have put the game well beyond France's reach, but remarkably remained scoreless for the entire second half. A scrappy opening quarter saw both sides betray the lack of confidence engendered by poor opening displays against Wales and Scotland respectively. Hodgson had an early opportunity to settle English nerves but pushed a straightforward penalty attempt wide. But a probing kick from France centre Damien Traille saw Mark Cueto penalised for holding on to the ball in the tackle, Yachvili giving France the lead with a kick from wide out.

France twice turned over England ball at the breakdown early on as the home side struggled to generate forward momentum, one Ben Kay charge apart. A spell of tit-for-tat kicking emphasised the caution on both sides, until England refused a possible three points to kick a penalty to the corner, only to botch the subsequent line-out. But England made the breakthrough after 19 minutes, when a faltering move off the back of a scrum led to the opening try. Jamie Noon took a short pass from Barkley and ran a good angle to plough through Yann Delaigue's flimsy tackle before sending his centre partner through to score at the posts.

Hodgson converted and added a penalty after one of several French infringements on the floor for a 10-3 lead. The fly-half failed to dispense punishment though with a scuffed attempt after France full-back Pepito Elhorga, scragged by Lewsey, threw the ball into touch. Barkley also missed two longer-range efforts as the first half drew to a close, but by then England had scored a second converted try. After a series of phases lock Danny Grewcock ran hard at the French defence and off-loaded out of Sylvain Marconnet's tackle to Lewsey. The industrious wing cut back in on an angle and handed off hooker Sebastien Bruno to sprint over. After a dire opening to the second half, France threw on three forward replacements in an attempt to rectify the situation, wing Jimmy Marlu having already departed injured. Yachvili nibbled away at the lead with a third penalty after 51 minutes.

And when Lewis Moody was twice penalised - for handling in a ruck and then straying offside - the scrum-half's unerring left boot cut the deficit to two points. Barkley then missed his third long-range effort to increase the tension. And after seeing another attempt drop just short, Yachvili put France ahead with his sixth penalty with 11 minutes left.

England sent on Ben Cohen and Matt Dawson, and after Barkley's kick saw Christophe Dominici take the ball over his own line, the stage was set for a victory platform. But even after a poor scrummage, Hodgson had the chance to seal victory but pushed his drop-goal attempt wide. England threw everything at the French in the final frantic moments, but the visitors held on for their first win at Twickenham since 1997.

J Robinson (capt); M Cueto, J Noon, O Barkley, J Lewsey; C Hodgson, H Ellis; G Rowntree, S Thompson, P Vickery; D Grewcock, B Kay; J Worsley, L Moody, M Corry.

A Titterrell, A Sheridan, S Borthwick, A Hazell, M Dawson, H Paul, B Cohen.

P Elhorga; C Dominici, B Liebenberg, D Traille, J Marlu; Y Delaigue, D Yachvili; S Marconnet, S Bruno, N Mas; F Pelous (capt), J Thion, S Betsen, J Bonnaire, S Chabal.

W Servat, J Milloud, G Lamboley, Y Nyanga, P Mignoni, F Michalak, J-P Grandclaude.

Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand)
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Wilkinson to miss Ireland match	"England will have to take on Ireland in the Six Nations without captain and goal-kicker Jonny Wilkinson, according to his Newcastle boss Rob Andrew.

Wilkinson - who had targeted the 27 February match for his international comeback - has been missed by England, not least for his goal-kicking. ""Jonny's not fit yet,"" Falcons chief Andrew told BBC Radio Five Live. ""He won't be fit for Dublin, there's no doubt about that, but he might be fit for Scotland and Italy."" The 25-year-old has not played for England since the 2003 World Cup final after a succession of injuries. England, who have lost three Six Nations games in a row, wasted a 17-6 half-time lead in their 18-17 defeat to France. Goal-kickers Charlie Hodgson and Olly Barkley missed six penalty attempts and a drop-goal between them. ""They've probably got two of the best English kickers in the Premiership in Hodgson and Barkley,"" added Andrew, a former England fly-half and goal-kicker.

""They're both pretty good kickers. Charlie is a good kicker week-in, week-out. ""But it's all about pressure and unfortunately England are just not handling the pressure at the moment."" Andrew also blamed England's poor run of recent results on a lack of leadership in the side following several high-profile retirements and injuries. ""They just didn't have that leadership that would have seen them through. Martin Johnson, Lawrence Dallaglio and Jonny are obviously huge losses and leadership is so important in those situations,"" he said. ""I think it is really difficult for Jason Robinson to lead the side effectively from full-back."" Meanwhile, former England full-back Dusty Hare put England's mistakes down to a lack of mental toughness.

""Jonny Wilkinson has proved himself a cool customer with around an 80% kicking success rate,"" Hare told BBC Radio Five Live. ""But natural-born toughness comes into it as well as all the practice you do. ""You have to be able to shut out all the outside elements and concentrate on putting the ball between the posts."" Hodgson, who has an excellent kicking record with club side Sale Sharks, has introduced crowd noise into his practice routine of late. ""The top golfers don't hit the fairway every time, and it is the same with goal-kicking,"" Hare added. ""You need that mental toughness as well to put the ball over, but great goal-kickers like Jonny Wilkinson come along very rarely.""
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Italy 8-38 Wales	"Wales secured their first away win in the RBS Six Nations for nearly four years with a six-try victory in Rome.

Tries from Jonathan Thomas, Tom Shanklin and Martyn Williams gave the visitors a 19-5 half-time advantage. Luciano Orquera did reply with one for Italy but second-half efforts from Brent Cockbain, Shane Williams and Robert Sidoli sealed victory. Fly-half Stephen Jones added four conversions as Wales maintained their superb start to this year's tournament. Starting full of confidence after their victory over England, the visitors scored the opening try after just four minutes. Diminutive wing Shane Williams fielded a kick ahead and danced past the onrushing Andrea Masi and Aaron Persico into the Italian half. His pass to Tom Shanklin appeared forward but when the centre was held up short, the ball was switched left and Michael Owen's long cut-out pass gave the lurking Thomas an easy run-in.

Stephen Jones, who retained the kicking duties despite Gavin Henson's heroics against England, slotted an excellent conversion from wide out. Wales twice threatened further scores but failed to find the crucial pass, and Italy hit back out of the blue in the 11th minute.

Henson, sporting gold boots rather than the silver variety that did for England, beat two players with ease out on the left touchline. But his attempted chip ahead was charged down by Orquera, who snaffled the loose ball and hared away from halfway to score in the right corner. With the Welsh line-out stuttering and Italy twice turning the visitors' scrum, the home side's forward power brought them back into it. But a clever high kick from Henson almost brought a try for Hal Luscombe when Roland de Marigny and Ludovico Nitoglia made a hash of claiming it as the ball bounced into touch.

Wales regained control with a second try in the 21st minute, Henson lobbing up a high kick to the left corner where Shanklin jumped higher than Nitoglia to dot down his 15th Test try. Jones was unable to convert and De Marigny then hit the upright with a penalty attempt for Italy. Henson was also narrowly short with a long-range effort at goal, but Wales ended the half with a vital third score to give themselves some breathing space.

Henson sent Luscombe streaking away and when he off-loaded to Martyn Williams, the flanker showed his nous to ground the ball against the padding of the post, Jones adding the conversion. Italy, who lost flanker Mauro Bergamasco with a head knock before half-time, built up a head of steam on the resumption. De Marigny landed a penalty to make it 19-8 and a Nitoglia break through the middle threatened a try only for the move to break down with a knock-on. But Wales put the outcome beyond doubt with two superb tries in four minutes before the hour. Their fourth after 53 minutes was sparked by another mazy run from Shane Williams, who beat several players with ease, and finished with a powerful angled run from lock Cockbain. Before Italy could recover from that blow, a strong surge from Gareth Thomas and great off-loads from Martyn Williams and replacement Kevin Morgan saw Shane Williams scamper over.

With Jones converting both for a 33-8 lead, Wales had the luxury of sending on five more replacements for the final quarter. The icing on the cake came with a sixth try after more superb support work, Shane Williams and Ceri Sweeney combining to send Sidoli over in the left corner. The only downside for Wales was a hamstring injury suffered by Luscombe. But after back-to-back wins at the start of the tournament for the first time in 11 years, they will travel to Paris in a fortnight looking like genuine contenders.

R de Marigny; Mirco Bergamasco, W Pozzebon, A Masi, L Nitoglia; L Orquera, A Troncon; A Lo Cicero, F Ongaro, M Castrogiovanni, S Dellape, M Bortolami (capt), A Persico, Mauro Bergamasco, S Parisse.

G Intoppa, S Perugini, CA del Fava, D dal Maso, P Griffen, M Barbini, KP Robertson.

G Thomas (capt); H Luscombe, T Shanklin, G Henson, S Williams; S Jones, D Peel; G Jenkins, M Davies, A Jones; B Cockbain, R Sidoli; J Thomas, M Williams, M Owen.

R McBryde, J Yapp, I Gough, R Sowden-Taylor, G Cooper, C Sweeney, K Morgan.

Andrew Cole (Australia).
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D'Arcy injury adds to Ireland woe	"Gordon D'Arcy has been ruled out of the Ireland team for Saturday's Six Nations clash against Scotland in Murrayfield.

Like skipper Brian O'Driscoll, D'Arcy failed to recover from a hamstring injury. The side will now be led by Munster lock Paul O'Connell. Shane Horgan switches from wing to centre where he will be joined by Ulster's Kevin Maggs. Girvan Dempsey comes into the team to take the right wing spot while Gavin Duffy is called up to the replacements. ''We gave Gordon a chance but it didn't work out,'' said Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan. ''In terms of the risk element, it was a sensible precaution. He should be fine for the next game but we do not want to tempt fate.''

Maggs, who will win his 67th cap, was the obvious replacement at centre while Shane Horgan was always likely to be moved from the wing. The only other change to the Ireland side from last weekend's win in Rome sees Wasps flanker Johnny O'Connor replacing Denis Leamy. O'Connor will be winning his third cap after making his debut in the victory over South Africa last November.

: Murphy, Dempsey, Horgan, Maggs, Hickie, O'Gara, Stringer, Corrigan, Byrne, Hayes, O'Kelly, O'Connell, capt, S Easterby, O'Connor, Foley.

: Sheahan, Horan, O'Callaghan, Miller, G Easterby, Humphreys, Duffy.
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O'Driscoll out of Scotland game	"Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll has been ruled out of Saturday's RBS Six Nations clash against Scotland.

O'Driscoll was originally named in the starting line-up but has failed to recover from the hamstring injury he picked up in the win over Italy. His replacement will be named after training on Friday morning. Fellow centre Gordon D'Arcy is also struggling with a hamstring injury and he will undergo a fitness test on Friday to see if he can play.

Kevin Maggs would be an obvious replacement at centre while Shane Horgan could also be moved from wing. Ulster wing Tommy Bowe could also be asked to travel with the squad to Scotland as a precautionary measure. The only other change to the Ireland side sees Wasps flanker Johnny O'Connor replacing Denis Leamy. O'Connor will be winning his third cap after making his debut in the victory over South Africa last November.

: Murphy, Horgan, TBC, D'Arcy, Hickie, O'Gara, Stringer, Corrigan, Byrne, Hayes, O'Kelly, O'Connell, S Easterby, O'Connor, Foley.

: Sheahan, Horan, O'Callaghan, Miller, G Easterby, Humphreys, Dempsey.
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Tindall aiming to earn Lions spot	"Bath and England centre Mike Tindall believes he can make this summer's Lions tour, despite missing most of the season through injury.

The World Cup winner has been out of action since December, having damaged both his shoulder and his foot. But Tindall, who recently signed for Bath's west-country rivals Gloucester, told Rugby Special he would be fit in time for the tour to New Zealand. ""I'm aiming to be fit by 18 April and hope I can play from then,"" he said. ""I've spoken to Sir Clive Woodward and he understands the situation, so I just hope that I can get on the tour."" The 26-year-old will face stiff competition for those centre places from Brian O'Driscoll, Gordon D'Arcy and Gavin Henson, and is aware that competition is intense.

But after missing out on the 2001 tour to Australia with a knee injury, Tindall says he will be happy just to have an opportunity to wear the red shirt. ""I'm quite laid back about it to be honest - it's quite hard for me to expect to be pushing for a Test spot,"" he said. ""But after what's happened this season at least Clive knows I'll be 100% fresh!""

- For the full interview with Mike Tindall tune into this Sunday's Rugby Special, 2340 on BBC Two
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O'Connor aims to grab opportunity	"Johnny O'Connor is determined to make a big impression when he makes his RBS Six Nations debut for Ireland against Scotland on Saturday.

The Wasps flanker replaces Denis Leamy but O'Connor knows that the Munster man will be pushing hard for a recall for the following game against England. ""It's a 'horses for courses' selection really,"" said O'Connor. ""There's a lot of competition here and I can't just drag my heels around if I don't get picked."" It looks a definite head-to-head battle between himself and 23-year-old Leamy - three stone heavier than O'Connor - for the number seven role against the world champions. Nonetheless, all O'Connor is currently concerned about is making an impression while winning his third cap.

""Missing the Italian game was disappointing certainly, but you can't dwell on these things - it's part and parcel of rugby. ""Denis has been playing really well and deserved his opportunity. ""It's a good situation to be in if there are good players around you, pushing for a place in the side."" O'Connor, who celebrated his 25th birthday on Wednesday, was touted by Wasps director of rugby Warren Gatland as a possible 2005 Lions Test openside as far back as last September. And his reputation as a breakdown scavenger and heavy hitter has seen him come to the forefront of O'Sullivan's mind for the Scottish tussle. O'Connor added: ""It will be interesting to see how situations on the deck is reffed, with the new laws having come in.

""Obviously the breakdown a big part of what I do on the pitch so I'm hoping to hold some influence there against what is a very solid Scottish pack."" O'Connor will be winning his third cap after making his debut in the victory over South Africa last November.
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Henman overcomes rival Rusedski	"Tim Henman saved a match point before fighting back to defeat British rival Greg Rusedski 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday.

World number 46 Rusedski broke in the ninth game to take a tight opening set. Rusedski had match point at 6-5 in the second set tie-break after Henman double-faulted, but missed his chance and Henman rallied to clinch the set. The British number one then showed his superior strength to take the decider and earn his sixth win over Rusedski. Serve was held by both players with few alarms until the seventh game of the final set, when Rusedski's wild volley gave Henman a vital break. A furious Rusedski slammed his racket onto the ground in disgust and was warned by the umpire.

Henman, seeded three, then held his serve comfortably thanks to four serve-and-volley winners to take a clear 5-3 lead. Rusedski won his service game but Henman took the first of his three match points with a service winner to secure his place in the second round at Dubai for the first time in three years. It was the first match between the pair for three years - Henman last lost to Rusedski six years ago - and lasted two hours and 40 minutes. The pair are now likely to only face each other on court as rivals - rather than as team-mates - after Henman decided to retire from Davis Cup tennis leaving Rusedski to lead the team out against Israel on 4-6 March. Henman, who now faces Russian Igor Andreev in the last 16, admitted afterwards it was difficult coming up against his compatriot on a fast surface. ""You just take it point by point when you're fighting to stay in the match,"" he said. ""I had to keep playing aggressively and competing to get a chance. ""I now have to recover in time for the next match because the body doesn't recover as quick as it used to, especially after two hours and 40 minutes.""
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Safin slumps to shock Dubai loss	"Marat Safin suffered a shock loss to unseeded Nicolas Kiefer in round one of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Playing his first match since winning the Australian Open, Safin showed some good touches but was beaten 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 by the in-form Kiefer. The German got on top in the first-set tie-break, striking a sweet forehand to win the first point against serve. And he maintained the momentum early in the second set, breaking the Russian with the help of an inspired volley. Spain's Feliciano Lopez lined up a second round clash with Andre Agassi by beating Thailand's Paradorn Srichaphan. Lopez, who lost in three sets to Roger Federer in last year's final, won 6-2 3-6 6-3. Former champion Fabrice Santoro of France was beaten 6-3 6-0 by sixth seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko. There were also wins for two other Russians, Igor Andreev and seventh seed Mikhail Youzhny.
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Ferrero eyes return to top form	"Former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero insists he can get back to his best despite a tough start to 2005.

The 2003 French Open champion has slipped to 64 in the world after a year of illness and injuries in 2004, but is confident that his form will return. ""I don't know when it is going to happen,"" Ferrero told BBC Sport. ""But I have a lot of confidence in me that I will be the same Juan Carlos as I was before, and very soon. I feel 100% again mentally."" The 25-year-old Spaniard joins a top field for the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam this week as he looks to add to just two wins in 2005. He opens against Rainer Schuettler and potentially faces fourth seed David Nalbandian in the second round. ""Because I'm no longer seeded it's tougher,"" Ferrero admitted. ""I had to play against Joachim Johansson in the first round last week in Marseille.

""In the past when I was a top seed I would have played a match like that in the quarters or semi-finals. ""This is the big difference but I have to do it to get higher in the rankings."" Despite this, Ferrero insists he is feeling positive after chicken pox and a rib injury destroyed last season. ""Physically I am 100% since December of last year,"" said Ferrero. ""I was working very hard before the Davis Cup final to prepare and I've felt 100% from then until now. ""The difficult moments were when I knew that I had the chicken pox and that it would take two or three months to recover. ""I had to start from zero again physically because the virus left me at zero per cent. ""When I started to come back I had my rib broken when I fell on court and that was another two months out. Those five months were pretty difficult for me.""

Among the low points of a difficult year for Ferrero was the decision of Spain captain Jordi Arrese to drop him for the Davis Cup final against the USA. ""It was difficult because I had been playing well for the whole year and the coaches told me that I would play,"" said Ferrero. ""But then I had some problems with my hand two days before the Friday matches so they decided to choose Nadal instead. ""It was difficult for me not to be in the Friday matches but I had to understand. ""Inside me I wanted to play but this was the decision of the captain and they had to make it.""
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Roddick into San Jose final	"Andy Roddick will play Cyril Saulnier in the final of the SAP Open in San Jose on Sunday.

The American top seed and defending champion overcame Germany's Tommy Haas, the third seed, 7-6 (7-3) 6-3. And Saulnier survived an injury scare in his semi-final with seventh-seeded Austrian Jurgen Melzer. The Frenchman twisted his ankle early in the second set but overcame Melzer, who was left fuming over a series of line calls, 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 6-3. ""I was feeling horrible earlier in the week,"" Roddick said. ""I thought tonight was another step in the right direction. ""On my returns, I was standing in more and I'm getting a little more depth, even if I don't hit a perfect return.""

Roddick won the last four points of the first-set tie-break before being broken at the start of the second set. But he broke straight back and then broke Haas again to lead 4-2. ""It's extremely frustrating when you have chances against a top-five player and don't do anything with them,"" admitted Haas. ""I rushed a few backhands and he took advantage."" Saulnier will move into the world's top 50 for the first time after his passage through to the final. ""It's taken a lot of work and a lot of fighting in my mind,"" he revealed. ""Sometimes I didn't believe I could get to a final and now I am here. I've stayed mentally strong. ""I'm on the way. I'll keep fighting and work a lot and I'll be up there.""
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Federer claims Dubai crown	"World number one Roger Federer added the Dubai Championship trophy to his long list of successes - but not before he was given a test by Ivan Ljubicic.

Top seed Federer looked to be on course for a easy victory when he thumped the eighth seed 6-1 in the first set. But Ljubicic, who beat Tim Henman in the last eight, dug deep to secure the second set after a tense tiebreak. Swiss star Federer was not about to lose his cool, though, turning on the style to win the deciding set 6-3. The match was a re-run of last week's final at the World Indoor Tournament in Rotterdam, where Federer triumphed, but not until Ljubicic had stretched him for five sets. ""I really wanted to get off to a good start this time, and I did, and I could really play with confidence while he still looking for his rhythm,"" Federer said.

""That took me all the way through to 6-1 3-1 0-30 on his serve and I almost ran away with it. But he came back, and that was a good effort on his side."" Ljubicic was at a loss to explain his poor showing in the first set. ""I didn't start badly, but then suddenly I felt like my racket was loose and the balls were flying a little bit too much. And with Roger, if you relax for a second it just goes very quick,"" he said. ""After those first three games it was no match at all. I don't know, it was really weird. I was playing really well the whole year, and then suddenly I found myself in trouble just to put the ball in the court."" But despite his defeat, the world number 14 was pleased with his overall performance. ""I had a chance in the third, and for me it's really positive to twice in two weeks have a chance against Roger to win the match. ""It's an absolutely great boost to my confidence that I'm up there and belong with top-class players.""
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Young debut cut short by Ginepri	"Fifteen-year-old Donald Young's first appearance in an ATP tennis tournament proved brief as the teenager went out in round one of the San Jose Open.

Young shot to the top of the junior world rankings when he won the boys' singles at January's Australian Open. But the wildcard entry was dispatched by fellow American Robby Ginepri in straight sets, 6-2 6-2, in California. Despite that he was happy with his Tour debut. ""It was fun. I had my chances, but they didn't come through,"" he said. Young, who beat two players ranked in the top 200 when he was just 14, was only 2-1 down in the first set before losing 10 of the next 13 games. And Ginepri - six years older than the youngest player to ever win a junior slam and top the global standings - admitted he was impressed.

""He's very talented,"" said Ginepri. ""He's got a long future ahead of him. ""Being left-handed, he was very quick around the court. ""His serve is a little deceptive. He came into the net and volleyed better than I thought."" Earlier, South Korean Hyung-Taik Lee defeated American Jan-Michael Gambill 6-3 7-6 (7-4). American Kevin Kim defeated Jan Hernych of the Czech Republic 7-5 6-3, Canadian qualifier Frank Dancevic downed American Jeff Morrison 4-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-0, and Denmark's Kenneth Carlsen beat Irakli Labadze of the Republic of Georgia 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-3. Top seed Andy Roddick launches his defence of the title on Wednesday against qualifier Paul Goldstein. Second seed Andre Agassi opens his campaign on Tuesday against wildcard Bobby Reynolds, last year's US collegiate champion. Agassi has won the San Jose five times, but his run of three straight titles ended last year when he fell to Mardy Fish in the semi-finals. Fish went on to lose to Roddick in the final.
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Melzer shocks Agassi	"Second seed Andre Agassi suffered a comprehensive defeat by Jurgen Melzer in the quarter-finals of the SAP Open.

Agassi was often bamboozled by the Austrian's drop shots in San Jose, losing 6-3 6-1. Defending champion and top seed Andy Roddick rallied to beat Sweden's Thomas Enqvist 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-5. But unseeded Cyril Saulnier beat the fourth seed Vincent Spadea 6-2 6-4 and Tommy Haas overcame eighth seed Max Mirnyi 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-3) 6-2. Melzer has now beaten Agassi in two of their three meetings.

""I had a good game plan and I executed it perfectly,"" he said. ""It's always tough to come out to play Andre. ""I didn't want him to play his game. He makes you run like a dog all over the court."" And Agassi, who was more than matched for power by his opponent's two-handed backhand, said Melzer was an example of several players on the tour willing to take their chances against him. ""A lot more guys are capable of it now,"" said the American. ""He played much better than me. That's what he did both times. ""I had opportunities to loosen myself up,"" Agassi added. ""But I didn't convert on the big points.""
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Federer forced to dig deep	"Top seed Roger Federer had to save two match points before squeezing past Juan Carlos Ferrero at the Dubai Open.

The world number one took two hours 15 minutes to earn his 4-6 6-3 7-6 victory, saving match points at 6-4 in the tiebreak before claiming it 8-6. Federer made a number of unforced errors early on, allowing Ferrero to take advantage and claim the first set. But the Swiss star hit back to reach the quarter-finals, where he will face seventh seed Russian Mikhail Youzhny. The Russian beat Germany's Rainer Schuettler 7-5 6-4. Federer was not unduly worried despite being taken to three sets for the third consecutive match. The world number one was forced to go the distance against Ivan Ljubicic in the Rotterdam final and against Ivo Minar in the first round in Dubai. ""I definitely had a slow start again and to come back every time is quite an effort,"" he said. ""I haven't been playing well, but I've been coming through. I'm winning the crucial points and that shows I'm on top of my game when I have to be.""
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Nadal marches on in Mexico	"Rafael Nadal continued his run of fine form to beat Guillermo Canas and reach the Mexican Open semis in Acapulco.

Eighth seed Nadal, who picked up his second ATP title when he beat Alberto Martin in last week's Brazil Open, saw off the Argentine third seed 7-5 6-3. He now meets Argentine wild card Mariano Puerta, who followed up his win over top seed Carlos Moya by overcoming Spain's Felix Mantilla, 6-4 3-6 7-6. Czech fifth seed Czech Jiri Novak was eliminated 7-5 6-1 by Agustin Calleri. The unseeded Argentine, who won the tournament two years ago, now plays Spain's Albert Montanes. Montanes advanced to his first semi-final of the year with a 4-6 6-3 6-4 triumph over sixth-seeded Italian Filippo Volandri. Argentina's Agustin Calleri beat fourth seed Jiri Novak 7-5 6-1 in a battle of former champions at the Mexican Open. Calleri won his only ATP title in Acapulco two years ago while Novak won the singles and doubles titles in 1998. Calleri will face Albert Montanes in the semi-finals after the Spaniard ousted sixth seed Filippo Volandri of Italy 4-6 6-3 6-4. Argentine wild card Mariano Puerta continued his improbable run, outlasting Felix Mantilla 6-4 3-6 7-6.
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Hantuchova in Dubai last eight	"Daniela Hantuchova moved into the quarter-finals of the Dubai Open, after beating Elene Likhotseva of Russia 7-5 6-4, and now faces Serena Williams.

Australian Open champion Williams survived an early scare to beat Russia's Elena Bovina 1-6 6-1 6-4. World number one Lindsay Davenport and Anastasia Myskina also progressed. Davenport defeated China's Jie Zheng 6-2 7-5, while French Open champion Myskina sailed through after her opponent Marion Bartoli retired hurt. American Davenport will now face fellow former Wimbledon champion, Conchita Martinez of Spain, who ousted seventh-seeded Nathalie Dechy of France 6-1 6-2. Myskina will face eighth-seed Patty Schnyder from Switzerland, who defeated China's Li Na 6-3 7-6 (10-8). The other quarter final pits wild card Sania Mirza of India against Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and Montenegro, who both won on Tuesday.

Before her meeting with Martinez, Davenport believes there is some room for improvement in her game. ""I started well and finished well, but played some so-so games in the middle,"" she said. Williams was also far from content. ""I don't know what I was doing there,"" she said. ""It was really windy and I hadn't played in the wind. All my shots were going out of here."" But Hantuchova is in upbeat mood ahead of her clash with the younger Williams sister, who was handed a first-round bye. ""I feel I have an advantage (over Serena) because I have already played two matches on these courts,"" she said. ""It is a difficult court to play on. Very fast and sometimes you feel you have no control over the ball.""
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Parmar ruled out of Davis Cup tie	"A knee injury has forced Arvind Parmar out of Great Britain's Davis Cup tie in Israel and left Alex Bogdanovic in line to take the second singles place.

Parmar picked up the injury last week and has failed to recover in time for the Europe/Africa Zone I tie, which begins in Tel Aviv on Friday. Bogdanovic looks set to take the second singles place alongside Greg Rusedski. GB captain Jeremy Bates could use 17-year-old Andrew Murray and David Sherwood in the doubles rubber. Bogdanovic and Murray both pulled out of tournaments last week through injury but are expected to be fit. Jamie Delgado and Lee Childs have been called into the squad in Tel Aviv as designated hitters for team practice but Bates has no plans to call either of them into his squad at present.

The unheralded Sherwood was the surprise inclusion when the squad was announced last week, and Bates said: ""David has earned his place in this squad on the merit of his form and results over the last 12 months."" The 6ft 4in Sherwood is ranked 264th in the world and the LTA have high hopes for him after Futures tournament wins in Wrexham and Edinburgh.

The Sheffield-born right-hander, aged 24, also reached another final in Plaisir, France, a week after making the semi-final in Mulhouse. Bates is glad to have Rusedski available after Tim Henman's retirement from Davis Cup tennis. ""His wealth of experience is invaluable, particularly to the younger players and I know he will lead by example,"" Bates said. ""We are looking forward to the tie. The squad are all in excellent form.""
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Davenport hits out at Wimbledon	"World number one Lindsay Davenport has criticised Wimbledon over the issue of equal prize money for women.

Reacting to a disputed comment by All England Club chairman Tim Phillips, the American said: ""I think it is highly insulting if prize money is taken away. ""Somebody, I think it was Mr Phillips, said they won't have money for flowers at Wimbledon. That's insulting."" An All England club spokesperson denied Phillips made the remark, insisting: ""He definitely didn't say it."" The statement added: ""It was said by someone else and was a humorous aside at the end of a radio interview when the conversation had moved to talking about the Wimbledon grounds.""

Davenport was speaking following the announcement that this week's Dubai Duty Free event will join the US and Australian Opens in offering equal prize money for women. ""You hear about women playing only three sets while men play five,"" said Daveport. ""And the best women are never going to beat the best men. ""But it's a different game you go to watch with the women - it doesn't make it better or worse. ""Hopefully we will be able to change people's minds.""

Serena Williams, who is also in Dubai, added: ""I'm obviously for equal prize money. ""Women's tennis is exciting. Men's tennis is exciting as well, but the women have it right now. ""If you are bringing in the spectators you should be able to reap what everyone else is able to reap.""
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Dogged Federer claims Dubai crown	"World number one Roger Federer added the Dubai Championship trophy to his long list of successes - but not before he was given a test by Ivan Ljubicic.

Top seed Federer looked to be on course for a easy victory when he thumped the eighth seed 6-1 in the first set. But Ljubicic, who beat Tim Henman in the last eight, dug deep to secure the second set after a tense tiebreak. Swiss star Federer was not about to lose his cool, though, turning on the style to win the deciding set 6-3. The match was a re-run of last week's final at the World Indoor Tournament in Rotterdam, where Federer triumphed, but not until Ljubicic had stretched him all the way. ""I really wanted to get off to a good start this time, and I did, and I could really play with confidence while he still looking for his rhythm,"" Federer said.

""That took me all the way through to 6-1 3-1 0-30 on his serve and I almost ran away with it. But he came back, and that was a good effort on his side."" Ljubicic was at a loss to explain his poor showing in the first set. ""I didn't start badly, but then suddenly I felt like my racket was loose and the balls were flying a little bit too much. And with Roger, if you relax for a second it just goes very quick,"" he said. ""After those first three games it was no match at all. I don't know, it was really weird. I was playing really well the whole year, and then suddenly I found myself in trouble just to put the ball in the court."" But despite his defeat, the world number 14 was pleased with his overall performance. ""I had a chance in the third, and for me it's really positive to twice in two weeks have a chance against Roger to win the match. ""It's an absolutely great boost to my confidence that I'm up there and belong with top-class players.""
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Henman hopes ended in Dubai	"Third seed Tim Henman slumped to a straight sets defeat in his rain-interrupted Dubai Open quarter-final against Ivan Ljubicic.

The Croatian eighth seed booked his place in the last four with a 7-5 6-4 victory over the British number one. Henman had looked on course to level the match after going 2-0 up in the second set, but his progress was halted as the rain intervened again. Ljubicic hit back after the break to seal a fourth straight win over Henman. Earlier in the day, Spanish fifth seed Tommy Robredo secured his semi-final place when he beat Nicolas Kiefer of Germany 6-4 6-4. Afterwards, Henman was left cursing the weather and the umpire after seven breaks for rain during the match. ""It was incredibly frustrating,"" Henman said. ""It's raining and the umpire doesn't take control. ""He kept telling us to play till the end of the game. But if it's raining, you come off - the score's irrelevant. ""It couldn't be more frustrating as I was very happy with my form until now. You don't expect this in the desert.""
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Mirza shocks Kuznetsova	"Sania Mirza continued her remarkable rise with victory over US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Dubai Championships on Tuesday.

The 18-year-old Indian, who is already a huge star in her home country, won 6-4 6-2 in front of a delirious crowd. It was Mirza's sixth straight victory following her first WTA tournament win in Hyderabad last month. Earlier, Daniela Hantuchova built on her improving form with a 7-6 6-2 win over sixth seed Alicia Molik. Mirza needed attention to an ankle injury after the second game against Kuznetsova.

She quickly slipped 4-0 down but staged a dramatic comeback that thrilled the large Indian contingent in the crowd. ""I really didn't expect that after my ankle turn,"" said Mirza. ""I played a great match and I think (the crowd) did it again. I knew that I had to play an all-round game and that's what happened. ""I did everything well but I wasn't missing the ball - I don't know how that happened."" Mirza plays Silvia Farina Elia or Jelena Jankovic next. Hantuchova has risen from 31 in the world at the turn of the year to number 22, having reached the quarter-finals and semi-finals at her last two events. ""It was such a tough first-round match and I am glad to come through,"" said Hantuchova. ""She was serving so well. I just decided to hang in there and keep fighting."" The Slovakian will meet Elena Likhovtseva in the second round after the Russian struggled past Tunisian wild card Selima Sfar 2-6 6-2 7-6. Likhovtseva needed nine match points before seeing off Sfar, who got a point penalty for swearing in the third set. Seventh seed Nathalie Dechy and Elena Bovina were among other first-round winners on Tuesday.
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Hantuchova in Dubai last eight	"Daniela Hantuchova moved into the quarter-finals of the Dubai Open, after beating Elene Likhotseva of Russia 7-5 6-4, and now faces Serena Williams.

Australian Open champion Williams survived an early scare to beat Russia's Elena Bovina 1-6 6-1 6-4. World number one Lindsay Davenport and Anastasia Myskina also progressed. Davenport defeated China's Jie Zheng 6-2 7-5, while French Open champion Myskina sailed through after her opponent Marion Bartoli retired hurt. American Davenport will now face fellow former Wimbledon champion, Conchita Martinez of Spain, who ousted seventh-seeded Nathalie Dechy of France 6-1 6-2. Myskina will face eighth-seed Patty Schnyder from Switzerland, who defeated China's Li Na 6-3 7-6 (10-8). The other quarter final pits wild card Sania Mirza of India against Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and Montenegro, who both won on Tuesday.

Before her meeting with Martinez, Davenport believes there is some room for improvement in her game. ""I started well and finished well, but played some so-so games in the middle,"" she said. Williams was also far from content. ""I don't know what I was doing there,"" she said. ""It was really windy and I hadn't played in the wind. All my shots were going out of here."" But Hantuchova is in upbeat mood ahead of her clash with the younger Williams sister, who was handed a first-round bye. ""I feel I have an advantage (over Serena) because I have already played two matches on these courts,"" she said. ""It is a difficult court to play on. Very fast and sometimes you feel you have no control over the ball.""
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Murray to make Cup history	"Andrew Murray will become Britain's youngest-ever Davis Cup player after it was confirmed he will play in the doubles against Israel on Saturday.

The 17-year-old will play alongside fellow debutant David Sherwood against Israel's Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram. Murray will eclipse the record set by Roger Becker back in 1952. Greg Rusedski takes Tim Henman's place as first choice in the singles, while Alex Bogdanovic will play in the second singles clash. Rusedski will take on former world number 30 Harel Levy and Bogdanovic - who has previously played in two singles rubbers against Australia - will face Noam Okun.

Murray is the brightest young hope in British tennis, after winning the US Open junior title last year and the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year. British number one Tim Henman, who announced his Davis Cup retirement earlier this year, believes Britain can win the tie in Tel Aviv. ""It's going to be as really tough match. Israel have some really good players - and their doubles pair of Andy Ram and Jonathan Erlich are among the top eight in the world - but I fancy our chances,"" he said. But Henman urged Bogdanovic, who has had run-ins with British tennis officials in the past, to seize his chance. ""Alex is a quality player - he's young but he's got to keep pushing forward. ""He's got to be stronger, he's got a lot of ability but he's got to be more disciplined mentally and physically and if he does that he's got a good chance.""
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Davenport hits out at Wimbledon	"World number one Lindsay Davenport has criticised Wimbledon over the issue of equal prize money for women.

Reacting to a disputed comment by All England Club chairman Tim Phillips, the American said: ""I think it is highly insulting if prize money is taken away. ""Somebody, I think it was Mr Phillips, said they won't have money for flowers at Wimbledon. That's insulting."" An All England club spokesperson denied Phillips made the remark, insisting: ""He definitely didn't say it."" The statement added: ""It was said by someone else and was a humorous aside at the end of a radio interview when the conversation had moved to talking about the Wimbledon grounds.""

Davenport was speaking following the announcement that this week's Dubai Duty Free event will join the US and Australian Opens in offering equal prize money for women. ""You hear about women playing only three sets while men play five,"" said Daveport. ""And the best women are never going to beat the best men. ""But it's a different game you go to watch with the women - it doesn't make it better or worse. ""Hopefully we will be able to change people's minds."" Serena Williams, who is also in Dubai, added: ""I'm obviously for equal prize money. ""Women's tennis is exciting. Men's tennis is exciting as well, but the women have it right now. ""If you are bringing in the spectators you should be able to reap what everyone else is able to reap.""
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Venus stunned by Farina Elia	"Venus Williams suffered a first-round defeat for the first time in four years at the Dubai Championships.

Sylvia Farina Elia, who had lost all nine of her previous meetings with the American fifth seed, won 7-5 7-6 (8-6). Former Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez and India's Sania Mirza, the oldest and youngest players in the draw, also reached the second round. Martinez, 32, beat Shinobu Asagoe 6-4 6-4 and 18-year-old Mirza beat Jelena Kostanic 6-7 (7-2) 6-4 6-1. Mirza, the first Indian woman to win a WTA Tour title this month on home ground at Hyderabad, will now face US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.

But she is remaining confident. ""She (Kuznetsova) is a great player,"" she said. ""But everyone is beatable and I am looking forward to a great match."" Williams though blamed her defeat by Farina Elia on injuries. ""Blisters were a factor, but mostly my stomach wasn't that great,"" she said. ""I did it in the last tournament in the semi-finals, and I was serving at 40% in the final. ""The first time I served again was Sunday and there wasn't a lot I could do out there. When your serve isn't good it throws the rest of your game off too."" She will wait to see how she recovers before deciding whether to take part in the Nasdaq-100 Open in Miami, starting on 21 March.
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Martinez sees off Vinci challenge	"Veteran Spaniard Conchita Martinez came from a set down to beat Italian Roberta Vinci at the Qatar Open in Doha.

The 1994 Wimbledon champion won 5-7 6-0 6-2 to earn a second round meeting with French Open champion Anastasia Myskina. Fifth seed Patty Schnyder also had a battle as she needed three sets to beat China's Na Li 7-5 3-6 7-5. Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova beat Bulgarian Magdaleena Maleeva 4-6 6-4 6-3 to set up a second round clash with Russian Elena Bovina. The veteran Martinez found herself in trouble early on against Vinci with the Italian clinching the set thanks to breaks in the third and 11th games. But Vinci's game fell to pieces after that and Martinez swept her aside with some crisp cross-court returns and deft volleys. In the day's other matches, Japan's Ai Sugiyama defeated Australian Samantha Stosur 6-2 6-3 while Australian Nicole Pratt beat Tunisian Selima Sfar 7-5 6-2 and will next face compatriot Alicia Molik.
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Serena becomes world number two	"Serena Williams has moved up five places to second in the world rankings after her Australian Open win.

Williams won her first Grand Slam title since 2003 with victory over Lindsay Davenport, the world number one. Men's champion Marat Safin remains fourth in the ATP rankings while beaten finalist Lleyton Hewitt replaces Andy Roddick as world number two. Roger Federer retains top spot, but Safin has overtaken Hewitt to become the new leader of the Champions Race. Alicia Molik, who lost a three-set thriller against Davenport in the quarter-finals, is in the women's top 10 for the first time in her career. Her rise means Australia have a player in the top 10 of the men's and women's rankings for the first time in 21 years. And Britain's Elena Baltacha, who qualified and then reached the third round, has risen to 120 in the world - a leap of 65 places and her highest ranking yet.
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Hingis to make unexpected return	"Martina Hingis makes her return to competitve tennis after two years out of the game at the Volvo Women's Open in Pattaya, Thailand, on Tuesday.

She faces German Marlene Weingartner in the first round. ""As a competitor and athlete, I always want to win. I hope my body will hold up,"" said Hingis. ""You miss being out there in a Grand Slam final and not competing. It's a big difference between playing and commenting for TV. I miss it a lot."" The former world number one was 22 when she retired after having surgery on both ankles, and her last WTA event was in Filderstadt, Germany, in October 2002, when she lost to Elena Dementieva. Only last year she insisted that a comeback was unlikely, but speaking in Thaliand Hingis admitted: ""I said that because I didn't know what would happen with my body."" Her appearance will also benefit charities in the region and the Swiss star will donate her prize money.
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Clijsters set for February return	"Tennis star Kim Clijsters will make her return from a career-threatening injury at the Antwerp WTA event in February.

""Kim had considered returning to action in Paris on 7 February,"" a statement on her website said. ""She's decided against this so that she does not risk the final phase of her recovery. If all goes well, Kim will make her return on February 15."" The 21-year-old has not played since last October after aggravating a wrist injury at the Belgian Open. Back then, a doctor treating the Belgian feared that her career may be over, with the player having already endured an operation earlier in the season to cure her wrist problem. ""I hope she comes back, but I'm pessimistic,"" said Bruno Willems. Clijsters was also due to marry fellow tennis star Lleyton Hewitt in February but the pair split ""for private reasons"" back in October.
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Hewitt falls to Dent	"Lleyton Hewitt suffered a shock defeat to Taylor Dent in the quarter-finals of the Australian Hardcourt Championships in Adelaide on Friday.

The top seed was a strong favourite for the title but went down 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 to the American. Dent will face Juan Ignacio Chela next after the fourth seed was too strong for Jurgen Melzer. Olivier Rochus beat third seed Nicolas Kiefer 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 and will take on second seed Joachim Johansson. The Swede reached the last four by beating compatriot Thomas Enqvist 6-3 4-6 6-1. ""I felt like I was striking the ball much better,"" said Johansson. ""I felt like I had a lot of break chances, I didn't take care of them all, but I broke him four times and he only broke me once. ""I felt that was the key to get up in the set early.""
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Angry Williams rejects criticism	"Serena Williams has angrily rejected claims that she and sister Venus are a declining force in tennis.

The sisters ended last year without a Grand Slam title for the first time since 1998. But Serena denied their challenge was fading, saying: ""That's not fair - I'm tired of not saying anything. ""We've been practising hard. We've had serious injuries. I've had surgery and after, I got to the Wimbledon final. I don't know many who have done that."" While Serena is through to the Australian Open semi-finals, Venus went out in the fourth round, meaning she has not gone further than the last eight in her last five Grand Slam appearances. But Serena added: ""Venus had a severe strain in her stomach. I actually had the same injury, but I didn't tear it the way she did.

""If I would have torn it, I wouldn't have been here. ""She played a player (Alicia Molik) that just played out of her mind and Venus made some errors that she probably shouldn't have made."" Serena also said people tended to forget the impact the 2003 murder of sister Yetunde Price had had on the family. ""To top it off, we have a very, very, very, very, very close family"" Serena continued. ""To be in some situation that we've been placed in in the past little over a year, it's not easy to come out and just perform at your best when you realize there are so many things that are so important. ""So, no, we're not declining. We're here. I don't have to win this tournament to prove anything. I know that I'm out here and I know that I'm one of the best players out here.""
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Davenport dismantles young rival	"Top seed Lindsay Davenport booked her place in the last 16 of the Australian Open with a convincing 6-2 6-4 win over Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic.

The American had too much power for her 15-year-old opponent, breaking twice in the first set and once in the second. The German-born Vaidisova rallied well at times but was unable to find a way back after falling behind 3-2 in the opening set. Davenport, who closed out with an ace, plays Karolina Sprem in the next round. ""I was fully expecting a tough opponent and was able to play well enough to get through it,"" said Davenport. ""I think she hits some great shots. She made some errors but probably some inexperience played a role in that. But she's so young and obviously has a big game and has many, many years to improve on that."" Sprem, the Croatian 13th seed, saw off Russia's Elena Likhovtseva 6-3 6-2. Former world number one

powered her way into the fourth round with a straight sets win over Anna Smashnova. The 27th seed from Israel stuck with Williams until 3-3 in the first set before it became one-way traffic.

The American made 26 unforced errors but was still good enough to romp through the contest in exactly an hour. She reeled off nine straight games to finish a 6-3 6-0 winner.

remains on course to become the first Australian to win her home title since Chris O'Neil in 1978. The 10th seed equalled her best performance at a Grand Slam event when she beat unseeded Russian Nadia Petrova 6-3 6-2 to reach the fourth round. After a tough first set, Molik grew in confidence and won in just 56 minutes. She will now meet Venus Williams. ""Bring it on,"" said the 23-year-old. ""I played pretty well and it was nice to get through in straight sets."" ""We were destined to meet, I guess,"" Williams said referring to her match with Molik. ""It will be a huge match for her in Australia. I can tell she's probably very motivated by that so I need to get out there and play well.""

beat Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova in a rollercoaster match. Dementieva came through 7-5 5-7 6-4, becoming the seventh Russian woman to reach the last 16 in Melbourne. The match lasted almost three hours and featured 13 service breaks, including three in the final set when Dementieva held her nerve to seal the win. She now faces

after the Swiss 12th seed beat American Abigail Spears 7-6 6-3. French Open champion

received a free ride into the last 16 after Lisa Raymond was forced to withdraw. Raymond, the 25th seeded American, was ruled out after sustaining a left abdominal muscle tear in the doubles. Myskina, the third seed, now plays France's

who beat Francesca Schiavone of Italy 6-3 6-3. ""I'm extremely disappointed because I couldn't have asked to play better in my first two matches,"" Raymond said.
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Serena ends Sania Mirza's dream	"Sania Mirza, the first Indian woman to reach the third round of a Grand Slam tennis event, has lost to women's favourite Serena Williams.

The 18-year-old Mirza, who got a wild card entry into the Australian Open in Melbourne, lost to Williams 1-6,4-6 in the third round. Williams took just 56 minutes to defeat Mirza and sail into the fourth round. The only other Indian woman to win a match at a Grand Slam is Nirupama Vaidyanathan. Vaidyanathan made it to the second round of the Australian Open in 1998.

Playing the biggest match of her life, Mirza made little impact on Williams in the early stages of the game. But the teenager showed more confidence in the second set and engaged the seventh-seeded Williams in some well contested rallies. Mirza, a junior Wimbledon doubles title winner, became the first Indian woman to reach the third round of a grand slam tennis event when she beat Hungarian Petra Mandula on Wednesday. ""I'm really excited. I was confident but I didn't think it was going to be that easy,"" Mirza said after her second round win. ""My aim was to win a round here. When I did that I was so relieved, there was no pressure."" Tennis is not a particularly popular sport in India, but a number of Indians watched the live telecast of the match between Mirza and Williams. Mirza, who lives in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad known for producing a host of top Indian cricketers, turned professional two years ago. She says she was considered too small when she went for her first tennis classes as a six-year-old girl. ""Then finally [the coach] called my parents up and said 'the way she hits the ball, I've never seen a six-year-old hit a ball like that',"" Mirza told the Associated Press.
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Kuznetsova 'failed a drugs test'	"US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova has tested positive for a banned drug, according to Belgian authorities.

Belgian sports minister Claude Eerdekens said that the Russian world number five tested positive for the stimulant ephedrine on 19 December. Kuznetsova was playing in an exhibition event in Charleroi at the time. Eerdekens said: ""There is a problem. Ephedrine was discovered. She remains innocent until proved guilty. She can ask for it to be tested again."" The situation remains unclear as the tournament was not commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada), the International Tennis Federation (ITF) or the Women's Tennis Accosiation (WTA). The test was carried out by regional Belgian authorities and Kuznetsova has not yet been able to have a B sample tested.

Speaking at the Australian Open on Monday, before Eerdekens identified her, Kuznetsova said: ""I'm not worried. I'm not using anything to push myself. ""I have not been notified of any positive test, and I think it is unfair that it's come out the way it did."" Eerdekens said that confirmation of the findings was sent last Friday to the player's address in Spain, as well as to the Belgian prosecutors' office and the Belgian and Russian tennis federations. He conceded Kuznetsova might have taken a medicine which contained the banned substance. ""We have simply stated a fact,"" he said. ""It is for the federation concerned to impose the disciplinary measures after a procedure that respects the defence.

""Either the ephedrine was taken to improve her performance or it is because she took some medicine legitimately to cure an infection."" However, Kuznetsova's naming was condemned by Russian tennis chief Shamil Tarpishchev. ""First of all, this Belgian sports minister has broken every ethical rule in the book by naming a player without any proof of wrongdoing, without any basic evidence,"" Tarpishchev said. ""We all know the basic principle in doping cases. If there is a positive sample, then they should notify the International Tennis Federation (ITF) as well as the national federation within three days,"" he said. ""This is not the case here. As of today we have not received any statement from the doping officials, nor did the ITF. ""Today I called the ITF headquarters and they told me they know nothing about it. ""If WADA (the World Anti-Doping Agency) was behind the testing, then we would also have known something by now. ""Otherwise, all these looks to me as pure fiction and fabrication of the facts.""
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What now for British tennis?	"Tim Henman's decision to quit Davis Cup tennis has left the British team with a gargantuan void to fill.

The world number seven is tied for fourth among his countrymen for wins in the history of the tournament (he has 36 from his 50 rubbers). And Great Britain's last Davis Cup win without Henman came against Slovenia as far back as 1996. Worse could follow, according to former British team member Chris Bailey. Bailey told BBC Sport: ""After Tim's announcement, I doubt Greg Rusedski will be that far behind him."" But without their top two, where does that leave British ambitions in the sport's premier team event? Captain Jeremy Bates has singled out Alex Bogdanovic and Andrew Murray as potential replacements. The Yugoslavian-born Bogdanovic, though, is 184 places below Henman in the world rankings and has played just two cup ties - winning one and losing the other.

Murray, on the other hand, is 407th in the current ATP entry list and yet to make his cup debut. But Bailey does see some hope for the future. He said: ""Now we've dropped down to the Euro-Africa zone, the time was right for him to step down and let the young guys come to the fore."" Britain's next opponents, Israel, are hardly likely to be quaking in their boots ahead of the 4-6 March match against a likely trio of Bogdanovic, Murray and the 187th-ranked Arvind Parmar. Bailey said: ""It will be tough for GB to move up, but there comes a time when our young players have to step up. This was always going to be inevitable with Tim and Greg's growing years. ""I'm confident about the future. I wouldn't lay money on us getting back into the world group next year, but I'd imagine in five years time we'll be competing for the major honours."" Of those lining up to replace Henman, the 17-year-old Murray, with four Futures titles under his belt last year, looks the best long-term bet. ""Murray is the one that looks likeliest to take over Tim's mantle,"" said Bailey. ""He has an enormous amount of self-confidence, judging by what he's said in the past."" Bogdanovic, three years Murray's senior, has had a more troubled time under Britain's Davis Cup umbrella.

While Murray has been marked out as Britain's golden boy, Bogdanovic was warned by the Lawn Tennis Association for a lack of drive at the end of 2003. And Bailey said: ""Despite that, Alex is clearly talented as well, while Arvind is another contender. ""They're among the guys who have experienced the intensity of Davis Cup tennis - whether as players or on the sidelines. ""The LTA has always done an exceptional job of ensuring that. ""Now they'll finally get to play regularly in the cauldron of the cup. And I'm confident that will springboard Team GB to greater success.""
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Hewitt overcomes wobble in Sydney	"Lleyton Hewitt gave himself the perfect preparation for next week's Australian Open with victory over Ivo Minar in the final of the Sydney International.

The defending champion brushed aside the Czech qualifier 7-5 6-0. The Australian world number three strolled to the first five games of the match but was shocked as Minar won the next five. The top seed was rattled but recovered to close out the set and raced to victory in exactly an hour. ""It was a strange match . . . momentum swings,"" said Hewitt. ""I felt like I came out of the blocks extremely well, but then he loosened up a bit. ""When he got back to 5-5, I had to try to settle down and take it up a notch, and I was able to do that.""

Hewitt has now lifted the Sydney title four times in the last six years. ""It just keeps getting better and better every year,"" Hewitt said. ""I've only played this tournament four times and I've won it four times."" Hewitt went into the final as a short-priced favourite to clinch his 24th career title after dropping only one set all week. He is set to meet Frenchman Arnaud Clement in the first round of the Australian Open. Minar, ranked 158th in the world, was forced to pull out of the Australian Open qualifying draw to play in his first ATP final. ""For me, this was a big success,"" said the 20-year-old. ""I was so nervous last night I couldn't sleep. I've never played a top-10 player before. ""I wanted to play qualifying in Melbourne, but it's Saturday and I'm still here. But this is a main draw and I need the points and the money."" Alicia Molik takes on Samantha Stosur in an all-Australian women's final later on Saturday.
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Moya fights back for Indian title	"Carlos Moya became the first man to successfully defend the Chennai Open title by beating four-times finalist Paradorn Srichaphan 3-6 6-4 7-6 (7/5).

The Spaniard then donated his £28,000 prize money to relief efforts for the victims of the Asian tsunami. The final was close throughout, with Thai second seed Srichaphan - the 2003 winner - closing out the first set. But Moya took the second set, before bouncing back from 5-2 down in the decider to force and win a tie-break. Moya confirmed afterwards: ""I'm donating my prize money from this tournament for the tsunami victims, hoping it makes some difference to their lives. His contribution follows pledges by four other players to donate their prize money from the tournament, which went ahead after the 26 December disaster which has so far claimed at least 150,000 lives. Scrichapan said he would donate an unspecified amount for relief work in Thailand, where more than 5,000 people were killed. The ATP has announced that it would contribute the US$25,000 tournament fee to Unicef's emergency relief fund in Tamil Nadu. The ATP Tour's sponsor, Mercedes, said it would also contribute, increasing the ATP donation to US$40,000.
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Rochus shocks Coria in Auckland	"Top seed Guillermo Coria went out of the Heineken Open in Auckland on Thursday with a surprise loss to Olivier Rochus of Belgium.

Coria lost the semi-final 6-4 6-4 to Rochus, who goes on to face Czech Jan Hernych, a 6-4 7-5 winner over Jose Acasuso of Argentina. Fifth seed Fernando Gonzalez eased past American Robby Ginepri 6-3 6-4. The Chilean will meet sixth seed Juan Ignacio Chela next after the Argentine beat Potito Starace 6-1 7-6 (7-5). Rochus made the semi-finals at the Australian hardcourt championships in Adelaide last week and is naturally delighted with his form. ""It's been two unbelievable weeks for me,"" he said. ""Today I knew I had nothing to lose. If I beat him great, if I lost, I would be losing to a top-10 player."" Coria conceded that Rochus ""played just too good,"" and added: ""When you give your best out there you can't be too sad.""
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Johansson takes Adelaide victory	"Second seed Joachim Johansson won his second career title with a 7-5 6-3 win over Taylor Dent at the Australian hardcourt championships in Adelaide.

The Swede was made to graft, American Dent surviving three break points in the fifth game of the match. But Johansson got the breakthrough with a sublime backhand return winner and won the second set with more ease. His first tournament win was at Memphis in 2004, helping him leap from 113th in the world rankings to number 11. Afterwards, Dent said he rated US Open semi-finalist Johansson as a top contender at the Australian Open, which starts on 17 January. ""I believe men's tennis is all about holding serve and if he's playing like that on his own serve I don't see how guys are going to break him,"" said Dent. Johansson was more restrained in his assessment: ""I have to improve my serve if I'm going to go all the way in Melbourne.""
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Hingis hints at playing comeback	"Martina Hingis has admitted that she might consider a competitive return to tennis if an appearance in Thailand later this month goes well.

The former world number one will play at the Volvo Women's Open in Pattaya, which starts on 31 January, as part of her charity work in the region. ""The tournament is a test,"" she said. ""I don't know how my body will react. ""I support several charities in Thailand. I'm also playing to see where I am."" Speaking to Le Matin, the 24-year-old Swiss added: ""At Pattaya there will not be as many people and the players are ranked between the 30th and 95th in the world."" Hingis was 22 when she retired after having surgery on both ankles, and her last WTA event was in Filderstadt, Germany, in October 2002, when she lost to Elena Dementieva.
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Slovakia seal Hopman Cup success	"Slovakia clinched the Hopman Cup for the second time by beating Argentina 3-0 in Saturday's final in Perth.

Daniela Hantuchova put the third seeds ahead, recovering from a terrible start to beat Gisela Dulko 1-6 6-4 6-4. Dominik Hrbaty, who had not lost a set in his three singles matches in the group stages, then upset world number seven Guillermo Coria 6-4 6-1. Hantuchova and Hrbaty then won the mixed doubles after Coria was forced to withdraw because of a sore back. Slovakia's win made up for last year's final defeat to the United States. ""I would like to congratulate Daniela,"" Hrbaty said. ""I was so nervous watching her today, I almost had a heart attack. ""I also feel a little sorry for Guillermo because I get very excited whenever I play for my country. I show lots of emotions and played such good tennis.""

World number 31 Hantuchova, ranked two places above Dulko, looked nervous as she dropped the first four games of the match. Dulko, who had lost all three of her singles matches in the group stages, grew in confidence and took the opening set in just 27 minutes. But Hantuchova hit back to take the next two and the match. ""I was so nervous because I really wanted to win for the team and for Dominik as he played so well all week,"" she said. ""I didn't think I was playing my best but I just tried to hang in there and fight hard for every point for my country."" Slovakia won the Cup on their first appearance in 1998 when Karol Kucera and Karina Habsudova beat France.
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Dementieva prevails in Hong Kong	"Elena Dementieva swept aside defending champion Venus Williams 6-3 6-2 to win Hong Kong's Champions Challenge event.

The Russian, ranked sixth in the world, broke Williams three times in the first set, while losing her service once. Williams saved three championship points before losing the match at the Victoria Park tennis court. ""It's really a great start to the year no matter whether it's an exhibition or not. I was trying to play my best and I really did it,"" said Dementieva. ""This will give me all the confidence before the Grand Slams. I was trying so hard to win this tournament."" Williams, 24, was disappointed with her display. ""She played some nice points, but it was mostly me committing unforced errors - four or five errors in each game,"" she said. Before the match, organizers auctioned off rackets belonging to the players, raising £115,000 for victims of the tsunami disaster.
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Injury sidelines Philippoussis	"Mark Philippoussis withdrew from the Sydney International tennis tournament as expected on Sunday after suffering a groin injury during the Hopman Cup.

His participation in the Australian Open, which begins on 17 January in Melbourne, also remains in doubt. Defending women's champion Justine Henin-Hardenne is also out of the Sydney event because of a knee injury. In the only main draw men's or women's singles match on Sunday, Nathalie Dechy beat American Lisa Raymond 7-5 6-3. Number one men's seed Lleyton Hewitt begins his quest for a fourth Sydney title on Tuesday when he plays Karol Beck. Lindsay Davenport, top seed in the women's draw, has been handed a first-round bye and plays France's Dechy in the second round on Tuesday.
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Hewitt falls to Dent in Adelaide	"Lleyton Hewitt suffered a shock defeat to Taylor Dent in the quarter-finals of the Australian Hardcourt Championships in Adelaide on Friday.

The top seed was a strong favourite for the title but went down 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 to the American. Dent will face Juan Ignacio Chela next after the fourth seed was too strong for Jurgen Melzer. Olivier Rochus beat third seed Nicolas Kiefer 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 and will take on second seed Joachim Johansson. The Swede reached the last four by beating compatriot Thomas Enqvist 6-3 4-6 6-1. ""I felt like I was striking the ball much better,"" said Johansson.

""I felt like I had a lot of break chances, I didn't take care of them all, but I broke him four times and he only broke me once. ""I felt that was the key to get up in the set early."" Hewitt played down his defeat and insisted he is focused solely on the Australian Open, which starts on 17 January. ""When you've been number one in the world for a couple of years and won a couple of slams, you look at the big picture and what motivates you,"" said Hewitt. ""That's the Grand Slams and Melbourne's as big for me as any of the four. Even if I don't win Sydney next week it's no big deal.""
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Federer breezes into semi-finals	"Roger Federer reached the last four of the Qatar Open with an easy 6-1 6-2 win over seventh seed Feliciano Lopez.

The Swiss world number one reeled off a series winners to outclass the Spaniard and set up a semi-final match against Russian Nikolay Davydenko. Federer, who lost in the quarter-final in his last Qatar appearance in 2003, was happy with his form. ""I think I played better than against Greg Rusedski and I am happy I am playing so well,"" said the top seed. Lopez showed glimpses of resolve early in the second set when he held his first service game and came close to breaking Federer. But the Swiss saved a break point and promptly broke serve in the following game to seize control. Davydenko, meanwhile, upset French third seed Sebastien Grosjean 2-6 6-3 6-2. Fabrice Santoro completed a miserable day for France when he was forced to retire when 6-2 3-0 down to Albert Costa. Spaniard Costa will next face Croatian Ivan Ljubicic after the sixth seed beat Rafael Nadal 6-2 6-7 (3/7) 6-3.
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Davenport puts retirement on hold	"Lindsay Davenport has put any talk of retirement on hold after having a largely injury-free 2004 campaign.

The 28-year-old world number one had said that she would quit at the end of last year, but after a successful season she has had a change of heart. ""Finally I felt I put myself in a position to try and win Grand Slams again,"" said Davenport. ""It would be tough to walk away when I feel like I can contend so there's no point in hanging it up quite yet."" Davenport has won three Grand Slams, the 2000 Australian Open, Wimbledon in 1999 and the 1998 US Open. Her career has been hit by a series of injuries but last year she started hitting top form and won seven titles. She was due to take part in this week's Hopman Cup in Perth but decided she wanted to rest her knee. ""I just really wanted to make sure my right knee was going to be able to really withstand all the rigours of the whole year coming up,"" she said.
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Rusedski angry over supplements	"Greg Rusedski has criticised the governing body of men's tennis for not releasing contamination-free supplements in time for the new season.

Rusedski said: ""I tried to order some but didn't receive any and I haven't got any yet. ""You would think they would have been available in December as it can take two months for the body to respond. ""This event comes in the hottest period of the year, so you would hope the stuff would be available for it."" The British number two escaped a possible ban last year when he persuaded a tribunal that a positive doping test was the result of contaminated ATP supplements. In response, the ATP struck a deal with pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline to provide contamination-free drinks and nutritional bars for the men's tour.

David Higdon, Vice President of the ATP, admitted: ""I agree with Greg. ""I would have loved to have had these things available as soon as possible but it's a lot of work to make sure they have gone through rigorous testing. ""The reality is though that the first two weeks of the tour are spread far and wide and part of the distribution agreement we had with GSK has an education component. ""We weren't going to just drop these products out there without having a talk with the players about understanding how to use them.

""The first chance we will get to do that is at the players meeting on the Saturday before the Australian Open."" And Rusedski, who takes on Roger Federer at the Qatar Open later on Wednesday, conceded that the imminent changes will be beneficial. ""The good thing is that there is now a 100% guarantee, so hopefully all this will never happen again,"" said Rusedski. ""Hopefully after the Australian Open we won't have to discuss this any more.""
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Navratilova hits out at critics	"Martina Navratilova has defended her decision to prolong her tennis career at the age of 48.

Navratilova, who made a comeback after retiring in 1994, will play doubles and mixed doubles events in 2005. ""Women's tennis is really strong,"" she said, dismissing suggestions that the fact she could still win reflected badly on the women's game. ""All I can say is I'm that damn good. I'm sorry but I really have to blow my own horn here. I'm still that good."" Navratilova has won three Grand Slam mixed doubles titles since she came out of retirement. And she was so encouraged by her form that she decided to resume playing singles, winning two of her seven matches. She was knocked out in the first round of the French Open but reached the second round at Wimbledon. Navratilova will partner Nathalie Dechy in the doubles event at the Uncle Toby's Hardcourts tournament on Australia's Gold Coast, which begins on Sunday. She will then link up with Daniela Hantuchova for the Australian Open doubles, and play in the mixed doubles with Leander Paes. ""I might be playing some singles events this season, depending on the surface,"" she added.
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Prodigy Monfils blows away Gaudio	"French prodigy Gael Monfils underlined his huge promise by beating French Open champion Gaston Gaudio 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in the first round of the Qatar Open.

The 18-year-old wild card won three of the four junior Grand Slam events last year, including Wimbledon. Fabrice Santoro, the 2000 champion, beat Sweden's Thomas Johansson 6-4 6-2 but fourth seed Mikhail Youzhny lost 6-3 7-6 (7-3) to Rafael Nadal. Roger Federer plays Greg Rusedski in the second round on Wednesday. Monfils, who was given a wildcard into the tournament, said: ""This is my first win over a top 10 player and I am delighted. ""I play my best tennis when I am fired up on the court and the reason I won today was because I was able to play my natural, attacking game,"" he said. ""Of course I was a bit tired in the second set. But I was confident I could survive had there been a third set.""
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Connors boost for British tennis	"Former world number one Jimmy Connors is planning a long-term relationship with the Lawn Tennis Association to help unearth the next Tim Henman.

The American spent three days at the LTA's annual Elite Performance winter camp in La Manga earlier this week. ""Britain has the right attitude,"" said Connors. ""The more involved I can be with the LTA, the better. ""A short-term arrangement is just confusing. The kids will ask: 'What am I doing there?'"" LTA chief executive, John Crowther, added: ""The relationship that Jimmy's already started to develop with the coaches and the players has said to us that we'd like some more of it. ""We want to use Jimmy for a number of weeks a year and we hope this is the beginning of a good long-term relationship.""

The camp played host to more than 30 leading senior and junior players, including Greg Rusedski, Arvind Parmar and Anne Keothavong. ""La Manga is an amazing site to take a bunch of kids who want to be the best,"" said Connors, speaking at Queen's Club in London. ""What impressed me most was not only the coaches but the way the kids went about their workouts and the feeling they put into every practice they had. ""It was interesting to me to see kids of 15, 16, 17, with that desire and passion, and that can only be brought about by the coaches surrounding them. ""Instilling the importance of work and practice is something you can't buy. ""They know what's been given to them and all they have to do is give back the effort, and every minute of practice they were doing that.""

Speaking from La Manga, LTA performance director David Felgate told BBC Sport: ""Jimmy was fantastic with the players and the coaches, and very humble considering what he's achieved. ""He worked through the coaches and hopefully it will grow and he'll get to have more of an individual relationship with some of the players and get to know them. ""He made it clear from the word go he didn't want it to be short-term. This is a 52-week-a-year job for me, it's my life and my passion and it's the same with the coaches. ""He respects that but he wants to be involved and have real input. And why would he stake his reputation on something that's not going to be successful?"" Connors has also agreed to commentate for the BBC at next year's Wimbledon Championships. He will work during the second week of the tournament.
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Henin-Hardenne beaten on comeback	"Justine Henin-Hardenne lost to Elena Dementieva in a comeback exhibition match in Belgium on Sunday for her second defeat in two days.

And the Belgian, who has slipped to eight in the world after struggling with a virus, faces a tough Australian Open title defence next month. ""I will be heading to Australia with a lot of question marks over me, I know that,"" she said. ""But I think there'll be less pressure than last time even if I am champion."" Henin-Hardenne was speaking after a 6-2 5-7 6-2 loss to world number six Dementieva in Charleroi, Belgium, on Sunday. The previous day, the Olympic champion went down 6-2 7-5 to France's Nathalie Dechy.

""I have to be positive, I still have a few weeks,"" she said. ""My body has to get accustomed again to the stress, the rhythm."" Henin-Hardenne slid down the world rankings in the second half of 2004 after contracting the illness in April. After an initial lay-off, she was forced off the circuit for a second time after being knocked out of the French Open in the second round. A comeback at the US Open after a three-month absence ended when she crashed out at the fourth-round stage. But despite her problems, she still won five of the nine official tournaments she entered in 2004 and won Olympic gold in Athens, an achievement which saw her named Belgian sportswoman of the year on Friday. ""Physically, it's obvious that I hit rock bottom,"" said the 22-year-old, who will make her comeback in the Sydney International from 10-16 January. ""Since April, with the exception of the Olympics, I have not done much. ""All the successes I had prior to that were mainly due to the work I put in on building up my fitness. ""Now it's time to get back to putting in 200% effort and I think I am capable of doing that.""
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Moya clinches Cup for Spain	"Spain won the Davis Cup for the second time in their history when Carlos Moya beat the USA's Andy Roddick in the fourth rubber in Seville.

Moya won 6-2 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-5) to give the hosts an unassailable 3-1 lead with only one singles rubber remaining. Roddick battled hard and had chances in the second set, but Moya's clay-court expertise proved the difference. Mardy Fish beat Tommy Robredo 7-6 (8-6) 6-2 in the final dead rubber to cut Spain's winning margin to 3-2. Spain's only other Davis Cup title came in 2000, when they beat Australia in Barcelona. This time they chose to play the final in Seville and the city's Olympic Stadium was revamped to allow for a record crowd for a competitve tennis event of 27,000 spectators. And the home fans gave vociferous support to their players, with 18-year-old Nadal and Moya winning both Friday's singles rubbers. American twins Mike and Bob Bryan gave the visitors hope with victory over Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo in Saturday's doubles. But it remained an uphill task for a US team far happier on hard courts than clay, and 1998 French Open champion Moya had too much for world number two Roddick. ""This has been incredible - the moment I've been waiting for for years,"" said Moya, who missed out in 2000 through injury. ""I've prepared myself for this day. I knew that playing on clay I would have my chances to win.

""The Davis Cup is my dream. I can't ask for more. There is nothing bigger than what I've lived today."" Moya stormed into a 4-0 lead on his way to taking the first set against Roddick and recovered immediately from dropping serve in the second. The match came down to two tie-breaks and Moya dominated both, clinching victory on his third match point. Wild celebrations followed, with an emotional Moya congratulated by his team-mates, including Nadal, who at 18 years and 187 days becomes the youngest ever victor in Davis Cup history. ""I think we put up a better fight here than in Paris two years ago,"" said Roddick, who was on the US team which lost to France in the 2002 semi-finals at Roland Garros. ""They were just better than us this weekend. I have nothing to be ashamed of, I gave it my all. ""I am not going to walk out of here with my head down, that's for sure. ""There's no miracle answer. We have to improve.""
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Capriati to miss Melbourne	"Jennifer Capriati has become the third leading lady to withdraw from the Australian Open because of injury.

The organisers of the first grand slam of 2005, which begins on 17 January, said the American has a problem with her right shoulder. It comes as a blow to the women's draw as last year's champion, Justin Henin-Hardenne, and runner-up, Kim Clijsters, will also be absent. Capriati is a two-time champion in Melbourne with wins in 2001 and 2002. She is believed to have picked up the injury at the Advanta Championships at Philadelphia in November and had to pull out of an exhibition match with Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova on 17 December. Capriati also decided against competing in the Australian Open warm-up event, the Sydney International.
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Classy Henman makes winning start	"Tim Henman opened his 2005 campaign with a 6-1 7-5 victory over Argentine David Nalbandian at the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament on Wednesday.

The British number one will next play Roger Federer at the Australian Open warm-up event on Friday. The world number one beat Gaston Gaudio 5-7 6-1 6-4, before Andre Agassi saw off Chilean Olympic gold medalist Nicolas Massu 6-1 7-6 (7-4). Andy Roddick beat Ivan Ljubicic, who replaced Paradorn Srichaphan, 6-1 6-4. Henman made an impressive start to the year, only faltering against Nalbandian when serving for the match at 5-4. But the Briton regained his composure to win the next two games for only his second win in six matches against the Argentine. ""It's a great start to the year - just what I was looking for,"" Henman told his website. ""Over the years I've found David very difficult to play against.

""He returns serve very well and he's deceptively effective from the baseline, so sometimes it can be difficult to execute my gameplan well enough against him to get the right result. ""Beating somebody of his stature is always good for the confidence and it bodes well at the beginning of the year."" Henman also revealed the extent of the back problems he suffered in the off-season. ""I'm not the most flexible and at the end of the year I was pretty exhausted and wanted to have a couple of weeks where I didn't do anything,"" said Henman. ""When I started training again it really, really seized up. As much as I enjoyed the two weeks off I don't think it's so productive."" Federer dropped a tight first set against 2004 French Open champion Gaudio, but was content with his game. ""It was about getting used to the surface,"" he said.

""The conditions are much quicker than Doha, my timing was OK, but I could have served better. ""All in all I'm happy with the match, and I won it - that's a good sign. Now I have a day off and hopefully play better the next match."" Agassi was delighted with victory over Massu in his first match for over two months. ""I felt pretty good,"" said the American. ""I liked the way the match played out and, maybe excluding a few second serve returns, I felt like I was doing most things pretty darn well for the first match.""
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Moya emotional after Davis Cup win	"Carlos Moya described Spain's Davis Cup victory as the highlight of his career after he beat Andy Roddick to end the USA's challenge in Seville.

Moya made up for missing Spain's 2000 victory through injury by beating Roddick 6-2 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-5) to give the hosts an unassailable 3-1 lead. ""I have woken up so many nights dreaming of this day,"" said Moya. ""All my energy has been focused on today. ""What I have lived today I do not think I will live again."" Spain's only other Davis Cup title came two years ago in Valencia, when they beat Australia. And Moya, nicknamed Charly, admitted: ""The Davis Cup is my dream and I was a bit nervous at the outset. ""Some people have said that I am obsessed but I think that it is better this way. It helps me reach my goals if I am obsessed. ""It's really incredible - to get the winning point is really something."" Spanish captain Jordi Arrese said: ""Charly played a great game. It was his opportunity and he hasn't let us down. ""He had lost three times to Roddick, and this was his day to beat him. ""He had been waiting years to be in this position."" Spain's victory was also remarkable for the performance of Rafael Nadal, who beat Roddick in the opening singles.

Aged 18 years and 185 days, the Mallorcan became the youngest player to win the Davis Cup. ""What a great way to finish the year,"" said Nadal afterwards. US coach Patrick McEnroe wants Roddick and the rest of his team to play more tennis on clay and hone their skills on the surface. ""I think it will help these guys even on slow hard courts to learn how to mix things up a little bit and to play a little bit smarter and tactically better."" ""Obviously it's unrealistic to say that we're going to just start playing constantly on clay, with the schedule. ""But certainly I think we can put the work in at the appropriate time and play a couple more events and play against these guys who are the best on this stuff,"" said McEnroe. Roddick was left frustrated after losing both his singles on the slow clay of Seville's Olympic Stadium. ""It's just tough because I felt like I was in it the whole time against one of the top three clay-courters in the world,"" said the American. ""I had my chances and just didn't convert them. The bottom line is they were just better than us this weekend. ""They came out, took care of business and they beat us. It's as simple as that.""
"	sport
Moya emotional at Davis Cup win	"Carlos Moya described Spain's Davis Cup victory as the highlight of his career after he beat Andy Roddick to end the USA's challenge in Seville.

Moya made up for missing Spain's 2000 victory through injury by beating Roddick 6-2 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-5) to give the hosts an unassailable 3-1 lead. ""I have woken up so many nights dreaming of this day,"" said Moya. ""All my energy has been focused on today. ""What I have lived today I do not think I will live again."" Spain's only other Davis Cup title came two years ago in Valencia, when they beat Australia. And Moya, nicknamed Charly, admitted: ""The Davis Cup is my dream and I was a bit nervous at the outset. ""Some people have said that I am obsessed but I think that it is better this way. It helps me reach my goals if I am obsessed. ""It's really incredible - to get the winning point is really something."" Spanish captain Jordi Arrese said: ""Charly played a great game. It was his opportunity and he hasn't let us down. ""He had lost three times to Roddick, and this was his day to beat him. ""He had been waiting years to be in this position."" Spain's victory was also remarkable for the performance of Rafael Nadal, who beat Roddick in the opening singles.

Aged 18 years and 185 days, the Mallorcan became the youngest player to win the Davis Cup. ""What a great way to finish the year,"" said Nadal afterwards. US coach Patrick McEnroe wants Roddick and the rest of his team to play more tennis on clay and hone their skills on the surface. ""I think it will help these guys even on slow hard courts to learn how to mix things up a little bit and to play a little bit smarter and tactically better."" ""Obviously it's unrealistic to say that we're going to just start playing constantly on clay, with the schedule. ""But certainly I think we can put the work in at the appropriate time and play a couple more events and play against these guys who are the best on this stuff,"" said McEnroe. Roddick was left frustrated after losing both his singles on the slow clay of Seville's Olympic Stadium. ""It's just tough because I felt like I was in it the whole time against one of the top three clay-courters in the world,"" said the American. ""I had my chances and just didn't convert them. The bottom line is they were just better than us this weekend. ""They came out, took care of business and they beat us. It's as simple as that.""
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Capriati out of Australian Open	"Jennifer Capriati has become the third leading lady to withdraw from the Australian Open because of injury.

The organisers of the first grand slam of 2005, which begins on 17 January, said the American has a problem with her right shoulder. It comes as a blow to the women's draw as last year's champion, Justin Henin-Hardenne, and runner-up, Kim Clijsters, will also be absent. Capriati is a two-time champion in Melbourne with wins in 2001 and 2002. She is believed to have picked up the injury at the Advanta Championships at Philadelphia in November and had to pull out of an exhibition match with Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova on 17 December. Capriati also decided against competing in the Australian Open warm-up event, the Sydney International.
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Bryan twins keep US hopes alive	"The United States kept the Davis Cup final alive with victory in Saturday's doubles rubber, leaving Spain 2-1 ahead going into the final day.

Masters Cup champions Mike and Bob Bryan thrashed Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo 6-0 6-3 6-2 in front of a partisan crowd in Seville. Victory would have given Spain the title but they were outclassed. In Sunday's reverse singles, Carlos Moya takes on Andy Roddick before Rafael Nadal faces Mardy Fish. ""It feels good, but it's not going to be as good if we don't win two tomorrow,"" said Mike Bryan. ""It feels good to give those guys another shot, and Spain has to go to sleep on that."" Bob Bryan added: ""I'm really confident in Andy winning that first match, and then anything can happen."" Spain coach Jordi Arrese chose to rest 18-year-old Nadal in the doubles after his epic singles win over Roddick on Friday. He was replaced by former world number one Ferrero, but the Spanish pair were out of their depth against one of the world's best doubles teams.

The 26-year-old Bryan twins have won all four of their Davis Cup matches this year. And they quickly silenced the huge crowd at the Olympic Stadium, racing through the opening set to love. The Spaniards then twice surrendered breaks of serve at the start of the second before the Bryans broke to go 5-3 ahead and served out. When Robredo dropped serve in the opening game of the third set the match was all but over, and the unflappable Bryan brothers powered on to an impressive win. Ferrero, who was upset to be dropped for Friday's singles, hinted at further dissatisfaction after the defeat. ""It was a difficult game against the best doubles players,"" he said. ""They have everything calculated and we had very little to do. ""I was a bit surprised that I was named to play the doubles match because I hardly play doubles."" Arrese said: ""Juan Carlos hasn't played at all badly. He played the right way but the Bryans are great doubles players.""
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Faultless Federer has no equal	"Roger Federer - nice bloke, fantastic tennis player - the ultimate sportsman.

When Lleyton Hewitt shook his hand after getting another thrashing, a third in as many months, the Australian said; ""You're the best."" How right he is. The stats speak for themselves: 11 titles from 11 finals during 2004 - three of them Grand Slams - and 13 final victories in a row going back to Vienna 2003. That's an open-era record. Hewitt, at times in Houston, showed form which easily matched his Grand Slam-winning efforts of 2001 and 2002. But he was outplayed. Twice. Hewitt, along with Andy Roddick and Marat Safin, is sure to be prominent during 2005. But realistically, all three will be fighting for the world number two ranking. According to all those players and even Federer himself, the Swiss star is in a different league.

""Right now I feel that a little bit,"" he told BBC Sport. ""I've dominated all the top ten players. They say nice things about me because I have beaten them all. I am dominating the game right now and I hope it continues!"" The number one player in the world is also the main man for promoting the sport off court. He has just been voted, by the International Tennis Writers, as the best ""Ambassador for Tennis"" on the ATP Tour. He has time for everyone. Every match, from first round to final, is followed by a series of press interviews in three languages; English, French and Swiss-German. After a major win, there are extra requests, obligations and interviews, all seen through to the end with courtesy and, most importantly, good humour. ""You guys are funny, I have a good time with you guys,"" he said, genuinely happy to talk into yet another tape recorder. ""I see you pretty much every day on the tour so to give away an hour for interviews is really no problem for me. ""If I can promote tennis and the sport then that is good for me. People say thanks back and that is nice."" What a refreshing attitude from someone who could easily dominate the sports pages for a decade. It sums up his modest personality. Shortly after collecting a Waterford Crystal trophy, a Mercedes convertible and a tasty cheque for $1.5m, Federer addressed the Houston crowd and concluded by saying ""thanks for having me"". Now he just needs to find a way of winning the French Open, the one Grand Slam to so far elude him.
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Mauresmo opens with victory in LA	"Amelie Mauresmo and Maria Sharapova won their opening matches at the Tour Championships in Los Angeles.

France's Mauresmo routed Vera Zvonareva 6-1 6-0, while Wimbledon champion Sharapova was a 6-1 6-4 winner over fellow Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. American Serena Williams also won, edging Russian Elena Dementieva 7-6 7-5 for her second victory of the event. The event is split into two groups of four with the top two from each advancing to the semi-finals.

Mauresmo's win was her ninth in a row as she tries to overtake Lindsay Davenport for the number one spot. Mauresmo spent five weeks at number one after the US Open before injury ushered Davenport back in front. ""Since then, I feel very confident on court and my game is there. I want to get the ranking back, but it's very different than before I was number one. ""It was an obsession, but now I take it in a relaxed way."" Mauresmo completed her first match in the season-ending championship in 54 minutes as Russia's Zvonareva struggled to return her serve and failed to achieve a single break point.

""She got mad a little bit and I played some great tennis,"" said Mauresmo, who was runner-up to Kim Clijsters in last year's final. Zvonareva has lost both her games so far, having crashed 6-2 6-4 Kuznetsova in the Staples Centre on Wednesday. ""Sometimes not everything works,"" she said. ""It was lots of pressure. Maybe that is why I couldn't do 100%. But I was fighting."" Sharapova, who lost 6-2 6-2 to Kuznetsova in Beijing in September, said: ""In Beijing, she was coming off such a big winning streak [14 matches] and she was unstoppable. ""This time, it was important to start off well and put some pressure on her."" The tournament debutant added: ""I love it here. The atmosphere is great. ""To be here where the Lakers play, you just feel that excitement. I love basketball."" Williams admitted she is still some way off her best form but remained positive after two wins in two days. ""It's hard to go out there and get it right but I'm fighting and I'm hoping,"" said Williams. ""What makes me happy is the effort. I had a really good effort today. ""I'm trying to add new dimensions to my game.""
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Agassi fear for Melbourne	"Andre Agassi's involvement in the Australian Open was put in doubt after he pulled out of the Kooyong Classic with a hip injury.

Agassi was serving at 5-6 down in the first set to fellow American Andy Roddick when he decided to bring a premature end to the match. ""My hip was cramping and I just could not continue,"" said the 34-year-old. Agassi, who has won the Australian Open four times, will have an MRI scan to discover the extent of the damage. He said the problem was not the same as the hip injury which forced him to miss Wimbledon last year.

""The good news is that it didn't just tear, it was tightening up and that can be your body protecting itself, which is hopefully more of the issue,"" he added. ""That wasn't comfortable out there at all, what I was feeling. ""I have to wait and see what I'm dealing with - it's a pretty scary feeling out there when something doesn't feel right and is getting worse. ""It's very disappointing and I'll have to do my best to deal with it. Time will shortly tell if it (the Australian Open) is a possibility or not. ""I was not counting on this being the end of the day for me. ""Maybe in a few days I'll have a much better sense of what my hopes will be.""
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Henman to face Saulnier test	"British number one Tim Henman will face France's Cyril Saulnier in the first round of next week's Australian Open.

Greg Rusedski, the British number two, is in the same quarter of the draw and could face Andy Roddick in the second round if he beats Swede Jonas Bjorkman. Local favourite Lleyton Hewitt will meet France's Arnaud Clement, while defending champion and world number one Roger Federer faces Fabrice Santoro. Women's top seed Lindsay Davenport drew Spanish veteran Conchita Martinez.

Henman came from two sets down to defeat Saulnier in the first round of the French Open last year, so he knows he faces a tough test in Melbourne. The seventh seed, who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals in the year's first major and is lined up to meet Roddick in the last eight, is looking forward to the match. ""He's tough player on any surface, he's got a lot of ability,"" he said. ""We had a really tight one in Paris that went my way so I'm going to need to play well from the outset because he's a dangerous competitor."" Switzerland's Federer, seeded one, is the hot favourite having won three of the four grand slam titles in 2004. He has beaten Santoro in five of their seven previous encounters, but is taking nothing for granted. ""It's a tricky match,"" Federer said. ""I played him at the US Open and won quite comfortably then. But you never know, if the rhythm is a bit off, he can keep you guessing and make it difficult. ""The most important thing, though, is to get used to playing five-set matches and winning them."" The 23-year-old could meet four-time champion Andre Agassi in the quarter-finals before meeting Russian Marat Safin, the player he beat in last year's final.

Eighth-seeded American Agassi is set to play a qualifier in round one if he can shake off a hip injury which ruled him out of the Kooyong Classic. Second seed Andy Roddick will open his campaign against Irakli Labadze of Georgia. The American could meet Rusedski in the second round, seventh seed Henman in the quarter-finals and Hewitt in the last four. Hewitt is hoping to become the first Australian man to win the event since Mark Edmondson in 1976. The 23-year-old has never been beyond round four in eight attempts at Melbourne Park but has at least secured the opposite half of the draw to Federer, who beat him in the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open last year. Safin, seeded four, opens his campaign against a qualifier with 16th seed Tommy Haas, the player he beat in the semi-finals in 2002, a possible fourth-round opponent.

In the women's draw, Davenport could encounter eighth-seeded Venus Williams in the quarter-finals and third-ranked Anastasia Myskina, the French Open champion, in the semi-finals. Bronchitis ruled Davenport, the 2000 Australian Open champion, out of her Sydney quarter-final on Thursday. Venus Williams, who lost to younger sister Serena in the Melbourne final two years ago, opens against Eleni Daniilidou of Greece. Serena Williams, who won her fourth consecutive grand slam at the 2003 Australian Open, was drawn in the bottom quarter with second seed Amelie Mauresmo, a runner-up in 1999. Serena will open against another Frenchwoman Camille Pin, while Mauresmo plays Australia's Samantha Stosur. Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova, seeded fourth, drew a qualifier in the first round but could meet fellow Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova, the US Open winner, in the last eight

1 Roger Federer (Switzerland)

2 Andy Roddick (US)

3 Lleyton Hewitt (Australia)

4 Marat Safin (Russia)

5 Carlos Moya (Spain)

6 Guillermo Coria (Argentina)

7 Tim Henman (Britain)

8 Andre Agassi (US)

9 David Nalbandian (Argentina)

10 Gaston Gaudio (Argentina)

11 Joachim Johansson (Sweden)

12 Guillermo Canas (Argentina)

13 Tommy Robredo (Spain)

14 Sebastien Grosjean (France)

15 Mikhail Youzhny (Russia)

16 Tommy Haas (Germany)

17 Andrei Pavel (Romania)

18 Nicolas Massu (Chile)

19 Vincent Spadea (US)

20 Dominik Hrbaty (Slovakia)

21 Nicolas Kiefer (Germany)

22 Ivan Ljubicic (Croatia)

23 Fernando Gonzalez (Chile)

24 Feliciano Lopez (Spain)

25 Juan Ignacio Chela (Argentina)

26 Nikolay Davydenko (Russia)

27 Paradorn Srichaphan (Thailand)

28 Mario Ancic (Croatia)

29 Taylor Dent (US)

30 Thomas Johansson (Sweden)

31 Juan Carlos Ferrero (Spain)

32 Jurgen Melzer (Austria)

1 Lindsay Davenport (US)

2 Amelie Mauresmo (France)

3 Anastasia Myskina (Russia)

4 Maria Sharapova (Russia)

5 Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia)

6 Elena Dementieva (Russia)

7 Serena Williams (US)

8 Venus Williams (US)

9 Vera Zvonareva (Russia)

10 Alicia Molik (Australia)

11 Nadia Petrova (Russia)

12 Patty Schnyder (Switzerland)

13 Karolina Sprem (Croatia)

14 Francesca Schiavone (Italy)

15 Silvia Farina Elia (Italy)

16 Ai Sugiyama (Japan)

17 Fabiola Zuluaga (Colombia)

18 Elena Likhovtseva (Russia)

19 Nathalie Dechy (France)

20 Tatiana Golovin (France)

21 Amy Frazier (US)

22 Magdalena Maleeva (Bulgaria)

23 Jelena Jankovic (Serbia and Montenegro)

24 Mary Pierce (France)

25 Lisa Raymond (US)

26 Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia)

27 Anna Smashnova (Israel)

28 Shinobu Asagoe (Japan)

29 Gisela Dulko (Argentina)

30 Flavia Pennetta (Italy)

31 Jelena Kostanic (Croatia)

32 Iveta Benesova (Czech Republic)
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Moya suffers shock loss	"Fifth seed Carlos Moya was the first big name to fall at the Australian Open as he went down to fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez on Monday.

Moya began the year with victory at the Chennai Open but looked out of sorts from the start in the Melbourne heat. Garcia-Lopez, ranked 106 in the world, dominated from the outset and withstood a third-set rally from Moya to hang on for a 7-5 6-3 3-6 6-3 victory. The 21-year-old plays Kevin Kim or Lee Hyuung-Taik in the second round. Garcia-Lopez was delighted with the victory in only his third ever Grand Slam match. ""I think this was the most important win of my life as Carlos is one of the best players in the world,"" he said. ""This has given me a lot of confidence. Now I feel I can beat all these players."" Moya said: ""I was playing well before I came here. It was the perfect preparation but something was wrong today.""

Four-time champion Andre Agassi began what could be his last Australian Open with a convincing win over German qualifier Dieter Kindlmann. The 34-year-old American, who had been struggling with a hip injury earlier in the week, stormed to a 6-4 6-3 6-0 win. Agassi will play France's Olivier Patience or Germany's Rainer Schuettler - the man he beat in the 2003 final - in the next round. ""No one was more concerned (about the injury) than myself,"" said eighth seed Agassi. ""I'd worked hard to be down here and ready. But the last few days, I've pushed through the injury and it seemed to do pretty good."" In other matches, world junior champion Gael Monfils made use of his wild card with a magnificent 1-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (8-6) win over American Robby Ginepri. The 2002 champion Thomas Johansson fought back to beat Peter Luczak 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-3 4-6 6-0, and French Open champion Gaston Gaudio beat Justin Gimelstob 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 6-3. Seeds Dominik Hrbaty, Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic made comfortable progress, but former French Open champion Albert Costa lost to Bjorn Phau.
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Clijsters hope on Aussie Open	"Kim Clijsters has denied reports that she has pulled out of January's Australian Open because of her persistent wrist injury.

Open chief Paul McNamee had said: ""Kim's wrist obviously isn't going to be rehabilitated."" But her spokesman insisted she had simply delayed submitting her entry. ""The doctors are assessing her injury on a weekly basis and if there is no risk she could play. But if there's the least risk she will stay away."" Despite being absent from the WTA entry list for the tournament, which begins on 17 January, Clijsters would be certain to get a wild card if she requested one. Clijsters is still ranked 22nd in the world despite only playing a handful of matches last season. The Belgian had an operation on her left wrist early in the season but injured it again on her return to the tour. Meanwhile, Jelena Dokic, who used to compete for Australia, has opted out of the first Grand Slam of the season. Dokic has not played in the Australian Open since 2001 when she lost in the first round. But the 21-year-old would have had to rely on a wild card next season because her ranking has tumbled to 127th. Four-time champion Monica Seles, who has not played since last year's French Open, is another absentee because of an injured left foot.
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Clijsters could play Aussie Open	"Kim Clijsters has denied reports that she has pulled out of January's Australian Open because of her persistent wrist injury.

Open chief Paul McNamee had said: ""Kim's wrist obviously isn't going to be rehabilitated."" But her spokesman insisted she had simply delayed submitting her entry. ""The doctors are assessing her injury on a weekly basis and if there is no risk she could play. But if there's the least risk she will stay away."" Despite being absent from the WTA entry list for the tournament, which begins on 17 January, Clijsters would be certain to get a wild card if she requested one. Clijsters is still ranked 22nd in the world despite only playing a handful of matches last season. The Belgian had an operation on her left wrist early in the season but injured it again on her return to the tour. Meanwhile, Jelena Dokic, who used to compete for Australia, has opted out of the first Grand Slam of the season. Dokic has not played in the Australian Open since 2001 when she lost in the first round. But the 21-year-old would have had to rely on a wild card next season because her ranking has tumbled to 127th. Four-time champion Monica Seles, who has not played since last year's French Open, is another absentee because of an injured left foot.
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Edgy Agassi struggles past Dent	"Andre Agassi put in an erratic display before edging into the fourth round of the Australian Open with victory over Taylor Dent.

The 34-year-old American, seeded eighth, made a poor start, dropping serve early on and later needing two chances to serve out the set. Having secured the lead, Agassi still failed to take control as both players forced a succession of breaks. But Agassi won the tie-break before wrapping up a 7-5 7-6 (7-3) 6-1 win. Fourth seed

survived an injury scare as he battled past Mario Ancic 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-4. The Russian turned his right ankle in the third game of the fourth set and called for treatment immediately. But he showed no sign of the problem when he returned to the court to wrap up victory in two hours 45 minutes.

Ancic, Wimbledon semi-finalist in 2004, looked set to push Safin all the way when he took the second set but Safin raised his game to sink the Croatian. Safin said he was trying to keep his temper under control at this year's tournament. The Russian hit himself on the head repeatedly in one second-set outburst but was otherwise largely calm in his victory. ""I try to stay calm because if you go crazy against players like Ancic, you might never come back because he's a tough opponent,"" he said. ""I'm a little bit calmer than I was before because I'd had enough."" The Russian added that he was not worried by his ankle injury. ""I have had a lot of problems with that ankle before - it will be OK,"" he said.

's route to the fourth round was made easy when opponent Jarkko Nieminen was forced to retire from their match.

The top seed and defending champion was leading 6-3 5-2 when Nieminen pulled out with an abdominal injury. Federer had been in patchy form until then - mixing 19 unforced errors with 19 winners. The world number one will play Cypriot

next after the former world junior champion beat Tommy Robredo 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 6-1. Federer admitted he was under extra pressure after extending his winning streak to a career-best 24. ""They are so used to me winning, but it's not that simple,"" he said. ""I had a feeling this could be a tough match. I had a bad start but I bounced back. I always want to play better than I am, but I thought I was pretty OK."" French Open champion

is out of the tournament after a five-set defeat by Dominik Hrbaty. Hrbaty defeated the 10th seed 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (8-10) 6-7 (3-7) 6-1 6-3 in a match lasting four hours and 21 minutes. The pair traded 16 service breaks during an exhausting baseline battle, with Hrbaty taking a decisive advantage in the eighth game of the final set. Hrbaty will now play 2002 champion

, who outlasted American Kevin Kim 3-6 6-2 6-7 6-2 6-2.
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Roddick splits from coach Gilbert	"Andy Roddick has ended an 18-month association with coach Brad Gilbert which yielded the US Open title and saw the American become world number one.

Roddick released a statement through the SFX Sports Group with the news but did not give a reason for the split. ""The decision to not re-hire Brad Gilbert for the 2005 season is based on what I think is best for my game at this time,"" said Roddick. ""Any more on this situation's a private matter between coach and player."" Roddick won 121 of his 147 matches while working with Gilbert, and said he had enjoyed their time together. He won his first Grand Slam event at Flushing Meadows last year, and finished 2003 on top of the ATP Tour rankings.

But Roddick slipped to second this year behind Roger Federer, who became the first man since 1988 to win three Majors in a season. Federer, who has not had a coach since he split from Peter Lundgren at the end of last year, beat Roddick to win the Wimbledon title and in two other tournament finals. Roddick hired Gilbert after deciding to part from coach Tarik Benhabiles in the wake of his first-round exit at the 2003 French Open. He went on to win the US Open and four other titles for the year. He has won four events this season. ""I have enjoyed all of my time with Andy,"" Gilbert said on his personal website. ""He has been a great student of the game during the time that we worked together and I am very proud of the results that were achieved. ""While I believe that there is still a great deal of work to be done, Andy clearly does not feel that way.""
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Roddick in talks over new coach	"Andy Roddick is reportedly close to confirming US Davis Cup assistant Dean Goldfine as his new coach.

Roddick ended his 18-month partnership with Brad Gilbert on Monday, and Goldfine admits talks have taken place. ""We had a really good conversation and we're on the same page in terms of what I expect from a player in commitment and what he wants,"" said Goldfine. ""The reading I got from him is that I would have a lot of the qualities he's looking for in a coach."" Speaking to told South Florida's Sun-Sentinel newspaper, Goldfine added: ""That being said, from his standpoint, which is smart, he wants to cover all his bases. ""I think Andy wants a long-term relationship and wants to make sure it's the right fit... the best fit."" Goldfine, 39, has worked with Todd Martin and Roddick's close friend Mardy Fish, and was an assistant coach with the US Olympic team. Martin is the other name to have been linked to the vacant post alongside Roddick.
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Hewitt survives Nalbandian epic	"Home favourite Lleyton Hewitt came through a dramatic five-set battle with Argentine David Nalbandian to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.

Hewitt looked to be cruising to victory after racing into a two-set lead. But Nalbandian broke his serve three times in both of the next two sets to set up a nailbiting decider. Hewitt eventually grabbed the vital break in the 17th game and served out to win 6-3 6-2 1-6 3-6 10-8 and set up a meeting with Andy Roddick. The winner of that match will face either Roger Federer or Marat Safin in the final. Ninth seed Nalbandian had never come back from two sets down to win a match, and there was no indication he would do so as Hewitt dominated the first two sets.

The Argentine had stoked up the temperature ahead of the match by saying Hewitt's exuberant on-court celebrations were ""not very good for the sport"". And he had words with Hewitt during one change of ends in the second set when the Australian appeared to brush shoulders with him as they went to their chairs. The balance of power changed completely in the third set as Hewitt allowed his level to dip, and he double-faulted twice as Nalbandian broke on the way to taking the fourth set. But the tiring third seed showed incredible reserves of strength to force the break despite being outplayed for much of the final set and three times coming within two points of defeat. He then produced a love service game to finish off the match in four hours and five minutes. ""I just kept hanging in there. It was always tough serving second in the fifth set,"" said Hewitt, who had never reached the last four at his home Grand Slam. ""I told myself to give everything and in the end it paid off once again. ""It's a long way from holding that trophy up there but I'm hanging in there. ""Only four guys left that can win and we're the top four in the world. It's set up for a pretty good showdown in the semis and finals.""
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Sydney return for Henin-Hardenne	"Olympic champion Justine Henin-Hardenne will return to action in January's Sydney International tournament.

The Belgian has not competed since losing her top world ranking at the US Open in September, where she was beaten in the fourth round by Nadia Petrova. She took time out to shake off a virus but will defend her titles in Sydney and at the Australian Open. Women's world number one Lindsay Davenport and French Open champion Anastasia Myskina will also compete.

In the men's event, world number three Lleyton Hewitt returns to defend his title, along with runner-up Carlos Moya. Moya, Spain's Davis Cup final hero in their recent win over the US, had to retire with an ankle injury in the first set of the final.

Tournament director Craig Watson said: ""I had a message relayed to me from him after Spain's Davis Cup victory, saying he was looking forward to trying to make up for his disappointment in the (2004) final. The tournament will take place from 9-15 January.
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Koubek suspended after drugs test	"Stefan Koubek says he has been banned for three months by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) after testing positive for a banned substance.

The world number 60 failed a routine drugs test at this year's French Open but now plans to lodge an appeal. Koubek believes an injection given to him by an Austrian doctor to treat a wrist injury is to blame for producing traces of the substance in his system. ""I have acted correctly,"" the 27-year-old Austrian said in a statement. Koubek, who defeated Britain's Greg Rusedski in the decisive rubber of the Davis Cup in September, is now set to miss the start of the season. He said, ""A three-month ban would mean that I not only will miss the Australian Open, but also the Davis Cup in Australia.""
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Hewitt fights back to reach final	"Lleyton Hewitt kept his dream of an Australian Open title alive with a four-set win over Andy Roddick in Friday's second semi-final.

The home favourite will face Marat Safin in Sunday's final after coming through 3-6 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-4) 6-1. Hewitt fought back from a set down and trailed in both tie-breaks but would not be denied, thrilling the Melbourne crowd with a typically battling effort. He is aiming to be the first Australian winner since Mark Edmondson in 1976. Hewitt is the first Australian to make the final since Pat Cash lost to Mats Wilander in 1988, but faces a huge challenge against Safin - the conqueror of Roger Federer. After needing five sets in his last two matches there was reason to think Hewitt might struggle for fitness. He certainly made a sluggish start, dropping his opening service game, and Roddick dominated with his huge serve as he took the first set.

After 12 tense games in the second, the key moment came when Hewitt raised his game in the tie-break to overturn an early mini-break. That energised the crowd but Roddick was not finished and raced 4-1 clear in the crucial third before Hewitt pegged him back and forced another tie-break. Again Roddick broke first and again Hewitt fought back, taking the lead with a superb backhand pass.

The Australian was not to be denied and a disheartened Roddick made little impact in the fourth set as Hewitt raced to victory, sending the Melbourne crowd wild and ensuring the final will be a huge occasion. ""It's awesome,"" said Hewitt. ""I started preparing for this tournament nine months ago. ""I've done a lot of hard yards to get here. ""I've always said I'd do anything to get in the first night final at the Australian Open. Now I've got my chance."" Roddick was furious with himself for failing to take advantage of leads in both tie-breaks. ""I'm usually pretty money in those,"" said Roddick. ""Either one of those would have given me a distinct advantage. ""I'm mad, I felt I was in there with a shot. He put himself in position to win big points. I donated a little more than I would have wanted."" And the American played down the influence of one spectator who appeared to contribute to a double fault by shouting during Rodick's service action. ""It just took one jackass to shout out,"" said Roddick, adding that the crowd overall was ""very respectful"".
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Officials respond in court row	"Australian tennis' top official has defended the Australian Open courts at Melbourne Park after criticism of the playing surface by Lleyton Hewitt.

Hewitt said he had had a ""gutful"" of trying to persuade them to make the surface faster but Tennis Australia's Geoff Pollard rejected his comments. ""We did ask for it to be made faster than last year and, to my knowledge, it is faster,"" he said. ""We spent a substantial amount of money on modifications to make it faster."" Hewitt, who has not got past the fourth round at Melbourne in seven attempts, had earlier said the surface was not worthy of such a prestigious tournament. But he said he would play on whatever surface he had to in order to have a chance of winning. The tournament starts on 17 January, and Pollard said the surface had been speeded up since last year's tournament following complaints by several Australian players. But he refused to accept that the Melbourne surface may have had a bearing on Hewitt's performances over the years. ""Lleyton's proving how versatile he is on all surfaces,"" he said. ""It is faster than last year and that'll be faster than the one Lleyton beat Roger Federer on in the Davis Cup in 2003.""
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Williams battles to Aussie title	"Serena Williams staged a remarkable recovery to beat Lindsay Davenport and win her second Australian Open title.

The 2003 champion claimed her seventh Grand Slam title, and her first since Wimbledon in 2003, 2-6 6-3 6-0. Williams had looked close to quitting with a rib injury when she left the court for treatment after five games. She quickly dropped the first set but from 3-3 in the second found another gear as Davenport's game collapsed, allowing Williams to take the title. Williams later explained her injury problem, saying it was the result of lunging for a ball early in the first set. ""Lindsay had me on the run out wide on my backhand and my back went but eventually I was able to come back, thank goodness,"" she said. Davenport paid tribute to Williams, saying: ""She's had a tough couple of years and she's come back like a champion.""

The 23-year-old former world number one was in desperate trouble in the early stages as the injury hampered her service action. Davenport took advantage to race through the opening set and held six break points in game five of the second. ""I kept thinking to myself 'I'm not losing this game,"" said Williams afterwards. ""'I don't care if my arm falls off, I'm not losing this game'. And I guess that's what happened. ""I didn't want to lose that particular game because it would have given her a lot of momentum, and a lot of confidence."" Despite letting the break points slip away Davenport looked comfortable enough at 3-3, but from 40-0 up she just folded. Williams won nine consecutive points for the set and powered through the decider as a lacklustre Davenport looked to have run out of energy after a gruelling two weeks. ""I felt like I was playing well and in control pretty much of the match,"" said Davenport. ""Then I just had that horrible lapse, I think serving up 40-0, and made a few errors and opened up the door for her and she just kept going through it. ""At the end I think I was a little bit fatigued but she took advantage of it and kept going - she's a great frontrunner when she gets going.""
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Safin cool on Wimbledon	"Newly-crowned Australian Open champion Marat Safin has ruled out any chance of winning Wimbledon in the future.

After losing in round one last year, Safin said he had ""given up"" on Wimbledon and winning his second Grand Slam title has not changed his mind. ""I'll play, but with no expectations. I feel like I can't waste my time, my energy on that surface,"" he said. ""Some people, they cannot play on clay. Some people, they cannot play on a hard court. Me, I can't play on grass."" However, Safin is hopeful that winning the Australian Open will give him the belief he needs to win more Grand Slam titles. ""It's a relief for me. Two grand slams, it's already something. But with this one I worked really hard for it,"" he said. ""Basically, I would love to win a couple more. I think I have a chance if I continue this way.

""If (coach) Peter Lundgren will stick around with me and wants to work with me for a bit longer, I think I can make it."" The 25-year-old shocked Pete Sampras in the 2000 US Open final to win his first major title but then lost in two Australian Open finals. Safin admitted he had begun to doubt whether he would win another Grand Slam. ""I didn't expect that (to win the 2000 US Open) - it was against Sampras, I wasn't the favourite so I had no pressure whatsoever,"" he said. ""After the first final that I didn't win against Thomas Johansson (in 2002), I couldn't see myself winning the Grand Slams anymore. ""I was once in the semi-finals of the French Open, but I didn't believe I can win it. ""I just couldn't handle the pressure. You need to believe in yourself, and I didn't.""

And after losing the first set 6-1 to Lleyton Hewitt in Sunday's final, Safin said he began to doubt himself again. ""I am 25. I'm playing against Hewitt. At least you have to have the opportunity to win it, at least have a chance,"" he said. ""It's like you go there and you lose first set 6-1, then you start to think: 'This is not my day. The way I'm playing is ridiculous.' ""But then you start to really be a little bit more selfish and try to find a way out of there. ""And I found it. I was like really much I was much happier than in 2000, that's for sure, because I get over it.""
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Safin plays down Wimbledon hopes	"Newly-crowned Australian Open champion Marat Safin has ruled out any chance of winning Wimbledon in the future.

After losing in round one last year, Safin said he had ""given up"" on Wimbledon and winning his second Grand Slam title has not changed his mind. ""I'll play, but with no expectations. I feel like I can't waste my time, my energy on that surface,"" he said. ""Some people, they cannot play on clay. Some people, they cannot play on a hard court. Me, I can't play on grass."" However, Safin is hopeful that winning the Australian Open will give him the belief he needs to win more Grand Slam titles. ""It's a relief for me. Two grand slams, it's already something. But with this one I worked really hard for it,"" he said. ""Basically, I would love to win a couple more. I think I have a chance if I continue this way.

""If (coach) Peter Lundgren will stick around with me and wants to work with me for a bit longer, I think I can make it."" The 25-year-old shocked Pete Sampras in the 2000 US Open final to win his first major title but then lost in two Australian Open finals. Safin admitted he had begun to doubt whether he would win another Grand Slam. ""I didn't expect that (to win the 2000 US Open) - it was against Sampras, I wasn't the favourite so I had no pressure whatsoever,"" he said. ""After the first final that I didn't win against Thomas Johansson (in 2002), I couldn't see myself winning the Grand Slams anymore. ""I was once in the semi-finals of the French Open, but I didn't believe I can win it. ""I just couldn't handle the pressure. You need to believe in yourself, and I didn't.""

And after losing the first set 6-1 to Lleyton Hewitt in Sunday's final, Safin said he began to doubt himself again. ""I am 25. I'm playing against Hewitt. At least you have to have the opportunity to win it, at least have a chance,"" he said. ""It's like you go there and you lose first set 6-1, then you start to think: 'This is not my day. The way I'm playing is ridiculous.' ""But then you start to really be a little bit more selfish and try to find a way out of there. ""And I found it. I was like really much I was much happier than in 2000, that's for sure, because I get over it.""
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Nadal puts Spain 2-0 up	"Result: Nadal 6-7 (6/8) 6-2 7-6 (8/6) 6-2 Roddick

Spain's Rafael Nadal beats Andy Roddick of the USA in the second singles match rubber of the 2004 Davis Cup final in Seville. Spain lead 1-0 after Carlos Moya beat Mardy Fish in straight sets in the opening match of the tie.

Nadal holds his nerve and the crowd goes wild as Spain go 2-0 up in the tie.

Roddick holds serve to force Nadal to serve for the match but the American surely cannot turn things around now.

Nadal works Roddick around the court on two consecutive points to earn two break points. One is enough, the Spaniard secures the double-break and Roddick is now teetering on the edge.

Roddick is trying to gee himself up but the clay surface is taking its toll on his game and he is looking tired. Nadal wins the game to love.

Nadal steps up the pressure to break and Spain have the early initiative in the fourth set.

Nadal also holds convincingly as both players feel their way into the fourth set.

Roddick shrugs off the disappointment of losing the third-set tiebreak and breezes through his first service game of the fourth set.

Nadal earns the first mini-break in the tiebreak as the match enters its fourth hour. A couple of stunning points follow, one where Nadal chases down a Roddick shot and turns into a passing winner. Then Roddick produces some amazing defence at the net to take the score to 4-4. Roddick has two serves for the set but double-faults to take the score to 5-5. Nadal saves a Roddick set point then earns his own with a drive volley - and a crosscourt passing winner sends the crowd wild.

Nadal tries to up his aggression and he passes Roddick down the line to go 15-40 and two set points up. Roddick saves the first with a desperate lunge volley and smacks a volley winner across the court to take the score back to deuce before securing the game. The set will go to another tiebreak.

Nadal enjoys another straightforward hold and Roddick must once again serve to stay in the set.

Roddick again holds on, despite some brilliant shot-making from his opponent.

Nadal races through his service game to put the pressure straight back onto Roddick.

Roddick hangs in on his serve to level matters but Nadal is making him fight for every point.

Nadal could be suffering a disappointment hangover from the previous game as he goes 0-30 down and then has to save a break point after a tremendous rally in which he is forced into some brilliant defence. But it pays off and the Spaniard edges ahead in the set.

Roddick's serve is not firing as ferociously as usual and has to rely on his sheer competitive determination to stay in the set. Three times, Nadal forces a break point and three times the world number two hangs in. And Roddick's grit pays off as he manages to hold.

Roddick still looks a bit sluggish but he attacks the net and is rewarded with a break point, which Nadal saves with a good first serve and the Spaniard goes on to hold.

There is a disruption in play as Roddick is upset about something in the crowd. The Spanish captain gets involved as does the match referee but it is unclear what the problem is. One thing for certain is that the crowd are roused into support of Nadal and they go wild when Roddick loses the next point and goes break point down. Roddick saves the break point and then bangs down his ninth ace before clinching the game with a service winner.

The game passes the two-hour mark as Nadal holds serve to edge ahead in the third set.

Now Roddick has to defend a break point and he produces a characteristic ace to save it. It is immediately followed by another and he holds with a little dinked half-volley winner.

Roddick is looking a little leaden-footed but does carve out a break point for himself. But he plays it poorly and Nadal avoids the danger.

Roddick has gone off the boil and again struggles. He fails to get down properly for a low forehand volley and gives Nadal three break points. The American blasts an ace to save one but follows up with a double fault and the rubber is level.

Nadal edges towards taking the second set with a comfortable hold.

Two good serves put Roddick 30-0 up but he then makes a couple of errors to find himself 30-40 down. He saves the break point with an ace and then manages to hold.

Roddick's level has dropped while Nadal is on a hot streak. The Spaniard includes a superb crosscourt winner off the back foot as he races through his service game without dropping a point.

Roddick double-faults twice and Nadal takes full advantage of the break point offered, powering a passing winner past Roddick.

Nadal wins another tight game. Neither player has dipped from the high standard of play in the first set.

Nadal puts the American under pressure and Roddick saves a break point with a superb stop volley before going on to hold.

Nadal puts the disappointment of losing the first-set tiebreak to claim the opening game in the second.

Roddick double-faults to concede the first mini-break and then Nadal loops a crosscourt winner to seize advantage in the tiebreak. He lets one slip but wins his next serve to earn three set points. But Roddick saves them and then earns one himself. Nadal comes up with a down-the-line winner but then nets tamely on Roddick's next set point.

Nadal's nerve is tested as he tries to force a tiebreak. Both players come up with some scintillating tennis and the Spaniard has several chances to clinch the game before finally doing so when Roddick drives wide.

A pulsating game sees Nadal racing round the court retrieving and refusing to give Roddick any easy points. The point of the match so far involves Roddick's slam-dunk smash being returned by Nadal before Roddick finally manages to end the rally. On the very next point, Nadal blasts a forehand service return from right of court that passes Roddick and even the American is forced to applaud. But Roddick comes up with two big serves to polish off the game.

Nadal outplays Roddick to reach 40-0 but the American fights back to 40-30 before Nadal's powerful crosscourt forehand winner secures the game.

The crowd are getting very involved, cheering between Roddick's first and second serves. But the American comes through to hold and edge ahead in the set.

Nadal manages to hold again despite Roddick piling the pressure on his serve. The Spaniard wins the game courtesy of another lucky net cord.

Roddick double faults buts manages to keep his composure. A well-placed serve is unreturnable and Roddick holds.

A powerful ace down the middle gives Nadal a simple love service game - the first time he has held serve so far in the match. If Roddick didn't know before, he knows now that he is in a real contest.

Another superb game as Nadal breaks to once again lift the roof. He produces some fine groundstrokes to leave Roddick chasing shadows. Four of the first five games have seen a break of serve.

Despite the disappointment of losing his serve, Roddick is not phased and storms into a 40-15 lead when the umpire leaves his seat to confirm a close line-call. Nadal takes the next point but Roddick breaks again with a sharp volley at the net.

Roddick's advantage is short lived as Nadal breaks back immediately. A fortunate net cord helps the Spaniard on his way and when Roddick fires a forehand cross court shot wide to lose his serve, Nadal pumps his fist in celebration.

The American is pumped up for this clash and takes on Nadal's serve from the start. Nadal's drop shot is agonisingly called out and Roddick claims the vital first break.

After Moya's win in the opening rubber, a raucous Seville crowd is buoyed by Nadal's impressive start which sees him race into a 30-0 lead. However Roddick fights back to hold his serve.
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Henman & Murray claim LTA awards	"Tim Henman was named player of the year for 2004 by the Lawn Tennis Association at Wimbledon on Monday.

The Briton was recognised for the best year of his career, which saw him reach the semis at the French and US Opens. Scotland's Andrew Murray was named young player of the year after winning the US Open juniors, as well as a Futures event in Italy. And world number one Peter Norfolk won disabled player of the year after claiming his third US Open crown.

Great Britain's under 14 boys won the team of the year prize for their victory at the World Junior Tennis event in August. Henman will start his 2005 campaign at the Kooyong event on 12 January in a field that includes Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi. And the Briton is optimistic of surpassing his best effort of a fourth-round place at the Australian Open, which begins the following week. ""I've often felt that the conditions suit my game in Melbourne so I'd love to be able to start next year by doing well at the Australian Open,"" Henman told his website. ""That's why I've changed my schedule slightly by committing to play in the Kooyong Classic. ""I'll be able to acclimatise while practising before the event and then will be guaranteed matches against the best players in the world. ""I think that will give me the best possible chance of doing well at the Australian Open.""
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Connors' rallying cry for British tennis	"""Do you have it in your heart? How much guts do you have? How much do you hate to lose?""

These are the questions Jimmy Connors will be asking of Britain's brightest tennis hopes in the months, and possibly years, to come. The American legend swept into London on Thursday to announce a ""long-term"" relationship with the Lawn Tennis Association after spending three days at the Elite Performance winter camp in La Manga. And the man who epitomised the phrase 'will to win' before Lleyton Hewitt was even born is clear about the qualities he hopes to convey. ""You know, everybody hits the ball well and there's a very fine line between number one and number 100,"" said Connors. ""I was that fine line for a long time. But if I can help, I want to be part of teaching kids how to win.""

Connors is not the first great name to offer his services to the LTA - his long-time rival John McEnroe has repeatedly done the same. But Connors is at pains to point out that his interest goes well beyond any publicity stunt, and he gave a glowing recommendation to the work of LTA performance director David Felgate and his team. ""Britain has a different attitude, the right attitude, in taking the game forward and finding the next Wimbledon champion,"" said Connors. ""That's something you don't find every day. Everybody talks a good game but not everybody puts that into effect. ""The impression I came away with after just seeing David and the other coaches for three days was one like I've never seen before, especially over here. ""This is not going to happen overnight, there are no miracle workers, but you're going in the right direction."" The 52-year-old's enthusiasm for the work going on in this country is in marked contrast to his relationship with tennis officials back in America. ""I've had discussions with the USTA (United States Tennis Association) over a number of years,"" he said. ""That's where it (my input) ended."" Connors is a straight-talker and will be equally blunt and honest in his dealings with the LTA and the cream of Britain's young players. ""If they're chosen, they've got to produce,"" he said.

""If not, someone will come and take their place. There's only one number one spot and it's lonely up there, but it's got the best view."" In the year that has seen Andrew Murray emerge as Britain's great new hope, Connors rejected suggestions that the Scot might be put under too much pressure too soon. ""Tim Henman has a whole country on his shoulder,"" said Connors. ""I don't know that pressure, but if you like that it can be a certain push to get on to the next level. ""Someone's going to have to come and take over from him (Henman). If I was Andrew Murray, I'd embrace that. That's what we play for."" Despite the emphasis on hard work, training and preparation, Connors does admit that the desire required of a champion has to come from within. ""The passion I had, I don't know if you can find that,"" he admitted. ""I was also nuts. I say that because there was nothing better for me than to compete on the tennis court. ""It was the most important thing in the world for me, and to do that something's got to be not right with you. There was nothing better for me ever than to play tennis in front of 25,000 people. ""What I had when I played tennis is what I am. You have to have that, you can't be moulded.""
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Roche 'turns down Federer offer'	"Australian tennis coach Tony Roche has turned down an approach from Roger Federer to be the world number one's new full-time coach, say reports.

Melbourne's Herald-Sun said Roche, troubled by a hip complaint, did not want to travel full-time again. However, Roche is happy to work with the Swiss star on a casual basis and is helping him prepare for next month's defence of his Australian Open crown. Federer has been without a coach since splitting with Peter Lundgren in 2003. Roche, a former Davis Cup player for Australia, won the French Open, reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals and won five Wimbledon doubles titles with John Newcombe.

He also coached former number one Ivan Lendl and Pat Rafter to Grand Slam victories and has worked with Australia's Lleyton Hewitt. Some reports claim Federer initially wanted Andre Agassi's Australian coach Darren Cahill, before Agassi confirmed he would play on in 2005. Federer was named Swiss sportsman of the year on Saturday, to add to the BBC overseas sportsman and European Sports Journalists Association awards he has already won.
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Federer joins all-time greats	"The last year has seen one player dominate men's tennis, and one country dominate the women's game.

Roger Federer became the first man since Mats Wilander in 1988 to win three Grand Slams in one season. And after Anastasia Myskina became the first Russian woman to win a Grand Slam at the French Open, two more followed at Wimbledon and the US Open. Meanwhile, Briton Tim Henman enjoyed his best year, while Greg Rusedski fought back superbly from adversity. Federer began the year as world number one and holder of the Wimbledon and Masters Cup titles, and set about conquering new ground. The Swiss sounded warning of the dominance to come at the Australian Open.

He ripped through the draw before beating Marat Safin in the final. Andy Roddick was the only player to put up any real resistance at Wimbledon, and Federer's performance against Lleyton Hewitt in the US Open final was breathtaking. Federer again got the better of Hewitt in the season-ending Masters Cup. His victory in Houston proved to be his 13th successive win in a final, an Open era record. The only major let-down was a third-round loss to Gustavo Kuerten at the French Open, and Roland Garros will be his main target in 2005.

There was also a surprise loss to the unheralded Tomas Berdych at the Olympic Games, which saw Chile dominate as Nicoals Massu took the singles and then paired up with Fernando Gonzaelz to win doubles gold. Another major trophy that looks beyond Federer is the Davis Cup, which was won by Spain in a 3-2 home success over the USA in Seville. Roddick struggled on the clay, losing to Rafael Nadal on the opening day before going down to Carlos Moya in the all-important fourth rubber.

Henman broke new ground by reaching the semis on clay at the French Open - a stunning effort - and also at the US Open. A quarter-final defeat to Mario Ancic at Wimbledon was disappointing for the limp manner of the Briton's defeat, but he remains optimistic of going further next year.

British number two Rusedski endured a rollercoaster year, returning to the circuit after being cleared of a doping offence in March. With his ranking down at 168, many feared the 31-year-old's career was over, but he battled back in the second half of the season to re-enter the top 50. The Russian women finally delivered on their long-recognised promise in 2004, with Myskina, Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova winning Grand Slams, before taking the season-ending Fed Cup. But while the young Russians were on the way up, it was a different story for the Belgians and the Williams sisters. Only veteran Lindsay Davenport held the new wave at bay, a stunning run of form after Wimbledon taking her to number one ahead of Amelie Mauresmo, whose Grand Slam drought goes on. The year started in regulation fashion as Justine Henin-Hardenne beat compatriot Kim Clijsters at the Australian Open.

A virus ruined the rest of Henin-Hardenne's year, although she was fit enough to win Olympic gold, but Clijsters had an even more miserable 2004. She suffered a serious wrist injury and then announced the end of her relationship with Lleyton Hewitt, and will be happy to see the year end. In their absence, Myskina thrashed Elena Dementieva in a historic, but woeful, all-Russian final at the French Open. Wimbledon was a more refreshing affair as Sharapova captivated SW19, showing nerves of steel as she battled past Davenport and Serena Williams to take the title.

Davenport was a strong favourite for the US Open but, hampered by injury, lost to the powerful and unflappable Kuznetsova in the semis. Kuznetsova went on to give Dementieva another Grand Slam final thrashing, with the latter's wayward serve becoming one of the talking points of the year. With the Russians still improving, the likes of Henin-Hardenne, Clijsters, Davenport, Mauresmo, Venus and Serena will need to be fully fit and motivated in 2005. And it may take their compatriot Safin to challenge Federer on the men's side.
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Philippoussis doubt over Open bid	"Mark Philippoussis is almost certain to miss the Australian Open after suffering a groin injury during the Hopman Cup loss to the Netherlands.

The 28-year-old suffered two tears to the adductor muscle and was unable to play in the deciding mixed doubles. He is now unlikely to be fit in time for the Australian Open which begins on 17 January in Melbourne. ""He has to strengthen it enough to cope with repetitive days of tennis,"" said Hopman Cup doctor Hamish Osborne. ""It would be very unlikely in my opinion for him to do a five-setter once, let alone two days in a row, inside two weeks.

""The injury is more common in Australian Rules football, and a fit footballer would normally take three to four weeks to recover fully although Mark's injury is slightly different."" The Australian has suffered a host of injury problems throughout his career but is still holding out slim hope that he can make the event. ""It's something I'll have to go by feel. I'll start treatment as soon as possible and try to strengthen it without tearing it any more,"" he said. ""What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I know I can come back from this and that's all that matters.

- Former world number two Tommy Haas is also a doubt for the Australian Open after picking up a thigh injury playing for Germany in the Hopman Cup. The 26-year-old had treatment on his left thigh while leading Argentine Guillermo Coria 7-5 2-2. He played one more game, but his movement was hampered and he quit.
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Slovakia reach Hopman Cup final	"Slovakia will play Argentina in the final of the Hopman Cup after beating Group B rivals the Netherlands 3-0.

Daniela Hantuchova defeated Michaella Krajicek 6-4 6-2 to give the Slovaks the perfect start before Dutchman Peter Wessels retired against Dominik Hrbaty. Wessels was unable to compete in the mixed doubles but Slovakia had already booked their place in the final for the second year running. Argentina claimed top spot in Group A with three wins from three matches. In the other Group B match, the United States defeated Australia 2-1.

Meghann Shaughnessy lost the opening match against Alicia Molik but James Blake levelled the tie with a 6-3 6-4 win over Paul Baccanello, who came in as a replacement for the injured Mark Philippoussis. Blake and Shaughnessy then beat Molik and Baccanello in a tense mixed doubles contest to take the win. Hantuchova, who did not win a Hopman Cup singles match in 2004, has been in good form during this year's event and has won two of her three matches. ""I feel like it's really deserved this time as I've helped Dominik to get through,"" she said. ""I think if I keep going the way I have been in the past few matches then I will be okay. ""I was really pleased with my last two singles, even the first one, which was a really high standard. ""You can't ask for a better preparation than to play a few matches here for the Australian Open.""
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Dent continues Adelaide progress	"American Taylor Dent reached the final of the Australian hardcourt event in Adelaide with a crushing 6-1 6-1 win over Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela.

Dent will meet Swede Joachim Johansson on Sunday after the second seed survived a tense tie-break to defeat Belgium's Olivier Rochus 6-1 7-6 (7/5). Johansson, the boyfriend of Lleyton Hewitt's sister Jaslyn, received strong crowd support on Saturday. ""It feels like home for me, because Jaslyn lives here,"" said Johansson. Rochus was leading 5-4 in the second set tiebreak but his concentration was ruffled by a disputed line call and the match slipped away. ""It was so close - one mistake like this and the match is over, it's tough. For me, it was clearly out,"" Rochus said.
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Moya sidesteps Davis Cup in 2005	"Carlos Moya has chosen not to help Spain try and defend the Davis Cup crown they won in Seville in November.

Moya led Spain to victory over the USA but wants to focus on the Grand Slams in 2005, although insists he will return to the Davis Cup in 2006. ""After two years of total commitment with the Davis Cup team... I have taken this difficult decision to concentrate on the regular circuit,"" said Moya. ""They know that after this season they can count on me again if they so wish."" The 1998 French Open champion is determined to make an impact in the major events after spending much of the last eight years in the top 10. ""At the age of 29 I have set some tough goals in my professional career and this season I need to fix my objectives on specific dates and tournaments,"" he said. ""Since the Davis Cup in Seville I have been working on my condition as well as technical and medical aspects of my game which will allow me to come into the big events of the year in top form.""

Moya began 2005 with victory in the Chennai Open on Sunday.
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Henman decides to quit Davis Cup	"Tim Henman has retired from Great Britain's Davis Cup team.

The 30-year-old, who made his Davis Cup debut in 1994, is now set to fully focus on the ATP Tour and on winning his first Grand Slam event. ""I've made no secret of the fact that representing Great Britain has always been a top priority for me throughout my career,"" Henman told his website. Captain Jeremy Bates has touted Alex Bogdanovic and Andrew Murray as possible replacements for the veteran. Henman added that he was available to help Britain in its bid for Davis Cup success, with the next tie against Israel in March . ""Although I won't be playing, I would still like to make myself available to both Jeremy and the LTA in the future so that I can draw upon my experience in the hope of trying to help the British players develop their full potential,"" he added. ""I've really enjoyed playing in front of the thousands of British fans both home and abroad and would like to thank every one of them for their unwavering support over the years."" Henman leaves Davis Cup tennis with an impressive record, having won 36 of his 50 matches. Great Britain captain Jeremy Bates paid tribute to Henman's efforts over the years.

""Tim has quite simply had a phenomenal Davis Cup career and it has been an absolute privilege to have captained the team with him in it,"" said Bates. ""Tim's magnificent record speaks for itself. While it's a great loss I completely understand and respect his decision to retire from Davis Cup and focus on the Grand Slams and Tour. "" ""Looking to the future this decision obviously marks a watershed in British Davis Cup tennis but it is also a huge opportunity for the next generation to make their mark. ""We have a host of talented players coming through and despite losing someone of Tim's calibre, I remain very optimistic about the future."" Henman made his Davis Cup debut in 1994 against Romania in Manchester. He and partner Bates won their doubles rubber on the middle Saturday of the tie. Britain eventually lost the contest 3-2. Henman and Britain had little luck in Davis Cup matches until 1999 when they qualified for the World Group. Britain drew the USA and lost the tie when Greg Rusedski fell to Jim Courier in the deciding rubber. They made the final stages again, in 2002, but this time lost out to the might of Sweden.
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Ivanovic seals Canberra victory	"Serbia's Ana Ivanovic captured her first WTA title with a straight-sets victory over Hungarian Melinda Czink in the final of the Canberra Classic.

The 17-year-old took 83 minutes to take the match 7-5 6-1. Ivanovic beat Czink in the last round of qualifying but the Hungarian made the main draw as a lucky loser after Katarina Srebotnik withdrew injured. Ivanovic said: ""I was really nervous in the beginning, but I pulled through and didn't do too much wrong."" A junior Wimbledon finalist last year, she added: ""It's my first WTA title, and to win it has really given me more energy to practice and improve."" Ivanovic will play 32nd seed Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic in the first round.said of the Australian Open in Melbourne.
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Minister digs in over doping row	"The Belgian sports minister at the centre of the Svetlana Kuznetsova doping row says he will not apologise for making allegations against her.

Claude Eerdekens claims the US Open champion tested positive for ephedrine at an exhibition event last month. Criticised for making the announcement, he said: ""I will never apologise. This product is banned and it's up to her to explain why it's there."" Kuznetsova says the stimulant may have been in a cold remedy she took. The Russian said she did nothing wrong by taking the medicine during the event. The Women's Tennis Association cleared Kuznetsova of any offence because the drug is not banned when taken out of competition.

Eerdekens said he made the statement in order to protect the other three players that took part in the tournament, Belgian Justine Henin-Hardenne, Nathalie Dechy of France and Russia's Elena Dementieva. But Dechy is fuming that she has been implicated in the row. ""How can you be happy when you see your face on the cover page and talking about doping?"" Dechy said. ""I'm really upset about it and I think the Belgian government did a really bad job about this. ""I think we deserve an apology from the guy. You cannot say anything like this - you cannot say some stuff like this, saying it's one of these girls. This is terrible."" Dementieva is also angry and says that Dechy and herself are the real victims of the scandal. ""You have no idea what I have been through all these days. It's been too hard on me,"" she said. ""The WTA are trying to handle this problem by saying there are three victims, but I see only two victims in this story - me and Nathalie Dechy, who really have nothing to do with this. ""To be honest with you, I don't feel like I want to talk to Sveta at all. I'm just very upset with the way everything has happened.""
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Safin relieved at Aussie recovery	"Marat Safin admitted he thought he was suffering another Australian Open final nightmare when he lost the opening set to Lleyton Hewitt.

The Russian, who lost the 2002 and 2004 finals, fought back brilliantly to win 1-6 6-3 6-4 6-4. ""I was nervous and I couldn't play tennis,"" said Safin. ""He started really well. He wasn't as nervous as I was because I was thinking of the two finals that I played and wasn't successful."" He added: ""You really have to deal with the pressure because normally it never happens but when you come to the final you are so tight because you want to win. ""I tried to play some tennis but I couldn't. He has huge experience, he's won two Grand Slam titles, he's won 24 titles, he's a great player and he deals with pressure.""

From 4-1 down in the third set, Safin played some of his best tennis to reel off seven games and take control of the match. ""In the third set, just all of a sudden, it all turn around completely in a way I couldn't expect,"" said Safin. ""Because he made a couple of mistakes, I was a little bit lucky at some point, then the confidence came back and I was back in the game."" And the Russian revealed that the victory, and his semi-final win over world number one Roger Federer, had given him a massive boost for the future. ""You get huge confidence because Roger is a great player,"" said Safin. ""Once I beat him, and then Lleyton, it's like you get so much confidence in yourself that you really can play great. ""You can win big titles and you can beat huge players in the finals and semi-finals.""
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Veteran Martinez wins Thai title	"Conchita Martinez won her first title in almost five years with victory over Anna-Lena Groenefeld at the Volvo Women's Open in Pattaya, Thailand.

The 32-year-old Spaniard came through 6-3 3-6 6-3 for her first title since Berlin in 2000. ""It feels really good,"" said Martinez, who is playing her last season on the Tour. ""To come through like that in an important match feels good. ""It's been nearly five years and I didn't think I could do it."" Groenefeld was the more powerful player but could not match her opponent's relentless accuracy. ""It was my first final, a new experience,"" said the German. ""I think she played a good match, a tough match, but I tried to stay in there. I think the whole week was good for me.""
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Soderling wins tense Milan final	"Fifth seed Robin Soderling took the Milan Indoors title with a dramatic win over Radek Stepanek in Sunday's final.

The 20-year-old Swede edged the final set tie-break for a 6-3 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5) victory and his second tour title after winning in Lyon last year. ""I'm delighted to have won against such a good opponent in a tournament of this importance,"" said Soderling. ""I was really on form, my service was good and I really liked playing on the synthetic surface."" Soderling, the world number 37, shrugged off a nervous start to take the opening set on his first set point. A change in approach from fourth seed Stepanek in the second set paid dividends as he took it on a tie-break, but Soderling's superior power proved too much in the third.
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Rusedski forced out in Marseille	"Greg Rusedski was forced to withdraw from the Open 13 in Marseille on Thursday with a rib injury.

The British number two had been scheduled to play qualifier Sebastien de Chaunac, who beat world number five Guillermo Coria 6-4 7-5 in round one. But Rusedski was unable to take to the court because of a problem with the left-hand side of his rib-cage. American Taylor Dent caused a shock with a 7-6 6-2 victory over second seed David Nalbandian. But third seed Joachim Johansson made it through after beating Frenchman Gilles Simon 7-6 6-3 while in the first match of the day, sixth seed Feliciano Lopez defeated Ivo Karlovic. There were also wins for Slovakia's Karol Beck and Croatian duo Ivan Ljubicic and Mario Ancic.
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Big guns ease through in San Jose	"Top-seeded Americans Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi survived minor scares to reach the last eight of the SAP Open.

Agassi endured early problems against left-handed Dane Kenneth Carlsen before sealing a 7-5 6-1 victory. And world number three Roddick dropped a set to Korean player Hyung-Taik Lee, before pulling out a 6-3 3-6 6-2 win in San Jose, California. Seventh seed Jurgen Melzer came through 6-3 6-3 against Xavier Malisse - winner in Delray Beach last week. Frenchman Cyril Saulnier, meanwhile, fired 19 aces to secure a 6-1 7-6 win over Czech qualifier Tomas Zib.

Roddick broke a racket in frustration in the third game of the second set. and afterwards was unimpressed with his form. ""I'm not playing great,"" he said. ""But I'm through and I'm going to keep battling. ""A lot of people are under the assumption that it's easy to play well every week and it's not."" It is the 12th time in 13 appearances at the event that Agassi, now 34, has progressed to the quarter-final stage. He came from 0-40 down in the opening game to hold serve and gradually wore Carlsen down after attacking his backhand. Agassi also employed several lobs and charged to the net to unsettle the 31-year-old Dane, ranked 88th in the world. ""As the match went on, I got real patient and waited for my opportunities and felt pretty good,"" said Agassi.
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Almagro continues Spanish surge	"Unseeded Nicolas Almagro became the fifth Spaniard to reach the last eight at the Buenos Aires Open, ousting eighth seed Mariano Zabaleta.

He showed admirable resolve to win a rain-affected match 6-7 6-4 6-4. Compatriot and seventh seed Rafael Nadal also reached the last eight, beating Italian Potito Starace 6-1 6-3. Nadal, playing in the outdoor clay event for the first time, hit some powerful forehands to oust Starace in a match delayed over an hour by rain. ""It's always a problem to have to stop for rain but one gets used to it,"" said Spanish teenager Nadal. ""Luckily, I was able to keep my pace going throughout the match."" He will now play Gaston Gaudio, who beat unseeded Brazilian Flavio Saretta 6-3 6-2 in the day's late match.
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Melzer shocks Agassi in San Jose	"Second seed Andre Agassi suffered a comprehensive defeat by Jurgen Melzer in the quarter-finals of the SAP Open.

Agassi was often bamboozled by the Austrian's drop shots in San Jose, losing 6-3 6-1. Defending champion and top seed Andy Roddick rallied to beat Sweden's Thomas Enqvist 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-5. But unseeded Cyril Saulnier beat the fourth seed Vincent Spadea 6-2 6-4 and Tommy Haas overcame eighth seed Max Mirnyi 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-3) 6-2. Melzer has now beaten Agassi in two of their three meetings.

""I had a good game plan and I executed it perfectly,"" he said. ""It's always tough to come out to play Andre. ""I didn't want him to play his game. He makes you run like a dog all over the court."" And Agassi, who was more than matched for power by his opponent's two-handed backhand, said Melzer was an example of several players on the tour willing to take their chances against him. ""A lot more guys are capable of it now,"" said the American. ""He played much better than me. That's what he did both times. ""I had opportunities to loosen myself up,"" Agassi added. ""But I didn't convert on the big points.""
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Mirza makes Indian tennis history	"Teenager Sania Mirza completed a superb week at the Hyderabad Open by becoming the first Indian in history to win a WTA singles title.

In front of a delirious home crowd, the 18-year-old battled past Alyona Bondarenko of the Ukraine 6-4 5-7 6-3. Mirza, ranked 134 in the world, sunk to her knees in celebration after serving out the match against Bondarenko. ""It is a big moment in my career and I would like to thank everyone who has been a part of my effort,"" she said. ""This win has made me believe more in myself and I can now hope to do better in the coming days. ""I wanted to win this tournament very badly since it was in my hometown."" At the Australian Open in January, Mirza became the first Indian woman to reach the third round of a Grand Slam before losing to eventual champion Serena Williams.

And a year ago, she became the youngest Indian to win a professional title by claiming the doubles at the Hyderabad Open. Mirza, playing in her first WTA final, began nervously in front of a raucous home crowd - committing three double faults in her opening service game. But from 0-2 down, Mirza broke serve twice in a row and held on to her advantage to take the first set. In a see-saw second set, Bondarenko raced into a 5-2 lead and though Mirza hauled herself level, the Ukrainian broke again before finally levelling the match. Mirza rediscovered the aggressive strokes that took her to the first set in the decider established a 5-2 lead. At 5-3, the stadium erupted in celebration when Mirza thought she had delivered an ace to secure victory but the serve was ruled to have clipped the net. Mirza eventually lost the point but to the relief of the crowd, she broke Bondarenko again in the next game to clinch the title.
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Roddick to face Saulnier in final	"Andy Roddick will play Cyril Saulnier in the final of the SAP Open in San Jose on Sunday.

The American top seed and defending champion overcame Germany's Tommy Haas, the third seed, 7-6 (7-3) 6-3. ""I was feeling horrible earlier in the week,"" Roddick said. ""I thought tonight was a step in the right direction."" Saulnier battled to a 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 6-3 win over seventh seed Jurgen Melzer, who twisted his ankle early in the second set. Roddick won the last four points of the first-set tie-break before being broken at the start of the second set. But he broke straight back and then broke Haas again to lead 4-2. ""It's extremely frustrating when you have chances against a top-five player and don't do anything with them,"" admitted Haas. ""I rushed a few backhands and he took advantage."" Saulnier will move into the world's top 50 for the first time after his passage through to the final. ""It's taken a lot of work and a lot of fighting in my mind,"" he revealed. ""Sometimes I didn't believe I could get to a final and now I am here. I've stayed mentally strong. ""I'm on the way. I'll keep fighting and work a lot and I'll be up there.""
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