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Stockholm  - Come Christmas Day, Swedes are more likely to receive a gift certificate for some kind of event or service than a book, electronic device or physical gift, reported a Swedish institute Thursday.

Paris - Russia will not deploy missiles in its European enclave of Kaliningrad if US president-elect Barack Obama cancels the planned American anti-missile defence system, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in an interview published Thursday in the French daily Le Figaro.

Milan  - Struggling giants Roma play an unusual minnow role in Sunday’s derby against buoyant city rivals Lazio, who sit far above them in the Serie A standings.

Madrid  - Bernd Schuster will probably feel like Gary Cooper in High Noon - facing up to danger on his own - on Saturday.

Munich  - Siemens posted a 2.4-billion-euro (3 billion dollars) final quarter loss, mainly as a result of restructuring costs and efforts to root out corruption, the German engineering giant said Thursday.

London - British Telecom (BT) announced Thursday that it would cut a total of 10,000 jobs in the current financial year, as part of an ongoing efficiency programme.

Berlin  - Germany slumped into a recession during the third quarter of 2008, official data released Thursday showed, amid signs that a global economic downturn was taking hold.

Los Angeles - Seven proved to be a lucky number for the undefeated Los Angeles Lakers, but not for the previously unbeaten Atlanta Hawks.

Moscow  - A careless crew member caused a weekend accident on a Russian nuclear submarine that cost 20 lives, an inquiry showed Thursday.

Los Angeles - Has Hollywood misread the mood of the country?