Contract rejected but talks continue

Sky Sports

Manchester City star Michael Johnson has rejected the new contract he has been offered, skysports.com understands.

Private-public partnership a must

AP, CHICAGO -- Corporate America may have turned its back on traditional pensions but it appears to be embracing 401(k)s more than ever.

AP

WHAT'S NEW: In tough economic times, men are traditionally the first to cut back on buying clothes, but there's been a major shift. Over the past year, men -- enticed by a new slimmed-down silhouette -- have been on a buying spree, while women have pulled back even more. The lopsided fortunes is creating a rare sales disparity that hasn't been seen in years.

AP, WASHINGTON  -- Federal regulators have formed a task force to investigate and prosecute fraud in the retail market for trading foreign currencies outside of commodity exchanges, a field they say is riddled with unscrupulous operators.

AP, FORT WORTH, Texas  -- From his office overlooking the runways of one of the nation's busiest airports, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Chief Executive Jeffrey Fegan sees the slowdown coming this fall.

Observes Marina Mahathir

Staff Correspondent

Marina Mahathir, human-rights activist and daughter of Malaysia's former prime minister Mahathir Mohammad, said Monday that she was not tempted to follow in her father's footsteps and go into politics.

Voter enrollment

Staff Correspondent

Detained former prime minister Khaleda Zia has refused to register as a voter from behind bars, a prisons official said Monday.

Appeal against quota system

Staff Correspondent

The High Court on Monday moved to initiate contempt of court proceedings against five senior government officials including cabinet secretary Ali Imam Majumder.

GATCO Case

Staff Correspondent

The High Court granted former BNP minister Khandakar Mosharraf Hossain three months' interim bail on Monday in the Gatco graft case.

Staff Correspondent

The armed forces will not be deployed at polling centres during the upazila polls, an election commissioner clarified Monday.

Tskhinvali residents head north while volunteer fighters circulate rumours of atrocities in the war zone

Refugees continued to pour out of South Ossetia yesterday, risking snipers, aerial bombardment and tanks to reach safety across the border, reports Reuters.

Bdnews24.com

The British High Commissioner in Dhaka, Stephen Evans, says he believes the state of emergency will gradually be lifted by the time the Jatiya Sangsad polls are due.

The government is set to form a medical board for BNP joint secretary general Tarique Rahman, currently undergoing treatment at the prison ward of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Hospital, a government official said, reports bdnews24.com.

Poll observers under emergency

Staff Correspondent

French ambassador to Bangladesh Charley Causeret has contradicted a recent statement by Euro MP Nirj Deva on whether the EU would send election observers to Bangladesh if polls were held under emergency.

Mirza Azam gets bail

Desk Report

The High Court granted two months' interim bail to on Monday to Jubo League general secretary Mirza Azam.

Bdnews24.com

The Anticorruption Commission has discovered that Tk 15 crore was misappropriated in eight years at Bangladesh Telegraph and Telephone Board, now Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Ltd, an official said Monday.

Says Hafiz

Staff Correspondent

BNP reformist leader Hafizuddin Ahmed, echoing fellow reformist Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, stated on Monday that the party made a mistake in not endorsing candidates for the Aug 4 city and municipal elections.

AP, NEW YORK  -- Wall Street extended its advance Monday as the price of crude oil fell briefly below $113 a barrel, easing investors' concerns about the impact of inflation on the economy.

Bdnews24.com

The High Court on Monday quashed a case relating to a 2001 bomb blast in front of the Narayanganj Awami League office, in which 20 people died, asking police to reinvestigate.