Buenos Aires - The ongoing global financial crisis has reached the Argentine car industry, with Renault's local branch on Friday suspending 1,000 workers for 10 days.

After sales fell in October, for the first in five years, the press spokesman for the Argentine Mechanics' Union SMATA, Leonardo Almada, noted that the move is set to affect "practically the whole" Renault plant in the central city of Cordoba.

Workers were to obtain 70 per cent of their regular salaries during the suspension.

Brussels - After leading the way in responding to the world financial crisis, Europe could be facing headwinds as it attempts to press on with a rapid and comprehensive overhaul of the global finance sector.

Gone are the high-minded calls for sweeping changes to the international financial system as proposed only a few weeks ago by French President Nicolas Sarkozy when panic selling engulfed share markets and sent shock waves across the world economy.

Rio de Janeiro - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Friday that US president-elect Barack Obama could lose the political capital he has gained if the financial crisis extends for another year.

Obama faces the "greatest responsibility" to solve the widening credit crunch, Lula said.

"Obviously he will have to make moves to solve it, because that crisis cannot extend much longer. All the political capital he gained can be lost if the crisis extends for one or two years."

Brussels - European Union leaders said Friday they were leading world efforts to reform global finance by agreeing on a common set of principles and on five specific recommendations to avert future credit crunches.

The common EU position, agreed after more than three hours of "intense" discussions over lunch in Brussels, is intended to lay the groundwork for a Group of 20 summit of the world's leading economies, such as the United States, China and India, due to take place in Washington on November 15.

Washington - General Motors Corp warned Friday that it was running out of the minimum cash it needs to operate till the end of the year, and posted third-quarter operating losses of 4.2 billion dollars.

GM, the largest US automaker, has sought federal aid to avoid a collapse. The company said it needs at least 11 billion dollars in cash each month to pay its bills.

In the third quarter, GM used 6.9 billion dollars in cash and said it could fall below the minimum it needs to operate for the rest of the year.

Tallinn - There was mixed news on the Estonian economy Friday with official statistics showing that inflation is falling, while a ratings agency downgraded the Baltic nation's outlook.

According to data released by Statistics Estonia, the percentage change of the consumer price index (CPI) in October 2008 was 9.8 per cent year-on-year, down from 10.5 per cent in September.