In the still-to-be-decided race for a US Senate seat in Minnesota, an Associated Press analysis of votes indicates that most ballots lacking a Senate vote were cast in counties won by Democrat Barack Obama.

The 25,000-vote difference in presidential and Senate race tallies could be due to different reasons - either some of the voters might have intentionally bypassed the Senate race, or others might have mismarked their ballot, or optical scanning machines might have misread them.

As such, a recount of the votes will begin November 19, and will use manual inspection to detect such ballots.

At his first news conference in Chicago, since his victory over Senator John McCain on Tuesday, President-elect Barack Obama said that the economic hardships many Americans are suffering are an “urgent reminder” that swift action is needed to stabilize the financial industry.

Surrounded by a large group of economic advisers, Obama pledged to confront the country’s economic crisis “head on” the moment he is sworn in on January 20. He asked his transition team to work on ideas to help the auto industry in particular.

London, Nov 8: Khaled Meshaal, the leader of Hamas, has picked up on Barack Obama’s offer to talk to America’s enemies, and said he is ready to talk to the US President elect.

Speaking in his refuge in the Syrian capital Damascus, Meshaal gave his reaction to Sky News on Obama’s election as the 44th president of the United States.

“There is no doubt that the recent American election is a big change when you get an American president with African roots. It’s a big change - political and psychological - and it is noteworthy and I congratulate President Obama,” he said.

Dubai, Nov 8: The election of Barack Obama as the 44th US president represents a victory for radical Islamic groups that had battled American forces since the invasion of Iraq, leader of a jihadi group in Iraq has said.

Islamabad, Nov 8: Pakistan Information and Broadcasting Minister Sherry Rehman has said that US President-elect Barack Obama''s victory was inspiring for proponents of democracy. It reinforced their firm belief in democracy''s power to bring about a definitive change in leadership and policy through genuine participatory processes, she said further.

Washington, November 7 : Singer Beyonce Knowles is desperate to perform at the inauguration ceremony in January when Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

She has revealed that she was full of emotion when Obama was proclaimed President-elect on November 4.

"(I) fell asleep crying and smiling at the same time" and woke up "with mascara running and a smile on my face," Contactmusic quoted her as saying.

She insists that she just can’t wait to sing for Obama’s inauguration.