New York, Oct. 16 : Republican candidate John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama slugged it out over the faltering U. S. economy, taxes, energy policy and character in their third and final presidential debate on Wednesday night.

McCain took an aggressive approach, but once again, neither man landed a knockout punch nor committed a major gaffe, reports CBS.

“John McCain turned in an energetic, focused and, at times, emotional performance,” said CBSNews. com senior political editor Vaughn Ververs.

New York, Oct. 16: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is of the view that FOX News has cost him a few points in the polls.

In an interview with NYT reporter Matt Bai, to be published Sunday, Obama says: "I am convinced that if there were no Fox News, I might be two or three points higher in the polls."

Obama says in the article. "If I were watching Fox News, I wouldn''t vote for me, right? Because the way I''m portrayed 24/7 is as a freak!"

New York - US stocks continued dropping through Wednesday, hit by the largest drop of retail sales in three years, growing worry over a US recession and a record federal budget deficit.

The three major US indices shed more than 5 per cent each by 1845 GMT, with the negative momentum dragging down Europe's markets, where Europe's blue-chip Stoxx50 closed 5 per cent down.

US Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke warned that the emergency action taken by the Bush administration in response to the financial crisis is unlikely to produce a swift economic recovery.

New York, Oct 14 : Tina Fey is making waves with her impersonation of Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin on ''Saturday Night Live'', but the actress hopes it doesn''t last.

Fey, who has generated big laughs and big audiences for playing the Alaska governor, told TV Guide she can''t go on playing Palin forever.

"We''re gonna take it week by week. If she wins, I''m done. I can''t do that for four years. And by ''I''m done,'' I mean I''m leaving Earth," the New York Daily News quoted Fey, as telling the magazine.

New York - The world's major economies should work together to recapitalize the banking system and guarantee the savings of people around the world in this time of economic crisis, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Monday.

Ban called efforts by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the financial ministers of the world's seven biggest economies (G7) "laudable" in trying to instill more confidence in financial markets.

But he said "more coordinated approaches" are needed.

New York, Oct. 13: A boom in voter registration across America has raised the possibility of a landslide victory for Senator Barack Obama, with an overwhelming majority of the nine million new voters believed to favour the Democratic candidate.

According to the New York Times, with electoral rolls now closed in most states, Obama has a clear advantage among first-time registrants, many of whom are under 30 or African Americans. The big question mark over new voters is how many of them will show up on November 4.