Berlin - The three parties supporting German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed late Monday in Berlin on a fresh round of stimulus for the weakening German economy, sources at the meeting said.

Senior officials said the governing parties had committed to a huge wave of spending likely to inject 50 billion euros (66 billion dollars) into the economy as well as a massive government fund to boost struggling industries with loans and guarantees.

The "credit and guarantee fund" will reportedly be worth 100 billion euros (135 billion dollars).

Officials said its name would be a way of stressing that it was not a vehicle for taking industries into government ownership.

Washington - President-elect Barack Obama said Monday he will work to strengthen relations with Mexico and efforts to cooperate on drug trafficking, security and immigration.

Obama met with Mexican President Felipe Calderon at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington, upholding the pre-inaugural tradition of sitting down with the leader of the United States' southern neighbour.

"My administration is going to be ready on day one to work to build a stronger relationship with Mexico," Obama said.

The two men also discussed the ongoing financial crisis and how they can work together to pull their economies through the downturn. Global warming and energy security were also topics.

Melbourne - Marat Safin heads to the Australian Open with minimal preparation after withdrawing from the AAMI Classic tune-up event starting on Wednesday.

London  - The ATP has again stepped outside of tennis to find a leader, Monday appointing former Nike marketer Adam Helfant as ATP executive chairman and president.

The 44-year-old will take the dual positions formerly held by ex- Disney Europe boss Etienne de Villiers, who stepped down under player pressure at the end of December.

The ATP decision overlooks ATP Asia-Pacific executive Brad Drewett, a former player with close links to the players as tournament director of the Shanghai Masters Cup for the past five editions.

Helfant, an MIT and Harvard Law graduate, served for a dozen years at Nike, and before that at the National Hockey League in North America.

Madrid  - Arjen Robben is the great light shining on Real Madrid these days, as the club appears to take off in La Liga based on the performances of the Dutch midfielder who has set aside for a few weeks his reputation as a "glass player."

Real Madrid beat Mallorca away 3-0 Sunday, to get their third consecutive win and climb to second place in the Spanish championship, albeit still 12 points behind a brilliant Barcelona.

Robben again met the expectations that he has generated in recent times and paved the way for the win with his team's first goal, just three minutes into the game. The winger led a swift counter-attack and scored a quality goal after a run from the midfield.

Washington - President-elect Barack Obama met with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Monday, keeping with the pre- inaugural tradition of sitting down with the leader of the United States' sout