London - The world is heading for an "ecological credit crunch" with demands on natural resources exceeding by almost a third what the earth can sustain, conservation groups in Britain have warned.

The Living Planet Report, produced by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Britain's Zoological Society and the Global Footprint Network said that more than 75 per cent of the global population lived in countries where consumption levels were outstripping environmental renewal.

This fact made those countries "ecological debtors," meaning that they are drawing - and often overdrawing - on the agricultural land, forests, seas and resources of other countries to sustain them, said the report published Wednesday.

Brussels - The head of the European Commission on Wednesday urged member states to work together to protect jobs and industry, rather than be tempted by "populist" and "protectionist" measures.

"The global financial crisis is not an excuse for protectionism: trade barriers shut out prosperity and open the gates instead to short-term economic populism," said Jose Manuel Barroso.

Barroso's warning came after the European Union executive approved guidelines on ways to mitigate the impact of the financial crisis on the European economy.

The guidelines will lay the basis for an EU-wide "comprehensive recovery plan", or stimulus package, due to be unveiled on November 26.

Detroit - Sales volumes at General Motors continued to drop rapidly in the first nine months of 2008, the ailing carmaker reported Wednesday.

The company reported sales of 6.66 million vehicles, almost 6 per cent less than during the same period last year. In the third quarter alone, the company's sales fell by 
11.4 per cent to 2.11 units.

GM, recently lost its title as the world's leading carmaker to Toyota, which is also battling with declining demand. Its sales fell 4 per cent in the last quarter to 2.23 million units.

Lusaka - Police in the southern African country of Zambia were on high alert Wednesday as campaigning in a tense presidential election drew to a close amid signs of a possible dispute over the outcome.

The capital Lusaka was brought to a standstill as acting president Rupiah Banda, candidate of the ruling Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) and Michael Sata, leader of the main opposition Patriotic Front (PF) held their final rallies.

Sata, 71, drew a much bigger crowd at his than Banda, also 71, who is more popular in rural areas.

Warsaw - General Henry Obering said the United States wants an anti-missile base in Poland by 2012, and would ratify the deal even this year, Polish local media reported on Wednesday.

Obering, who is director of the US Missile Defence Agency, was visiting northern Poland on Wednesday to tour the future site of the missile base and meet with local officials. He said the 400-million dollar investment would boost the region's economy.

Polish vice-minister of Defence Stanislaw Jerzy Komorowski said that Poland also wants a quick ratification of the deal, reported the Polish Press Agency, but had doubts it could be done by the end of 2008.

Lusaka - While tens of thousands of people are fleeing renewed fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, thousands of victims of the last war from 1998 to 
1993 are returning to their homes in the south of the country from neighbouring Zambia.

After nine years in refugee camps in Zambia, more and more Congolese refugees are packing for home, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Zambia said Wednesday.

The refugees are being repatriated by road to their homes in Katanga province, which is deemed safe, deputy representative for the UNHCR Zambia, Fernando Alvarado, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.