US credit card and banking giant, American Express is likely to start retrenchment drive in India and other locations. It would retrench about 10 percent workforce, cutting around 7,000 jobs. The staff would be eliminated in all business units, including markets and staff groups. Some staff in its Indian operations is also likely to be laid off.

New Delhi, Nov 5 : Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil will hold a meeting with top police officials from the North Eastern here today to review the emerging security threat in that region.

According to police sources, Patil is expected to chalk out a fresh security strategy to deal with the terror threat from across the border and within the states.

The meeting will review the overall security scenario in the region vis--vis the recent serial blasts in Assam, Tripura and Manipur.

Tokyo - People in the small north-central Japanese town of Obama danced through the night and into Wednesday morning in anticipation of the community's namesake being elected US president.

The Obama Boys were practicing their hula dancing with a plan to make their debut when Barack Obama is declared president.

Their stage was set up at the town hall, where more than 200 people gathered in the city of 32,000 for an all-day party with six television screens set up for live reports of the election returns.

Warsaw - American expatriates and Europeans stayed out late to watch the US presidential elections results come in on big TV screens, see Democratic candidate Barack Obama clinch the presidency and debate the historic election's impact on the world.

At a party in Warsaw, a crowd mostly supporting Obama cast votes in mock booths and argued politics as they headed for a long night lasting into Wednesday morning.

SBI Card would release a financial package for defaulting clients. SBI card is the joint venture company of State Bank of India and GE Money. SBI card intends to help those customers who have been good at repaying in the past, but have failed to repay following the turbulent global financial conditions. The company y would restructure its card-portfolio to check further defaults.

Washington - US voters took a sharp turn to the left in Tuesday's election, sending Barack Obama to the White House and strengthening Democratic control of Congress in a firm rejection of eight years of President George W Bush.

Americans embraced Obama's message of "change" and handed him victories in all regions, including in a few states that had been Republican strongholds, as Republican nominee John McCain was unable to distance himself from the current president.