Berlin - The conflict between Georgia and Russia over South Ossetia is to top the agenda when German Chancellor Angela Merkel travels to the Black Sea resort of Sochi Friday for talks with Russian President Dimitry Medvedev, German media reported.

The row over the separatist regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia would be the "sole theme of the meeting," the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said, even though the meeting had been planned well before the simmering conflict erupted into open warfare.

Sydney - Leighton Holdings Ltd, Australia's biggest construction company, on Thursday reported a 35-per-cent jump in profits, mostly on a rise in contract mining.

Leighton, which is 55-per-cent owned by Germany's Hochtief AG and delivers around 70 per cent of its profits, said profit rose to 607 million Australian dollars (520 million US dollars) for the year to June 30 on revenue that was up 22 per cent to 14 billion Australian dollars.

Frankfurt - German travel and shipping giant TUI AG said Thursday it had slumped into a loss during the second quarter despite a solid performance by its container ship operations.

The smaller-than-forecast 55.6-million-euro (82.7-million-dollar) quarterly loss compared to a profit of 58.9 million euros in the same period last year.

Announcing the results, TUI reaffirmed its forecast of an increase in earnings. Second-quarter sales rose 20 per cent to 6.25 billion euros.

Berlin - The German economy slumped by 0.5 per cent during the second quarter, data released Thursday showed, as concerns set in about the outlook for Europe's biggest economy.

It was the first contraction in the nation's economy in almost four years.

However, the slump was less than expected, with economists having forecast that the German economy would shrink by 0.8 per cent in the second quarter.

Releasing the data, Germany's statistics office also revised down the first-quarter growth rate from a previously estimated 1.5 per cent to 1.3 per cent.

Wiesbaden, Germany - Cosmetic institutes and dermatologists have long been able to meet customers' demands for special beauty treatments.

They've been known to offer botox shots during the lunch hour and an assortment of laser treatments and peelings using cumbersome appliances.

Now, manufacturers are offering devices that could take over private bathrooms everywhere. Beauty tools such as the ultrasound skin buffer and the electric pimple killer are expected to find a place in bathrooms alongside creams and sprays.

Munich - Try using vegetable leaves and the hulls of fruits instead of plates and bowls to give your next party an organic touch.

The firm leaves of a savoy cabbage can replace a small bowl, said an article in a German women's magazine published in Munich. The leaves separate easily from the stalk and are an ideal substitute for antipasto plates.