Ostersund, Sweden  - Helena Jonsson of Sweden won her first individual biathlon World Cup event by clinching the women's 15km before a home crowd in Ostersund on Thursday.

Jonsson, 24, made no errors on the shooting range on her way to victory in 45 minutes 05.1 seconds in the first women's World Cup event of the season.

Three-time Olympic winner Kati Wilhelm of Germany had to be content with second place, 39.7 seconds behind after one shooting error.

Russia's Yekaterina Yuryeva was third, 1:10.3 behind Jonsson with one shooting error, ahead of last season's champion Magdalena Neuner of Germany, who was 5.1 seconds further back after one error.

Stockholm- The Swedish government Thursday rejected an appeal for pardon by former Bosnian Serb president Biljana Plavsic, who is serving a 11-year jail term for crimes against humanity.

She was convicted in 2003 by the UN war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) for crimes committed during the Bosnian war from 1992 to 1995. It was the second time Plavsic, 78, had appealed for pardon, citing health reasons.

She is serving the sentence at Hinseberg prison, 200 kilometres west of Stockholm. Sweden signed a 1999 agreement with the UN tribunal to offer prison space for convicted war criminals.

Stockholm - Sweden's central bank said Thursday it was to cut its interest rate by 1.75 percentage points to 2.00 per cent, citing "an unexpectedly rapid and clear deterioration in economic activity since October."

The cut aimed at reducing "the fall in production and employment," the bank's board of governors said.

The cut was to take effect December 10, the Riksbank said.

The bank's board of governors said the inflation target of 2 per cent remained.

Ostersund, Sweden  - Germany's Michael Greis won the opening men's Biathlon World Cup race of the season Wednesday, a 20-kilometre race in Ostersund.

Greis missed just one target in the shooting range to claim victory in a time of 58 minutes 52.5 seconds to register the 10th World Cup victory of his career.

Norway's Alexander Os made two shooting mistakes on his way to a second place finish, 50.5 seconds behind the winner, with compatriot and world champion Emil Helge Svendsen third, 55 seconds behind Greis.

Stockholm - Swedish heavy-vehicle maker Scania is planning to close its plants for a

Stockholm/Detroit - Ailing US carmaker General Motors (GM) could be planning to sell off its Swedish subsidiary Saab, Saab's deputy director Frederick Henderson told Stockholm's SR radio station Wednesday.

Henderson said GM was looking to resolve its financial troubles as quickly as possible, and a sell-off of Saab was one of several options.

GM bought shares in Saab in 1990 and has been the sole shareholder since 2000.

GM asked the US government for 18 billion dollars in credit on Tuesday to avoid going bust.