Stockholm - Lack of access to sanitation remains a major impediment to global development while claiming hundreds of lives daily, experts agreed Monday as the annual World Water Week opened Monday.

Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander one of the dignataries at the meeting, that said despite progress to build latrines and improve sanitation around the world "there is still a long way to go" and underlined the need to break taboos about sanitation.

Asia and Latin America had experienced "remarkable progress" in terms of better sanitation, he said in his opening remarks.

Stockholm - The SAS Group, the operator of the joint carrier Scandinavian Airlines, reported a second-quarter pre-tax loss over record high fuel costs and overcapacity, the group said Thursday as it announced new belt-tightening measures.

The SAS Group posted a second-quarter pre-tax loss of 106 million kronor (16.8 million dollars) compared to a pre-tax profit of 762 million kronor in the corresponding business period of 2007.

Second-quarter sales were 17.7 billion kronor, up 8.7 per cent on the corresponding business period 2007.

Stockholm  - Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt on Tuesday said the situation in Georgia was "serious," the day after he arrived in the country.

Russia has with "ground forces and quite extensive airstrikes completely destroyed what there was of Georgian defences, radar stations, communications, army bases," Bildt told Swedish radio news in Tbilisi.

The attacks had also caused "major damage" to the Georgian economy, he added.

Stockholm - Swedish telecommunications equipment maker Ericsson has dropped to third place on the Stockholm Stock Exchange in the wake of recent financial turbulence, a report said Monday.

Ericsson had on August 7 lost almost half its value in terms of market capitalization compared to the corresponding day in 2007, the Svenska Dagbladet said.

The group's market capitalization was valued at 212 billion kronor (33.8 billion dollars), compared to 408 billion kronor on August 7, 2007.

Stockholm - Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt on Monday joined the list of diplomats due to travel to Georgia in efforts to end fighting between Russia and Georgia over the breakaway region of South Ossetia.

Bildt, who currently holds the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the 47-nation Council of Europe, wrote on his personal blog that he was travelling Monday to Georgia with Council of Europe Secretary General Terry Davis.

Stockholm - Saab Automobile posted a loss for 2007, but the group owned by US automotive giant General Motors reduced its losses compared to 2006, Swedish financial daily Dagens Industri reported Wednesday.

The Swedish-based carmaker sold some 125,000 cars in 2007, roughly 7,800 fewer cars than in 2006, the report said.

Saab Automobile's loss for 2007 was 2.2 billion kronor (360 million kronor) compared to a loss of 2.9 billion kronor in 2006, the daily reported, citing the group's annual report filed in Sweden.