An estimated 2,000 people attended the job expo hosted by the Richmond Times-Dispatch at its Hanover County production plant. The event was held from 9am to 1pm. Many described a job market that is becoming more competitive as the economic recession continues.

Speaking in Egypt, at a summit on the Gaza crisis, Mr Brown said he hoped the move would make it easier for firms and households to obtain credit. What the government wanted was to get "the resumption of lending" he added.

More than half a million Americans lost their jobs in December, making 2008 the worst year for US employment since World War Two, while Europe's woes mounted as output from its factories plunged.

STMicroelectronics NV, Europe's largest semiconductor maker, plans to shut its plants in Italy over the Christmas period, affecting about 8,000 workers, as demand slides amid a deteriorating economy and an industry glut.

Forecast downgrades from American chipmakers Texas Instruments and Broadcom sapped yet more investor confidence from technology stocks in Europe on Tuesday, with German semiconductor firm Infineon bearing the brunt of the sell-off.

German micro-chip maker Infineon (IFXGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plans to step up its recent cost cutting programme and is in talks with shop stewards about shortened working weeks, it said on Saturday. A spokesman for the company confirmed a pre-release of a report in Sunday paper Welt am Sonntag that Infineon was to slash costs beyond the 200 million euro ($258.8 million) programme already announced.

STMicroelectronics NV, Europe's largest semiconductor maker, said fourth-quarter revenue and gross margin will miss forecasts after a slowdown in demand from the wireless, automotive and computer peripherals industries.

The European Commission on Thursday officially approved an Ericsson-STMicroelectronics joint venture to provide wireless platforms for handsets and semiconductors for mobile communications.

Recession has hit much of Europe, data showed on Friday, confirming a widespread economic downturn that world leaders hope to tackle at a weekend summit in Washington. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for more coordinated measures to spur economic growth, a policy area where there may be more consensus.

The EU-supported project OLLA , backed with EUR 12 million in financing, may have come to an end, but the consortium has announced an extended collaboration via the OLED100.eu project. The partnership forged between leading European companies will tackle OLED lighting technology. The project's aim is to improve the efficiency, lifetime and size of the light-emitting diodes.