Berlin - Germany plans to create a so-called bad bank by July to help rid the nation's banks of troubled assets and rebuild confidence in the financial sector, the government announced Monday.

Coming in the wake of banking industry pressure, Berlin is set to unveil further details of its proposals to allow the banks to remove so-called toxic assets from their balance sheets at a meeting Tuesday of industry and government leaders, which is to be chaired by Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Hanover, Germany - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was picking up signs of hope Monday as she toured booths at the Hanover Fair, a trade show for the world engineering and machinery industry.

"Perhaps the Hanover Fair is a tiny sign that it is bottoming out," said Merkel in reference to the worldwide recession.

VDMA, Germany's federation of machinery makers, said Monday that world sales of machinery were likely to decline 10 per cent this year.

Berlin - The German Central Council of Jews welcomed on Monday Germany's boycott of a United Nations conference on racism.

The Vice President of the Central Council of Jews, Dieter Graumann, said Germany's decision was a "courageous step".

At the same time, German Human Rights commissioner Guenter Nooke defended the German boycott.

Hamburg - Russia's Dinara Safina replaced American Serena Williams at the top of the latest women's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the WTA.

Safina is at the top for the first time. Her brother Marat Safin led the men's rankings for nine weeks in 2000, making them the first brother-sister act to be number one in the singles rankings.

The 22-year-old leads the way with 8,951, followed by Williams on 8,272 points. «#»

Hamburg - Rafael Nadal extended his lead at the top of the men's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the ATP thanks to a fifth straight victory Sunday in the Monte Carlo Masters.

Spain's Nadal leads with 15,390 points, followed by former number one Roger Federer of Switzerland on 10,760 and Serbia's Novak Djokovic on 9,520 points.

Wiesbaden, Germany  - Rocking a chair back and forth is good for a child's body and mental capacity, according to a study conducted in Germany.

The study found that the rocking motion can reduce pressure on the backbone that can have a negative impact on body posture, breathing and organ function.

The study also found that rocking a chair can also improve a child's concentration and attention span.