Berlin - Germany's key chemical industry said Thursday it was bracing itself for a slump in sales next year as global demand contracts in the wake of the world economic downturn.

The German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) said it expects 2009 sales to drop by 1.5 per cent in 2009 after rising by about 3 per cent this year.

"The mood in the German chemical industry has become less optimistic," the VCI said.

Berlin - Germany expects tough negotiations at next week's European Union summit when leaders meet to decide on a climate package and measures to combat the global financial crisis, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday.

Addressing the lower house of parliament, Merkel said the proposals by the EU Commission for a 200-billion-euro (252 billion dollars) stimulus package were "in the right direction."

She told the Bundestag that Germany had already undertaken its own measures and would review the situation at the beginning of next year.

Berlin - The German car market is facing its worse downturn, the nation's auto industry association warned Wednesday as the deepening sense of economic gloom in the country leads to a shakeout in the industry and the prospects of big job cuts.

The German Automotive Industry Association (VDA) said it expects car sales in Europe's biggest auto market to slide to 2.9 million next year, down from a forecast 3.1 million in 2008.

Berlin - Germany and Lebanon are working on a pilot project to improve security along Lebanon's border with Syria, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday.

A bilateral commission was looking into ways to promote economic prosperity for Lebanese in the border region, she told a news conference after talks with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman.

The two leaders discussed the new political situation in Lebanon following last May's Doha agreement, which ended a week of bitter fighting between followers of the anti-Syrian ruling majority and the opposition led by the fundamentalist Hezbollah.