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Turnout was low as Egyptians voted on Sunday for the upper house of parliament, in elections that are the latest step in the country’s planned transition from military to civilian rule.

Few voters showed up to cast their ballots at polling stations in Cairo, one of 13 provinces where the first stage of elections for the largely advisory Shura Council are taking place. A second stage will take place on Feb. 14-15.

“We now feel we have a role in shaping the country’s future,” said Mohammed el-Hawari, a professor at Cairo’s Ain Shams University and one of those who did vote.

The Shura Council is composed of 270 members. Only two-thirds are elected while the rest are appointed.

Islamists dominated elections for the People’s Assembly, the more powerful of the two houses of parliament, in voting that ran from Nov. 28 through January. Turnout was heavy in these elections, which were the first since the Jan. 25-Feb. 11, 2011, mass uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

One secular party, the Free Egyptians, had announced that it was boycotting Shura Council elections to protest what it described as violations of Egypt’s election laws by Islamist parties during the People’s Assembly vote.

The secularists say that that Islamists made heavy use of religious slogans and campaigned too close to polling stations. Islamist spokesmen have denied using slogans inappropriately, and said that all groups campaigned too close to the stations.

Secular and liberal alliances, including youth parties which led the anti-Mubarak uprising, have performed poorly in elections.

Once the Shura Council elections are complete, according to Egypt’s transition plan, the parliament is tasked to select a 100-member panel to draft the country’s new constitution. The ruling military council which took power after Mubarak’s ouster is then scheduled to transfer power to an elected civilian president by the end of June.

The army generals have been accused of mismanaging the transitional period, of not carrying through sweeping reforms, and of keeping Mubarak’s regime intact.

The voting comes a few days after hundreds of thousands of Egyptians poured into the streets to mark the first anniversary of their uprising and to press the military council to step down.

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Debt-crippled Greece’s budget deficit is expected to hit 9.6 percent of economic output in 2011, about half a percentage point above target, the development minister said Wednesday.

Michalis Chryssochoidis said that an increase in the use of European Union structural development funds had contributed to lowering government overspending from 10.6 percent of gross domestic product in 2010.

“The good news is that absorption of European Union funds has exceeded all expectations,” Chryssochoidis said at an economic forum where the government hopes to attract investment from the United Arab Emirates.

But Greece, which is relying on billions in rescue loans from its European partners and the International Monetary Fund to keep afloat, had pledged to cut the 2011 deficit to 9 percent of GDP.

Greece ran up high budget deficits for years, building a suffocating debt load set to exceed 160 percent of GDP in 2011. In exchange for a vital euro110 billion ($140 billion) international bailout in May 2010, the country implemented a harsh austerity program, slashing pensions and salaries while repeatedly hiking taxes and raising retirement ages.

The country’s interim coalition government is rushing to pass a new batch of reforms and cutbacks, to secure a second, euro130 billion bailout package approved in October but not yet finalized instant personal loans guaranteed.

Fitch Ratings warned on Wednesday that Greece’s financial troubles could still worsen the eurozone crisis if it can’t work out a debt reduction deal with creditors, part of the second bailout package.

Fitch’s head of sovereign ratings David Riley said Greece “still has lots of potential to plunge Europe into crisis” and that “time is running out.”

Greece is in talks with private investors about a voluntary 50 percent reduction in their Greek bond holdings.

It needs to agree the deal before it can get another installment in its rescue loans, which it will need to repay euro14 billion in bonds that come due in March.

Riley said one complicating factor in the private creditors’ deal was the European Central Bank’s refusal to write down its estimated euro45 billion in Greek bonds. That means private bondholders have to be asked to take on more losses to reach a given reduction in Greece’s debt load.

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Greece’s prime minister says his debt-crippled country faces a disorderly default in March if it fails to secure a continued flow of international rescue loans.

Prime Minister Lucas Papademos says decisions made in the next few weeks, ahead of a new visit by international debt inspectors, will determine whether Greece will remain in the 17-nation eurozone or revert to its pre-2002 currency, the drachma.

According to a transcript from his office, Papademos told union leaders and employer representatives Wednesday that Greece’s international creditors have called for a re-examination of labor costs to boost lagging competitiveness and fight high unemployment.

He warned that, unless significant reforms are made, Greece will not receive its next installment of rescue funds.

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Construction spending surged to a near 1-1/2 year high in November as investment in public and private projects rose solidly, cementing expectations of

strong economic growth in the fourth quarter.

Construction spending increased 1.2 percent to an annual rate of $807.1 billion, the highest level since June 2010, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday.

Spending in October was revised to a 0.2 percent fall, after initially reported as a 0.8 percent rise.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected construction spending to rise 0.5 percent in November.

Overall construction spending was up 0.5 percent compared to November 2010.

Private construction spending rose 1.0 percent, advancing for a fourth straight month. Spending on residential projects increased 2.0 percent, with solid gains in both multifamily and single family homes.

The housing market is showing some signs of recovery, with builders breaking more ground on new projects to meet growing demand for rental apartments. It is becoming less of a drag on the economy and is expected to significantly add to growth in 2012.

Private nonresidential construction was flat in November after declining 0.6 percent the prior month.

Spending on public sector construction rebounded 1.7 percent in November as outlays on federal projects jumped 5.3 percent after dropping 7.5 percent in October.

State and local government spending rose 1.3 percent after falling 1.2 percent the prior month.

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Asian stocks markets were mostly lower Wednesday, with trading thinned by year-end holidays and mixed economic news out of the U.S.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 0.4 percent to 18,556.53. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.9 percent to 1,825.94 and Australia’s S&P ASX 200 lost 0.9 percent to 4,103.90. Benchmarks in mainland China and the Philippines were also lower.

Bucking the trend was Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, which rose 0.1 percent to 8,449.54. While Japan’s industrial output dropped last month, government forecasters expect manufacturing and production to rebound this month and next.

Industrial output dropped a seasonally adjusted 2.6 percent in November, the government said. It was the first decline in two months paydayloan.

Trading, falling between the Christmas holiday and New Year’s, was generally light.

On Wall Street on Tuesday, the Dow Jones lost less than 0.1 percent to close at 12,291.35. The S&P 500 was up marginally to 1,265.43. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.3 percent to 2,625.20.

Consumer confidence surged to an eight-month high, but home prices fell in 19 of the 20 cities tracked by the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index. That report dampened investors’ enthusiasm about a jump in consumer confidence to the highest level since April.

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The Obama administration will ask Congress to raise the nation’s borrowing limit by $1.2 trillion this week, marking the third and final increase from a deal negotiated over summer.

Treasury officials said Tuesday that the increase is necessary because the government will be within $100 billion of its current limit by Friday.

The debt limit is the amount the government can borrow to finance its operations. The latest increase will boost that limit to $16.4 trillion. Officials say that should be enough to allow the government to keep borrowing until the end of 2012 _ just after the presidential election.

Congress can reject the request, although Obama can veto their objection. If Congress doesn’t act by Jan. 14, the increase will take place automatically.

The national debt has soared because the government has run record deficits over the past decade. The borrowed money has helped pay for two wars, stimulate the nation’s economy after the worst recession since the Great Depression and finance broad tax cuts initiated during the Bush administration.

The enormity of the debt has also stoked intense partisan debate in Congress over spending and taxes. Polls show growing voter anger with the inability of both parties to reach solutions to the country’s budget problems fast cash now.

In August, Congress and the administration agreed to raise the borrowing limit by $2.1 trillion in three steps. The deal was reached hours before a potential default on the nation’s debt and only after the parties also agreed to cut more than $2 trillion from the deficit over the next 10 years.

Still, the parties are at odds over how to reduce the deficit. In November, a bipartisan panel failed to meet a deadline to agree on $1.2 trillion of the cuts. That means automatic cuts of that amount will begin in January 2013 _ a condition included in last summer’s deal.

Republicans want to modify the timetable for the automatic cuts, largely because it includes steep cuts to the nation’s defense budget.

Congress agreed to raise the debt limit by $400 billion in August and by another $500 billion in September.

House Republicans voted against the second increase. But they failed to block it because the Senate approved it. The increases are scheduled to take effect unless both chambers vote against them.

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+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+had+its+credit+rating+lowered+one+step+to+A1+by+Moody%92s+Investors+Service+on+the+potential+need+for+the+government+to+support+its+banking+system+amid+Europe%92s+debt+crisis.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+euro-area+nation%92s+banking+industry+has+assets+that+are+about+136+percent+of+gross+domestic+product%2C+which+is+%93relatively+large+when+compared+to+other+systems+in+eastern+Europe%2C%94+Moody%92s+said+yesterday+in+a+statement.+It+assigned+a+negative+outlook+to+Slovenia%92s+credit+grade%2C+the+fifth-highest.+Standard+%26amp%3B+Poor%92s+ranks+the+nation+AA-%2C+one+level+higher.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+was+downgraded+at+Moody%92s+for+the+second+time+in+three+months+as+the+euro+area+struggles+to+resolve+its+sovereign-debt+crisis%2C+prompting+stepped-up+ratings+scrutiny+for+the+region.+S%26amp%3BP+and+Fitch+ratings+said+this+month+they+may+cut+the+scores+of+15+euro-region+members+after+assessing+the+outcome+a+European+Union+summit+on+a+tighter+fiscal+pact.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93Asset+quality+pressure+and+the+euro-area+debt+and+funding+crisis+have+further+exposed+significant+vulnerabilities+in+the+solvency+and+short-term+external+funding+and+overall+business+model+of+the+largest+institutions+in+Slovenia%92s+financial+sector%2C%94+Moody%92s+said.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+government+is+the+majority+owner+of+the+country%92s+two+biggest+lenders%2C+Nova+Ljubljanska+Banka+d.d.+and+%3Ca+topic_url%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Ftopics.bloomberg.com%2Fnova-kreditna-banka-maribor-dd%2F%22+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fapps%2Fquote%3Fticker%3DKBMR%3ASV%22+density%3D%22sparse%22+title%3D%22Get+Quote%22+ticker%3D%22KBMR%3ASV%22+class%3D%22web_ticker%22%3ENova+Kreditna+Banka+Maribor+d.d.+%28KBMR%29+%3C%2Fp%3E+September+Downgrades++%3Cp%3ESlovenia%92s+rating+was+lowered+one+level+by+S%26amp%3BP%2C+Moody%92s+and+Fitch+Ratings+in+September%2C+citing+fiscal+concerns%2C+a+weak+domestic+banking+industry+and+a+poor+outlook+for+the+export-+driven+economy.+The+nation+is+rated+AA-+by+Fitch.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+former+Yugoslav+republic+needs+to+repay+1.17+billion+euros+%28%241.5+billion%29+in+bonds+next+year%2C+according+to+data+compiled+by+Bloomberg.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93The+further+weakening+economic+growth+outlook+also+complicates+the+government%92s+ability+to+achieve+its+medium-term+fiscal+consolidation+plans%2C%94+Moody%92s+said.+%93The+highly+volatile+funding+conditions+on+the+euro-area+bond+markets+represent+additional+risks+even+for+a+small+issuer+like+Slovenia+in+the+event+that+the+financing+needs+exceed+the+original+estimates.%94+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia%92s+borrowing+costs+surged+after+voters+rejected+pension+changes+in+June+and+after+the+European+debt+turmoil+engulfed+Italy%2C+its+neighbor+to+the+west+and+the+third-biggest+trading+partner+after+Germany+and+Austria.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Rising+Yields++%3Cp%3EYields+on+Slovenia%92s+10-year+bonds+reached+a+peak+of+7.77+percent+on+Nov.+11%2C+a+level+that+had+prompted+other+nations+like+Greece%2C+Ireland+and+Portugal+to+seek+assistance+from+the+EU+and+the+International+Monetary+Fund.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+yield+on+notes+maturing+in+January+2021+has+dropped+since+and+was+at+6.66+percent+today+at+1%3A54+p.m.+in+Ljubljana+from+6.746+percent+yesterday%2C+according+to+data+compiled+by+Bloomberg.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93It+was+no+surprise%2C+but+of+course+there+is+a+constant+source+of+bad+news+flow%2C%94+said+Lutz+Roehmeyer%2C+a+fund+manager+at+Landesbank+Berlin+Invest+in+Berlin+who+oversees+11.5+billion+euros+and+holds+Slovenian+bonds.+%93It+weighs+on+the+sentiment+of+investors+and+funds+with+rating+constraints+get+into+selling+pressure+depending+on+their+specific+rating+limits.%94+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ENova+Ljubljanska+received+a+250+million-euro%2C+three-year+loan+from+the+European+Central+Bank+as+lenders+in+Europe+sought+a+record+489+billion+euros+in+financing%2C+the+Ljubljana-based+bank+said+yesterday.+The+company+wants+to+raise+400+million+euros+by+mid-2012+to+improve+its+capital+ratio+to+above+9+percent.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Bank+Ratings++%3Cp%3EMoody%92s+also+cut+the+debt+and+deposit+ratings+of+three+Slovenian+banks%2C+Nova+Ljubljanska%2C+Nova+Kreditna+and+%3Ca+topic_url%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Ftopics.bloomberg.com%2Fabanka-vipa-dd%2F%22+href%3D%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fapps%2Fquote%3Fticker%3DABKN%3ASV%22+density%3D%22sparse%22+title%3D%22Get+Quote%22+ticker%3D%22ABKN%3ASV%22+class%3D%22web_ticker%22%3EAbanka+Vipa+d.d.+%28ABKN%29%2C+it+said+in+the+statement+today.+The+rating+company+also+downgraded+the+issuer+and+senior+unsecured+ratings+of+SID+Banka%2C+a+government-owned+development+bank.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ENLB+and+its+smaller+competitor%2C+Nova+Kreditna%2C+said+they+will+probably+report+losses+for+this+year+on+mounting+bad+loans+from+the+sinking+construction+industry+and+as+more+and+more+companies+file+for+bankruptcy+or+receivership.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia+%93believes+that+the+question+of+a+capital+boost+only+relates+to+the+country%92s+biggest+bank+NLB%2C%94+as+Nova+Kreditna+passed+the+recent+test+by+the+European+Banking+Authority%2C+the+Finance+Ministry+in+Ljubljana+said+today.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93With+the+capital+increase+at+NLB%2C+private+investors+are+considered+the+first+option%2C+or+the+participation+of+the+government+that+wouldn%92t+increase+the+country%92s+debt%2C%94+the+ministry+said.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EBad-loan+provisions+in+Slovenia+surged+40+percent+in+the+first+10+months+from+a+year+ago+to+706+million+euros%2C+the+central+bank+said+in+a+Dec.+7+report.+%3C%2Fp%3E+Savings+Measures++%3Cp%3ESlovenians+on+Dec.+4+elected+the+Positive+Slovenia+party+of+Ljubljana+Mayor+Zoran+Jankovic+in+snap+elections+after+the+previous+government+collapsed+in+September.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ELawmakers+adopted+savings+measures+of+150+million+euros+by+freezing+by+freezing+public+employees%92+pay%2C+pensions+and+benefit+payments+to+allay+investor+concern+over+its+debt.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EAll+86+lawmakers+present+voted+for+the+legislation+that+will+come+into+force+from+Jan.+1+and+will+last+until+June+next+year%2C+according+to+a+live+broadcast+by+public+broadcaster+TV+Slovenija.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3E%93I+count+on+Europe+to+take+into+account+these+efforts+and+bond+yields+could+go+lower+if+we+adopt+these+measures%2C%94+Jankovic%2C+who+is+likely+to+form+the+next+government%2C+said+before+the+vote.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3ESlovenia%2C+the+first+former+communist+country+to+adopt+the+euro%2C+is+struggling+with+the+euro+region%92s+sovereign+debt+crisis%2C+which+erodes+demand+for+its+exports.+It+risks+sliding+back+into+recession%2C+while+public+debt+may+widen+to+more+than+50+percent+next+year.+%3C%2Fp%3E+%3Cp%3EThe+economy+shrank+0.5+percent+in+the+third+quarter+from+a+year+before%2C+following+growth+of+0.8+percent+in+the+previous+three-month+period+and+public+debt+has+more+than+doubled+in+four+years.+%3C%2Fp%3E++%3Cp%3E%3Ca+href%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bloomberg.com%2Fnews%2F2011-12-22%2Fslovenia-ratings-cut-by-moody-s-on-concern-nation-s-banks-may-need-funding.html%27+rel%3D%27nofollow%27%3ESource%3C%2Fa%3E%3C%2Fp%3E+

A Yemeni military official says al-Qaida-linked militants have attacked a military barracks in an embattled southern town, leaving two soldiers and 11 militants dead.

The official said Saturday that another 36 soldiers were injured in the base in Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan province.

He says that the fighting began Friday night and continued into the morning. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media payday loans.

Militants and the army have fought for control of Zinjibar since May. A 10-month-old uprising against authoritarian President Ali Abdullah Saleh has caused a breakdown of authority throughout the country.

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