Daily Round Up

World:

There was more confrontations in Iran.

An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 people crowded the streets in different locations of the city, and headed toward Tehran University, the site of a student uprising in 1999. Several protesters were hit on the arms and backs by the Basij, pro-government militia members, while elsewhere riot police released tear gas into crowds.

Iran's state-funded Press TV described the crowd size near the university in the hundreds.Some of the protesters shouted "Allah u Akbar," or "God is Great" and "Ya Hussein, Mir Hussein" referring to opposition candidate Mir Hossein Moussavi, the witnesses said. Police blocked roads leading to Tehran University, while some protesters set trash cans afire so smoke would counter the effects of the tear gas.

In Costa Rica, the current and former Honduran leaders met with the leader of Costa Rica as the mediator.

Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya arrived in Costa Rica, where negotiations start today, with a message to his rivals: he expects the interim government, which took over the country after a military coup June 28, to step down within 24 hours.

My presence here is not a negotiation," Mr. Zelaya told reporters Wednesday night.

One day earlier, Roberto Micheletti, who was sworn in as provisional president of Honduras the day of Zelaya's ouster, stated bluntly: "We are open to dialogue as long as it does not involve the return of President Zelaya."

Not exactly words of compromise.

Yet today, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias will attempt to foster just that. And common ground will not be readily found. It is not just the finer points that are sticky.

In Italy, the president continued leading the charge on climate change at the G8.

Barack Obama said today there was still time to overcome cynicism and close the gap with developing powers on climate change, after slow progress towards an agreement on how to cut carbon emissions across the planet.

World leaders are racing to meet a deadline of December when the UN climate talks in Copenhagen are due to conclude a crucial deal designed to set a carbon cutting framework to cover 2012-2050. At a meeting in L'Aquila, the G5 group of emerging economies – Brazil, India, China, Mexico and South Africa – refused to back a specific target for developing countries to cut emissions.

In a small step forward yesterday 17 industrialised and developing countries, which account for about 80% of global emissions, agreed to set an aspiration that world temperatures should not rise by more than 2C on pre-industrial levels. It is the first time India, China and the US have agreed to such a goal.

In China, the leaders tried to maintain calm after days of protests.

Late in the day, some 8,000 troops marched through one of the worst-hit areas of the Xinjiang province's capital in a massive show of force, an apparent effort to reassure the people and prevent further violence.

With security forces keeping a firm grip on the tense Urumqi (pronounced uh-ROOM-chee), residents tentatively emerged to go about daily life.An urgent nine-member Politburo Standing Committee meeting, led by President Hu Jintao, called on Communist Party members and officials at all levels to mobilize to restore order after the region's worst ethnic violence in decades. The committee promised punishment for rioters and leniency to participants who were misled by agitators.

U.S.

The most talked about political event of the week may again be Nancy Pelosi's news conference. After her Democratic colleagues accused the CIA Director, Leon Panetta, of admitting to them in private that the CIA had lied to Congress, Pelosi said that she now expects these charges to be fully investigated. She also claimed that Republicans were looking to distract from Democratic successes. She praised the cap and trade bill, in what was her typical rambling and nervous self.

Roland Burris announced today that he won't run for re election in 2010 for the Senate seat in Illinois. The musical chairs continue in the state. Yesterday, Mark Kirk announced he would run on the Republican side while Lisa Madigan took herself out of the running.

Finally, it was just recently revealed that John Ensign's parents gave money to his mistress.

Markets:

The markets were relatively quiet today. Each index was up and down in single digits. The only mover was the ten year bond which gave back nearly ten basis points after a run of several weeks.

Sports:

It appears that ace reliever Roy Halladay maybe on the market. The Blue Jays will entertain offers though Halladay has a no trade clause. Lance Armstrong maintais his second place position and continues to be within one second of taking the lead. There's also trade rumors in the NBA. The Bulls and Jazz are in talks for a trade involving Luel Deng and Carlos Boozer.