The main topics of interest are expected to be decisions relating to two issues raised by the Commission's March 2004 order against Microsoft, which included a $613 million fine and determinations that the company engaged in a number of anticompetitive practices.

One issue to be addressed by the court deals with whether Microsoft stifled competition by bundling its Media Player with Windows, the market's dominant operating system. The other issue focuses on whether Microsoft provided adequate interoperability protocol information to competitors.

If the court hands the Commission an overwhelming defeat on both the interoperability and Media Player issues, the Commission could find itself neutered, say legal experts.

In recent years, the Commission has aggressively pursued or investigated other technology industry titans, including chipmaker Intel, which faced allegations the company wooed customers with marketing dollars in exchange for their exclusive use of Intel chips. The Commission also took on mobile-phone chipmaker Qualcomm over antitrust issues surrounding its patents for its 3G chipsets, and recently began an antitrust review of Google's proposed $3.1 billion acquisition of online ad company DoubleClick.

Given the Commission's fearlessness in taking on major technology companies over competitive issues, a major defeat in court may leave it with the "wind taken out of its sails," noted Thomas Vinje, an antitrust attorney with Clifford Chance in Europe. The Commission, as a result, may temper the pace and energy with which it pursues cases, he noted.

But should the Commission soundly defeat Microsoft, legal observers say, it's doubtful European regulators will suddenly go on a rampage and pursue marginal antitrust cases.

"The effect of a really big loss would be greater than the effect of a really big win for the Commission," Vinje said.

The $613 million fine called for in the March 2004 order was increased by $357 million last year, after the Commission alleged the software giant had not complied with its original ruling. The Court of First Instance will also issue a decision on the multimillion-dollar fines.

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The court's decision is also expected to have some affect on the Commission's view toward other Microsoft products it is currently investigating, such as the Vista operating system, said Michael Reynolds, an antitrust attorney with Allan & Overy in Europe. The software giant announced in October that it made changes to Vista to accommodate concerns raised by antitrust regulators in Europe and South Korea.

"There already has been some intervention by the Commission," Reynolds said. "But everyone wants to see what the court says, before (finalizing) negotiations with the Commission."

While the court's ruling may have an affect on how antitrust cases are addressed by the EC, one legal expert said it is unlikely Google, Intel, Rambus or Qualcomm will be affected by the Microsoft decision next week.

Google's market share is far lower than that of Microsoft and no barriers exist to prevent users from migrating to another search engine, said Maurits Dolmans, an antitrust attorney with Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in Europe.

And while Intel chips are in a majority of all computers, it has a rival, Advanced Micro Devices, and allegations that the chipmaker engaged in predatory pricing in Europe are far different from the issue Microsoft is facing over bundling its Media Player and the interoperability of its server protocols, said Dolmans.

Nonetheless, antitrust attorneys say the decision will be closely watched by a number of parties, from high tech companies to the legal community to other antitrust agencies around the world.

"As a practical matter, I think a lot of the smaller competition jurisdictions will put a lot of weight behind what the Court of First Instance does," said Chris Compton, an antitrust attorney with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. "Korea and Japan may either feel embolden to take action against companies like Microsoft or Intel, or it will constrain them."

As a result, Compton noted, the decision by the Court of First Instance is expected to the most closely watched antitrust decision on a global scale.

"This is a decision," said Compton, "that will have hundreds, if not thousands, of lawyers who'll want to take it apart."

Abe, 52, a nationalist who entered office as Japan's youngest postwar premier, did not announce a date for his departure from office.

Word of Abe's resignation comes after his scandal-scarred government lost control of the upper house of parliament to the resurgent opposition. The LDP still controls the more powerful lower house, which chooses the prime minister.

Abe's resignation marks a rapid fall from power for a prime minister who came into office a year ago with ambitious plans to repair frayed relations with Asian neighbors, revise the 1947 pacifist constitution, and bolster Japan's role in international diplomatic and military affairs.

The prime minister, whose grandfather was premier and whose father was a foreign minister, initially met with success in fence-mending trips last autumn to China and South Korea.

But a string of scandals starting late last year quickly eroded support for Abe. Four Cabinet minister were forced to resign over the past nine months, and one — his first agriculture minister — committed suicide over a money scandal.

Abe also was facing a battle in parliament over extension of the country's refueling mission in support of the U.S.-led operation in Afghanistan.

Abe had said he would quit if he failed to win parliamentary passage of legislation extending the Afghan mission, in which Japanese ships refuel coalition vessels in the Indian Ocean.

"I have pondered how Japan should continue its fight against terrorism," Abe said Wednesday. "I now believe we need change. So Japan must continue its fight against terrorism under a new prime minister."

The plenary session of the lower house was to be delayed, media reports said, but an official of the lower house said she could not confirm that.

Opposition lawmakers said it was about time Abe resigned.

"It is irresponsible for him (to quit) after he gave a policy speech and was to face parliament questioning. He should have quit right after the upper house elections," Mizuho Fukushima, head of the opposition Social Democratic Party, told NHK.

Authorities have rounded up hundreds of supporters of two-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his politician brother, Shahbaz, apparently in the hope of thwarting big welcome rallies if and when the two end seven years of exile on Monday.

The return of the prime minister he ousted in 1999 is a serious challenge for Musharraf, whose popularity has been sliding as he prepares to try to get re-elected by the national and provincial assemblies between September 15 and October 15.

He aims to hold a general election around the year-end.

"There's complete panic in government ranks," said a spokesman for Sharif, Ahsan Iqbal.

With political tension rising, a senior U.S. official arrived to prepare for a scheduled "strategic dialogue" session next week. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher is likely to meet Musharraf for talks.

The United States is keen to ensure nuclear-armed Pakistan sustain efforts in the global war on terrorism and has been encouraging army chief Musharraf to work with liberal-minded former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

Musharraf has been negotiating with Bhutto on a package of proposals that would likely see Musharraf quitting his post as army chief to become a civilian president, and Bhutto being cleared of corruption charges and coming back for elections.

But the ruling could also revive a long-held debate on South Korea's powerful and controversial "chaebol" -- the family-run conglomerates which opponents say have been given special treatment owing to their importance to Asia's fourth-largest economy.

"Hyundai Motor is the top enterprise because of its ripple effect on the whole economy. The accused, Chung Mong-koo, is a symbol of Hyundai Motor and our country's automobile industry," Lee Jae-hong, the presiding judge at the Seoul High Court, said while handing down the sentence.

"I did ask many people, including restaurant waiters, taxi drivers and reporters. The ordinary people leaned toward a suspended sentence," he said. "That means the accused should work hard."

Hyundai Motor shares rose as much as 2.2 percent on the ruling and closed 0.6 percent higher. The broader KOSPI (.KS11: Quote, Profile, Research) ended up 1.2 percent.

Instead of a jail term, Chung was asked to pay an 840 billion won ($894.9 million) donation, previously pledged by the family, to deliver speeches about transparent management and to write essays about governance to be published in domestic media.

A Thai court issued arrest warrants yesterday for former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his wife over their alleged violations of stock-trading laws.

It is the second set of warrants issued in the past month against Thaksin, who has been living abroad since he was ousted in a bloodless coup almost a year ago. The other case involved conflict of interest related to the sale of Bangkok real estate.

Sunai Manomaiudom, director-general of the Department of Special Investigation, said the Bangkok Criminal Court had issued the warrant at his agency's request.

Thaksin has denied all allegations against him, and has said he will not return to Thailand until after new elections are held at the end of this year.

Thaksin was deposed last September after the country fell into a political crisis due to mass demonstrations demanding he step down because of alleged corruption and abuse of power.

He became a billionaire in the telecommunications sector before entering politics and serving as prime minister since 2001. A controversial business deal by his family, the sale early last year of its telecommunications company Shin Corp to a Singapore state investment company, was a major cause of public discontent.

The new warrants for Thaksin and his wife, Pojamarn, involve charges of violating regulations requiring disclosure of corporate information to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Pichit Chuenban, a lawyer for Thaksin's family, said he would inform the former prime minister of yesterday's court action, and advise him not to return to fight the case for the time being "because the situation in the country is not normal."

"We think he should return only after we have an elected government," Pichit said. Thailand is currently administered by an interim civilian government, but a military council exercises power behind the scenes and is intensely hostile toward Thaksin.

Sunai had earlier said Thaksin and other family members controlled nearly 80 percent of SC Asset, a real estate company, both directly and through nominee companies, and sold their interests to outside parties last year.

They are charged with violating disclosure rules, both by failing to report their ownership and failing to report the sale of shares.

Each violation of the exchange's regulations carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a fine of US$15,500.

Sunai said Thaksin is also suspected of violating a law on Cabinet members holding company shares, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a US$31,000 fine.

The plaintiffs accuse Sanofi-Aventis US management of sex discrimination, saying they were not promoted because of their gender and were paid significantly less than their male colleagues.

The women are seeking more than 300 million dollars in compensation.

Sanofi-Aventis denied the allegations.

The original plaintiff, Bellifemine, started working at Sanofi-Aventis US in 1995 and is still employed there. The three others -- Amy Zeoli, Michelle Popa and Sue Sullivan -- said they resigned in 2006-2007 over the situation.

All four plaintiffs said their bosses had sexually harassed them, in words or unwelcome gestures. Some said they suffered repeated incidences of harassment after reporting the offensive behavior to management.

"We'll be moving for class certification on behalf of approximately 6,000 women in the next few months, after we obtain the statistical data which shows that Sanofi pays its female pharma reps less than men, and fails to promote women at the same rate as men," said a lawyer for the plaintiffs, Steven Wittels of Sanford Wittels & Heisler LLP.

"We are confident that the data will support these claims," he said.

Wittels said the 300 million dollars sought was modest because "each woman is entitled to up to approximately 500,000 dollars in damages for compensatory back and future wages and punitive damages."

Sanofi-Aventis US issued a terse statement denying the women's allegations.

"We are confident that the suit lacks merit and that all of our employees are treated fairly and in compliance with all applicable federal and state laws," the company said.

BRITISH Airways could be forced to pay out hundreds of millions of pounds to settle a class action lawsuit relating to cargo price-fixing, it emerged yesterday.

Several European blue-chip companies, including Ikea, Volvo and TNT, are said to have joined the lawsuit and noted that BA has set aside £350 million to pay fines.

The airline has already paid out $300m (£174m) levied by the US department of justice (DoJ). Two thirds was related to cargo price-fixing and $100m concerned price-fixing related to passengers.

According to documents filed to a US district court, the class action suit concerns shipments valued at $29 billion. Ten present and former BA executives, including the current director of operations, have not received protection from prosecution under a plea agreement between the airline and US prosecutors investigating the price-fixing conspiracy.

BA said four of the ten still worked for the airline.

Three weeks ago, Willie Walsh, BA's chief executive, assured customers and the media that only a "very limited number of individuals" were involved in the two illegal cartels through which BA had fixed the fuel surcharges.

Yet papers released by the DoJ have confirmed that the corruption inquiry into BA went beyond Martin George, its former commercial director, and Iain Burns, its former head of communications, the only two named in the press before this weekend.

The DoJ said it was "carving out" ten current and former senior BA executives from an immunity deal that will settle BA's criminal liability in the US. The individuals, who have yet to be charged, could face criminal prosecution and, ultimately, jail.