Thursday marked the end of the term for Pakistan's parliament and provincial assemblies, which are scheduled to dissolve by November 20, according to Musharraf.

CNN: Bhutto rejects new interim cabinet

Predictably, all of this commentary has perhaps marked a market top in the near-term.

FORBES: Is The Market Topping Out?

The event marked the day that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was due to have been sworn in for a new term.

CNN: Cuban President Raul Castro says he'll leave in 2018

The test in the months ahead will be whether Mr Sarkozy can resist making crowd-pleasing gestures in hopes of propping up his short-term popularity and instead recover the reformist reflexes that marked his early months in office.

ECONOMIST: France

He bases his prediction on this: The first year of a new President's term has often been marked by a big tax bill.

FORBES: Where's My Tax Cut?

In tackling the deficit, we can only hope that Mr Osborne has put research in the right pile: the one marked "Invest for Growth", rather than "Cut for Short-Term Gain".

BBC: Viewpoint: Science 'critical for UK economic future'

Moseley-Braun's term was marked by controversy, including trips to Nigeria to visit the late dictator Sani Abacha, campaign finance questions and a blowup in which she compared columnist George Will to a Ku Klux Klansman.

CNN: Moseley-Braun loses to Republican Fitzgerald

That marked the start of a spending spree that has carried on throughout Labour's second term of office.

ECONOMIST: Britain's budget

The move was a historic milestone for Pakistan: It marked the first time that a democratically elected government has completed its full five-year term.

WSJ: Pakistan Government Ends 5-Year Term

This season has been marked by the top-flight's leading teams continually dropping points but Terry has cited last term's league title victory as evidence his side can still turn their season, which started so promisingly, back around.

BBC: Chelsea squad weaker than previous seasons - John Terry