Lower initial turnout reported in Lithuania's second round polls

Initial turnout in Sunday's second round presidential polls in Lithuania was slightly lower than in the previous round, the Russian news agency Interfax reported, quoting an electoral official.

Some six per cent of the electorate had cast their ballots by 1000 (0800 gmt), a drop of 1.3 percent, he said, adding that bad weather was behind the lower turnout.

All 2,039 ballot stations opened on time and voting was taking place in a "calm and business-like atmosphere", the official said.

The voting will be completed at 2100 (1900 gmt) and preliminary results are expected at 2400 (2200gmt).

Former Prosecutor General Arturas Paulauskas, 44, and an American ecologist of Lithuanian origin Valdas Adamkus, 71, are contesting the post.

BBC Monitoring (http://www.monitor.bbc.co.uk), based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.