EU News – International cooperation on market crisis needed

  BERLIN, January 28, 2008  – The leaders of Germany, Britain, France and
Italy will discuss how to extend international cooperation in dealing with
global market crises when they meet Tuesday in London, a German official said.
   "They will have a wide-ranging exchange of ideas on how they can agree more
rapidly on a common path of action," chief German government spokesman Ulrich
Wilhelm told a press briefing.
   "They will look at expanding international cooperation further," Wilhelm
said, adding however that the four leaders were unlikely to reach any concrete
decisions at their mini-summit.
   He said the meeting will also look at how greater transparency can be
brought to global markets in the wake of the problems from the US subprime
mortgage market that reverberated through European financial institutions.
   Chancellor Angela Merkel’s long-standing concern over a lack of market
transparency was echoed last week by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who
blamed much of the current market upheaval on "a deficit of transparency."
   The leaders are also expected to mull the role of banks in the world
economy, an issue pushed to the fore in Europe last week by massive losses at
French bank Societe Generale blamed on a rogue trader.
   The meeting will also be attended by European Commission President Jose
Manuel Barroso.

AFP