EUROZONE

EU leaders call for more transparency

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Five European leaders called for more transparency in the market system after a mini-summit in London. They discussed a warning system in the event that changes in the US market affect the global economy. FRANCE 24's Douglas Herbert comments.

   
The fundamentals of Europe's economy are sound, but more transparency is needed in markets in light of recent turmoil, five key European leaders said after a mini-summit.
   
They pledged themselves to an "open global economy" to weather storms on financial markets, which have been complicated by banking crises in France and Britain.
   
"The fundamentals of the European economies remain sound," British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said, reading a statement after talks with counterparts of Germany, Italy, the French president and the head of the European Commission.
   
But he added: "We are calling for greater transparency (to create) better informed markets."
   
"At this time of global uncertainty we need to signal our commitment to an open global economy," he added.
   
The statement acknowledged that "the global economy has experienced a period of stable and sustained growth. However, recent financial turbulence has increased the risks for 2008."
   
"Financial markets globally have suffered a prolonged period of turbulence triggered by the sub-prime crisis in the United States which spilled over into other financial markets.
   
"Prompt and coordinated action has helped to ease the immediate problems, though there is no room for complacency," the statement read.
   
Responding to questions from reporters later, Brown said that he was "confident that we can build a consensus across the G8 and then across the international community for big reforms and big change."
   
The British premier said that the four European heads of state or government, whose countries are all members of the Group of Eight industrialised nations, were "leading the way in a discussion that I believe will lead to significant changes being made... in the course of this year."
   
French President Nicolas Sarkozy added that the group wanted "transparency, we do not want protectionism."
   
"We want the markets to be free, we want free and fair competition. What we do not want is a lack of transparency," he said in French.
   
Following the press conference at the Foreign Office in central London, the five leaders departed for dinner.
 

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