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Steinbrück lauds German economy at G7 meeting

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Steinbrück lauds German economy at G7 meeting
Steinbrück sees few clouds on the horizon in DC. Photo: DPA

German officials struck a positive note on their country’s economic performance at Friday’s G7 meeting in Washington, saying there is no cause for doom and gloom.

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Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück told reporters at the Group of Seven meeting that the German economy is weathering the shock of the global financial crisis that began in the US subprime home loan market.

"There is no reason for any sense of doom," he said according to news agency DPA. "The state of the economy is good."

Steinbrück said that he saw no reason to change his growth forecast of 1.7 percent for this year. Germany, he said, is only dealing with a “dampening of the real economy,” and there has not been a “single serious indication” that growth forecasts need to be amended.

But he again called for tighter regulation of the financial industry in the wake of the global downturn.

“Everything depends on whether there are further corrections of markets and new rules around the world,” he said.

During their talks on Friday, Steinbrück and his G7 counterparts agreed a plan aimed at preventing another crisis like the credit and mortgage debacles that began in the United States.

Their Financial Stability Forum (FSF) report details ways to prevent a repetition and identifies several recommendations for implementation "within the next 100 days."

Ranked first, "firms should fully and promptly disclose their risk exposures, write-downs, and fair value estimates for complex and illiquid instruments.

"We strongly encourage financial institutions to make robust risk disclosures in their upcoming mid-year reporting consistent with leading disclosure practices as set out in the FSF's report," the ministers said.

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