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Merkel optimistic for G20 economic summit

AFP/The Local
AFP/The Local - [email protected]
Merkel optimistic for G20 economic summit
Dissent, what dissent? Brown and Merkel last month Photo: DPA

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday she was optimistic about striking an agreement at next month’s G20 summit in London, despite signs of rifts between Europe and the United States.

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“I’m very positive, I’m very optimistic that we will be able to... come to an agreement together with the United States, with emerging economies such as China and India,” she said after meeting British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

“We have to come up with substantive results,” she added, referring to the April 2 summit of the Group of 20 richest and emerging economies in London.

“This summit meeting is going to be a positive signal to the world that we want to promote growth,” she added.

Brown also voiced confidence, saying the London summit would seek to agree on reshaping the international regulatory system.

“You'll see massive change in the supervisory system,” he said.

“It’s going to include tax and regulatory havens where it didn't before. The scope of action is defined by what a company or an institution does, not what it says it does.”

He added, “We must act to reshape the regulatory system for the new times.

Regulation in one country must cooperate more closely with regulation in another country.

“We must bring the shadow banking systems and this includes hedge funds into the regulatory system,” he added.

The comments came as G20 finance ministers met to prepare for the London summit, clouded by splits between the United States and Europe, particularly on whether to launch a new economic stimulus plan.

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