Magnus18
10-21-2008, 08:13 AM
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for a European "economic government" to ensure a more united EU response to financial turmoil.
"It's not possible for the eurozone to continue without clearly identified economic governance," he told the European Parliament on Tuesday.
The leaders of the 15-nation eurozone should coordinate their actions with the European Central Bank, he said.
Mr Sarkozy is preparing for a global summit on the bank crisis in November.
The 15 countries that use the euro agreed on a massive bail-out package earlier this month to help banks survive the crisis, which has seen inter-bank lending dry up, threatening the wider economy.
But Mr Sarkozy lamented that "we don't have an economic government worthy of that name".
He is in charge of the six-month EU presidency until January, when France hands over to the Czech Republic.
In his parliament speech, he also highlighted the economic cost of implementing the EU's greenhouse gas emission targets - a cost that many international competitors do not face.
He referred to the US Congress approval last month of $25bn in low-interest loans for carmakers, and asked MEPs: "Can we leave the European car industry in a situation of grave distortion of competition, in relation to US carmakers?"
"Europe needs a single response, it cannot be naive in relation to other parts of the world," he said.English
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7681618.stm
German
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,585514,00.html
"It's not possible for the eurozone to continue without clearly identified economic governance," he told the European Parliament on Tuesday.
The leaders of the 15-nation eurozone should coordinate their actions with the European Central Bank, he said.
Mr Sarkozy is preparing for a global summit on the bank crisis in November.
The 15 countries that use the euro agreed on a massive bail-out package earlier this month to help banks survive the crisis, which has seen inter-bank lending dry up, threatening the wider economy.
But Mr Sarkozy lamented that "we don't have an economic government worthy of that name".
He is in charge of the six-month EU presidency until January, when France hands over to the Czech Republic.
In his parliament speech, he also highlighted the economic cost of implementing the EU's greenhouse gas emission targets - a cost that many international competitors do not face.
He referred to the US Congress approval last month of $25bn in low-interest loans for carmakers, and asked MEPs: "Can we leave the European car industry in a situation of grave distortion of competition, in relation to US carmakers?"
"Europe needs a single response, it cannot be naive in relation to other parts of the world," he said.English
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7681618.stm
German
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,585514,00.html