Geithner’s Remarks at G-20 Currency Conference

Here is the official Treasury Department transcript of remarks U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was scheduled to deliver Friday at the Group of 20 nations seminar in Nanjing on the international monetary system:

Statement by Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner at the “High-level Seminar on the International Monetary System”

Germany’s Schaeuble Sees Bigger G-20 Currency Role by Year-End

Exchange-rate talks will move to the Group of 20 from the Group of 7 as the bloc’s members step up cooperation that aims to enhance the resilience of the world economy, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said.

“We’ll see at the end of the year that there’ll be quite some movement” in the discussion of exchange rates, he told reporters today as he traveled to a G-20 seminar in Nanjing, China. “Sure, we won’t return to Bretton Woods, but there is some movement after all.”

Treasury fights G20 move to toughen rules

THE Gillard government is planning to resist efforts by global regulators to make Australia's big four banks hold even higher levels of capital, even though any collapse could send shockwaves through the economy.

Global supervisors are hammering out a package of measures designed to make big, complex banks safer and less of a burden on taxpayers in case of future crises.

Crossbow seized near G20 fence meant to repel break-in, court told

A Haliburton man stopped by Toronto police with a loaded crossbow two days before the G20 summit told an officer he was carrying it in case a neighbour broke into his car, a court has heard.

The arrest on a charge of weapons dangerous a short distance from the G20 security fence was one of the first of hundreds linked to the upcoming summit and made international headlines.

Food prices: Leaked UN Report Urges G-20 Action on Farm Trade

A confidential draft report from leading international agencies has urged G-20 governments “immediately to strengthen” global rules on agricultural import and export restrictions as well as subsidies that distort production, discourage supply or constrain international trade, ahead of a meeting of senior officials from the G-20 group of major economies in Paris this week.

Police 'illegally' kettled peaceful G20 protesters for four hours, court hears

Police officers illegally kettled peaceful climate activists at the G20 protests in 2009 to stop their gathering being "hijacked" by violent protesters from another demonstration, the high court has heard.

Lawyers for green campaigners seeking a judicial review of the legality of the police tactics, said the Metropolitan police imposed a tight cordon on the protesters for more than four hours, despite noting at the time that they were "relatively peaceful". Officers also used their shields to strike campaigners in a way that is "not a recognised form of reasonable force at all", Michael Fordham QC said.

China Commerce Min: Willing To Discuss Trade Balance With G20

China's trade minister said he would be willing to discuss including the trade balance -- and indirectly, the exchange rate reducing current account imbalances.

At the same time, Commerce Minister Deng Deming said China may post another trade deficit in March, noting that the nation posted a trade shortfall in the first 10 days of the month.

Speaking at a forum at the weekend, Chen noted the G-20 is discussing which some indicators to use to monitor current account balances and so ensure sustainable world economic growth.

Clout of G-7 Validated as Yen Selloff Bolsters Its Relevance Against G-20

The Group of Seven may have been counted out too soon.

Almost two years after ceding control of international economic policy making to the G-20, the club of seven rich nations yesterday reminded financial markets of its power. By throwing what analyst Ashraf Laidi called a “no buy zone” around the surging yen, the G-7 triggered the Japanese currency’s biggest drop in more than two years.

G20 doctor Freddy Patel's fitness 'impaired', says GMC

The GMC has said the fitness to practise of a pathologist criticised over his report into a man's death at the G20 protests is "impaired".

A disciplinary panel upheld allegations earlier this week against Dr Freddy Patel of misconduct and "deficient professional performance".

France Calls For G-7, G-20 Meetings On Japan Crises

France called Wednesday for finance ministers and central bankers of the Group of Seven leading nations to discuss the consequences of the multiple Japanese crises on the world economy and to prevent them from fueling volatility on global capital and commodity markets.

France also plans to hold a meeting of energy and economy ministers of the Group of 20 industrial and developing nations, to foster international cooperation on energy.

China Says Yuan Currency Not on Nanjing Agenda

The exchange rate of China's currency will not be on the agenda when a G-20 meeting is held in Nanjing at the end of the month, a Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday.

The Group of 20 seminar on March 31 will be opened by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and will discuss ideas on revamping the global monetary system.

CHINA NPC: China Minister: Hope G-20 Will Work On North-South Imbalance

China hopes countries in the Group of 20 industrial and developing nations will view narrowing the global North-South development gap as the key to resolving global economic imbalances, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said Monday.

China hopes the G-20 this year can advance the interests of developing countries, and that members "take addressing the development imbalance between the North and the South as the fundamental solution in addressing international economic imbalances," Yang said at a news briefing during meetings of China's legislature, the National People's Congress.

Bank's King renews call for G20 imbalances deal

The world economy is at risk of 1930s-style protectionism if leading nations cannot reach a deal to reduce imbalances in trade and capital flows, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said on Friday.

In a speech to an economics conference in California, King reiterated the call he made last October for a "grand bargain" between surplus and deficit countries in the G20 group of major economies to reduce global imbalances.

Japan Noda: Can't attend G20 seminar in China

Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said on Friday he cannot attend a G20 seminar on reshaping the global monetary system being held in China this month.

His comment comes as Tokyo is struggling to pass bills to implement a $1 trillion budget for the year from April in a hung parliament.

China G-20 Meeting on Monetary System to Draw Sarkozy, Stevens

Finance chiefs from the Group of 20 are signing up for a March 31 meeting to address overhauling the global monetary system as China seeks to expand the global role of the yuan and the U.S. presses for the currency to appreciate.

The seminar is scheduled to be held in Nanjing, China, and will be jointly hosted by France, the rotating chair of the G-20 this year, and China, Sohn Byung Doo, director-general of the G- 20 bureau at South Korea’s finance ministry, said in a telephone interview. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Finance Minister Christine Lagarde will attend, according to an official at a G- 20 government who spoke on condition of anonymity because the agenda for the gathering has yet to be formally announced.

G-20 conference will be held in Istanbul

Turkish State minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said G-20 conference will be held in Istanbul in late April or early May.

Babacan said energy and food prices will be discussed at the meeting.

France hit by cyberattack with G20 focus

The French finance ministry revealed today that it has been the victim of a major and sustained cyberattack.

The attack, which has been ongoing since December, seems to be the work of hackers looking for documents related to the G20 political group, which brings together 20 major nations tasked with stablizing the global economy and which is being led by France this year, according to AFP News.

Turkey to host G-20 conference

Turkish State Minister & Deputy Premier Ali Babacan said that Turkey would host G-20 conference in the end of April or the beginning of May.

Speaking at a meeting in Kizilcahamam town of capital Ankara on Saturday, Babacan said that G-20 conference would be held together with G-20 term president France, adding that Turkey and France would co-chair the conference.

G20 summit

Premier Dalton McGuinty has flatly refused to call an inquiry into the way police handled security at last summer's G20 Summit in Toronto, saying "We've got five independent reviews taking place now. I think that's a lot of expertise and independent perspective, and I think that's going to do a really good job."

We think the premier is wrong. There could soon be a dozen independent reviews, based on the numbers of people still coming forward with complaints about the way they were treated last June.

Sarkozy: France, S Africa To Seek Innovative Financing Solutions At G-20

France and South Africa will jointly push for a range of solutions to fund development and climate-change initiatives within the Group of 20 industrialized and emerging nations, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Wednesday.


Speaking at a joint press conference with South African President Jacob Zuma, who is on his first state visit to France since his election, Sarkozy said the two countries' finance ministers were tasked to "work on a range of innovative financing solutions" to be presented to their G-20 peers in order to fund development needs and climate-change initiatives.

Liberty will monitor rally against cuts

Civil liberties campaigners have been asked by police to act as legal observers at this month's anti-cuts march following heavy criticism of the "kettling" of protesters during the G20 demonstrations of 2009 and last year's student tuition fee protests.

The rally in central London on 26 March is expected to attract at least 200,000 marchers.