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3/04/2009

'New world symphony' sums up Etienne Mougeotte in Le Figaro. Of course no one knows what the outcome will be, he explains, but this meeting is a success out of which a new world order will emerge. Quoting Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Le Figaro explains that 'this is the largest recovery plan ever.' The three big winners are the IMF, whose budget is now 3 times larger, France and Germany who got what they wanted on financial regulation, and China who was able to 'impose her influence with the big players.'

La Tribune's G20 commentary is positive, congratulatory, and hails this summit as an historic breakthrough and a good start to resolving the crisis. Its front page headline reads 'they haven't disappointed us' and 'the triumph of Brown's diplomacy'. It says the G20 summit yesterday concluded with a whole range of historic decisions aiming to regulate global finance.

Writing in La Tribune, Erik Izraelewicz calls this summit 'unprecedented' and says that while leaders may not have 'refounded capitalism', they regained control of the markets. The crisis will not go away overnight, but this is a step in the right direction for a new world order. The G20 get '20 out of 20'.

Liberation's front page reads 'A G20 not in vain'. They haven't delivered the 'rupture'the real world situation was calling for. But this is 'undeniable progress'. 

Les Echos states that G20 goes further than a simple mask of unity and announces a number of concrete reforms. If the battle was hard the results are there.

In a column in Les Echos Dominique Seux says it was ‘much more than a Summit. The pressure exerted by Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel was acted on to reform the financial sector.

Le Monde’s main headline reads ‘G20 lays down new rules for global capitalism’. As Americans and Europeans meet for the NATO summit, many were congratulating themselves on the results of yesterday's G20 economic summit in London. The two camps (those who wanted to regulate the financial system versus those who wanted to concentrate on resolving the current crisis) succeeded in agreeing to a compromise which suited everyone's interests.

30/30/2009

In an editorial Nicolas Barré says G20 leaders must not forget the poor countries who are suffering from the crisis. And the rich countries must learn from lessons of the past and avoid more excess of debt.

In an opinion piece in Le Figaro Christian Boissieu & Jean-Hervé Lorenzi argue that the London G20 summit is 'an opportunity we should seize'. However the article goes on to argue that the challenges of reaching agreement in the G20 will be even greater than reaching agreement on the response to the crisis within the EU.

27/03/2009

Barack Obama is ready to reform the financial system, says Le Figaro. Washington has unveiled major initiatives to regulate the US financial system. This ambitious policy is perceived as a good sign by the Europeans before the G20.

Le Monde assesses the positions of different G20 countries on fiscal stimulus and regulation. The article identifies preferences for a macroeconomic stimulus among the US and a number of emerging markets and discusses differing views over the need for global financial regulation.

In an interview with Les Echos, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero says that he supports Obama's plan and is confident that a good agreement will result from the London Summit.

La Tribune says Lord Malloch-Brown has opened the doors of developing countries to Gordon Brown during the G20 negotiations. The paper describes Lord Malloch Brown as identifying the two priority objectives for the summit: an increase in IMF resources and an aid plan for international trade. However, it goes on to say that Malloch Brown believes the objectives will go beyond these two points, and also cover financial regulation and support for the poorest countries.

26/03/2009

In his column in Le Figaro, Pierre Rousselin compares Obama and Sarkozy's positions on the G20 : they both share the same indignation for outrageous bonuses, but Obama is not calling to 'refound capitalism' or for 'a code of ethics' - what Obama wants is for the system to work better. Rousselin also points out that Obama does not talk about regulation, a priority for Sarkozy. In Rousselin’s view This could lead to a major disagreeement.

Le Figaro reports on the telephone conversations between the Obama and Sarkozy, explaining they agreed the G20 should 'have ambitious goals and lead to concrete decisions to define a new world financial regulation, reinforce governance and support global demand'.

Never has a summit aroused so much interest and expectation. Challenges interviews Dominique Strauss Kahn of the IMF on capitalism, whether the G20 countries will really tackle the true causes of the crisis and what needs to be done to improve the financial system.

Challenges provides an assessment of French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s position in the run up the London Summit.

The summit in London aims to restore world confidence but the G20 countries are divided in two camps, says Valeurs Actuelles. In the paper's assessment, the US wants more money to combat the recession, while the Europeans want to work on the rules and morality behind capitalism.

Nouvel Obs, profiles Pascal Lamy of the WTO and Dominique Strauss Kahn of the IMF  and their positions on the reform of International Financial Institutions in the run-up to the London Summit.

25/03/2009

La Tribune dedicates its first five pages to the economic recovery and the scope of the London summit, addressing issues such as when the recovery could start, confidence and reasons for hope.

An editorial in Le Monde is pessimistic about the outlook for the London summit. Despite a new administration in Washington, the crisis is showing no signs of slowing down and the measures taken at the Washington summit on liberalisation have not been followed through. The Americans and Europeans do not share the same objectives, as Prime Minister Francois Fillon's trip to Washington was proving.

Les Echos reports that President Nicolas Sarkozy will meet the unions next Monday in preparation for the London Summit.

Les Echos reports on Gordon Brown's speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, adding that Europe was surprised to hear a British Prime Minister calling for Europe to impose ambitious goals at the London Summit.

24/03/2009

Le Figaro reports that France is preparing carefully for the G20, with Nicolas Sarkozy will be calling Barack Obama on Wednesday, eight days before the London Summit. Prime Minister François Fillon is in Washington to meet with the Vice-President and Wall Street bankers, insisting on the necessity for France and the US to work closely in order to deliver in London.

Libération says that the Europeans want more regulation to solve the economic crisis while the Americans are pushing for more recovery efforts. But what France fears most is a tepid statement at the end of the summit, it adds.

Le Parisien reports that Prime Minister François Fillon is defending the French reflation plan in the US, where he has called on the London Summit to produce concrete results, insisting that 'the absence of an agreement will send a negative message to the people.'

23/03/2009

The G20 must try to establish measures to impose transparency of tax havens, says Fabrice Rousselot in an editorial in Libération. But despite the pressure, world leaders may content themselves with only statements of intention. According to the World Bank, hundreds of billions of dollars escape taxation each year. And in the current climate, we can only imagine how this money could boost a failing world economy.

In a column in Les Echos Dominique Seux, says tax havens will be top of the agenda for the G20 summit. He argues that, although President Nicolas Sarkozy's news that Switzerland will make its client lists transparent is a step forward, the EU is alone in its battle against tax havens, and it's action needs to be backed up worldwide to make a difference.

Les Echos also reports that EU leaders have agreed on a series of propositions to present to the G20 summit in London in April, namely: improve the IMF's surveillance tools; increase the IMF's capacity to intervene; protect the financial system against non-cooperative countries and offshore banking centres; increase regulation and supervision; improve the transparency of markets; and modify the prudential and accounting rules.

19/03/2009

Les Echos reports on a report by two World Bank economists criticising G20 countries for taking protectionist measures since the Washington Summit in November.

Le Figaro covers the meeting between the Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Budget Minister Eric Woerth yesterday. The article adds that tackling tax havens is a key objective for France

18/03/2009

17/03/2009

Le Monde comments that although the G20 Finance Ministers insisted they were in agreement, they did not manage to overcome their differences at their meeting in the UK at the weekend. The newspaper quotes Dominique Strauss-Kahn, IMF Managing Director, commenting that countries were not investing enough in their banking sectors.

16/03/2009

In an editorial, Le Figaro says that following the G20 finance ministers' meeting, all positions 'seem to be clear now'. Although it is too soon to guess what will come out of the G20, Gaétan de Capèle argues the main issue is differences of opinion between US calls to strengthen recovery plans and a what he sees as apparent European preference for more regulation. Capèle considers the final statement that came out of Saturday's meeting to be light on substance so as to make everybody happy for the moment. His recommendation is for Europe to remain strong on her position.

In another article in Le Figaro, reporting on the G20 meeting, Christine Lagarde is reported to be satisfied that all finance ministers 'agreed on the full package for the G20'. However, the article also concedes that the agreement is light on substance, and countries will have to wait for more specific announcements to be made at the London Summit.

Les Echos says finance ministers meeting went beyond their differences and showed unity in front of the recession. It says the proposed reforms took precedence over the recovery plans at the Finance ministers meeting.

13/03/2009

La Tribune underlines the excellent cooperation yesterday between Merkell and Sarkozy in the scope of the G20. In an Op-Ed piece, the President and CEO of Allo-finance.com argues that 2 different agendas are being set up: one by the Americans and one by the Europeans.

Les Echos explains that despite common views on financial regulation reform, the Americans find the other G20 members are being very weak on their plans to relaunch their economies. Eric Le Boucher is unoptimistic about the London Summit he feels that countries differences cannot be reconciled and that 'only good words can come out of the G20 meeting in London'. He goes on to argue that the only solution is a stronger recovery plan for the economy in Europe and a better recovery plan for financial institutions in America, and we are nowhere near this.

11/03/2009

With only a few weeks to go before the London Summit, Dominique Seux in Les Echos says US President Barack Obama has made clear his priority of boosting the economy to get out of the current crisis. She goes on to say that the Europeans do not want President Obama to 'dictate their agenda' and ;refuse to go further' as long as Washington does not clarify its position on reforming the financial system. A failure at the G20 is possible, she adds.

Le Figaro says disagreements have emerged between the US and Europe on the rescue strategy for the global economy. Paris and Berlin want more regulation of the markets, while Washington is advocating a bigger rescue plan. It says: 'Caught between two fires, the British are leaning more towards the US'.

Nicolas Véron in La Tribune the London Summit cannot be expected to coordinate budget policies among such a vast and varying group. But it could make decisions on reforming the IMF, accelerating the transformation of other institutions and progressing on the question of tax havens. Such a programme will settle the markets only if the G20 works modestly and focuses on the areas where it can give added value. If it succeeds, it could position itself as a long-lasting organisation and increase the importance of its role.

09/03/2009

The Elysée has said that Nicolas Sarkozy and the Mexican President plan to make a joint statement on the financial crisis before the G20, with the idea of defending the creation of a G13 and appealing for a restructuring of the global financial system, according to Les Echos.

05/03/2009

Commenting on Gordon Brown’s speech to the US Congress, Le Figaro says that if the G20 is going to get any results, there is still some way to go. The US was still hesitating, while Europe was divided with Paris and Berlin convinced of the need to rethink the founding principles of capitalism.

In an interview in La Tribune, Jacques De Larosière, the former managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said he hoped Europe would speak with one voice at the London Summit. On crisis and rescue measures, he warned that those who did not apply the rules should face 'sanctions'.

03/03/2009

French international news channel France 24 TV provided extensive coverage of Gordon Brown's visit to the United States on 3 and 4 March, which it described as important ahead of a 'crucial' G20 summit in London on the global economic crisis. According to Washington correspondent Guillaume Meyer, 'Barack Obama and Gordon Brown are on the same wavelength regarding the role of governments in facing up to the economic crisis,' since both believe in the injection of state funds into the economy and both want greater regulation of financial markets.

23/02/2009

Le Figaro reports that the weekend's summit in Berlin saw a 'European consensus' on the tax havens and agreed to seven priorities for the agenda of the G20 summit in April.

Les Echos points out that though the European leaders came to an agreement on G20 priorities yesterday, they failed to tackle the problem of Eastern Europe and how these countries are affecting the stability of the Euro Zone.

La Tribune says that the leaders were all unanimously against protectionism, vowing to keep competition open, thereby sending a clear signal to the US to do the same.

20/02/09

Les Echos and Le Monde analysed Sunday’s Berlin summit of the European countries attending the London Summit and said France shared Germany’s agenda on the  transparency of financial markets, better surveillance of hedge funds and strengthening controls over financial organisations. 

19/02/09

In an interview with Les Echos, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, managing director of the IMF, said the G20 had the potential to be an organ of world governance, but only if it was prepared to open up to the Middle Eastern and African countries. He expected the London Summit to make decisions on a range of issues, from taxation to solutions to the crisis, and to agree changes to the tools and operations of financial world governance.

06/02/09

Le Figaro says President Nicolas Sarkozy is actively preparing for the G20 at which he is expects 'structural decisions', and wants Europe to go to the London Summit with a common position. The President wants regulation to cover all financial institutions, including hedge funds, and for discussions on tax havens to improve the transparency on the origin of funds, it added.

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