Wednesday, September 9, 2009

The G20, Pittsburgh and Basel II

The G 20 will meet on 24-25 September in Pittsburgh and unlike the April meeting in London there has been limited pre-meeting discussion. France and Germany have proposed compensation caps for bankers but that will never happen, since if all else fails they will just buy their own country. Problem solved.

There was a 5 September Communique issued which stated:

"1. We, the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, met ahead of the Pittsburgh
Summit to assess our progress in delivering the Global Plan for Recovery and Reform and agree further actions to ensure sustainable growth and build a stronger international financial system. We reiterated the need for swift and full implementation of all the commitments made at the Washington and London Summits and have agreed the further necessary steps to strengthen the financial system, as set out in the accompanying declaration.

2. Our unprecedented, decisive and concerted policy action has helped to arrest the decline and boost global demand. Financial markets are stabilising and the global economy is improving, but we remain cautious about the outlook for growth and jobs, and are particularly concerned about the impact on many low income countries. We will continue to implement decisively our necessary financial support measures and expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, consistent with price stability and long-term fiscal sustainability, until recovery is secured."

This should be an interesting round to watch but there appear to be no flash points as of yet. The French and Germans still want compliance with Basel II and the US and UK are deferring.