Economic News

By Gernot Heller and Glenn Somerville WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Finance chiefs from rich nations said on Friday the global economy was healthy but that China must let its currency rise to help cut its growing trade surpluses with the rest of the world. "Greater exchange rate flexibility is desirable in emerging economies with large current account surpluses, especially China, for necessary adjustments to occur," Group of Seven finance ministers and central bankers said in a communique that effect ...

By Sumeet Desai WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The IMF needs reform to help the world economy better withstand challenges, because the Group of Seven can no longer manage the global financial system on its own, Chancellor Gordon Brown said on Friday. In Washington for the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, Brown told reporters the Bretton Woods institutions urgently needed an overhaul to reflect the changes in the world economy. And in a submission to the IMF's main po ...

Conservative leader David Cameron has said he would scrap the climate change levy and replace it with a better way of tackling carbon emissions. He claims Labour's flagship green policy is not working because carbon emissions are rising. He wants a new business tax or a credit system to tackle the issue. Labour said Mr Cameron had come up with a few "platitudes and vague hints". The Lib Dems said the Tories had failed to make a single hard-edged proposal.  ...

The US dollar suffered a terrible week, hitting a seven-month low against the euro, as the market wondered what would support the currency when monetary tightening had run its course. // The dollar was first hit by the release of the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee’s March meeting, which said that “most members thought that the end of the tightening process was likely to be near”. The minutes, alongside soft economic data, prompted a growing number of commentators to opine that th ...

Finance ministers and central bank governors are on Saturday expected to give Rodrigo Rato, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, the green light to draft a plan to give big emerging market economies a greater stake in the fund. // China, South Korea, Turkey and Mexico are expected to be the biggest immediate winners from the shareholding shake-up. Global policymakers hope it will ...

Finance ministers and central bankers from the world's seven biggest industrialised nations are due to meet in Washington on Friday. Top of the agenda at the G7 meeting will be the effect of record oil prices on global trade imbalances and interest rate levels, analysts said. The G7 are gathering on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank spring meeting. The IMF has called for more cooperation to ensure greater economic stability. 'Zero-sum gain' "A disorderly ...

Jane Padgham, Evening Standard21 April 2006 A SUMMER of soaring oil prices is threatening to hit consumers and pile more pressure on the beleaguered manufacturing sector, experts warned today. RISING DEMAND: Increases in production have failed to cool the oil market WANT TO KNOW MORE? CALCULATOR: Petrol bills CALCULATOR: Car costs SWITCH & SAVE: Cut your fuel bills OTHER STORIES Danger signals still dog housing market Market report: Friday preview WPP cashes in ...

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) -- In an era of strong global growth and low inflation, the major economies have grown too complacent about the risks of global imbalances in trade, spending and investment, said Rodrigo de Rato, managing director of the International Monetary Fund. In opening the spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank, de Rato said Thursday that there's a consensus about what need ...

The Chinese economy has continued to grow faster than predicted, prompting calls for government action to curb investment and tighten lending. Output rose 10.2% in the first quarter of 2006, according to official data, topping growth in the last quarter of 2005 and for last year as a whole. Beijing has pledged to take some of the heat out of its breakneck economic rate by cutting public sector investment. But spending on factories, roads and other assets rose 27% over the quarter. Racing ahe ...

Stephen Nickell remained the only member of the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to vote for reducing rates to 4.25 per cent from 4.5 per cent, where they have been since August last year. Mr Nickell was outgunned by the other members, who voted to leave rates on hold in light of steady growth in the UK economy, and amid fears that rising energy prices could put pressure on inflation, which  ...