Trichet says global economy recovering faster than forecast
Tuesday November 10 2009
EUROPEAN Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet, speaking on behalf of the world's central bankers yesterday, said the global economy was recovering a little faster than expected.
"Growth is confirmed at levels a little bit better than what was previously projected," Mr Trichet said at a press conference at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland, after chairing the so-called Global Economy Meeting. He also said central bankers agreed on the need for a "gradual and timely phasing out" of non-conventional policy measures without signalling that a move was imminent.
The world economy is emerging from its worst slump since the Great Depression, with the International Monetary Fund predicting growth of 3.1pc next year, after a 1.1pc contraction in 2009. The US economy returned to growth in the third quarter and economists say its European counterpart probably did too. By contrast, the UK unexpectedly remained mired in recession.
Complacency
"This is certainly, in the eyes of colleagues no time for complacency," Mr Trichet said. He said central bankers endorsed the communique from the Group of 20 nations over the weekend in which officials agreed to keep interest rates low and maintain record budget deficits until recoveries took hold.
Mr Trichet met in Basel with his counterparts from the world's largest central banks.
Meanwhile, he criticised Greece for producing unreliable statistics, saying they undermined the functioning of the eurozone's growth and stability pact.
Speaking on Greek television, he also called for Athens to set up a fully independent statistics agency and said the country needed a very significant fiscal readjustment after recent warnings from the EU on a budget gap ballooning into double figures as a percentage of GDP.
The new Greek government said last week that the highly indebted country's deficit would reach 12.7pc of GDP in 2009, more than double what the previous cabinet had projected, prompting an outcry in EU capitals and among rating agencies.
"We absolutely need to be sure about the figures in the future," Mr Trichet said. "We cannot have data which is not reliable." (Bloomberg)
- Gabi Thesing and Brian Swint
Irish Independent
