Latin American Leaders Warn Of
Spreading Market Crisis
Dow Jones Newswires
PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP)--Latin American markets are being
rattled by the Russian and Asian economic crises, but a meltdown can be
avoided if industrialized nations take proper steps, regional leaders said
this weekend.
The 14-member Rio Group of Latin American leaders urged the world's
seven most-industrialized nations and world financial groups "to
immediately take the necessary steps to restore stability and guarantee
growth of the world economy."
When Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo arrived for Saturday's gathering,
he suggested the group focus on the financial crisis.
"So far, the costs of this instability are manageable in the measure that we
have not seen an economic contraction in the United States or Europe,"
Zedillo said as the summit wrapped up late Saturday.
But if industrialized economies should further weaken, it could provoke a
world recession, he said.
"This is what we believe should be avoided at any price," Zedillo said.
The Rio Group expressed confidence that its economies can withstand the
current storm - a position echoed by the International Monetary Fund last
week.
The Mexican leader, who will preside over the Rio Group's 1999 meeting,
noted that his country and other Latin American nations have made
structural reforms and policy adjustments in recent years.
With the Asian and Russian crises rattling investors, Zedillo urged the
international community to do whatever it could to prevent further pull-out
from emerging markets.
The 10 Latin American presidents attending the summit along with four top
officials from other countries expressed their confidence in the free-market
reforms that have swept the region in the last decade.
"We reaffirm our commitment to handle in a responsible way those
economic policy mechanisms that guarantee growth and stability," their
statement read |
