World finance ministers opened preparatory talks today on measures to turn back global recession ahead of an official session tomorrow, which is threatened by splits on how best to calm the turmoil.
The weekend gathering of finance chiefs from industrialised and emerging market countries in the Group of 20 will set the stage for a summit of G20 leaders on April 2.
While the US, the world's biggest economy, wants a coordinated international stimulus, most of Europe is suspicious of such a move and favours tightening regulation of financial markets and institutions.
In a boost for the US, Japan and China, the world's second and third largest economic powerhouses, also embraced stimulus today.
Senior US officials, including President Barack Obama's top economic adviser Larry Summers, have recently said leading nations must try to jumpstart a global recovery by pumping more money into their economies.
But that has not been welcomed in Europe, where many leaders do not want more spending amid big budget deficits.
