Mukherjee, Geithner discuss G20 agenda, financial stability

NEW DELHI - Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Monday held talks here with US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on a wide range of issues, including the agenda for the G20 Summit in Seoul later this week, to be attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Barack Obama.

The next steps forward to stabilise the global financial markets, technical cooperation on capital flows and infrastructure financing also figured in the talks, held as part of the US-India Economic and Financial Partnership launched here April 6, officials said.

Mukherjee was invited to Washington next year by Geithner for the next round of talks as part of the the partnership pact, the officials added.

Geithner is a key member of the high-power delegation accompanying President Obama on his ongoing four-day India visit since Saturday.

Both the Indian finance minister and the US treasury secretary later joined the delegation-level talks at Hyderabad House here that were chaired by Manmohan Singh and Obama.

Ahead of their meeting, Geithner, in a signed article for a leading Indian daily, said India was doing its bit to rebalance global growth and prevent events such as the massive deficit financing and trade surpluses that had caused the recent global financial crises.

“India is meeting this challenge, helping to demonstrate the dynamism that can accompany domestic demand-led growth combined with significant exchange-rate flexibility,” he said in the article.

“India is succeeding in fostering greater domestic growth in part by directing economic policies and incentives toward the bottom of the income pyramid.”