G-10 FINANCE OFFICIALS DISCUSS DEBT, CURRENCIES
Deputy Finance Ministers from the Group
of 10 leading western industrialised countries met here to
discuss the world debt crisis, trade imbalances and currency
stability today following last month's Paris monetary accord,
sources close to the talks said.
    The officials met at the offices of the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) to discuss broad aspects of world monetary
policy in preparation for the IMF's interim committee meeting
in Washington in April.
    The talks were the first high-level international review of
the monetary situation since the accord last month reached by
the U.S., West Germany, France, Britain, Japan and Canada to
stabilise world currency markets at around present levels
following the 40 pct slide in the dollar since mid-1985.
    Other countries represented at today's talks were Italy,
which refused to attend last month's meeting on the grounds
that it was being excluded from the real discussions, the
Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland.
    Many of the officials had met earlier today and yesterday
within the framework of the Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) to review the slow progress
being made in cutting the record 170 billion dlr U.S. Trade
deficit and persuading West Germany and Japan to open their
economies to more foreign imports.
 Reuter
