U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Sunday that finance chiefs from rich and poor countries saw global growth prospects picking up but also shared concern about threatening imbalances.
Speaking to reporters after the first day of a two-day Group of 20 meeting in Mexico, Snow described the mood among finance ministers and central bankers as "upbeat, positive" but with some concerns.
"In every single case the tenor of the comments was that the world economy is on a pretty good course," Snow said. But he noted "there was reference to the U.S. current account deficit, to the China (currency) peg, to high debt levels in Latin America" as possible threats to expansion.
The G20 brings together officials from not only rich industrial nations but also emerging-market economies in a forum that gives the poorer countries a chance to express their views directly to the wealthier participants.
Snow said he met Chinese finance officials separately to again press for greater flexibility in China's yuan currency, now pegged to the U.S. dollar, and said the Chinese repeated they intend to alter their currency regime but gave no timetable for doing so.
The issue has become politically sensitive for the Bush administration, with U.S. manufacturers claiming the Chinese pegged currency gives its exports an unfair price advantage.
Snow, who must testify before Congress on Thursday on whether U.S. trade partners like China manipulate their currencies deliberately for an edge in trade, declined to answer questions about the substance of his talks with the Chinese officials.
"I think what I'll do is defer any comment on Chinese currency until I get a chance to talk to the U.S. Senate about it," the U.S. Treasury chief said. Snow is scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.
Snow said that, in meetings with finance ministers from Germany and Russia, he found common ground on the U.S. position that the rest of the world needed to pitch in quickly to help Iraq rebuild its ravaged economy.
France, Germany and Russia, which opposed the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime, did not contribute more money at a donors' conference for Iraq in Madrid last week.
But Snow said Russia and Germany both saw the need for helping Iraq, and cited German Finance Minister Hans Eichel's support for giving Iraq a boost.
"They had a sense of urgency as we do and were as co-operative and forward-leaning on that as you could hope for," said Snow, who was scheduled to have a similar discussion on Iraq on Monday with French Finance Minister Francis Mer.
Speaking to reporters after the first day of a two-day Group of 20 meeting in Mexico, Snow described the mood among finance ministers and central bankers as "upbeat, positive" but with some concerns.
"In every single case the tenor of the comments was that the world economy is on a pretty good course," Snow said. But he noted "there was reference to the U.S. current account deficit, to the China (currency) peg, to high debt levels in Latin America" as possible threats to expansion.
The G20 brings together officials from not only rich industrial nations but also emerging-market economies in a forum that gives the poorer countries a chance to express their views directly to the wealthier participants.
Snow said he met Chinese finance officials separately to again press for greater flexibility in China's yuan currency, now pegged to the U.S. dollar, and said the Chinese repeated they intend to alter their currency regime but gave no timetable for doing so.
The issue has become politically sensitive for the Bush administration, with U.S. manufacturers claiming the Chinese pegged currency gives its exports an unfair price advantage.
Snow, who must testify before Congress on Thursday on whether U.S. trade partners like China manipulate their currencies deliberately for an edge in trade, declined to answer questions about the substance of his talks with the Chinese officials.
"I think what I'll do is defer any comment on Chinese currency until I get a chance to talk to the U.S. Senate about it," the U.S. Treasury chief said. Snow is scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.
Snow said that, in meetings with finance ministers from Germany and Russia, he found common ground on the U.S. position that the rest of the world needed to pitch in quickly to help Iraq rebuild its ravaged economy.
France, Germany and Russia, which opposed the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein's regime, did not contribute more money at a donors' conference for Iraq in Madrid last week.
But Snow said Russia and Germany both saw the need for helping Iraq, and cited German Finance Minister Hans Eichel's support for giving Iraq a boost.
"They had a sense of urgency as we do and were as co-operative and forward-leaning on that as you could hope for," said Snow, who was scheduled to have a similar discussion on Iraq on Monday with French Finance Minister Francis Mer.
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