EU to press for reform as Asia joins bailout

By Paul Taylor and Mike Peacock BRUSSELS/LONDON (Reuters) - European leaders pressed on Wednesday for an overhaul of global financial structures after Asia joined western bastions of capitalism in bailing out banks to avert financial meltdown and tackle looming recession. EU leaders arrived in Brussels after committing 2.2 trillion euros (1.71 trillion pounds) to rescue European banks and break a logjam in money markets that has choked off lending in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Washington followed with similarly radical state action to stem a crisis which began with a U.S. housing market collapse and now threatens economies worldwide. The ructions of recent weeks have exposed glaring shortcomings in international financial structures developed after World War Two. "The IMF (International Monetary... [read full story]