SIFMA Responds to EU's Call

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) issued a statement in response to an announcement issued by members of the European Union made at this week's EU leaders' mini summit on the recent financial turbulence. The EU said that it supports the call for prompt, targeted and proportionate action in addressing the market tumult. In response, SIFMA said that it is actively working on developing further market transparency and it believes that governments must take into account these initiatives if they are to provide an adequate response to the crisis. SIFMA and other industry stakeholders are committed to take the necessary steps aimed at contributing to the restoration of confidence and liquidity to the markets. The Association also said that it is dedicated to working with a number of national and international associations and regulatory agencies on the transparency initiative as well as to put into place workable and practical solutions. The EU'sannouncement, which called for greater transparency and the need for a "better" early warning system, was made jointly by U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Premier Romano Prodi and EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.