Skip navigation

Current DateTime: 06:25:09 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 24355697

FEATURED QUIZZES


Current DateTime: 06:25:09 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 33793611

Current DateTime: 06:25:09 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 24890560
  • Winterizing Your Portfolio

      If 2009 was the winter of our discontent, will 2010 be a winter wonderland for investors? A lot depends on the recovery—or lack thereof.

  • Investor's Guide to Real Estate

      Some even say the long-awaited recovery is here. Regardless, buyers and sellers alike can profit from our guide.

  • Alternative Investing

      Stocks and bonds? Sure. But it's a big world out there for investors.

powered by digg
By: Stephane Pedrazzi, , Paris Correspondent, CNBC Europe | 09 Sep 2008 | 04:12 AM ET
Text Size

The government takeover of mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shows the need for more government intervention in the financial sector, French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde told CNBC Europe in an interview.

"It only goes to show that nothing is ever certain in this world and that clearly we need to collectively rethink the moral compass that has driven the financial actors, the financial players and the financial markets," Lagarde said on Monday.

"I believe there is a need for government involvement; whether that should take the form of nationalization, of receivership, of whatever tools are available and whichever system is a matter for each national Treasury to decide," she added.

Stock markets rallied on Monday after the decision but on Tuesday jitters returned to the market, as investors sobered up to the fact that the Fannie Mae [FNM  Loading...      ()   ] and Freddie Mac [FRE  Loading...      ()   ] conservatorship is only a step towards solving the financial crisis and not the solution.

On Friday, France will host a two-day meeting of Ecofin group of European Union finance ministers, seeking a coordinated response to the credit crunch and the economic slowdown.

"I'm determined to propose measures to address some of these issues," Lagarde said. Her proposals will include demands for more transparency in the on oil market and the balance sheet of banks and financial institutions, as well as support for small and medium-size enterprises, which are a "key driver of growth" in Europe.

-- Written by CNBC.com

© 2009 CNBC.com
Tools:
Print EmailAdd This share icon
  • digg share

CNBC HIGHLIGHTS

  • Do free market libertarians really believe what they say about ethics and shareholder value? The Big Money takes a look.
  • Jim Cramer
  • Cramer did the research and found eight stocks that lead the pack. Read on to get his top picks.
  • On the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, many in the former Eastern Bloc recall communism fondly.
  • Gavel
  • Software, biotech firms, even banks are watching a particular Supreme Court argument today.
  • From politicians to CEOs to companies, here's your chance to vote for the winners and losers of 2009.
  • A new sinister Internet viruses can turn you into an unsuspecting collector of child pornography.
ADD COMMENTS
Remaining characters


Current DateTime: 03:21:08 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29778428

Current DateTime: 08:52:06 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779196

Current DateTime: 04:47:44 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779199

Current DateTime: 08:52:07 09 Nov 2009
LinksList Documentid: 29779198
  Data is a real-time snapshot  *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes
Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis

© 2009 CNBC, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.
A Division of NBC Universal
Thomson ReutersThomson Reuters