UPDATE 3-Euro zone ministers disagree over single IMF seat

By Marcin Grajewski BRUSSELS, July 6 (Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers disagreed on Monday over whether they should have a single representation at international financial institutions, despite being increasingly willing to speak with one voice. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso also said the time was not right yet for the 27-nation European Union to have just one seat at the International Monetary Fund. Jean-Claude Juncker, who chairs the Eurogroup of finance ministers from the 16 countries using the single currency, said the ministers had discussed calls for single-seat representation but failed to reach any agreement at a meeting in Brussels. "This proposal did not give rise to a round of applause," Juncker told a news conference. "It is a discussion we shall come back to in coming months." Euro zone member states face pressure to lower their representation at the IMF to make more room for China and other emerging economies, which are playing an increasingly important role in financing the Fund. EU states are also reluctant to abandon their national seats at the IMF board and other forums such as the Group of Seven industrial countries, which includes euro zone members France, Germany and Italy, as well as EU member Britain. European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said he and Juncker had voiced support for single-seat representation as the "best way to have a clear and strong defence of our interests". "Everyone agrees for the long term this is the best solution but some think the long term is always very far away," he said. French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said Europe was not over-represented at the IMF despite the calls by emerging countries for better representation. "We need to work on this ... but a single seat for the euro zone is not a project today that is either realistic or mature," she said. Barroso, who heads the EU's executive, made clear there was no consensus on the issue in the EU as a whole. "Are they ready for a single representation of the European Union? Honestly I don't think so," he told a news conference before this week's summit of the Group of Eight major powers. "Are they ready to have more coherent representation in those fora? I think probably yes," he said. (Additional reporting by Tamora Vidaillet and Bate Felix; Writing by Timothy Heritage; Editing by Dale Hudson) Keywords: IMF EU/BARROSO Keywords: IMF EU/BARROSO ([e-mail]; [phone]; Reuters Messaging: [e-mail]) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved.

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