CERNOBBIO. Italy. Sept & The threat of contamination from the economic crises in Asia and Russia took centre stage at a weekend get-together in Italy by some of the world's market movers and shakers — but consensus on what to do about it was far from in evidence. reports AFP.

The fact that dozens of presidents of multinationals, central bank directors, five EU commissioners and a plethora of Asian. European and US economists found the time to address the worrying developments in a luxury lakeside villa here showed they agreed the problem was there, and looming large.

The preferred solutions,

given in comments away from the closed-door affair, showed a disturbing disarray, however.

The bosses — possibly keeping one eye on their stock prices — each said their group was not affected by Asia's sudden loss of wealth or Russia's downwards spiral. The head of BM's Europe operations. Lucio Stanca. said "the countries hit by the crises today aren't strategically important."

Nevertheless, they said there was a lot of nail-biting going on over the risk that industrialised countries might suddenly find their economies shedding speed. Fiat President Gianni Agnelli even spoke of a "slight recession';

The solution, many appeared

to be saying, was to get Europe and the United States to cut Interest rates to whip up activity. thus countering the malaise that started in southeast Asia a year ago

China's Deputy Science Minister. Deng Nan, warned the richer countries were not protected from a downturn In global demand and urged them to be "more active."

The central bank directors were said to have Deng's warning — echoed by others — on board.

An economist at the US Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rudi Dornbush. said Europe should make the first rate-cutting move, and not wait for the US Federal Reserve.

But Goldman Sachs chief economist Gavin Davies felt that would be a premature move for Europe, as 11 EU countries were only four months away from Introducing a single currency.

Former French Prime Minister Alain Juppe said a 2.5 per cent growth forecast by EU Fi nance Commissioner Yves Thibault De Silguy demonstrated "perhaps a little too much confidence on Europe being able to get by on strong domestic demand."

A member of the Bundesbank council. Reimut Jochlm-sen. declared the whole ques tion of whether to change Interest rates to stimulate demand was a no-starter.