World crisis plan criticized as trading dawns

By Ros Krasny

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A package of economic rescue measures agreed by the world's major governments appeared to fall short of calming investors jangled nerves as the trading week dawned in Asia.

In early trading on Monday, the yen and U.S. dollar rose in a flight to safety on assessments that the meeting yielded no concrete moves to avert a looming global recession.

Governments from Washington to Beijing agreed Saturday to a host of fiscal and monetary steps to rescue the global economy but it was left to individual governments to tailor their response to their particular circumstances and troubled industries.

"Taken as a whole, it does not appear that the outcome of the summit will be sufficient to stem the financial crisis. This was a high bar from the start," said Marc Chandler, global head of currency strategy with Brown Brothers Harriman in New York.

In the United States, the lame-duck status of President George W. Bush's administration made guessing the likely ability of the Group of 20 economic summit to restore market confidence tougher.

President-elect Barack Obama sent emissaries to the weekend event, and issued a statement in support of a coordinated response to the global financial crisis.

The post-meeting statement from the grouping of major industrialized and developing countries contained a kitchen sink of reform pledges aimed at soothing volatile markets and calming consumers' worries.

It said that all financial markets, products and participants will be subject to supervision, vowed tougher accounting rules, a review of compensation practices and greater cooperation between national regulators.