German Chancellor Angela Merkel parried attempts to get her to accept more flexibility for the euro-region’s rescue funds, while agreeing with leaders of Italy, Spain and France on an outline to spur economic growth.
At a four-way summit meeting in Rome yesterday, Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, French President Francois Hollande and Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said they would lobby their European Union partners to accept a growth plan of as much as 130 billion euros ($163 billion), or about 1 percent of the euro-region’s economic output.
