French President Meets With Bankers, Insurers Tuesday To Discuss Financial Crisis

September 30, 2008 8:57 a.m. EST

Paris, France (AHN) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy is slated to meet Tuesday with bankers and insurers to tackle the financial crisis which has reached France as French stocks fell for the second consecutive day.

Sarkozy's office said the objective of the gathering was to take stock of the situation of French financial institutions and check the availability of credit to individuals and companies.

The Elysée Palace meeting comes on the heels of a promise made by Sarkozy last week that the state would help financially distressed banks to ensure that depositors would not lose their savings.

On Monday, France, Belgium and Luxembourg agreed to infuse $9.2 million (6.4 billion euro) into the financial services group Dexia, which is a French-Belgian firm. Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme has assured Dexia's depositors that all necessary measures are being taken to preserve their interests.

Other European governments also announced on Monday bailout plans for banks in an effort to avert a financial crisis similar to what has happened in the United States. But the rescue attempts only ignited fears among Europeans that Wall Street's woes have reached their shores.