The International Monetary Fund has said this year is shaping up as a "challenging" one for ASIA.
David Burton, director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Department, spoke at the release of the Asia Pacific Economic outlook.　

"While Asia maintains good growth momentum at this point, it's unlikely to de-link entirely from the current slowdown and it's going to feel the effects.　Although I think because of the strengthening of the policy frameworks in the recent years, it is going to be well placed to weather these spillovers."

Ministers and officials from the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty-Four on International Monetary Affairs and Development have met in Washington.

They devoted much of their discussions to recommendations they hope will restore market confidence which has been shaken by a credit crisis that originated in the U.S.

The plan, with 65 separate recommendations, is intended to boost transparency, strengthen the role of credit rating agencies and bolster cooperation between regulatory authorities in major countries.

The US subprime crisis has caused major financial institutions to declare billions of US dollars in losses.

The IMF said in reports this week that worldwide losses could approach one trillion US dollars over the next two years.

It added the turmoil has already pushed the US, the world's largest economy, into a recession and raised the risks of a global downturn to one in four.

Faced with that gloomy assessment, global financial leaders are certain to do everything they can during the next three days of meetings to demonstrate that they are on top of the situation.