Financial Times: Focus on regulation, says Merkel
Europe and the US should not become distracted in their efforts to regulate financial markets by “artificial discussions” over the size of their respective fiscal stimulus programmes, said Angela Merkel. “What we need is for [the April 2 G20 summit in London] to send a strong psychological signal. We should not be competing for the most unrealistic fiscal stimulus,” Ms Merkel told parliament before she travelled to Brussels for a European Union summit.

Financial Times: IMF says stability plan lacks detail
The International Monetary Fund criticized the Obama administration’s plans to stabilize the financial system, saying it lacked “essential details” and has left the markets uncertain about how it intends to recapitalize the US banking sector.

The Economist: Green shoots
Despite many problems in the global economy, the notoriously cyclical world of agriculture is holding up remarkably well. Prices for grains and meat are down from the peaks of mid-2008, but are 30-50% above their averages over the past decade. Higher prices are hardly a universal blessing: they are good for farmers, many of whom are poor, but bad for consumers.

-Chandler Smith