Much talk and cautious optimism at WEF

This year's World Economic Forum (WEF) summit in Davos was characterised by much talk, little action and marked by distractions, say international and Swiss media.

Most papers are generally positive about the meeting in the Swiss mountain resort, although financial crisis was the talk of the town.

The reputable Neue Zürcher Zeitung newspaper said ongoing issues, including the problems in global credit markets and the weak United States economy, had failed to overshadow a positive political agenda.

The Basler Zeitung was less optimistic, criticising business leaders for advocating poverty reduction through “creative capitalism” and encouraging efforts to combat climate change, but keeping their own economic interests as the highest priority.

According to a roundup by the New York Times, the real discussion was about money. It highlighted massive trading losses fronted by French bank Société Générale, the growth of state-owned investment funds and the state of the US economy.

For the Financial Times of Britain, the consensus was optimistic despite the rise in oil prices and the weak dollar.

“We’ve had a financial crisis every five years for the past 100 years and they have all come from a different source and they have all been resolved,” Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive of JP Morgan Chase, told the London-based newspaper.