Geithner pressured over bailout

Finance chiefs from the Group of Seven nations joined the chorus of US investors and lawmakers pushing Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to move faster to fix the banking system.

Stung by domestic criticism for failing to provide details last week on just how he plans to clean up banks' toxic assets and revive lending, Geithner was told by foreign policy makers at weekend talks in Rome that speed was of the essence.

"A concrete US plan would have positive spillover effects on markets and economies elsewhere," said Marco Annunziata, chief economist at UniCredit MIB in London. "They are also probably hoping Geithner unveils the magic formula, which they could then also adopt."