Introduction

Austria’s EU presidency during the first half of 2006 also brings about the organization of an ASEM Finance Ministers’ meeting in Vienna, in April 2006. As is usual, such meetings are preceded by a deputies’ meeting, scheduled to prepare the agenda for the ministers’ meeting. The Austrian Ministry of Finance had the idea to ask Marc Uzan of the Reinventing Bretton Woods Committee to help organize a workshop on the effects of globalization on Asian and European countries, in order to provide input of substance to the deputies’ meeting. Marc enlisted the help of the Euro 50 Group, the MoF enlisted the help of the Austrian National Bank for the ensuing workshop which took place on 19, Jan. 2006 in the ‘Kassensaal’ of OeNB.