Emerging economies which make up the BRICS group will discuss possible aid to the European Union to help it confront its debt crisis, Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega said Tuesday.

"The BRICS nations will meet next week in Washington and we will discuss how to help the European Union get out of this situation," he said. The BRICS nations comprise Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The Brazilian finance minister will be in Washington next week along with many of his counterparts from around the world for the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

A BRICS meeting is set for September 22.

In what would be a reversal of roles, the leading emerging economies, which in recent years have been growing faster than the major industrialized nations, were expected to put forth a plan to help stabilize the global economy and markets, according to the Brazilian financial daily Valor.

The report said one idea being floated is to increase the reserves of the emerging markets of their assets in euros, in an effort to ease the debt crisis in the eurozone.

The news comes with markets roiled by the debt crisis in Greece and other eurozone nations and EU officials pushing a second bailout for Athens. At the same time, China and some other emerging nations are sitting on huge international reserves.

Valor said the BRICS nations at this point would be prepared to boost holdings in only the most solid eurozone nations such as Germany, and could also invest in bonds issued by Britain, a non-eurozone country.

Separately on Tuesday, Germany, France and debt-mired Greece agreed to hold a fresh round of talks on the euro crisis after US President Barack Obama urged Europeans to make greater efforts to calm volatile markets.

channelnewsasia.com