Europe, Asia Call for Open Markets to Boost Trade, Growth

European and Asian leaders called for unfettered commerce and warned against protectionism as the debt crisis threatens to undermine trade ties between the world’s fastest and slowest-growing regions.

“We must open our markets,” French President Francois Hollande said today in a speech in Vientiane, Laos, where he is attending the Asia-Europe Meeting along with leaders from about 50 countries. “The biggest threat is protectionism.”