Eurozone finance chiefs warned on Friday that the 15-nation bloc faced growing risks to economic growth and inflation, but insisted there was currently no threat of a recession. EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia also acknowledged that “downside risks have increased” since he forecast in February that the eurozone economy would grow 1.8 percent this year.

Nevertheless, Almunia said eurozone finance ministers expected a “better scenario” than the International Monetary Fund’s recently reduced forecast for 1.3 percent growth this year in the bloc. Eurozone finance ministers, who were to be joined later by counterparts from all EU countries for a two-day meeting, are struggling to come up with concrete responses to the growing threats hovering over their economy.

Though under pressure to try to counter the financial crisis, deep divisions on the best strategy have so far kept the European finance ministers from taking concerted action. Huge new write-downs this week by Swiss bank UBS and Deutsche Bank of Germany added to the sense of urgency ahead of the meeting of EU finance ministers and central bankers in Slovenia, which currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency.

While the outlook for economic growth was falling, Almunia said inflation was rising and would probably top the 2.6 percent he forecast for 2008 in February.  Although eurozone finance ministers were “concerned” but not “on the pessimistic side” regarding economic growth, Almunia said “we are extremely concerned on the inflation side.”

Inflation in the 15 eurozone countries jumped in March to 3.5 percent — the highest level since the bloc was formed in 1999, according to official EU data earlier this week. For those investing in this part of the world, care and a close-eye are in order.

A global market meltdown and a decelerating economy could shake the steel nerves of the European Central Bank, analysts said Tuesday, as more observers are predicting it will cut borrowing costs as soon as the second quarter of this year.

The ECB has kept its benchmark interest rate on hold at 4 percent since last June _ before August’s credit crisis froze bank lending and threatened to stall major economies.

Its refusal to cut rates _ and encourage reluctant banks to give credit to each other, to companies and to homebuyers _ stood in stark contrast to the U.S. Federal Reserve which in a surprise move Tuesday reduced its rate for the fourth time since last September.

The Fed slashed its benchmark refinancing rate to 3.5 percent from 4.25 percent as stock markets dropped sharply Monday on investor skepticism that the U.S. government’s multibillion-dollar (-euro) tax relief plan could save the U.S. from a possible slide into recession.

But, until recently, ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet has talked instead about raising rates as the 15 nations that share the euro saw inflation spiral in the last two months to match an all-time high.

I was surfing the web today and came across some interesting news about the billions of dollars being saved each year by folks doing offshore banking. Around 20 years ago I was dating a lovely girl and her brother was quite successful and one the things that helped keep him that way was offshore banking. He helped blaze the trail for it by writing a book on the subject, back then it was mostly big business doing it but now it is quite common for many small and medium sized businesses to take advantage of offshore company formation and reap the financial benefits.

Here is a round-up of some of the most popular finance news items around the world.

-By keeping your car for 15 years, or 225,000 miles of driving, you could save nearly $31,000, according to Consumer Reports magazine. That’s compared to the cost of buying an identical model every five years, which is roughly the rate at which most car owners trade in their vehicles. A pretty good idea but the car manufacturers won’t like it.

-General Motors has quietly dropped a marketing strategy it announced in May where it would bring other automakers’ vehicles to its Chevrolet showrooms for customers to test against its redesigned 2008 Malibu. The company was already running a similar program for its new Saturn Aura sedan - where dealers were bringing Honda Accords and Toyota Camrys into the showroom and allowing customers to inspect and test those vehicles in comparison to the Aura.

-President Bush outlined his plan Friday for helping troubled subprime borrowers keep their homes. The proposals put forward by the president included increasing the help offered by the Federal Housing Authority to troubled borrowers. That may take the form of expanding the pool of borrowers who can apply to the FHA to refinance their loans.

-Christine Lagarde, the first woman finance minister for a G-8 nation, was rated the best minister in President Nicolas Sarkozy’s government last month by one of France’s top-selling newspapers. Great news, keep up the good work.