NICE (France), Sept 11: Averting a recession in Europe will be the burning issue for EU finance chiefs meeting on Friday and Saturday on the French Riviera as the euro and stocks tumble on fears of a downturn.

Amid growing evidence that a US-born financial crisis is hurting Europe, recession jitters are mounting, weighing on the euro and European stocks.

“This turmoil has posed serious and far-reaching challenges to the financial industry and our economies,” EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said on the eve of a meeting of finance ministers and central bankers in Nice, southern France.

Heightened concerns that Europe faces a serious risk of recession sapped investor sentiment on stock markets on Thursday and saw the euro strike a one-year low of 1.3893 dollars while oil prices tumbled to six-month low points below 98 dollars a barrel.

Bank of France governor and European Central Bank board member Christian Noyer said that although Europe’s banks were strong in the face of the current turbulence, risks to stability in the sector remain.

—AFP