G20 'will take on expanded role'
 The Obamas welcomed world leaders to Pittsburgh |
The G20 group will take on a new role as a permanent body co-ordinating the world economy, a US official has said.
The group of leading and emerging economies is meeting in the US city of Pittsburgh, with financial regulation and climate change on the agenda.
President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle welcomed the gates.
Near the venue, police fired rubber bullets at protesters on a march near the venue. The previous G20 meeting, in London in April, was marred by clashes.
The disturbances are thought to have begun after hundreds of protesters tried to march, without permission, towards the convention centre where the summit is being held.
'Party over'
"The G20 is going to be the new body counsel that will be the coordinating body for international economic cooperation," said an unnamed US official, quoted by Reuters news agency, as the two-day meeting began on Thursday evening.
 Protesters have come to Pittsburgh to make their voices heard |
The plan is expected to be outlined in detail by President Obama on Friday.
With many major economies beginning to climb out of recession - attention will turn to when and how to withdraw government stimulus packages.
Cracking down on bankers' bonuses has popular appeal with the public, it is expected that an agreement will be reached on how that might be achieved.
US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said G20 countries had reached a consensus on the "basic outline" of a proposal to limit pay and bonuses by the end of 2009.
Each country would set their own standards, he said, but that these would be overseen by the G20's Financial Stability Board - made up of central bankers and regulators.
Earlier, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling warned bankers that the "party was over" and they must realise that the world has changed.
Balance growth
A spokesman for the White House said that financial regulatory reform was the most important agenda item for summit, but that addressing global economic imbalances was also a priority.
 | WHAT IS THE G20? Set up after the Asian financial crisis in 1999 as a forum for finance ministers and central bankers First G20 leaders summit in 2008 to discuss response to economic crisis Twenty official members joined by Spain and the Netherlands and representitives of the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organisation  |
President Obama has led a campaign to smooth out imbalances in the flow of global capital to try to secure greater long-term economic stability.
The US proposal calls on economies such as China, Brazil and India to boost domestic consumption in order to lower their trade surpluses.
Meanwhile the US and Europe would encourage more saving to reduce long-term budget deficits.
Director of the US president's National Economic Council, Larry Summers, said that a "balancing global growth approach" of said that there would have to be changes in
 Thousands of extra police are on duty in Pittsburgh |
"The US can't, should not and won't continue to experience the consumption-led growth driving very high volumes of imports and lending impulse to the rest of the world economy," he told the BBC.
"That's not a sustainable financial situation for the US and that's why we're in the process of adjusting."
Other discussions will involve the continuation of talks over whether countries such as China, India and Brazil should have greater say on the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
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