Euro crisis: Trust us, leaders say, a plan is coming

European leaders say they have a sweeping euro-zone rescue plan that will be unveiled within a week.

But several hurdles remain, among them the details of a new Greek bailout, and clearing them could take weeks, not days. The result could be a plan broad in ambition but short on specifics.

Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 industrial and developing economies met in Paris at the weekend and said afterward they expected an October 23 meeting of European leaders in Brussels "to decisively address the current challenges through a comprehensive plan."

With Europe’s economic and financial woes weighing on prospects for global growth, officials said they had agreed to take “all necessary measures needed to stabilise the financial system” and to contain the troubles.

The plan will have three pillars: a call for higher capital levels for banks; a beefing up of the euro zone's bailout fund; and a new package of aid for foundering Greece.

The latter is proving particularly difficult.

However, US Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner said he was “encouraged by the direction and speed” at which the Europeans were moving.

“But as you know,” he said, the ultimate impact of Europe’s efforts is “all in the details, and it’s very hard to judge the impact that something will have until you see it take shape. They clearly have more work to do on strategy and details.”

In raising expectations of a comprehensive solution to address the key danger to the global economy. The European have set a high bar.

But they have calmed the wild volatility that has hit global stock markets in the past couple of months,

It remains to be seen whether that trend will continue. On Friday, the Wall Street continued, lifting key benchmarks back into positive territory this year for the first time since it started falling from its peak in May.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund, which is overseeing the bailout of Greece, Ireland and Portugal, has also floated the idea of raising hundreds of billions in new funds from its emerging market and other members.