Belgrade  - Serbia reached a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a three-billion-euro (4.06 billion dollars) loan over two years, Serbian Minister of economy Mladjan Dinkic said Wednesday.

"The agreement was reached and I expect it to be made public tomorrow by both Serbian government and the IMF," Dinkic told journalists and added that 2.2 billion euros of the loan will be used in 2009.

Amsterdam  - The Dutch government on Wednesday announced a 6- billion-euro (8.1-billion-dollar) economic stimulus plan that will see investment followed by cost-cutting in 2011 to tackle the economic crisis.

Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, presenting the plan to parliament, said the funds would be spent over six years, primarily on infrastructure projects, unemployment prevention and sustainable energy over the next six years.

Amsterdam  - Eight years after so-called "polder model" politics was officially carried to its grave in the Netherlands, the economic crisis has revived the typically Dutch socio-political tradition of compromise and pragmatism.

Wednesday the labour unions and employee organisations deliberated on the government's proposal for measures to fight the economic crisis.

Washington - US President Barack Obama will name a task force to overhaul the country's 96-year-old tax code and plug loopholes that could save 300 billion dollars per year, Obama's top budget advisor said Wednesday.

The task force will be headed by former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker and directed by Austin Goolsbee, a close economic advisor of Obama's, and should report back by December 4.

Oslo  - The Norwegian central bank on Wednesday lowered its lead rate a further 0.50 percentage points to 2.00 per cent, as part of attempts to reduce the impact of the weakened global economy on Norway.

The new cut takes effect Thursday, the central bank said.

Norges Bank deputy governor Jan F Qvigstad said in a statement that "the outlook for the global economy has deteriorated."

Washington - The International Monetary Fund will revamp its lending policies to encourage more countries to make use of its emergency funds in the current economic crisis, the financial watchdog announced Tuesday.

The retooling would provide faster access to IMF loans and with less of the usual policy conditions that have scared off some countries. Governments including Singapore and South Korea have rejected IMF funds despite facing massive budget shortfalls.