European bankers warn on recession, China and US banks

Deutsche Bank chief Christian Sewing, painting a bleaker assessment of the German economy, warned on Wednesday that China was a considerable risk for the nation and that Europe needed big banks to fend off American competitors.

The CEO of the nation's top lender said Germany would "no longer be able to avert a recession" after it became too dependent on Russian energy.

Russia has halted gas supplies via a major pipeline to Germany, intensifying an economic battle between Moscow and Europe and raising the prospects of recession and energy rationing in some of the region's richest countries.

Sewing, speaking at a banking conference in Frankfurt, said Europe had learned how dangerous it was to be "too dependent on individual countries or regions". He also said Germany must now face the "awkward question" of dealing with China, given its "increasing isolation and growing tensions".