European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Tuesday that the reforms of the Stability and Growth Pact should not undermine the euro's credibility.

"We should adapt the stability and growth pact but in a way that should not undermine the credibility of the euro and all the efforts of the European Union (EU)," Barroso told a press conference in Brussels after meeting with visiting German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

The Pact, which caps deficit levels of EU member states at 3 percent of gross domestic product, has been under pressure to be modified as a number of EU countries, including the heavyweight France and Germany, surpass the 3 percent limit in recent years.

Schroeder said he was reassured that the euro zone's fiscal rulebook "will be interpreted in a way that is oriented toward the establishment of growth."

He emphasized that the pact was agreed to ensure growth as well as stability.

Source: Xinhua