The United States congressional leaders on Sunday said they had reached the broad outline of a deal to put in place a $700 billion financial system bailout but were awaiting details on paper before declaring it final. "We've made great progress," House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters after a night of marathon talks. "We have to get it committed to paper so we can formally agree." Leading lawmakers had huddled with U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson through the night on Saturday to nail down an agreement to create a massive government fund to buy up distressed debt from financial institutions staggered by failed mortgages.
Fear-wracked financial markets had lent the talks urgency and lawmakers were striving to reach a deal by Sunday before Asian markets open. It was unclear when the House and Senate might vote on the legislation or whether any last-minute hitches might arise. Lawmakers, however, have been hoping to vote within days. "We think we should have an announcement sometime (Sunday) but you know we're committing it to paper tonight and our people will work all night long," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said.