GERMANY -  Michael Glos, the German economy minister, has asked the German premier Angela Merkel to formally accept his resignation.

Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg - who currently serves as secretary-general of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party, the Bavarian sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) - has already been proposed by his party as the new German economy minister.

The chairman of Glos' CSU party turned down Glos' resignation (pictured) when he submitted it on Saturday. Glos (64) had been widely criticised for his low profile during the financial crisis.

In a letter to CSU chairman Horst Seehofer, Glos said he did not intend to serve as a government minister after a federal election in September, and asked to be relieved of his ministerial responsibilities.

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