Yellen, Scholz agree on "close cooperation" in first phone call

BERLIN, Jan 27 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz agreed in their first phone call on Wednesday to work closely together and tackle joint challenges in good cooperation, a finance ministry spokesman said in Berlin.

"It was a very friendly exchange, they agreed on good and close cooperation," the spokesman said.

Yellen won overwhelming Senate confirmation as the first woman to lead the U.S. Treasury on Monday. Scholz was among the first European counterparts to congratulate her, voicing hope she could help lead progress on reaching an international agreement on digital taxation.

Scholz and Yellen want to meet soon in person if the pandemic allows, ideally at the sidelines of the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington in April, the spokesman added. (Reporting by Michael Nienaber; editing by Thomas Seythal)