	u s treasury policies said unchanged by departure the departure of james baker s closest aide deputy treasury secretary richard darman will not change the course of washington s domestic and international economic policies u s officials said darman who has worked alongside baker for six years was widely credited with helping him mastermind initiatives on currency management and international economic cooperation u s officials said darman also played a key role in shepherding president reagan s sweeping tax reform plan through the u s congress but they flatly dismissed suggestions that his departure to the investment banking firm of shearson lehman brothers signaled the baker team was breaking up or that the treasury secretary himself might leave soon it really does not mean that he took the opportunity as it came up one official said another commented baker will miss him but he s not going to stand in his way there has been widespread speculation since last autumn that darman sought a wall street job officials said darman felt the passage of tax reform late last year marked an appropriate moment to bow out baker acknowledged darman would be sorely missed dick darman has contributed mightily to the success of this administration over the past six years and his departure represents a substantial loss he said u s officials admitted darman s absence would be an undoubted blow to baker who has relied on him for policy advice both at the white house and in reagan s second term at the treasury one aide once described darman as indispensable to baker baker is widely thought to want a more stable currency system and darman is generally credited by officials of other nations as baker s leading theorist on this issue favouring target zones to limit currency fluctuations earlier this year monetary sources said the u s treasury unsuccessfully sounded out allies on a target zone system but a u s official disputed the assessment that with darman gone baker would abandon international initiatives baker s work as head of reagan s economic policy council spearheading trade policy and his skills in negotiating with the democrat controlled congress will go on as before darman s strength was not as an economist but as a political strategist and that s baker s strength too the official said there were already indications that baker who throughout his time in government has relied on a closely knit circle of advisers has moved swiftly to find a successor one possibility is that baker might turn to george gould who holds the number three treasury position of under secretary gould another close confidante has known baker for years before joining the treasury in november gould was a partner at the wall steet firm of wertheim and co and formerly headed donaldson lufkin and jenrette securities corp the darman announcement came on the eve of the semi annual meetings of the international monetary fund and the world bank where many policies darman helped shape will be debated he helped baker devise the september plaza agreement when the united states japan west germany france and britain curbed the dollar s strength the pact was a major turning point in u s policy ending a period of disdain for economic cooperation and intervention in currency markets darman also worked on some other baker initiatives like the tokyo summit agreement to intensify coordination of economic policies among the leading industrial countries and the recent paris agreement to stabilise currencies and stimulate global growth these policies are collectively aimed at redressing the huge gap between japan and west germany s trade surpluses and the united state s massive trade deficit that policy goal still remains a prime objective of the reagan administration and will not change with darman s departure reuter 
