European banks and fund management groups are preparing for the possible arrival of the bird flu virus this week after three infected children died in eastern Turkey and 15 more people tested positive.

The spokeswoman for one global bank said: "We haven't stopped people flying to Turkey. As long as it remains a bird-to-bird problem, I think that is likely to be the stance of most institutions. The problems will arrive when a human is infected by another and at that point, more stringent measures will be taken."