Tourists walk in the square as the sun sets behind the statues on top of the Bernini colonnade in St. Peter Square, at the Vatican, Monday, March 4, 2013. Cardinals from around the world have gathered inside the Vatican for their first round of meetings before the conclave to elect the next pope, amid scandals inside and out of the Vatican and the continued reverberations of Benedict XVI's decision to retire. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Cardinals in Rome for the conclave to elect the next pope have received a briefing on the Holy See's finances amid questions about the administration of the Vatican bureaucracy and continued suspicions about its bank.

The heads of the Vatican's three main financial offices briefed the cardinals Thursday, as required by rules covering the transition period between papacies during which cardinals meet daily to discuss problems of the church and the qualities needed in a new pope.

The cardinals didn't set a date for the start of the conclave in their morning session; the last of the 115 voting-age cardinals, Vietnamese Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Man, is arriving later Thursday and the date can't be set until he does.

Discussions on Thursday again included questions about the Holy See's administration.
Associated Press
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.