G20 determined to spur growth, pushes US to ratify IMF reforms
13 April 2014
Xinhua, Washington :
Policymakers from G20 nations said Friday that they were determined to take realistic and concrete measures to shore up growth amid geopolitical risks and vulnerabilities. They also urged U.S. Congress to pass long-delayed quota and governance reforms to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by year-end.
"We welcome the prospects for global economic growth to strengthen in 2014 but remain vigilant in the face of important global risks and vulnerabilities," finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 leading economies said in a communique released after their meeting.
To meet their growth ambition to lift collective GDP by more than 2 percent over the coming five years, which was agreed in their Sydney meeting in February, the G20 nations vowed to address identified gaps in policy settings, lift and rebalance global demand and achieve exchange rate flexibility, and create substantial positive spillovers to each other and the world economy.
They reaffirmed that investment plays a critical role in lifting economic growth and employment, and that they would develop approaches to better leverage private sector involvement.
The IMF has slightly lowered the world economic growth projection to 3.6 percent for this year and 3.9 percent for next year, with rising risks facing the emerging market and the advanced economies picking up speed while plagued by persistently low inflation.
Representing more than 80 percent of the global GDP, the G20 nations consist of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Republic of Korea, Turkey, the United States and the European Union.
The G20 nations said they are monitoring the economic situation in Ukraine, mindful of any risks to economic and financial stability, and welcome the IMF's recent engagement with Ukraine as the authorities work to undertake meaningful reforms.
