G-20 leaders call for reform amid slowing global growth

World Today

The world’s 20 biggest economies have agreed to use all policy tools available to lift sluggish global growth after finance ministers and central bankers wrapped-up a meeting in Shanghai. Their communique said that the global recovery falls short of being strong, sustainable and balanced and many are concerned at the slow speed of reform.

CCTV News reporter Shi Wenjing reports from Shanghai.

The financial chiefs’ meeting officially opened on Friday evening.

“As the host country of the G-20 this year, China proposes a system to evaluate structural reform among member economies and that certain areas should be prioritized to speed up structural reform,” Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said.

Reforms have been slow in advanced and emerging economies and growth targets have been missed.

“Remember in Brisbane, they said let’s have an additional 2 percent growth, well, we already talked about that many times. We said it is not happening. Now we are repeating again, so we have to do better. Countries have to accelerate their reform process,” OECD Secretary General Jose Angel Gurria said.

In January, the International Monetary Fund lowered its forecast for growth by point two of a percentage point.

“We ask the G-20 countries to speed up the implementation of structural reform that they commit to. We are not asking for reinvention. We are simply saying commitments have been made, they should be implemented thoroughly, broadly and boldly together,” IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said.

As global growth slows, a strong collective effort and response is being called for.


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