UPDATE 2-G7 must make sure G20 promises stick –CANADA
Thu Oct 1, 2009 11:18am EDT
* G7 to look at how to turn G20 pledges into reality
* No word yet on final communique, message on currencies
* G7 still seen relevant in global recovery process (Adds details, background)
By Louise Egan
OTTAWA, Oct 1 (Reuters) -G7 finance ministers and central bank chiefs meeting in Istanbul on Saturday will try to figure out how to put into practice the lofty promises endorsed by G20 leaders last week, a senior Canadian finance official said on Thursday.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, would not speculate on whether the G7 group of rich nations would issue a final communique, saying finance ministers and governors would make that decision at the meeting.
The G7 usually issues a final statement containing a line on currencies, closely watched by markets.
But the official noted that the G20 leaders issued a 23-page communique after their summit in Pittsburgh last week and declared the broader G20 -- which includes emerging market powerhouses India and China -- as the world's premier forum for economic co-operation, superseding the G7. That leaves little on the G7's plate for its brief encounter in Turkey and many argue it makes no sense to discuss currencies in the absence of a key player, China.
The official declined to say whether Canada favors a statement on currencies at the end of the meeting. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney have both expressed concern about the Canadian dollar's nearly 20 percent surge against the U.S. dollar since March.
Eurogroup officials meeting on Thursday will prepare a joint message on foreign exchange volatility for their G7 counterparts, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia told Reuters on Thursday.
In the wake of the Pittsburgh summit, there has been much speculation and confusion over the future of the G7.
Canada, which is host of the G7 next year and will also co-chair a G20 summit with South Korea, is pleased to see the G20 gain influence, the official said.
But the G7 remains relevant, at least for now, because it caused the global financial crisis and has a responsibility to steer the world out of it, he said.
In particular, the G7 must continue to lead in stimulating the global economy until recovery is ensured, in co-ordinating exit strategies and in reforming financial regulations to prevent future crises.
The Istanbul meeting will give the world's richest nations a chance to hammer out details of the peer review process the leaders agreed to when they committed to undertake policies aimed at a more balanced global growth pattern involving greater savings in the United States and greater domestic demand in China.
The Canadian official said those adjustments must be made very gradually.
Thu Oct 1, 2009 11:18am EDT
* G7 to look at how to turn G20 pledges into reality
* No word yet on final communique, message on currencies
* G7 still seen relevant in global recovery process (Adds details, background)
By Louise Egan
OTTAWA, Oct 1 (Reuters) -G7 finance ministers and central bank chiefs meeting in Istanbul on Saturday will try to figure out how to put into practice the lofty promises endorsed by G20 leaders last week, a senior Canadian finance official said on Thursday.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, would not speculate on whether the G7 group of rich nations would issue a final communique, saying finance ministers and governors would make that decision at the meeting.
The G7 usually issues a final statement containing a line on currencies, closely watched by markets.
But the official noted that the G20 leaders issued a 23-page communique after their summit in Pittsburgh last week and declared the broader G20 -- which includes emerging market powerhouses India and China -- as the world's premier forum for economic co-operation, superseding the G7. That leaves little on the G7's plate for its brief encounter in Turkey and many argue it makes no sense to discuss currencies in the absence of a key player, China.
The official declined to say whether Canada favors a statement on currencies at the end of the meeting. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney have both expressed concern about the Canadian dollar's nearly 20 percent surge against the U.S. dollar since March.
Eurogroup officials meeting on Thursday will prepare a joint message on foreign exchange volatility for their G7 counterparts, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia told Reuters on Thursday.
In the wake of the Pittsburgh summit, there has been much speculation and confusion over the future of the G7.
Canada, which is host of the G7 next year and will also co-chair a G20 summit with South Korea, is pleased to see the G20 gain influence, the official said.
But the G7 remains relevant, at least for now, because it caused the global financial crisis and has a responsibility to steer the world out of it, he said.
In particular, the G7 must continue to lead in stimulating the global economy until recovery is ensured, in co-ordinating exit strategies and in reforming financial regulations to prevent future crises.
The Istanbul meeting will give the world's richest nations a chance to hammer out details of the peer review process the leaders agreed to when they committed to undertake policies aimed at a more balanced global growth pattern involving greater savings in the United States and greater domestic demand in China.
The Canadian official said those adjustments must be made very gradually.