LONDON, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The second Group of 20
(G20) Summit concluded in London on Thursday with consensus on how to get the
world out of the financial crisis, including pledge of 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars
to revive the world economy, a joint call to fight protectionism, and concrete
actions to tighten banking regulations.
In a post-summit Leaders' Statement, the G20 leaders
emphasized that "the only sure foundation for sustainable globalization and
rising prosperity for all is an open world economy based on market principles,
effective regulation, and strong global institutions."
Chinese President Hu Jintao (4th L, 1st
row), and other leaders attending the Group of 20 summit, and top
officials from relevant organizations pose for group photos in London,
Britain, April 2, 2009. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) Photo
Gallery>>>
The G20 leaders pledged to do "whatever necessary" to
restore confidence, growth, and jobs; repair the financial system to restore
lending; strengthen financial regulation to rebuild trust; fund and reform
international financial institutions; promote global trade and investment and
reject protectionism, and build an inclusive, green and sustainable recovery.
"By acting together to fulfill these pledges we will
bring the world economy out of recession and prevent a crisis like this from
recurring in the future," said the statement.
For people around the globe, the new commitments by
the world leaders are an important boost to restore confidence in their fight
against the financial and economic crisis.
HUGE FUNDS TO FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS TO STIMULATE
JOBS, GROWTH
Among the additional funds to be injected into
international financial institutions, 500 billion dollars will go to the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) for it to lend to countries hit hard by the
financial crisis, 250 billion dollars will be used to support a new Special
Drawing Rights (SDR), 100 billion dollars will support additional lending by the
multilateral development banks, and 250 billion dollars will be devoted to
guarantee trade finance.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown
addresses a news conference at the end of the Summit of the Group of 20
Countries (G20) on world economy at ExCel exhibition center in London,
April 2. (Xinhua/Richard Lewis) Photo Gallery>>>
Of the additional funding for the IMF, 40 billion
dollars will come from China, 100 billion from the EU, and 100 billion from
Japan, according to Brown.
"Together with the measures we have taken nationally,
this constitutes a global plan for recovery on an unprecedented scale," said the
statement, adding that the G20 leaders are confident that the agreements reached
Thursday will accelerate the return to trend growth.
With the newly pledged funds, the G20 leaders agreed
to make the possible best use of investment to achieve a goal of building a
resilient, sustainable and green recovery.
As Brown pointed out that trade is the "engine of
growth," 250 billion dollars will be injected to stimulate trade to boost the
economic recovery of countries hit by the crisis.
Chinese President Hu Jintao (2nd R)
talks with British Prime Minister Gorden Brown (R) as they prepare to pose
for a family photo during the Group of 20 summit in London, Britain, April
2, 2009. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
However, the meeting failed to agree on any new
stimulus measures, which the United States had been hoping for.
Meanwhile, the G20 leaders spoke out their opposition
to trade protectionism and determination to promote and facilitate global trade
and investment, and remained committed to a quick conclusion of the Doha Round
of world trade talks as soon as possible.
"We reaffirm the commitment made in Washington: to
refrain from raising new barriers to investment or to trade in goods and
services, imposing new export restrictions, or implementing World Trade
Organization (WTO) inconsistent measures to stimulate exports," said the
Leaders' Statement.
To ensure a "fair and sustainable recovery for all,"
the summit reaffirmed the commitment to meeting the UN Millennium Development
Goals and to achieving ODA (official development assistance) pledges, including
commitments on Aid for Trade, debt relief, and the Gleneagles commitments,
especially to sub-Saharan Africa.
STRENGTHENED FINANCIAL SUPERVISION, REGULATION
The G20 leaders agreed to take action to build a
stronger, more globally consistent, supervisory and regulatory network for the
future financial sector to rebuild trust in the financial system.
They agreed to establish a new Financial Stability
Board (FSB) with a strengthened mandate as a successor to the Financial
Stability Forum (FSF), including all G20 countries, FSF members, Spain and the
European Commission. The FSB will collaborate with the IMF to provide an early
warning of macroeconomic and financial risks and the actions needed to address
them.
Chinese President Hu Jintao attends the
Group of 20 summit in London, Britain, April 2, 2009. (Xinhua/Ju
Peng) Photo
Gallery>>>
The leaders agreed on extending regulation and
oversight to all systematically important financial institutions, instruments
and markets, including systematically important hedge funds for the first time.
They reached consensus on taking action against
non-cooperative jurisdictions including tax havens, and agreed to publish a list
of tax havens. "The era of banking secrecy is over," said Brown.
They also agreed on extending regulatory oversight
and registration to Credit Rating Agencies to ensure they meet the international
code of good practice, particularly to prevent unacceptable conflicts of
interest.
POSITIVE REATION FROM MAJOR COUNTRIES
U.S. President Barack Obama called the London summit
as "historical" and "a turning point" as "unprecedented and comprehensive"
actions will be taken to revive the world economy.
United States President Barack Obama
addresses a news conference at the end of the Summit of the Group of 20
Countries (G20) on world economy at ExCel exhibition center in London,
April 2. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei) Photo Gallery>>>
Speaking at a press conference after the summit,
Obama highly praised results of the meeting. The G20 have made enormous strides
to improving financial regulation, but needs to reform failed regulatory systems
and must put an end to bubble and bust economy.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy also expressed his
satisfaction with the final results, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel
called the results "a very good, almost historic compromise" that will give the
world a clear financial markets architecture.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy
addresses a news conference after the Summit of the Group of 20 Countries
(G20) on Financial Markets and World Economy at ExCel exhibition center in
London, April 2. (Xinhua/Zeng Yi) Photo Gallery>>>
Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende told BBC
that said it has been "a remarkable meeting" and the results "are extremely
important."
South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, who
country is the only representative in the G20, told reporters he was "quite
pleased" with the meeting results, citing that the leaders had agreed to protect
financing for developing countries and pledged to conclude talks on a new global
trade deal.
For people around the world, what is important next
is to see how words turn into action.
"These commitments made by G20 leaders must be
translated into concrete action. With this unprecedented stimulus package I am
quite confident that we will be able to overcome this economic crisis," said UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon after the meeting.
According to Brown, the G20 leaders are scheduled to
meet again before the end of this year to review progress on their
commitments.
