by Wang Ping, Fu Yunwei
BEIJING, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- Six months after the
London summit, the Group of 20 (G20) leaders will meet again in Pittsburgh of
the United States to discuss strategies for tackling the financial crisis and
promoting development.
As effective and important platforms for the
international community to cooperate in fighting the crisis, the London G20
summit and its predecessor, the Washington G20 summit, were among those
most-closely watched international gatherings.
Now many eyes are on G20 leaders to see if they can
make new progress in Pittsburgh toward strengthening coordination on
macroeconomic policies, reforming international financial institutions,
promoting common development and working against protectionism.
EFFORTS BY BOTH
DEVELOPING, DEVELOPED NATIONS
Since the G20
summit held in London in early April, the international community has agreed to
cooperate in tackling the crisis and adopted wide-ranging economic stimulus
packages, which have effectively contained the crisis and paved the way for a
potential global economic recovery.
In nearly half a year, both emerging and developed
economies have taken a variety of measures to alleviate the economic downturn.
Emerging economies, such as the BRIC countries
(Brazil, Russia, India and China), have implemented different types of fiscal
stimulus policies, aiming to promote investment, expand domestic demand and
enhance economic and trade relations with the rest of the world.
Thanks to such measures as tax reduction, interest
rate cuts and increasing loans, the BRIC countries have displayed a significant
vigor, and they are now being viewed as the most likely forces that can lead the
global economy out of recession.
Besides injecting liquidity into the financial
system, some developed countries have introduced a series of special policies to
revive their key industries.
For instance, in order to help the battered
automobile industry, over ten western countries have adopted industry support
measures, such as the "cash-for-clunkers" program, to stimulate demands and
create jobs.
In addition, EU leaders reached an agreement in June
on many measures to curb the crisis, including providing member countries with
funds to create jobs in the following two years and helping small enterprises
gain loans.
STRENGTHENED FINANCIAL
REGULATIONS
The ongoing financial crisis has exposed the
financial system's flaws, and most countries have agreed to strengthen financial
regulations. Some have adopted measures to prevent irresponsible behaviors like
excessive speculations.
U.S. President Barrack Obama proposed in June a
policy package to reform financial regulations, the biggest move seen by the
market to overhaul the U.S. financial system since the Great Depression.
Many believed that the Wall Street, which had long
avoided strict regulations, would be subject to harsher scrutiny.
EU nations in June also introduced a financial
regulation reform plan to provide a unified EU-wide supervision over the
financial industry.
INTERNATIONAL
INSTITUTIONS' CONTRIBUTIONS
In the past six months, international financial
institutions have helped some countries in need deal with the economic and
social fallout amid the financial crisis and gradually implement agreements
reached by G20 leaders at the April summit in London.
International financial institutions such as the
International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Bank of
Reconstruction and Development have extended credit to Eastern and Central
European countries whose financial systems were badly hit by the crisis.
The move has effectively alleviated the fiscal
pressure faced by those countries and curbed the spread of the crisis.
In Asia, the Asian Development Bank set up a
three-billion-dollar "Counter cyclical Support Facility" program to help its
members that have fiscal difficulty. Some developing countries in the region
have benefited a lot from the program.
FIGHT AGAINST
PROTECTIONISM
Fighting protectionism was an important consensus
reached at the G20 London summit. As a developing country, China has sent
several delegations of government officials and businessmen to other countries
to expand economic and trade cooperation.
China also has maintained low tariffs and fulfilled
the promise not to resort to protectionism with concrete measures.
Unfortunately, some countries, including some
developed countries, under increasing domestic protectionist pressure, have set
up new trade and investment barriers, posing a serious challenge to the fragile
global economic recovery and undermining international cooperation in fighting
the financial crisis.
Special Report:
Global Financial
Crisis
