Aug. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Group of 20 nations pledged to take “all necessary initiatives in a coordinated way” to ensure financial sustainability, joining their Group of Seven counterparts in pledging to shield the global economy from a slump in investor confidence.
G-20 finance chiefs and central bankers also agreed to foster economic growth “in a spirit of cooperation and confidence,” South Korea’s Deputy Finance Minister Choi Jong Ku said today in Gwacheon, South Korea.
Concern about the fallout from the U.S. sovereign-rating downgrade and a slump in Italian and Spanish debt drove Asian stocks lower today, extending the worst global slump since 2009. G-7 authorities spoke earlier today Tokyo time and said they are ready to act against disorderly currency movements as needed.
“We will remain in close contact throughout the coming weeks and cooperate as appropriate, ready to take action to ensure financial stability and liquidity in financial markets,” G-20 nations said in the statement provided by the South Korean finance ministry.
Officials of the G-20, which includes the G-7 and developing nations, held a conference call yesterday, according to Bambang Brodjonegoro, head of fiscal policy at Indonesia’s finance ministry.
--With assistance by Shinhye Kang in Seoul. Editors: Lily Nonomiya, Ken McCallum
To contact the reporter on this story: Seyoon Kim at skim7@bloomberg.net; Eunkyung Seo in Seoul at eseo3@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Panckhurst at ppanckhurst@bloomberg.net
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