G20 Finance Leaders Kick Off Meeting in U.S.

Asheville, North Carolina, Aug. 31 (Jiji Press)--Finance ministers and central bank chiefs from the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies began two-day talks in Asheville in the U.S. state of North Carolina on Monday.

On the first day, participants mainly discussed measures to deal with downside risks to the global economy amid Middle East tensions and accelerate private sector-led growth, a priority for the United States, which holds this year's G20 presidency. Japan was represented by Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda.

Katayama said at the meeting that it is important to diversify supply chains and make them resilient, warning that arbitrary export restrictions on critical minerals and other key resources will have a negative impact on the global economy.

On the Japanese economy, she explained the government policy of boosting strategic public-private investment over multiple fiscal years to raise the growth rate.

Tokyo will quit its fiscal management practice reliant heavily on supplementary budgets and lower the ratio of outstanding debt to gross domestic product steadily, Katayama also said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]