Finance minister calls for lasting G20 commitment to growth

Korean Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan urged the G20 countries to carry out the reform plans that were mutually agreed on last year in order to reap real growth in coming years.

“The G20 countries collaborated on more than 1,000 reform plans in 2014, and it is crucial that these agreements are actually met to yield real growth,” Choi said in a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan in Istanbul.

Choi arrived in Turkey to attend a series of bilateral meetings, and the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Istanbul.

In the bilateral meeting, Choi, who doubles as deputy prime minister, stressed that the G20 should make joint efforts to boost investment and come up with timely solutions to pull up the weak demand. 

“(The G20) should (collaborate) to reap tangible achievements, such as the G20-backed development of a standardized government-private joint business model,” Choi said.

For the G20’s key agendas in 2015, the two top financial bureaucrats agreed that this year’s plans should closely reflect the “three I” values ― implementation, investment and inclusive growth ― as the G20 formerly agreed. Choi said the Korean government strongly supports comprehensive growth of developing economies.

Choi held separate talks with Indonesian Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro and Angel Gurria, secretary-general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The Indonesian minister and the OECD chief agreed with Choi that the G20 countries should play a leading role in monitoring the rising uncertainties in the global financial market.

Choi attributed the ever-growing volatility in the global financial market to the key economies, alleging that their pursuit of incoherent monetary policies could add to further uncertainties. The G20 should make joint efforts to prevent such financial uncertainties from sagging down the emerging economies in particular, he added.

The Korean minister and his Indonesian counterpart agreed that the G20 should detail specific measures to counter the expected rise of U.S. interest rates in the coming months.

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldcorp.com)