Previous Leaders' Summits of G20

Seventh G20 Leaders' Summit, June 18-19, 2012, Los Cabos, Mexico

The Los Cabos Summit united Leaders in their resolve to promote growth and jobs, in a challenging economic context: the global recovery had continued to face a number of challenges, financial market tensions were high, and external, fiscal and financial imbalances were still prevalent. Leaders resolved to act together to strengthen recovery and address financial market tensions, and to work collectively to strengthen demand and restore confidence with a view to support growth and foster financial stability in order to create high quality jobs and opportunities for all G20 citizens. They agreed on a coordinated Los Cabos Growth and Jobs Action Plan to achieve those goals, and reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen the IMF's credit capabilities with new resources up to US$456 billion.

Euro Area members of the G20 agreed to take all necessary policy measures to safeguard the integrity and stability of the area, improve the functioning of financial markets and break the feedback loop between sovereigns and banks. Leaders looked forward to the Euro Area working in partnership with the new Greek government to ensure they remain on the path to reform and sustainability within the Euro Area.

Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to implementing their structural and regulatory reform agendas to enhance medium-term growth prospects and build more resilient financial systems, as well as to reducing imbalances by strengthening deficit countries' public finances with sound and sustainable policies that take into account evolving economic conditions and, in countries with large current account surpluses, by strengthening domestic demand and moving toward greater exchange rate flexibility.

They agreed that multilateralism is of even greater importance in the current climate, and remained the best asset to resolve the global economy's difficulties.

Finally, they committed to intensify their efforts to create a more conducive environment for development, including supporting infrastructure investment, in order to improve living conditions across the globe and protect the most vulnerable. By stabilizing global markets and promoting stronger growth, the G20 would generate significant positive effects on development and poverty reduction across the globe.

Sixth G20 Leaders' Summit, November 3-4, 2011, Cannes, France

Given the weakening in the global recovery, Leaders agreed on an Action plan for Growth and Jobs to address short term vulnerabilities and strengthen medium-term foundations for growth. In order to strengthen the social dimension of globalization, Leaders decided to set up a G20 task force which would work as a priority on youth employment, and encouraged the ILO to continue promoting ratification and implementation of the eight core Conventions ensuring fundamental principles and rights at work.

Leaders also made progress in reforming the international monetary system to make it more representative, stable and resilient, agreeing on actions and principles that would help reap the benefits from financial integration and increase the resilience against volatile capital flows. They welcomed the euro area's comprehensive plan and urged rapid elaboration and implementation, including of country reforms. They committed to ensure that the IMF continued to have resources to play its systemic role to the benefit of its whole membership, and to expeditiously implement in full the 2010 quota and governance reform of the IMF.

Leaders agreed on comprehensive measures so that no financial firm could be deemed "too big to fail" and to protect taxpayers from bearing the costs of resolution. They also decided to develop the regulation and oversight of shadow banking and agreed on principles to protect financial services consumers. They agreed to reform the FSB to improve its capacity to coordinate and monitor the G20's financial regulation agenda.

Leaders endorsed the IOSCO recommendations to improve regulation and supervision of commodity derivatives markets and decided to invest in and support research and development of agriculture productivity. They launched the "Agricultural Market Information System" (AMIS) to reinforce transparency on agricultural products' markets. To improve food security, they committed to develop appropriate risk-management instruments and humanitarian emergency tolos, and decided that food purchased for non-commercial humanitarian purposes by the World Food Program would not be subject to export restrictions or extraordinary taxes. They also welcomed the creation of a "Rapid Response Forum", to improve the international community's capacity to coordinate policies and develop common responses in time of market crises.

Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to rationalize and phase-out over the medium term inefficient fossil fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption, while providing targeted support for the poorest, and called for the implementation of the Cancun agreements and further progress in all areas of negotiation, including the operationalization of the Green Climate Fund, as part of a balanced outcome in Durban.

Leaders reaffirmed their standstill commitments until the end of 2013, as agreed in Toronto, committed to roll back any new protectionist measures that may have risen, and agreed to pursue in 2012 fresh, credible approaches to furthering the Doha negotiations. They also supported a strengthening of the WTO, which should play a more active role in improving transparency on trade relations and policies and enhancing the functioning of the dispute settlement mechanism.

Recognizing that economic shocks affect disproportionately the most vulnerable, Leaders commited to ensuring a more inclusive and resilient growth, including measures to foster investments in agriculture and mitigate the impact of price volatility, and improving infrastructure in developing countries. Leaders also agreed that new sources of funding needed to be found to address development needs and climate change.

Finally, Leaders welcomed the report of UK Prime Minister David Cameron on global governance.