Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders attending the 10th summit of the Group of Twenty (G20) major economies pose for photos in Antalya, Turkey, Nov. 15, 2015. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)
The Group of 20 (G20) leaders called for more collective actions in Antalya on Monday to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth that can benefit all. [Special coverage]
In the communique issued at the end of the summit, the leaders have agreed that not only they have to do more to spur growth, but to make sure that the growth is inclusive and delivers more and better jobs.
STRENTHENING RECOVERY
The G20 members said the global economic growth, hampered by weak demand and structural problems, remains "uneven" and falls short of expectations.
They pledged to remain committed to achieving the goal of lifting the collective gross domestic product (GDP) of the G20 economies by an additional two percent by 2018, an agreement reached in the 2014 summit in Australia's Brisbane.
To do that, the leaders said G20 member economies will continue to monitor the implementation of the commitments and adjust their strategies in accordance with economic conditions. The summit came at a time when the world has been struggling to materialize a strong, sustainable and balanced growth, with weak trade and falling investment. Some even suggested that a recession is imminent.
Early in November, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) trimmed its forecast for global economic growth in 2015 to 2.9 percent and 3.3 percent in 2016, down from the previous predictions of 3.0 percent and 3.6 percent. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also made similar pessimist projections recently.
REFORMS OF GLOBAL GOVERNANCE
The leaders said the World Trade Organization (WTO) is the backbone of the multilateral trading system and should continue to play a "central" role to promote economic growth and development.
"We will continue our efforts to ensure that our bilateral, regional and plurilateral trade agreements complement one another, are transparent and inclusive... and contribute to a stronger multilateral trade system under WTO rules," they said.
The long-stalled Doha round of trade talks has prompted many countries to engage with each other either through bilateral or regional trade arrangements. Analysts believe that such a trend is not good news for promoting global trade.
