G-20 Not to Set New Fiscal Goal for Advanced Economies

Tokyo, Aug. 23 (Jiji Press)--The Group of 20 economies will refrain from setting a post-2016 common fiscal consolidation goal for advanced nations at their upcoming summit in St. Petersburg, informed sources said Friday. This is because economic and fiscal conditions vary from country to country, the sources told Jiji Press. Though avoiding setting such a new goal, the leaders of the 20 advanced and emerging economies will maintain their commitment to reducing fiscal deficits and ensuring sustainable fiscal management, they said. The common goal adopted at the 2010 summit in Toronto calls on advanced members, except Japan, to at least halve their fiscal deficits by 2013 and stabilize the ratios of government debt to gross domestic product by 2016. Japan was allowed to pursue its own goal of halving its primary-balance deficit relative to GDP by fiscal 2015, given its huge public debts. There was talk of the G-20 members going to discuss a new common goal for advanced economies during the two-day summit from Sept. 5, the sources said. END