Minister of Finance delivers statement on joint meeting of GCC finance ministers and central bank governors

Riyadh, October 25, SPA--The Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim bin
Abdulaziz Al-Assaf pointed out that the extraordinary meeting of
finance ministers and governors of central banks and monetary
institutions of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in Riyadh
today came within the framework of continuous coordination between
the GCC countries and in light of today's financial crisis in the
world which is aggravating day after day leading to a credit crisis,
particularly in developed countries, which is unprecedented in the
world for many years.

In a statement following the meeting, he said that the
signs of the seriousness of the crisis about indications of a
recession started to emerge in developed countries which refer to the
transfer of the effects of this crisis to the real economy and its
possible direct and indirect effects on the economies of the GCC
countries. He added that the matter requires all to work to avoid its
negative impacts and to mitigate its effects on economies, including
the coordination of our policies and procedures.

The minister of finance noted that the economies of GCC
countries enjoy strong macroeconomic indicators.
He expected that growth rates range between 4 per cent and 6 per cent
in 2008.
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