World leaders to reaffirm rescue of sinking economy, aid for poor

LONDON, April 1 Kyodo -
- World leaders are set to reaffirm their efforts to save the foundering global
economy and boost support for developing economies battered by the ongoing financial
crisis, as they meet again in London for two days from Wednesday.
Leaders from the Group of 20 major advanced and emerging economies, which
together make up about 90 percent of the world's gross domestic product, will
kick off their reunion following the previous summit last November in
Washington with a working dinner at the official residence of British Prime
Minister Gordon Brown.
The second summit will review steps taken so far by the 20 economies to
resuscitate the global economy and prevent a repeat of the crisis. The leaders
will likely renew a pledge to help poorer nations in trouble as liquidity dried
up in the global market.
The Group of Seven major industrialized economies and fast-growing emerging
nations such as China and India will release a joint statement after wrapping
up the summit on Thursday.
The document will focus on fiscal stimuli to buoy the sinking economy, tighter
financial supervision, rejection of protectionist movements and reforms of the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to better tackle a similar
crisis and bolster voices of emerging nations.
From Japan, Prime Minister Taro Aso and Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano are
scheduled to attend the summit. Tokyo will declare its determination to
implement a massive fiscal stimulus plan and announce additional support
measures for developing countries.
Before he departed for London, Aso ordered the government Tuesday to compile
fresh economic steps by mid-April. The economy-boosting steps are expected to
involve at least 10 trillion yen of fiscal spending, according to government
sources.
The Japanese premier also unveiled fresh aid of more than $22 billion over the
coming two years to support trade finance involving developing countries, and
an additional 500 billion yen in yen loans and other official development
assistance to other Asian economies.
The 500 billion yen in ODA will be provided in addition to 1.5 trillion yen Aso
pledged in January in his address to an annual meeting of the World Economic
Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Before the start of the London summit, Aso met with South Korean President Lee
Myung Bak Wednesday morning in the British capital.
The premier stressed in his talks with Lee the importance of fiscal stimulus
steps, drawing upon Japan's own experience of overcoming its financial crisis
following the collapse of the asset-inflated bubble economy in the early 1990s,
Japanese officials said.
Lee backed Japan's intention to boost spending, saying it is a ''significant''
step in tackling an economic downturn, they said.
At the summit, Aso is also set to call for bolstering the IMF's financial
resources further so that the Washington-based institution can expand lending
to troubled nations.
Japan and European nations have each pledged to provide $100 billion to the
IMF, and the United States has called for expanding the IMF's capacity to
borrow extra funds from its 26 members by $500 billion.
Tokyo will also seek to increase the allocation of the fund's special drawing
rights to member economies to provide ample funds to embattled nations.
The G-20 consists of the G-7 nations -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan and the United States -- plus Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China,
India, Indonesia, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa,
Turkey and the European Union.
==Kyodo