The Group of Eight industrial nations said "vigorous action" is needed to insulate a weakening world economy from high oil prices and imbalances in growth and trade.
"Growth is expected to remain robust, although at a more moderate pace in 2005," the G-8's finance ministers said yesterday in London. "Vigorous action is required by each country to support a smooth adjustment to more balanced growth." The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on May 24 cut its forecasts for global expansion this year and next as oil prices stay above US$50 a barrel, tempering consumer demand and increasing costs for companies. The statement by the G-8, which accounts for two thirds of the world economy, called oil prices a "significant concern." The US needs to narrow its budget deficit, Europe boost demand at home by making its markets more flexible, and Japan both, the statement said. The economic discussion today was overshadowed by a deal to wipe out the billions of dollars owed to international lenders by the world's poorest nations.
The G-8 may have trouble reaching its policy goals, said Monica Fan, head of global foreign-exchange research at RBC Capital Markets Ltd. in London. "The group is certainly worried about growth, but most of its statement is fairly shallow rhetoric," she said, noting much of it was a repetition from previous meetings.
The G-8 comprises the US, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Canada, Italy and Russia. Its heads of state convene in Gleneagles, Scotland, on July 6-8.
The economies of euro region and Japan will grow at less than half the pace of the US this year, the OECD said. That disparity has resulted in a record US trade gap, which economists say may undermine the international economy if unchecked. The US current account deficit reached an unprecedented US$666 billion last year and is likely to widen this year.
With oil prices 47 percent higher than a year ago, the finance ministers recommended oil producers and consumers try to balance demand and supply by better tracking reserves and using the fuel more efficiently. Oil cost US$53.54 a barrel at the end of New York trading yesterday.
"Oil prices have developed in such a way that they affect the world economy," said German Finance Minister Hans Eichel.
The Paris-based OECD expects the economies of its 30 member nations to expand 2.6 percent this year, down from its 2.9 percent forecast of November and last year's 3.4 percent. It also reduced its prediction for next year's growth to 2.8 percent from 3.1 percent.
European governments need to introduce "further structural reforms" to encourage growth, the G-8 statement said. The gain in oil prices and job losses are damping business and consumer confidence.
Taiwan has arranged for about 8 million barrels of crude oil, or about one-third of its monthly needs, to be shipped from the Red Sea this month to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ease domestic supply pressures, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday. The state-run oil company has worked with Middle Eastern suppliers to secure routes other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically passes, CPC chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. Suppliers in Saudi Arabia have indicated they
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
CCP ‘PAWN’? Beijing could use the KMT chairwoman’s visit to signal to the world that many people in Taiwan support the ‘one China’ principle, an academic said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday arrived in China for a “peace” mission and potential meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), while a Taiwanese minister detailed the number of Chinese warships currently deployed around the nation. Cheng is visiting at a time of increased Chinese military pressure on Taiwan, as the opposition-dominated Legislative Yuan stalls a government plan for US$40 billion in extra defense spending. Speaking to reporters before going to the airport, Cheng said she was going on a “historic journey for peace,” but added that some people felt uneasy about her trip. “If you truly love Taiwan,
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
RSS