Leaders of the world's 20 largest economies meeting in London have drafted a communiqué which reiterated pledges to avoid protectionism and complete stalled global trade talks but gave few details on global economic stimulus action.
A 24-point draft communiqué, obtained by the Financial Times, does not contain specific plans for a fiscal stimulus package, which had been resisted by European countries. It claims that the fiscal expansion already in process will increase global output by more than 2 percentage points and create more than 20m jobs.
Combined with increased resources for a reformed International Monetary Fund (IMF), the fiscal and banking support actions aim to enable the world economy to expand by the end of 2010. The draft left a blank space where a target for economic expansion could be inserted.