Sept 06, 2010 (LBO) – Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 nations have promised to avoid competitive devaluations after a two-day meeting in Turkey.
“We will refrain from competitive devaluations, and resist all forms of protectionism,” G20 finance minsters and central bank governors said.
During the meeting an official of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) noted that the yuan depreciation was not geared to gain an advantage over other exporter nations, and the market turbulence is likely nearly over.
“We think it’s pretty close to the end,” Zhu Jun from the international department of the PBOC said, referring to the stock-market volatility. “To some extent the leverage in the market has been decreased substantially and we think there would be no systemic risk.”
U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew told The Wall Street Journal that: “There is a clear understanding that competitive devaluation presents a threat that everyone has to be on guard against, both in their policies and their words.
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The members of the G20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.
The G20 press communique is available here
A statement from the PBOC after the currency depreciation is available here