All G8 leaders have expressed confidence on the outlook for economic growth at their summit, President Jacques Chirac has said. He was speaking at Evian where the leaders have been meeting. "I noted that this was exactly the same message coming from the United States, from other European countries and from Japan and Russia," Chirac said. The morning session at the summit was devoted to a discussion on the world economy. Chirac said the talks yielded an encouraging message of confidence in the prospects for faster growth.
G8 leaders have said they need to restore investor confidence in financial markets if they are to promote growth in their economies. "Restoring investor confidence through sound corporate governance, as well as corporate structures and market intermediaries that are more accountable, is essential to promoting growth in our economies," they said in a statement from their summit in Evian, France. They said governments must ensure that corporate reporting assists investors in monitoring markets and in identifying vulnerabilities. "Corporate integrity, strengthened market discipline, increased transparency through improved disclosure, effective regulation and corporate social responsibility are common principles that are the foundations for sound macro-economic growth." The leaders said they "strongly support" the ongoing review of the OECD Principles and implementation of the International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO) principles on corporate governance
UK prime minister Tony Blair said there is a growing acceptance among EU countries inside and outside the euro zone that structural economic reform is necessary to revive growth in the flagging European economy. He told a new conference at the G8 leaders summit that if reforms, such as a more flexible labour market in Germany, are made then there was "every prospect of resuming growth". Blair said leaders had agreed on the need to promote growth and stability within the international economy. "I think the auguries are very good in terms of what people said both about their own economies and in relation to the world economy as a whole," he said. "There is an acceptance within the euro zone and within Europe that provided we do face up to and overcome these challenges of structural reform we've got every prospect of resuming strong growth in the near future," he said. "I think people were more optimistic around the table," Blair said, adding that US president George Bush had given other leaders an overview of the state of the American economy and its prospects. //www.fxcentre.com