G-7 vow to stabilize financial markets

Group of Seven finance chiefs vowed to support banks and buoy slowing economic growth as Europe’s debt crisis roiled financial markets and threatened a global recession. "We are taking strong actions to maintain financial stability, restore confidence and support growth," they said in a statement released after the talks. Against the backdrop of the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis and fiscal deficits, the G-7 financial chiefs said there are "clear signs of a slowdown in global growth." The financial leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States pledged "a strong and coordinated international response" to these challenges. During the Marseille meeting, the G-7 financial chiefs vowed to restore fiscal health, while trying to maintain growth. "We must all set out and implement ambitious and growth-friendly fiscal consolidation plans rooted within credible fiscal frameworks," the statement said. "Fiscal policy faces a delicate balancing act. Given the still fragile nature of the recovery, we must tread the difficult path of achieving fiscal adjustment plans while supporting economic activity, taking into account different national circumstances," it said.