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EU presses more efforts to secure recovery

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-09-18 11:17

France's President Nicolas Sarkozy ponders a question during a news conference at the end of an informal summit of European Union heads of state and government in Brussels September 17, 2009. [Agencies]

BRUSSELS: Leaders from the European Union's 27 member states urged here on Thursday the upcoming summit of the Group of 20 (G20) rich and developing nations to continue implementing coordinated policy measures to develop the basis for sustainable growth and avoid repetition of the financial crisis.

"Efforts must be maintained until recovery is secured," said a conclusion document of the bloc's informal summit, which is designed to coordinate position for next week's G20 summit in Pittsburgh, the United States.

"Overall support to the EU economy in 2009 and 2010 is projected to amount to around 5 percent of GDP," it added.

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Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt told a press conference after the summit that the current global economic situation "remains uncertain and risks remain," while public finance would see large deficit in 2010.

He called for the design of exit strategies in order to achieve sustainability.

"We need our public finance back on track," he said.

"Exit strategies need to be designed now and implemented in a coordinated manner as soon as recovery takes hold, taking into account the specific situations of individual countries," said the document.

The EU also urged strengthened global macroeconomic coordination to address global imbalances, saying that "such coordination should be based on a central role for the IMF (International Monetary Fund)."

It called on the G20 summit to reiterate its stance against protectionism and continue to press for progress in trade liberalization, including with regard to a global, ambitious and balanced conclusion of the Doha negotiations in 2010.

On employment, the EU document said that laying the basis for a sustainable recovery and sound public finances is the best way to ensure a rapid return to employment, prodding to speed up structural reform.

It stressed that to avoid permanent exclusion from the labor market, particular attention must be paid to maintaining employment, creating new jobs and promoting mobility; upgrading skills and matching labor market needs; and increasing access to employment.

The document also said that there is a need to enhance the ability of workers to adapt to changing market demands and prepare workers to benefit from new investments in the areas of clean energy, health and infrastructure.

The number of the jobless would increase from 2008 to 2010 to 9.5 million people, said Reinfeldt.

The special EU summit is designed to work out a joint position ahead of next week's G20 meeting in Pittsburgh.