G20 finance ministers and central bank governors said on Sunday that growth in the global economy remains below the pace required to adequately generate much needed jobs, but planned action through infrastructure investment and other measures will help boost the global economy.
In a communique of the meeting held in Cairns, Australia, the G20 members said the global economy still faces persistent weaknesses in demand, and supply side constraints hamper growth.
"We need strong, sustainable and balanced growth and robust financial sectors to safeguard our economies from these risks and put people into jobs. We are united and determined in our response to these challenges," they said in the communique.
One of the major G20 priorities was to lift collective GDP by more than 2 percent by 2018.
"We have developed a set of new concrete measures that will facilitate growth, increase and foster better quality investment, lift employment and participation, enhance trade and promote competition," the ministers said.
Monetary policy in advanced economies continues to support the economic recovery, and should address deflationary pressures where needed, consistent with central banks' mandates.
"We are mindful of the potential for a build-up of excessive risk in financial markets, particularly in an environment of low interest rates and low asset price volatility."
The group said investment is critical to boosting demand and lifting growth.
"Today we have agreed to a Global Infrastructure Initiative to increase quality investment, particularly in infrastructure," they said.
The G20 ministers said that in the wake of the global financial crisis in 2008, developed nations now have a stronger and more resilient financial system which underpins growth in the global economy.
"Banks are now generally better capitalised and stronger liquidity arrangements are being put in place," they said.
"We welcome the substantial progress made to date in defining the terms and conditions of a proposal for addressing the too-big- to-fail issue through additional loss absorbing capacity that would further protect taxpayers if these banks fail."
The G20 said it was strongly committed to a global response to cross-border tax avoidance and evasion so that the tax system supports growth-enhancing fiscal strategies and economic resilience.
"We will begin exchanging information automatically between each other and with other countries by 2017 or end-2018," they said.
"We will continue to take practical steps to assist developing countries preserve and grow their revenue bases and stand ready to help those that wish to participate in automatic information exchange."
Finally, the G20 said it was concerned about the human cost of the Ebola epidemic, and the potentially serious impacts on growth and stability in the affected countries and wider region.
"We underscore the importance of a coordinated inter