G20 ministers of finance and central bankers, made up of seven industrialized nations and 12 emerging market countries, concluded in Montreal Wednesday two days of discussion on globalization and ways to reduce the risk of financial crises. The country delegates as well as representatives from the European Union, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, are expected to bring up the oil market situation as well as the weakness of the euro in their closed-door talks.
Mexico's Finance Minister Jose Angel Gurria noted the impact that violence in the Middle East could have on the crude oil market. "There are factors such as the political and military tensions which are exacerbating prices, and at the same time create a need for reserves," he told reporters here.
Stocks of crude "already were building up in a natural fashion and now there has been a sort of extra push for new stocking requirements because of the uncertainties in the Middle East, and that has not allowed for this new balance between supply and demand," Gurria added.
But a final communiqué on the challenges posed by globalization, due later Wednesday, will likely avoid mentioning either the battered European currency or the oil supply situation. According to another European official, the group's final communiqué is unlikely to include the oil issue because Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil producer, disagrees with other G20 members about the causes of the current situation.
"Saudi Arabia is the only oil-producing country that is reluctant to increase its production and seems to view the oil problem more in political terms than economic ones," said the official, who asked for anonymity.
Ahead of the meeting, some 500 anti-globalization protesters, calling themselves the "Welcoming Committee," clashed with police here late Monday, throwing balloons filled with paint and rocks against the walls of the downtown hotel where the G20 meeting will take place. So far, more than 40 protestors have been arrested, the majority of whom have been released. Security around the hotel remains tight as more demonstrations are expected.
More protests were expected, but a 1,000-strong police contingent remains on alert in the downtown area to quell any possible unrest. Police were swift to move in and disperse protestors late Monday, after they lobbed rocks and set garbage on fire, similar to anti-globalization demonstrations in Prague and Seattle last year.
The G20, which gathered for the first time in December 1999 in Berlin, represents 87 percent of the world's economic output and about 65 percent of its population. The informal grouping brings together G7 members — the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Britain and Canada — with the 12 emerging market economies of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey as well as the European Community. — (AFP, Montreal)
© Agence France Presse 2000
By Stefanie Batcho
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
