The government will host an emergency meeting Saturday in Tokyo with representatives from 18 economies to discuss the Asian economic crisis, a senior Finance Ministry official said Thursday.
Deputy finance ministers of the Group of Seven industrialized nations and a special group of 14 economies tackling the regional problems will discuss "policy challenges in the region," the official said. The group comprises mostly Asian economies including China.
The meeting was called to address regional economic problems, including Japan's recession and currency turmoil. The yen's free fall in recent weeks has thrown Asian financial markets into turbulence, shaking U.S. stock prices and threatening to affect healthy economies around the world.
Officials are expected to discuss such topics as concerns over Japan's financial sector, poverty in Indonesia, corporate debts in some parts of Asia and a much-feared devaluation of the Chinese yuan, said the official, who noted a joint statement may be issued Saturday afternoon.
Officials of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank also will attend the meeting. The group of 14 economies, including Japan, the U.S. and Canada, agreed in November in Manila to forge a framework of cooperation to enhance financial stability in Asia.
In a related matter, U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers will meet Finance Minister Hikaru Matsunaga around noon today. Summers will also meet Matsunaga's deputy, Eisuke Sakakibara.