Market turmoil sparked by the U.S. subprime mortgage rout needs to be closely watched to ensure that risks to the global economy don't become excessive, the finance ministers of Japan and South Korea agreed Wednesday.
Kwon Okyu and Koji Omi, meeting in Gwacheon, released a statement saying they "recognized the need for continuous monitoring of the volatility in international financial markets."
Stock and credit markets have slumped around the world on concerns that a recession in the U.S. housing market could spread and slow global economic growth.
Omi and Kwon highlighted the need to identify risks in advance "to help prevent such risk factors from growing too excessively."
Asian stocks had their worst week in 17 years last week, and the yen gained the most since December 2005 as investors fled high-yielding assets funded by loans in Japan's currency.