WASHINGTON (Kyodo) Finance chiefs from the top developed powers met Friday in Washington and started down-to-earth talks on how to reverse the global economic crisis, testing Japan's ability to play a prominent role in forming a new financial order instead of just handing out money.
"Now the party is over. It's time to work," a Japanese official said, summing up the significance of their two meetings just three weeks after the Group of 20 summit of leading and emerging economies in London.
The meeting reunited finance ministers and central bankers from the G7 and G20, but they were no longer in the festive mood from their previous joint conference.