(Archived Content)
ANTALYA, TURKEY – U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew met today with Japanese Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso on the sidelines of the G-20 Leaders Summit.
Secretary Lew highlighted the importance of the recently concluded Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which will contribute to stronger and more balanced economic growth and encourage closer economic integration with Japan and throughout the Asian-Pacific region. He thanked Deputy Prime Minister Aso for Japan’s constructive role in developing the Joint Declaration of the Macroeconomic Policy Authorities of Trans-Pacific Partnership Countries, which will complement the deepening economic relationship across the region as the TPP trade agreement is implemented.
They discussed key G-20 issues, including the importance of using all available policy tools to help reinvigorate global growth. Secretary Lew highlighted the importance of remaining focused on boosting global demand. He urged calibrating fiscal policy to avoid subtracting from growth in the near-term, ensuring that a return to domestic demand-driven growth can support consolidation efforts over the medium-term.
Secretary Lew also called for the prioritization of structural reform, including further liberalization based on commitments in the TPP trade agreement, in order to increase domestic demand and raise potential growth. They also discussed the high standard that TPP Macroeconomic officials set in the Joint Declaration with regard to exchange rate practices, and the importance of putting the commitments made in the G-7 and G-20 in the context of a trade agreement.
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