The meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 countries and regions opened in Bangkok. Inflationary pressure and overheated AI investment are the focus of coordination on monetary policy.
The meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 countries and regions opened in Bangkok. With crude oil prices remaining high amid the prolonged situation in the Middle East, the countries shared concerns over inflationary pressure facing the global economy and confirmed their intention to seek coordination on monetary and fiscal policy. Japan was represented by Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama (片山さつき) and BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda (植田和男), and the outlook is understood to be highly uncertain.
In its World Economic Outlook released on 13 October, the IMF revised its forecast for real global growth in 2026 up by 0.1 percentage point from its July forecast, to 3.1%. It also said that energy supply shocks were being mitigated through drawdowns of crude oil inventories and alternative procurement, and that AI investment was expected to drive growth.
The IMF identified the possibility that a prolonged conflict in the Middle East could intensify inflationary pressure and hinder growth as an outlook risk. It also assessed that a sharp drop in investment and a stock-market correction could occur if expectations for AI-driven productivity gains collapse.
Financial-market stability was a key agenda item at the meeting, where participants will seek coordinated policies on the impact of medium- to long-term interest-rate trends in Japan, the United States and Europe, as well as central-bank rate hikes, on the real economy and foreign exchange. The outlook for further yen depreciation and the attendance status of U.S. officials are also attracting attention.