G7 leaders vow to do what it takes to fight coronavirus, support economies

• After a call on Monday, the leaders issued a statement promising to address the health and economic risks of the COVID-19 pandemic and set the stage for a strong recovery of economic growth and prosperity.
• This is particularly important for small and medium businesses and working families," they added.
• They called on the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank Group and other international organizations to support countries worldwide to deal with the crisis.

WASHINGTON: Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies said on Monday they were committed to doing "whatever is necessary" to battle the coronavirus pandemic and to work together more closely to protect public health, jobs and growth.

After a call on Monday, the leaders issued a statement promising to address the health and economic risks of the COVID-19 pandemic and set the stage for a strong recovery of economic growth and prosperity.

"We resolve to coordinate measures and do whatever it takes, using all policy tools, to achieve strong growth in the G7 economies, and to safeguard against downside risks," they said.

"To this end, we are mobilizing the full range of instruments, including monetary and fiscal measures, as well as targeted actions, to support immediately and as much as necessary the workers, companies, and sectors most affected. This is particularly important for small and medium businesses and working families," they added.

The G7 leaders said their finance ministers would weekly coordinate implementation of the measures and develop further actions.

They called on the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank Group and other international organizations to support countries worldwide to deal with the crisis.

"We will address disturbances to international supply chains and continue our work to facilitate international trade," they added.