After two days of meetings, leaders who represent over 80 percent of world output, recommended that countries halve their budget deficits within three years, but recognized that each nation must chart its own course, given the fragility of recovery.
Below are comments from analysts:
MARCO ANNUNZIATA, CHIEF ECONOMIST, UNICREDIT GROUP, LONDON
The concrete target of halving advanced economies deficit by 2013 is a significant success for Germany, which seems to have persuaded its peers that market concerns for fiscal sustainability must be heeded. Beyond that, if it is true that international cooperation really only materializes in times of emergency, then the only good news from this G20 is that here is no emergency for the global economy, because there seems to be no significant cooperation, no meaningful progress on any of the main issues on the table.
Disagreements have been contained and papered over with the familiar motherhood-and-apple pie statements, in this case with the idea that you can have your apple pie and eat it too by continuing fiscal stimulus while ensuring fiscal consolidation.
But in the end this makes a lot of sense: there was no evidence of a rush to draconian fiscal austerity and indeed, individual countries should tailor the pace of consolidation to their individual circumstances.
TOM BERNES, VICE PRESIDENT, CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL GOVERNANCE INNOVATION, TORONTO
After two days of talks, G20 leaders remain divided about what action will be taken to address economic development. Rather than agreeing on a set of principles, G20 countries have each proposed their own course of economic action.
The G20 is fragmented as it transitions out of its role as a crisis-fighting committee. While G20 leaders agree on the need for stronger financial regulation, actual details continue to be vague and lacking a solid deadline....
There is a huge unfinished agenda.