The G20 Trade and Investment Working Group began its official activity today with the aim of advancing towards an inclusive trade system that contributes to fair and sustainable development. Taking place at the CCK in Buenos Aires, today’s meeting was attended by Jorge Faurie, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Argentina, and Francisco Cabrera, Minister of Production of Argentina. The meeting concludes tomorrow.

“The G20 should continue to promote international trade and investment,” said Minister Faurie during his opening remarks. “At this critical juncture for the global economy and trade, it is important we reaffirm the G20’s key role in enhancing cooperation. We should act with the same eagerness that brought us together in 2008,” he added.

“Trade and investment are yet to return to their pre-crisis levels. It is positive news that after a long period of sluggish growth, global trade picked up in 2017 by 4.7%, following the WTO’s recent forecast. We now need to collectively preserve and deepen this initial recovery towards a sustained trade growth. It is therefore vital to reduce the risk of potential tensions that would derail the current expansion,” said Faurie. He also emphasized that a gender-based perspective will cut across the G20 agenda this year.

Minister Cabrera added that “Argentina firmly believes that trade and investment are engines of growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development, as recognized by Hamburg Leaders’ Declaration.”

“Both are tools for poverty elimination and for improving the conditions of millions of people in developing countries, in line with the top priority of President Macri’s administration. As the presiding country of the G20, we have to take advantage of trade and investment, especially in the context of strengthened and widened global economic growth,” he said.

For Horacio Reyser, Secretary of International Economic Relations and chair of the working group, “Trade and investment should be of benefit to our people; our societies can jointly address the challenges and opportunities of globalization, innovation, and technological advancements for global commerce and investment flows.”

With senior officials from G20 countries and invitees taking part, the meeting’s three sessions are focused on the trade and investment aspects of agro‐food global value chains, the trade and investment aspects of the new industrial revolution, and the G20 dialogue on current international trade developments.

The agenda was proposed by the Argentine G20 presidency and explores the relation between trade and investment, addressing the need for a greater integration of small and medium sized companies in international trade, the opportunities presented by the digital economy and new technologies, among other issues.

The next meeting of the Trade and Investment Working Group will take place on 12-13 September in Mar del Plata, in the province of Buenos Aires.

About the Trade and Investment Working Group
Trade and international investment are engines for growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development, according to the G20 Leaders’ Declaration from the 2017 Hamburg Summit. In this context, the Argentine G20 presidency continues the work of the Trade and Investment Working Group with the objective of giving continuity to the G20 leaders’ commitment to strengthen cooperation on issues of trade and investment in the G20.

About the G20
The G20 started out in 1999 as a meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors. In 2008, amidst the global financial crisis, it evolved into what it is today: a major forum for dialogue and decision-making attended by world leaders from vital economies. Together, the G20 members represent 85% of global GDP, two-thirds of the world’s population, and 75% of international trade.