Switzerland wants to participate in the upcoming G20 summit on the financial crisis, scheduled for April 2 in London, announced Swiss Minister of Economy Doris Leuthard in an interview with the daily newspaper Le Temps.
"I hope we will be able to participate" in London, Leuthard said, adding "but not just to fill the number of participants"."Switzerland is not among the 20 largest economies in the world, but it is among the ten largest financial powers", she emphasized. According to the Swiss Minister of Economy, Swiss exports will "suffer a significant decline" due to the financial and economic crisis.
"Switzerland will not avoid a technical recession", meaning its GDP could decline for two consecutive quarters, warned Leuthard, who predicts "growth much lower than 1 percent" for 2009. The G20 group includes G7 members (Germany, Canada, USA, France, Great Britain, Italy, and Japan), South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Russia, Turkey, and the European Union. (Hina)
