THE G7 nations sought to head off a collapse in investor confidence after the US credit rating was cut and a slump in Italian and Spanish debt intensified threats to the global economy. G7 finance ministers and central bank chiefs pledged in a statement to ''take all necessary measures to support financial stability and growth''. "We are committed to taking coordinated action where needed, to ensuring liquidity, and to supporting financial market functioning, financial stability and economic growth," the G7 statement said. Officials said they would inject liquidity and act against disorderly currency moves as needed. ''No change in fundamentals warrants the recent financial tensions faced by Spain and Italy,'' said the G7, made up of the US, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Japan. The European Central Bank said it would ''actively implement'' its bond-purchase program, in a statement by its president, Jean-Claude Trichet, after a separate emergency telephone conference. The ECB also called on all euro area governments to follow through on the measures agreed last month, including allowing the European Financial Stability Facility to buy bonds on the secondary market. In Seoul, members of the Group of 20 leading industrialized and developing nations said Monday they are ready to act together to stabilize financial markets and protect growth. The joint statement was released by South Korea after further sharp falls on Asian bourses. The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors affirmed a commitment to "take all necessary initiatives in a coordinated way to support financial stability and to foster stronger economic growth in a spirit of cooperation and confidence". They said they would stay in close contact in coming weeks "and cooperate as appropriate, ready to take action to ensure financial stability and liquidity in financial markets". South Korea chaired the G20 last year before handing over to France. Deputy Finance Minister Choi Jong-Ku told reporters it was premature to talk about concrete, coordinated actions that may be taken by the group. "All market movements need to be monitored very closely at this time," he said. Choi said G20 members agreed that the eurozone's latest measures to contain the sovereign debt crisis must be implemented with all speed, while the US told other members that Standard & Poor's initial rationale for the downgrade was based on a miscalculation by the agency.
