Schäuble says no to growth programs that increase the debt

He stressed the need to implement sustainable fiscal policies so as to create trust

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble on Friday warned against debt-financed growth programs and called for countries to adopt reasonable and sustainable fiscal policies.

“There is too much liquidity and too much indebtedness in Europe and worldwide” he said in Hong Kong on his way to Cairns, Australia to participate in the G20 finance meeting.

He added that ” There’s not much leeway from the demand side and from monetary policy to support sustainable growth,” and stressed the need to implement sustainable fiscal policies so as to create trust. He also mentioned that this was now more important than ever given various crises abroad such as in Ukraine, Middle East and west Africa.

The German minister also reiterated the position of G20, that development can be achieved only on the basis of structural reforms, improved general conditions and stable fiscal policy.