Finance ministers and central bank governors of the seven most industrialised nations of the world, including of course Japan, meet several times a year to discuss issues of mutual interest. My experience is that the G7 meetings have proven an invaluable forum for cooperation on macroeconomic policies and for giving, when appropriate, signals to market participants.
An important step  3  Based on projections published by the International Monetary Fund in October 2007 in its World Economic Outlook. 2  BIS Review 25/2008  was made a few months ago when the G8 committed in Heiligendamm to embark on a highlevel dialogue with important emerging economies, among which are Asia’s two population giants, China and India.