Unfinished Homework

“Have you finished your summer project?”

“Yeah…I think so. How about you?”

“Not yet. It was too hard to do it in my home. My dad and mom kept on disputing over money. Mom was furious about dad’s way of spending. I’ve been busy for let them stop it, so I had no time to do my homework.

“Too bad…”

It is not a conversation of boys in classroom on the back to school day in September, but a possible dialogue between United States and one of other countries in Group of 20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Washington, D.C. last week. The Joint Statement demanded U.S. further efforts to fix its fiscal problem. Just by a resolution to do the best, Japan avoided being targeted and joined in a concerted accusation against U.S.

The Communiqué of Group 20 unusually criticized “class leader.” “U.S. needs to take urgent action to address short term fiscal uncertainties,” says the document. It was apparently a reflection of concern of parties on the political standoff between Republican and Democrats over lifting federal debt limit. Delegates of G20 might have acknowledged how serious the problem was, watching the capital city of U.S. in the time of governmental shutdown.

Minister of Finance, Taro Aso, backed off his usual gaffes, and boasted of his contemplation about the meeting. “There was no argument over the expression of the Communiqué, because it would have great impacts on the world economy,” told Aso after the meeting. He also showed his recognition that the document might be useful for U.S. President, Barack Obama, to persuade Congress to reach a deal. There was no description about Japan on the Communiqué.

In the meeting in April, Japan was required to make credible mid-term fiscal program by the summit meeting in September. In September meeting, Japan again became one of the concerns of world economy. International Monetary Fund submitted to the meeting a report that demanded Japan to accelerate its effort for fiscal improvement. With a decision of Prime Minister on raising consumption tax rate, Japan escaped from further request on its debt management this time.

That did not mean that the Japan problem was taken away. In his economic policy called Abenomics, Shinzo Abe keep on taking stimulus policies with additional debt. There is no “credible program” to reduce it so far. It is possible enough that Japan will again be a target of G20 after U.S. fiscal crisis goes away.