French president urges return to stronger global economic growth path

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday stressed the need to strengthen the world's economic growth path during a videoconference held among G7 representatives, China and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

"Our common goal should be clear: It's to put the global economy back on a stronger growth path," Macron said at the beginning of the Global Convergence Summit for Growth held ahead of the G7 Summit scheduled for June 15-17.

He called for sound domestic policies and effective international cooperation to tackle challenges linked to global imbalances.

"Over the recent past, those imbalances have widened considerably, reaching levels not seen since the 2007 - 2008 global financial crisis," Macron noted.

He pointed to the global geopolitical situation's role in increasing such imbalances.

Macron, meanwhile, reaffirmed that an international consensus is emerging on several points as global imbalances persist, widening in recent years and endangering economic growth and financial stability.

He said the first point of consensus was the recognition of the urgency to act, followed by the acceptance of shared responsibility.

"Addressing global imbalances is a shared responsibility of both surplus and deficit economies and especially the synchronization and coordination of the right approach between Europe, China and the US is absolutely critical in this regard," Macron said.

He further reiterated the importance of coordination, warning that the imbalances could risk unwinding in a disorderly manner if not addressed through a coordinated approach among the world’s major economies.

Macron also said that Europe was lagging behind in productivity and investment and added that he looked forward to a policy-oriented, inclusive discussion to converge on assessments and improve coordination of key policies.

"I think the main question is clearly how far are we ready to go collectively to rebalance our growth models to deliver stability and prosperity to our people," he stressed.