Rufus Okoro
The finance ministers of the Group of 20 have finally reached a consensus following meetings in South Africa penultimate week, emphasizing that central banks must remain independent in reaction to months of attacks by United States' (US') President, Donald Trump.
In their final statement published on Friday, July 18, 2025, following 2-day meeting in the coastal city of Durban, the group agreed on key challenges for the global economy, including ongoing wars and conflicts, trade disputes, supply chain disruptions, debt and natural disasters.
The G20, or Group of Twenty, comprises 19 individual countries and the European Union (EU). These countries are: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States.
The G20 finance ministers had met several times since the beginning of the year, but was unable to agree on a joint statement at previous summits.
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“Central banks are strongly committed to ensuring price stability, consistent with their respective mandates, and will continue to adjust their policies in a data-dependent manner,” the group said in Friday’s joint declaration, their first communique since October, 2024.
“Central bank independence is crucial to achieving this goal.” disclosed the statement, which was also signed by the US.
Trump has for a long time been criticizing the Federal Reserve – the central of the US – mainly over its decision on interest rates.
His attacks have intensified during his second term in office, and have mainly targeted Federal Reserve boss, Jerome Powell, whom he has called a “moron”, “numbskull”, and “stubborn mule”.
Trump is unhappy with the central bank’s decision to lower interest rates slower than he prefers in an effort to fight inflation.
He has equally strongly criticized Powell for his handling of a project to renovate the Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington, DC.
It's noteworthy that the said joint communique was reached in the absence of the US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, but Washington was represented by Michael Kaplan, acting undersecretary of the Treasury for international affairs.
Bessent had also missed the previous gathering of the finance ministers of the G20 in Cape Town in February, 2025, when the representatives had failed to reach a joint stance to the dismay of host country, South Africa.
