BRICS call on G-20 to work harder on economic policy cooperation

The BRICS group of emerging nations called on the Group of 20 (G-20) top developed and developing nations on Nov. 15 to strengthen their macroeconomic policy cooperation to prevent bad effects from a weak global economy and reduce risks to growth.

Leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, who met on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in the Turkish town of Antalya, said global economic recovery was not yet sustainable.

"(This) underlines the importance of strengthening macroeconomic policy coordination and cooperation among G-20 members to avoid negative spillovers and to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth," the group said in a statement after the meeting.

The group's economies have been struggling this year, with China's growth at its weakest since the 2008-2009 global financial crisis and recovering from extreme market volatility over the summer.

Russia's economy, hit by sanctions imposed over Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis as well as declining commodity prices, has entered into recession for the first time since 2009.

Many investors have pulled out of the once-vaunted BRIC quartet of emerging markets, then without South Africa, due to years of collective underperformance by the group.

"Complex structural and cyclical problems have led to a slowdown in the world economy and in ours," Russian President Vladimir Putin told the BRICS meeting.

The group, which has struggled to build an economic and political partnership, condemned on Sunday the terrorist attacks in Paris, vowing to strengthen cooperation among one another and with other nations in the fight against terrorism.

But the group came short of addressing another critical issue discussed at the G-20 summit...