G8 ministers see threat from high energy prices

Finance ministers from the world's most industrialized nations said that global economic growth remains strong, but that high energy prices and global imbalances pose continuing dangers. The finance ministers from the world's most industrialized nations, meeting ahead of next month's summit of leaders from the Group of Eight, said global growth "is gradually becoming more broadly based," but risks remain from "high and volatile energy prices" and widening global imbalances, including the U.S. trade deficit and China's trade surplus.

Russia, which is leading the G-8 for the first time, has been resisting pressure form the European Union to ratify the Energy Charter, a pact designed to provide a mechanism for crafting predictable market conditions for producers and consumers. The document would require Russia to open its export pipeline network and other energy assets to foreign investors.

Russia's push for accession into the World Trade Organization has been stymied by disputes with the United States over demands for more open financial markets and other issues. Russia, the world's second-largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia, has been bolstered by windfall profits from record world prices.

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