G7 cuts growth view showing worry on U.S. dollar drop

By Louise Egan and Gernot Heller

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Finance chiefs from rich nations offered a gloomier assessment of the global economy on Friday and vowed to act swiftly on wide-ranging reforms aimed at moving beyond a credit crisis that threatens world growth.

The finance ministers and central bankers also expressed concern about sharp fluctuations in currency markets since the Group of Seven last met in Tokyo in February, suggesting unease with how far markets have pushed down the U.S. dollar.

With fresh signs of economic distress in the United States, where a report showed consumer confidence hit its lowest level since 1982, the G7 officials said risks to the economic outlook were tilted to the downside. They pointed to the weak U.S. housing market, stressed financial markets and rising inflation as hurdles that still must be overcome.

"There may be more bumps in the road," U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said after the officials concluded a meeting. "As we work through this period, our highest priority is limiting its impact on the real economy."

The G7 -- the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan -- stopped short of declaring that the U.S. economy was heading for a recession and steered clear of recommending the use of public funds to bail out troubled markets, an idea widely discussed before the meeting.

"We remain positive about the long-term resilience of our economies, but near-term global economic prospects have weakened," the G7 said in a communique. "The turmoil in global financial markets remains challenging and more protracted than we had anticipated."

WHAT NOW?

The main focus of the meetings was a special study commissioned by the G7 that offered a detailed assessment of the banking and regulatory failures that contributed to an eight-month-long and ongoing bout of market turmoil. The report offered dozens of recommendations on how to shore up banking oversight and regulatory cooperation to prevent a recurrence.