Draft communique shows G20 no longer rejects protectionism or competitive devaluations

Brussels

THE world's financial leaders may no longer explicitly reject protectionism or competitive currency devaluations, a draft communique of their meeting next week showed, promising only to keep an "open and fair international trading system".

Finance ministers and central bank heads from the Group of 20 major developed and developing economies will meet on March 17-18 in the German town of Baden Baden to discuss the world economy.

It will be the first meeting of G20 finance ministers attended by representatives of the administration of US President D…