(VOVworld) - The Group of 20 major economies met on Friday on the sidelines of the 2017 Spring Meetings of the World Bank and IMF at IMF Headquarters in Washington, DC.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble at the G20 press conference (Photo: AFP/Saul Loeb)

Germany's Wolfgang Schaeuble told a press briefing after the meeting that there was "broad agreement" that "free trade is better for global growth." He also said there was a broad consensus that "protectionism would be damaging to the global economy and the concerned economies as well. Officials agreed on the "need to do more" to spread the benefits of growth and globalisation, which includes investments in education and infrastructure.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reiterated the Trump administration's emphasis on defending America against what it sees as unfair trade practices, and called on the IMF to do more in its watchdog role. He stressed that the United States will continue to promote an expansion of trade with those partners committed to market-based competition, while more rigorously defending itself against unfair trade practices.