APEC economies vow to keep stimulus policies

SINGAPORE, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Leaders and finance ministers of 21 APEC economies, including the United States, Japan and China, will keep stimulus policies until a lasting economic recovery is seen, draft statements from the grouping seen by Reuters on Monday said.

"Economic recovery is not yet on a solid footing," said a draft statement by the group's leaders, dated Oct. 31 and expected to be delivered at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation

(APEC) summit in Singapore later this month.

"We will maintain our economic stimulus policies until a durable economic recovery is secured."

Finance ministers of the group said in a separate statement that there was no need to rush fiscal tightening, especially as credit markets were still recovering, according to a draft statement seen by Reuters.

APEC has 21 member economies: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, United States and Vietnam.

(Reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan; Editing by Neil Chatterjee)

((nopporn.wong-anan@thomsonreuters.com; +65 6403 5665; Reuters Messaging: nopporn.wong-anan.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: APEC/ECONOMY

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