G20 agrees debt freeze for world’s poorest countries

Finance officials from the Group of 20 major economies agreed on Wednesday to suspend debt service payments for the world’s poorest countries from May 1 until the end of the year, as a group of private creditors also backed offering debt relief.

The moves to freeze both principal repayments and interest payments will free up more than $20 billion for the countries to spend on their health systems and help tackle the coronavirus pandemic, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan said.