The Group of 20 Trade and Digital Economy Ministers Meeting is approaching. Over 50 trade ministers and digital economy ministers will get together for the first time in G20 history in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, on June 8 -9, to discuss how G20 economies can promote trade and investment, and maximize benefits from the development of the digital economy and technologies to ensure sustainable growth of the global economy.

Expectations are high that the G20 will continue to play a positive role in fostering economic opportunity and addressing challenges in the global landscape. Trade and investment have been important drivers of the unprecedented global economic growth and poverty reduction enjoyed in recent times. This rapid growth contributed to an early achievement of the United Nations goal of halving extreme poverty between 1990 and 2015. Digitalization is expected to continue to create benefits for our economies and societies as a whole, and help achieve the inclusive, innovative and human-centred future society that Japan promotes as "Society 5.0."

However, the global economic and social system faces considerable challenges. Rapid globalization has led some to believe they are not benefitting sufficiently and are discontent. There are also signs of adaptation fatigue, as domestic and international systems and the wider population struggle to keep pace with the fast-changing times. The World Trade Organization has found it difficult to keep rules up to date, in areas such as e-commerce, investment, services and trade-distortive subsidies among others. These challenges become more acute in the context of increasing trade tensions between major trading countries. As global markets become more integrated, level playing field issues, including market-distortive subsidies and other practices, are gaining renewed attention. For example, the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity has been working to find a global solution to excess capacity in the steel sector.