(TOKYO) - Leaders of Japan and the European Union called Wednesday for urgent action to address rising food prices, which they warned could worsen poverty and hurt the global economy.

Japan, which imports more than half of its food, has said it will raise the issue of spiralling food prices when it hosts the summit of the Group of Eight rich nations in July.

Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and top EU leaders including European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso voiced "strong concern" about the prices of food, oil and other commodities in a joint statement after a summit.

The high prices "could slow down the growth in the global economy and have negative effects on developed and developing nations," said the statement, also signed by Prime Minister Janez Jansa of Slovenia, the current EU president.

The leaders "underlined the urgent need to address the issue, particularly in light of its acute impact on developing countries' efforts to overcome poverty," the joint statement said.

The EU and Japan also pledged to work together to promote stability on world financial markets.

Food prices have risen rapidly since the end of 2007, spurred in part by growing appetites in emerging economies such as China and India and by the popularity of biofuels at a time of soaring oil prices.

Barroso told a joint press conference that the food prices showed the need to step up aid to the developing world, bemoaning that assistance on a global scale went down in 2007.

"We have reasons to be sincerely concerned, so we hope we can mobilise the global community to another, additional effort in terms of development aid, mainly to Africa," Barroso said.

Fukuda said that EU leaders agreed to Japan's proposal to raise the food issue before the World Trade Organisation.

"We agreed to maintain close cooperation on this matter," Fukuda said.

Japan has voiced concern that restrictions on exports by key grain producers could hit its food security.

Summit EU – Japan

Text and Picture Copyright 2008 AFP. All other Copyright 2008 EUbusiness Ltd. All rights reserved. This material is intended solely for personal use. Any other reproduction, publication or redistribution of this material without the written agreement of the copyright owner is strictly forbidden and any breach of copyright will be considered actionable.