France’s G7 Presidency in 2026

The G7: what it does and how it works

About the G7 ?

The Group of 7 (G7) brings together seven of the world’s most advanced economies – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States – with the European Union also being a member. It serves as the forum of choice for its members to discuss and coordinate action in response to major economic, financial and geopolitical challenges on the global stage.

Set up in the 1970s to address the oil crisis and turmoil in monetary systems, the G7 has gradually become a key forum for dialogue between major global powers. It is organised through a presidency that rotates annually: the member state holding the presidency for that year hosts meetings and establishes priorities for the agenda.

The G7 organises its work into ministerial tracks dedicated to a specific topic: Finance, Trade, Foreign Affairs, Development, Home Affairs, the Digital Sector and the Environment. Each track conducts technical work to inform discussions held during the annual summit between heads of state and government.

Finance Track

The Finance Track of the G7 brings together finance ministers and central bank governors from member states. It is the historical heart of the G7, as the forum was originally set up to deal with economic and monetary issues.

The track’s work focuses on the coordination of economic policies to address challenges posed by the global situation, the regulation of international finance to forestall systemic crises, development financing and partnerships with emerging economies, as well as efforts to combat terrorist financing and illicit financial flows.

In 2026, the Finance Track will meet on several occasions: at technical meetings with deputy finance ministers and central bank governors (referred to as “deputies”); at dedicated ministerial meetings; and on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank Group Annual and Spring Meetings (see schedule below). 

Trade Ministerial Track

The G7's Trade Track traditionally revolves around several key priorities: addressing distorting practices, promoting rules-based international trade, securing supply chains and fostering trade openness.

This track's work, which is managed jointly with the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, helps to guarantee economic stability and foreign trade, which are key to mitigating crises and their spillover effects. Its aim is to safeguard the global trading system by promoting fair and common rules for countries and to make foreign trade more secure to guarantee the reliability of products and services circulating worldwide.

The Trade Ministerial Track will meet on several occasions in 2026 for technical and ministerial-level meetings.

The French Treasury's role

Under the authority of the Ministry for the Economy, Finance and Industrial, Energy and Digital Sovereignty, the French Treasury is responsible for the technical coordination and preparation of work within the Finance Track for France, together with the Banque de France. As part of its responsibilities, the French Treasury will organise the ministerial meeting for the Finance Track as well as various technical meetings throughout the year. In close collaboration with the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, it also jointly manages the work of the Trade Track and contributes to the Development Track.

The 2026 French Presidency

From January to December 2026, France is taking on the presidency of the G7 and putting its stamp on the global agenda. In taking on this responsibility, France is acting as a driving force in establishing priorities, organising meetings and consensus building among partners.

Amid global geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty, President Macron has expressed his determination to make the reduction of global inequality a priority. France’s Presidency of the G7 will therefore aim to project a bold vision of international cooperation based on the belief that the major economies have a particular duty to safeguard global financial stability and to build fair partnerships with developing countries.

France’s three main priorities for the G7 Finance Track

France’s programme is structured around three main priorities that reflect today’s economic and financial challenges.

Priority 1 – Reducing macroeconomic imbalances and strengthening economic security

The global economy is faced with lingering imbalances such as differences in current account balances between major economies, industrial policies and supply chain pressure. These imbalances aggravate geopolitical and trade tensions and emerge from unbalanced growth models.

France wants the G7 Finance Track to initiate an in-depth discussion on these imbalances and identify collective measures to resolve them while guaranteeing economic security.

• This issue will be explored from a macroeconomic perspective, with a view to developing a joint analysis of the causes of these imbalances, enacting a set of public policy commitments to mitigate them, and arranging for the monitoring of the commitments.
• It will also be addressed in economic security terms, with the goal of developing an analysis of industrial policies and unfair business practices, continuing work on sustainable cross-border e-commerce and securing critical mineral supply chains. The third goal will be a key priority of the French G7 Presidency, at a time when geopolitical tensions are greatly increasing the risk of supply chain disruption.
• This work will be coordinated with the Trade Track’s work and may also involve non-G7 countries.

Priority 2 – Shifting from support to partnerships: redefining the framework for international partnerships with developing countries in order to protect it

The international development assistance system has made some considerable progress, but it has now reached the make-or-break point.

• The international development assistance model is in a predicament, with growing questions as to its legitimacy, effectiveness and results for both donors and developing countries. 
• The model does not seem to fully address the needs of beneficiary countries at a time when public resources are diminishing while investment needs are still substantial. 

To safeguard international solidarity, the French Presidency will redefine how international partnerships currently operate.

• The G7 Finance Track will work to transition from an assistance-based approach to an approach centred on mutually beneficial partnerships, utilising all available public and private financing for sustainable development.
• This goal will also require optimising concessional resource use and making the financial architecture currently in place for official development assistance more streamlined.

Priority 3 – Supporting growth that is balanced, sustainable and safeguards financial stability by ensuring a level playing field

With the arrival of new technology and global economic fragmentation, balanced growth must be the result of a level playing field and rules that are tailored to global economic shifts.

Under this priority, the French Presidency will pursue three sub-priorities:

• Continuing work on international taxation reform;
• Initiating discussion on issues surrounding competition in the AI sector;
• Updating multilateral rules on official support for exporting companies; 

Amid uncertainty, maintaining the financial system’s stability also requires collective action with a view to identifying shortcomings and preventing risks while allowing global growth to continue unhindered.

The French Presidency will handle this issue through four additional objectives

• Combating financial crime and illicit flows;
• Taking climate risks and extreme weather events into greater consideration;
• Analysing risks and opportunities linked to non-bank financial intermediaries;
• Anticipating the impacts of new technologies.

France’s four priorities for the G7 Trade Track

Priority 1 – Adressing excess production capacity

Reducing excess production capacity is a major priority in France's action plan, which primarily seeks to accurately determine the scope and impacts of excess capacity on global markets. France champions clear goals to counter distorting practices resulting from such excess capacity and maintain a level playing field. As a result, practical measures are being implemented within the G7 in close cooperation with the Finance Track to promote effective and coordinated responses to these imbalances.

Priority 2 – Improving resilience and economic security

To improve resilience and economic security, the supply chains for strategic goods – particularly critical minerals – must be secured. France is continuing to pursue its goals to reduce the exposure of value chains by minimising any excessive reliance on goods and diversifying sources of supply. This is being translated into concrete actions within the G7 in cooperation with the Foreign Affairs and Finance Tracks to ensure a coordinated and consistent approach to economic security.

Priority 3 – Contributing to multilateral trading system reform

France is planning to actively contribute to multilateral trading system reform. It is committed to upholding fundamental principles such as compliance with rules, transparency and fair trade. With this in mind, practical measures are being pursued within the G7, before and after the 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) of the World Trade Organization, in order to help strengthen and modernize the multilateral system.

Priority 4 – Promoting sustainable e-commerce

Issues surrounding the expansion of cross-border e-commerce need to be taken into account to effectively promote sustainable trade relations. France is promoting goals to better regulate the processing of small packages in order to address the economic, social and environmental challenges they pose. To attain these goals, practical measures are being taken within the G7 in coordination with the Foreign Affairs and Finance Tracks to foster more sustainable and balanced trade practices.

2026 key events calendar

France is taking on the G7 Presidency for the whole of 2026, organising various key meetings that will punctuate the work undertaken and help move forward with  the priorities laid down.

Between these key events, several deputy-level technical meetings will be held to bring work forward on each priority. Other events centred on a given topic and stakeholder consultations (involving the private sector, civil society and international organisations) may be added to the calendar.

Documents and resources

Below is a list of the official documents published under the Finance and Trade Ministerial Tracks of France’s G7 Presidency in 2026. This list will be updated as and when meetings are held and publications are released.

Finance Ministerial Track

Official press releases and statements

• Read the press release "Minister Roland Lescure convenes the first G7 Finance Ministers’ Meeting under France’s 2026 G7 Presidency"  - January 27, 2026
• Read the press kit (in french) from the G7 Finance and Digital tracks launch press conference – February 3, 2026
• Read the press release G7 Finance Ministers' communiqué - March 9, 2026
• Read the press release G7 Energy and Finance Minister's and Central Bank Governors' communiqué - March 30, 2026

Analysis reports and explanations

Analysis reports will be published to highlight the issues addressed by the various meetings.

Trade Ministerial Track

Official press realases and statements

• Read the press release (in french) "Première réunion des ministres en charge du commerce sous présidence française du G7"  - February 23, 2026

Analysis reports and explanations

Analysis reports will be published to highlight the issues addressed by the various meetings.

Beyond the Finance and Trade Tracks, the French Treasury contributes, in coordination with the relevant departments, to the work of other G7 tracks whose issues overlap with France's economic and financial priorities. 

Contributions

• Read the press release : G7 Energy Ministers' communiqué - March 11, 2026