Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 economies are set to begin a two-day meeting in South Africa on Thursday.
The meeting comes as US President Donald Trump has suggested imposing tariffs against US trade partners on August 1.
Participants from Japan include Finance Minister Kato Katsunobu and Bank of Japan Executive Director Shimizu Seiichi.
Participants are likely to share opinions on the global economy and risks it faces, debts incurred by developing nations and rules to be drawn up to impose taxes on global enterprises.
The Trump administration appears set to levy mainly higher taxes on imports from its trade partners. If tariffs are raised as planned, the impact on exports, production and supply chains could be wide.
Geopolitical risks such as the situations in the Middle East and Ukraine are mounting, and the world economy faces an uncertain future.
Amid these circumstances, differences in positions and opinions between countries such as the United States, China and Russia are widening, making this G20 summit a test of whether nations can show a united front to help stabilize the global economy.
