Leaders from the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized countries kicked off a summit in the Italian city of L'Aquila on Wednesday, with the economic crisis and climate change topping the three-day agenda, Xinhua reported.
The summit was opened with a working luncheon with most of the first day's talks focusing on the economy.
The G8 leaders, from the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and Canada, are expected to issue a statement later on the situation of the world economy.