Senior financial officials from the Group of Seven (G-7) major industrialized nations agreed Saturday on the need for balanced global growth and voiced concerns about the adverse effects of the yen's strength.

Finance ministers and central bankers from the G-7 welcomed at their one-day gathering in Tokyo the improving global economic outlook in the wake of recent economic upturns in Japan and Europe.

A statement issued after the one-day meeting said the G-7 officials welcomed "improved prospects for non-inflationary growth in the major industrialized economies and the world economy as a whole."

At the same time, however, they called for continued policies to maintain the improvement in the economic situation, saying that "the challenge remains to secure a more balanced pattern of growth among our economies that is important to sustaining the expansion."

Japan told its G-7 partners at the Tokyo meeting that it will continue fiscal stimulus measures and keep interest rates virtually at zero until recovery is entrenched.

Other G-7 members, however, urged Japan to promote structural reforms in a bid to attain sustained economic growth.

"Japan's economy has shown some encouraging signs of recovery, although a sustained recovery remains to be established," the statement said.

On the strong yen, the G-7 officials said in the statement, "We welcomed the reaffirmation by the Japanese monetary authorities of their intention to conduct policies appropriately in view of their concern, which we share, about the potential impact of yen appreciation on the Japanese economy and the world economy."

Japan, believing that the stability of the currency is indispensable for a sought-after economic recovery, had strenuously sought the inclusion of concerns on the yen's strength.

The G-7 groups Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.