The Group of Seven leading industrial nations, which includes the US, Japan and Germany, today sought to defuse escalating tensions about an impending "currency war".
It warned that volatile movements in exchange rates can adversely hit the global economy.
There have been increasing concerns around the world recently that governments are manipulating their exchange rates through their domestic economic policies in order to get an edge over others.
A lower currency can make a country's exports cheaper, thereby boosting growth.
In a statement published on the Bank of England website, the G-7 finance ministers and central bankers insisted they remained committed to exchange rates driven by the market - not government policy - and would consult closely when it comes to sharp movements in foreign currency markets.
"We are agreed that excessive volatility and disorderly movements in exchange rates can have adverse implications for economic and financial stability," said the G-7, which also counts Canada, France, Italy and current president, the UK, among its members.
The statement comes ahead of a meeting in Moscow at the weekend of finance ministers from the world's top 20 industrial and developing countries.
In light of the recent swings in the foreign exchange markets, notably relating to the Japanese yen, currency issues were expected to feature heavily during the Group of 20 discussions in the Russian capital.
Much of the recent volatility in foreign exchange markets has been a by-product of developments affecting the Japanese yen, which dropped today to its lowest level against the dollar since May 2010.
Though the Japanese government has not directly intervened to get the value of the yen down, it has set in motion a series of economic policies, such as a higher 2% target for Japanese inflation that many in the markets think will lead to more money being created in Japan.
Though Japan insists it is not targeting any particular exchange rate, there are fears that the benefits the country will potentially enjoy from the lower yen may force others to start using their currencies as an economic weapon.
That is where the problems really start and conjures up images of the 1930 when countries pursued tit-for-tat devaluations in order to get an edge. However, the outcome was to decimate global trade, accentuate the depression and sow the seeds for World War II.
The G-7 statement did not voice any concerns over the new Japanese approach, which the government hopes will get the world's number three economy growing again following two decades of stagnation and deflation.
"We reaffirm that our fiscal and monetary policies have been and will remain oriented towards meeting our respective domestic objectives using domestic instruments, and that we will not target exchange rates," the G-7 said.
Olli Rehn, the European Commission's top monetary affairs official, said it a stable currency system was in everyone's best interest. "Excess volatility and disorderly movements in exchange rates can have adverse implications for economic and financial stability," said Rehn at the conclusion of meeting of the EU's 27 finance ministers in Brussels.
"And that's why we need to lean on active international policy coordination in order to prevent a wave of competitive devaluations,'' he added.
