Brown urges G8 leaders to pressure oil producers

By Isabel Reynolds

LONDON (Reuters) - Next month's G8 summit of wealthy nations should push oil producing nations to increase supply, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Monday following talks with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.

Brown also told Fukuda there should be a global carbon trading system aimed at cutting world emissions of greenhouse gases which he hoped Japan would join, Japanese officials said.

"We agreed it would be important for G8 members to press oil-producing nations to do all they can to increase production and investment to increase future supply," Brown told reporters after the meeting in London.

Brown said the two leaders had agreed on the need to move away from dependence on carbon fuels, including by increasing investment in nuclear power and improving energy efficiency.

Both leaders have faced domestic criticism over fuel taxes as consumers feel the pinch from soaring food and fuel prices.

Commodity inflation is one of the top agenda items in Fukuda's round of meetings with European leaders ahead of the summit, which he will host on the island of Hokkaido next month.

Fukuda is also hoping to make progress on reaching a consensus on international climate change policy.

A gathering of G8 environment ministers in Japan last month, agreed global emissions should be halved by 2050, a target last year's G8 summit agreed to "consider seriously".