UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday that truly free and fair trade is crucial to stimulating economic recovery and spurring growth.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon attends the 15th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh, July 15, 2009. The 15th NAM Summit opened here Wednesday to seek solidarity among developing countries to tackle major international or regional issues including the ongoing world financial crisis. [Xinhua]

Addressing the opening ceremony of the 15th summit of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Ban said developing nations are suffering most from the global economic crisis which is affecting millions of people living in the NAM states.

"The impact is likely to be even graver in the future," he warned.

There are worrying signs of rising economic nationalism, industrial subsidies, tariff increases and other protectionist measures that will only undermine global economic growth, the UN chief noted, adding that "We must counter this trend."

More than 50 heads of state from the developing countries gathered Wednesday for the 15th NAM summit to tackle major international and regional issues, with the global economic meltdown high on agenda.

(Xinhua News Agency July 16, 2009)