But governments must inevitably focus on a short-term turnaround to avoid a collapse, he added.

'I say to my fellow leaders and the rest of the world, worry about the later problems later, let's make sure we keep this economy from spiraling downward today,' the conservative prime minister told a press conference. 'That's job number one.'

Mr Harper, who trained as an economist before entering politics, said he is worried about inflation, the crowding out of private investment, and 'inefficient and expanded' government policies persisting beyond the current crisis.

'When governments and central banks are aggressively lowering interest rates and spending large amounts of additional money and doing large amounts of borrowing, there are risks as the economy improves,' he said.

'That said, as governments tackle these problems, particularly the government in the United States, they have to deal with the situation they have today.'

'It is essential that our governments spend the money today, that we go into the marketplace, that we borrow funds that are not being used, that we spend and make sure that we stimulate economic activity and stop the precipitous slide of the world economy.

'We've got to get things right now,' Mr Harper said. Quoting early 20th century British economist John Maynard Keynes, he added: 'At times like this we remember in the long run we're all dead.' -- AFP