UN Chief calls for G20 unity, focus on development

SEOUL (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concerns on Wednesday about divisions within the world’s leading economies over global rebalancing and currencies, calling for unity at a what is a “critical time” for the G20.

 Germany and several other nations have hit out a U.S. plan to consider limiting current account imbalances, while some countries have come in for criticism for intervening in currency markets to get a trade advantage.

 “I am concerned by the divergence of opinions on these issues,” Ban told a news conference in Seoul a day before the start of the two-day summit. “This is a time for unity.” The former South Korean foreign minister urged leaders to look beyond their own economies and held up his own country as a role model for promoting development of poor countries.