Canada was set to broaden opposition against a uniform tax on banks at a finance ministers meeting of the Group of 20 (G20) countries, Canadian Finance Minister Fim Flaherty said Friday, according to dpa. Canada, Australia and Brazil are against a bank levy to make lenders pay for their own bail-outs, which is favoured by the United States and EU countries. Flaherty said there were a "number of countries" ready to join Cananda's stance and he expected a discussion about alternative options to prevent future financial crises, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported. The G20 unites important developed and developing nations, and Canada is hosting the next G20 summit in late June. The group's financial ministers and central bank chiefs are meeting in South Korean port city of Pusan Friday and Saturday to prepare for that summit. Meanwhile, a South Korean official said the G20 should focus on improving development in low-income countries to create sustainable and balanced global economic growth. "It is our strong belief that for sustainable global growth, the G20 has to turn its attention to closing the development gap," said Sakong Il, chairman for the Presidential Committee for the G20 summit.
