S. Korea to host year's first G-20 gathering in Feb

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SEOUL, Jan. 18 (Yonhap) -- High-ranking policymakers and central bank officials
from the Group of 20 advanced and emerging economies will gather in South Korea
next month to discuss ways to accelerate a global economic recovery and prepare
for the post-crisis era, the Seoul government said Monday.

The G-20 meeting will be attended by vice finance ministers and vice governors of
central banks from member nations on February 26-27 in Incheon, a western port
city some 50 kilometers west of the nation's capital, according to the Ministry
of Strategy and Finance.
The gathering marks the year's first G-20 meeting and the first time that South
Korea will host the group since being chosen as chair of a summit to be held in
Seoul among the G-20 leaders in November.
"How to accelerate the global economic rebound and how to manage the global
economic system after the crisis will be among the top agenda items to be
discussed at the February meeting," a finance ministry official said.
In a related move, the Seoul government took over management of the official Web
site for the G-20 finance minister meeting (www.g20.org) from Britain on January
1 with a plan to run it until the end of this year, the official added.
The G-20 was established in 1999 in the wake of the Asian financial crisis to
bring together the world's most advanced and emerging economies to stabilize the
global financial market.
Since its inception, members have held annual meetings among finance ministers
and central bank governors to discuss ways to foster global financial stability
and sustainable growth.
To tackle the crisis that hit world markets in 2008, the G-20 launched a series
of summit talks, with the first held in Washington in the same year followed by
others in London and Pittsburgh in 2009. The fourth will be held in Canada in
June, while the November meeting in Seoul will be the fifth of its kind.
The G-20 groups Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France,
Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan and the United States, South Korea,
Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and the European Union.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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