China says G20 should focus on rich-poor imbalances

PITTSBURG, Sept 24 (Reuters) - The main global economic imbalance that should worry leaders at the Group of 20 summit is the gap between rich and poor nations, China said on Thursday, defending its currency exchange rate policies.

"We believe that the root cause of global economic imbalances is the imbalance in development," Zheng Xiaosong, director-general for international affairs in the Chinese Ministry of Finance, told a news conference in Pittsburgh, host city of the latest G20 summit.

"We believe in reducing the gap between North and South and promoting shared development that is balanced and sustainable," said Zheng.

U.S. President Barack Obama has called for the G20 summit of major rich and developing countries to focus on ways to build a more balanced global economy.

China has said it does not object to the discussion.

But a focus on global economic imbalances could also draw uncomfortable criticism of Beijing's managed yuan currency CNY=CFXS and big trade surpluses, which some economists have said were a background factor in sparking the international financial crisis.

Xie Duo, a Chinese central bank official, told the news conference that China's exchange rate policies were not the cause of global economic imbalances.

"The international balance of payments hinges on multiple factors," Xie told the news conference.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)