Christine Lagarde nominated as president of European Central Bank

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde was on Tuesday nominated as the president of the European Central Bank, following which she announced to temporarily relinquish her responsibilities as head of IMF.

The nomination means Lagarde will step down two years before the end of her second five-year term at the helm of the IMF.

I am honoured to have been nominated for the Presidency of the European Central Bank, Lagarde said in a statement issued at the IMF headquarters here.

In light of this, and in consultation with the Ethics Committee of the IMF Executive Board, I have decided to temporarily relinquish my responsibilities as Managing Director of the IMF during the nomination period, Lagarde said.

Lagarde would succeed Mario Draghi, whose term ends on October 31.

Lagarde's second term in office coincided with the rise of US President Donald Trump and a wave of confrontations among major economies over trade, which the former French finance minister described as a singular threat to the world economy.

Lagarde has at the same time acknowledged the strains caused by globalisation, which has disrupted industries and marginalised some workers.