Page 11 - Imf

IMF under pressure to cut billions of dollars in fees for large borrowers

The IMF released a statement last week saying that "a number" of its board members were open to reviewing policies around surcharges, the fees that it charges nations that borrow more

Private credit faces liquidity risks if stress rises, says IMF report

Private credit also remains largely untested in an economic slump, according to the analysis. It caters to mostly small and mid-size borrowers with higher leverage, implying more risk

US-China tensions fragmenting trade and investment, finds IMF study

Another contrast is that many of those non-aligned economies are benefiting from a new status as "connector" economies between the two blocs, it added

Subramanian's remark on 8% growth projection for India not ours, says IMF

The recent remarks of Krishnamurthy Subramanian, Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund, about India's growth figures does not represent the views of the IMF and were in his role as India's representative at the global body, the IMF has said. "The views conveyed ...by Mr. Subramanian were in his role as India's representative at the IMF," Julie Kozack, IMF spokesperson, told reporters here on Thursday. She was responding to a question on recent remarks by Subramanian, in which he projected a growth rate of 8 per cent for India, which is different from the last growth rate projections by the IMF. Subramanian, at a event in New Delhi on March 28, had said Indian economy could grow at 8 per cent till 2047, if the country redoubles the good policies that it has implemented over the last 10 years and accelerate reforms. "So, the basic idea is that with the kind of growth that India has registered in the last 10 years, if we can redouble the good policies that we have ...

IMF approves $8 billion loan plan for Egypt as global bailout takes shape

The executive board's assent increases the Extended Fund Facility arrangement from the $3 billion originally approved in December 2022 to $8 billion

IMF to increase Egypt's bailout loan to $8 billion to shore up its economy

The executive board of the International Monetary Fund confirmed a deal with Egypt to increase its bailout loan from USD 3 billion to USD 8 billion, in a move that is meant to shore up the Arab country's economy which is hit by a staggering shortage of foreign currency and soaring inflation. In a statement late Friday, the board said its decision would enable Egypt to immediately receive about USD 820 million as part of the deal which was announced earlier this month. The deal was achieved after Egypt agreed with the IMF on a reform plan that is centred on floating the local currency, reducing public investment and allowing the private sector to become the engine of growth, the statement said. Egypt has already floated the pound and sharply increased the main interest rate. Commercial banks are now trading the US currency at more than 47 pounds, up from about 31 pounds. The measures are meant to combat ballooning inflation and attract foreign investment. The Egyptian economy has be

Meeting with IMF scheduled for Apr 14-15: Pak's Finance Minister Aurangzeb

Pakistan's Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Friday said the government will hold a meeting with the IMF on April 14 and 15 in Washington to discuss the features of the new bailout programme which the cash-strapped country is seeking, according to a media report. The minister for finance and revenue in the Shehbaz Sharif government, while addressing journalists during his visit to the Pakistan Stock Exchange here, reiterated that the government plans to enter a major programme with the International Monetary Fund which will ensure microeconomic stability, Geo News reported. Aurangzeb said the features of the new programme would be discussed during the meeting, while detailed talks would be held in Pakistan, the report said. Prime Minister Shehbaz on March 21 signalled that the new IMF programme was likely to be continued for three years. Shehbaz, while addressing a session of the Special Investment Facilitation Council's apex committee attended by civil-military leadership, sa

12 people killed in 2 separate incidents in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

At least 12 people were killed in two separate incidents in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, police said on Friday. Eight people of a family, including five women and two children, were killed when a pickup truck they were travelling in skidded off a mountainous road allegedly due to a brake failure in Buner district, police said. The driver purportedly lost control of the vehicle after the brake failed while navigating a sharp turn in the mountainous terrain. A rescue team along with the help of locals retrieved the bodies from the accident site, they said. In the other incident, four miners of a family were killed when a coal mine suddenly collapsed in the tribal Kurram district. A rescue team and local volunteers retrieved the bodies from the mine and shifted them to a nearby hospital. The deceased coal miners belong to the Swat district. The dead include a father and son and two brothers.

China must reinvent itself to turn economy around, says IMF's Georgieva

Officials who spoke at the opening of the China Development Forum expressed confidence China would hit its economic targets, including growth of about 5% this year

Pakistan needs another IMF bailout, says PM Sharif amid economic woes

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the review for issuance of the last tranche of USD 1.1 billion which hopefully be received by next month

India needs to grow at 8% to create sufficient jobs: IMF's KV Subramanian

India needs to grow at 8 per cent on sustained basis to create sufficient jobs to reduce poverty and inequality, India's executive director at International Monetary Fund (IMF) Krishnamurthy Venkata Subramanian said on Wednesday. India's economy grew by better-than-expected 8.4 per cent in the final three months of 2023 - the fastest pace in one-and-half years. "We should be impatient even if we grow at 7 per cent. We should be looking to grow at 8 per cent and above, as the country needs to create a lot of infrastructure," Subramanian said, addressing an event organised by OMI Foundation. "By growing at 8 per cent, we have the potential to create a lot of jobs, thereby reducing poverty and inequality," the former CEA said. The growth rate in October-December was higher than the growth rate of 7.6 per cent in the previous three years, and it helped take the estimate for the current fiscal (April 2023 to March 2024) to 7.6 per cent, according to the data released by the National ...

IMF reaches staff-level agreement with Pakistan to disburse $1.1 billion

The funds are the final tranche of a $3 billion last-gasp rescue package Pakistan had secured last summer, which averted a sovereign debt default. Islamabad is also seeking another long-term bailout

No additional budget to settle dues of Chinese power plants: Pak to IMF

Pakistan has assured the IMF that it does not plan to allocate an additional budget to settle the USD 1.8 billion dues of Chinese power plants built under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, as the new government scrambles to revive the sinking economy, according to a media report. An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team has been in Pakistan to complete the final review of the USD 3 billion Standby Agreement approved for the country last year before releasing the last tranche of USD 1.1 billion before the end of the programme next month. The team has met officials who are also interested in getting a fresh loan to keep the dollar-starved nation's economy afloat, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. The IMF inquired about the government's decision to allocate funds for the Chinese power plants over and above the budgeted amount of Rs 48 billion for this fiscal year, said the Ministry of Energy officials. They added that the IMF was informed there was no plan to approve ...

Pak govt accuses Imran Khan's party of trying to sabotage deal with IMF

Shahbaz Gill, Imran Khan's former chief of staff, in his speech, said that the IMF's mandate requires it to promote democracy and good governance

Setback to Imran Khan as IMF refuses to interfere in Pak electoral dispute

This comes after incarcerated former PM Imran Khan penned a letter to the IMF, urging the global lender to give the poll results a thorough once-over before cutting any new cheques for Islamabad

Sri Lanka hopes to seek respite from debt repayment: Wickremesinghe

Sri Lanka hopes to avoid repaying debt till December 2027 after the completion of the ongoing restructuring process and repay them in the period running up to 2042, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Wednesday, as he defended his unpopular reform plans to revive the bankrupt economy. Sri Lanka is currently stuck with debt restructuring with negotiations taking a long to reach an agreement. By 2022, Sri Lanka had to meet external debt repayments worth 6 billion per year. It is 9.5 per cent of the GDP and an amount hard to sustain," he said. "We hope to reduce this to 4.5 per cent of the GDP by debt restructuring, Wickremesinghe, also the cash-strapped island nation's finance minister, stressed. Currently we are actively engaged in discussions regarding the restructuring of all loans including domestic and foreign loans. We are optimistic that these negotiations will reach a successful resolution soon. Our goal is to obtain temporary relief from debt defaults from 2023 to 2027. .

Race for new Pakistan finance minister heats up ahead of IMF negotiations

Former four-time finance minister Ishaq Dar remains the top contender, according to two sources in his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party

WTO: Fisheries subsidies are vital for developing countries, says India

With about 9 million people dependent on the sector, India constitutes 25 per cent of the world's fishermen

Cash-strapped Pakistan says IMF conditions for $1.2 billion tranche met

Pakistan has met the IMF's benchmarks for maintaining the status quo in the energy sector in an outcome that may help to get the next loan tranche of USD 1.2 billion, officials said, ahead of the visit of the global lender's review mission to the cash-strapped country. The Ministry of Energy officials said they have met the end-December targets related to containing the flow of circular debt below Pakistani Rs 385 billion, timely increase in the electricity prices, and slowing the increase in line losses, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. The IMF would review the implementation of these targets during the loan negotiations under the second review of the USD 3 billion bailout package. The IMF's review mission might visit Islamabad by the end of this month or early next month, provided the government formation at the federal and provincial levels is complete. Citing sources, the paper said that against the condition to restrict the flow of the circular debt to Pakistani Rs 385

Use of AI can prevent stressed assets: IMF ED Krishnamurthy Subramanian

Subramanian said India should follow the global practice where the bourses and the regulator need to be informed when there is a violation of a technical covenant