(Washington, DC) – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged nations around the world to move ahead more quickly on policies needed to secure a stronger recovery and avoid a prolonged global slump. In a “Global Policy Agenda” for the world’s economies, the IMF outlined a long list of tasks that remain incomplete, from reining in shadow banking risks in China to speeding up financial reforms.
The Washington-based Fund also said it was “utterly disappointed” the United States again failed to pass historic reforms to the IMF meant to give more power to emerging markets. “The key challenge remains transforming a modest and fragile recovery into more rapid, balanced, and sustainable growth,” the IMF said ahead of its twice-yearly meetings with the World Bank that kick off. “This is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Taking stock since the last meetings in October, the IMF saw similar risks on the table, including the chance for huge market and exchange rate volatility if the US Federal Reserve botches its exit from a massive monetary stimulus programme, withdrawing too quickly or not communicating well enough.