IMF countries try to bridge economic policy rift

 

International Monetary Fund member countries sought to bridge sharp differences over the global economy, acknowledging that rising inflation in emerging markets poses a risk to rich countries too.
Addressing one of their biggest challenges, the 187 IMF nations on Saturday recognized the alarm among developing countries about huge inflows of speculative cash that are stoking their growth but also their inflation rates.
“When inflation goes up in emerging markets, it’s not just an emerging market problem, it’s a global inflation and possibly interest rate problem,” said Singapore Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who chairs the IMF’s steering committee.
Top finance officials, in Washington for a twice-yearly meeting of the IMF, argued over the dangers posed by high government debt and super-low interest rates in sluggish, rich countries and the risk of overheating in developing economies.
“It’s one of the most difficult policy moments, one of the most complex challenges I’ve ever seen, certainly in my lifetime,” Angel Gurria, head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, told Reuters.