Latest news with #KristalinaGeorgieva
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
IMF chief: European lifestyle is at risk if productivity isn't boosted
Europe needs to boost its growth in the face of global headwinds or risk losing its way of life, said the head of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva on Wednesday. 'I don't want Europe to become the United States of America, but I want the productivity and functionality of Europe to go up,' she told Euronews. 'In Europe we enjoy being a lifestyle superpower. Unless we become more productive we may lose this advantage,' she added. Georgieva was speaking ahead of the publication of a new IMF statement on Thursday, which offers economic suggestions to eurozone nations. One key message is that Europe must speed up progress on the single market, which ensures the free movement of goods, services, capital and people between single market nations. 'There are no tariffs within Europe, but it doesn't mean there are no barriers in Europe, regulatory and otherwise,' Georgieva told Euronews. The IMF estimates that barriers to free movement in the single market are equivalent to a 44% tariff on goods and a 110% tariff on services. Georgieva noted that in the US, what is produced in one state is split 30-70, meaning 30% is consumed in that state and 70% is sent to other states. In Europe, on the other hand, 70% of production is consumed domestically while 30% is sent abroad. This is a set-up that limits growth by keeping markets smaller and less competitive. 'If Europe completes the single market, over 10 years, it would boost GDP by 3%,' said Georgieva. Related US tariffs will not spark global recession but will weaken economy, IMF says EU budget needs 'a comprehensive overhaul' to handle shocks, says IMF Means to advance progress on this front include lowering regulatory fragmentation, supporting labour mobility, facilitating cross-border banking mergers, integrating the energy market, and making progress on the capital markets union (CMU) — said the IMF. The CMU aims to allow investment and savings to flow seamlessly across member states. This would make it easier for businesses in one EU state to source funding from another EU state, supporting firms to grow and create jobs. In terms of deepening capital markets, the IMF's statement added that the EU should 'increase institutional investors' familitary with venture capital as an asset class and address remaining undue restrictions on their ability to invest in it'. Looking ahead, the IMF expects eurozone growth at a moderate 0.8% in 2025, picking up to 1.2% in 2026. Trade and geopolitical tensions are expected to dampen sentiment and weigh on investment and consumption. With regards to interest rates, the IMF argued that 'a monetary policy stance close to neutral is justified' as headline inflation nears the ECB's 2% target. When balancing spending pressures with fiscal sustainability, the IMF recommended that countries with strong public finances support countries with less room for manoeuvre. 'It is crucial that care be taken in implementing the EU fiscal rules to ensure that countries with low fiscal risks that intend to increase spending to boost potential growth and enhance resilience should not be constrained from doing so by the rules,' said Thursday's statement. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Euronews
17 hours ago
- Business
- Euronews
IMF chief: European lifestyle is at risk if productivity isn't boosted
Europe needs to boost its growth in the face of global headwinds or risk losing its way of life, said the head of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva on Wednesday. 'I don't want Europe to become the United States of America, but I want the productivity and functionality of Europe to go up,' she told Euronews. 'In Europe we enjoy being a lifestyle superpower. Unless we become more productive we may lose this advantage,' she added. Georgieva was speaking ahead of the publication of a new IMF statement on Thursday, which offers economic suggestions to eurozone nations. One key message is that Europe must speed up progress on the single market, which ensures the free movement of goods, services, capital and people between single market nations. 'There are no tariffs within Europe, but it doesn't mean there are no barriers in Europe, regulatory and otherwise,' Georgieva told Euronews. The IMF estimates that barriers to free movement in the single market are equivalent to a 44% tariff on goods and a 110% tariff on services. Georgieva noted that in the US, what is produced in one state is split 30-70, meaning 30% is consumed in that state and 70% is sent to other states. In Europe, on the other hand, 70% of production is consumed domestically while 30% is sent abroad. This is a set-up that limits growth by keeping markets smaller and less competitive. 'If Europe completes the single market, over 10 years, it would boost GDP by 3%,' said Georgieva. Means to advance progress on this front include lowering regulatory fragmentation, supporting labour mobility, facilitating cross-border banking mergers, integrating the energy market, and making progress on the capital markets union (CMU) — said the IMF. The CMU aims to allow investment and savings to flow seamlessly across member states. This would make it easier for businesses in one EU state to source funding from another EU state, supporting firms to grow and create jobs. In terms of deepening capital markets, the IMF's statement added that the EU should 'increase institutional investors' familitary with venture capital as an asset class and address remaining undue restrictions on their ability to invest in it'. Looking ahead, the IMF expects eurozone growth at a moderate 0.8% in 2025, picking up to 1.2% in 2026. Trade and geopolitical tensions are expected to dampen sentiment and weigh on investment and consumption. With regards to interest rates, the IMF argued that 'a monetary policy stance close to neutral is justified' as headline inflation nears the ECB's 2% target. When balancing spending pressures with fiscal sustainability, the IMF recommended that countries with strong public finances support countries with less room for manoeuvre. 'It is crucial that care be taken in implementing the EU fiscal rules to ensure that countries with low fiscal risks that intend to increase spending to boost potential growth and enhance resilience should not be constrained from doing so by the rules,' said Thursday's statement. As widely anticipated, the Bank of England (BoE) decided to keep its benchmark rate at a 2-year low of 4.25% on Thursday. This comes as fears grow that the conflict between Israel and Iran will escalate and that US tariffs will further fuel inflation. Six out of the nine-member panel of the monetary policy committee voted to hold, while three of them saw fit to cut. The bank lowered its rate to 4.25% in May, the fourth cut after an aggressive tightening period in 2022-2023. More cuts are still expected in the coming months by the market. The central bank's benchmark interest rate determines how banks change their rates on savings and loans. UK inflation, the primary figure driving the monetary policy committee's decisions, came in at 3.4% on Wednesday, far above the BoE's 2% target. Price increases, however, slowed slightly compared to the annual price change measured in April, which stood at 3.5%. The prevailing view at the bank was that inflation would remain elevated over the coming months but start to slow towards next year. But an uptick in oil prices, due to the current geopolitical crisis between Israel and Iran, could change this, as energy prices translate into the costs of producing and transporting all other goods. 'The risk to energy prices has clearly intensified and moved up the agenda given developments in the Middle East,' Sandra Horsfield, an economist for Investec, told AP. Uncertainty over the level of tariffs US President Donald Trump will impose around the world is also clouding the outlook for prices across the globe. 'We are still awaiting the full impact of Donald Trump's tariffs to show up in the prices of goods. We are approaching the end of the 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs, and what happens from there is really anyone's guess,' Lindsay James, investment strategist at Quilter said. She added that even with the US-UK trade deal, the raft of tariffs on other nations would likely be felt in some form in the UK too. This will especially be the case if the UK's biggest trading partner Europe leaves the table with no agreement. While setting their focus on inflationary risks, the BoE also need to consider that growth in the UK economy is slow and could benefit from lower interest rates. In April, economic output sank by 0.3%, due to falling exports to the US and higher costs for businesses, including a tax raise. "The expectation is the UK economy will stagnate again in the second half, making the need for rate cuts more prominent," James said. "But with risks on the global stage not only uncertain but also substantial, the mantra of rates being 'higher for longer' will continue.'
Bloomberg
20 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
IMF Chief Says Now Is Great Time to Boost Global Role of Euro
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva sees a chance to strengthen the euro's wider role. 'There is a great opportunity for the euro to play a bigger role globally,' she told reporters in Luxembourg on Thursday. 'When you look at the search for quality safe assets, at this point it is facing constraint on the offering of this asset.'
The Print
24-05-2025
- Business
- The Print
India to make strong case with FATF to put Pakistan back in ‘grey list', block World Bank funds
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog and sets international standards that aim to prevent these illegal activities. On April 22, Pakistan-trained terrorists killed 26 people in Pahalgam, Kashmir. India has consistently held that Pakistan has given safe haven to designated terrorists and the same was evident when senior military officials were present at the funeral of the terrorists killed in Indian military attacks of May 7. New Delhi, May 23 (PTI) India will highlight Pakistan's persistent support for terrorism and its funnelling of multilateral funds for arms procurement to build a strong case for reinstating Islamabad on the global money laundering and terror financing watchdog's 'grey list', and block funding from the World Bank. 'India will submit a dossier to the FATF on the omissions and commissions by Pakistan with respect to FATF anti-money laundering and terror financing norms. We will be taking it up (with the FATF) for grey listing of Pakistan,' a government source said. The next meeting of the Asia Pacific Group (APG) of FATF is scheduled for August 25, during which India is likely to present its views to the global watchdog. The next FATF plenary and working group meeting is scheduled for October 20. Currently, there are 25 countries in FATF 'grey list'. These countries are under increased monitoring and they have to address strategic deficiencies to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing. Pakistan's history with FATF's 'grey list' dates back to February 2008, when it was placed in the monitoring list. In June 2010 it was removed from the list, only to be brought back in February 2012, and then removed again in February 2015. It was brought back in the list again for the third time in June 2018, and was later removed in October 2022 with FATF asking Pakistan to continue to work with APG to further improve its anti-moneylaundering/combatting the financing of terror (AML/CFT) system. Separately, India will next month oppose the World Bank funding to Pakistan, just as it had done in case of IMF, arguing that Islamabad had used such funds in the past to procure arms and ammunition. World Bank is likely to review next month its USD 20 billion lending to Pakistan under the Country Partnership Framework agreed in January this year. The funds to cash-starved Pakistan were for areas including clean energy and climate resilience for a period of 10 years beginning 2026. 'We will oppose the upcoming World Bank funding to Pakistan,' the source said. India had lobbied with IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva and ministers of IMF board member nations against the agency extending a USD 2.3 billion assistance to Pakistan earlier this month. New Delhi presented proofs ranging from presence of senior Pakistani military officials at the funeral of designated terrorists to data that showed that Islamabad had misused funds in last two decades with arm procurement rising exponentially. 'India is not averse to any country receiving money for development purposes. But the IMF funding was not the right thing to do at a time when there were border tensions between India and Pakistan and a situation of war. Also, Pakistan has a history of spending not for people, but for buying arms,' the source said. According to the public data, Pakistan spends on average around 18 per cent of its general budget on 'defense affairs and services', while even the conflict-affected countries spend on average far less (10-14 per cent of their general budget expenditure). Further, Pakistan's arms imports increased dramatically from 1980 to 2023 by over 20 per cent on average in the years when it received IMF disbursements in comparison to years when it did not receive the same. PTI JD ANZ JD ANU ANU This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
India wants Pakistan on FATF 'grey list', will oppose World Bank loan
NEW DELHI: India will make a strong case to put Pakistan back on the Financial Action Task Force 'grey list' at its next meeting in June and highlight Islamabad's failure to comply with anti-money laundering and terror financing rules, a govt source told TOI on Friday. India will also oppose a World Bank funding plan for Pakistan, which is also scheduled for discussion in June, the source said, adding Islamabad had used funds from multilateral agencies to buy arms. The source said India will present a dossier to the watchdog detailing how Pakistan had failed to comply with the rules. World Bank expected to review $20bn funding for Pakistan Against the backdrop of escalating tensions between India and Pakistan post Pahalgam massacre, New Delhi has mounted a global offensive against Pakistan, which it has accused of backing terrorists. After Pakistan was placed in FATF 'grey list' in 2018, it had promised to submit an action plan to curb money laundering and terror financing. It had also talked about enacting a law, which it has failed to do so far. In Oct 2022, FATF had announced that Pakistan had been removed from its 'grey list' as it had largely completed its action plans. Removal from the 'grey list' enables a country to have greater access to foreign loans and aid. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Thị trường có dấu hiệu suy thoái không? IC Markets Đăng ký When FATF places a jurisdiction under increased monitoring, it means the country has committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to increased monitoring and this is referred to as the 'grey list'. World Bank is expected to review a $20 billion funding for Pakistan under the 10-year country partnership framework that was announced in Jan this year. Earlier this month, India had strongly objected to IMF, which approved a $2.3 billion loan to Pakistan under the extended fund facility lending programme ($1 billion) and a fresh resilience and sustainability facility lending plan of $1.3 billion. India abstained from voting as IMF rules do not permit a formal 'no' vote. India had conveyed its strong dissent within the constraints of the IMF's voting system and used the opportunity to formally record its objections. Source said finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had spoken to IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva and several European finance ministers expressing India's strong objection. "India is not averse to any country receiving money for development. But IMF funding was not the right thing to do at a time when there were border tensions between India and Pakistan and a situation of war. Also, Pakistan has a history of spending not for people, but for buying arms," the source said. After India's sustained objection, IMF has imposed 11 strict conditions on Pakistan on several parameters linked to fiscal, governance, social, monetary and financial parameters along with metrics to be met in energy sector and trade, investment policy and deregulation. Sources citing public data said Pakistan spends on average around 18% of its general budget on "defence affairs and services", while even conflict-affected countries spend on average far less (10-14% of their general budget expenditure). Sources pointed out that Pakistan's arms imports increased from 1980 to 2023 by over 20% on average in the years when it received IMF disbursements compared to years when it did not receive such funds.
