IMF 'stands ready' to mobilise $1trn lending capacity
The International Monetary Fund said on Monday that it "stands ready" to mobilise its $1trn in lending capacity to help its members deal with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
In a blog post on the IMF website, managing director Kristalina Georgieva said: "As the virus spreads, increased coordinated action will be key to boosting confidence and providing stability to the global economy."
She said the case for a coordinated and synchronised global fiscal stimulus was becoming stronger by the hour.
"As a first line of defence, the Fund can deploy its flexible and rapid-disbursing emergency response toolkit to help countries with urgent balance-of-payment needs," Georgieva said.
These instruments could provide about $50bn to emerging and developing economies, while up to $10bn could be made available to the IMF’s low-income members through its concessional financing facilities, which carry zero interest rates.
"The Fund already has 40 ongoing arrangements - both disbursing and precautionary - with combined commitments of about $200bn,” she said. “In many cases, these arrangements can provide another vehicle for the rapid disbursement of crisis financing. We also have received interest from about 20 more countries and will be following up with them in the coming days."
The Fund’s Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust (CCRT) can help the poorest countries with immediate debt relief, which will free up vital resources for health spending, containment, and mitigation, Georgieva said.