
The IMF has slashed its growth forecasts for the United States and said the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank must be ready to ease policy.

The new head of the IMF urged global policymakers to pursue urgent coordinated action, including the mandatory recapitalization of European banks, or risk descent into renewed world recession.

French magistrates formally opened an investigation into IMF chief Christine Lagarde this week for possible misconduct in approving a huge payment to a friend of President Nicolas Sarkozy when she was Finance minister.

International Monetary Fund's external relations director Caroline Atkinson resigned Thursday after being appointed the as a White House special assistant to the president for international economic affairs.

The IMF confirmed that Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner phoned incoming Managing Director Christine Lagarde last week, a few hours before the Fund reiterated its objections to Argentina’s official statistical data.

China has secured its first top-level post at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in recognition of its growing power in the global economy. New IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde appointed Zhu Min to a newly created deputy managing director post.

New IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde pledged to push ahead with reforms to give fast-growing emerging markets greater sway at the global lender and said the world economy was on the rebound.

The IMF revealed its new managing director Christine Lagarde who took office on Tuesday will receive an annual salary of 467,940 US dollars net of income taxes and told her to “observe the highest standards of ethical conduct.”

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund selected on Tuesday Christine Lagarde to serve as IMF Managing Director and Madame Chairman of the Executive Board for a five-year term starting on July 5, 2011.

France's Christine Lagarde picked up an endorsement from China Monday, raising her chances to become head of the International Monetary Fund. The IMF board is expected to make the decision between Lagarde, France's Finance minister, and Mexican Central bank chief Agustin Carstens as early as Tuesday.