By David Lawder and Andrea Shalal
MARRAKECH, Morocco (Reuters) – International Monetary Fund countries agreed on Saturday to a “meaningful increase” in the fund’s lending resources by year-end as IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned the Israel-Gaza conflict was adding to global economic uncertainty.
At a news conference following a meeting of the IMF’s steering committee, chair Nadia Calvino did not disclose terms of the increase in quota funding, but said it would ensure that the IMF was able to maintain global financial stability.
The final wording of a statement was still being negotiated, according to a source familiar with the talks.
It was unclear if the International Financial and Monetary Committee would endorse a widely backed U.S. plan for countries to contribute new funds in proportion to their current shareholdings, which would delay any gains for China and other large, fast-growing emerging markets.
Calvino, the Spanish economy minister who is finishing her term as committee chair, said there was unanimity on “core issues”.
Georgieva told a news conference that the gravity of the Israel-Gaza conflict had become apparent during this week’s IMF-World Bank meetings as the situation evolved from attacks on “innocent civilians” in Israel to “the necessity to now find ways to prevent the loss of civilian lives in Gaza.”
“I can say the shock people have felt, it came in our meetings,” Georgieva said.
She said it was too early to gauge the conflict’s impact on the global economy.
“What we see, of course, is a recognition that this is yet another source of uncertainty,” she said, adding that much would depend on its scope and duration.
(Reporting by David Lawder and Leika Kihara; Editing by Sharon Singleton and Christina Fincher)
