As debt-laden Europe expects IMF to come to its rescue, India on Saturday said resources of the multilateral lender have already been trebled and the countries under stress should look up to their central banks for funding.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee also wanted the World Bank to chip in with more lending, along with IMF to respond to global financial problems. He is here for the meeting of G-20 finance ministers and central bank governors.
Intervening in the session on reforms of international monetary system, he said, “...we have trebled the resources of the IMF over the last few years. Our focus should now be on how to ensure that these resources are quickly mobilised and IMF’s instruments lending are adequately flexible”.
International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s resources have gone up to $750 billion from $250 during the last three years.
Mr. Mukherjee also said it should be ensured that IMF funds are used “only where all other sources have been exhausted, including through central banks and regional safety nets”.
The IMF resources should now be used only for liabilities denominated in external currencies, he said.
Mr. Mukherjee said that even as crisis is looming large, World Bank’s annual lending is projected to come down to $15 billion in 2013, from $44 billion in 2010.
“The adequacy of World Bank resources should therefore be considered alongside those of IMF,” he said.
The U.S. also said that Europe has enough resources to solve its own problems. “IMF has very very substantial uncommitted resources,” U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told CNBC.
IMF has already helped Eurozone nations Greece, but the Europe expects another $350 billion dollar.
