Transcript on the October 2018 International Monetary and Finance Committee Press Briefing

IMF News, October 13, 2018

Source details

Canonical URL

Transcript on the October 2018 International Monetary and Finance Committee Press Briefing

Other formats

• Markdown version
• Structured JSON version
• Bundle manifest

Bibliographic details

• Published: October 13, 2018

Global outlook and growth assessment

• The global expansion "remains strong; however, the recovery is increasingly uneven."
• Global growth level cited: "3.7 percent" and described as "way above the average growth that we have had in the last 10 years" but "plateauing."
• Identified downside risks and factors:
  • "heightened trade tensions"
  • "ongoing geopolitical concerns"
  • "tighter financial conditions particularly affecting many emerging markets and developing countries"
  • "policy uncertainty"
  • "historically high debt levels"
  • "rising financial vulnerabilities"
• Implication: These risks "could further undermine confidence and growth prospects."

Policy recommendations and priorities

• Fiscal policy:
  • "ensuring growth-friendly, flexible fiscal policies and rebuilding buffers where needed"
• Monetary policy:
  • "having data-dependent, well-communicated monetary policies"
• Financial and structural policy:
  • "advancing financial and structural reforms"
• Trade and international cooperation:
  • "step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence in international trade"
  • Message to deescalate trade tensions and "please, dialogue"
• Exchange rates:
  • Commit to "refrain from competitive devaluations or otherwise target exchange rates for competitive purposes"
• Debt and financing:
  • "working together to enhance debt transparency and sustainable financing practices by debtors and creditors, both public and private"
  • "strengthen creditor coordination in debt-structuring situations"
• Sustainable Development:
  • "continue to support efforts to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals"

Institutional commitments and timelines

• Governance review:
  • Reaffirmed commitment to concluding "the 15th General Review of Quotas" and agreeing on "a new quota formula"
  • Called on the Executive Board to "work expeditiously towards its completion by the Spring Meetings of 2019 and no later than the Annual Meetings of 2019"

Fintech: Bali Fintech Agenda, opportunities, and risks

• Bali Fintech Agenda:
  • Highlights "the 12 key principles that we want the membership to address"
  • Purpose: ensure technological developments "are actually for the benefit of people and do not shake the financial stability of the world"
• Opportunities emphasized:
  • Financial inclusion: "Fintech offers incredible opportunities for financial inclusion"
  • Mobile payments: "more than half of the mobile payment users are set to be on the African continent"
  • Cross-border remittances and regional payment systems: example of "SADC (Southern African Development Community) RTGS (real-time gross settlement)" facilitating movement of money within SADC and addressing correspondent banking deadlines
  • Distributed ledger technology pilot: "Project Khokha" — pilot settled the normal daily volume "in 1-1/2 hours"
• Risks and regulatory considerations:
  • Need to ensure regulators "are geared to be able to make sure that the users of financial services are adequately protected with fintech"
  • Bali Agenda stresses addressing associated risks while "strengthen collaboration to liberate financial technology"

Regional focus: Africa

• Africa Rising narrative:
  • Assertion: "Africa continues to rise" though noting caveats
  • Commodities dependence: "Africa is a commodities play" which affects the narrative
  • Diversification: "lots of countries have also begun to diversify"; "South Africa... is one of the more diversified economies"
  • Conditional observation: "if you were to take Nigeria and South Africa out of Sub-Saharan Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is still growing very strongly"
• IMF programs and assistance:
  • Statement: "lots of African countries... are waiting for assistance and have approached the IMF" (no program-specific numbers or timelines provided in the transcript)

Communication and conduct

• Leadership remarks:
  • Praise for President Joko Widodo's presentation and Indonesia's hospitality during the Annual Meetings in Bali
  • Emphasis on cooperation: "steer the boat. Do not drift, and sail together" — policy focus on staying the course and cooperating internationally
• Human rights and country engagement:
  • Managing Director's stance: "human rights, freedom of information, are essential rights" and she will "speak my mind" when visiting countries while continuing IMF engagement

Transcript on the October 2018 International Monetary and Finance Committee Press Briefing — October 13, 2018. IMF Communications Department

References

• Christine Lagarde
• Indonesia and the IMF
• South Africa and the IMF
• Transcripts
• PRESS CENTER
• https://www.imf.org/en/home