Transcript of a Press Briefing by Gerry Rice, Director, Communications Department, International Monetary Fund

IMF News, July 11, 2013

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Canonical URL: Transcript of a Press Briefing by Gerry Rice, Director, Communications Department, International Monetary Fund

Date and location of briefing: July 11, 2013, Washington, D.C.
Embargo: briefing embargoed until 10:30 a.m., Washington time.
Managing Director Christine Lagarde travel schedule:
- Visit Romania on July 15 and 16.
- Visit Lithuania on July 17 and 18.
- In Bucharest on July 16, Madame Lagarde will deliver a speech open to the media on Romania and Eastern Europe.
- In Vilnius on July 18, she will participate in a panel discussion open to the media on the challenges and opportunities of European economic integration; this event marks the beginning of Lithuania's presidency of the European Union.
- After Romania and Lithuania, Madame Lagarde will travel to Moscow to participate, along with First Deputy Managing Director David Lipton, in the G-20 ministerial meeting on July 18 to 20.
David Lipton participation:
- Will participate in a panel discussion in Washington on the outlook for the G-20 meeting in St. Petersburg, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies; event takes place the day after the briefing (tomorrow), understood to be in the morning and open to the press.
Executive Board schedule for Article IV consultation reports for "systemic" countries:
- China: starting tomorrow (relative to July 11, 2013).
- U.K.: on Monday (relative to July 11, 2013).
- Euro area, the United States, and Japan: all before the end of July.
Publication: IMF will publish all related country reports.

Status of contacts:
- IMF has not been in touch with the interim government.
- IMF is in regular contact with counterparts at the technical level.
Guidance for future engagement:
- Determinations on how to deal with the interim government will be guided by the views of the international community and the Fund's membership.
Financing and program implications:
- The last cited IMF-related amount was "4.8 billion" (December), but the IMF stated it is premature to assess whether that figure remains adequate given developments.
- IMF has no details on proposed regional pledges of support and therefore cannot assess their economic implications.
Policy stance:
- IMF supports financial and other forms of support for the people of Egypt to help address difficult economic challenges, pending details and further assessment.

Expected timing:
- IMF Board meeting on the Greek program expected toward the end of July; Board calendar dates are announced seven days ahead.
Staff-level agreement summary:
- Statement: "the program is broadly on track, and significant progress has been made, but there are a number of issues still needing to be resolved."
- Staff-level agreement "does not assume a temporary reduction in the VAT rate on restaurants and catering," though the issue remains under discussion with the European Commission and European Central Bank and the IMF.
Financing gap and outlook:
- "There is no financing gap through July 2014."
- "A gap is projected for after July 2014."
- European partners have made commitments to provide adequate future financing for Greece, "provided that the program is implemented."
- IMF continues to expect growth to turn positive in 2014, while noting uncertainties related to internal and external factors.
Implementation emphasis:
- Completion of the current review is contingent on implementation of outstanding actions, including tax administration and public administration reforms.
- Final IMF disbursement contingent on Board approval following satisfactory implementation.

Timing and scope:
- IMF, European Commission, and European Central Bank staff team to start discussions with Cypriot authorities on the first review of the country's economic program on July 17th; visit expected to last about two weeks.
- Outcome expected to be communicated at the end of the visit.
Focus areas for the first review:
- Financial sector reform.
- Macroeconomic and fiscal performance and outlook.
- Status of other structural reforms.
Correspondence:
- Managing Director responded to a letter from President Anastasiades, welcoming the President's determination to continue on the path of sustainable growth and reassured him of IMF support for the government's efforts to implement the program.

Next review:
- Exact timing of the next IMF visit under discussion with authorities.
Assessment:
- Portugal "has made solid progress under the joint ECB-EC-IMF program, with great determination and sacrifices of the Portuguese people."
- Importance stressed that strong implementation continues so that recovery can take hold.

Recent engagement:
- IMF visit on June 26 and 27 by Mr. Gueorguiev and Mr. Jarvis (outgoing mission chief and incoming mission chief).
- Meetings held with presidential administration, government, and national bank officials.
Status:
- Authorities have requested a standby arrangement.
- Discussions are ongoing on outstanding policy issues and further technical work; aim is to arrive at a consistent package of measures.

Next steps and timing:
- Staff-level agreement reached; next steps are implementation of agreed prior actions by authorities to prepare for Executive Board consideration of the loan request, "tentatively scheduled for early September" provided prior actions are met.
Prior actions include:
- The fiscal package.
- Electricity price adjustments.
- Launching of a tax reform initiative.
- Certain central bank actions.
- Approval of the fiscal commitments by the Council of Common Interest.
Conditionality:
- Board consideration and program disbursement contingent on implementation of these prior actions and commitments made by the government.

IMF position on criticisms:
- IMF described as having "straightforward, candid analysis" and being accountable to its shareholders.
- Quarterly reviews and published reports cited as mechanisms ensuring rigorous assessment and objective analysis are conveyed regularly to authorities and the public.
Distinction between programs:
- Ex post evaluation referenced pertains to the first Greek program (initiated in 2010, completed in 2012) and should be kept distinct from the current program that began in 2012.

Transcript of a Press Briefing by Gerry Rice, Director, Communications Department, International Monetary Fund — July 11, 2013