## Introductory Remarks by the Managing Director at 23rd Jacques Polak Annual Research Conference

_IMF News, November 10, 2022_

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## Bibliographic details
- Authors: Kristalina Georgieva
- Published: November 10, 2022

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### Conference opening and context
- Speaker: Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director, IMF  
- Event: 23rd Jacques Polak Annual Research Conference, theme “The Global Economy: Looking Back, Moving Forward.”  
- Date: November 10, 2022

### Tribute to Maurice Obstfeld (Maury) — contributions highlighted
- Strengthened the Fund’s reputation for delivering high-quality research and enhanced the Fund’s contribution to policy debate.
- Under his leadership, the World Economic Outlook became the seminal reference for global forecasts and for identifying interconnections and possible spillovers, aiding multilateral surveillance in a more shock-prone world.
- Advanced the External Sector Report as the Fund’s objective, comprehensive, and multilaterally consistent assessment of exchange rates and external imbalances.
- Early promoter of climate research at the Fund; co-authored the book “Coping with the Climate Crisis.”
- Contributed to discussions on Euro Area fiscal rules and advocated for further integration of Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union, supporting the need for a fiscal union.
- Academic contributions: coauthor of textbooks over the past 3 decades — “Foundations of International Macroeconomics” (with Ken Rogoff) and “International Economics: Theory and Policy” (with Paul Krugman and Marc Melitz) — and extensive work on global external imbalances, financial crises, exchange rates, and monetary policy.

### Major challenges facing the global economy (findings and observations)
- The global economy has been hit by sequential shocks, notably Russia’s war in Ukraine and the lingering pandemic, both weighing heavily on the global economic outlook.
- Inflation is at multi-decade highs, driven by rising food and energy prices, persistent supply-chain disruptions, and mounting debt vulnerabilities.
- Financial conditions are tightening; capital flows and exchange rate volatility have increased dramatically, with heightened concern for low- and middle-income countries facing financing constraints and limited access to markets.
- Debt vulnerability statistics:
  - About 60 percent of low-income countries are in or at high risk of debt distress.
  - About 25 percent of emerging market countries are in or at high risk of debt distress.

### Policy priorities and challenges (recommendations and tensions)
- Monetary policy:
  - Immediate challenge for central banks in both advanced and emerging market economies is to bring inflation down.
  - Central banks are tightening monetary policy to restore price stability; there is broad agreement that monetary policy should “stay the course,” though challenges in managing the tightening cycle remain open.
- Fiscal policy and the policy mix:
  - Need to formulate and calibrate responsible fiscal policy amid persistent price pressures.
  - Priority: protect vulnerable households with targeted measures to alleviate rising food and fuel prices.
  - Caution: support measures should not further fuel inflation or sidetrack monetary policy efforts.
- Fiscal sustainability:
  - Finance ministers must fine-tune fiscal policy to support the vulnerable while preserving a credible fiscal framework and a sustainable debt profile over the medium term.

### Climate and resilience (findings and imperatives)
- Climate is characterized as the most daunting challenge of our time.
- Analysis suggests more volatile climate outcomes, especially in LICs, if carbon emissions continue unabated, with direct implications for agricultural output.
- Emphasis on the need for a strong understanding of the global economic impacts of climate shocks alongside calls for action.

### Purpose of the conference and expected outcomes
- The conference will address the issues above through analytical work presented and debated over two days.
- Intended outcome: insights and takeaways that can form a roadmap for moving forward in addressing inflation, fiscal and financial vulnerabilities, and climate-related economic risks.

*Introductory Remarks by the Managing Director at the 23rd Jacques Polak Annual Research Conference, Kristalina Georgieva, November 10, 2022.*

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## References

- [https://www.imf.org/en/about/senior-officials/bios/kristalina-georgieva](https://www.imf.org/en/about/senior-officials/bios/kristalina-georgieva)
- [23rd Jacques Polak Annual Research Conference](https://www.imf.org/en/News/Seminars/Conferences/2022/11/10/2022-annual-research-conference)
- [Previous Annual Research Conferences](https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/staffp/arc/index.asp)
- [Speeches](https://www.imf.org/en/news/searchnews)
- [PRESS CENTER](http://presscenter.imf.org/)
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_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/news/articles/2022/11/10/sp111022-introductory-remarks-23rd-jacques-polak-annual-research-conference_