Transcript

MS. KOZACK: Hello, everyone, and welcome to this IMF Press Briefing.  Happy New Year.  It's great to see all of you here in person and online.  I'm Julie Kozack, Director of the Communications Department.  As usual, this briefing is embargoed until 11 a.m. Eastern Time in the United States.  I will start with quite a few announcements, and then we'll move to take your questions in person, on Webex, and via the Press Center.  

The Managing Director is in Kyiv, Ukraine, for a short visit.  She will be meeting country authorities and stakeholders and will meet IMF Staff based there in Kyiv.  From Kyiv, the Managing Director will travel to Rome, Italy, where she is scheduled to have an audience with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV on Saturday, January 17th.  It will be the first time the Managing Director will meet with this Pope.  

On Sunday, January 18, the Managing Director will be in Liechtenstein, our newest IMF member country, for meetings with Hereditary Prince Alois and Prime Minister Brigitte Haas.  

The Managing Director and First Deputy Managing Director, Dan Katz, will be attending the World Economic Forum's 2026 Annual Meetings in Davos, Switzerland, from January 19 to January 23 in Davos. The MD and the FDMD will participate in a number of discussion panels and bilateral meetings.  After Davos, the Managing Director will travel to Brussels on January 26 and 27 to meet with European Commission counterparts.  

Our First [Deputy] Managing Director, Dan Katz, is also currently on a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia from January 14th to 16th.  He's meeting with Saudi ministers and senior officials as well as other stakeholders to discuss the IMF's engagement with Saudi Arabia.  

Turning to publications, the IMF will release its next World Economic Outlook on Monday, January 19th, with a press conference at the National Bank of Belgium at 10:30 a.m. local time in Brussels.  

And yesterday, we published a staff discussion note titled Bridging Skills Gaps for the New Job Creation in the AI Age, along with a blog by our Managing Director on the same topic.  

And with that, I will now open the floor for your questions.  For those connecting virtually, please turn on both your camera and microphone when speaking.  The floor is open.  

All right,  let's start with you.  

QUESTIONER: Good morning, Julie.  Thank you for taking our questions.  We wanted to follow up on reports that U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent was planning to meet with the IMF and World Bank heads on re-engagement with Venezuela.  And I was wondering if you can confirm, you know, if the meetings have taken place and whether there have been any developments when it comes to this area.  You know, for example, in terms of the frozen special drawing rights.  Can you share any details on this front and whether they could be assets can be redeployed for the country's economic rebuilding?  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, thanks..  I suspect there may be other questions on Venezuela, so please let's group them.  So, let's start right here.  

QUESTIONER: Hi, Julie, thank you so much.  I would like to reiterate my colleague's question on the meeting with Bessent and also understand if there has been any communications from Delcy Rodriguez, acting president in Venezuela, with the IMF.  And if you can update us on any Board, Executive Board discussion, and Board of Governors as well, on early stages of a recognition of the Venezuela government, or if it's still too early to enter those talks.  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Thanks

QUESTIONER:  Thanks, Julie.  I just wanted to just obviously reiterate those questions and then ask sort of what the IMF might need to see from Venezuela, you know, to, you know, sort of re-engage.  I mean, it's been over 20 years since you've had any kind of Article IV with them.  Do you need to see some data about the economy?  Do U.S. sanctions on, you know, financial companies, you know, would they need to be lifted for, you know, banks and creditors, for example, to be able to re-engage with the Venezuelan government, you know.  So what are the conditions that the IMF might need to sort of get involved and see how it can be helpful?  Thank you.  

QUESTIONER: Thank you so much for taking my question.   And I've got a question on Venezuela and Iran.  How serious will the current tensions surrounding both countries affect global energy markets?  And how serious will this effect be in the short term and in the long term?  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Thank you.  If no one else in the room, let me go online.  If anyone online would like to have a question on Venezuela, please come on in.  

QUESTIONER:  Thanks.  Julie.    

MS. KOZACK:  Happy New Year.  

QUESTIONER:  You too.  Thanks very much.  Reiterate my colleague's questions, but also add, is there consensus inside the Fund on who is the legitimate leader there, and do you have a counterparty to talk to?  

MS. KOZACK: Okay.  Anyone else on Venezuela from online?  Okay, let me start to answer these questions.  I'll provide as much information as I can provide to you today.  Obviously, it's still early days, so we are -- but I'll provide what I can.  

So let me start by saying that, you know, Venezuela is, I think, as everyone knows, undergoing a severe and prolonged economic and humanitarian crisis.  Since 2014, roughly 8 million people, about a quarter of the country's population, have left the country.  Socioeconomic conditions remain dire, characterized by high poverty and high inequality, and widespread shortage of basic services.  Overall, Venezuela's situation remains deeply fragile, and the humanitarian needs of its people continue to be significant.  

Since late 2024, our assessment is that imbalances and vulnerabilities have reemerged, driven by lower oil revenues, a widening fiscal deficit, which has prompted increased monetary financing for the fiscal deficit, and a scarcity of U.S. dollar liquidity.  Inflation is estimated to be in the triple digits, and rapid currency depreciation is underway.  Venezuela's public debt is estimated at 180 percent of GDP, and that's before any legal judgments or arbitrations, and the debt is largely in default.  

Since 2019, the IMF's dealings with Venezuela have been paused due to government recognition issues.  In such cases, the IMF is guided by the views of the international community as represented by a majority of total voting power of the IMF members.  And so, this was the approach that we would follow when deciding or determining to resume our engagement with Venezuela.  We're obviously closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, despite the fact that we have very significant information gaps.  

Let me add a few things.  In terms of -- there were several questions on re-engagement.  What basically, as I mentioned, you know, in order to re-engage, we would need to have -- would be guided by the views of the international community, and that's a majority as represented by a majority of total voting power at the Fund.  What we would do specifically is assess whether Fund members in their own bilateral relationships recognize or deal with a particular regime as a government of the member in question.  And so, this is the same approach we would be taking on Venezuela. 

With respect to the question on Board meetings.  As we always do as part of our regular internal processes, our Staff routinely engage with our Executive Board and provides updates on a variety of country matters.  

With respect to discussions with Secretary Bessent, I can share that the MD and Secretary Bessent meet regularly, and they discuss a wide range of countries and topics.

On the question on SDRs, Venezuela's SDR holdings at the IMF are equivalent to about U.S. $4.9 billion.  Once the Fund resumes engagement with Venezuela, at that time, the Venezuelan authorities would have access to -- to their SDRs.  

And I think, and then there was a question about both Venezuela and Iran, and the potential for, and the impact, potential impact on the global energy market.  I mean, what I can say for now is that obviously we're monitoring all of this closely.  We pay close attention to what happens in global energy markets and oil prices in particular.  Right now, there haven't been very significant impacts on oil prices, but as I said, we'll closely monitor, and we'll look for signs of changes in those markets.  

Okay, let's go to you.  

QUESTIONER:  Thank you very much.  Good morning, Dear Director Julie Kozack.   I wish you and all your entire team, as well as my colleagues here in the room, a Happy New Year ‘26.  

I only have one question, but it's worth two indeed.  

MS. KOZACK: (Laughter)

QUESTIONER:  So, I will limit myself to that single question.  Following Prime Minister of Senegal Ousmane Sonko's press conference last Thursday, in which he stated that Senegal, backed by the president and the entire government, firmly rejects any IMF-driven debt restructuring and recalled both the IMF's own mission and the example of Egypt.  How does the Fund now respond to this position, and are there realistic prospect that IMF will still grant financial support to Senegal?  That's also a question I would like to ask you, the same, especially after acknowledging its own shared responsibility in the management and oversight failures that led to the country's hidden debt.  Thank you very much.  

MS. KOZACK: Thank you.  Are there other questions on Senegal?

QUESTIONER:  Hi.   I would like to know if there's any date and agenda you can specify on a new IMF visit to the country.  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay.  And anyone online want to come in on Senegal?  

QUESTIONER: Yes, I have a question. 

MS. KOZACK: Please go ahead.  

QUESTIONER:  Yes, following up on [the] question about a date for the visit of the IMF new IMF Mission Chief, I'm wondering if you could also please outline the purpose of the trip, and also if we should expect any communication on the recent misreporting or a possible new program.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, very good.  Anyone else on Senegal?  All right, so let me first give a little bit of an update, and then I'll get to your question.  

So, we did have a mission to Dakar in November 2025, and following that mission, IMF Staff and the Senegalese authorities are continuing to advance discussions on a new program.  We do have a new Mission Chief for Senegal, Mercedes Vera Martin, and she will visit Dakar next week.  The purpose of her visit will be for initial meetings, introductory meetings with the new authorities, and discussions of recent macroeconomic developments.  Given that her visit is primarily introductory in nature, we don't expect any communication following that mission.  

On your question, and I think we've discussed, I think Senegal's debt for, you know, quite a bit here.  So, some of what I'm going to say will sound familiar, I think.  We do, of course, acknowledge, you know, the concerns raised by Senegal's debt.  As we've talked here before, we estimate total public debt at 132 percent of GDP at end 2024.  Recent discussions with the authorities have focused on the vulnerabilities surrounding the debt and the policy options to address the debt situation and the debt vulnerabilities.  And our role at the IMF is really to work closely with the authorities to provide a rigorous analysis, given our technical expertise, and also to provide policy advice for the authorities to consider decisions on whether to undertake a debt operation are those for the Senegalese authorities. 

I would also just add that what matters for -- in terms of our engagement is we do a country specific assessment, which is really grounded in the circumstances of each individual member country.  Of course, we bring to that assessment our broad knowledge that we've gathered from, you know, many experiences and many countries and many regions over the years.  But each assessment is country specific.  And our work in Senegal is therefore really focused on addressing, helping Senegal address its risks, its challenges, its vulnerabilities, providing a set of policy choices in order to ultimately achieve, you know, the goals that the authorities have set for the people of the country.  

We stand ready to continue to support Senegal.  As with all of our member countries, any financing that we provide needs to be anchored in a sustainable outlook for public and external debt.  And it needs to be supported by policies and safeguards that ensure that public finances will remain on a sound path and that we need to do to be consistent with our own mandate.  

QUESTIONER: Hi, Julie, thank you so much.  Although in recent days the Argentine Central Bank has added reserves toward its 2026 target.  What is the IMF's assessment of last year's target, and if there's still a possibility of a waiver, and also of the new exchange rate regime that began on January 1st?  And also, if you can give any detail about the technical mission expected to visit Argentina for the Second Review of the program, and if there is any possibility of a meeting between Kristalina Georgieva and Javier Milei in Davos.  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Any other questions on Argentina?  Online, I see a hand up online

QUESTIONER:  Hi, Julie.  Happy New Year.      

MS. KOZACK: Happy New Year.  

QUESTIONER:  Yes, I was wondering also, well, if there's any possibility of a meeting in Davos and if the IMF is going to review with Argentinian authorities in the mission, any part of the schedule, that of reforms that were planned because of what's going on, there are legislative extraordinary sessions in February and if that changed in any way the plan of reforms that they had settled with Argentinian authorities in the program.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, thanks.. 

QUESTIONER: Hello, Julie.  Thank you.  So, it's two questions, actually.  The first one -- the first one, sorry, is that the Argentina say 2025 inflation rate was the lowest in eight years, but it has been increasing for the last seven months.  So, is this acceleration of inflation a concern for the IMF?  And the second question, as some of my colleagues said, is the IMF officially considering granting a waiver for their reserves target for last December's review?  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Thanks..  ?  We can't hear you.  Yeah, I'm afraid we can't hear you.  What I'm going to do is I'm going to move on, but if you can, maybe type your question into the Press Center or to the chat, I can then come back and read it out loud if we can't get the audio working.  

Okay, so let me start with where we are in Argentina.  So, what I can say on Argentina is Argentina has begun the year this year on a robust footing.  We see continued progress in stabilization efforts, and that is helping to boost market sentiment in Argentina.  After the economy contracted in 2024, it is estimated to have expanded in 2025 by 4.5 percent.  Inflation has fallen from triple digits in 2024 to around 30 percent at the end of 2025, and that is the lowest level of inflation in Argentina in eight years.  

We welcome congressional approval of the 2026 budget.  This is the first in two years, and it's consistent with a zero overall fiscal balance anchor for Argentina.  We also welcome ongoing efforts to secure support for legislation aimed at reducing labor market informality and increasing labor market flexibility.  We are also very encouraged by the authority's ongoing action to rebuild reserves.  These actions are supported by recent adjustments to the monetary and FX frameworks, including the introduction of a pre-announced FX reserve purchase program.  While it is still early in the process, reserve accumulation has started the year at a faster-than-anticipated pace.  The Central Bank reserve purchases have exceeded the 5 percent of daily FX volume floor on most days.  So, [the] reserve accumulation process has started at an accelerated pace, which is very welcome.  

These important efforts are expected to improve prospects for a full and durable access to international capital markets and to help Argentina better manage shocks.  More generally, sustained implementation of the authority's economic program will be key to entrenching the stability that we have seen.  And it will be key to doing it in a manner that balances disinflation, external stability, growth, and employment objectives.  We remain closely engaged in supporting Argentina's stabilization and reform efforts.  We're working closely with other multilateral and bilateral partners toward these shared goals.  

I can also say that the Second Review mission for the program is expected to take place sometime in February.  We'll provide more details as the dates, you know, as we agree on dates, and it will be at that time that discussions around targets, waivers will take place.  So, they'll take those discussions will take place as part of that review mission.  

The other thing I can add is with respect to whether there will be meetings in Davos is that, you know, we're still in the process of finalizing the schedule, and of course, once we have more information, we'll be sure to share it.  

Okay, let's go to you.  Oh,  sorry, I see the final question on Argentina.  So just bear with me, I want to read it out loud to be fair.  The question is, what is your outlook on Argentina's reform agenda?  Have you begun working on the pension reforms?  How do you evaluate the government's timetable and political capacity to secure approval for these reforms?  So, I think there I've given a fairly comprehensive response on Argentina.  And I would say, as I said, we're very, very encouraged by the authorities' efforts on the macroeconomic front and also on the reform front.  And I'll leave it at that for Argentina.  

QUESTIONER:  Thank you and Happy New Year.  I wanted to ask you about India.  How does [the] IMF see India's growth in 2025?  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, very good.  All right.  India.  So, for India, you asked about growth in 2025.  So, what we have seen in India is that India is a key growth engine for the world.  India's growth in 2025, when we did our Article IV Staff Report, we had estimated growth for fiscal year 2025-20 26 at 6.6 percent, which is based on strong consumption growth.  What we have seen since then is that the third-quarter growth in India came out stronger than expected.  And that puts some that makes it likely that we will be upgrading our forecast going forward.  So, we have our January WEO update coming in the next few days.  So, we will have a revised growth number for India at that time.  But I think the bottom line for us on India is that it has been a key driver of global growth, and growth has been quite robust in India.  

All right.  

QUESTIONER: Thank you very much, Julie.  My question is on Japanese yen.  Even though BOJ hiked its rate last December by 25 basis points, Japanese yen has depreciated deeply, deeply rapidly again recently.  And what is your analysis on whether such movement should be excessive one to need intervention conducted by Japanese authorities?  Thank you very much.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, yeah, go ahead.  

QUESTIONER:  Yeah, so after Secretary Bessent met with Minister Katayama the last couple of days, you know, he said that emphasized that Japan needed to, you know, communicate more clearly its intentions on FX.  And so, I'm just wondering if you can just share the IMF's latest perspective on sort of the weakness of the yen.  And you know, generally IMF is not a fan of interventions, but you know, is this a special case?  And we're just -- if you can talk a bit more about that.  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Anyone else on Japan?  

QUESTIONER: Okay, what's the guidance to the BOJ?  Have you given any specific guidance to the BOJ?  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, so I think maybe the way to start with this question is to say that we will actually be starting the Article IV Consultation mission with Japan next week.  So, the Article IV mission will take place between January 22nd and February 6th.  And so, I think, basically, we will be covering, of course, as in any Article IV, we will provide a comprehensive assessment of Japan's economy.  But of course, you know, an exchange rate assessment, external assessment, is part of any Article IV assessment.  So, what I can say right now is that, of course, we take note of the movements in the yen; we don't comment on day-to-day market movements.  And that the Article IV mission will, of course, cover the external sector assessment for Japan as part of the comprehensive overview of the economy and the policy actions that we would recommend to the Japanese authorities to help manage their overall economy.  

Okay, let's go right here.  

QUESTIONER: Thank you for this opportunity.  May I kindly ask whether Ukraine has made a payment to the IMF that was due on January 12 and whether that amount was paid in full?  And may also kindly ask whether the IMF has made any reviews to its previous estimations of Ukraine's financing gap for the next three years and whether there have been any changes to estimations of Russia's real GDPs growth for this year?  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, so maybe let's start with Ukraine to see -- are there other questions on Ukraine?  So right here in the front, and then we go to the back.  

QUESTIONER: Thank you.  I just wanted to follow up on what you mentioned at the top of this meeting.  You talked about MD being in Kyiv for a visit.  Is there any more you can share about what we hope to see coming out of the visit?  I mean, you talked broadly about the meetings that she's having, but other particular outcomes you are looking for?  And will there be any update on the preliminary agreement that was reached in November in terms of the Board consideration, any updates on that front for further assistance?  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, and the woman in the back?  

QUESTIONER:  Yes, following on that question, just if you can specify who [MD] Georgieva will meet during her visit, if she's planning to meet President Zelensky.  And also, on the Executive Board meeting to consider IMF's loan, is it expected for this month?  Thank you so much.  

MS. KOZACK: Anyone online want to come in on Ukraine?  Okay.  All right, so let me first step back on Ukraine to just remind where we are.  

So last November, IMF Staff and Ukrainian authorities reached a Staff-Level Agreement on a new four-year EFF arrangement with potential access of about U.S. $8.1 billion.  The program remains subject to three important elements.  The first is receipt of financing assurances.  

So, with regard to the financing assurances, we welcome the European Council's agreement to provide 90 billion euros in financial support to Ukraine over 2026 and 2027.  This is an important milestone toward closing Ukraine's financing gaps and restoring debt sustainability.  We're in the final stages of discussions with international donors as they seek to secure all of the necessary financing assurances.  

The second element is completion of agreed-upon prior actions.  Staff and the authorities agreed to, well, the authorities have agreed to implement a package of macro critical measures.  So, in addition to enacting the 2026 budget, which was consistent with the program framework, that one is completed.  The other one will be that the tax base will need to be broadened by enacting legislation to tax income earned through digital platforms, closing customs loopholes for consumer goods, and removing exemptions for vat.  So prompt action by the Ukrainian authorities to complete these and other prior actions will be critical to maintaining reform momentum and assisting Ukraine in unlocking financing for its large needs.  

And then the third element is of course, that the Executive Board will, our Executive Board will need to approve the program.  

With respect to the Managing Director's visit, as I think, as you know, she regularly travels to member countries to meet with country authorities and stakeholders.  She last visited Ukraine in February 2023, as discussions were ongoing at the time for the previous IMF-supported program.  We maintain a strong relationship and engagement with Ukraine.  And for this reason, it was important for the Managing Director to visit the country for three reasons.  One is to meet the authorities and other stakeholders.  She wants to understand the key issues as they see it, you know, on the ground.  So having that kind of those discussions will be, will be very important for her.  She will underscore the importance of continuing with the reform momentum in Ukraine.  And the IMF's support for Ukraine to continue that reform momentum.  And the third will be to help coordinate and catalyze financial support for Ukraine from the international community.  

So, having the Managing Director on the ground, having those discussions, and being able to engage in dialogue with international counterparts to catalyze financing will also be critical.  During her visit, she will be meeting with President Zelensky, the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister, and the Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine.  She will also be meeting several representatives from the private sector on the question.  

On the Board meeting, we don't have a Board date.  It will depend on the three elements that I outlined at the beginning.  We are hopeful that we could potentially have a Board meeting in February.  With respect to the size of the financing gap, we currently calculate the financing gap at US$136.5 billion for the duration of the program, 2026 to 2029.  And the financing gap for 2026-27 is around, the residual financing gap for those years is about U.S. $63 billion.  

And with respect to payment, our general practice is not to comment on specific transactions of our member countries.  I would refer you to our website, where we do provide frequent updates to the, what we call financial position of members, which includes payment activity as well as the size of their overall obligations to the IMF.  

I think you also had a question on Russia? 

QUESTIONER: Yeah.  Whether there was any revision to estimations of GDP growth, real GDP growth, this year?

MS. KOZACK: So, for that, I'll just refer you to the upcoming WEO update.  It will be released on Monday, and Russia's revised growth projection will be part of that.  Very good.  Okay, let's go online for a bit.  Why don't you come in?  

QUESTIONER: Thanks, Julie.  Yeah.  I have two questions.  One is, can you confirm when the IMF team will visit Sri Lanka in the coming days?  And my second question, given the parliament approval of the 2026 budget and the 500 billion rupees supplement estimates for disaster recovery and rebuilding, will IMF require -- face assessment before taking the Fifth Review to the Executive Board?  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, you also had a question on Sri Lanka.  

QUESTIONER:  I have already asked.  

MS. KOZACK: Ah, I'm sorry. I see you, but maybe you're frozen.  I can't hear you.  

QUESTIONER:  Hi, Julie.   

MS. KOZACK: Yes, please go ahead.  

QUESTIONER:  The first is Sri Lanka is now gradually recovering from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.  And the IMF program also was pushed back, with RFI being given to the country.  What is the IMF's position on its dialogue with the Sri Lankan authorities, and when can we expect some progress regarding the IMF program?  And secondly, is there going to be any change to the IMF objectives in Sri Lanka's program, especially with the electricity pricing objective?  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay.  Thank you.  Do we have any other questions on Sri Lanka?  Okay, so let me just step back for a moment to say that on December 19th, the IMF Executive Board approved emergency financing for Sri Lanka under the Rapid Financing Instrument, or RFI.  This provided Sri Lanka with immediate access of about U.S. $206 million.  And the RFI is really aimed at helping Sri Lanka address the urgent needs arising from the catastrophic Cyclone Ditwah as the country aims to preserve macroeconomic stability.  

A fact-finding mission will visit Sri Lanka January 22nd to 28th.  The mission, the goal of the mission is to firm up our understanding of the size and the scope of the damage caused by the cyclone.  The team will discuss with the authorities their policy intentions and implications of the impact of the cyclone for the EFF program.  But I would like to underscore that this is a fact-finding mission to enable our team to get a better understanding of the situation on the ground and how we can best support Sri Lanka as it moves forward.  

On your other question on electricity tariffs, I think here what I would say is that, you know, there is a commitment under the program to maintain cost recovery in the utility sector, and that's really important to help ensure fiscal sustainability in Sri Lanka because that would help the utility company to not run financial losses.  What exactly may be needed to support Sri Lanka going forward is something that our fact-finding team will certainly be discussing with the authorities.  And again, our goal is to help Sri Lanka as it recovers from the, you know, catastrophic hurricane and to provide our support in whatever way, in line with our own mandate around helping Sri Lanka maintain macroeconomic stability.  

Okay, let's go to you.  

QUESTIONER: Hi, good morning.  Thank you for taking my question.  Just to follow up on the point you made at the top of this with Dan Katz's visit to Saudi Arabia, are there any other details you could provide at this point, or some of the outcomes that IMF is hoping to get out of this visit?  Thank you.  

MS. KOZACK: Thanks.  I don't have many more details that I can share with you other than to say we have a very robust relationship with Saudi Arabia.  As you know, the Saudi Finance Minister Al Jadaan is also the Chair of the IMFC.  So. And FDMD Katz is having a set -- a series -- of visits.  This one is introductory in nature in many ways to get to know the authorities as he takes on his new role as FDMD to discuss the challenges that the countries face, that the region may face, and how the IMF can best support, in this case, Saudi Arabia.  

And also, I would say just generally to hear from authorities on how they see the Fund playing its role.  So, it's part of several introductory missions and or travels, country visits that he will have as he is taking up his role as FDMD to really get to hear from the membership on -- on how they see the Fund being able to support them.  If we have further information, we will certainly share it with you.  

Okay, let's go back online. 

QUESTIONER:  Hello Julie and all colleagues.  Happy New Year.  

MS. KOZACK: Happy New Year to you.  

QUESTIONER:  Thank you for taking my questions.  I have really actually two questions on Egypt.  The first one is on the Fifth and Sixth Reviews of the EFF and the first review of the RSF.  Since the announcement from the IMF side that there was a Staff-Level Agreement reached, we haven't heard any update on the completion of the three reviews.  So, could you please update us on when we can expect the Executive Board meeting on Egypt's reviews?  And my second question is to what extent the IMF sees that the global shifts that we are witnessing are expected to affect the projections and the estimations of the Fund on the Egyptian economy.  Thank you, Julie.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, thank you.  Do we have any other questions on Egypt?  I have one question here that I'm going to read out loud.  The question is with respect to Egypt's ongoing IMF-supported reform program, could you share the latest updates on the expected timing of the Executive Board's approval of the Fifth and Sixth Reviews and the timing of their tranche's disbursement?  Additionally, when are the Seventh and Eighth Reviews currently anticipated to take place?  

So, on Egypt, on December 22nd, an IMF team and the Egyptian authorities reached staff level agreement on the Fifth and Sixth Reviews under the EFF program and the First Review under the RSF.  What we can say in terms of the Board meeting is we do expect that the Board meeting for these combined reviews to take place in the first quarter of this year.  We don't have any specific date yet, but we will certainly share it once it is confirmed.  

And I think, and then with respect to the question about how global shifts may affect the Egyptian economy, this is a, this is something that, of course, we are constantly monitoring the economic health of all of our members.  What we see is right now, well, so first I would refer everyone to the January WEO.  We have our January WEO update coming in just a few days that will provide our comprehensive assessment of the global economy as well as many of the countries, and it will cover all regions.  So that will give you a sense of how we see the global economy developing.  

But as we have been saying for quite some time, we're in a period of very high uncertainty globally.  And of course, that uncertainty affects individual countries as well.  So, as part of our engagement with Egypt in this case, the team is obviously looking at the impact of uncertainty, how it's affecting the Egyptian economy, how it's affecting the -- Egypt's, you know, access to financing.  We've discussed here, and it's discussed in our Staff Reports, the impact of less traffic through the Suez Canal and how that's affected revenues for Egypt.  So as our team continues to engage with the Egyptian authorities, they will be keeping a careful eye to how global developments are affecting the Egyptian economy, including should there be any major changes to commodity prices or oil prices, or any regional developments that could have an impact on Egypt.  

All right, I think I have time for one more question.  So, I'm going to actually go online because we have a few online.    

QUESTIONER:  Okay, so Ghana and Afreximbank recently announced that they've reached a debt restructuring deal.  But both parties are yet to give any details on the deal.  Can the IMF confirm whether the deal meets the program's debt sustainability parameters, particularly regarding the haircut percentage, maturity extensions, and treatment comparability with other creditors?  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, thank you.  And the other question on Ghana?

QUESTIONER: Thank you, Julie, and Happy New Year.  It has to do with the operations of Ghana's Gold Board.  The Staff reported some 2.214 million Ghana, 2.214 million U.S. dollar loss in its operations.  And given the gains that we have seen so far in terms of FX and our reserves, what would be the end decision on the continuation of the program and this?

MS. KOZACK: Okay, are there any other questions on Ghana?  You have a question on Ghana?

QUESTIONER: Thanks a lot, and thank you for taking it.  There was some controversy where a former governor there had said that it wasn't disclosed that this loss in the Gold for Reserves program was not disclosed.  And it's been pointed out to me maybe it was disclosed, but I wonder what you make of that and the repercussions.  And I did -- I want to ask you one other question, which is a long shot if you'll answer it, but the government of Pakistan has announced a partnership with SC Financial Technologies, which is related to World Liberty, which is the Trump crypto enterprise.  I just wonder, either in Pakistan or more generally, what you make of company -- of countries in making crypto partnerships, trying to sort of have it having a foreign relations or looking for some kind of foreign policy benefit out of it.  Do you have any guidance on those issues?  Thanks.  

MS. KOZACK: Okay, thanks.  So, all right, so let me take the question on Ghana, and then I will say a few words on your question, and then we're going to wrap up.  

Okay, so on Ghana on December 17th, the IMF Executive Board completed the Fifth Review of Ghana's ECF Arrangement.  This allowed for the disbursement of U.S. $365 million, and that brought total disbursements since May 2023 to about U.S. $2.8 billion.  So that's where the program stands.  In addition, at that time, the Board approved a three-month extension of the program.  The extension was purely technical, and it was aimed at allowing sufficient time to complete the Final Review of the program, including an assessment of data for the end of 2025 and the end of the first quarter of 2026.  

On the question on debt, what I can say there is-- that we welcome the agreement in principle reached with Afreximbank in December 2025.  It is in line with the comparability of treatment under the official creditor committee framework, and it is consistent with the objectives and parameters of the IMF-supported program.  So, this marks a crucial step toward completing Ghana's debt restructuring.  

And then on the other question, I had a little bit of trouble hearing the full question, but I think what you are asking about is the losses related to the domestic gold purchase program.  So, I think, and that I think was also related to your question.  So, what I can say on this is that in our Staff Report for the Fifth Review the -- the report acknowledged this program, and it acknowledged and discussed a bit the benefits and the costs of the domestic gold purchase program.  On the benefit side, what we see is a contribution to a buildup of international reserves and reduced pressure on the foreign exchange market during a difficult period for Ghana.  So those were the benefits of the program.  The report also quantified what we call a quasi-fiscal loss.  Quasi-fiscal meaning because it's not on the fiscal balance sheet, but ultimately it is a fiscal loss.  And that loss was $214 million that the team quantified.  The loss stemmed from trading activities, fees, exchange rate movements.  And to help address this, our recommendation is to strengthen transparency, governance, and risk management, especially for the gold BOD-linked channel under this domestic gold purchase program.  We also strongly recommend that the losses should be brought on balance sheet rather than held on the balance sheet of the Central Bank.  

So, on the budget, they should be brought on the budget's balance sheet rather than held on the Central Bank's balance sheet.  And why is this important?  It's important to ensure that the Bank of Ghana remains well-positioned to deliver on its key price stability mandates.  So, it's about, you know, moving something that is quasi fiscal, moving it onto the budget balance sheet.  So, it's transparent, and it also ensures that the Bank of Ghana is able to deliver on its mandate.  

So, with that, I am going to bring this Press Briefing to a close.  Thank you all so much for participating today.  It's been a pleasure to see you all again at the start of the new year.  As a reminder, the briefing is embargoed until 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time in the United States.  A transcript will be made available later today on IMF.org. If we did not have time to get to your questions, please reach out to the media team@mediamf.org or via the Press Center, and we will follow up with you bilaterally.  Thank you all so much and see you next time.  

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