## Press Briefing Transcript: Julie Kozack, Director, Communications Department, September 10, 2026

_IMF News, September 10, 2026_

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## Bibliographic details
- Published: September 10, 2026

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### Announcements and logistical items
- Managing Director travel:
  - September 18th and 19th: informal meeting of EU Economy Finance Ministers in Dublin (Irish Presidency).
  - Week of September 21st: New York for the 81st UN General Assembly with events and bilateral meetings.
- Deputy Managing Directors travel:
  - Dan Katz: El Salvador on September 17th.
  - Nigel Clark: India (New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai) this week; Colombia on September 24th and 25th.
  - Kenji Okamura: Tokyo on September 17th and 18th for the 15th IMF Japan High-Level Tax Conference for Asian Countries.
- Registration reminder: 2026 IMF and World Bank Group Annual Meetings, Bangkok, Thailand, October 12th to 18th; register through IMFConnect.org.
- Press briefing embargo: embargoed until 11 a.m. Eastern Time in the United States.

### Senegal — program, debt treatment, and timing
- Staff-Level Agreement and program design:
  - IMF Staff and Senegalese authorities reached a Staff-Level Agreement on September 2nd.
  - Proposed arrangement: a new three-year Extended Credit Facility, ECF, arrangement worth about U.S. $2.2 billion.
  - Agreement subject to approval by IMF management and the Executive Board.
- Program objectives and pillars:
  - Restore the sustainability of Senegal's public finances while protecting vulnerable households.
  - Pillars under the program include:
    - Restoring fiscal sustainability via strengthened domestic resource mobilization and streamlined expenditures.
    - Reinforcing social safety nets through a targeted cash transfer system to protect the most vulnerable.
    - Enhancing fiscal governance: improved debt management, stronger monitoring of domestic arrears, improved oversight of state-owned enterprises.
    - Structural reforms to underpin fiscal strategy, including a medium-term revenue strategy planned for 2027.
    - Reforms to enhance private sector-led growth and promote financial inclusion.
- Role of debt treatment and the G20 Common Framework:
  - Authorities announced intention to undertake a debt treatment of Senegal's external debt; IMF welcomes use of the G20 Common Framework and stands ready to support the process.
  - The Common Framework is presented as a coordination mechanism for creditors; it does not imply a specific type of debt treatment but aims to make restructuring more orderly and timely.
  - IMF can use its good offices, where both parties agree, to help bring creditors and debtors together.
- Interaction of program approval and ongoing debt discussions:
  - IMF policy allows the Staff-Level Agreement and program to be brought to the Executive Board for consideration while Senegal continues discussions with creditors on debt restructuring.
  - If the Executive Board approves the program, IMF financing would be made available to help meet immediate needs (public services and priority spending) even as debt discussions continue.
  - Timing and duration of creditor negotiations are matters for Senegal and its creditors; IMF does not speculate on how long restructuring will take.
- Disbursement timing and amounts:
  - After Staff-Level Agreement: internal IMF management review → report shared with Executive Board → Board meeting to consider and approve the program.
  - If approved, Senegal would receive a first disbursement that is a portion of the proposed U.S. $2.2 billion; no Board date available at the time of the briefing.
- Oil revenues and fiscal impact:
  - Higher global oil prices are currently adding additional pressure to Senegal's public finances because Senegal has untargeted energy subsidies; as oil prices rise, subsidy-related fiscal outlays rise.
  - Program reforms aim to support transparent management of public resources, create space for priority spending, implement targeted social protection, and improve the business environment to support diversification.

### Debt sustainability analysis (DSA) and financing gaps
- IMF role:
  - Prepare the debt sustainability analysis and work with the authorities on the macroeconomic framework and policies underpinning the program.
  - The program accounting will consider IMF financing, donor financing, and any financing from debt restructuring to ensure no remaining financing gaps.
- DSA vintage:
  - Which precise vintage of the LIC DSF will be used for the DSA was not specified at the briefing; IMF to follow up.
- Liquidity pressures in low-income and sub-Saharan African countries:
  - IMF notes stabilized or declining debt levels in the group, but mounting liquidity pressures related to debt service and financing availability.
  - Drivers include reductions in ODA and increases in yields in advanced economies.
  - IMF and World Bank three-pillar approach is being applied to help countries address near-term liquidity pressures.

### Global economic outlook and risks
- Near-term global performance:
  - IMF remains on track for world growth of around 3 percent.
  - Uncertainty remains high due to opposing forces: a negative supply shock from elevated energy and commodity prices and a positive demand shock from an AI-led technology cycle.
- Inflation and public debt:
  - Global public debt is nearly 100 percent of GDP, the highest level since World War II; public debt is set to climb further globally.
  - July WEO: global headline inflation for 2026 was revised to 4.7 percent; core inflation projection broadly unchanged at that time.
  - Disinflation from the 2022 Cost of Living crisis has stalled; inflation expectations have risen for the year but remain well anchored longer-term.
- Bond yields and term premia:
  - 10-year sovereign bond yields for key advanced economies are at their highest levels for quite some time; a U.S. 10-year tenor hit its highest level since 2023 (noted in briefing).
  - Rising benchmark yields increase borrowing costs globally; even with compressed country spreads, higher benchmarks raise overall sovereign funding costs.
- Policy guidance:
  - IMF advice to central banks: remain focused on their price stability mandate.
  - IMF advice to fiscal authorities: adopt credible medium-term fiscal consolidation plans; consolidation need not be immediate but should be clearly laid out.
  - Priority also on structural reforms to lift growth, remove barriers, and broaden growth to improve fiscal sustainability.

### Selected country updates and data points
- India:
  - Real GDP in Q2 grew by 7.8 percent; outturn above IMF Staff expectations and consensus, driven by stronger-than-expected services activity and exports.
  - Q2 GDP release incorporated a new index of industrial production and a new producer price index series; IMF welcomes modernization of macroeconomic statistics.
  - IMF to announce updated forecasts at the October World Economic Outlook.
- Argentina:
  - Notable progress: two consecutive years of primary fiscal surpluses for the first time in 15 years; inflation around 30 percent; growth resumed; poverty reduced; reserves being rebuilt.
  - Household debt is about 8 percent of GDP (relatively low); banks are well capitalized and liquid; bank provisions cover more than 85 percent of non-performing loans.
  - Policy priorities: rebuild reserve buffers, reduce financing risks, preserve fiscal anchor, strengthen policy frameworks, broaden growth beyond energy, mining, and agriculture via infrastructure tendering and market/debt development.
- Angola:
  - Growth held around 3.1 percent; inflation eased to about 10.9 percent.
  - Higher energy prices have strengthened Angola’s external position and market access.
  - IMF supports domestic debt market development and advises prudent debt management and reforms to strengthen macroeconomic stability.
  - IMF post-financing assessment concluded on September 9th; assessment expected to be presented to the Executive Board in November.
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC):
  - IMF concluded Article IV in late June and completed the Third Review under the ECF and the Second Review under the RSF, unlocking new disbursements totaling about U.S. $350 million.
  - Growth projections in Staff Reports (published in late June): 5.6 percent in 2026 and 5.5 percent in 2027 (to be updated in October WEO).
  - Public debt: about 20 percent of GDP; external debt: about 13 percent of GDP. Debt low, but DRC has low debt-carrying capacity; IMF continues to monitor fiscal risks, including those tied to state-owned enterprises and mining-related obligations.

### Cross-cutting issues, governance, and institutional direction
- IMF internal reviews and adaptation:
  - IMF is completing five major policy reviews to ensure lending and surveillance remain fit for purpose in a world of high uncertainty and global transformations (reviews include conditionality, surveillance, and LIC DSA among others).
  - Much of this work will be discussed at the Annual Meetings in Bangkok.
- Social protection and conditionality:
  - IMF notes longstanding emphasis on protecting vulnerable groups in programs: all programs contain social spending floors and attention to targeted protection.
  - IMF emphasizes domestic resource mobilization, improving revenue-to-GDP ratios, developing domestic capital markets, and making spending more efficient, transparent, and targeted.
- Geopolitical and policy environment:
  - IMF welcomes high-level engagement between the two largest economies (U.S. and China) and regards such dialogue as positive for global economic stability.
  - IMF monitoring of developments related to the Middle East war, sanctions, and disruptions to energy shipments (e.g., ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz) is ongoing; these factors add to energy-price-related risks.

*Transcript: Press Briefing Transcript: Julie Kozack, Director, Communications Department, September 10, 2026 — IMF Communications Department*

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