São Paulo – The managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde, said this Friday (23rd) in the United States that the stimuli adopted by central banks to fend off the economic crisis have succeeded in preventing a widespread depression. However, said Lagarde, the withdrawal of these stimuli over the next few months may lead the world down “an unknown path.”
The incentives mentioned by Lagarde, who spoke at a meeting held by the Fed, the American Central Bank, include the purchase of assets carried out by the Central Bank of the United Kingdom, refinancing projects adopted by the European Central Bank, and measures implemented by the Fed which even helped boost global production at a time of great economic instability.
She noted that a bankruptcy seen in the United States in 2008 brought the world economy “to its knees” and that problems in the Eurozone “shook” the world economy shortly thereafter. Although she did not mention any particular country, Lagarde said there currently is a concern regarding the slowdown of economies of emerging countries, which may affect growth elsewhere.
Although she recognized that central banks were “heroes” in taking bold measures in large scale, Lagarde warned that all efforts may have not sufficed. “We need lines of defence that reflect our interdependence, our common purpose, and our mutual responsibility for the global economy,” she said, suggesting that the actions to be taken in order for economic stimuli to be removed must be a concerted effort between countries and monetary authorities.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
