Asian significance of IMF meeting
By Eric Teo Chu Cheow (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-09-22 14:14
The United States, supported by European countries, called for the IMF to
have an "expanded role" over its 184 members, including on the sensitive issue
of exchange rates. China's position, as expressed by Chinese Central Bank
Governor Zhou Xiaochuan to the Steering Committee over the weekend, was that the
Fund's surveillance should not focus solely on a country's exchange rate.
More importantly, there appears to be widespread Asian support for the
Chinese position on its progressive re-evaluation of the renminbi according to
market forces, as US and European pressure increases. Instead, Asian countries
have become more and more alarmed by the huge deficits chalked up by the
American economy, although they realize that their own economic growth is tied
closely to sound US consumption.
Also key to the debate in Singapore was the Asian grouse that the United
States and Europe have cornered the two financial institutions, when the heads
of the IMF and World Bank must necessarily hail from Europe and the United
States respectively, leaving no room for an Asian to attain high office in
either. They have pointed to a Goldman Sachs report predicting that Asia will
contain three of the four top economies in the world by 2050 which would be
China, the United States, India and Japan, in that order.
In Singapore, Asia staked its claim on the world financial stage, in the
hopes that further reforms would ultimately be made in favour of Asia.
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