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IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva did not mention the new conflict at opening events. The inability to respond extended to chair's statements issued by the Group of 20 major economies and the IMF and World Bank steering committees, which failed to mention the conflict. "You know, without peace, it's hard for people to get stability, growth, look after their children, get jobs," he said. But conflicts remain the biggest challenge to the global economy, said Josh Lipsky, a former IMF official who directs the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center. "Geopolitical shocks are economic shocks now and economic shocks are geopolitical shocks - and they're trying to detach the two."

Persons: Kristalina Georgieva, that's, Rachel Nadelman, Joe Biden, China's Xi, Ajay Banga, Josh Lipsky, Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Giles Elgood Organizations: Global, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, IMF, West Bank, Reuters, Research Center, Group, GeoEconomics, Thomson Locations: MARRAKECH, Morocco, Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, United States, China, Bali, Africa

The Group of 20 major economies did reach consensus on an official communique but omitted any mention of the Israel-Hamas war. Senior World Bank Group officials were more pointed in a statement to staff, saying they were "shocked and appalled by the unprecedented escalation of violence in Israel and Gaza." "We condemn terrorism in all forms, including the abhorrent targeting of innocent civilians and kidnapping," the leaders of the World Bank, the International Finance Corp and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, said in an internal statement seen by Reuters. "Geopolitical shocks are economic shocks now and economic shocks are geopolitical shocks - and they're trying to detach the two." Reporting by Andrea Shalal and David Lawder; Editing by Giles Elgood and Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Kristalina Georgieva, that's, Rachel Nadelman, Joe Biden, China's Xi, Ajay Banga, Josh Lipsky, Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Giles Elgood, Stephen Coates Organizations: Global, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, IMF, West Bank, Reuters, Research Center, U.S, Treasury, Bank Group, International Finance Corp, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, GeoEconomics, Thomson Locations: MARRAKECH, Morocco, Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, United States, China, Africa

"This is something that we have been constantly looking at, and using information that becomes available to tighten sanctions," she said. SOFT LANDING 'NOT ... I'm not saying soft landing is an absolutely sure thing. But I continue to think it's the most likely path," due to the resilience in the labour market and moderating wage pressure, Yellen told a briefing. Yellen said Washington was monitoring the potential economic impact of the escalating conflict, though it was unlikely a major driver of the global outlook.

Persons: Janet Yellen, Yellen, Biden, Washington, Ajay Banga, Banga, Antony Blinken, there’s, I'm, Andrea Shalal, Chizu Organizations: . Treasury, Hamas, Israel, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Ukraine, Israeli, World, Thomson Locations: MARRAKECH, Morocco, Israel, Palestinian, United States, Gaza, Iran, U.S, IRAN, Washington, Qatar, Ukraine

An internal World Bank memo seen by Reuters cited a "devastating loss of life, destruction and heavy toll on civilians being incurred on both sides," but voiced support for the lender's work in Gaza and the West Bank. The World Bank and our development partners have long worked to support the poorest, most vulnerable people in the West Bank and Gaza, and we remain committed to building the foundations for a more stable and sustainable future." The Oct. 9-15 annual meetings in Marrakech are expected to focus heavily on increasing resources for the IMF and the World Bank, both potentially contentious moves. World Bank Chief Economist Indermit Gill told Reuters that he worried the violence could overshadow important discussions at the IMF-World Bank meetings about sovereign debt, mediocre growth prospects and the big setback for development caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. On Sunday night, Georgieva participated in a "friendly" soccer match with World Bank President Ajay Banga and members of Morocco's Atlas Lions club attended by children from damaged mountain villages.

Persons: Anna Bjerde, Indermit Gill, It's, Eric LeCompte, LeCompte, Gill, Kristalina Georgieva, Georgieva, Ajay Banga, Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Jon Boyle, Bernadette Baum, Andrea Ricci Organizations: Bank, International Monetary Fund, Reuters, West Bank, World Bank, IMF, Jubilee USA, Morocco's Atlas Lions, Thomson Locations: MARRAKECH, Morocco, Israel, Gaza, Marrakech, Russia, Ukraine

A participant stands near a logo of IMF at the International Monetary Fund - World Bank Annual Meeting 2018 in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, October 12, 2018. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said China, the world's largest sovereign creditor, has been a roadblock to debt relief. IMF member countries will discuss the crisis lender's shareholding structure at annual meetings in Morocco next week. The U.S. is pushing instead for IMF member countries to agree to contribute more funds to boost lending firepower, but keeping the U.S.-dominated shareholding structure unchanged. Without naming China, he said this would include doing more on debt relief and providing more exchange rate transparency -- longstanding Treasury criticisms of Beijing.

Persons: Johannes P, Nancy Lee, Janet Yellen, Lee, Jay Shambaugh, Shambaugh, Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Andrea Ricci Organizations: IMF, International Monetary Fund, REUTERS, Rights, International Monetary, U.S, Treasury, Center for Global Development, U.S . Treasury, Thomson Locations: Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, U.S, China, Morocco, India, Brazil, Beijing

The Fund will strongly urge Beijing to shift its growth model away from debt-fueled infrastructure investment and real estate, she said. "Our advice to China is use your policy space in a way that helps you shift your growth model towards more domestic consumption," Georgieva said. "We actually project that without structural reforms, medium term growth in China can fall below 4%," Georgieva said. ANEMIC GLOBAL GROWTHThe IMF is preparing to issue a new set of global growth forecasts ahead of IMF and World Bank annual meetings Oct. 9-15. With China generating about a third of global growth this year, its growth rate "matters to Asia, and it matters to the rest of the world," Georgieva said.

Persons: Yuri Gripas, Kristalina Georgieva, Georgieva, Gina Raimondo's, Andrea Shalal, David Lawder, Chris Reese, Tom Hogue Organizations: Monetary Fund, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, IMF, World Bank, U.S . Commerce, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, China, Beijing, United States, Europe, Morocco, Asia

She will warn about "the global impact of this standoff and highlight the need to avoid default," a senior Treasury official said. It will lead to a freeze in global financial markets," said Muehleisen, now a fellow with the Atlantic Council. G7 counterparts will question Yellen "about the financial stability risks in the U.S., the regional banks' exposure to commercial real estate. Real risks that are not manufactured for political posturing," said Stephanie Segal, a former U.S. Treasury official who is a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. The far more complicated "Pillar 1" plan to allow countries to tax global technology giants and other highly profitable corporations on their local sales is still under negotiation.

"There are a variety of different options, but there are no good options. "The only option that really leaves our economy in good shape - and our financial system - is raising the debt ceiling." "It's trusted, and it is the ultimate safe asset and a failure to raise the debt ceiling, impairing the U.S. credit rating, would put that at risk. Yellen told lawmakers last week that Treasury will likely be unable to pay all the government's bills as early as June 1 without an increase in the federal debt limit. Because the government spends more than it takes in, lawmakers must periodically raise the debt ceiling.

The election came after World Bank board members interviewed Banga for four hours on Monday. Biden congratulated Banga on his "resounding approval" to run the World Bank, which he described as "one of humanity’s most critical institutions to reduce poverty and expand prosperity around the globe." "Ajay Banga will be a transformative leader, bringing expertise, experience, and innovation to the position of World Bank President," Biden said. "The Board looks forward to working with Mr. Banga on the World Bank Group Evolution process, as discussed at the April 2023 Spring Meetings, and on all the World Bank Group’s ambitions and efforts aimed at tackling the toughest development challenges facing developing countries," the bank said. The World Bank has been led by an American since its founding at the end of World War Two, while the International Monetary Fund has been led by a European.

Banga, 63, was nominated for the post by U.S. President Joe Biden in late February and was the sole contender to replace departing World Bank chief David Malpass, an economist and former U.S. Treasury official during the Trump administration. Sources familiar with the process said they expect Banga to win the board's approval handily after several meetings with board members in recent weeks and a formal interview on Monday. One of the sources said Banga had impressed World Bank shareholders in recent weeks as a "true change maker" who will help accelerate reforms at the global development bank. The World Bank has been led by an American since its founding at the end of World War Two, while the International Monetary Fund has been led by a European. Banga, who was born in India and spent his early career there, has been a U.S. citizen since 2007.

On Wednesday, Group of Seven (G7) finance leaders pledged to give low- and middle-income countries a bigger role in diversifying supply chains to make them more resilient and sustainable. It's one of the key reasons that the IMF predicts the global economy will stay mired in low-growth mode for years. Georgieva said policymakers might have to accept that development of new, more separated supply chains would involve some cost. "Security of supplies and the reliable functioning of global supply chains is taking a new, higher priority seat in economic discussions," she said, citing the impact of both the COVID pandemic and the war in Ukraine. But he drew a distinction between "de-risking" supply chains and "de-coupling" from China.

WASHINGTON, April 13 (Reuters) - Senior officials from the United States, Europe and Britain met on Thursday with financial institutions to brief them on efforts by Russia to evade Western sanctions imposed over its invasion of Ukraine, a senior U.S. Treasury official told reporters. The firms - from the United States, Britain and Europe - assured the officials that they were working hard to avert Russian efforts to evade sanctions and export controls, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Washington on Wednesday imposed sanctions on over 120 targets, including entities linked to Russian state-held energy company Rosatom and firms based in partner nations like Turkey in a sign of stepped-up enforcement. Treasury's top sanctions official, Undersecretary Brian Nelson, will visit Switzerland next week to discuss further moves to crack down on sanctions evasion, with additional stops in Italy, Austria and Germany, Reuters reported last week. Elizabeth Rosenberg, Treasury's assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crime, will travel separately to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters) - China is expected to drop its demand for multilateral development banks to share losses alongside other creditors in sovereign debt restructurings for poor countries, breaking a major roadblock to debt relief, a source familiar with the plans said on Tuesday. The development is expected at a high-level sovereign debt roundtable on Wednesday on the sidelines of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund Spring meetings in Washington. She also said the World Bank was being asked to show how it could be a net positive provider of financing and concessional loans. She added that an April 3 deputies meeting for the sovereign debt roundtable went well. DEBT DISCUSSIONSThe IMF, World Bank and India, current president of the G20, are co-chairing the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable with a goal of accelerating debt relief for countries in need.

WASHINGTON, April 11 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Tuesday she is optimistic China will agree on certain technical aspects of debt restructuring for poor countries during the first full-fledged meeting of a sovereign debt roundtable of creditor and debtor countries. "I've been encouraged by China's willingness to provide specific assurances with respect to Sri Lanka. I regard that as a positive sign," Yellen told a news conference at the start of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings. "I'm hopeful that we will actually get a bit of progress coming out of this first meeting of the sovereign debt roundtable on a set of technical issues that I think pertain to some important elements of debt restructuring," she said. The IMF, World Bank and India, current president of the G20, are co-chairing the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable with a goal of accelerating debt relief for countries in need.

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund said on Friday its executive board approved a four-year $15.6 billion loan program for Ukraine, part of a global $115 billion package to support the country's economy as it battles Russia's 13-month-old invasion. The Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan is the first major conventional financing program approved by the IMF for a country involved in a large-scale war. Ukraine's previous, $5 billion long-term IMF program was canceled in March 2022 when the fund provided $1.4 billion in emergency financing with few conditions. The latest loan is expected to unlock about $100 billion worth of additional international support for Ukraine. An IMF official said the $115 billion package includes the IMF loan, $80 billion in pledges for grants and concessional loans from multilateral institutions and other countries, and $20 billion worth of debt relief commitments.

[1/5] David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group, arrives for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (not in picture) at Kishida's official residence in Tokyo, Japan September 13, 2022. REUTERS/Issei Kato/PoolWASHINGTON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - David Malpass, president of the World Bank, unexpectedly said he would resign in June on Wednesday, leaving open a job that oversees billions of dollars of funding and has a direct impact on poverty, climate change preparation, emergency aid and other issues in developing countries around the globe. RAJIV SHAShah is the former USAID administrator under Obama and currently president of the Rockefeller Foundation, a philanthropic group that says it aims to "promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world." The foundation recently partnered with the U.S. State Department on a carbon offset program at COP27, the international climate conference. MINOUCHE SHAFIKShafik is an Egypt-born, British American economist who is currently president of the London School of Economics and has served as deputy governor of the Bank of England and deputy managing director of the IMF.

They issued a joint statement after the third ministerial-level of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) vowed to work constructively to resolve it. EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis on Monday called the $430 billion U.S. Inflation Reduction Act discriminatory and urged steps be taken before year's end to modify the law. It offers consumers tax credits of $7,500 for new purchases of Tesla (TSLA.O), Ford (F.N) and other North American-made EVs that the EU fears will significantly hurt European. Other participants included U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager. During a state visit to Washington last week, French President Emmanuel Macron told broadcaster CBS it was a "job killer" for Europe.

Georgieva told the Reuters NEXT conference that she was particularly concerned about the slowdown in China because the world's second-largest economy has been a strong engine of global growth. International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva attends a news conference following a meeting at the Federal Chancellery in Berlin, Germany November 29, 2022. REUTERS/Michele TantussiThe IMF in October cut its global growth forecast for 2023 to 2.7%, compared to a 2.9% forecast in July, amid colliding pressures from the war in Ukraine, high energy and food prices, inflation and sharply higher interest rates, warning that conditions could worsen significantly next year. At the time, the IMF put a 25% probability of global growth falling below 2% next year - a phenomenon that has occurred only five times since 1970 - and said there was a more than 10% chance of a global GDP contraction. Reporting by Andrea Shalal and David Lawder; Editing by Andrea RicciOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - U.S. and Western officials are finalizing plans to impose a cap on Russian oil prices amid a warning from the World Bank that any plan will need active participation of emerging market economies to be effective. Bloomberg also reported South Korea had privately told G7 nations it planned to comply and G7 officials were also trying to bring New Zealand and Norway on board. DOWNWARD PRESSUREWestern diplomats say the price cap is already giving India and other buyers of Russian oil better leverage in negotiations with Moscow, enabling them to secure good discounts. It noted Russia has said it will not trade with countries participating in the price cap. U.S. officials say the price cap will be policed by attestations taken from buyers in local jurisdictions.

WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday said the global economy was facing "significant headwinds" and the United States was working to shore up its supply chains and guard against "geopolitical coercion" by Russia, China and others. "We know the cost of Russia's weaponization of trade as a tool of geopolitical coercion, and we must mitigate similar vulnerabilities to countries like China," Yellen said, underscoring Washington's determination to hold Russia accountable for its invasion of Ukraine and its initial blockade of food and energy shipments from the country. "Friend-shoring is not meant to be a tiny handful of countries. It's something that's meant to (gain) diversity...but still get the benefits of trade," Yellen said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Andrea Shalal and Dan Burns; Editing by Mark Porter and Sam HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON, Oct 10 (Reuters) - World Bank President David Malpass and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned on Monday of a growing risk of global recession and said inflation remained a continuing problem after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "There's a risk and real danger of a world recession next year," Malpass said in a dialogue with Georgieva at the start of the first in-person meetings of the two institutions since the COVID-19 pandemic. He cited slowing growth in advanced economies and currency depreciation in many developing countries, as well as ongoing inflation concerns. Georgieva said the IMF will be advocating this week for central banks to continue their efforts to contain inflation, despite the negative impact on growth. Fiscal measures should be "well targeted" to ensure they did not add more "fuel to the flames of inflation."

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