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The United States Government Manual
International Monetary Fund
700 Nineteenth Street NW., Washington, DC 20431
202-623-7000
202-623-4661
http://www.imf.org
| MANAGING DIRECTOR / CHAIR OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD | Kristalina Georgieva |
| FIRST DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR | Gita Gopinath |
Deputy Managing Directors
| Bo Li | |
| Kenji Okamura | |
| Antoinette M. Sayeh |
The International Monetary Fund fosters global monetary cooperation, secures financial stability, facilitates international trade, promotes employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduces poverty worldwide.
ESTABLISHMENT AND ORGANIZATION
The Final Act of the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference, signed at Bretton Woods, NH, on July 22, 1944, set forth the original Articles of Agreement of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Agreement became effective on December 27, 1945, when the President, authorized by the Bretton Woods Agreements Act (22 U.S.C. 286), accepted membership for the United States in the IMF. The inaugural meeting of the Board of Governors was held in March 1946, and the first meeting of the Executive Directors was held May 6, 1946.
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2017-title22/html/USCODE-2017-title22-chap7-subchapXV-sec286.htmOn May 31, 1968, the Board of Governors approved an amendment to the Articles of Agreement for the establishment of a facility based on Special Drawing Rights (SDR) and for modification of certain rules and practices. The amendment became effective on July 28, 1969, and the Special Drawing Account opened on August 6, 1969. The Special Drawing Rights Act (22 U.S.C. 286 et seq.) authorized the United States to accept the amendment and participate in the Special Drawing Account.
https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/Sheets/2016/08/01/14/51/Special-Drawing-Right-SDROn April 30, 1976, the Board of Governors approved a second amendment to the Articles of Agreement, which became effective on April 1, 1978. This amendment gave members the right to adopt exchange arrangements of their choice while placing certain obligations on them regarding their exchange rate policies, which the IMF was to monitor closely. The official price of gold was abolished, and the Special Drawing Account was promoted as the principal reserve asset of the international monetary system. The Bretton Woods Agreements Act Amendments (22 U.S.C. 286e-5) authorized the United States to accept this amendment.
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2017-title22/pdf/USCODE-2017-title22-chap7-subchapXV-sec286e-5.pdfOn June 28, 1990, the Board of Governors approved a third amendment to the Articles of Agreement, which became effective on November 11, 1992. Under this amendment, a member's voting rights and certain related rights may be suspended by a 70-percent majority of the executive board if the member country has been declared ineligible to use the Fund's general resources and persists in its failure to fulfill any of its obligations under the Articles.
The IMF posts its organizational chart online.
https://www.imf.org/external/np/obp/orgcht.htmThe IMF posts an organization chart on its website. A link to the chart is part of the "IMF Senior Officials" web page.
https://www.imf.org/en/About/Organization-ChartACTIVITIES
The IMF has 189 member countries. It promotes international monetary cooperation through a permanent forum for consultation and collaboration on international monetary problems; facilitates the expansion and balanced growth of international trade; promotes exchange rate stability; assists in the establishment of an open multilateral system of payments for current transactions among members; and gives confidence to members by making IMF resources temporarily available to them under adequate safeguards.
The IMF helps member countries correct imbalances in their international balances of payments. It periodically examines the economic developments and policies of its members, offers policy advice, and at a member's request and upon executive board approval, provides financial assistance through a variety of financial facilities designed to address specific problems. These financing mechanisms provide access to the Fund's general resources and offer short-term assistance during crises of market confidence, compensatory financing to countries suffering declines in export earnings, emergency assistance for countries recovering from natural disasters or armed conflict, and low-interest rate resources to support structural adjustment and promote growth in the poorest countries. The IMF also provides technical assistance and training to member countries.
https://www.imf.org/en/AboutSources of Information
A–Z Index
The IMF's website has an alphabetical index to help visitors search for specific topics or browse content that aligns with their interests.
https://www.imf.org/external/siteindex.htmArchives
A catalog of the IMF's archives is available online.
https://archivescatalog.imf.org/search/simpleAt a Glance
Fast facts and an overview of the IMF's founding and mission, governance and organization, and core activities are available on "The IMF at a Glance" web page.
https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/IMF-at-a-GlanceBlog
The IMF's blog offers insightful and analytical posts on economics and finance.
https://blogs.imf.orgBretton Woods Moment
In her video speech of October 15, 2020, Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva spoke of the necessity to seize "this new Bretton Woods moment" (approximately 4:20 into the video). The length of the entire speech is a little over 12 minutes.
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2020/10/15/sp101520-a-new-bretton-woods-momentCareer Opportunities
In addition to economists and research assistants, the IMF relies on professionals with skills and expertise in a range of other fields: communications, facilities management, finance and accounting, human resources, information technology, language services, law, library science and archives, office assistance, procurement, security, and transportation and hospitality. Information on careers, current job vacancies, and recruitment programs is available online.
https://www.imf.org/en/About/RecruitmentClimate Change
CARBON PRICE FLOOR—The IMF counts "Climate Change" as one of its key issues. The IMF's "Climate Change" web page, in its "Highlights" section, features the short video "The Case for an International Carbon Price Floor." The video opens and closes with these words: "Our planet is in trouble . . . . we could have a good shot at keeping the planet livable."
https://www.imf.org/en/Topics/climate-changeMITIGATION—Chapter 3 of the report "World Economic Outlook, October 2020: A Long and Difficult Ascent" is dedicated to the topic of mitigating climate change. As a type of preface to the chapter's introduction, the authors wrote: "Without further action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the planet is on course to reach temperatures not seen in millions of years, with potentially catastrophic implications. [Our analysis] suggests that an initial green investment push combined with steadily rising carbon prices would deliver the needed emission reductions at reasonable transitional global output effects, putting the global economy on a stronger and more sustainable footing over the medium term. Carbon pricing is critical to mitigation because higher carbon prices incentivize energy efficiency besides reallocating resources from high- to low-carbon activities. A green investment push up front would strengthen the macroeconomy in the short term and help lower the costs of adjusting to higher carbon prices. The transitional costs of carbon pricing consistent with net zero emissions by mid-century appear manageable and could be reduced further as new technological innovations develop in response to carbon pricing and green research and development subsidies. Governments can protect those most affected by mitigation by providing targeted cash transfers financed by carbon revenues."
https://www.imf.org/~/media/Files/Publications/WEO/2020/October/English/ch3.ashx?la=enLOW–TECH SEQUESTRATION—"Finance and Development" is the IMF's flagship magazine and electronic editorial platform. The IMF uses the magazine to publish cutting-edge analysis of and insight into the latest trends in economics, development, and international finance, as well as research in those fields. The December 2019 issue (vol. 56, no. 4) of the magazine featured the article "Nature's Solution to Climate Change: A Strategy To Protect Whales Can Limit Greenhouse Gases and Global Warming." Its four authors (R. Chami, T. Cosimano, C. Fullenkamp, S. Oztosun) wrote: "The carbon capture potential of whales is truly startling. Whales accumulate carbon in their bodies during their long lives. When they die, they sink to the bottom of the ocean; each great whale sequesters 33 tons of CO2 on average, taking that carbon out of the atmosphere for centuries. A tree, meanwhile, absorbs only up to 48 pounds of CO2 a year."
https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2019/12/natures-solution-to-climate-change-chami.htmCommodity Prices
The "IMF Primary Commodity Prices" web page offers easy access to data on primary commodity prices, the interactive commodity data portal, and the commodity terms of trade database.
https://www.imf.org/en/Research/commodity-pricesContact Information
Contact information for general, media, and other types of inquiries is available online.
https://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/contacts/contacts.aspx | Email: publicaffairs@imf.orgCountry Information
The IMF is an organization comprising 189 countries that, together, work to promote monetary cooperation, financial stability, international trade, employment and sustainable economic growth, and to reduce poverty. An alphabetical index of the participating countries and information on those countries are available on the IMF's website.
https://www.imf.org/en/CountriesData
The IMF publishes data on IMF lending, exchange rates, and other economic and financial indicators.
https://www.imf.org/en/DataGender
The IMF counts the division along gender lines in labor markets worldwide as one of its six key issues.
https://www.imf.org/external/themes/genderGlossary
The IMF maintains an online glossary of financial terms and acronyms.
https://www.imf.org/en/About/glossaryHistory
James M. Boughton's "Silent Revolution: The International Monetary Fund 1979–1989" is accessible online.
https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/history/2001/index.htmA chronological history of the IMF is available online.
https://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/chron/chron.aspInflation
RISK OF UNMOORED INFLATION EXPECTATIONS—The IMF's "Chart of the Week" blog post for 27 April 2022 was written by Jorge Alvarez and Philip Barrett. The authors concluded their post "Inflation to be Elevated for Longer on War, Demand, Job Markets" with the following: "[S]urging prices will have the greatest effects on vulnerable populations, particularly in low-income countries. High overall inflation will also complicate the trade-offs for central banks between containing price pressures and safeguarding growth. . . . While our baseline expectation is that inflation will eventually ease, inflation could turn out higher for several reasons. Worsening supply-demand imbalances . . . and further commodity-price gains could keep the pace of inflation persistently high. Moreover, both the [Ukraine] war and renewed pandemic flare-ups could prolong supply disruptions, further increasing costs of intermediate inputs. In a context of tight labor markets, nominal wage growth could also accelerate to catch up with consumer-price inflation as workers seek higher wages to preserve their purchasing power. This would further intensify and broaden inflation pressures, with the risk of de-anchoring inflation expectations."
https://blogs.imf.org/2022/04/27/inflation-to-be-elevated-for-longer-on-war-demand-job-marketsCENTRAL BANK INFLATION TARGETS—In the IMF blog post "War Dims Global Economic Outlook as Inflation Accelerates" (19 APR 2022), Economic Counsellor and Director of Research Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas wrote: "Inflation has become a clear and present danger for many countries. Even prior to the war, it surged on the back of soaring commodity prices and supply-demand imbalances. Many central banks, such as the Federal Reserve, had already moved toward tightening monetary policy. War-related disruptions amplify those pressures. We now project inflation will remain elevated for much longer. In the United States and some European countries, it has reached its highest level in more than 40 years, in the context of tight labor markets. The risk is rising that inflation expectations drift away from central bank inflation targets, prompting a more aggressive tightening response from policymakers. Furthermore, increases in food and fuel prices may also significantly increase the prospect of social unrest in poorer countries."
https://blogs.imf.org/2022/04/19/war-dims-global-economic-outlook-as-inflation-acceleratesLanguage Resources
The IMF provides information on its website in Arabic, Chinese, French, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. Language tags are visible at the top and bottom of the IMF's home page.
https://www.imf.orgNews
The IMF posts podcasts, newsworthy items about various countries, and the latest news on its website.
https://www.imf.org/en/newsThe "What's New Archive" allows easy access to recently posted items of interest.
https://www.imf.org/en/Whats-New-ArchivePublications
The IMF's "Finance and Development" magazine and "Fiscal Monitor" biannual report are available online in Portable Document Format (PDF). Its "New and Noteworthy" newsletter and other publications are also accessible online.
https://www.imf.org/en/publicationsSite Map
The IMF site map allows visitors to look for specific topics or to browse for content that aligns with their interests.
https://www.imf.org/external/sitemap.htmSocial Media
The "IMF Social Hub" allows easy access to the IMF's Facebook page, Instagram photos and videos, LinkedIn account, Tweets and replies, and YouTube channel.
https://www.imf.org/en/Social-HubSpecial Drawing Rights (SDRs)
A 5-minute video explaining the SDR, the international reserve asset that the IMF created to supplement the official reserves of its member countries, is available online.
https://www.imf.org/external/mmedia/view.aspx?vid=5027851809001U.S. Economy
On July 22, 2021, the IMF published its "United States: 2021 Article IV Consultation." The staff report for the consultation noted that "The new administration's policies have put the U.S. economy on a strong footing. An effective vaccine rollout has put the number of new COVID–19 cases on a firmly downward path. At the same time, unprecedented fiscal support is quickly restoring the economy back to full employment and generating positive outward spillovers to the world economy. These efforts have not been costless: the path for public debt is far higher; the current account deficit has grown; and very accommodative financial conditions have led to increased corporate and nonbank leverage and rising valuations across a range of assets. The pandemic continues to weigh heavily on those at the lower end of the income distribution, exposing longstanding inequities in access to quality healthcare and education (many of which have an important gender and racial dimension)."
https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/CR/Issues/2021/07/22/United-States-2021-Article-IV-Consultation-Press-Release-Staff-Report-and-Statement-by-the-462540Videos
The IMF posts videos in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish on its website.
https://www.imf.org/en/videos/index