I.M.F. lending at issue

Press, Volume CXVI, Issue 34045, 8 January 1976, Page 9

I.M.F. lending at issue

i lA Z. Press Assn—Copyright) , KINGSTON (Jamaica), January 7. The United States! might agree to some temporary increase ini lending to needy nations) by the International .Monetary Fund, but only if strict conditions were attached, a U.S. TreasuryDepartment official said in Kingston today. A proposal to increase the) Fund’s regular lending facili-i ties by about one-third for: one vear had been made at the Ministerial talks on world finance by Mr Johannes Witteveen. the managingdirector of the 1.M.F.. accord-

jing to the Dutch Minister of! • Finance (Mr Willem Duisen-j (berg), who says that the lend-i ling would be expanded until! Jan increase in the quota, or) ; contributions, of membermations of the Fund take effect, probably in about a (year. I The increase in quotas is! •expected to add about $12.000m to the lending resources of the Fund, to which 128 countries belong. Officials are uncertain howmuch a temporary increase in lending would amount to. (but it certainly wrnuld be [more than 81000 m. ; Both the increase in quotas and the temporary expansion of lending facilities will he considered by the Fund’s! interim committee. which will meet tomorrow. Agree-

[ment on the quota increase is) considered certain. Mr Duisenberg has indicated to reporters that the United States and West Germany were the lone "holdouts” against the lending increase during a preliminary meeting of the Finance Minis-! ters of 10 leading industrial! nations known as the Group; of 10.