At a time when multilateral institutions stand on increasingly shaky ground, members of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to maintain its funding at $ 1 trillion but postponed changes to its voting structure. “I welcome this high-level endorsement, which demonstrates the strong support for our membership for the Fund’s mission,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said. “We will continue to work closely with our membership in the period ahead to ensure full implementation of this package.”Deal Doesn’t Change QuotasSpecifically, the agreed package will leave IMF quotas (the primary source of IMF funds), which determine voting shares, unchanged. IMF quotas are distributed according to a four pronged formula that considers a member country’s GDP, its economic openness, its “economic variability” and international reserves. The 15th quota review is currently underway.

Source: The Hindu October 19, 2019 18:22 UTC