Tag Archives: International Monetary Fund

Letter bomb at IMF’s Paris office injures employee

Police outside the International Monetary Fund (IMF) offices where an envelope exploded in Paris, France, March 16, 2017. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

PARIS (Reuters) – A female employee of the International Monetary Fund was injured in the face and arms on Thursday when a letter bomb posted to the world lender’s Paris office blew up as she opened it, police said.

The explosion was caused by a homemade device, said the head of the French capital’s police force.

“It was something that was fairly homemade,” police chief Michel Cadot told reporters.

Cadot said there had been some recent telephone threats but it was not clear if these were linked to the incident at the IMF’s offices.

A police source said the woman who opened the letter suffered burns on her face and arms but her life was not in danger.

Separately, at least two people were injured in a shooting at a high school in the small southern French town of Grasse, a police source said.

France, which is in the middle of a presidential campaign ahead of elections in six weeks time, has been hit by attacks by Islamist groups in the last few years that have killed scores of people and the country is still in a state of emergency with army units patrolling the streets of Paris.

A militant Greek group, Conspiracy of Fire Cells, claimed responsibility for a parcel bomb mailed to German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble on Wednesday, but there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the Paris bomb.

The IMF has been involved in discussions between Greece and its international creditors on disbursing new loans to Athens under a bailout program.

President Francois Hollande said French authorities would do all they could to find those responsible.

IMF chief Christine Lagarde condemned the explosion as “a cowardly act of violence.”

“I … reaffirm the IMF’s resolve to continue our work in line with our mandate. We are working closely with the French authorities to investigate this incident and ensure the safety of our staff,” she said.

(Reporting by Sophie Louet and Bate Felix; Writing by Adrian Croft and John Irish; Editing by Richard Balmforth)

Greece PM Fighting With Own Parliament Over Bailout Deal

While much of the world celebrated a bailout deal that would keep Greece from entering into bankruptcy and a forced exit from the Euro, the country’s Prime Minister found himself facing a hostile and combative Parliament.

Greece’s PM Alexis Tsipras spent all day Tuesday in contentious meetings with his own party’s members of parliament and the conflict was so severe it was possible he would need to form a new national unity government to get the bailout passed for the nation.

The deal is critical for the nation as they missed a second debt repayment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) putting them further behind in their debt load.

Over 2 million euro are owned to the IMF by Greece as of Monday.

The nation’s banks have been closed since June 29th and without the deal there is no indication when they could re-open.  Heavy restrictions on ATM transactions remain in place.

The IMF surprised many observers today by releasing a report on the bailout agreement stating the country needs “massively more” debt relief than admitted by eurozone officials.

“The dramatic deterioration in debt sustainability points to the need for debt relief on a scale that would need to go well beyond what has been under consideration to date – and what has been proposed by the ESM,” the IMF stated.

Greece Given Until End of the Week For Economic Proposal

Greece has until the end of the week.

That’s the message being sent by European leaders who are meeting to discuss the nation’s rejection of austerity measures and bailout terms to help the country out of their default to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The deadline comes after a heated meeting Tuesday among members of the European Union.  If there is not an acceptable proposal on Sunday, Greece could be ejected from the Eurozone.

“The stark reality is that we only have five days to find the ultimate agreement,” said a visibly irritated Donald Tusk, the European Council president. “Until now I have avoided talking about deadlines. But tonight I have to say it loud and clear — the final deadline ends this week.”

“I’m strongly against Grexit (the nickname for a Greece exit from the Eurozone),” European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said. “But I can’t prevent it if the Greek government is not doing what we expect the Greek government to do.”

Greece’s Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras had told Greek voters if they rejected the referendum he could make a deal with Europe “within 48 hours.”  That time limit passed without a formal proposal and only some comments from the nation’s new finance minister reading off handwritten notes.

French President Francois Hollande said that the European Central Bank (ECB) would likely provide money Wednesday to keep Greek banks afloat through Sunday.

IMF Calls For New Action Against Eurozone Crisis

The ongoing crisis in the Eurozone has led the International Monetary Fund to call for more action to help increase bank lending.

The IMF commended steps taken by European leaders to stabilize financial markets and said their actions decreased the likelihood of a breakup of the Euro. However, the IMF report said that further cuts to interest rates by the European Central Bank would be needed to boost growth. Continue reading →

IMF and Egypt Negotiating $4.8 Billion Loan

The Egyptian government is seeking a massive loan from the International Monetary Fund to help the country’s foundering economy.

The negotiations between government officials and IMF representatives in Cairo is contingent on proving that the nation is serious about economic reform.

The Egyptian pound has lost ten percent of its value since the beginning of 2013. Inflation has significantly risen and the lack of funds has caused the government to cut back on imports. Continue reading →

Cyprus Government Starts Emergency Efforts

Eurozone finance ministers were holding unscheduled meetings trying to find a “plan B” for Cyprus as the country’s financial system is rapidly collapsing beyond their control.

The country’s banks have been shut until next week because of a run on savings accounts. Rumors that the European Union and the International Monetary Fund would require all Cyprus account holders to sacrifice a portion of their savings to obtain a bailout of the nation. Continue reading →

Cyprus Officials Vote Against Banking Bailout And Account Seizure

Admit outcry from citizens, the government of Cyprus has unanimously rejected a bailout measure from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund that would require seizing funds from every bank account in the nation.

After the vote the European Central Bank said they would move to assist Cyprus in any way they can under the currently approved banking systems. Continue reading →