The fund, whose annual meetings begin there on Monday, has already pointed to some of the themes it hopes to press home with a barrage of projections and studies on the global economy in coming days.
The IMF’s Fiscal Monitor on Wednesday will feature a warning that public debt levels are set to reach US$100 trillion this year, driven by China and the US. Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, in a speech on Thursday, stressed how that mountain of borrowing is weighing on the world.
“Our forecasts point to an unforgiving combination of low growth and high debt – a difficult future,” she said. “Governments must work to reduce debt and rebuild buffers for the next shock – which will surely come, and maybe sooner than we expect.”
Some finance ministers may get further reminders even before the week is over.
