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International Monetary Fund (IMF)

International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Latest news, features and opinion on the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The 189-nation IMF promotes global monetary cooperation, facilities trade, encourages sustainable growth and makes funds available to countries experiencing fiscal difficulties.
US President Donald Trump dances at the Detroit Economic Club in Detroit, Michigan, on January 13. Photo: Reuters
United States

Macroscope | Multilateral institutions’ critique of Trump’s actions is too muted

US funding of multinational bodies seems to be keeping their critique muted. The power of the purse should not ensure immunity from criticism.

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Pakistan

Pakistan’s arms deals cleared for take-off as orders soar for JF-17 jets

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China manufacturing

Fears over China’s trade surplus misplaced as West also driving trend: analysts

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China-Latin America relations

Argentina’s Milei plans 2026 China trip despite US pressure on ties

Leader cites China as a key trade partner, underscoring a sharp shift from his 2023 campaign attacks to a more pragmatic stance.

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Argentine President Javier Milei speaks at the America Business Forum at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, in November. Photo: Reuters
Indonesia

Indonesia eyes 6% growth in 2026, as a youth jobs ‘time bomb’ ticks

Economists have cast doubt on the ‘optimistic’ target as educated youth struggle to find work and manufacturing lay-offs neared 80,000.

Argentina

Argentina targets US dollars hoarded under mattresses, eases tax evasion rules

The country wants Argentines to bank their dollars amid high inflation, with estimates of ‘mattress dollars’ totalling US$251 billion.

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Japan

Japan may lose GDP race to India amid weak yen, tourism woes, China row

Japan’s economy is likely to fall behind India’s this year, which analysts say would diminish Tokyo’s global influence.

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Tourists pose in front of Mount Fuji in Yamanakako, Japan’s Yamanashi prefecture. Photo: AFP
India

India overtakes Japan as world’s fourth largest economy, eyes top 3 in 2026

Government data shows India’s GDP at US$4.18 trillion, with projections it will surpass Germany by 2026 despite global trade challenges.

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Technology

Opinion | Forget the US dollar. Watch water and energy resources instead

In our increasingly hi-tech-based economy and financial systems, energy and water resources will be macroeconomically critical.

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China trade

China’s record trade surplus could prompt protectionist response in 2026: report

American researchers say restrictions on Chinese imports could help create complications for Beijing’s economic growth target next year.

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Vehicles awaiting export at Nanjing Port in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. Photo: AFP
Banking & finance

Opinion | Global finance is quietly moving east

The IMF’s Shanghai Centre will not alter global finance overnight but shows that Asia’s voice in shaping international financial norms is growing louder.

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(From left to right) People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, and Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng mark the launch of the IMF’s Shanghai Centre on December 8. Photo: Handout
China consumption

China’s growth engines sputter as retail and investment hit in November

Retail sales grew just 1.3 per cent, with growth momentum slowing for six straight months, and January-November investment fell 2.6 per cent as the property slump persisted.

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China exports

China aims to boost imports, exports in 2026 to drive trade: senior official

Beijing also seeks to increase consumption by loosening restrictions, raising incomes and attracting tourist spending, Han Wenxiu says.

United States

Outside In | It’s an expensive Christmas for Americans thanks to Trump’s tariffs

It’s been years since the US president extolled the virtues of trade wars: how much longer before he recognises tariffs harm the US economy?

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People walk by shop windows decorated for Christmas in New York on December 5. Photo: dpa
China GDP

IMF raises China growth forecast to 5% for 2025, citing resilience

The assessment is up from October’s forecast, with the fund citing government stimulus and lower tariffs as drivers.

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IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva speaks at a press conference during the 2025 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and IMF in Washington, DC, the United States, on April 24. Photo: Xinhua
Artificial intelligence

AI spending helps save global economy under threat of trade war, IMF director says

AI investment, especially in the US, helped mute the impacts of increased tariffs, Jihad Azour says at Abu Dhabi Finance Week.

China jobs

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

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Sri Lanka

627 dead in Sri Lanka landslides as rains batter South, Southeast Asia

At least 1,812 people have been killed in the natural disasters rolling across Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

An aerial view of flooded Niyamgamdora, Sri Lanka, on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters
China-Japan relations

Beijing rebuffs Takaichi, Macron-Xi talks, key economic meeting

This week: China rejects Takaichi’s Taiwan climbdown, Macron visits Xi in Beijing, US deepens Taiwan ties, PBOC slams stablecoins. Next week: economic planning meeting, November trade and inflation data, Hong Kong Legco elections and more.

India

India’s strong economic growth impresses amid doubts on ‘overstated’ data

Questions about India’s latest 8.2 per cent GDP quarterly growth have been raised by ANZ Bank and analysts.

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China's economic recovery

Explainer | What’s next for China’s economy in 2026 – and how it plans to tackle challenges

Top investment banks forecast moderate growth next year amid trade, property and structural challenges.

Pedestrians wait for a street signal on a sidewalk as an electronic billboard shows China’s 2024 gross domestic product growth in Shanghai, taken on January 21 this year. Photo: Reuters
Banking & finance

Macroscope | Global stablecoin surge highlights overlooked risks in crypto finance

The politics around digital currencies have extended into the long-running battle for supremacy between the world’s major currencies.

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A pedestrian walks in front of a currency mural on a shop shutter in Hong Kong on December 2024. Photo: Antony Dickson
My Take

My Take | How China goes toe to toe with the West and softly-softly with the rest

Beijing rarely claims altruism. It always wants something from you, but most of the time, its approach is pragmatic, respectful and usually beneficial.

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South Africa

China, allies drive agenda at G20 South Africa summit amid US no-show

All participants but one endorse Johannesburg Declaration focusing on African debt crises, climate initiatives and critical minerals.

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China economy

Opinion | The rise of a Beijing-led ‘Global South Consensus’

As the Global South seeks a better development model and China looks for alternatives to mature markets, a match made out of mutual need is emerging.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Plus meeting in Tianjin, China, on September 1. Photo: EPA/Iranian Presidency handout
Asean

Widodo hails Southeast Asia’s rise as ‘global force’ in entrepreneurship

Former Indonesian leader says the next unicorn could emerge from Southeast Asia and urges the region to prepare for an ‘intelligent economy’.

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Joko Widodo, Indonesia’s former president, has urged Southeast Asian countries to prepare for an “intelligent economy”. Photo: dpa
Diplomacy

Opinion | As power balance tips to China, world needs a fairer financial system

China-led macro region will have to work on independence of monetary policy and partnerships in a fairer financial and trade framework.

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South Korea

Macroscope | South Korea’s challenges a taste of what’s to come for global economy

While South Korea has been a big beneficiary of the AI boom, the surge is also highlighting its domestic and geopolitical vulnerabilities.

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