IMF loans could worsen crisis in many countries

NEW YORK: International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans could worsen the crisis in many countries, an independent think tank said in a report which the IMF dismissed as "seriously misleading."

The Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) said that the IMF was promoting spending cuts that could exacerbate the economic downturn in 31 out of the 41 countries with current IMF loan agreements, informs AFP/LETA.

"More than a decade after the Asian economic crisis brought world attention to major IMF policy mistakes, the IMF is still making similar mistakes in many countries," Mark Weisbrot, an economist at CEPR, said in a statement. "The IMF supports fiscal stimulus and expansionary policies in the rich countries, but has a much different attitude toward low-and-middle income countries," he added.

The report called for the IMF to "re-examine criteria, assumptions and economic analysis that it uses to prescribe macroeconomic policies in developing countries."

On the other hand, IMF spokesman Bill Murray dismissed the report's findings.