Major changes in store for IMF



ATLANTA (CNN) -- Officials at the Group of 20 nations summit in South Korea have agreed on substantial changes for the International Monetary Fund, according to IMF Managing Director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn. If approved, the historic reforms would give developing nations a stronger voice within the institution.

Strauss-Kahn detailed the proposed changes at a news conference in Gyeongjiu Saturday. He said G-20 ministers want to see changes in the way member-countries for the IMF board are chosen. That means using a more realistic formula to assess the economic size of member countries.

"The ten biggest members of the Fund ... will be those who deserve to be the biggest members," he said.

Strauss-Kahn went on to said that, under the current system, "The membership and quota of the membership are not really representing the importance and weight of the countries in the global economy."

Major changes are in store for the make-up of the IMF board. Strauss-Kahn says ministers would like the entire board to be elected. Currently, five members of the 10-member Board are appointed and five are elected.

Also, 5 to 6 percent of board voting rights will be shifted to "dynamic, emerging economies," he said. Two board seats will be relinquished by Europe and given to emerging countries.

Ministers also agreed to create a financial safety net to counter the whims of global economic fluctuations.

Strauss-Kahn said the proposed changes have to be approved by the IMF itself. He's hopeful that the process will be completed by the end of next year. To top of page

Just the hot list include
Frontline troops push for solar energy
The U.S. Marines are testing renewable energy technologies like solar to reduce costs and casualties associated with fossil fuels. Play
25 Best Places to find rich singles
Looking for Mr. or Ms. Moneybags? Hunt down the perfect mate in these wealthy cities, which are brimming with unattached professionals. More
Fun festivals: Twins to mustard to pirates!
You'll see double in Twinsburg, Ohio, and Ketchup lovers should beware in Middleton, WI. Here's some of the best and strangest town festivals. Play
Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed3.80%3.88%
15 yr fixed3.20%3.23%
5/1 ARM3.84%3.88%
30 yr refi3.82%3.93%
15 yr refi3.20%3.23%
Rate data provided
by Bankrate.com
View rates in your area
 
Find personalized rates:
Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Sponsors

Sections

Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More

Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.