G-20 Finance Ministers approve IMF cash boost

LONDON: Finance Ministers of the G-20 countries have agreed to increase the International Monetary Fund's 250 billion dollar fund "very substantially" and the fund would lend to struggling countries before they face economic emergencies.

This would mean more than doubling the fund, potentially increasing it three-fold to up to 750 billion dollars (532.5 billion pounds), The Sunday Telegraph reported today.

The finance ministers also agreed to end the 50-year-old unwritten rule whereby the heads of the IMF and World Bank are decided by European and the US governments, respectively.

Under the proposals, which will go before the G-20 summit in London on April 2, China and other emerging market economies will gain greater influence over the IMF's activities.

In the next few months, the IMF will rate each country around the world on the scale and performance of their fiscal stimulus packages.

This week, Lord Turner, chairman of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), will stress the need for international co-operation but stop short of calling for the establishment of a single global regulatory body.