Janet Yellen says IMF, World Bank are important counterweights to China

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday will cast international financial institutions as American-aligned counterweights to China's growing influence in the developing world, as she seeks to garner congressional support for US financial backing of those lenders.

In the face of what's likely to be Republican scepticism when she testifies on Capitol Hill, Yellen will laud institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank that "reflect American values."

"Our leadership at these institutions is one of our core ways of engaging with emerging markets and developing countries," she said in the text of testimony she's scheduled to deliver at 10 a.m. before the House Financial Services Committee. "The IFIs provide real resources to tackle the challenges the world faces from weathering economic storms to spurring long-term economic development."


The aid, she added, "serves as an important counterweight to nontransparent, unsustainable lending from others, like China."

The Treasury chief's remarks showcase the battle lines between the world's two largest economies as they vie for influence in the developing world. China has become the largest official lender to many of the poorer nations across the globe. Asked about Yellen's forthcoming remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the IMF and World Bank should reflect the interests of "all member states."

"The IMF and World Bank are multilateral financial institutions, they are platforms reflecting greater democracy in international relations, and they are platforms for international cooperation," he told reporters at a regular press briefing in Beijing on Tuesday. Bloomberg