China says IMF governance should shift

The Chinese government has said International Monetary Fund governance should be changed to reflect the shifting global economy.

In the global crisis, the IMF has risen as a concern, reflecting its importance in a time of need and a political shift, given the U.S. push for more stimulus spending by other nations has been largely rebuffed, The New York Times reported Monday.

Without stimulus spending as a guaranteed success for U.S. President Barack Obama’s team at the Group of 20 summit Thursday, the United States will tout IMF contributions as a major concern, the Times said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said the IMF requires an additional $500 billion. Japan and the European Union have said they will contribute $100 billion, while the United States has said it would contribute about the same.

But, a senior Chinese official said IMF contributions should be based on per capita production, rather than the size of a country’s reserves.

They simply do not want to pony up based on vague promises of governance reform, Eswar Prasad, a Cornell University economics professor, told the Times.