IMF defends Asia actions

IMF defends Asia actions

WASHINGTON (Reuters): The International Monetary Fund defended its policies towards Asia's tiger economies on Thursday, saying that the costs would have been higher and the slowdown faster if the IMF had not got involved.

IMF First Deputy Managing Director Stanley Fischer told bankers that the world's major industrialized nations were well positioned to cope with the fallout of the crisis. The text of his speech was made available ahead of delivery.

Thailand, Indonesia and South Korea have already received billions of dollars from the IMF, and Fischer said IMF reform programs were aimed to restore confidence in falling currencies, partly by raising interest rates. "Once confidence is restored, interest rates can fall," he said.

He said higher interest rates would inevitably slow economic growth, but said things would have been worse without help from the IMF, the World Bank and IMF member states.