Japanese asked to head IMF

Japanese asked to head IMF

MANILA (AP): Asian nations were building a consensus Friday around supporting a Japanese candidate to head the International Monetary Fund (IMF), signaling a resurgent confidence on the world stage after two years of being humbled by economic crisis.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus Japan, China and South Korea were conferring ahead of an informal ASEAN summit this weekend on the idea of Eisuke Sakakibara, a former vice finance minister for international affairs, to head the IMF.

Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan of Thailand was asked by The Associated Press in an interview whether a consensus was emerging to support the Japanese for the post, which has traditionally been held by a European.

"There seems to be," Surin said. "Certainly, there have been some positive responses."