India, China for early conclusion of IMF quota reforms

NEW DELHI, Sept 27:  Calling for expeditious quota reforms of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), India and China today asked the multilateral lending agencies to increase their exposure to developing countries with a view to expanding global aggregate demand.

In a joint statement issued after the 6th China-India Financial Dialogue in Beijing, the two countries expressed their willingness to strengthen cooperation at various levels on macro economic policies and major international economic and financial issues.

Aimed at improving the voting share of developing countries and achieving a better representation on the IMF Board, the reform of the international financial institutions has been a key part of G-20 agenda.

India currently has a voting share of 2.44 per cent in the Washington-based IMF. US has the highest voting share of 17.69 per cent.

The two nations also called for early implementation of the policy measures adopted by G-20 to boost growth and employment “for promoting strong, sustainable and balanced growth of the world economy”.

Observing that India’s economic fundamentals continue to be strong and the country remains committed to strengthening and deepening reforms process, the statement said “the two sides agreed to actively explore opportunities for cooperation in the process of their respective structural reforms”.

India, it said, has adopted bold macro-economic and fiscal management policies that seek to attain the twin objectives of inclusive development and high, sustained economic growth.

The government is continuously undertaking initiatives to improve the performance of the manufacturing sector. In a recent review in this regard, the Government has also liberalised several sectoral caps in FDI, the statement said.

“India remains committed towards strengthening and deepening its reform process,” it added. (PTI)