IMF calls for global fiscal reform after coronavirus crisis

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is concerned about rising debt in both emerging and advanced economies due to coronavirus stimulus spending, and it will urge countries to tackle fiscal reform once the pandemic ends, its deputy managing director Mitsuhiro Furusawa said on Wednesday.

For the first time ever, global public debt is seen rising to above 100 percent of combined GDP after governments responded to the health crisis, Furusawa said.

"Once the economy gets back on track, (a) medium to long-term fiscal framework must be created to manage public finances accordingly," Furusawa told an online panel discussion organised by Columbia Business School's Center on Japanese Economy and Business.

"That will be among the utmost priorities for our policy recommendations."