Curacao Business
International Monetary Fund, (IMF), Deputy Managing Director, Tao Zhang, stated that the current global financial situation, with its low interest rates, provides an opportunity for Caribbean countries to pursue adjustment, undertake liability management to lower financing costs, reduce debts to safer levels and facilitate lending. This will all contribute to a renewed balanced growth. During a recent Caribbean Forum he argued that fiscal and broader macroeconomic stability are necessary, but not sufficient, conditions for growth. He said additional country-specific structural reforms have to go hand-in-hand to reap a growth dividend.
Several Caribbean Heads of State, as well as Central Bank governors from nearby regions attended the forum. Tao Zhang told the delegates that the global outlook continues to be shaped by a subdued recovery from the global financial crisis and weak trade, and that 2016 is proving to be another year of lackluster growth. On the positive side, low oil prices have benefited most countries in the region because they import oil and fuel. Many of these countries have seen their external positions improve significantly.