The IMF said that as many as 20 countries getting loan support from the Washington-based lender would probably face a slow economic recovery as fiscal challenges arise in the years ahead.
The IMF, which has rescued economies from Pakistan to Iceland since the start of the global financial crisis, said in a report on Sunday that while there were signs of stabilization in troubled countries, many loan recipients may need assistance beyond their current arrangements. The fund singled out Latvia, Iceland and Ukraine as facing the greatest difficulties.
“The recovery in program countries is projected to be slow, with large downside risks,” the report said. “Most countries are expected to face significant fiscal challenges in the coming years.”
The IMF is advising officials around the world not to withdraw economic stimulus programs too soon as they chart a path to sustainable growth. The mixed economic environment and rising unemployment are leaving the G20 industrial and emerging nations with no option but to maintain support of banks and fiscal stimulus, totaling more than US$2 trillion, even as their debt mounts.
The fund said in the report that it has committed US$75 billion to emerging nations since September last year. Countries receiving assistance range from Hungary to Mongolia. The IMF, in a review of its loan accords, said in the report that its intervention since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc a year ago has helped prevent a deeper upheaval.
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday decided to shelve proposed legislation that would give elected officials full control over their stipends, saying it would wait for a consensus to be reached before acting. KMT Legislator Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍) last week proposed amendments to the Organic Act of the Legislative Yuan (立法院組織法) and the Regulations on Allowances for Elected Representatives and Subsidies for Village Chiefs (地方民意代表費用支給及村里長事務補助費補助條例), which would give legislators and councilors the freedom to use their allowances without providing invoices for reimbursement. The proposal immediately drew criticism, amid reports that several legislators face possible charges of embezzling fees intended to pay
REQUIREMENTS: The US defense secretary must submit a Taiwan security assistance road map and an appraisal of Washington’s ability to respond to Indo-Pacific conflict The US Congress has released a new draft of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes up to US$1 billion in funding for Taiwan-related security cooperation next year. The version published on Sunday by US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson removed earlier language that would have invited Taiwan to participate in the US-led Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC). A statement on Johnson’s Web page said the NDAA “enhances U.S. defense initiatives in the Indo-Pacific to bolster Taiwan’s defense and support Indo-Pacific allies.” The bill would require the US secretary of defense to “enable fielding of uncrewed and anti-uncrewed systems capabilities”
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
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