World faces worst recession since Great Depression, says IMF chief

Fund to increase emergency funding facility to €100bn as half of its 189 members seek aid

Kristalina Georgieva, the IMF’s managing director, said its executive board has agreed to double access to its emergency financing to meet expected demand of about $100 billion. Picture: Getty

The head of the International Monetary Fund has said that the world economy will suffer its worst recession since the Great Depression this year.

With half of the IMF’s 189 member countries seeking aid, the executive board has agreed to double access to its emergency financing to meet expected demand of about $100 billion, Kristalina Georgieva, the fund’s managing director, said.

The IMF’s baseline outlook is for a partial recovery in the global economy in ...