IMF Urges France to 'Timely Approve' Budget to Safeguard Fiscal Credibility

An IMF official stated that France must ensure its budget is 'timely approved' to maintain credibility and boost market confidence. Rodrigo Valdes, head of the IMF's Fiscal Affairs Department, told reporters during a break at the IMF Annual Meeting in Bangkok that heavily indebted countries can no longer be ambiguous as investors scrutinize fiscal policies more closely. 'Timeliness means it gets implemented; ideally, there should be no changes that undermine the fiscal effort behind it,' Valdes said.