Pan Gongsheng is set to debut on the international stage next week, presenting the biggest opportunity for global economic and banking chiefs to rub shoulders with China’s top central banker and gain valuable clues on where he aims to steer policy.
And with retirement nearing for Finance Minister Liu Kun—who is also expected to attend—Pan will be the main target for those seeking lasting influence in Beijing. In a speech Thursday ahead of the Morocco event, Georgieva flagged dangers to the global economy, including from activity in China that’s below expectations. She repeated the Fund’s warning from April that the current pace of global growth remains below the 3.8 percent average in the two decades before the pandemic, and that medium-term prospects have weakened.
Tension has colored much of the talk around debt relief over the past year, as China and private bondholders have resisted using guidelines established by Western sovereign creditors, represented by the so-called Paris Club. “China is willing to work with all parties to implement the G-20 common framework for debt disposal,” Yi said during the IMF’s spring meeting in Washington. Shortly before he left office, Chinese creditors struck a precedent-setting deal with the Paris Club on debt relief for Zambia.