Europe: New IMF Chief Needed Soon

The Wall Street Journal reports

A decision to nominate a common European candidate to head the International Monetary Fund needs to be taken soon, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble urged Friday.

"We need a common European candidate, " Schaeuble told journalists ahead of a closed-off event with the German chamber of industry and commerce.

Schaeuble added that the candidate needs to be one that has the best chances of gaining the post. A decision on a candidate "certainly will be taken soon as with the resignation of Strauss-Kahn the decision making process has been opened," Schaeuble said.

Strauss-Kahn was arrested over the weekend in connection with an alleged sexual assault on a hotel maid in Manhattan. His arrest and subsequent resignation as IMF chief has prompted a heated debate among authorities around the world over his successor, with some calling for a candidate from an emerging economy.

The post of IMF managing director has traditionally been held by a European, while the head of the World Bank has been an American.

Asked whether Germany would forgo nominating candidate of its own in order to support the possible candidature of French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde, Schaeuble said Germany would support a European candidate.