U.S. opposes general allocation of Special Drawing Rights to IMF members

[April 16, 2020]    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States opposes creation of liquidity through issuance of the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) as part of the response to the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Thursday.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin addresses the daily coronavirus response briefing as U.S. President Donald Trump listens at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 2, 2020. REUTERS/Tom Brenner

In a statement to the IMF's steering committee, Mnuchin said 70% of the funds created through an SDR allocation, something akin to a central bank "printing" new money, would go to G20 countries that did not need it, while only 3% would go to low-income countries.

Instead, he said, members should contribute to two IMF facilities that provide funds to the poorest countries, and the U.S. government was exploring such a contribution itself.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

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