Considerations on COM(2015)603 - Measures in view of progressively establishing unified representation of the euro area in the International Monetary Fund - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2015)603 - Measures in view of progressively establishing unified representation of the euro area in the International Monetary Fund. |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2015)603  |
| date | October 21, 2015 |
(2) The euro area is a large open economy with international policy responsibilities.
(3) The Union has exclusive competence as regards monetary policy for the euro area Member States. Moreover, strengthened Union coordination and surveillance mechanisms apply as regards economic, fiscal, and financial policies of euro area Member States.
(4) As noted by the Report "Completing Europe's Economic and Monetary Union" published on 22 June 2015 ("Five Presidents' Report"), the large economic and financial size of the Union and the existence of a single monetary and exchange rate policy for most of its members, make the Union policy decisions and economic developments increasingly relevant for the world economy. The report also called for consolidation of the external representation of the euro area.
(5) It is, therefore, imperative that the euro area plays its full role in international monetary, economic and financial policy cooperation, in particular within the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is a core organisation in the international monetary and financial system.
(6) However, IMF members are single countries. As a result, the euro area is not represented as a single member in the Fund and its organs. Currently, two of the euro area Member States can each appoint an Executive Director, while the other euro area Member States are spread over six multi-country constituencies. This hinders the euro area from expressing its position effectively and in a unified way within the IMF. It also undermines the effectiveness of the collaboration between the IMF and the euro area.
(7) The recently strengthened euro area framework for economic policy coordination and strong convergence of financial sector regulation and supervision in the context of the Banking Union mean that in the future the IMF will need to go beyond a national perspective in its assessment of supervision and crisis management in the euro area. An effective euro area representation will also allow delivering a single euro area message at the IMF on issues such as financial assistance programmes and reviews, economic and fiscal policy, macroeconomic surveillance, exchange rate policies, and financial stability policy.
(8) Without prejudice to the possibility of full membership of the euro area, at a later stage, measures should be adopted in order to allow the euro area to speak with one voice within the IMF, taking into account the current IMF membership structure.
(9) The objective to be pursued should be a unified representation with a single seat for the euro area within all organs of the IMF, while allowing euro area Member States to maintain their current shareholder status in the Fund. The Commission should undertake work to achieve this objective.
(10) The deadline for attaining such a unified representation in the IMF should correspond to the timeline for the final stage of the process set out in the "Five Presidents' Report" for the completion of Economic and Monetary Union.
(11) This unified representation should be accompanied by a stronger coordination of the positions to be taken within the IMF, while at the same time aiming for greater cooperation of the euro area with non-euro area Member States in the IMF.
(12) As long as a unified representation of the euro area within all organs of the IMF is not fully attained, transitional arrangements should be made in order for the euro area to present a more coherent position within the IMF, in particular in the Executive Board of the IMF, and the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC).
(13) As regards the Executive Board, the current practice of having one of the current Executive Directors of the euro area Member States also representing the interests of the euro area should be formalized. Moreover, since the European Central Bank (ECB), in accordance with Decision No 12925-(03/1) of the IMF under Article X of its Articles of Agreement, already sends a representative as an observer to certain meetings of the Executive Board in view of its tasks in the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), this status of observer of the ECB should benefit the euro area as a whole. Such a single status of observer in the Executive Board for the euro area as a whole would allow covering the full range of euro area matters. This would also allow the euro area to better organize its representation as observer.
(14) The President of the Eurogroup, the Commission and the ECB should negotiate this observer status of the euro area with the IMF.
(15) The Commission and ECB are already observers in the IMFC. Current statements addressed to its Spring and Annual Meetings should be replaced by a statement from the President of the Eurogroup for the euro area.
(16) All efforts should be made for a gradual rearrangement of the euro area Member States in the IMF in order to achieve greater consistency. The Council should agree on principles for a path for the regrouping of the euro area Member States in the IMF.
(17) At the moment, the coordination of the position of the Member States in view of IMF meetings takes place both in the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC) and its sub-committee on IMF related issues (SCIMF), in Brussels, and in informal meetings between Member State representatives at the IMF in Washington (EURIMF). Dedicated euro area sub-committees in the EFC should be set up in order to better coordinate the position of the euro area as regards IMF issues.
(18) Euro area Member States agreed in 2007 to prepare common euro area statements on issues directly and exclusively related to euro area common policy. This agreement should be strengthened and extended in order to set out the requirement for common statements on all IMF policy, country and surveillance issues of relevance to the euro area.
(19) When a Member State adopts the euro, all efforts should be pursued in order to achieve the necessary adaptations within the IMF.
(20) All issues that do not have particular relevance to the euro area but to the Union as a whole should be closely coordinated with non-euro area Member States within the EFC or the Council.
(21) In order to increase transparency and accountability to the European Parliament and the Council, the Commission, in consultation with the Eurogroup and the European Central Bank, should prepare regular reports on coordination on euro area matters in the IMF and other international financial institutions to the European Parliament and the Council.