International Monetary Fund

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was set up by the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944, mainly to provide loans to member governments in support of policies to deal with balance of payments problems. Its present functions also include monitoring international financial developments and advising member governments about their economic problems. It is financed by a contribution from each member state that depends upon the size of its economy (the contributions levied in 2007 totalled over $300 billion). Its staff produce an annual monitoring report with the title of World Economic Outlook .