IMF board confident about leader despite data-rigging claims

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER and ELAINE KURTENBACH
AP Business Writers

WASHINGTON (AP) — The International Monetary Fund has expressed “full confidence” in its managing director. The statement came in response to allegations that while Kristalina Georgieva was a World Bank official, she and others pressured staffers to change business rankings in an effort to placate China. The IMF’s 24-member executive board says its review did not conclusively demonstrate that Georgieva played an improper role. But it says a probe into possible misconduct by World Bank staff is continuing. Georgieva has denied any wrongdoing in response to an investigative report by the WilmerHale law firm.