WASHINGTON – The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday denied a report that the G20 economic powers will pool US$600 billion to be used to support the eurozone through its crisis.
"There has been no such discussion with the IMF," Fund spokesman Bill Murray said of the report in Japan's Nikkei newspaper saying the Group of 20 nations would muster the funds to be lent to struggling EU nations through the IMF.
It came amid talk that the IMF, with just about $400 billion now available to lend, does not have nearly enough funds to help intervene should there be a sudden deterioration in eurozone stability.
The Nikkei report appeared to give a late boost to US stocks, which propelled into positive territory in the last hour of trade Wednesday.
Shares had spent most of the day down on worries that EU leaders would not agree a long-term crisis plan at their summit this week.
Earlier in the day German officials sought to downplay expectations of the summit, billed as a "make or break" event for the eurozone, despite Monday's strong calls by the French and German leaders for a new EU pact to instil tough fiscal discipline on its members./.