About us
Mission
The IMF’s Offices in Europe, located in Brussels and Paris, serves as liaison to EU and euro-area institutions and governments, as well as international organizations, academics, civil society, and media.
Its main tasks include:
• Engaging with European policymakers and other interlocutors on euro area and EU policies; as well as fostering a dialogue on global economic issues;
• Supporting IMF operations in Europe, including policy advice, lending arrangements, technical assistance, and recruitment efforts;
• Helping to coordinate communication and outreach activities across the region.
History
Immediately after its creation, the Fund played a key role in various postwar initiatives, such as the creation of the European Payments Union (EPU) and the Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC, which in 1960 became the OECD). The Office in Europe was created in Paris in 1948 to serve as observer and personal representative of the Managing Director at these new institutions. Over time, the functions of the office expanded to include wider liaison with European-based institutions, external relations, and outreach to academic institutions, NGOs, and the public.
The IMF Europe Office was established in 2013, comprising the Paris Office and the newly created Brussels Office
Europe and the IMF
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Slovak Republic: Technical Assistance Report-Next Phase of Spending Reviews
February 7, 2025
Series:Technical Assistance Report No. 2025/011
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IMF Staff Concludes Visit to Lithuania
February 6, 2025
Washington, DC – February 5, 2025: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, led by Ms. Kazuko Shirono, visited Vilnius during January 27–31, 2025, to meet with the Lithuanian authorities and other stakeholders to discuss recent economic developments, the outlook, and policy priorities. At the end of the visit, the mission issued the following statement:
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Sweden: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Article IV Mission
February 5, 2025
Washington, DC – February 5, 2025: After contracting in 2023, economic activity started to recover in 2024, and growth is expected to pick up further in 2025. Inflation has been successfully brought under control. Uncertainty is high. Risks to growth are to the downside—including from geoeconomic fragmentation, trade uncertainty and escalating protectionism, and possible continued weakness in private consumption. Risks to inflation are two-sided. The shift to a more supportive macroeconomic policy mix, as planned, is appropriate given subdued levels of private domestic demand and a still-negative output gap. Monetary policy has eased to a neutral stance and should remain agile given high uncertainty. Fiscal policy is projected to be moderately expansionary. The authorities should be ready to deploy available policy space in case downside risks materialize. Under severe downside scenarios there is room for fiscal policy to provide support. Downside risks to financial stability have subsided somewhat, but structural vulnerabilities remain high. In this context, current macroprudential policy settings, including those for borrower-based measures, are appropriate. Reviving higher productivity growth will require further drawing on Sweden’s substantial strengths in innovation and pushing forward with a comprehensive structural reform agenda.
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Belgium: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Article IV Mission
February 5, 2025
Belgium: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Article IV Mission
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Belgium: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Article IV Mission
February 5, 2025
An IMF team led by Jean-François Dauphin visited Brussels to conduct the 2025 Article IV consultation with Belgium. The mission’s discussions (January 22-February 3) took place before the formation of the new government and the present statement, which summarizes the mission’s findings and recommendations, does not reflect the new government’s policy intentions.