- TOKYO: Mexican Central Bank Governor and contender to head the International Monetary Fund Agustin Carstens said it is premature for him to comment on whether he earned Japan’s support for his bid to become head of the fund.
Carstens, speaking to reporters after meeting Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda, said he explained his views on the fund and his ideas on Japan’s role.
Carstens also said IMF members would make their decision on the new head of the fund when the time comes.
Carstens is rivalling front-runner French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde in the race to replace former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn after he was arrested last month on sexual assault charges, which he denies.
The IMF board is due to choose the next head of the global lender by June 30.
Lagarde has the backing of European countries. Few countries outside Latin America have expressed support for Carstens, however.
The US and Japan, with the two largest voting shares in the IMF, have not yet announced who they will support for its top post.