WASHINGTON, United States -- The bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and sale of Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. is part of a restructuring and consolidation of the US financial sector, the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) number two official said Monday.
IMF first deputy managing director John Lipsky said, however, the speed and scale of the developments added to short-term uncertainties and further significant financial strains cannot be ruled out.
Lipsky said the IMF still stood by its forecast of a gradual recovery in global economic growth in 2009 despite the financial turmoil.
