Lagarde to continue as IMF managing director

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reaffirmed its confidence in Managing Director Christine Lagarde to carry out her duties despite being convicted of negligence in a French court on Monday.

The court convicted her for her role in a contentious and generous arbitration award in 2008 to a politically connected tycoon while she was France's finance minister.

In a statement, the board said it met on Monday to consider recent developments in the legal proceedings.

"The executive board took all relevant factors into account in its discussions, including the managing director's outstanding leadership of the fund and the wide respect and trust for her leadership globally," it said.

"In this context, the executive board reaffirms its full confidence in the managing director's ability to continue to effectively carry out her duties.

"Under the fund's govern-ance framework, the managing director is appointed by the executive board and performs her duties under the board's direction. In the exercise of its oversight responsibilities, the executive board has met regularly, since the managing director's appointment in 2011, to consider whether develop-ments in the legal proceedings in France relating to the managing director have affected her ability to lead the fund.

"The executive board looks forward to continuing to work with the managing director to address the difficult challenges facing the global economy," the statement said.