IMF says Europe, US must deliver on promises to improve global economy

WASHINGTON – The head of the International Monetary Fund says Europe and the U.S. must deliver on commitments to achieve a decisive turn in a global economy fraught with uncertainty.

Christine Lagarde says what is needed is a sustained recovery, not a bounce.

To achieve that objective, she says, decision makers must be real action-takers and deliver on their promises to carry out programs to get their economies back on track.

Lagarde said in a speech Monday that the most urgent action was needed in Europe, the epicenter of the crisis.

But she also said the United States must avoid plunging off a fiscal cliff of deep government spending cuts and tax increases that could cause another recession and harm the global economy.