The International Monetary Fund says it has raised more than $US430 billion in an effort to assure finance markets that it has enough cash to handle any new problems from Europe's prolonged debt crisis.
IMF managing director Christine Lagarde announced the new figure at the end of the discussions among finance officials of the Group of 20 major economic powers yesterday.
She said that the total raised would nearly double the IMF's available resources to make loans to nations in trouble.
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Greece, Ireland and Portugal have already been forced to accept IMF rescue packages along with sizeable bailout support from other nations using the euro currency. But the concern is that Spain and Italy, which have much larger economies, are now facing economic difficulties.
If either of those nations needed rescue packages, the costs would be far higher than the amount raised so far.
The US and Canada refused to participate in boosting the IMF's resources, seeking to keep pressure on Europe to do more.
