China welcomes Lagarde’s appointment as IMF chief

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China on Wednesday welcomed the appointment of French finance minister Christine Lagarde as the new chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

China hopes Lagarde to continue the reform of IMF and lead the organisation to play an active role in stabilising the global economy and financial sector, a spokesman of the People’s Bank of China said.

On Tuesday, 55-year-old Lagarde became the first woman to head the IMF after its executive board chose her over Mexican Central Bank governor Agustin Carstens.

The Lagarde, who succeeds Dominique Strauss-Kahn, is the first woman named to the top IMF post since the institution’s inception in 1944.

Lagarde, picked with backing from the US, Russia, China and Europe, faces immediate crisis talks over Europe.