The International Monetary Fund announced Friday it had reached agreement on a loan program review with Sri Lanka which will make around $344 million available to support the country’s economic reforms.

The United States and European Union need to “de-escalate” and “negotiate a deal” to help boost lackluster growth on the continent, the International Monetary Fund’s Europe director said Friday.

Developing countries should strike swift trade deals with the United States at the “earliest possible” opportunity, the president of the World Bank told AFP Friday, after a busy week with global financial leaders in Washington.

In a chair's statement, the IMF's steering committee also reaffirmed prior foreign exchange commitments and voiced support for a realignment of quotas, or shareholding, that better reflects countries' positions in the global economy.

Respondents cited "changes in government spending priorities and the extent of US international engagement" as driving uncertainty.

The Bank has been advising developing countries to focus attention on cutting trade barriers and boosting regional flows of goods

"China and the US are NOT having any consultation or negotiation on #tariffs," China shot back in a foreign ministry statement posted by the Chinese Embassy in the US.

Local operator Saif Powertec Ltd is currently operating the port's New Mooring Container Terminal

But in Vietnam's northern industrial Bac Ninh province, Chinese businesses that AFP interviewed -- most of whom are linked to the export supply chain -- said investors were hesitating and anxiety was widespread.

Sales of the sleek machines fell 45 percent to just over 36,000 units in the first quarter of 2025 in EU

The United States was Vietnam's biggest export market in the first three months of the year.

The IMF on Wednesday announced that economic pressures from steep new US tariffs will push global public debt above pandemic-era levels

Trump told reporters his country would have a "fair deal with China," adding that "everything's active" when asked if Washington was talking to Beijing.

The European Union Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (EuroCham) urged the interim government to avoid discrimination against companies based in the bloc as Bangladesh weighs up substantial trade concessions for the United States.

Apple was fined 500 million euros ($570 million) on Wednesday and Meta 200 million euros, as European Union antitrust regulators handed out the first sanctions under landmark legislation aimed at curbing the power of Big Tech.

Just 37% of respondents to the six-day poll approve of Trump's handling of the economy

The EU also fined Meta 200 million euros over its "pay or consent" system after it violated rules on the use of personal data on Facebook and Instagram.

The fierce trade war between the world's top two economies has rattled markets and raised fears of a global recession.

Trump also reiterated he wanted to do a deal with China where tariffs would not be anywhere near 145 percent, adding that he would set the terms of a deal if Beijing did not enter talks

Georgieva said they wanted the IMF to provide more technical assistance to countries grappling with high debt levels.