IMF: US slowdown likely temporary

A slowdown in growth in the United States and other major economies is likely to be temporary, caused by a spike in energy prices, the acting managing director of the International Monetary Fund told Reuters in an interview.

There is a risk of high unemployment as economic recovery will be slow, and it is appropriate for advanced economies to maintain accommodative monetary policies, Lipsky said.

"Our expectation is current US monetary policy is consistent with a return to moderate growth," he said, when asked if the Fed needed to embark on additional quantitative easing.

Lipsky would not be drawn into discussing any details of a proposed second euro zone bailout of debt-laden Greece.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Tuesday acknowledged the US economy had slowed but offered no hint of additional stimulus. If the current lull in the economy is more prolonged, that could put the Fed in a bind as it has exhausted many of its policy options.

The Fed has already slashed overnight interest rates to near zero and bought more than $2 trillion in government bonds, a policy known as quantitative easing, to pull the economy from a deep recession and spur a recovery.

The Fed's current $600 billion round of government bond buying, known as QE2, is due to end this month.

Almost all advanced economies also face the challenge of improving their public finances to reduce debt burdens, Lipsky said. Emerging market economies also need tighter fiscal and monetary policy to cope with inflationary pressure, he said.

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