The International Monetary Fund rarely elicits pity. But it is hard not to feel sorry for an organisation being castigated by its shareholders for failing to do what those shareholders have prevented it from doing.

The charge sheet drawn up by sundry shareholder countries, particularly the US, reads as follows: the fund is unrepresentative; the fund is losing its role dealing with financial crises; the fund has ignored currency manipulation that has worsened global current account imbalances. These charges are hypocritical or wrong or both.