May 16: Middle East must monitor financial sector: IMF

Masood Ahmed, IMF director for the Middle East and Central Asia, says that governments in the region must keep a careful watch on banks and be ready to step in to support them, especially as levels of non-performing loans (NPLs) rise. He predicts more weakness in the second half of this year. Speaking to Roula Khalaf, Middle East editor, on the fringes of the World Economic Forum in Jordan, he says that key sources of income such as tourism and remittances - which have held up so far - may be lagging indicators.