In this context I should also mention that on 11 September 1998 the Governing Council of the ECB endorsed the statistical framework on the basis of a number of reports that had been prepared by the EMI - many of which had been published in the past - thereby confirming the ECB’s statistical requirements for Stage Three.
7 In terms of "emergency" lending, it would be far preferable to have the IMF focus on helping countries avoid problems in the first place, rather than lending funds to help them resolve balance-of-payments problems. The IMF could best support a market-based international financial system by working with countries to put mechanisms in place that help resolve problems before they turn into crises.