Press Release No. 12/12

Press Release: Statement by IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde on the Death of Former IMF Economic Counsellor and Director of Research Michael Mussa

January 16, 2012

Ms. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), issued the following statement today after news of the death of Mr. Michael Mussa, a former IMF Economic Counsellor and Director of Research:

“It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of Michael Mussa. For nearly a decade, he served the IMF and the international economic community with great distinction. On behalf of the IMF, I wish to offer our deepest condolences. Michael Mussa was a public servant of the highest caliber and an esteemed intellect that will be missed, although his contributions to the economic community and the IMF will live on.”

Mr. Mussa resigned June 29, 2001 after serving for nearly a decade as the Fund’s chief economist (see News Brief  No. 01/25).  He was appointed Economic Counsellor to the Managing Director and Director of Research in August 1991, following a distinguished career in academia and public service. He was a William H. Abbott Professor of International Business at the University of Chicago, a member of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers under President Reagan, and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Since leaving the IMF, Mr. Mussa has been a Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, DC.