First Female IMF boss
Wednesday June 29 2011 | 01:05 PM

Governments have congratulated Christine Lagarde after she was named the first female managing director of the International Monetary Fund in its 67-year history.

US treasury secretary Timothy Geithner, whose vote alongside that of China's proved crucial to the result, praised the French finance minister's "exceptional talent".

French President Nicolas Sarkozy hailed the decision, which sees the Washington DC based institution again headed by a European, as "a victory for France". UK chancellor George Osborne meanwhile said he was "delighted". 

Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore's deputy prime minister and finance minister, and chairman of the IMF's policy steering committee, said he expected Lagarde would offer the fund a clear sense of purpose following the departure of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

A statement issued by the fund's 24-member executive board, which made the decision following candidate interviews last week, said the IMF had made the view "by consensus".