IMF opens search for top job

WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund said it plans an open selection process for its top job and will begin accepting nominations on Thursday, even though Christine Lagarde has said she is open to another term leading the crisis lender.Lagarde's initial five-year term as managing director expires on July 5, and IMF executive board member Aleksei Mozhin said he expects the board to complete its selection process by early March.

Lagarde, a former French finance minister, was elected in 2011 after competing against Mexican central bank governor Augustin Carstens to replace Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who was forced to resign the top IMF job amid a sexual assault scandal.  "The Executive Board has adopted an open, merit-based, and transparent process for the selection of the managing director, similar to the one used in the previous round," Mozhin said in a statement.