WASHINGTON—The Treasury Department beefed up its international economic policy-making team Wednesday by adding David Lipton, the former deputy director of the International Monetary Fund.
Mr. Lipton, 67, has long experience in Democratic administrations and the IMF in handling financial crises and dealing with China. He is likely to expand the Treasury’s clout in debates on China policy.
At the IMF, China was part of Mr. Lipton’s portfolio. He made regular trips to Beijing, urging officials there to focus less on GDP growth at all costs and take a more on a balanced approach to economic development. He also warned Beijing of its deepening dependence on debt.
The IMF regularly warned that nearly every country whose debt load increased as much as China’s fell into financial crisis. The advice had some impact: China relies less now on GDP growth forecasts and has been pushing to deleverage its economy with modest success.
Mr. Lipton and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen generally look at China as a source of growth for the global economy—the traditional viewpoint at Treasury. Ms. Yellen was head of the San Francisco Fed, which studies Asian economies, and head of the Federal Reserve, where she worked with the People’s Bank of China on international monetary issues.
