IMF appoints Silvana Tenreyro as Chief Economist, Head of Research

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has appointed Silvana Tenreyro as its next Chief Economist and Director of the Research Department, succeeding Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, who has returned to academia.According to media reports,announcing the appointment on Tuesday, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said Tenreyro will assume the role of Economic Counsellor and Director of the Research Department from August 10.
A citizen of Argentina, Italy and the United Kingdom, Tenreyro is a renowned economist and a longtime professor at the London School of Economics. She is widely recognised for her contributions to monetary economics and international macroeconomics.Tenreyro previously served as an external member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee from 2017 to 2023. Earlier in her career, she worked as an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and was also a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Mauritius.She is currently a member of Georgieva's external advisory group and advises leading public and private institutions on economic and financial issues.
Highlighting the significance of the appointment, Georgieva said Tenreyro's combination of academic excellence and policymaking experience would strengthen the IMF's analytical work during a period of growing uncertainty in the global economy."At a time of profound transformation and heightened uncertainty in the global economy, Silvana's mix of intellectual leadership and policy experience will help ensure that the Fund's analytical work and multilateral surveillance and policy advice will remain at the cutting edge in support of our membership," Georgieva said.
As IMF Chief Economist, Tenreyro will oversee the institution's flagship economic reports, including the World Economic Outlook, and serve as one of the Fund's principal voices on global economic trends. The role has gained increased prominence in recent years amid challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, shifting U.S. trade policies and geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East.Tenreyro completed both her Master's degree and Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University after completing her undergraduate studies in Argentina. She is married to economist Francesco Caselli, who heads the academic board at the London School of Economics.Her appointment has been welcomed by leading economists. Moritz Schularick, President of the Kiel Institute, praised her pioneering research on economic volatility, monetary policy transmission and currency unions when she received the institute's Bernhard Harms Prize last year.Schularick said Tenreyro's research has significantly advanced understanding of how diversification and different types of economic shocks influence growth and welfare across both emerging and advanced economies.