IMF chief sees big boost to lending organization on the horizon

International Monetary Fund (IMF) head Christine Lagarde said Thursday that she expects the lending organization to get a large financial boost by donors to help stem eurozone the crisis.

"We expect our firepower to be significantly increased as an outcome of this meeting," she said, reported Reuters, at a news conference begin three days of meetings on the global economy at the IMF and World Bank.

Lagarde has set a target to raise $400 billion for the IMF to act as an emergency fund.

The Associated Press reported that, Lagarde said that the organization had already received commitments of $320 billion in support mostly from EU countries and Japan.

The United States has said that it will not offer additional funding.

China, Brazil and Russia said they are willing to contribute to the emergency fund but want more voting power at the IMF in return, reported Bloomberg.

Lagarde has been lobbying member states for emergency funds for months, raising the specter that the European debt crisis could worsen without support.

Initially, the IMF chief aimed at raising $600 billion but later revised the plan after better economic growth in the eurozone.

Yet, fresh concerns about borrowing costs in Italy and Spain has renewed Lagarde's effort to strengthen funds at the IMF, reported the Guardian.

In her speech, Lagarde also said that European countries should provide their banks with direct financial aid in order to shore up capital reserves, according to the Associated Press.