Lagarde said the world economic oulook at the moment was not particularly rosy.
She said: “There is no economy in the world, whether low-income countries, emerging markets, middle-income countries or super-advanced economies that will be immune to the crisis that we see not only unfolding but escalating.
"It is not a crisis that will be resolved by one group of countries taking action. It is going to be hopefully resolved by all countries, all regions, all categories of countries actually taking action."
Lagarde noted some relative economic bright spots in the countries within Asia and Latin America which, she said, had taken steps during crises in the 1980s and 1990s to address weaknesses in their banking systems and financial regulatory frameworks, with IMF help.
She said: “All those challenges that they faced in the days of the Asian crisis, of the Latin American crisis have now served them well.”
Lagarde added that global economic leaders needed to take a holistic approach toward addressing systemic weaknesses, such as those underscored by the current eurozone debt crisis.
She said: “It is going to require effort, it is going to require adjustment and clearly it is going to have to start from the core of the crisis at the moment, which is obviously the European countries and in particular the countries of the eurozone.”
She cautioned, however, that democratic government processes often made quick fixes difficult, saying the collision of market expectations with political reality must be resolved.
“It is really that Gordian Knot that needs to be cracked, that needs to be addressed as collectively as possible, starting with those at the centre but with the support of the international community probably channelled through the IMF.”
