(Reuters) – Jamaica is in advanced talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a new lending agreement and another round of discussions aimed at hammering out a deal is set to begin early next week, Finance Minister Peter Phillips said.

In a statement to the parliament of Jamaica on Tuesday, Phillips indicated the government hoped to have a new standby agreement with the IMF in place by the end of this year.

(More: A Stellar Record of Failure: The IMF and Jamaica)

“Last week, I visited Washington, D.C., where I had discussions with the staff of the IMF and with the Inter-American Development Bank covering Jamaica’s macroeconomic program,” Phillips said.

“The objective of the visit was to present the fund with an update on the macreconomic developments in Jamaica, including the recently concluded budget exercise and more importantly, to settle definitively on a timetable to bring negotiations closer to an agreement and conclusion,” he said.

“I can report that a team from the fund will come to Jamaica for meetings to begin on July 23rd. We will use the opportunity to further advance discussions,” Phillips added.

“This will be followed up by a larger negotiating mission in the month of September. It is our hope that we will be able to conclude negotiations with the staff of the fund so that we will be able to have a decision from the Board of Directors of the Fund in the fall,” he said.

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