Want to lead the IMF? You have until Sept 6 to apply

NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) - The race to run the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has formally begun as the Washington-based organisation said the application process opens at midnight on July 29 and closes Sept 6.

"The Board intends to complete the process by Oct 4," according to an emailed statement.

With government leaders heading into the summer break the timing is of particular interest.

Europe has traditionally had a lock on the position, but has so far dithered and struggled to get behind any one candidate.

Christine Lagarde is leaving after eight years to take over at the European Central Bank.

A French national has held that post more than any other country, and in fact it is France again that is leading the process of trying to build a consensus.

The extra time might help - or perhaps give emerging markets an opening to come up with their candidate.

Europe decided on a short list consisting Spanish Finance Minister Nadia Calvino, Portuguese Finance Minister Mario Centeno, former Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem, World Bank chief executive Kristalina Georgieva of Bulgaria, and Bank of Finland Governor Olli Rehn, according to a French finance ministry official.

However, trying to find someone enough European countries can get behind has been hard, with the French now looking to widen the range of candidates by getting rid of the job's age limit, according to people with knowledge of the talks.

According to a half-century-old agreement, the head of the IMF is a European while the US picks the chief of the World Bank.

Part of that tradition prevailed when the American David Malpass was selected as the World Bank's president in April.

But Europeans are uncertain whether President Donald Trump's administration will return the favour - and emerging markets have been arguing for years that the arrangement reflects a world that has since evolved.