Another IMF mistake? Lagarde says renegotiation of debt “could have helped Portugal”

After all the talk and political spin, IMF boss Christine Lagarde has come out on record saying a renegotiation of Portugal’s crippling debt-load could have helped the country after all.
Lagarde’s statements have come in an article produced by the IMF published in Jornal de Negócios at the weekend.
A month after the so-called ‘clean exit’ from the three-year adjustment programme, the article maintains there are advantages in restructuring debt in cases where sustainability is in doubt.
While not going so far as to say their lack of direction over this key point could be constituted another “mistake in calculations”, the IMF says nonetheless that Portugal as well as Ireland could have gained from a renegotiation.
According to data from the Bank of Portugal, Portugal’s debt stands at 130% of GDP.
The IMF admitted last year to having made “major missteps” in its handling of the Greek bailout, admitting that it had “badly underestimated the damage that its prescription of austerity would do to Greece’s economy”.