Jamaica restarting talks with IMF

Jamaica's new government is restarting talks with the International Monetary Fund.

A statement from the finance ministry said an IMF delegation will visit Jamaica starting on January 17.

It said the parties will discuss ways for a formal relationship to continue. A standby agreement expires in May.

Jamaica's towering debt and the impact of the global recession led the previous government to seek assistance from the IMF in 2010.

The then-governing Jamaica Labour Party rarely disclosed specifics about the agreement's progress.

The Labour Party was soundly defeated in elections last month by the People's National Party.