Israel's Fischer perfect IMF head, supporters say

JERUSALEM — Israeli central bank chief Stanley Fischer, who has announced his candidacy for the post of IMF director general, is credited with having steered an economic "miracle" in Israel despite the global downturn.Fischer announced on Saturday evening that he was seeking the top post at the International Monetary Fund, to replace Dominique Strauss-Kahn who has resigned after being accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid in New York.His candidacy, the subject of much speculation in Israel in recent weeks, shakes up the race for the key post, which is normally held by a European.His main rivals for the moment are French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde, the presumed frontrunner, and Mexico's central bank chief Agustin Carstens, who is angling to become the first non-European head of the fund.Despite media speculation, Fischer had been coy over seeking the post, telling Israeli public radio this week: "One must never accept a position that no one has offered you."But his potential candidacy has won favour among many, with commentators in leading financial publications including the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal and Euromoney magazine all expressing support.Fischer has been credited for keeping Israel's economy growing even as the global downturn ravaged other nations.Reappointed in March for a second five-year term at the head of Israel's central bank, Fischer can boast a 5.0% growth rate projected for the Jewish state this year and foreign reserves of $77.4 billion.He has strongly championed bolstering foreign reserves to rein in the strength of the shekel and boost Israeli exports.His tenure has made him both trusted and popular in Israel, with the economic newspaper, The Marker, running an article under the headline: "Please don't go."Born in October 15, 1943 in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia, Fischer studied in both Britain and the United States, where he graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, before taking US citizenship.In January 2005, he became Israeli under the

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