The International Monetary Fund (IMF), the international lender of last resort, has loaned a record $140 billion so far this year to aid troubled countries, at least five of which already are in default with more on the brink, the Financial Times reported.

Egypt, Ghana, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, and Zambia have defaulted on their sovereign debts and are in discussions with the IMF about restructuring their payment programs.

The costs of caring for COVID patients, of the Ukraine war and resulting Western sanctions, inflation, and climbing interest rates have forced more than 35 countries to seek IMF bailouts.

The fund has disbursed $140 billion this year through August to 44 different rescue plans, the FT found.

The fund’s overall commitments, which include loans pledged as well as those already made, have rocketed to $268 billion, with more expected as both inflation and borrowing costs continue to rise.

At the end of August, the IMF loaned $1.1 billion to Pakistan. Argentina is due to receive $3.9 billion before December. Egypt will receive $15 billion, Goldman Sachs analysts predict.

TREND FORECAST: As many as a dozen or more additional nations will default on their sovereign debt and turn to the IMF to bail them out.

As it always does, the IMF will impose stringent terms on nations it lends to, leading to public protests over government cuts to public subsidies of food and fuel, among other austerities. It will accelerate our “New World Disorder” trend as people take to the streets in protest of lack of basic living standards, government corruption, crime and violence. 

The deeper economic conditions deteriorate the higher the amount of refugees that will be fleeing for safe haven nations. In turn, strong anti-immigration, anti-establishment political movements, such as those that occurred in Italy and Sweden recently, will accelerate. 

In addition, the IMF will pressure developed nations to simply forgive portions of debts owed by insolvent countries.

These pressures will meet greater resistance than usual as the U.S., Europe, and other nations struggle with their own mounting debts.