The head of the International Monetary Fund urged US policymakers on Friday to consider the implications for the rest of the world of failing to reach a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff." "If the US suffers as a result of the fiscal cliff - a complete wiping out of growth - it is going to have repercussions around the world," IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde told the BBC in an interview.

"If the US has 2 percent less growth, there will probably be 1 percent less growth in Mexico and in Canada, probably less so in Europe and Japan, but there will be ripple effects outside the US," she added.

Copyright Reuters, 2012