The head of the IMF says the US Government shutdown could "seriously damage" the world's economy.
Christine Lagarde was speaking in Washington on day 3 of the spending freeze - which has left 800-thousand federal workers on unpaid leave.
She says it's "mission critical" that Democrats and Republicans solve the political crisis and immediately get to work on raising America's debt ceiling before the October 17th deadline.
Christine Lagarde says it's a major setback for the world economy still reeling from the 2008 financial crash.
