WASHINGTON, March 27 (Reuters) - The coronavirus pandemic will cause global economic output to contract in 2020, top officials of the International Monetary Fund said on Friday, adding that an "exceptionally high number of countries" need IMF emergency financing.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and International Monetary and Financial Committee Chair Lesetja Kganyago said in a statement that to ease foreign exchange shortages for many developing countries, the IMF is exploring additional options that go beyond the Fund's traditional lending facilities.

"We are in an unprecedented situation where a global health pandemic has turned into an economic and financial crisis. With a sudden stop in economic activity, global output will contract in 2020," they said in a joint statement following a conference call with the IMFC, the Fund's steering committee.

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