Both of the announced candidates to head the International Monetary Fund are visiting key economic powers, seeking support for their rival bids to become the next managing director of the global lender.

French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde is in Beijing for a series of meetings with top Chinese financial and political officials. She arrived Wednesday, after making a similar visit to India, where she did not win a public endorsement of her candidacy.

Mexican central bank governor Agustin Carstens is planning a visit to India on Friday and Washington on Monday after bringing his campaign to other countries, including Germany and Brazil. Carstens has said he faces an “uphill” fight, and he has complained that many European nations backed Lagarde before all the candidates were announced. Some Latin American nations are backing Carstens.

Emerging nations say their large and growing role in the global economy means it is time to end a tradition of always choosing a European to head the IMF.

The top IMF job is open because French national Dominique Strauss-Kahn resigned last month after being arrested on sexual assault charges.

The International Monetary Fund was established after World War II to lend money to countries in financial trouble.