Economic Update: 1Q15 GDP & April Current Account
Turkey GDP grew by more than expected (2.3% versus 1.6%) in the first three months of 2015, data from Turkstats showed on Wednesday. Despite the fact that the reported figure signaled a below par growth in the country, we saw the pressure on Turkish assets easing for a while following the economic data. However, a rethinking about the country’s growth regime is needed given that for the last thirteen quarters it has been posting growth numbers below historical levels.
The strongest component of GDP was consumption in...
Central Bank Independence Attacked Again
The 2001 crisis and the following the post-crisis period were important milestones for economic policy-making in Turkey as well as for the monetary policy. In 2002 Turkish Central Bank adopted a modern monetary policy with primary objective of achieving price stability after the bank had been vested with instrument independence in the previous year. Thanks to these efforts, Turkey has been able to keep the annual inflation rates in the range of 4%-12% after experiencing a hyperinflation period in 90s with...
What Google Says About Elections
With two months before the Turkish local elections take place, Prime Miniter Tayyip Erdogan’s party is still, by a wide margin, the most popular with voters, as it has been since 2002. However many are qıestioning if that wide margin is getting narrower these days due to corruption allegations that has tarnished the government’s image. Polls show Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) still leads but voting rates differs greatly in each poll. By this none can assert...