Q1 2016 GDP Growth: Stronger but Iffy
Turkish economy grew by 4.8% in Q1 2015, above the consensus and our expectations of 4.4%. In seasonally adjusted terms, the economy expanded by 3% q/q. Household consumption expenditures, which generates two thirds of the GDP, continued to improve and posted a growth rate of 6.9% y/y. By this, the contribution of the biggest component of growth to the economy became 4.8%, in other words, it was all about domestic demand again. 120 bps of contribution to the...
Iran: Deserves A Closer Look
After seven years of international sanctions, Iran is once again open for business. The end of sanctions is a lifesaver for the economy as billions of dollars’ worth of frozen Iranian assets were released. In addition, years of isolation and a lack of investment have severely affected the economy and specifically natural resources infrastructure which now requires strong injections of fresh capital. At this stage, many investors started to look at Iran to invest in since the country...
Sluggish Credit Growth: A Cause for Concern?
The evolution of Turkey’s banking system in early 2000s was a lesson to be learned for any emerging countries, even for the developed ones. Following the 1994 crisis, Turkish financial system had come to settle in a fuzzy equilibrium with a large nominal stock of carried by a handful of banks in a lucrative “carry trade”, and a large number of lemon banks involved in tunneling bank deposits to shareholders through connected lending. Unsurprisingly, the industry had to...