Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek made important statements about the economy in a live broadcast. Şimşek shared breaking information about the future of the 25 percent increase limit in rents. Minister Şimşek stated that there is no reason for this limit to continue. He also said, “If we did not buy foreign currency from the market, the dollar could fall below 30.”
Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek made striking statements about the economy agenda in the program he attended on TRT Haber. Giving important information about the purchase of foreign currency and the 25 percent increase limit in rent, Şimşek said, “I see no reason for the 25 percent limit in rent to continue, most likely it will not continue.”
Highlights of Minister Şimşek’s Statements:
The Success of the Economic Program: “The program is working, there is a softening in domestic demand, the impact of net exports has started to turn positive, there is a rebalancing in growth. Turkey’s external deficit has almost halved, one of the major imbalances has been eliminated.”
Confidence and Risk Premium: “Confidence in the program is strong, it is constantly strengthening. There is a much larger increase in fund flows than we had anticipated. The decline in the risk premium shows that the program is working.”
Inflation and Austerity Measures: “Inflation is projected to fall. In a 2-year perspective, it has come down to around 22 percent. We will implement the public sector austerity package vigorously and accelerate structural reforms.”
Monetary Policy: “We will support monetary policy through two channels: We will support it through budget discipline and productivity growth by accelerating reforms.”
Independent Program: “This program is Turkey’s own program. We did not enter into dialogue with any international organization during the program preparation phase.”
Earthquake and Budget: “We experienced a major earthquake disaster last year, and we have prioritized healing the wounds of this disaster. Discipline and expenditure control are indispensable in areas other than earthquakes.”
Disinflation Target: “We are determined to reduce inflation, we will not step back to bring inflation down to 10s next year and to single digits the year after. We will not back down in fiscal policy or monetary policy.”
Foreign Exchange and Credit Policy: “If we did not buy foreign currency from the market, the dollar could have fallen below 30. There is no reason for a depreciation in the lira. Credit pricing should not be interfered with either.”
VAT and Construction Costs: “We do not foresee any increase in VAT. Construction costs have stabilized. The expectations channel is improving, there is an improvement in inflation expectations. All these support disinflation.”
Minister Şimşek’s statements revealed Turkey’s determination to eliminate economic imbalances and reinforce its growth targets. The fact that he stated that the 25 percent increase limit in rent will not continue may herald a new era in the rental market.
