Turkey's economy minister says Turkey has overcome the country's most difficult period

Mehmet Şimşek, Minister of Treasury and Finance of the Republic of Turkey, said that the most difficult period for the Turkish economy is behind us. He made this statement in a live broadcast on TV100 on February 8.

"Inflation is declining, the budget deficit is decreasing and our reserves are sufficient... The most difficult period is behind us," the minister said.

He also noted that there are some macroeconomic problems in the country, but said he believes in Turkey's potential.

"Inflation is like an unfair tax. It especially hits those on fixed and low incomes. <...> Our citizens can rest assured, we are looking for a radical solution [to the problem]," he assured.

According to the official, one of the biggest problems for the country right now is the "gray" sector of the economy, and businesses that avoid paying taxes. It is this problem that the government intends to tackle in the coming years.

"Instead of raising tax rates, we now want to reduce the budget deficit by registering businesses that operate completely off the books. I would like to state that there will not be a single taxpayer whose door we will not knock on in 2025," Shimsek said.

Turkey's Central Bank cut interest rate from 47.5% to 45%

Earlier, on Jan. 23, the Turkish Central Bank lowered its key rate from 47.5 percent to 45 percent. It is noted that tight monetary policy strengthens the process of reducing inflation, but it will be maintained until price stability is achieved.

On March 11 last year, the Turkish lira updated the historical minimum to the dollar and exceeded the mark of 32 lira per $1. The next day, BitRiver financial analyst Vladislav Antonov called "Izvestia" the main reasons for the weakening of the Turkish currency. Among other things, the expert attributed them to high inflation in the country, which reached 67.07% in annualized terms in February 2024, as well as the depletion of foreign exchange reserves in the republic.