Mehmet Şimşek

The government will take decisive steps regarding expenditure control in the public sector, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek told ministers and senior members of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), daily Hürriyet has reported.

Türkiye's current account deficit this year will be significantly lower than the initially forecast, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said.

The improvement in annualized foreign trade deficit continued in March, Şimşek wrote on the social media platform X on April 5, commenting on the latest trade data.

Inflation in Turkey soared to a staggering 68.5% year-on-year in March, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute Turkstat. This alarming surge in prices has intensified concerns over the country's economic stability.

Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said on April 3 that the decline in monthly inflation will continue after the numbers for March were announced.

The First Vice President and Head of Client Services Group of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Jürgen Rigterink is to embark on a four-day visit to Türkiye, with stops scheduled for the earthquake-hit cities in the southeast of the country.

Türkiye's Central Bank has decided to opt for lifting the key policy rate, increasing the one-week repo auction rate from 45 percent to 50 percent.

Most economists had expected the Central Bank, which held the policy rate steady last month after eight straight increases, to keep the rate unchanged at the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on March 21.

Türkiye's Central Bank has a 'free hand' and policymakers at the bank will do what is necessary to reduce inflation, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said.

The essence of the economic program is disinflation, to bring inflation to single digits, Şimşek said in an interview with private broadcaster Kanal 7.

The Treasury has announced it raised a total of 2 billion euros through a euro-denominated bond issue, bringing the total borrowing in international markets this year to $5.2 billion.

Earlier this week, the Treasury mandated Deutsche Bank, HSBC, JP Morgan and Societe Generale for the bond due 2030.

Türkiye's current account balance produced a deficit of $2.56 billion in January with the annualized gap continuing to shrink, data from the Central Bank has shown.

This was smaller than the $2.8 billion deficit most economists had predicted.

The recent volatility in the FX market should be viewed as temporary, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said, vowing to maintain "sound" policies.

"The Central Bank is committed to anchoring inflation expectations using all the tools at its disposal. We will continue to tighten fiscal policy to help the Central Bank reduce inflation," Şimşek wrote on X on March 11.