Interest rate

"Do not worry Bulgarians, inflation will not stay this way, it will get worse"

Wall Street closed its first losing week in the last four with an up-and-down on April 8, as investors brace for the Federal Reserve to tighten the brakes on the economy more aggressively to beat down inflation.

In its fourth meeting, the Price Stability Committee vowed to fight soaring inflation rates with "new policies to achieve security of supply against excessive price hikes," according to a statement released by the Treasury and Finance Ministry late on April 5.

The Bank of Japan made an offer for unlimited government bond purchases yesterday, moving to curb a surge in long-term interest rates in the world's third-largest economy.

The administrations of the four major Greek banks are ready to press the button for the abolition of interest on all deposit demand products, savings and current accounts.

In cutting interest rates amid spiralling inflation, the Turkish government under President Erdogan has thrown economic orthodoxy out the window. The poor face getting poorer.

New Finance Minister Lutfi Elvan (C) speaks to media after a ceremony marking the 82th anniversary of the death of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk at the mausoleum in Ankara, 10 November 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE/STR

Turkish state-owned lenders Ziraat, Vakıfbank and Halkbank have lowered loan interest rates between 50 and100 basis points on Nov. 19.

After the Central Bank cut its benchmark rate from 16 percent to 15 percent on Nov. 18, the three banks decided to follow suit.

The Turkish Central Bank on Nov. 18 cut its benchmark one-week repo rate by 100 basis points from 16 percent to 15 percent in line with market expectations.

At its 11th Monetary Policy Committee meeting this year, the bank said recent increases in inflation had been driven by supply-side factors such as rising food and import prices, especially in energy, and supply constraints.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has reiterated his continued fight against high interest rates and inflation, vowing to take measures to protect the low-income groups in the face of rising living costs.