Turkey's Economy Minister Kemal Dervis expressed optimism on Saturday, July 21, that the country would overcome its severe economic woes by the end of the year, Anatolia news agency reported.
"I definitely believe that we will overcome the heavy turmoil, which started in February, by the autumn, by the end of the year," Dervis said in Istanbul, according to the agency. He warned, however, that the recovery process would not be easy and would see frequent ups and downs.
The minister stressed that high interest rates were a key obstacle in the recovery drive and assured that the government was doing its best to pull them down to ensure an economic revitalization.
The turmoil has slashed nearly half of the Turkish lira's value and caused the economy to contract by 4.2 percent in the first quarter of the year.
Turkey's battered markets began to recover last Wednesday following the resignation of a cabinet minister, who had come to symbolize opposition to far-reaching reforms under a May stand-by deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). ― (AFP, Ankara)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
