"Turkey’s Finance Minister Şimşek speaks in London: “We will accelerate reforms in many areas such as food and housing."
Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek made significant statements regarding the general outlook of the Turkish economy at the Turkey Conference held in London. He talked to investors, stating that inflation would continue to decrease this year, supported by both supply-side measures and demand-side policies. He also highlighted that reforms in areas such as food, housing, and energy would be accelerated and that support for increasing food supply, such as irrigation projects, would continue.
The Minister outlined the goal of reducing the budget deficit to 3% of GDP and emphasized the focus on fiscal discipline in the public sector, with non-interest expenditures controlled with a deviation of 3%. He also mentioned that Turkey's external financing needs would decrease and that the country aimed to be a net external debt repayer in eurobond issuances this year.
Şimşek stressed that Turkey had a resilient economic structure in the face of rising geopolitical tensions and emphasized that the country’s resilience in global trade had been strengthened through free trade agreements. He also pointed out that Turkey was progressing toward becoming a key regional hub in sectors such as the defence industry, tourism, healthcare, and energy and transportation corridors.