Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reaffirmed on Tuesday that his government, economic managers, and the central bank remain committed to hitting inflation targets and securing price stability. Speaking to ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmakers in Ankara, he declared there would be no retreat from current economic policy.
Erdoğan attributed recent market volatility in Türkiye largely to global forces, noting that the US Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate to 5 percent on 10 May 2006 and that oil and gold prices had climbed sharply. He argued that any honest assessment of Türkiye's situation must account for those international pressures.
On domestic inflation, Erdoğan said seasonal and temporary factors drove the April uptick, adding, "we will never allow reoccurrence of the sufferings experienced due to inflation."
He also highlighted a sharp rise in foreign direct investment, saying inflows that had totaled under 1 billion dollars over the previous 50 years surged to 1.7 billion dollars in 2003, 2.8 billion dollars in 2004, and 9.7 billion dollars in 2005.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in May 2006, in its own words.