Turkey adjusts to ‘bitter medicine’ of high rates
Business Daily
BBC
4.4 • 816 Ratings
🗓️ 21 December 2023
⏱️ 18 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan heard Turkish voters back in May when they said they wanted change in the economy.
So, he appointed a new finance minister and central bank governor to lead the charge.
Despite the president’s strong opposition to using higher interest rates to cool rising prices, he’s allowed rates to rise in each of the last six months.
While that’s helped bring about an economic turnaround, it’s put added pressure on households who have for years been reliant on low borrowing costs.
Will the president’s patience with economic orthodoxy last, or are these early policy changes a sign of long-lasting change?
Presenter Victoria Craig Produced by Victoria Craig and Ceren Iskit
(Image: Eren and Ümit Karaduman and their children. Credit: Victoria Craig)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Unmissible stories from around the globe from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:05.1 | My happy place. This is who I am. |
| 0:08.2 | Search for the documentary, Lives Less Ordinary, and Amazing Sports Stories, wherever you get your BBC podcasts. |
| 0:26.7 | Hello and welcome to Business Daily from the BBC World Service with me, Victoria Craig. |
| 0:34.4 | The rising cost of living has been a major issue that's pressured households and dogged governments the world over for years. But in Turkey, where annual inflation has cooled to 60%, financial pain is still a dominant |
| 0:41.7 | issue for many families. We have completely disappeared, you know? You don't dye your hair, |
| 0:50.2 | you don't buy clothes. Before, for example, having a book was a luxury we could afford. |
| 0:56.3 | Not anymore. |
| 0:57.3 | For the last six months, the government's new economic and finance teams have been working |
| 1:01.5 | to correct the long-lasting effects of years of unorthodox policy. |
| 1:06.3 | But writing past wrongs comes with its own set of challenges. |
| 1:10.9 | It is a better medicine, for sure, until we see a decline in inflation and improvement in purchasing power. |
| 1:18.7 | Unfortunately, this is a painful process that we are going to go through. |
| 1:22.6 | I'll introduce you to parents of twins who are struggling to make ends meet in Turkey's capital city Ankara |
| 1:28.0 | and will get an expert look at whether Turkey's tango with economic orthodoxy is working |
| 1:34.2 | and more importantly long-lasting. |
| 1:36.9 | That's all ahead. |
| 1:38.0 | Right here on Business Daily from the BBC World Service. |
| 1:50.4 | Yay! BBC World Service. Aaron and Umetz Karadouman have their hands full. |
| 1:55.0 | The couple are parents of three-year-old twin boys, Thailand and Derman. |
| 1:59.6 | When I visit their home on a rainy and cold Saturday afternoon, |
| 2:02.9 | all the kids want to do is visit the park nearby. |
... |
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