Turkiye: Central bank steadies interest rate at 50 percent

The Turkish Central Bank decided on Thursday to keep the interest rate AT 50 percent for the sixth month in a row declaring vigilance vis a vis the inflation but stoppING short of indicating whether it would ultimately stiffen the monetary policy. The central bank said in a statement that it had decided to maintain the interest rate at 50 percent noting that tools of the monetary policy would be effectively employed in case the inflation drasticly rose. The central bank had stated in previous statements that it would stiffen the monetary policy in the face of forecast inflation rise, while the lira rate continued trading at USD 02.34. Annual inflation rate dropped less than 52 percent in August, compared to 75 percent last May. The government predicts that it will drop lower than 42 percent by the yearend. The central bank rose the interest rate 4150 in June 2023, a step backward in the approach of President recep Tayyip Erdogan to boost the economy. Source: Kuwait News Agency