Central Bank’s rate-setting committee to meet this week

ISTANBUL

Members of the Turkish Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will meet later this week to decide about the key interest rate.

The Central Bank has already hiked the policy rate, the one-week repo auction rate, by 2,150 basis points since June this year.

Last month, it increased the key interest rate by 500 basis points from 25 percent to 30 percent.

Most economists expect the Central Bank to deliver another 500 basis points hike at the MPC meeting, scheduled to take place on Oct. 26.

The MPC decided to continue the monetary tightening process in order to establish the disinflation course as soon as possible, anchor inflation expectations and control the deterioration in pricing behavior, the bank said in a statement after the committee’s meeting last month.

It reiterated that the policy rate will be determined in a way that will create monetary and financial conditions necessary to ensure a decline in the underlying trend of inflation and to reach the 5 percent inflation target in the medium term.

The annual inflation rate quickened from 58.9 percent in August to 61.5 percent in September, with the monthly inflation slowing from 9.1 percent to 4.75 percent.

In the statement, the Central Bank also stressed that foreign direct investment and improvement in external financing conditions continued to increase in foreign exchange reserves.

Şimşek’s meetings with international investors

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek was in London earlier this month for investor meetings.

Last week, he traveled to France. On Oct. 19, the minister met with members of MEDEF, France's largest business association, hosted by Jean Lemierre, chairman of the board of directors of BNP Paribas.

Later in the day, the minister attended another event, hosted by Societe Generale.

“We explained the Turkish economy and our program to France-based investment funds and bank senior managers who manage approximately 4 trillion euros,” Şimşek wrote on the social media platform X.

At the France-Germany Forum, attended by CEOs and CFOs of around 70 companies, Şimşek talked about the investment opportunities in Türkiye.

While in France, Şimşek also met French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire to discuss how to increase bilateral trade and mutual investments.

France is among the top 10 countries that make the most investments in Türkiye.

As part of his tour of meetings with international investors, Şimşek will travel to the Gulf nations this week.

“The purpose of our visits is to explain our country's new program and attract permanent investment that will provide employment and high added value,” Şimşek wrote on X.