President Erdoğan vows inflation will fall

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vowed on Dec. 19 to rein in inflation and reinstated his opposition to high interest rates.

"Sooner or later, just as we lowered inflation to four percent when I came to power... we will reduce it again," Erdoğan said after a Turkey-Africa summit ended Saturday.

"But I won’t let my citizens, my people, be crushed by interest rates," the Turkish leader said in a meeting with African youths, according to a video released Sunday.

"God willing, inflation will fall as soon as possible."

The Turkish leader said "nothing else but" cutting rates should be expected in the speech in Istanbul later Sunday.

He also said Turkey was coming under "absurd attacks", and launched a verbal assault on the influential Industrialists’ and Businessman’s Association (TÜSİAD).

TÜSİAD called on the government to abandon current economic policies and a return to the "rules of economic science".

Erdoğan has sought lower interest rates to stimulate growth and production and boost exports.

There have been concerns that Turkey would need to bring in capital controls after the lira’s plunge, but Erdoğan dismissed the speculation as "rubbish".

"The Turkish economy will continue on its path in accordance with the rules of a free market economy, as it has done so far," he said.