Gov’t working to restore fiscal discipline, lower inflation: Şimşek

ANKARA

The government is working to restore fiscal discipline and making efforts to lower inflation to single digits at the same time, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said.

“Our priority is to strengthen the macro-financial stability. That’s why we are moving toward the rationalization in monetary policies,” Şimşek said in a speech in the southeastern province of Batman.

The February earthquakes had a one-off impact on fiscal policies, he added.

Structural reforms that will support efforts to restore fiscal discipline and bring down inflation to single digits are on the government’s agenda, Şimşek said, adding that all policy tools will be utilized to lower inflation.

“The medium-term program, which will be unveiled in early September, will provide a roadmap for structural reforms. It will serve as a guide both for the private and public sector,” the minister said.

Funds from the Gulf countries will be used to facilitate Turkish exporters’ access to financing, Şimşek said, recalling that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was on a tour of Gulf nations last month.

The primary focus of the visits to the Gulf countries was the financing for exports, he furthered.

 “I believe, the Gulf-based financial institutions will provide significant resources for the financing of exports. Thus, we will be able to resolve our exporters’ problems regarding access to finance,” Şimşek said. 

Meanwhile, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said that the new medium-term program will be built on three pillars: Fiscal discipline, monetary policies and structural reforms.

The medium-term program’s main target is to lower inflation to single digits, Yılmaz said, ahead of a meeting with the representatives of the financial sector, including banks’ general managers in Istanbul on Aug. 11.

“The government will lay out a framework for this together with the Central Bank. I am confident that we will reach this target gradually with the right policies,” he added.