Turkish gov’t to hold fewer Central Bank meetings, from monthly basis to 8 times a year

ANKARA

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The Turkish government is set to revise the Central Bank’s schedule for its rate policy meetings from a monthly basis to at least eight times a year, in a new draft law submitted to the parliament on Nov. 24, as reported by Reuters.   

Turkey’s Central Bank will meet for rate-setting policy decisions eight times a year instead of each month to direct monetary policies with more long-term prospects, provided the draft passes parliament. 

Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Şimşek had earlier signaled this move, and said they intended to give the bank more time to formulate effective monetary policy responses. 

“Reducing the number of meetings will give more time to the bank to establish an effective monetary policy response based on analyses which reflect key trends and are free of short-term volatility,” Şimşek said Nov. 13, as quoted by Anadolu Agency. 

He said this was in line with international practice like the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee meetings.

The draft law has also introduced a three-year tax reduction for mergers in the manufacturing sector, and intangible rights and software delivery which are part of investment incentives will benefit from value added tax (VAT) exemptions. 

The draft law has also stipulated the continuance of minimum wage supports in 2017.