I believe that among colleagues, those who struggle the most to assess the developments in the country are journalists specializing in economics. Especially those who are critical of the government…
The economy is in bad shape in the country, and they are in the best position to know this; however, since they are also negatively affected by the economic downturn like everyone else, it is natural for them to hope for positive developments.
Indeed, when Mehmet Şimşek was appointed as the Minister of Treasury and Finance, even the most critical economic writers, with a few exceptions, hoped for an improvement in the situation.
Although there are still economic writers who are waiting for things to get better, most of them are now worried about the possibility of things getting worse, and this concern is reflected in their writings.
Since economics is not my area of expertise, I have been cautious about the expectations related to Şimşek from the beginning. After Hafize Gaye Erkan, who had come to save the Turkish economy along with Şimşek, resigned from her position as the head of the Central Bank, I have been counting the days, expecting Şimşek to follow the same path.
Mrs. Erkan found her escape route early thanks to her baby and her father; I believe Şimşek is also searching for an excuse.
It’s not because I think “the economy is in such a terrible state that no one can fix it,” nor because I doubt Şimşek’s ability to do so; I believe this to be the case due to psychological reasons that I can’t easily explain.
The news that was announced on websites yesterday, which the channels have been covering since this morning and which I will summarize below, will be featured prominently in today’s newspapers.… Everyone is supposed to learn and rejoice, because…
According to TÜİK, the Turkish economy grew by 2.5% in the second quarter compared to the same quarter of the previous year… But that’s not the only good news; Trade Minister Ömer Bolat also supports TÜİK by announcing, “The highest August export figure in the history of our Republic has been achieved with a 2.4% increase, reaching 22.1 billion dollars.”
The real good news, however, comes from Hürriyet, which could not hide its joy while reporting the Central Bank’s data: The highest interest rate paid on a 1-month deposit is 53.92% per annum, and Hürriyet announces that a depositor who keeps 1 million liras in the bank for a year will earn 642 thousand liras… We also learn from the same newspaper that there are banks paying 80% interest.
The newspaper advises, “Choose the bank that offers the highest interest rate.”
Should we rejoice?
Those who have 1 million or more TL in their bank accounts have probably rejoiced and are eagerly searching for the bank offering the highest interest rate to follow the newspaper’s advice…
But what about those who don’t?
Who do you think these “the country’s economy is growing and exports are increasing compared to a year ago” tidings are for? Workers and retirees are they also supposed to rejoice with these?
Or perhaps, they should cut out Mehmet Şimşek’s simultaneous announcement, “Rebalancing has begun in growth, the current account deficit has narrowed, risk premiums have decreased, and external capital inflows have increased,” from the newspaper and place it in their empty wallets as a talisman to show their opposition-supporting relatives…
After all, there should be ample space in their wallets for a newspaper clipping.
Ours is a strange situation.
You may have heard objections to economic criticism that begin with, “Are other countries any different? Look at the USA, Germany, France, and England; they also…”
Do banks in those countries pay 642 thousand dollars in interest on 1 million dollars, 642 thousand euros on 1 million euros, 642 thousand pounds on 1 million pounds at the end of the year?
Most Western banks pay no interest on deposits…
None…
Zero interest…
The ‘zero interest’ (just to remind you: nass) that President Tayyip Erdoğan, who is also the head of the AK Party, desires, is in effect over there…
How can banks here pay up to 80% interest to their depositors?
Could it be by applying interest rates too much higher than 80% on the loans they issue?
Although economics is not my area of expertise, I can say that, apart from other reasons, the mere fact of credit interest rates has made life extraordinarily expensive for ordinary people.
Wasn’t Mehmet Şimşek appointed to tackle the cost of living – inflation?
I’m sorry, but I can’t be happy about the news that is supposed to make us rejoice, and I continue to count the days until Mehmet Şimşek leaves.
ΩΩΩΩ
[The translation of the article is by ChatGPT with some minor modifications.]
