Ankara will no longer borrow money from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), according to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“Turkey’s economic indicators are at a very good level compared to other countries,” Erdogan told his AK Party on Sunday, adding that the IMF chapter in the country has been closed for good.
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Last week, Erdogan’s government was criticized by opposition party CHP for the hiring services of international consultancy firm McKinsey to estimate the Turkish economy every three quarters. The opposition says it shows a lack of confidence in the country’s economy.
“We undertook a debt of $23.5 billion when we took office. We paid off the debt in 2013. Aren’t we the ones who saved this country from the IMF yoke?” Erdogan said on Sunday, referring to the criticism.
Turkey’s lira has lost around 40 percent of its value this year, while inflation is above the central bank’s rate of 24 percent.
“Inflation was really a disappointment on all fronts. Real rates are now slightly negative, so the massive September rate hike has been completely offset,” Guillaume Tresca, senior emerging market strategist at Credit Agricole, said, as quoted by Reuters.
However, Turkey remains a country with low debt levels. Turkey’s 28 percent public debt and 16 percent household debt-to-GDP ratios are both roughly half the developing country average, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said on Sunday.
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