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Will Turkey’s Central Bank governor survive purge?

Fears grow over a looming purge at Turkey’s Central Bank, but the bank’s governor is expected to retain his post.
Turkey's Central Bank Governor Erdem Basci arrives at a news conference in Ankara January 28, 2014. Turkey's central bank will use all instruments at its disposal at an extraordinary policy meeting later on Tuesday in a bid to prevent a deterioration in inflation, Basci said on Tuesday. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTX17XXE
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Rumors have been rife recently over the possible dismissal of Turkish Central Bank Governor Erdem Basci, who has resisted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s calls for an interest rate cut and stuck to a cautious approach based on market conditions.

Despite the rumors, which could be well seen as a veiled threat, the Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (PPK) kept the interest rates unchanged at its latest meeting on April 24. The one-week repo rate — the so-called “policy rate” — remained at 10%, the level to which the PPK had hiked it from 4.5% at its landmark meeting on Jan. 28.

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