S&P dashes Turkey’s hopes, again
Standard & Poor's defies expectations for a positive revision of Turkey’s economic outlook, adding fresh chill to its troubled relations with Ankara.
Turkey’s relations with Standard & Poor’s (S&P) have been marred by tensions since 2012, when the credit-rating agency dealt Ankara a major blow. Here's the story of how the two sides became at loggerheads:
The Turkish economy grew 8.5% in 2011, the highest growth rate in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the second-highest after China in the G-20 group of industrialized nations. The government expected a rating upgrade. But in a move that shocked Ankara, S&P downgraded Turkey’s outlook from “positive” to “stable” on May 1, 2012. Government officials responded in the harshest terms, scrambling to punish S&P.
