ANKARA, Turkey — The Turkish economy sank into recession in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to figures released by the national statistics authority March 11. The news is highly inconvenient to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is campaigning vigorously for March 31 municipal elections in which voters are expected to express their anger over the soaring cost of food.
TurkStat said the fourth-quarter contraction was 3% year-on-year, and 2.4% from the previous quarter. By the seasonally adjusted, quarterly measurement, the economy also contracted in the third quarter of 2018 (by 1.6%), meaning that Turkey has suffered the two consecutive quarters of negative growth that characterize a recession.
