Turkish Central Bank keeps interest rates high as inflation weighs on economy
Cornered by rising inflation and a weakening currency, Turkey’s Central Bank kept its benchmark interest rate steady at 19% on May 6 as policymakers await positive signals.
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s Central Bank policymakers kept interest rates steady May 6 for a second meeting in a row, seeking to keep them above the nation’s rising inflation and anchor the Turkish lira after a recent slide.
In a statement issued with Thursday’s decision, the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee said it would hold its benchmark interest rate at 19% and keep the stance until a “significant fall” in inflation.
“The policy rate will continue to be determined at a level above inflation to maintain a strong disinflationary effect until strong indicators point to a permanent fall in inflation and the medium-term 5% target is reached,” the committee said in its statement Thursday.
Turkey’s annual inflation rate rose for the seventh consecutive month to 17.14% in April, up from 16.19% in March, according to a report released Monday by the Turkish Statistical Institute.
