Turkish Party Split On Economy Ahead Of Runoff

AKP In Disagreement Over Economic Policies Ahead Of Election Rerun - Sources

People look at candy and sweets in a market in Ankara's Ulus district. It's April 19, 2023. The district is historical. The market stall sells candy and sweets. Shoppers are browsing.

A group is talking about a different plan from Erdogan's economy methods. They will do this before he tries to continue being president.

There are some issues within Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party. These issues are related to economic policy. Some people think that the policy is not sustainable. The disagreement happened just before the national elections. It is the second round of the elections.

Some AKP members are discussing if the President of Turkey should stop using interest rate cuts and spending to help the economy. This is an "informal group." Reuters reported this news.

Erdogan not part of talks. Talks spoke of other ways.

Recently, Turkey's economy has been struggling, and its currency has been unstable.

Some experts say that Erdogan's choice to keep interest rates low makes borrowing money cheaper, but also overheats the economy.

The group doesn't want to quickly increase interest rates. They want to slowly change to a policy rate in the lending market.

The group has some ideas. They haven't shown them to Erdogan yet. This is what the sources say.

The President wants to be in charge for a third time. People are worried about the money in Turkey. It is expensive to live there right now. This is a big problem.

Turkey's economy struggled during the COVID pandemic. The economy relies heavily on tourism. However, in the years leading up to the pandemic, Turkey had an average GDP growth of 5.8% per year.

In September 2021, 1 US dollar was 8 Turkish lira. Now, in May 2023, it's almost 20 Turkish lira.

Last year, a survey by Yöneylem Social Research Centre found that over two-thirds of people in Turkey were having difficulty paying for food and rent. This led to an increase in mental health problems and debt.

There will be a run-off for Turkey's presidential election on Sunday. None of the candidates got over 50%. The incumbent got the most votes.

The opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu's big plan was to change the country's economy to include free-market ideas.

Erdogan said he might switch up the economic policies. He wants to attract foreign investors. Turkey's foreign reserves are decreasing.