Investors Pile Into Lira as Erdogan Backs New Economy Team
- President stages U-turn after son-in-law leaves key post
- Initial steps indicate return to policies Erdogan long opposed
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Photographer: Adem Altan/AFP/Getty Images
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Investors began diving back into long-shunned Turkish assets on Wednesday after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threw his support behind the new central bank governor and economy czar, indicating a possible green light for the large interest-rate increases markets have been looking for.
Erdogan’s comments are critical for the new governor, Naci Agbal, who will face a credibility test when he helms his first Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Nov. 19. With Erdogan saying he won’t interfere, optimism has grown that Turkey will allow interest rates to rise after former Finance Minister Berat Albayrak’s two-year-long battle against markets damaged confidence.