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The sustained inflationary pressure, driven by a lira drop and tax hikes, comes as President Tayyip Erdogan's new finance minister and central bank chief orchestrate a policy U-turn including interest rate hikes that are expected to slow domestic demand. But in the meantime the U-turn has hammered the currency and left authorities asking already-stretched households for patience. In July, consumer prices soared nearly 10% sequentially due to tax hikes and a lira crash. This month, forecasts by five economists show them rising between 5.5% and 8.5%, with fallout from mid-July tax hikes lagging into August. After years of divergence with market expectations, the central bank matched those last month when it raised its end-2023 annual inflation forecast to 58.0% from a previous 22.3%.

Persons: Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan's, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Erdogan's, Erkan, Mehmet Simsek, Moody's, Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer, Toby Chopra Organizations: Turkish Statistical Institute, Thomson Locations: Erdogan ANKARA, Istanbul, Turkey's

A logo of Turkey's Central Bank is pictured at the entrance of its headquarters in Ankara, Turkey October 15, 2021. According to calculations by five bankers, obtained by Reuters, net reserves rose $4.9 billion to $15.8 billion last week, while total reserves climbed to $115.6 billion. The recent uptrend in reserves reversed in the week to July 28, with net forex falling $2.8 billion to $10.89 billion. The central bank continues to get foreign exchange from tourism and a scheme to protect lira bank deposits from depreciation known as KKM. The bank has paid an estimated 300 billion lira ($11 billion) to cover depreciation costs under the scheme in June and July, with the cost in August estimated at 350 billion lira.

Persons: Cagla, Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Nevzat Devranoglu, Orhan Coskun, Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer, John Stonestreet Organizations: Turkey's Central, REUTERS, Reuters, Bankers, Thomson Locations: Ankara, Turkey, ANKARA

Those export controls, which "were imposed for important reasons," remain in place, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office said in statement. "The Prime Minister discussed Sweden's accession to NATO with our partners in Vilnius, including with President Erdogan," the statement said. Ahead of the NATO summit, Turkey, already seeking assurances over the F-16s in talks with Washington, asked that Canada's export controls also be rolled in to the final discussion, the person familiar with the talks said. At Vilnius, Canada outlined its position to Turkey on rules regarding uses of any exported technologies, and was awaiting a response. This means the talks on export controls are no longer frozen, a move that helped play a role sealing Erdogan's pledge over Sweden, the person said.

Persons: Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan's greenlight, Justin Trudeau's, Joe Biden, Devlet Bahceli, We've, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Steve Scherer, John Irish, Tom Perry, Jamie Freed Organizations: NATO, Atlantic, Organization, Canada, Canadian, Washington, U.S, Kurdistan Workers Party, European Union, Nationalist Movement Party, Erdogan's, Thomson Locations: Turkey, Erdogan, ANKARA, Canada, Ankara, Sweden, Stockholm, Vilnius, Washington, United States, Armenia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Finland, Turkish, Ukraine, Turkey's, Helsinki, European, Istanbul, Ottawa

The VAT rate charged on goods and services rose to 20% from 18%, while that on basic goods such as toilet paper and detergents increased to 10% from 8%, effective immediately, the Official Gazette said. "Reducing the budget deficit is the aim of the latest increase in taxes and fees, and some other steps to ensure fiscal discipline are on the agenda too. The tax increases could raise Turkey's budget revenues by around 2%, Oyak Investment said in a note. Economists said the increased VAT rate charged on goods and services would boost state revenues by around 30 billion lira. Separately, Turkey on Friday also exempted from witholding tax the dividend payments of own shares purchased by companies listed on the Istanbul bourse.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, QNB Finansbank, Erdogan, Economists, Ezgi Erkoyun, Burcu Karakas, Orhan Coskun, Jonathan Spicer, Gareth Jones Organizations: stoke, Official Gazette, Bank Insurance, Oyak Investment, Istanbul bourse, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkey, Istanbul

☆ Turkey's Erdogan to host Putin, hopes for Black Sea grain deal extension
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Can Sezer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ISTANBUL, July 8 (Reuters) - Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that he was pressing Russia to extend a Black Sea grain deal by at least three months and announced a visit by President Vladimir Putin in August. Erdogan said work was under way on extending the Black Sea grain deal beyond its expiration date of July 17 and for longer periods beyond that. The deal would be one of the most important issues on the agenda for his meeting with Putin in Turkey next month, he said. "Our hope is that it will be extended at least once every three months, not every two months. Russia, angry about aspects of the grain deal's implementation, has threatened not to allow its further extension beyond July 17.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy's, Erdogan, Putin, Zelenskiy, Petr Fiala, Stringer, Dmitry Peskov, Ezgi Erkoyun, Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Orhan Coskun, Elaine Monaghan, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Gareth Jones, Diane Craft Organizations: Ukraine, United Nations, Zelenskiy, REUTERS, NATO, Western, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, Russia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Czech, Prague, Crimean Tatars, Istanbul

☆ Turkey expects $10 billion in Gulf investments after upcoming Erdogan visit, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Orhan Coskun | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ANKARA, July 7 (Reuters) - Turkey expects Gulf countries to make direct investments of about $10 billion initially in domestic assets as part of President Tayyip Erdogan's trip to the region in two weeks, according to two senior Turkish officials. Direct investments worth about $10 billion "should come within a short time and this is crucial," said one of the officials. "Expectations are high for the Gulf visit. Reuters reported after the visit that Turkey came away expecting direct investments soon. The official said the expected investments from Gulf states would "show confidence in the Turkish economy since it would be direct investments, which is extremely important."

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan's, Erdogan, Abu Dhabi, Cevdet Yilmaz, Mehmet Simsek, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Yilmaz, Jonathan Spicer, Ros Russell Organizations: Turkish, United Arab Emirates, Reuters, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Riyadh, Doha, Abu, Ankara, UAE, Nahyan, Turkish

The rate hike came in the first policy meeting under new Central Bank Governor Hafize Gaye Erkan. The central bank's net reserves rose to $9.19 billion in the week to June 23, its biggest rise on record. Although the central bank's reserves have rebounded since mid-June, state banks are still selling dollars to meet demand from maturing lira deposit accounts known as KKM. Authorities were not seeking to support the lira and the central bank maintained its stance of not selling via state banks, the person added, requesting anonymity. "The committee evaluated that the current monetary policy framework is far from achieving the 5% inflation target, given the inflation outlook and upside risks," the central bank said.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Central Bank Governor Hafize Gaye Erkan, Erkan, Erdogan, Nevzat Devranoglu, Jonathan Spicer, Daren Butler, Christina Fincher Organizations: Central Bank Governor, Reuters, Authorities, stoke, Thomson Locations: Turkey, ANKARA

With the use of central bank reserves to protect the lira’s value before the election, reserves fell to a historical low in early June, with net reserves at minus $5.7 billion. Hence, there is no use of foreign exchange reserves and a period of increasing reserves has started," he added. His comments echoed the view of bankers that the central bank had "completely stopped" using its reserves. CENTRAL BANK MEASURESUnder new central bank steps announced at the weekend, the securities maintenance ratio that banks are required to allocate to their foreign currency deposit was reduced to 5% from 10%. The new regulation said banks whose lira deposits are less than 57% of total deposits will have to hold an additional seven percentage points of securities, compared to the previous seven additional points applied to banks that held less than 60% lira deposits.

Persons: Murad Sezer, Lira, Tayyip Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Enver Erkan, Daren Butler, Canan, Jonathan Spicer, Emelia Sithole Organizations: REUTERS, Securities, Bankers, Thomson Locations: Istanbul, Turkey, ANKARA, backtrack, Turkish

☆ Fear among Turkey's LGBT community after hostile election campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-24 | by ( Burcu Karakas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The discrimination faced by the LGBT community has convinced the couple to plan to leave Turkey, he said. "Turkey has never been the perfect country for the LGBT community but now people feel insecure," Seren said. Matthew Warchus, the British director of "Pride", said he felt solidarity with Turkey's LGBT community. My message to those opposed to it being viewed is simply 'There is nothing to fear except fear itself'". Yilmaz, the LGBT rights advocate, said they had never been targeted like this before.

Persons: Cuneyt Yilmaz, Senkaya, Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan, pollsters, Bekir, Rumeysa Kadak, Mahmut Seren, Seren, cordoning, Cuneyt, Yilmaz, Matthew Warchus, Davut Gul, Melih, Burcu Karakas, Jonathan Spicer, Alison Williams Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, AK, Aesthetics Culture Art Research Foundation, Istanbul Pride, Twitter, UniKuir, New Welfare Party, European Union, Yilmaz, Thomson Locations: Istanbul, Turkey, ISTANBUL, Britain, British, Izmir, European

☆ Turkish central bank to hike rates sharply in post-election pivot
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Ali Kucukgocmen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But the level remains uncertain as the central bank has not given any signals as to its next steps, including the size or pace of potential hikes. Some economists have expressed doubt about Erdogan's commitment to abandoning his unorthodox policy of low rates, which led the central bank to slash its policy rate from 19% in 2021 to 8.5% currently. The median estimate for the policy rate at end-2023 was 30%, with forecasts ranging from 18% to 35%. He named Naci Agbal as central bank governor in Nov. 2020 but, after some sharp rate hikes, replaced him less than five months later. The central bank is scheduled to announce its rate decision at 1100 GMT on Thursday.

Persons: Murad Sezer, Tayyip Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Malek Drimal, Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Moody's, Naci, Simsek, Ali Kucukgocmen, Marc Jones, Jonathan Spicer, Daren Butler, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Societe Generale, stoke, Thomson Locations: Istanbul, Turkey, ISTANBUL

☆ Turkey lifts minimum wage by 34% to address inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ANKARA, June 20 (Reuters) - Turkey raised monthly minimum wage by another 34% beginning on July 1, the government said on Tuesday, bringing it to a net 11,402 lira ($483) for the second half of the year in an effort to address soaring inflation. "The minimum wage assessment commission completed its work with an agreement between the workers and employers," Labour Minister Vedat Isikhan said in announcing the decision. Inflation is well above the official 5% target and touched a 24-year peak of 85.5% in October, prompting Ankara to raise the minimum wage by 100% over the course of last year. Annual inflation dipped to 39.6% in May as the government provided natural gas free of charge, offsetting price rises in other goods. The central bank is holding its policy-setting meeting on Thursday and is expected to start ramping up its rate from 8.5% currently.

Persons: Vedat Isikhan, stoked, Tayyip Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Huseyin Hayatsever, Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer Organizations: Labour, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Turkey, Ankara

"It is clear that to ensure economic confidence, legal consistency is a must," one of the senior officials said. Deniz Ozen, lawyer for the Turkish Workers' Party MP, said authorities are violating Turkish law by keeping him in jail. Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey director of Human Rights Watch, said a discredited justice system is a matter of concern especially for European investors. Reinforcing the apparent U-turn, Erdogan on Friday named Hafize Gaye Erkan as central bank governor, paving the way for interest rate hikes. "No matter the economic reforms, the investment will not significantly ramp up," he said.

Persons: Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Mehmet Gun, Orhan Turan, Turkey's, Osman, Deniz Ozen, Emma Sinclair, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Howard Eissenstat, Burcu Karakas, Jonathan Spicer, Catherine Evans Organizations: Better Justice Association, Istanbul Convention, Gazette, Bank, AK Party, of Human, Human Rights, Turkish Workers ' Party, Finance, St, Lawrence University, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkey, Istanbul, Osman Kavala, Kavala, Webb

☆ Who is Hafize Gaye Erkan, Turkey's first female central bank chief?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Karin Strohecker | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 9 (Reuters) - Turkey's new central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan faces the tough task of alleviating a bruising cost-of-living crisis while hoping to restore investor confidence at home and abroad after years of unorthodox policymaking. Appointed on Friday, the 43-year old is the first woman at the helm of the country's central bank, taking over from Sahap Kavcioglu, who spearheaded President Tayyip Erdogan's rate-cutting drive against a backdrop of soaring inflation. Her new role makes her one of only around a dozen women currently serving as central bank governors around the world, including the likes of ECB President Christine Lagarde, Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina and Serbia's Jorgovanka Tabakovic. Having spent all of her professional life outside Turkey, Erkan has no formal central banking experience, making her leanings for monetary policy unclear. Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of Partnership for New York City, a nonprofit organization where Erkan once served as a board director, says Erkan was seen as "tough, smart, and effective."

Persons: Hafize Gaye Erkan, Sahap Kavcioglu, Tayyip Erdogan's, Christine Lagarde, Russian Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Erkan, Goldman Sachs, Mark Carney, Mario Draghi, William Dudley, Goldman, Marsh McLennan, Kathryn Wylde, Wylde, Karin Strohecker, Jonathan Spicer, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Russian Central Bank Governor, Bogazici University, Harvard Business School's, Management, Research, Financial Engineering, Princeton University, Bank of Canada, Bank of England, New York Fed, First Republic Bank, Banking, Finance, New, Thomson Locations: Sahap, Istanbul, Turkey, New York City

☆ Turkish cenbank data shows $3 bln inflow from abroad -bankers
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Nevzat Devranoglu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ANKARA, June 8 (Reuters) - Turkish central bank reserves data shows inflows of about $3 billion into depo accounts last week from abroad, bankers said on Thursday. The central bank did not comment when asked about the matter by Reuters. Four bankers contacted by Reuters calculated that there was between $3 and $3.1 billion deposited into the accounts. Before being re-elected to office on May 28, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Gulf states had sent funding to Turkey, briefly helping relieve the central bank and markets. The central bank's net international reserves hit an all-time low of negative $5.7 billion as of June 2, data showed on Thursday, with demand having surged through the elections.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Nevzat Devranoglu, Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer, Emelia Organizations: Reuters, United Arab, Ece, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Turkish, Turkey, Ankara, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, China, South Korea

The currency later recouped some of its losses, standing at 23.33 against the dollar by 0542 GMT, after touching a record low of 23.39 overnight during illiquid trading hours. "There is no air of panic in the markets as in previous times when there were such high losses. The central bank's net forex reserves hit an all-time low of negative $4.4 billion last month as demand surged through the elections. Investors are now awaiting the appointment of a new central bank governor to succeed Sahap Kavcioglu, who has spearheaded Erdogan's rate-slashing drive since 2021. Erdogan is considering appointing Hafize Gaye Erkan, a U.S.-based senior finance executive, as central bank governor, Reuters reported on Monday.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan's, Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Erik Meyersson, SEB, Meyersson, Sahap Kavcioglu, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Ali Kucukgocmen, Jonathan Spicer, Gareth Jones Organizations: Lira, Reuters, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, Ankara, U.S

The central bank's first female governor, Erkan is also its fifth chief in four years, underlining the challenge she may face delivering a lasting policy turnaround after Erdogan has all but stamped out the bank's independence in recent years. Analysts now expect Turkey's central bank to hike interest rates to between 20% and 25% from 8.5% as soon as this month. ORTHODOX FINANCE MINISTERErdogan, a self-proclaimed "enemy" of interest rates, has pressed the central bank to deliver stimulus in recent years and has been quick to replace its governor. The central bank slashed its policy rate to 8.5% from 19% in 2021, leaving real rates deeply negative and the lira largely managed by dozens of regulations covering credit and foreign exchange. But the last central bank governor to raise rates, Naci Agbal, was fired in 2021 after less than five months on the job.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Goldman Sachs, Erdogan's, Erdogan, Kavcioglu, Selva Demiralp, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Erkan, Naci Agbal, Marsh, Kathryn Wylde, Wylde, Ali Kucukgocment, Jonathan Spicer, Daren Butler, Cynthia Osterman, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Lira, First Republic Bank, Official Gazette, Koc University, U.S . Federal Reserve, Princeton University, First, JPMorgan, Analysts, FINANCE, Greystone, Partnership, New, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, United States, unorthodoxy, Erkan, U.S, New York City

Markets are also waiting for the appointment of a new central bank governor to replace Sahap Kavcioglu, who spearheaded rate cuts under Erdogan's unorthodox policies. "I think we are seeing the impact of Simsek pushing (the Turkish central bank) for rational policy." Bankers say the lira's continued gradual depreciation will lead to improved market conditions and halt a decline in central bank reserves. But it sparked a record lira crisis in December of 2021 and sent inflation to a 24-year high above 85% last year. Erdogan is considering appointing Hafize Gaye Erkan, a senior finance executive in the United States, as central bank governor, Reuters reported on Monday.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Sahap Kavcioglu, Tim Ash, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Erkan, Paul McNamara, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Ali Kucukgocmen, Tom Hogue, Christina Fincher Organizations: BlueBay Asset Management, Bankers, Reuters, Simsek, GAM, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Turkish, United States, Ankara, Turkey, Jorgelina, Rosario, London

☆ Erdogan considering Erkan as Turkey cenbank chief, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Orhan Coskun | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Erkan met with Mehmet Simsek, Turkey's newly-appointed treasury and finance minister, in Ankara on Monday, one of the sources said. The two sources told Reuters she is set to meet Erdogan soon to discuss the possible role. Turkey's policy rate was cut to 8.5% from 19% in 2021, setting off a historic currency crash in late 2021. Erkan would be the country's fifth central bank chief in four years. The central bank has been the linchpin of Erdogan's programme of monetary stimulus and targeted credit to boost economic growth, exports and investments.

Persons: Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Erkan, Mehmet Simsek, Sahap Kavcioglu, Goldman Sachs, Simsek, Kathryn Wylde, Wylde, Naci Agbal, Marsh, Jonathan Spicer, Daren Butler, Angus MacSwan, Emelia Organizations: Reuters, First Republic Bank, Treasury, Ivy League, Princeton, New, First, JPMorgan, Greystone, Thomson Locations: Turkey, ANKARA, United States, Ankara, New York City, U.S

☆ Turkey inflation dips to 39.6% on relief from free gas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ISTANBUL, June 5 (Reuters) - Turkish annual inflation fell to 39.59% in May, official data showed on Monday, broadly in line with expectations, largely due to the government offsetting price rises in other goods by providing natural gas free of charge. The government had pledged ahead of last month's elections that it would provide free gas in May, and a monthly free 25 cubic metres until May 2024. The poll had forecast that annual consumer price inflation (CPI) (TRCPIY=ECI) would be 39.2%, and was expected to end the year at 45%. Clothing and shoe prices recorded the largest monthly increase with 9.85%, followed by restaurant and hotel prices with 7.10%. The weight of natural gas in the inflation basket is 2.9%.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Liam Peach, Peach, Cevdet Yilmaz, Canan Sevgili, Daren Butler, Ali Kucukgocmen, Jonathan Spicer, William Maclean Organizations: Turkish Statistical Institute, Treasury, Finance, Capital Economics, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL

☆ Factbox: Turkey's new government: key figures in Erdogan's cabinet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Following are descriptions of key figures in the cabinet:MEHMET SIMSEK - FINANCE MINISTERFormer economy chief Simsek has been appointed as treasury and finance minister. He was highly regarded by financial markets when he served as finance minister and deputy prime minister between 2009 and 2018. HAKAN FIDAN - FOREIGN MINISTERFidan was appointed as foreign minister, replacing Mevlut Cavusoglu, who was one of the longest serving top Turkish diplomats. ALI YERLIKAYA - INTERIOR MINISTERAli Yerlikaya was appointed as interior minister and replaced Suleyman Soylu, who kept his position since 2018. Yerlikaya, 55, served as governor of provinces of Gaziantep, Tekirdag, Agri and Sirnak before.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, MEHMET SIMSEK, Simsek, Merrill Lynch, HAKAN FIDAN, Fidan, Mevlut Cavusoglu, Erdogan, YASAR, Yasar Guler, Hulusi Akar, CEVDET YILMAZ, Cevdet Yilmaz, Ali Yerlikaya, Suleyman Soylu, Yerlikaya, Burcu Karakas, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer Organizations: FINANCE, U.S, Embassy, National Intelligence Organisation, MIT, Turkish Army, Turkish Development and Cooperation Agency, Kurdistan Workers Party, AK, Turkish, Commission, ALI, Ece Toksabay, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Ankara, Oslo, Syria, Iraq, Istanbul, Yerlikaya, Gaziantep, Tekirdag

☆ Turkey's Erdogan to take oath, name new-look cabinet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Huseyin Hayatsever | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Turkey's longest serving leader, Erdogan garnered 52.2% support in the May 28 runoff vote. The new parliament convened on Friday and Erdogan will officially start his new term by taking his oath on Saturday at around 3 p.m. (1200 GMT) in the general assembly in Ankara. Simsek was highly regarded by investors when he served as finance minister and deputy prime minister between 2009 and 2018. Erdogan, 69, became prime minister in 2003 after his AK Party won an election in late 2002 following the worst economic crisis of Turkey since the 1970s. In his victory speech, Erdogan said inflation, which hit a 24-year peak of 85% last year before easing, was Turkey's most urgent issue.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Jens Stoltenberg, Nicolas Maduro, Viktor Orban, Nikol Pashinyan, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Frances Kerry Organizations: NATO, Armenian, Anadolu Agency, Reuters, AK Party, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Ankara, Hungarian, Turkey

☆ Exclusive: Turkey's new cabinet almost certain to include Simsek, four sources say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Orhan Coskun | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Simsek was highly regarded by financial markets when he served as finance minister and deputy prime minister between 2009 and 2018. After chairing a final meeting of his old cabinet on Wednesday, Erdogan will announce new ministerial roles by Saturday, officials said. The new cabinet is almost certain to include his spokesman Ibrahim Kalin and intelligence chief Hakan Fidan, they added. One of the sources, a senior official with knowledge of the subject, said Erdogan and Simsek had spoken for 2-1/2 hours. The same official said former minister Cevdet Yilmaz could take up the role of Treasury and Finance Minister if Simsek were to become a vice president.

Persons: Erdogan, Tayyip Erdogan, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Ibrahim Kalin, Hakan Fidan, Nureddin Nebati, Guillaume Tresca, Cevdet Yilmaz, Lutfi Elvan, Sahap Kavcioglu, Timothy Ash, Ash, Amruta Khandekar, Daren Butler, Jonathan Spicer, Toby Chopra, Catherine Evans Organizations: Intelligence, Lira, FX, Reuters, Treasury, Finance, Emerging, Generali Investments, AK, Simsek, BlueBay Asset Management, Thomson Locations: ANKARA

loadingWhile major social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have made efforts to prohibit and remove deepfakes, their effectiveness at policing such content varies. In total, about 500,000 video and voice deepfakes will be shared on social media sites globally in 2023, DeepMedia estimates. Jon Smith, Republican chair for Michigan's 5th Congressional district, is holding several educational meetings so his allies can learn to use AI for social media and ad generation. Political consultancies are also seeking to harness AI, further muddying the line between real and unreal. Democratic polling and strategy group Honan Strategy Group is meanwhile trying to develop an AI survey bot.

It reinforced Erdogan's image of invincibility in the deeply divided NATO-member country, whose foreign, economic and security policy he has redrawn. Pro-government newspapers, part of an overwhelmingly pro-Erdogan media landscape that buoyed his election campaign in the nation of 85 million people, cheered his victory. Erdogan said inflation, which hit a 24-year peak of 85% last year before easing, is Turkey's most urgent issue. Turkey's main pro-Kurdish party, parliament's third largest, was among the opposition parties opposed to Erdogan and is accused of links to Kurdish militants, which it denies. Erdogan, head of the Islamist-rooted AK Party, appealed to voters with nationalist and conservative rhetoric in a divisive campaign that deflected attention from Turkey's economic problems.

[1/3] Kemal Kilicdaroglu, presidential candidate of Turkey's main opposition alliance, gestures after speaking following early exit poll results for the second round of the presidential election in Ankara, Turkey May 28, 2023. According to some party members, analysts and voters, Kilicdaroglu, the opposition presidential candidate in Sunday's runoff vote, will need to immediately re-focus on maintaining control of Turkey's big cities in the municipal elections. Instead Erdogan, modern Turkey's longest-serving leader, will extend his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade, backed by a majority for his alliance in parliament. Meanwhile the Republican People's Party (CHP), which Kilicdaroglu leads, holds internal discussions this week in Ankara to pick up the pieces. The broader six-party opposition alliance convened after Sunday's election results came in.

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