The Economist (June 4)
“For the past two years Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey’s president, has pursued a zany policy of trying to bring down inflation by making borrowing cheaper. It is precisely the opposite of what any mainstream economist would advise, and it was never going to work.” His new cabinet “includes Mehmet Simsek, a voice of economic orthodoxy.” The new treasury and finance minister has said “Turkey has no choice left but to return to a rational basis” for policymaking. “Such words will be music to the ears of many foreign investors, who have given up on Turkey over the past couple of years. But they will not count for much unless they are backed up by concrete steps to fix the country’s economy.”
Tags: Borrowing, Cabinet, Cheaper, Economist, Erdogan, Finance Minister, Inflation, Mainstream, Orthodoxy, Policy, Rational, Simsek, Treasury, Turkey
Financial Times (April 18, 2013)
“The revival of Japan will be beneficial to the rest of the world, since it is also a process of evolution into a mature economy that can build win-win relationships with its economic partners,” writes Finance Minister Taro Aso. He continues, “the Bank of Japan has fired a monetary bazooka at deflation,” aiming to achieve 2% inflation. A “second bazooka” will seek to create private demand with flexible fiscal policy and the aim of boosting real GDP by 2%. Already, there is a dramatic improvement of economic and market sentiment. This “momentum must now be turned into a recovery.”
Tags: BOJ, Deflation, Economy, Finance Minister, Inflation, Japan, Market sentiment, Recovery, Taro Aso
