Turkish central bank quashes hopes for looser policy

The accompanying statement to today’s Turkish MPC meeting, at which interest rates were left on hold, is likely to quash hopes that have been growing in some quarters for looser policy in response to weaker growth and the fall in oil prices. For our part, we didn’t think looser monetary conditions were on the cards anyway. Indeed, we remain of the view that the country’s large current account deficit and high rate of inflation mean that policy will need to remain tight.