Zeitgeist Turkey | Episode 7: As Turkish lira weakens to beyond 7 against dollar Erdoğan faces a choice
Duvar English’s editor-in-chief Cansu Çamlıbel and pollster Can Selçuki are joined by political economist Esen Çağlar to discuss the underlying factors behind the accelerating loss of value of the Turkish lira against the dollar. They look for answers to how the Turkish government is caught between a rock and a hard place by rapidly selling the Central Bank reserves. They also discuss whether Ankara can secure a swap line from the U.S. without giving up Russian S-400s.
Editor: Azra Ceylan
Last week the Turkish lira has further weakened against the dollar, hitting its weakest level since a currency crisis in August 2018. The lira weakened to 7 against the dollar, after a long stand-off around that level. The lira’s slide came after Turkey’s central bank governor, Murat Uysal, announced a renewed lower inflation forecast during a press conference on April 30.
In this week’s episode, Duvar English’s editor-in-chief Cansu Çamlıbel and pollster Can Selçuki are joined by political economist Esen Çağlar to discuss the underlying factors behind the accelerating loss of value of the Turkish lira against the dollar. They look for answers to how the Turkish government is caught between a rock and a hard place by rapidly selling the Central Bank reserves.
While analyzing a recent statement from the U.S. Ambassador David Satterfield, they discuss whether Ankara can secure a swap line from the Federal Reserve without giving up Russian S-400s.
The real reason behind President Erdoğan’s reluctance to resort to the IMF option for borrowing to mitigate the COVID-19 fallout in economy is also another highlight of this episode. Can Selçuki reveals the striking results from a recent public opinion survey on the IMF question in Turkey.
This podcast was prepared with support from Heinrich Böll Stiftung’s Turkey Representation.