New Economic Plan Announced Next Week: Turkish Deputy Pm

Turkey can escape an economic crisis thanks to our acting in a cautious way all the time Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said Friday.



A third round of measures of an extensive economic plan is expected to be announced next week, Babacan said speaking to a private Turkish TV channel following the Russian economic turmoil and the recent decrease in value of the Turkish lira against the dollar. 



On Thursday, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu had announced the second round of initiatives of a four-year transition economic program - all the while reaffirming a commitment to fiscal discipline - after the Russian ruble lost 20 percent of its value on Tuesday. 



The Turkish lira dropped in value against the dollar on Tuesday, hitting a historic low of 2.40 per dollar. 



Babacan said the policies of Federal Reserve, or Fed, - the Unites States' central bank -were the key factor affecting the value of the dollar- and subsequently the Turkish lira and the Russian ruble - today. 



"There is a general trend of the dollar increasing in value that may continue for some time," he said. 



Babacan added that while Europe had to resort to short-term policies to deal with the economic crisis they were still facing, Turkey had ensured a macroeconomic equilibrium with an opportunity to look to the future, thanks to the government's economic action plan.



In November, Davutoglu had announced the first round of measures of the plan, ranging from a change in logistics to the development of new technologies.



If Turkey can follow the detailed route of the economic plan, the country can certainly reach its 2023 goals, said Babacan. 



Turkey aims to increase its total exports to $500 billion and become one the top 10 economies in the world by 2023. 



The government's economic action plans include increasing domestic savings at the national level and preventing wastefulness, rationalizing public expenditures, raising the quality of public revenue, improving the business and investment climate and developing the statistical information infrastructure.



The plans also include reforms to ensure that the Istanbul International Financial Center becomes one of the top 25 in world.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Ankara