Turkish central bank governor fired by a decree from Erdogan
(dpa)
Istanbul - Turkey on Saturday replaced the governor of its central bank with his deputy in a decree from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Murat Cetinkaya, who has been serving as governor since April 2016, is to be replaced by his deputy Murat Uysal, the decree said, without citing any official reason for the change.
The bank has been under pressure from Erdogan to cut rates as opposed to market calls for a hike to reign in stubbornly high inflation.
The bank has kept its benchmark rate steady at 24 per cent since September when it was hiked by 625 basis points.
Back then, Erdogan lashed out at the bank, saying he was running out of patience with high rates.
Cetinkaya's ousting comes amid speculation in local media that he might be replaced due to his refusal to cut rates as demanded by Erdogan's government.
The Turkish economy entered recession at the end of last year. It exited recession in the first quarter, but shrank 2.6 per cent when compared to a year ago, according to official statistics institute TurkStat.
Inflation slowed to 15.7 per cent in June from 18.7 per cent in May, TurkStat said on Wednesday.
The bank will continue to "independently" implement monetary policy to realize its "primary objective of price stability," the new governor Uysal said on Saturday in a statement on the bank's website.
The bank convenes on July 25 for its monthly monetary policy meeting.
The bank has been under pressure from Erdogan to cut rates as opposed to market calls for a hike to reign in stubbornly high inflation.
The bank has kept its benchmark rate steady at 24 per cent since September when it was hiked by 625 basis points.
Back then, Erdogan lashed out at the bank, saying he was running out of patience with high rates.
Cetinkaya's ousting comes amid speculation in local media that he might be replaced due to his refusal to cut rates as demanded by Erdogan's government.
The Turkish economy entered recession at the end of last year. It exited recession in the first quarter, but shrank 2.6 per cent when compared to a year ago, according to official statistics institute TurkStat.
Inflation slowed to 15.7 per cent in June from 18.7 per cent in May, TurkStat said on Wednesday.
The bank will continue to "independently" implement monetary policy to realize its "primary objective of price stability," the new governor Uysal said on Saturday in a statement on the bank's website.
The bank convenes on July 25 for its monthly monetary policy meeting.