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Erdogan’s economic reckoning

A decade of erratic economic policymaking has brought Turkey to the brink of disaster

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    • By leveraging Turkey’s geopolitical position, Erdogan was able to sustain his spending spree until Turks cast their ballots. But now that he has won another term, an economic reckoning looms.
    • By leveraging Turkey’s geopolitical position, Erdogan was able to sustain his spending spree until Turks cast their ballots. But now that he has won another term, an economic reckoning looms. PHOTO: AFP

    DeeperDive is a beta AI feature. Refer to full articles for the facts.

    Anne O Krueger

    Published Thu, Jun 29, 2023 · 10:30 AM

    TURKISH President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s victory lap following his re-election last month will be short, because his country is on the verge of economic meltdown.

    Turkey’s economy was also in crisis when Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) first came to power in 2002. Back then, Turks overwhelmingly wanted to join the EU, so the AKP government, which Erdogan led from 2003 until 2014, when he became president, implemented economic reforms and applied for membership.

    By 2010, those reforms were working as intended. Per capita income had trebled, leading the World Bank to classify Turkey as an upper-middle-income country. The inflation rate had fallen to single digits from a peak of over 100 per cent, even as the economy grew rapidly.

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