Turkey: Islam seeks lower rates, says Recep Tayyip Erdogan

For a second time in a month, Erdogan invoked religion to justify the current monetary stance.

President pledged to continue interest rate cuts that have made the the world’s worst performing currency over the past three months, referring to Islamic proscriptions on usury as a basis for his new policy push.

“What is it? We are lowering interest rates. Don’t expect anything else from me,” Erdogan said Sunday in televised comments from Istanbul. “As a Muslim, I’ll continue to do what is required by nas,” Erdogan said, using an Arabic word used in Turkish to refer to Islamic teachings.

In the eyes of the president, can free itself from reliance on foreign capital flows by abandoning policies that prioritized higher interest rates and strong inflows.

For the full story in the Business Standard please go to:

https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/islam-seeks-lower-rates-says-recep-tayyip-erdogan-lira-slumps-121122100041_1.html