Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking closer financial ties with Russia as he seeks to stabilize the troubled economy ahead of next year’s elections, he said.BloombergAccording to Turkish officials, Friday.
Turkish officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because sensitive information was being discussed, said that one of Erdogan’s goals was to lower prices and pay in lire for energy imports. Turkey’s natural gas bill is expected to exceed $ 50 billion this year and Russia is its main energy supplier.
Senior Turkish officials familiar with the matter noted that during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Uzbekistan on Friday, Erdogan called for a 25% discount on natural gas prices and an agreement that Turkey could pay part of the account in lire.
People familiar with Moscow’s position did not confirm the speech on gas price cuts for Turkey.
Putin said Friday that a previous agreement with Ankara would soon go into effect to pay a quarter of its gas imports in rubles, and Putin did not mention receiving payments in lira or offering a discount.
Turkey is expected to run a deficit of $ 47 billion at the end of this year, the weak performance of the lira makes debt coverage more expensive, and rising global energy prices have added an additional burden, according to Bloomberg.
Any help to support the economy could provide a major boost to Erdogan, whose ratings in opinion polls are hovering at historic lows with inflation accelerating to over 80% in less than a year before the elections scheduled for. next June.
On the other hand, shares of Turkish banks have seen their biggest drop in three days ever and earnings in recent months have declined, according to the report. Bloomberg AgencyFriday.
The agency said the Istanbul Stock Exchange’s banks index, after rising 150% in about two months, fell 24% since closing on Monday, with a loss of 94 billion lire (5.1 billion dollars) of market value.
The agency indicated that the decline was due to inflation data in the United States.
Shares of Turkish banks were strengthened this year, also thanks to a strong profit outlook. Politicians lowered interest rates, which led to gains in bank holdings in government bonds, despite 80% inflation.
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