The Nation Alliance’s Presidential candidate and Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu expressed what the alliance does when it comes to the power at the Economic Congress of the Second Century in Izmir. Kilicdaroglu stated that a National Tax Council will be established. He also said the Final Accounts Commission will be established at the Parliament and the head of the commission will be from the main opposition party. Kilicdaroglu noted that the alliance will build a strong social government. Stressing that the next goal of the alliance is ‘producing Turkey’, Kilicdaroglu added: “Turkey, which can’t manufacture high value-added products, can’t develop. The primary objective of 21st-century Turkey is to be a country that produces chips in science, industry, and technology. We will set the target high, and we’ll achieve it.”
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu convened with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, according to Reuters. At a joint news conference with Cavusoglu, Shoukry said talks with Turkey on the possibility of restoring ties to the ambassadorial level would happen at “the appropriate time”. He said the talks had been “honest, deep, and transparent”. Cavusoglu, meanwhile, stated that Turkey would upgrade its diplomatic relations with Egypt to ambassador level “as soon as possible”. Relations between Turkey and Egypt were severely strained in 2013 after Egypt’s then-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi led the ouster of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Mursi, an ally of Ankara, but have gradually thawed since 2021.
Looking at the economic agenda of the week, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) will release the Agricultural Input Price Index for January on Tuesday.
On Thursday morning, TurkStat will release the labor force statistics for 2022 and the consumer confidence index for March. The Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (PPK) will announce the interest rate decision on the same day.
On Friday, the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) will release established and liquidated company figures for February and the Culture and Tourism Ministry will announce the tourism statistics for February.
In terms of internal affairs, the presidential cabinet is expected to convene with the main agenda of the earthquake and the election process today.
On Tuesday, CHP Chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu will visit Gaziantep as part of the Nation Gathering. He is also expected to make his postponed HDP (People’s Democratic Party) visit next week.
The election calendar announced by the Supreme Election Board (YSK) for the presidential and parliamentary elections to be held on May 14 is working. Applications for the presidential nomination started on March 19. Applications for presidential candidacy by political parties will end on March 23. Political parties must submit their alliance protocols to the YSK by March 24.
DAILY AGENDA
TurkStat will release the Non-domestic Producer Price Index for February (10.00 a.m.).
The Central Bank will announce the international investment position for January (10.00 a.m.).
IN OUR MAGAZINE THIS WEEK:
>> On the cover: Hepsiburada, one of the biggest e-commerce platforms in Turkey, announced a plan to create TRY 10bn production and trade volume for the earthquake region last week. “It’s an achievable goal with concrete steps to be taken,” said Hepsiburada CEO Nilhan ONAL. You can read the details on pages 8-9.
>> Professor Ilter Turan addresses “The foreign policy of the opposition” on page 10.
>> Q&A: Ibrahim Halil Canakci, Finance and Economy Policies Chairman of DEVA Party. P. 11.
>> Chief Economist Gunduz Findikcioglu: Presidential games and economic stakes. You can read the details on pages 12-13.
>> Zeynep Gurcanli: The message from Russia: ‘I am in the Middle East too’. P. 14.
Meanwhile…
>> Fitch Ratings has affirmed Turkey’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘B’ with a Negative Outlook.
>> Turkey’s first boron carbide manufacturing plant was inaugurated with the attendance of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The facility, which was set up with a USD 80m investment by Eti Maden, has an annual capacity of 1,000 tons. The plant is expected to create a USD 40m revenue when it operates at full capacity.
>> The government will need to TRY 130bn resources for cash aids and aids in kind within the scope of the per-household support payments towards earthquake victims, according to the last report prepared by the Presidency of Strategy and Budget. The cost of debris removal is estimated to reach TRY 41.86bn.
