Today, the Cabinet convenes with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Among the main agenda items for the meeting will be the call by 10 countries for the release of businessman, philanthropist, and activist Osman Kavala from prison. The COVID-19 pandemic is also expected to be discussed. Further, the Cabinet is also expected to prepare for the G-20 Leaders’ Summit in Rome on October 30-31, and to discuss the current fight against terrorism. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will appear on camera following the meeting.
While the adverse impacts of the Central Bank’s interest rate cut continue, the markets were faced with another potentially damaging event: the planned declaration of 10 ambassadors to Turkey from the countries that called for Kavala’s release as “persona non grata”. In a joint statement on October 18, the ambassadors of Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, New Zealand, and the U.S. called for a just and speedy resolution to Kavala’s case, and for his “urgent release”. This comes following a European Court of Human Rights decision calling for the same. Following the statement, the ambassadors were summoned by the Foreign Ministry in Ankara, which called the statement irresponsible. Erdogan then on Saturday said he would instruct the Foreign Ministry to declare these ambassadors ‘persona non grata’. Seven of the ambassadors are Turkey’s NATO allies. The expulsions, if carried out, would open the deepest rift with the West in Erdogan’s 19 years in power, according to Reuters.
The USD/TRY rate rose by 1.59% to 9.76, while EUR/TRY surged by 1.81% to 11.38 on the exchange market, showing a reaction to Erdogan’s statement.
DAILY AGENDA
The Real Sector Confidence Index decreased by 3.8 points to 109.6 in October, month-over-month, according to the Central Bank.
The seasonally-adjusted confidence rate increased by 2.1% in the services sector, 4.8% in the retail trade sector, and 1% in the construction sector in October, as compared to September, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).
The number of motor vehicle registrations decreased by 3% to 92,996 in September, compared to the previous month, according to TurkStat.
The Cabinet meeting today will be held under the presidency of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
IN OUR MAGAZINE THIS WEEK:
>> On the cover: Christopher William James Gaunt, Chairman of the board of the British Chamber of Commerce Turkey (BCCT) is on our cover this week. Gaunt told the TR MONITOR team about the BCCT’s operations and strategies. You can read more on pages 14-15.
>> Professor Ilter Turan: Those who live in glass houses… P. 10.
>> Q&A: Selcuk Bayraktar, CTO of Baykar and Founding Chairman of the Turkish Technology Team (T3) Foundation. P. 11.
>> Diplomacy: Austrian companies meet Turkish contractors for possible partnerships. Read more on paged 12-13.
>> Startup: Navlungo on the hunt for USD 2m in funding. P. 16.
>> Report: Haier injects EUR 85m into Turkey operations. P. 18.
>> Energy: Kalyon PV to export solar panels. P. 22.
>> Tourism: The ‘China’ of tourism. P. 23.
>> Our foreign policy columnist Zeynep Gurcanli looks into ‘the management system burden in foreign policy’ on page 24.
>> Do not miss our Time Out options for the week!
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