Central Bank announces interest rate decision keeping it steady at 19 percent

The Central Bank of Turkey has kept its one-week repo tender interest rate steady at 19 percent. In a statement after the meeting, the text “additional tightening can be done if necessary” was used. Said text was removed thereafter.

After the decision, the dollar/TL, which fell to 8.00, rose to 8.15 in response to this sentence extracted from the text.

The interest rate decision, which markets had been eagerly awaiting, was announced. At the first PPK meeting of new president KAVCIOGLU, the Central Bank kept its policy interest rate steady at 19 percent.

But expressions such as “additional monetary tightening will be carried out if necessary” and “a strict monetary policy stance will be resolutely maintained for a long period of time” which existed in statement announced in March, were not included in the text used for April.

At the first meeting after Naci Agbal was appointed president, the central bank had increased interest rates by 675 basis points, including 475 basis points, and 200 basis points at the second meeting, increasing the policy interest rate from 10.25 percent to 17 percent.

Agbal had not changed interest rates at meetings held in January and February. However he had increased the interest rate by 200 basis points to 19 percent. 2 days after this decision, President Erdogan had dismissed Agbal and appointed Shahap Kavcioglu as his replacement.