Türkiye to continue to accumulate reserves, treasury minister says

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - Türkiye will continue to raise its reserves as long as market conditions permit, the Turkish treasury and finance minister said on Thursday.

The country's foreign exchange reserves rose to $115.6 billion as of Aug. 4, up from $98.5 billion from the end of May, Mehmet Simsek tweeted.

Thus, the reserves saw an increase of $17.1 billion during the last two months, and net reserves rose by $20.1 billion to $15.7 billion, he added.

"It is quite significant that the reserve increases continued in August, when the exchange rate-protected deposit returns were at record levels," Simsek said.

Earlier in the day, the minister said international credit rating agency Moody's evaluated that Türkiye’s “transition to a rule-based and predictable policy is positive in terms of the country's credit outlook and rating.”

“We are determined to implement rule-based policies in line with international norms in order to ensure macro-financial stability and increase our country's resilience to shocks. We believe this will reflect on our credit rating,” he said.​​​​​​​

Last month, Türkiye's Central Bank raised its policy rate by 250 basis to 17.5%, the highest level since October 2021.

In June, the bank had increased the rate by 650 basis points to 15% in a first hike in 27 months.