CENTRAL BANK CUTS INTEREST RATE IN FIRST EASING SINCE JANUARY
The Central Bank cut its benchmark policy rate by 100 basis points to 36% on Oct. 22, its first monetary easing since January, in line with market expectations.
Analysis
In-Depth Analysis
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CHESSBOARD IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN
Developments in recent weeks underscores just how increasingly complex the picture in the Eastern Mediterranean has become.
WITH INFLATION AT 5-YEAR LOW, MARKETS EYE MODEST RATE CUT
For the first time in nearly five years, Turkey’s annual inflation rate slipped below 30%, giving the central bank room to consider easing monetary policy at its meeting on Oct. 22.
NO SIGNS OF JUSTICE FROM SİLİVRİ PRISON
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who has been behind bars since March 2025, and his co-defendants are increasingly pessimistic about the outcome of the hearings in the Istanbul Municipality trial.
AKP PUSHES TO GAIN MORE SEATS IN ISTANBUL
The opposition's advantage in Istanbul's Municipal Council is decreasing while the ruling AKP and MHP are increasing their numbers.
TURKEY WEIGHS ENDING TEMPORARY PROTECTION FOR SYRIANS IN FAVOR OF EASIER VISAS
Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi signaled a new way to accelerate the voluntary return of Syrians from Turkey, saying the government is considering lifting their temporary protection status and easing visa rules instead.
CENTRAL BANK HOLDS RATE AT 37% AS BUSINESS SECTOR DEMANDS CREDIT RELIEF
The central bank kept its benchmark policy rate unchanged at 37% during its Monetary Policy Committee meeting on July 23, matching market expectations. However, business leaders are increasingly complaining about high borrowing costs, tight credit restrictions, and falling industrial output.
ANKARA AWAITS POST-NATO POLITICAL STORM
Turkey's political agenda is expected to pivot sharply from diplomacy to domestic maneuvering as post-NATO scenarios dominate the discussion from July 9 onward. The conclusion of the NATO Ankara Summit, widely seen as an international success for Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan personally, has triggered intense political speculation amid increasing pressure on dissidents.
COURT LIFTS PENSION RESTRICTIONS FOR ISTANBUL MUNICIPALITY DEFENDANTS
Hundreds of defendants in the Istanbul Municipality trial can collect pensions, easing the financial strain many have suffered since the start of pretrial detentions in March 2025.
TWO SCHOOL SHOOTINGS IN 24 HOURS RAISE URGENT QUESTIONS ON CHILDHOOD VIOLENCE
While mass school shootings remain rare in Turkey, the back-to-back attacks in Şanlıurfa and Kahramanmaraş have intensified calls for the resignation of Education Minister Yusuf Tekin, as discussions on the increasing violence in education system have come under scrutiny.
SYRIA BECOMES GORDIAN KNOT ON TURKEY’S PEACE PROCESS
Developments in Syria are emerging as a potential block to Turkey’s push for Kurdish peace. With the March 10 Agreement between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Damascus nearing its implementation deadline, Ankara is increasing pressure for compliance.
TURKEY-CHINA RELATIONS: INEVITABLE TANGO
Although NATO remains the cornerstone of Turkey’s security architecture and the European Union still accounts for roughly half of its foreign trade, Ankara’s relationship with Beijing has become increasingly complex, strategic, and — in many respects — inevitable.