Turkey reached all targets in 2018: Finance minister

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey reached almost all of its targets as of the end of 2018, showing a better performance than expected, the Turkish treasury and finance minister said on Thursday.

"We closed 2018 with the inflation rate of 20.3 percent, which was under the target of 20.8 percent. It's a positive process," Berat Albayrak said, speaking to public news channel TRT Haber.

He noted that Turkey will show a stronger performance in the 2019 budget in terms of expenses and revenue.

The Turkish government brought nearly 6.5 tons of gold to the country's economy with issuances of gold-backed bonds, he underlined.

About the Central Bank's decision on interest rates, Albayrak said the bank takes necessary steps by observing the market.

The Turkish Central Bank's policy rate -- one-week repo rate -- is at 24 percent.

On Jan. 16, the bank will hold 2019's first Monetary Policy Committee Meeting, which will determine the interest rates.