ISTANBUL (Reuters) – The Turkish economy grew 5.2 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, data official showed on Monday, in what is expected to be the last solid growth data before an expected second-half slowdown as Turkey grapples with a currency crisis.
President Tayyip Erdogan has overseen strong growth during his 15 years in power but the economy is now facing challenges after a sharp decline in the lira, triggered partly by concerns about his influence over monetary policy.
In a Reuters poll, the economy had been expected to grow 5.3 percent in the first quarter. The lira TRYTOM=D3 firmed to 6.47 against the dollar after the data from around 6.4850 beforehand.
Second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) expanded a seasonally and calendar adjusted 0.9 percent from the previous quarter, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed
The data also showed that the economy expanded 7.4 percent in 2017, matching previously released data.
According to a Reuters poll, the economy is expected to grow 3.3 percent in the year as a whole.
Reporting by Behiye Selin Taner; Writing by Ali Kucukgocmen and Daren Butler; Editing by Dominic Evans.
