ISTANBUL, June 23 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak Tuesday urged banks to speed up their restructuring efforts to better cope with the changing dynamics of the economy.
"The economy is going through a process of change ... I think you should also get rid of some old habits," Albayrak said at the general assembly of the Turkish Banking Association in Istanbul.
Highlighting the importance of domestic production, Albayrak also asked the banking sector in the country to support projects that would help promote indigenous goods.
"We expect you to pursue more compatible banking in line with the development goals of our country," he said.
According to the minister, Turkey's economy is showing indications of recovery thanks to the early actions taken to protect the market from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Turkish government, earlier, launched a stimulus package, which included tax postponement, short-time working allowance, minimum wage support and other measures to preserve the commercial life amid the pandemic.
"We have entered the normalization process with the least damage," Albayrak added.
At the beginning of June, Turkey allowed cafes, restaurants, sports facilities, parks, beaches, and museums to reopen and partially lifted restrictions on international and domestic travels.
Meanwhile, Turkey and China have carried their financial cooperation to an upper level as Turkish companies started to use Chinese yuan last week to pay their bills through relevant banks. The transactions came after a swap agreement signed by the central banks of the two countries in 2019.
Turkey's Central Bank said at a statement that the utilization of swap agreement resources would provide Turkish companies easy access to international liquidity.
Irfan Karsli, head of the Istanbul-based Ligarba travel agency, said with the help of the swap deal Turkish companies would be able to avoid the risk of fluctuations in exchange rates and interest rates.
"This agreement would provide a significant opportunity for Turkish businessmen," Karsli told Xinhua. "Turkish investors would compete with each other to invest in China, and likewise, Chinese business people would give priority to Turkey in their investment plans." Enditem
