Following strong growth in the 2000s (5.2% on average between 2002 and 2012) and after coming out relatively unscathed from the crisis in 2008 and 2009 (GDP growth of 9.2% in 2010 and 8.8% in 2011), the country’s growth rate has slowed in recent years (+2.9% in 2014, +3.2% in 2016 and 7.4% in 2017). Since the start of 2018, Turkey has faced very high inflation, a large deficit in its balance of payments and a weakening of its currency. In the coming years, Turkey is set to see a fall in growth along with high inflation.

Although it has experienced various negative shocks, the Turkish economy has grown rapidly over the last two years. This performance has been built on recovery measures taken by public authorities and on the business sector.

To prop up the economy, the government has taken various measures, such as extending credit card payment dates, as well as offering several benefits for the private sector. For instance, the repayment of governmental financial assistance to SMEs has been pushed back from 2018 to 2019, export support potentially amounting to TRY 300,000 is being offered to SMEs, and incentives are in place for the local production of intermediate goods currently imported from abroad by exporters.