Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Unemployment Rate Ups to 11.8% | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
Select Page
Media ID: 55365721
Caption:

Clothing shops sell life jackets are seen in the Aegean port city of Izmir, western Turkey, August 10, 2015. REUTERS/Osman Orsal


Ankara – The Turkish Statistical Institute (Turkstat) announced on Monday that Turkey’s unemployment rate reached 11.8 percent in October 2016, compared to 11.3 in September of the same year — In the same period, the unemployment in non-agricultural sectors rose to 14.1 percent for the first time since 2010.

Turkish economy shrank by 1.8 percent in the third quarter of 2016 as consumer spending plunged.

Stability has also been shaken, in part by an increase in terrorist attacks, a conflict with Kurdish militants and a coup attempt in July which resulted in a wide-scale crackdown.

The Turkish lira plunged before the U.S. dollar and Euro – The country is still suffering consequences of the collapse of tourism sector amidst the prevailing political tension.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan renewed last week his calls on Turks to sell foreign funds amid the continuous drop of Turkish Lira, which has witnessed in the previous period a record-drop before the U.S. dollar.

Losses of the Turkish currency reached around 8% before the U.S. dollar since the beginning of the year – these losses increased with the emerging of a draft to amend the constitution.

While the currency lost around 25 of its’ value from 8 November until 11 January, inflation came higher than expected and reached 8.53%.

Finance Minister Naci Agbal said on Monday that the Turkish budget has revealed a deficit of 29.3 billion lira (USD7.8 billion) last year.

Agbal, added in a news conference, that Turkey revenues of taxes rose to 12.5% last year, reaching 458.7 billion lira.