Moreover, the utilization of foodstuff in the bio-fuels production combined with the unfavorable weather conditions last year has led to further increases in commodity prices. Despite economic slowdown expectations in developed countries, the surge in commodity prices has continued in 2008 and the oil prices reached USD 140 per barrel. On the other hand, the sub-prime mortgage crisis that has started in the U.S. in mid 2007 has grown to a level that threatens the stability of financial system in many countries. The growth expectations were scaled back significantly. The turbulence might also have negative implications on the Turkish economy. Nevertheless, economic indicators show that the Turkish economy’s resistant to fluctuations in global markets has increased substantially, compared to the previous episodes of turbulences. The current relative resilience is an outcome of the successfully and decisively implemented macroeconomic policies since 2001 together with comprehensive structural reforms. Still, we are facing challenges now. The year-on-year consumer price inflation climbed to double-digit levels in May and it will probably remain high till the last quarter of this year and then decline gradually. Moreover, the growth rate of the GDP stood at 4.5% in 2007, as compared to 2001-2006 period, which was 7.2% on the average. Dear Guests, Turkey has several comparative advantages compared to many of its counterparts that can support high growth rates in the medium term. The first one is the demographic structure. Turkey has a young and skilled population that is one of the most important ingredients of economic growth.

More than half of Turkey’s population is under the age of 30. However, unemployment rate for the young population stands at 21.2%. In order to unleash our potential, we need to keep investments at high levels and utilize human capital effectively. Since domestic savings rate in Turkey is not high enough to finance investments, we need to attract foreign savings, which implies having  BIS Review 79/2008  1  current account deficit. But the good news is that the quality of financing has improved significantly in recent years. The FDI inflows were more than USD 20 billion in each of the last two years. Nevertheless, I should say that ratio of greenfield FDI to the total FDI is relatively low yet. I believe that the greenfield FDI will also increase in the following years as we keep the macroeconomic and political stability in place and continue to improve the business environment. The second comparative advantage that I would like to underline is the convergence story of Turkey to European Union. Steps taken during the negotiation process will undoubtedly increase the momentum of Turkey and help unlock the growth potential of the country. European Union membership is our medium-term anchor and all parties in Turkey should adhere to this aim decisively. Dear Guests, The best way that a central bank could support sustainable growth is reaching and maintaining price stability, especially in a country that experienced high and chronic inflation for decades. As you may know, Turkey has adopted the full-fledged inflation-targeting regime in 2006.