Economy ministers tout improved figures

Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan and two other state ministers responsible for economic matters, Nazim Ekren and Mehmet Simsek, yesterday held a press conference on economic figures for Turkey revised under new formulas. "Since 2004, the debt owed by the Turkish public sector has been declining, in a mark of economic success, and debts are no longer a matter of concern," said Simsek. "This is an important development." He added that over the past five or six years, fiscal discipline has been restored. Erken also stated that Turkey can be seen as richer from a macroeconomic perspective as the nation's income was adjusted to a higher figure, adding, "International investors will have a different approach to Turkey from now on." Unakitan said that the government budget's share of the economy has declined to below one-fourth and that making concessions from fiscal discipline is out of the question.