Baykal claims govt can't announce new economic package without IMF agreement

The government can't announce a new package of economic stimulus measures because it has yet to reach a standby agreement with the International Monetary Fun, claimed main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal yesterday. Speaking at his party's parliamentary group meeting, Baykal said, "The impact of the global economic crisis on Turkey is growing because the government still can't announce its new measures to counter it." Asserting that the main reason for the delay on the standby is disagreement over how much the IMF will loan Turkey, Baykal said the government is just watching the economy falter without doing anything. In related news, opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli condemned Monday's bomb attack on an Istanbul office of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), warning the public against possible provocations due to local elections set for next March. Bahceli said the democratic and legal stage is the only place for political battles.