Erdogan praises economy's ten years

Turkey grew three fold over the last 10 years, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a public speech in the town of Viransehir in the southeastern province of Sanliurfa, adding that this timeframe corresponded with the ruling period of the Justice and Development Party (AKP). "Hopefully in 10 years, on the 100th anniversary of our Republic, we will become one of the top 10 economies in the world," he said. "Can we achieve this? Of course we can."Turkey's annual exports increased to $150 billion from $36 billion a decade ago, the prime minister said. The reserves of the Central Bank rose to $121 billion from $27.5 billion in the same period, he said. The $23.5 billion worth debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) well to $860 million and this will be cleared up as of May next year, he added. In addition the country is preparing to lend the fund $5 billion, he said. "We were getting loans in the past. Today we are giving loans," the prime minister said.