Why Turkey still looks xenophobic to me
Güven Sak, PhD
21 September 2013
The Transatlantic Survey 2013 results were announced last week. I was reading the text prepared for the Turkish ceremony. Some 38 percent of Turks surveyed said Turkey should act alone on international matters. The text prepared by the German Marshall Fund of the United States cites this as an indication that there is support for the foreign policy position of the Turkish government. I disagree. I do not think that the result is directly related to current developments. It is more likely to be a continuing trend from our past; it is a reflection of an old habit back from the days of “the Turk’s best friend is a Turk.” It was formulated with the memories of a crumbling empire long gone at the beginning of the last century. But old habits die hard. Turkey still looks xenophobic to
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Would you invest in a nice house or education for your children?
Güven Sak, PhD
20 September 2013
If having personal qualifications actually has returns, education becomes important. The other day a South Korean friend of mine said, “If you ask me what the most important factor that enabled Korea to become a high-income from an upper-middle-income country was, my answer definitely would be education.” “The education of their children is not just important for Korean parents: they are obsessed with education,” he added.
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The abnormality of the normalization process
Fatih Özatay, PhD
19 September 2013
So, if the FED announces the anticipated steps, will that be the end of the story? Not even close, unfortunately. Two main matters of debate concerning FED are ahead of us Can normalization be abnormal? We nowadays realize that it can. For weeks now we are obsessed with the steps the Federal Reserve (FED) is expected to take. These are considered steps for normalization in line with the FED’s discourse. Yet, the normalization process, at least a large part of it, will be a first for all of us. Hence it is abnormal and although it is not much voiced, the world is afraid that the abnormality will bring brand new troubles.
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Turkey struggles and Korea advances in construction
Güven Sak, PhD
17 September 2013
Turkey’s share on the list of world's top construction companies decreased from 3.8 percent to 3.3 percent. Recently, when I was in Palestine, I pondered the problems of Palestinian constructors. A local businessman told me that Palestine’s contractors cannot afford to undertake a project worth more than $5 billion. Back then I noted that Palestine’s construction companies were small-scale and lacked bank support. During our conversation, I told him that Turkey ranked second after China on the list of the world’s largest construction companies. I bragged that Turkey outperformed the US. If was later when I checked the figures that I found out the picture was not as bright. Let me tell you why.
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What’s the purpose of raising FX spending with imports decreasing?
Fatih Özatay, PhD
14 September 2013
If I were in the shoes of the economy management, I would elaborate on the correlation between the hike in gold imports and the current economic policy. Have you seen the gold certificate commercials on TV? They are announcing it dancing with joy. What should I say? I will go with “let’s hope for the best” as you usually do in such occasions.
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Ankara beats Istanbul in creativity
Güven Sak, PhD
14 September 2013
I have been following Turkey’s creative class with more interest ever since the Gezi Park events. The Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto published two surveys lately. One is on creative countries and the other on creative cities around the globe. The creative country list is based on a survey of 82 countries, among which Turkey ranks a lousy 61st. I knew this before the creative cities list results were announced, so I braced myself when I finally saw it, looking for Istanbul at the bottom. And surely enough, both Istanbul and Ankara were there. What was strange however, was that Ankara beat Istanbul. Among the 61 most creative cities of the globe, Ankara is number 55 and Istanbul 57. How is that possible? Let me start with my preoccupation with Turkey’s crea
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Why Obama's policy on Syria is rational
Güven Sak, PhD
13 September 2013
The core principle of Obama’s new immigration policy is to bring skilled, well-educated, English-speaking young people from all around the world to the US, regardless of their home countries. I sense a tendency to assess Obama’s policy on Syria as weak and unresolved. I beg to differ. I think that Obama’s policy belongs to the present, not the past. I do not see any weakness on the US side. On the contrary, I believe that the decision makers of countries like Turkey have to put their thinking caps on if they seek to become a more prosperous country. Let me tell you what I think.
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Turkey’s chronic PKK problem enters a new phase
Nihat Ali Özcan, PhD
12 September 2013
Negotiations between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) are in a state of controlled crisis. Both domestic and foreign affairs are under pressure. In the highly divisive environment defined by nearing elections and mass protests, the idea that the PKK can utilize its capacity to perform “professional violence” must be driving Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan mad.
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Believe it or not, good things also happen in Turkey
Güven Sak, PhD
10 September 2013
I think the BALO becoming operable was the best piece of news I have read in the last four months. The people of Turkey swing from one extreme to the other. We either overdo or understate. Our mood is either great or terrible. We don’t like the middle courses. So we are again. If I had to describe the image in my head of the last four months in Turkey, I liken it to a ship adrift. It is impossible to set a positive agenda in this country. Just listen to the statements made by our administrators to get depressed. No matter what happens, it’s either someone tripped Turkey up or pulled its hair. Trouble is always at our door. No one tells a happy-going, happy-ending story. But believe it or not, good things also happen in Turkey. Starting with last weekend, all of Anatolia is now in the Custo
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Signs of a fall in Turkey’s potential growth rate?
Fatih Özatay, PhD
10 September 2013
It is likely that with a short-term drop in foreign finance opportunities, Turkey’s current account deficit might not fall in the short-term and rise back to its normal level. Yesterday industrial output figures for July were released and today will come the GDP figure for the second quarter. Given the current climate marked by financial tensions, we may conclude that these figures will not bring light on Turkey’s economic performance in the period ahead. This is mainly because the impact of exchange and interest rate movements and changes in foreign finance opportunities on GDP will be lagged.
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