Turkish central bank chief lives with her parents again
Hafize Gaye Erkan is the most powerful banker in Turkey and yet she is not immune to the huge rent inflation in the metropolis of Istanbul. Unable to find affordable accommodation, she takes an unusual step.
The rental market in the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul is apparently overwhelming even the country's most powerful banker: Hafize Gaye Erkan, head of the Turkish central bank since June, has moved back in with her parents, according to her own statements. "We haven't found any accommodation in Istanbul. It's terribly expensive. We stayed with my parents," said 44-year-old Erkan in an interview with the newspaper "Hürriyet". "Could it be that Istanbul has become more expensive than Manhattan?" Erkan continued in the interview.
Before her appointment as head of the Turkish central bank, the 44-year-old had lived in the USA for two decades - where she worked in management positions at several major banks, including Goldman Sachs.
Turkey has been experiencing massive inflation for months: in November, the inflation rate was 62 percent compared to the same month last year. Rents in Istanbul rose by 77.1 percent in the same period, according to a study by Bahçesehir University, which is based in the city. As a countermeasure, the Turkish government has limited rent increases to 25 percent.
According to experts, however, this measure has further exacerbated the situation on the rental market: landlords are now trying to get rid of their tenants by any means necessary, sometimes illegally, in order to re-let properties for much higher prices.
To combat inflation, the Turkish central bank, under Erkan's leadership, has raised the key interest rate by 8.5 percentage points to 40 percent. However, these "monetary tightening measures" were now coming to an end, Erkan told "Hürriyet".
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Despite being the head of Turkey's central bank and dealing with inflation on a national level, Hafize Gaye Erkan experiences the impact of inflated rental prices in Istanbul personally, leading her to move back in with her parents. The Turkish lira has struggled against inflated costs, with rent in Istanbul rising by 77.1% in a year, according to Bahçesehir University.
Source: www.ntv.de
