Turkey’s gross domestic product shrank 1.5% year-on-year in the second quarter, according to official figures released this week, with a dramatic decrease in investments standing out as a major driver of the contraction. The decline in investments — both in the private and public sector — has been going on for 12 months, bearing heavily on joblessness.
It was the third quarter in a row that the Turkish economy has shrunk. The trend is likely to continue for at least another quarter, as leading indicators point to ongoing contraction in the July-September period. The Turkish Statistical Institute is scheduled to release the third-quarter figure on Dec. 2.