Turkey Economy Picks Up in Second Quarter

Economic growth in Turkey picked up speed in the second quarter, and will likely exceed the government's target for the whole year,  official data showed on Monday. 

Gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 5.1 percent year-on-year in the period from April to June, the Turkish Statistics Institute (TUIK) calculated.

That was faster than growth of 5.0 percent recorded in the first three months of this year.

Growth was driven by all main sectors, with the agricultural sector expanding by 4.7 percent, the manufacturing industry by 6.3 percent, the construction sector by 6.8 percent and the services sector by 5.7 percent, TUIK said.

The government is penciling in overall economic growth of 4.4 percent for the whole of 2017 and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said at the weekend that the target would likely be exceeded. 

"Our year-end target is 4.4 percent and we will end (the year) with over five percent. What does it mean? That is the highest growth in the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries," he said.

International rating agency Moody's has upgraded its end-year forecast for Turkish economy to 3.7 percent from 2.6 percent.