MÜSİAD President Warns of Financing Bottlenecks Amid Turkey's Macroeconomic Rebalancing

As Turkey navigates a complex macroeconomic balancing act, MÜSİAD President Burhan Özdemir has highlighted that geopolitical risks and tightening financial conditions are fundamentally reshaping the economic landscape for the second half of the year.

The Geopolitical Transformation of Economic Drivers

In an era of shifting global trade dynamics, Özdemir noted that geopolitical developments have evolved beyond mere political risks to become core economic variables. These factors are now directly impacting:

■Energy supply security and fluctuating logistics costs,

■Access to critical raw materials,

■Direct pressures on global production costs.

Macroeconomic Stabilization and the Disinflation Mandate

Reviewing Turkey's performance in the first half of the year, Özdemir emphasized that investor confidence remains tied to the success of the macroeconomic balancing process. Key indicators under scrutiny include:

■The ongoing disinflation process and price stability,

■The recovery trend in foreign exchange reserves,

■Improvements in the current account balance,

■Enhanced predictability in financial markets.

The Financing Bottleneck Facing the Real Sector

Addressing the most pressing concern for the business community, Özdemir pointed to high interest rates and constrained credit limits as significant hurdles for new investments. These tight financial conditions are driving up financing costs and increasing the demand for working capital, particularly in capital-intensive sectors.

To ensure sustainable growth, Özdemir argued for a shift from broad credit expansion toward selective financing mechanisms targeted at strategic areas such as technology investments, digital transformation, and green energy transition.

Özdemir’s assessment underscores the delicate balancing act required between price stability and industrial capacity. For the markets, the key metric will be whether the central bank's tight stance can be effectively complemented by selective credit mechanisms to prevent a contraction in high-value manufacturing and preserve the nation's long-term competitiveness.