Vocabulary:

flagging economy – экономика, находящаяся в неблагополучном состоянии, темпы роста которой снижаются

scattered own­ership – раздробленное право собственности, которым обладает множество людей

soft lending – мягкие, благоприятные условия кредитования по низкой процентной ставке

credit crunch – сокращение (сжатие) кредита; жесткие условия кредитования по высокой процентной ставке; ограничение доступа к кредиту

Siemens has been eyeing CKD… - Компания Сименс присматривается к компании СКД, т.е. рассматривает возможность её приобретения

be dead on one’s feet – быть истощенным, «еле стоять на ногах»

67. Turkey Outlines New Package of Radical Structural Reforms

Economy minister hopes for IMF agreement within 10 days

Kemal Derviş, Turkey's new economy minister, yesterday out­lined key structural reforms in a radical rescue package intended to haul the economy out of crisis.

The former World Bank econo­mist also said additional finan­cial assistance from the interna­tional community was necessary to help bring down "sky-high interest rates" that he identified as the main threat to Turkey's fragile financial system.

Mr Derviş was appointed two weeks ago to salvage ambitious economic reforms following the collapse of an earlier programme that was backed by the Interna­tional Monetary Fund.

Turkey was forced to abandon a pegged exchange rate and allow a 25 per cent devaluation of the Turkish lira after financial tur­moil triggered by a political dis­pute between the president and prime minister.

Mr Derviş said he hoped a com­plete revised reform plan -including a new inflation target and other macroeconomic indica­tors - could be agreed with the IMF within 10 days.

Mr Derviş conceded that the IMF was unlikely to increase the overall amount of money -$11.4bn - that has already been pledged to Turkey, though he expected greater flexibility in the way a remaining $7bn still out­standing could be spent.

He said Ankara was looking for increased "bilateral assistance" from individual countries, as well as "the support of the markets and both domestic and interna­tional banks".

A key element of the package -which has the full backing of the coalition government - was the rationalisation of three loss-mak­ing state-owned banks under a single supervisory board.

Mr Derviş announced that Ziraat, Halk and Emlak banks -the three main state-owned banks - would be restructured to operate "on the basis of market rules and profitability". This would include the merger of Emlak with Ziraat, branch clo­sures and staff cuts.

The government would issue "marketable domestic debt instruments" to the equivalent of $16bn to help cover losses of more than $20bn accumulated by the three banks. The restructur­ing will be overseen by a com­mon board of directors staffed by independent bankers.

Other measures included legis­lation to make the central bank fully independent and aid liquida­tion of insolvent banks. There were also moves to sell off 51 per cent of Turk Telecom and accel­erate privatisation of Turkish Airlines, as well as the alcohol, tobacco and sugar monopolies.

Ankara also filled the impor­tant posts of treasury chief and head of the banking watchdog by respectively appointing Engin Akcakoca and Faik Oztrak, both respected technocrats.