Ankara: Turkey's economy grew 10.3 per cent in the second quarter of this year, above expectations, official data showed yesterday, boosting prospects that the government target for the whole year would be doubled.
It was the third quarter of growth in a row and followed a 11.7 per cent increase in the first quarter of the year.
In seasonally adjusted terms, gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 3.7 per cent in the second quarter, the state statistics institute said.
GDP had contracted by 7.6 per cent in the same period last year when the Turkish economy plunged into a severe recession that caused an annual slump of 4.7 per cent. The government had set its target for 2010 at 3.5 per cent.
"We have already surpassed the target of the mid-term programme... Economic growth for the whole of 2010 is likely to be above six per cent, somewhere around seven per cent," Industry and Trade Minister Nihat Ergun said on NTV television.
"What is important is that growth is being driven by an increase in domestic consumption and investment spending, particularly in the private sector," he said.
Economic recovery is vital for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of general elections next year, in which his business-friendly Justice and Development Party will seek a third straight term in power.
The party received a major boost at a referendum on Sunday in which voters approved a highly divisive package of constitutional amendments to reshape the judiciary and curb the military's powers.
The referendum outcome "has removed the political risks over the Turkish economy to a great extent," Ergun said, stressing that the prospect of political stability would have a positive impact on interest rates and investment.
