Page 3 - bne_newspaper_May_25_2018

Top Stories
May 25, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 3
bank were less than clear in their comments
on what lies ahead in monetary policy. Erdogan stated in a televised speech to former lawmakers in Ankara that “in the new government system, we’ll continue to abide by the global governance principles on monetary policy.”
He added that “financial discipline will continue and the necessary things will be done for financial stability” but he also said that the TRY’s volatility did not reflect Turkey’s economic reality and, in a familiar reference to conspiratorial foreign market players supposedly out to undermine Turkey’s economy, he warned that he would not let “global governance types” ruin the country.
Turkey’s economy delivered more growth than China’s last year, registering a GDP expansion of 7.4%. The markets want clear action to cool
Gazprom escapes EU fine in antitrust probe over market position in CEE
mission agreed – were years of overcharging for gas and blocking its free flow between individual markets.
The Commission decided, however, that a set- tlement laying out rules for Gazprom to follow in the future would be a better option. That is in line with earlier hints from the EU executive arm that it would rather focus on the future of Gazprom’s relationships with its state clients in CEE rather than the past.
"Now Gazprom has to take positive steps to inte- grate gas markets in Central and Eastern Europe [and] to enable gas to flow freely at competitive prices. This is the start of enforcing Gazprom ob- ligations. Broken obligations can lead to fine of up to 10% of turnover," European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager said on Twitter.
it down but on this point Erdogan only vaguely commented that “we will definitely take measures to lower inflation and the current account deficit in a very different way after the elections”.
Adding to investor concern, the central bank, in its statement on the interim hike, dropped its usual wording that “further monetary policy tightening will be delivered, if needed”, noted Reuters. That sowed some concern that it may not increase rates at its next scheduled policy meeting.
Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek, the cabinet minister in charge of the economic team who unlike Erdogan is seen as unmistakably “market friendly”, as well as Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey governor Murat Cetinkaya, are to travel to London next week to meet with investors.
More specifically, the Commission has ordered Gazprom to observe the following rules:
• the company must not put up contractual bar- riers to the free flow of gas and has to remove any restrictions placed on customers to re-sell gas across borders;
• Gazprom will also have an obligation to facili- tate gas flows to and from isolated markets – namely the Baltics states and Bulgaria – whose gas grids are not linked to other EU member states due to the lack of interconnectors;
• its customers in CEE will be able to demand lower prices when their gas price diverges from competitive Western European price benchmarks and new pricing will have to be set in line with price level in competitive West- ern European gas markets;
• Gazprom will also be barred from acting on any advantages concerning gas infrastructure, which it may have obtained from customers by hav- ing leveraged its market position in gas supply.