Turkey has held talks with the United States about possibly securing a swap line from the U.S. Federal Reserve and has discussed other funding options to mitigate fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, Turkish officials said on Friday.
While Ankara is keen to secure funding from the U.S. central bank if possible, the officials said Turkey was not considering pursuing a deal with the IMF, given what they described as negative domestic perceptions of working with the Fund.
It was unclear whether any progress had been made towards a deal. Turkey’s Treasury Ministry was not immediately available to comment, nor was a spokesman for the U.S. Treasury. The Fed did not immediately comment.
US Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt: We are impressed how the Greek government attacked the coronavirus
Analysts have raised concerns that a draw-down in foreign reserves could hamper Turkey’s response to the pandemic, increasing the need for external funding. The measures taken to halt the spread of the COVID-19 disease are expected to tip its economy into its second recession in less than two years.
Read more: reuters
