Milliyet – The Turkish finance minister has forecasted the country’s growth rates nearly tripling that of the EU’s in the long term. Turkey's Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said that Turkey’s year-end growth figures are expected to be between 3.5 and 5.5 percent, while the European Union (EU) is expected to grow by between 0.7 and 1.4 percent.

Simsek said the EU was foreseen to grow by around 1.8-2 percent in the medium term, and the projection of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for Turkey's growth between 2011 and 2017 was around 6.7 percent.

"Considering the growth forecasts, Turkey may achieve growth rates that are 3 times that of the EU," he said, referring to several projections that show Turkey having a sustained growth rate of 5 percent until 2050.