Türkiye became one of only two G20 economies that recorded positive growth in the first quarter of 2020 and has so far proven to be one of the least economically damaged countries during the COVID-19 outbreak.
According to a statement released by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Türkiye ranked as the highest annual growing economy in the first quarter with 4.4 percent growth year on year. Türkiye’s economy was boosted positively by 0.6 percent growth in Q1, following India with a rate of 0.7 percent.
Meanwhile, China’s economy contracted 6.8 percent year on year, which made it the country with the largest annual decrease in the first quarter of 2020.
However, Türkiye’s positive growth was not enough to offset the contraction in the G20 area. While G20 economies hit growth of 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019, a contraction of 1.5 percent was recorded in the first quarter of 2020 mainly because of the negative effects of the pandemic.
Minister of Treasury and Finance Berat Albayrak had previously released a comment on Türkiye’s performance in the first quarter, saying a stronger recovery is expected for the rest of the year.