Turkey’s newly appointed finance minister and former deputy prime minister, Mehmet Simsek, said today that the country has no choice but to return to the “field of rationality” to ensure predictability in the economy.

President Tayyip Erdogan appointed Simsek to his cabinet on Saturday to deal with the cost of living crisis and other issues, in a clear sign that his newly elected government will return to more orthodox economic policies.

During the handover ceremony of the ministry, Simsek stated that the main goal of the new government will be to increase social welfare.

“Transparency, consistency, predictability and compliance with international standards will be our basic principles to achieve this goal,” emphasized Simsek.

“Turkey has no choice but to return to the realm of rationality. A rules-based and predictable Turkish economy will be the key to achieving the desired prosperity.”

Macroeconomic stability in an environment of increasing global challenges and geopolitical tensions will be a priority, he said.

“Establishing fiscal discipline and ensuring price stability for sustainable high growth will be our main objectives,” he added.

Simsek, who Reuters reports was well-liked by markets when he served as finance minister and then deputy prime minister from 2009 to 2018, said reducing soaring single-digit inflation would be another priority.

“It is vital for our country to reduce inflation to single digits again in the medium term, increase predictability in all sectors and accelerate structural transformation that will reduce the current account deficit,” he underlined.