Kemal Derviş's statement apparently indicated his support for a recent decision by the Turkish Central Bank to hike interest rates by 50 base points.
Derviş also praised Turkey's growth momentum. "This growth performance was related to capacity utilization and the skill of overcoming crises," he said. Turkey should have a growth rate around 7 percent between 2010 and 2015, he added.

Derviş cautioned, however, against overly tight fiscal and monetary policies. He said central banks need to balance their interest rate policies between very tight and very loose fiscal approaches. He explained, "Monetary authorities have to allow a temporary upward move in inflation within reasonable limits, but going beyond those limits and over-loosening monetary policy could bring a resurgence of inflationist sentiment and an inflationary trend."

Speaking at high consultative council meeting of the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (TÜSİAD) in İstanbul on Thursday, Derviş said, "Contrary to expectations, we have not seen a decline in the real economy." He added, "Yes, we will witness a slowdown, but that will be over soon and an accelerating growth trend will again kick in for the global economy."

Derviş also said he will not return to active politics in Turkey. "My business is economics," he told a group of reporters.

From March 2001 to August 2002, Derviş was Turkey's minister for economic affairs and the Treasury, without party affiliation. He was responsible for Turkey's recovery program after the devastating financial crisis that hit the country in February 2001. In August of 2002, after the crisis was overcome, he resigned from his ministerial post, joined the Republican People's Party (CHP) and was elected to Parliament in November of the same year. Derviş was a CHP deputy for İstanbul from November 2002 to June 2005.

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