Accord reached on Turkish farm support prices
( 2001-05-29 11:43 ) (7 )

The Turkish government reached agreement Tuesday on farm support prices after a fresh clash between the new economy minister and the representative of the nationalist party in the coalition.

Following a two-hour meeting between the three coalition leaders, it was announced that a kilo of corn would be bought for 164,000 Turkish liras (0.15 dollars) in June, with the price being revised upwards each month afterwards, the Anatolia news agency reported.

Farm organizations had been hoping for 200,000 liras (0.18 dollars), Turkish television said.

Faruk Yucel, president of the Turkish Union of Chambers of Agriculture, said on television that the price offered was "harmful" to farmers. He said: "A kilo of corn in the United States is enough to buy four litres of gasoline, but four kilos of corn are not enough for one litre in Turkey."

Turkey's fragile economy plunged into a crisis in February when markets became alarmed about political instability after an unprecedented row at the top of the state over the government's anti-corruption struggle.

To contain the ensuing cash crunch, the ruling coalition floated the Turkish lira, causing the currency to lose nearly 40 percent against the dollar and disrupting an IMF-backed anti-inflation plan in place since December 1999.