 But economists who follow the Turkish economic crisis believe inflation here is approaching its peak. I think it was just a decision to turn to rational policies. Selva Demiralp is an economist at Koç University in Istanbul. For years, as inflation skyrocketed, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan pressured the country's central bank not to raise interest rates. His belief, which went against orthodox economic policies, was that low rates would spur growth.