Effects of Fiscal Policy Uncertainty on Turkish Economy

Abstract

Uncertainty is one of the most important issues for economic actors. Uncertainty about tax, expenditure and debt policy has an impact on the economy. The central question in this study asks how fiscal policy uncertainty affects the Turkish economy. First, we quantify Turkey's fiscal policy uncertainty index based on volatility measurements between 1998Q1 and 2020Q4. This index represents major fiscal, economic and political incidents in Turkey. Next, we analyse the effects of fiscal policy uncertainty on the Turkish economy using a VAR model. Our study finds that fiscal policy uncertainty shocks have detrimental and long-lasting effects on the Turkish economy. The results indicated that a positive standard deviation shock in fiscal policy uncertainty decreases the confidence, output and consumption. The findings of this study reveal critical fiscal policy implications for decision-makers. These findings imply that reducing Turkey's fiscal policy uncertainty is a critical policy priority for the business cycle fluctuations.