IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/ijfiec/v26y2021i3p3916-3929.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The sustainability of the Turkish current account: Smooth structural break and asymmetric adjustments

Author

Listed:
  • Vasif Abioglu
  • Suleyman Koc
  • Ibrahim Bakirtas

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the sustainability of Turkish current account to GDP ratio in the long run by testing the null hypothesis of a unit root against the alternative of the smooth structural break with sign and/or size nonlinearity. Using nonlinear unit root tests, we find strong evidence in favour of the sustainability of Turkish current account deficit after taking into account both the smooth structural break and asymmetric speed of adjustment towards mean values. The core of our conclusion is twofold: first, we find that current account deficit is sustainable for Turkey in the analysed period; and second, sustainable current account deficit increased to around 5% of GDP in Turkey after the smooth structural break. Our results point out that current account deficits about 5% of GDP are sustainable if current account deficits permit greater FDI inflows and long‐term external borrowings that much more oriented towards productive activities in the economy. However, if domestic investments are mainly financed by short‐term external borrowings, then running current account deficits around 5% of GDP in the long run may generate inherent problems.

Suggested Citation

  • Vasif Abioglu & Suleyman Koc & Ibrahim Bakirtas, 2021. "The sustainability of the Turkish current account: Smooth structural break and asymmetric adjustments," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(3), pages 3916-3929, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:ijfiec:v:26:y:2021:i:3:p:3916-3929
    DOI: 10.1002/ijfe.1996
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/ijfe.1996
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/ijfe.1996?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nicholas Apergis & Konstantinos Katrakilidis & Nicholas Tabakis, 2000. "Current account deficit sustainability: The case of Greece," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(9), pages 599-603.
    2. Kapetanios, George & Shin, Yongcheol & Snell, Andy, 2003. "Testing for a unit root in the nonlinear STAR framework," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 112(2), pages 359-379, February.
    3. Huseyin Kalyoncu, 2005. "Sustainability of Current Account for Turkey: Intertemporal Solvency Approach," Prague Economic Papers, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2005(1), pages 82-88.
    4. Nurgun Topalli & İbrahim Dogan, 2016. "The structure and sustainability of current account deficit: Turkish evidence from regime switching," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(4), pages 570-589, June.
    5. Sollis, Robert, 2009. "A simple unit root test against asymmetric STAR nonlinearity with an application to real exchange rates in Nordic countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 118-125, January.
    6. Sokbae Lee & Myung Hwan Seo & Youngki Shin, 2017. "Correction," Journal of the American Statistical Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 112(518), pages 883-883, April.
    7. Sebastian Edwards, 2002. "Does the Current Account Matter?," NBER Chapters, in: Preventing Currency Crises in Emerging Markets, pages 21-76, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Mark J. Holmes & Jesús Otero & Theodore Panagiotidis, 2010. "On the Stationarity of Current Account Deficits in the European Union," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(4), pages 730-740, September.
    9. Christopoulos, Dimitris & León-Ledesma, Miguel A., 2010. "Current account sustainability in the US: What did we really know about it?," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 442-459, April.
    10. Dani Rodrik, 2012. "The Turkish Economy after the Global Financial Crisis," Ekonomi-tek - International Economics Journal, Turkish Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 41-61, January.
    11. Steven Radelet & Jeffrey Sachs, 2000. "The Onset of the East Asian Financial Crisis," NBER Chapters, in: Currency Crises, pages 105-153, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Z beyir Turan & Ayberk Nuri Berkman & Asl han Nakibo lu, 2016. "Sustainability of Current Account Deficit in Turkey (1989-2014)," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 6(2), pages 807-812.
    13. Husted, Steven, 1992. "The Emerging U.S. Current Account Deficit in the 1980s: A Cointegration Analysis," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 74(1), pages 159-166, February.
    14. Ayla Oğuş Binatli & Niloufer Sohrabji, 2012. "Intertemporal Solvency of Turkey’s Current Account," Panoeconomicus, Savez ekonomista Vojvodine, Novi Sad, Serbia, vol. 59(1), pages 89-104, March.
    15. Chen, Shyh-Wei & Xie, Zixiong, 2015. "Testing for current account sustainability under assumptions of smooth break and nonlinearity," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 142-156.
    16. Enders, Walter & Granger, Clive W J, 1998. "Unit-Root Tests and Asymmetric Adjustment with an Example Using the Term Structure of Interest Rates," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 16(3), pages 304-311, July.
    17. Juan Carlos Cuestas, 2013. "The Current Account Sustainability of European Transition Economies," Journal of Common Market Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(2), pages 232-245, March.
    18. Mehmet Caner & Bruce E. Hansen, 2001. "Threshold Autoregression with a Unit Root," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 69(6), pages 1555-1596, November.
    19. Taylor, Alan M., 2002. "A century of current account dynamics," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 21(6), pages 725-748, November.
    20. Chortareas Georgios E & Kapetanios George & Uctum Merih, 2004. "An Investigation of Current Account Solvency in Latin America Using Non Linear Nonstationarity Tests," Studies in Nonlinear Dynamics & Econometrics, De Gruyter, vol. 8(1), pages 1-19, March.
    21. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2011. "Current account deficits and sustainability: Evidence from the OECD countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 1455-1464, July.
    22. Mihai Macovei, 2009. "Growth and economic crises in Turkey: leaving behind a turbulent past?," European Economy - Economic Papers 2008 - 2015 386, Directorate General Economic and Financial Affairs (DG ECFIN), European Commission.
    23. Gian Maria Milesi-Ferretti & Assaf Razin, 1996. "Sustainability of Persistent Current Account Deficits," NBER Working Papers 5467, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    24. Richard H. Clarida & Manuela Goretti & Mark P. Taylor, 2007. "Are There Thresholds of Current Account Adjustment in the G7?," NBER Chapters, in: G7 Current Account Imbalances: Sustainability and Adjustment, pages 169-204, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    25. A. I. McLeod & W. K. Li, 1983. "Diagnostic Checking Arma Time Series Models Using Squared‐Residual Autocorrelations," Journal of Time Series Analysis, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 4(4), pages 269-273, July.
    26. Cecen, Aydin & Xiao, Linlan, 2014. "Capital flows and current account dynamics in Turkey: A nonlinear time series analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 240-246.
    27. Trehan, Bharat & Walsh, Carl E, 1991. "Testing Intertemporal Budget Constraints: Theory and Applications to U.S. Federal Budget and Current Account Deficits," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 23(2), pages 206-223, May.
    28. Freund, Caroline, 2005. "Current account adjustment in industrial countries," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 24(8), pages 1278-1298, December.
    29. Takeuchi, Fumihide, 2010. "US external debt sustainability revisited: Bayesian analysis of extended Markov switching unit root test," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 98-106, March.
    30. Ercan Uygur, 2010. "The Global Crisis And The Turkish Economy," Working Papers 2010/3, Turkish Economic Association.
    31. Robert Sollis, 2004. "Asymmetric adjustment and smooth transitions: a combination of some unit root tests," Journal of Time Series Analysis, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(3), pages 409-417, May.
    32. Hakkio, Craig S & Rush, Mark, 1991. "Is the Budget Deficit "Too Large?"," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 29(3), pages 429-445, July.
    33. Milesi-Ferretti, Gian Maria & Razin, Assaf, 1996. "Persistent Current Account Deficits: A Warning Signal?," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 1(3), pages 161-181, July.
    34. Stephen Leybourne & Paul Newbold & Dimitrios Vougas, 1998. "Unit roots and smooth transitions," Journal of Time Series Analysis, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 19(1), pages 83-97, January.
    35. Raybaudi, Marzia & Sola, Martin & Spagnolo, Fabio, 2004. "Red signals: current account deficits and sustainability," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 84(2), pages 217-223, August.
    36. Wu, Jyh-Lin, 2000. "Mean reversion of the current account: evidence from the panel data unit-root test," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 215-222, February.
    37. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2014. "Smooth transition, non-linearity and current account sustainability: Evidence from the European countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 541-554.
    38. Ayla Ogus & Niloufer Sohrabji, 2008. "On the optimality and sustainability of Turkey’s current account," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 35(3), pages 543-568, November.
    39. Kim, Bong-Han & Min, Hong-Ghi & Hwang, Young-Soon & McDonald, Judith A., 2009. "Are Asian countries' current accounts sustainable? Deficits, even when associated with high investment, are not costless," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 163-179.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chen, Shyh-Wei & Xie, Zixiong, 2015. "Testing for current account sustainability under assumptions of smooth break and nonlinearity," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 142-156.
    2. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2014. "Smooth transition, non-linearity and current account sustainability: Evidence from the European countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 541-554.
    3. Olufemi G. Onatunji, 2023. "Sustainability of current account deficits in Nigeria: evidence from the asymmetric NARDL approach," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 3(10), pages 1-22, October.
    4. Taştan Serkan & Arıç Kıvanç Halil, 2015. "Is Current Account of Turkey Sustainable ? Evidence from Nonlinear Unit Root Tests," Romanian Economic Journal, Department of International Business and Economics from the Academy of Economic Studies Bucharest, vol. 18(57), pages 95-114, September.
    5. Resat CEYLAN, 2018. "Kirilgan Beslide Cari Aciklarin Surdurulebilirligi: Dogrusal Olmayan Birim Kok Testleri Ile Kanitlar," Ege Academic Review, Ege University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, vol. 18(1), pages 121-134.
    6. Esra Hasdemir & Tolga Omay & Zulal S Denaux, 2019. "Testing the Current Account Sustainability for BRICS Countries: Evidence from a Nonlinear Framework," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 39(1), pages 310-320.
    7. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2011. "Are current account deficits really sustainable in the G-7 countries?," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 190-201.
    8. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2011. "Current account deficits and sustainability: Evidence from the OECD countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 1455-1464, July.
    9. Nurgun Topalli & İbrahim Dogan, 2016. "The structure and sustainability of current account deficit: Turkish evidence from regime switching," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(4), pages 570-589, June.
    10. Christopoulos, Dimitris & León-Ledesma, Miguel A., 2010. "Current account sustainability in the US: What did we really know about it?," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 442-459, April.
    11. Husein, Jamal, 2020. "Current account sustainability for 21 African economies: Evidence based on nonlinear flexible Fourier stationarity and unit-root tests," MPRA Paper 100410, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Cecen, Aydin & Xiao, Linlan, 2014. "Capital flows and current account dynamics in Turkey: A nonlinear time series analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 240-246.
    13. Yersh, Valeryia, 2020. "Current account sustainability and capital mobility in Latin American and Caribbean countries," MPRA Paper 105440, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Dissou, Yazid & Nafie, Yousra, 2019. "Sustainability of current account deficits: Evidence from Egypt using an asymmetric ARDL model," The Journal of Economic Asymmetries, Elsevier, vol. 20(C).
    15. Theo Panagiotidis & Mark J Holmes, 2005. "Sustainability and Asymmetric Adjustment: Some New Evidence Concerning Behaviour of the US Current Account," Money Macro and Finance (MMF) Research Group Conference 2005 29, Money Macro and Finance Research Group.
    16. Chen, Shyh-Wei, 2013. "Long memory and regime switching properties of current account deficits in the US," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 78-87.
    17. Kim, Bong-Han & Min, Hong-Ghi & Hwang, Young-Soon & McDonald, Judith A., 2009. "Are Asian countries' current accounts sustainable? Deficits, even when associated with high investment, are not costless," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 163-179.
    18. Singh Tarlok, 2017. "Sustainability of Current Account Deficits in the OECD Countries: Evidence from Panel Data Estimators," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 17(4), pages 1-16, December.
    19. Garg, Bhavesh & Prabheesh, K.P., 2021. "Testing the intertemporal sustainability of current account in the presence of endogenous structural breaks: Evidence from the top deficit countries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 365-379.
    20. António Afonso & Florence Huart & João Tovar Jalles & Piotr Stanek, 2020. "Long-run relationship between exports and imports: current account sustainability tests for the EU," Portuguese Economic Journal, Springer;Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestao, vol. 19(2), pages 155-170, May.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:ijfiec:v:26:y:2021:i:3:p:3916-3929. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.interscience.wiley.com/jpages/1076-9307/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.