Turkey's deputy PM says S&P downgrade not based on sufficient analysis

ANKARA: Standard & Poor's decision to cut Turkey's sovereign debt rating was not based on sufficient analysis, Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Wednesday.

"The downgrading of the credit rating, coming after the election decision, is wrong timing-wise. S&P's analysis is also insufficient," Simsek tweeted.

In an unexpected move on Tuesday, S&P said it lowered Turkey's rating to BB-/B from BB/B, citing widening inflation concerns amid a sell-off in the lira currency. The announcement came ahead of snap elections called for June 24.