Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announces new cabinet

In unveiling his new cabinet, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan named former economy chief and internationally renowned ex-banker Mehmet Simsek as treasury and finance minister.

Erdogan, who was sworn in for his third term as president on Saturday, replaced nearly all of his cabinet members with the exception of the health and culture ministers.

Investors held Simsek in high regard during his tenure as finance minister from 2009 to 2015 and deputy prime minister in charge of the economy until 2018, when he resigned ahead of a series of lira crashes that year.

His appointment may signal a departure from Erdogan's years of unconventional economic policies, which have included low interest rates despite soaring inflation and heavy state control of markets.

Simsek, a former economist at Merrill Lynch, is known to oppose Erdogan's unconventional policies.

Inflation soared to 85 percent in October before falling to 44 percent in May as Turkey struggles with a crisis in its cost of living. Since the beginning of the year, the currency has lost more than 10 percent of its value against the dollar.

Hakan Fidan, Erdogan's intelligence chief and a former soldier, has been appointed as the new foreign minister, succeeding Mevlut Cavusoglu, who has held the position since 2014.

Fidan, one of Erdogan's closest aides, has led the National Intelligence Organisation (MIT) since 2010; prior to that, he served as an adviser to Erdogan in the office of the prime minister.

Additionally, Erdogan announced that Cevdet Yilmaz will serve as his vice president.