Erdogan lashes out at S&P over rating on Turkey

ISTANBUL (AA) - May 3, 2012 - Turkish prime minister on Thursday rubbished Standard & Poor's over its revision of outlook on Turkey from positive to stable. "This is totally an ideological decision. No one would buy that. And we shall declare that we do not recognize you any more as a credit rating agency," Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters in an Istanbul fashion conference. S&P said Tuesday it cut outlook on Turkey's long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings to stable from positive due to "less-buoyant external demand and worsening terms of trade [which] could inhibit Turkey's economic rebalancing."  "This is absolute nonsense even as you upgrade [ratings on] Greece which still teeters on the edge of bankruptcy," Erdogan said.