News Scan – April 7th: Turkey’s foreign debt surpasses 47 percent of national income
Turkey’s foreign debt surpasses 47 percent of national income
The external debt stock of Turkey in 2013 has reached $388.2 billion, exceeding 47 percent of the national income announced as $820 billion
When Turkey’s 2013 growth external debt stock data was released last week, the dimensions and the content of the external debt stock, which is the main wind behind growth, were made clear. The growth rate for 2013 for the Turkish economy has been 4 percent, thus above the 2.1 growth of 2012.
However, when the growth rate of an average of 9 percent in the years 2010 and 2011 are reminded, even if this figure is above the one of 2012, it is still named as “stalling growth.”
It was seen that the 4 percent growth of 2013 was predominantly stemming from domestic consumption and that the contribution of foreign trade to growth has been very weak.
While the annual increase in private consumption reached 4.6 percent, it was also the public expenditures and public investments that were effective in growth.
Public consumption expenditures increased nearly 6 percent in 2013. The increase in private sector investments has been close to zero and did not affect growth.
HURRIYET DAILY NEWS
BIST became the most profitable stock market in the world in March
Election campaigns and anti-government attacks didn’t deter foreign investors, who poured $682.9 million into the BIST in March, making it the fastest growing stock market in the world
A positive atmosphere in the markets, which begun ahead of local elections and continued to rise after the elections, proved that foreign investors have not given up on Turkey’s markets, experts suggest.
Foreign investors bought shares totaling $682.9 million in March, and together with $206 million in February the total number stands at nearly $890 million in two months.
Turkey’s stock market, Borsa Istanbul (BIST), which lost 17.3 percent in value and decreased to 64.858 points after the 17 Dec. operations, was the market with the biggest increase in the world last month. Experts say international and national investors re-entered the market after local elections held on March 30, which resulted in the AK Party’s decisive victory and the removal of political uncertainties in the country. Foreign investors re-entering the markets and cash flow into Turkey’s markets influenced currency prices and interest rates.
Reaching its top point on Jan. 25 by TL 2.32, the U.S. dollar lost 10 percent in value and fell to TL 2.11. Interest rates also fell to 10.42 percent, which increased nearly 12 percent right after the Dec. 17 operations.
DAILY SABAH
Gov’t pressure to shut down Turkish schools sparks outcry
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government’s attempts to shut down Turkish schools abroad that are affiliated with the Hizmet movement, which is inspired by the teachings of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gülen, have sparked an outcry among opposition figures and diplomats, who criticize the government for “abusing education because of personal hostility.”
After several reports that circulated in the media stated that Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu sent orders to Turkish embassies to take steps towards the closure of the Turkish schools, opposition figures and diplomats raised their voices against such an attempt, saying, “Shutting down schools is completely a political and ideological attempt.”
The faith-based Hizmet movement administers a wide network of schools and more than 2,000 educational establishments in more than 120 countries around the world. These schools provide education to thousands of students and are well known for their achievements in the International Science Olympiads.
The attempt to shut down the schools comes at a time when the Hizmet movement has been subjected to a smear campaign from the Turkish government, whose prime minister and many high-level officials are implicated in a sweeping corruption scandal that became public on Dec. 17, 2013.
TODAYS ZAMAN
TUSKON’s Meral tells Turkish firms in Germany to open to world
Turkish-owned businesses in Germany should exert more effort to branch out into different world markets, a top Turkish union told entrepreneurs in Frankfurt on Thursday.
Addressing a panel organized by the Frankfurt Businessmen Union (Frankfurter Unternehmen Verein-FUV), Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON) Chairman Rızanur Meral said Turkish investors in Germany have achieved success in adapting to European markets and now it is time to seek investment opportunities in the remaining part of the global markets. “Germany and Europe are developed markets where risk is very little, but the chances are also limited to boost your profits. … I would suggest that Turkish-owned firms in the developed world should turn their attention to developing markets,” Meral said.
Unofficial data shows more than 100,000 small, medium and large-sized Turkish-owned firms in Germany provide jobs for thousands of people and generate billions of euros in returns. The country is home to Europe’s largest Turkish minority, estimated at more than 3.5 million.
TODAYS ZAMAN
07.04.2014
This is a news-scan from major Turkish papers and internet sites. However, we do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.
