Rating time has come for the Turkish economy. Fitch Ratings was the first to announce its review. Contrary to the expectation that it would downgrade either the country’s credit rating or outlook, the agency kept both unchanged: the “stable” outlook and the BBB-investment grade.

The review, announced late Oct. 3 on the eve of Eid al-Adha, was expected to send the financial markets rallying. But when the markets reopened Oct. 8 after the holiday, the good news from Fitch was overshadowed by Kurdish demonstrators wreaking havoc across the country. Heeding a call by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and its political extension, the People's Democracy Party (HDP), thousands took to the streets Oct. 7 to protest the Islamic State’s (IS) attack on Kobani, with the ensuing violence resulting in dozens dead and hundreds injured. The wave of violence came as a shock for the stock market, foreign exchange rates and interest rates. The main index of the Istanbul stock exchange shed 1,400 points in a single day, plunging to a five-month low of 72,943 points. The Turkish lira, which had been expected to gain ground, slid to 2.29 against the dollar, while bond yields reached 9.78%.

The following day, Oct. 9, Fitch’s decision finally began to make an impact, mainly on the stock market and to a lesser degree on foreign exchange and interest rates. The Istanbul stock exchange made up for the losses over the Kobani protests, gaining 2,265 points to close the day at 75,208. The dollar slid from 2.29 to 2.25 Turkish lira, but moved back to 2.27 later in the day as the unrest continued. The bond yield fell to 9.48% before closing the day at 9.6%.

In the ensuing days, fluctuations continued at the markets under the impact of domestic and external developments. Following sharp slumps, the main index of the Istanbul stock exchange recovered, surpassing the 75,000-point mark and reaching 75,268 points in morning trading Oct. 15. The bond yield dropped to 9.29%, while the dollar was trading at 2.27 lira as of Oct. 15.