In 2014 in Turkey, the stock market outdid other investment tools in terms of profits. The Istanbul bourse’s main index closed the year at an all-time year-end high and became the world’s fifth-most profitable stock exchange. The BIST-100 index, which stood at 67,801 points at the end of 2013, rose by 26.43%, to close the year at 85,721 points. Argentina’s stock exchange was the most profitable in 2014 with a 59.13% increase, followed by China with 52.86%, Egypt with 31.6% and India with 29.89%.
At the end of 2013, a dollar was worth 2.13 Turkish lira, and a euro was worth 2.94 Turkish lira, compared to 2.33 Turkish lira per dollar and 2.83 Turkish lira per euro at the end of 2014, meaning the dollar rose 9.4%, while the euro declined by about 3.9%. On the gold market, a gram of 24-carat gold bar was worth 89.7 Turkish lira at the end of 2014, up 6.53% from 84.2 Turkish lira at the end of 2013. Meanwhile, the ounce price declined from $1,205 at the start of 2014 to $1,184 at year's end. The difference between the bar and ounce prices stemmed from the Turkish lira’s depreciation against the dollar on the domestic market.
In regard to interest rates, the Turkish Central Bank’s benchmark rate currently stands at 8.25%, but bank deposits of more than 100,000 Turkish lira earned interests of about 10-11% last year. Because of taxes on deposit earnings, the dollar still outdid Turkish lira deposits to become the second most profitable investment tool, after the stock exchange.
How did the stock exchange end up yielding the highest profits? Because it had started the year low. The BIST-100 index, which rose to an all-time high of 93,178 points on May 22, 2013, was down, as noted, to 67,801 points by the end of 2013, hit by the Gezi Park protests and corruption probes that targeted government members in December of that year. The stock exchange, however, recovered as the political upheaval subsided, the government proved its strength in both municipal and presidential elections, and Turkey’s credit ratings remained unchanged.
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