Istanbul bourse posts impressive investment numbers

ANKARA – Anatolia News Agency

The Istanbul Stock Exchange (İMKB) was the most lucrative investment instrument in 2012, granting 37 percent to investors on an inflation-adjusted basis, according to figures provided by the Turkish Statistics Institute (TÜİK).

The deposit premium yielded 0.89 percent annual real profit rate to investors, according to TÜİK data.

Euro, gold and dollar investors, however, were disappointed, losing 10.30, 7.60 and 9.95 percent, respectively, against inflation.

The stock exchange was the strongest investment instrument on a three-month, six-month and annual basis.

The main reasons for the rise were the spillover of the global excess liquidity and Fitch’s decision to upgrade Turkey to investment grade, which is likely to boost the Turkish economy.

The bourse shattered a record on Jan. 13, reaching almost 82,000 points, led by the rise of the banking index with 1.73 percent. The value of the listed companies increased around 1 percent.

The index tested the 82,000-point threshold, while short-term profit sales over this level could have wider effects, according to financial analysts.