The aftermath of natural disasters gets worse when nature is manipulated by the hand of men. This is the case with floods in the Black Sea region. That is why it turns into a political debate since the opposition criticizes the government for taking wrong urbanization decisions for years and for not being prepared for any disasters. With wildfires it was mostly the forests and livestock that were lost but with flood we are losing lives and the death toll is rising day by day. Most people, on the other hand, do not rely on the official figures as one local person shared a post from the region saying one fourth of the Bozkurt population is lost!
The death toll has risen to 66, according to a statement from the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD). Floods caused by heavy rain hit the region in the north of the country Wednesday, leaving 56 people dead in Bozkurt in Kastamonu province, while nine others died in Sinop province and one person in Bartin province. A total of 62 people is reported missing in Kastamonu and 14 others in Sinop, the Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said. As wreck removal works continue in the region, hopefully these figures will not increase.
Looking at the money market, USD/TRY, which tested below 8.50 and completed previous week at just above 8.51 after no surprise interest rate decision came from the Central Bank. USD/TRY remains unchanged this morning, while EUR/TRY sees 9.98.
Oil prices decreased by over 1% in the last three days, after the rapid spread of the delta variant created pressure on oil demand. Brent crude dropped by 1.59% to USD 69.47 per barrel.
Gold prices almost caught the highest level of the week after the Federal Reserve started to remove forecasts about the monetary policy tightening. Spot gold reached USD 1,782 before it dropped by 0.21% to USD 1,776 per ounce.
DAILY AGENDA
The Producer Price Index of Agricultural Products (Agriculture-PPI) rose by 22.80% in July, compared to the same month of the previous year, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). Agriculture-PPI also increased by 1.34% on a monthly basis.
The seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate decreased by 0.6 points to 12.4% in the second quarter of the year, compared to the previous quarter, according to TurkStat.
The total number of paid employees in manufacturing, construction and trade-services sectors increased by 13.5% in June, compared to the same month of the previous year, according to TurkStat.
The Ministry of Treasury and Finance will announce the central government’s budget balance figures for July (11.00 am). The central government’s budget posted TRY 25bn deficit in June.
The Ministry of Treasury and Finance will reopen 2-year (791 days) maturity semiannually fixed coupon and 5-year (1,827 days) maturity TLREF Indexed Government Bond.
IN OUR MAGAZINE THIS WEEK:
>> On the cover: Gokmen Sozen is on our cover this week, who has been working on developing the gastronomy sector in Turkey since 1999. Beginning with gastronomy publishing during the early years of his career to branded culinary events for sector professionals, he considers himself the Don Quixote of Turkish cuisine. You can read the details on pages 14-15.
>> Professor Ilter Turan: Saving face, but at what cost? P. 10.
>> Q&A: Deniz Atac, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Turkish Foundation for Reforestation, Protection of Natural Habitats and Combating Soil Erosion (TEMA). P. 11.
>> Report: Super-incentives in the pipeline for pandemic stars. P.13.
>> Startup: Is Bankasi launches agriculture-focused entrepreneurship program. P. 16.
>> Energy: Standard becomes inevitable for the local energy equipment. P. 22.
>> Zeynep Gurcanli: Will Erdogan come to the table with Assad? P. 24.
>> Do not mis Time Out alternatives for the week.
