The country battles wildfires that have broken out in 41 different areas recently, with 31 of them brought under control so far. The forest fires have erupted over the last few days in the southern provinces of Mersin, Osmaniye, Adana, Antalya, Kahramanmaras. The blazes also burst out in the southwestern province of Mugla and central provinces of Kirikkale and Kayseri. The county’s efforts to bring 10 ongoing fires under control continue as 1,832 personnel, three planes, 29 helicopters, and 458 water tenders join the mission. The national flag carrier Turkish Airlines allowed citizens with flights (departures and arrivals) to the fire areas to freely change and return their tickets. Four people died so far while 150 cattle 1,000 small cattle, 6,000 decare agricultural land and 500 decare greenhouse were lost. The aftermath of the fires in economic terms expected to be clearer next week.
Speaking about the economy, the Central Bank increased the country’s year-end inflation forecast to 14.1% for this year, up from 12.2% in its previous report. The bank also hiked the inflation forecast for 2022 to 7.8%, up from 7.5% but did not change the 5% target for 2023. The Central Bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu stressed that behaviors should be changed from people to companies and to the public administration in fight against the inflation. “The Central Bank has been left alone in fight against the inflation,” he said.
USD/TRY saw 8.45, while EUR/TRY fell to 10.06 yesterday after Central Bank’s announcement on inflation target. USD/TRY is traded at 8.46 and EUR/TRY hovers around 10.05-10.07 this morning.
Gold prices increased as the Federal Reserve pointed out that it won’t decrease the support to the economy and won’t increase the interest rate soon. Spot gold is traded at USD 1,829 per ounce this morning, after it saw USD 1,832, the highest level in the last 15 days.
Although brent crude dropped by 0.58% to USD 75.61 per barrel, it prepares to complete the week with strong appreciation as the demand increases faster than the supply.
DAILY AGENDA
The country’s exports surged by 46.9% to USD 19.7bn, while imports rose by 38.7% to USD 22.6bn in June, compared to the same month of the previous year, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).
The Services Producer Price Index (S-PPI) increased by 34.07% in June, compared to the same month of the previous year, according to TurkStat. S-PPI also rose by 6.61% on a monthly basis.
The country’s tourism income amounted to USD 3bn in the second quarter of the year, according to TurkStat.
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism will release foreign tourist figures.
The Ministry of Treasury and Finance will announce domestic borrowing and auction schedule for August.
Yapi Kredi will release financial results for January-June.
