Bourse falls sharply on Moody’s failure

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

The main 100 index of the Istanbul Stock Exchange (İMKB) plummeted around 5 percent yesterday, after expectations of a ratings upgrade by Moody’s were disappointed.

A 1 percent share sale decision by İşbank, one of the top lenders in Turkey, also contributed to the fall.
In November last year Turkey received an “investment” level upgrade from Fitch, the first by a leading rating agency since 1994.

A Moody’s conference yesterday had raised local hopes that it would also join Fitch in upgrading its rating.
In a note to investors, Capital Economics emphasized that the market was still up by 3.5 percent since the start of the year, and a massive 40 percent over the past months.

“The immediate trigger for the fall seems to have been concerns raised in a note by Credit Suisse about the durability of the rise in banking stocks,” the statement said.

Moody’s said yesterday that external fragilities still posed risks, and that an improvement in the current account deficit was needed for an upgrade.