Short-term external debt stock at $132.8 bln

ISTANBUL-Anadolu Agency

Turkey's short-term external debt stock amounted to $132.8 billion as of the end of October, official data showed on Dec. 17.

The country's external debt stock - maturing within one year or less - rose by 7.8 percent in October versus the end of 2019, according to the Turkish Central Bank.

Official data revealed that the currency breakdown of the debt stock was composed of 43.6 percent US dollars, 29.4 percent euros, 11.4 percent Turkish liras, and 15.6 percent other currencies.

The bank's short-term external debt stock posted a decrease of 0.7 percent to $55.6 billion and other sectors' short-term external debt dropped by 4.6 percent to $56 billion during the same period.

The rest of the amount - some $21.2 billion - belonged to the Central Bank, up from $8.4 billion at the end of the last year.

"From the borrowers side, the short-term debt of public sector, which consists of public banks, increased by 3.3 percent to $25.9 billion.''

"And the short-term debt of private sector decreased by 4.4 percent to $85.8 billion compared to the end of 2019," the bank said.

Short-term foreign exchange (FX) loans the banks received from foreign countries rose by 5.4 percent to $8 billion, the data showed.

Foreign exchange deposits of non-residents - except in the banking sector - in resident banks increased by 1.2 percent in October versus the end of 2019, recording $21.3 billion.

"And FX deposits of non-resident banks recorded $12.5 billion decreasing by 8.3 percent," it added.

The Central Bank also noted that non-residents' Turkish lira deposits increased by 0.6 percent and was recorded as $13.7 billion in the same period.