What Happened in the Markets This Week?

What happened in the markets this week? What important developments did we witness during the week?

1- USD/TL Exchange Rate Broke A New Record

US President Joe Biden's budget proposal of 6 trillion dollars, which attracted the attention of the global markets, also affected the USD/TL rate. After the news of the budget proposal was heard on Thursday, USD/TL exchange rate, which rose as high as 8.5439, hit the all-time high at 8.6093 on Friday. The Turkish Lira took the lead among the currencies that diverged negatively together with the South African rand against the dollar.

2- BES for Under 18s Entered into Force in Turkey

The law that will allow citizens under the age of 18 to be covered in the Individual Pension System (BES) has been published and entered into force in Turkey. Insurance premiums to be paid for the insured additionally employed within the scope of the law can be deducted from the loan interest or profit share balance used until 30 June 2022. This amount will be covered from the Unemployment Insurance Fund. The loan interest or dividend support provided will be applied for 12 months for the insured under the support. Workplaces covered by this article will benefit from this support for up to 5 additional insured employees.

3- Yuan Reached the Highest of the Last 3 Years Against the US Dollar

The rise in the currency gained momentum this week after the People's Bank of China signaled that it would not implement the restrictions on daily offshore currency adjustments. This made it inevitable for analysts and currency investors to invest more in anticipation of a stronger exchange rate. The yuan is at its highest level since 2016 against the most traded peers compiled by Bloomberg. The USD/yuan exchange rate rose 0.2 percent to 6.3795, trading at the highest level in the last three years against the US dollar.

4- Minister of Treasury and Finance Lütfi Elvan gave a speech at the TBB

Treasury and Finance Minister Lütfi Elvan attended the General Assembly of the Turkish Banks Association. In her speech at the board, Elvan stated that the data point to a 6 percent growth for the first quarter. Explaining that 79 billion TL of pandemic support has been given from the central budget so far, Elvan noted that this amount is expected to be 109 billion TL at the end of the year.

5-S&P Did Not Made An Update For Turkey

International credit rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) did not make any updates on Turkey's credit rating and outlook. In the statement made by S&P, it was announced that the calendar was not updated for Turkey, Bulgaria and Ireland, which were given a date of May 28 for evaluation. The fact that the annual calendars of the international credit rating agencies give dates for the credit rating and rating views of the countries does not mean that there will be a definitive update. S&P currently rates Turkey's Foreign Currency rating as "B+", local currency rating as "BB-" and credit rating outlook as "stable". The organization's next evaluation date for Turkey seems to be October 22.

6- Turkey's Top 500 Industrial Companies in the Claw of the Pandemic

While TÜPRAŞ kept the first place in the survey of the Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ISO) Turkey's 500 Largest Industrial Enterprises, the results of the research revealed the details of the economic activity during the epidemic year. Among the main findings of the research, announced by ICI President Erdal Bahçıvan, it was noted that the increasing trend in the profits of industrial organizations continued and that industrial organizations benefited less from the loan growth created in 2020.

7-US ​​President Biden Presents $6 Trillion Budget Proposal

It was said that US President Joe Biden's first comprehensive budget proposal of $ 6 trillion for the 2022 fiscal year is planned to increase financing for expenditures such as infrastructure, health and education. The White House submitted its first comprehensive budget proposal to the US Congress, which includes government spending for the 2022 fiscal year, which will begin on October 1. Biden's budget proposal includes an increase in spending on areas such as infrastructure, health and education.