By Muhammed Ali Gurtas
ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s benchmark stock index decreased by 1.29 percent to close at 106,147.43 points on Tuesday.
Borsa Istanbul's BIST 100 index fell 1,384.01 points with a total trading volume of 5 billion Turkish liras (nearly $1.42 billion).
Last Thursday, the BIST 100 climbed to 108,605.51 points -- a historic peak -- and posted its highest close ever at 108,391.71.
On the second transaction day of the week, the banking and holding sector indices were down by 1.17 and 1.39 percent, respectively.
Among all sectors, the wholesale and retail trade sector index performed the best -- up 0.64 percent -- while the BIST textile leather index was the worst, declining 3.23 percent.
Stocks of Ege Endustri (EGEEN), which manufactures components for the automotive industry, enjoyed a 13.99 percent rise, the highest of the day, while shares of Vestel Beyaz Esya (VESBE), one of Turkey's leading domestic appliances brand, saw the biggest drop, falling 8.70 percent.
The BIST 100's most-traded stocks were national flag carrier Turkish Airlines (THYAO), private lender Garanti (GARAN), the country's leading petrochemicals producer Petkim (PETKM), state lender Halkbank (HALKB) and real estate investment trust Emlak Konut (EKGYO).
The U.S. dollar/Turkish lira exchange rate fell to 3.5150 as of 5 p.m. (1400GMT) on Tuesday, compared with 3.5280 at Monday's close.
Last Friday, one dollar was traded for 3.5320 Turkish liras. The exchange rate saw its historic high in mid-January this year by climbing to around 3.94.
Borsa Istanbul's Gold Exchange index went down by 0.35 percent, while the price of gold per kilogram stood at 143,600 Turkish liras (around $40,753) as of 4.30 p.m. (1330GMT) on Tuesday, up from 143,350 Turkish liras (some $40,633) at Monday's close.