Turkey's Borsa Istanbul closes week up over 2 percent

By Gokhan Ergocun

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's benchmark stock index rose by 2.04 percent to reach 103,200.08 points with a trading volume of around 7 billion Turkish liras ($1.49 billion) at the closing session on Friday.

Borsa Istanbul's BIST 100 index ended the day with a 2,062-point rise from the previous close of 101,138.08 points, while it opened the day at 101,786.20 points, up 0.64 percent.

The USD/TRY exchange rate dropped to 4.7210 as of 5 p.m. local time (1400GMT) Friday, compared with 4.7580 at Thursday's close. It had hit an all-time high with 4.93 this week.

The euro/lira exchange rate also decreased to 5.5000 by market close, versus 5.5870 at the previous close, and one British pound was traded for 6.3000 Turkish liras, compared with 6.3930 at Thursday's close.

The BIST Gold Exchange index gained in value by 0.06 percent at the close. In Borsa Istanbul's Precious Metals and Diamond Markets, one ounce of gold traded for $1,300.00 as of 4.30 p.m. local time (1330GMT) Friday, compared with $1,299.20 at previous close.

The price of Brent oil rose by over 3 percent to $76.81 per barrel as of 1500GMT Friday, from $79.16 at the previous close. During the last week, it saw over $80 level for the first time since Oct. 2014. It was over $110 in the first half of 2014 and around $60 by the end of 2014. It was at its lowest level in the beginning of 2016, at $34.70.