Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Turkey ETF Tastes Yummy Ahead of Thanksgiving: What's Next?

Read MoreHide Full Article

A Thanksgiving spread is dull until the Turkey makes its presence felt on the table. Apart from the bird, another Turkey has been hogging investors’ attention this Thanksgiving. Yes, we’re talking about the country called Turkey.

Let’s look at the investment odds surrounding this country right now and see why it’s winning favor. iShares MSCI Turkey ETF (TUR - Free Report) is up 3.4% past week, up 0.3% past month and up 19.5% in the past six months (as of Nov 17, 2023).

Falling Inflation

High inflation has always been a concern for Turkey. The annual inflation rate in Turkey slowed slightly for the first time in four months to 61.4% in October 2023, from 61.5% in the previous month. The inflation figure was even lower than market forecasts of 62.1%,due to the diminishing impact of the lira's significant depreciation over the summer and the tax increases following the election, per tradingeconomics. Food inflation reached a three-month low of 72% from 75.2% in the previous period, along with a significant reduction in housing costs.

Aggressive Monetary Policy Tightening

To tame high inflation, Turkey hiked its key interest rate from 30% to 35% in late October, in line with forecasts by economists. The central bank said it would strengthen monetary tightening in a “timely and gradual manner” until the inflation outlook improves, as quoted on CNBC.

Until June, the Turkish central bank had followed a contentious policy directed by the government, maintaining low interest rates despite the escalating inflation. However, the spike in interest rates in the past few months actually boosted Turkish stocks. The decision to hike interest rates so steeply showcased Turkey's dedication to proactive monetary policy.

Rating Upgrade on Turkey

In late September, Leading S&P Global Ratings upgraded its outlook on Turkey from "negative" to "stable". This upgrade was attributed to Turkey's efforts in stabilizing the exchange rate and improving its financial situation, which positively impacted the Lira's performance??????.

In early September, Turkey's credit rating outlook was also raised by Fitch Ratings after the appointment of a new economy team that's started to implement more conventional policies and restore the country's foreign reserve buffers.

Analysts at Deutsche Bank have foreseen a considerable rebound for Turkish lira bonds, suggesting they could transition from the worst-performing local debt market in emerging nations this year to the best performer in 2024, as quoted on investing.com.

All in all, economic clouds are clearing for the country and it’s better to get a taste of this ETF right now. If you have a strong stomach for risks, then one should taste the Tukey ETF This Thanksgiving. The fund TUR has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) with a High risk quotient. Below we highlight the key details of the fund.

TUR in Focus

The iShares MSCI Turkey ETF provides a pure play exposure to 79 Turkish stocks. The fund is highly concentrated on its top 10 holdings which make up for nearly 48% of assets. Industrials dominates the fund’s returns with about 29.12% of the portfolio while financials, materials and consumer staples take double-digit exposure in the basket. iShares MSCI Turkey ETF charges 58  bps in annual fees from investors and yields 3.57% annually.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


iShares MSCI Turkey ETF (TUR) - free report >>

Published in