Levent Gürses
A striking transfer of capital is taking place in Turkey. On the one hand, there are reports of incredible poverty; on the other, payments flowing freely from the public sector to affiliated companies, tax amnesties… Last year, a total of 206 billion lira (£11.5 billion) was paid to contractors for toll bridges and motorways, and city hospitals with guaranteed patient numbers.
On the other hand, there is poverty, especially child poverty… According to the latest data, one in three children is at risk of poverty, while 2 million children live in deep poverty. 950,000 children work, and nearly 1.5 million are outside formal education…
According to the Income Support System prepared by the state, there are 3.6 million extremely poor households in the country, meaning that 14.4 million citizens live in households where the income is below the minimum wage.
A guarantee of 281 billion TL for bridges and motorways over 8 years
Let me give you some details:
Last year alone, 94.6 billion TL was paid for bridges and motorways with foreign exchange guarantees. The ‘guaranteed payment’ figure for contractors for bridges and motorways, which were said to ‘cost the state nothing and not cost us a penny,’ rose from 60.3 billion TL in 2024 to 94.6 billion TL last year. Over the past eight years, 281 billion lira has been paid as a guarantee for bridges and motorways.
The amount of guaranteed payments for bridges and motorways by year is as follows:
2018: 3.4 billion TL
2019: 5.1 billion TL
2020: 10.1 billion TL
2021: 14.3 billion TL
2022: 36.4 billion TL
2023: 56.8 billion TL
2024: 60.3 billion TL
2025: 94.6 billion TL
Last year, 111 billion TL was spent on city hospitals, and 328 billion TL over the last 8 years.
There are also patient-guaranteed city hospitals. That’s another black hole… Even if no patients come, payments are made to the contractor with taxes taken from citizens’ pockets. Last year, 111.1 billion lira in guaranteed payments were made. In 2024, it was 90.5 billion lira. The total amount paid to companies under the name of guaranteed payments over the last 8 years reached 327.6 billion lira. In January 2026 alone, a total of 22.2 billion lira was paid to 18 city hospitals.
The total amount of guaranteed payments made to bridges, motorways, and city hospitals over the past eight years has reached 608.6 billion lira.
A significant portion of the major motorway projects constructed in recent years have been carried out using this model. The length of motorways built under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model has reached 1,514 kilometres. Two-thirds of the country’s total 3,796-kilometre motorway network falls under the BOT model. Numerous motorways have been built by private companies under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, with long-term operating rights and vehicle passage guarantees.
“City hospitals are paid the minimum wage every 3-4 seconds”
CHP Kayseri MP Aşkın Genç pointed to the 22.2 billion TL payment made in January 2026 for city hospitals, stating, “In a model that was once described as “no money coming out of our pockets”, millions are now leaving the budget in seconds. The 22.2 billion TL payment made in January equates to approximately 717 million TL per day, approximately 30 million TL per hour. Approximately 500,000 TL per minute and approximately 8,000 TL per second is being paid from the budget for city hospitals.”
Genç stated, ‘The monthly average of the 111.1 billion TL paid for city hospitals in 2025 is approximately 9.3 billion TL. The fact that 22.2 billion TL was paid in January 2026 alone means that approximately 2.4 times the monthly average of last year was paid in a single month.’
Yavuzyılmaz: Plan to sell bridges that made 7.2 billion TL in profit in 2025 has not been cancelled
While billions are being poured into affiliated contractors, the sale of bridges and motorways is being planned. CHP Deputy Chairman Deniz Yavuzyılmaz announced the 2025 income and expenditure data for the 15 July Martyrs and Fatih Sultan Mehmet bridges. Yavuzyılmaz stated that the total net profit of the two bridges was 7.2 billion TL and reacted strongly to the privatisation plan.
Yavuzyılmaz stated that the privatisation plan for these bridges, which were paid for with taxpayers’ money, should be cancelled immediately, saying, ‘Privatising these bridges, which are operated by the public sector with such high profits, is treason.’
Prof. Dr. Çelik: Free cheese is only found in a mousetrap
Prof. Dr. Aziz Çelik issued a warning regarding the “bridges”, stating, ‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch. If the bridges, which provide cheap services to the state, are privatised, the tolls will increase, and the bill will be footed by the citizens. With privatisation, you are not selling the bridge itself, but its revenue for the next 25-50 years, condemning the citizens to private companies.’
Poverty table: 3.6 million extremely poor households
Preparatory work by the Treasury and Family Ministries on the Income Supplement Support System has also revealed the extent of deep poverty in Turkey. According to a report in BirGün newspaper, it is estimated that 3.6 million households will benefit from the system, which will include families with ‘no income or income below the minimum wage,’ by 2027. The study noted that the number of households to be included in the Income Supplement Family Support System in 2028 will increase to 3.7 million. According to TÜİK’s calculation, which considers a household to consist of four people, it was reported that in 2026, 14.4 million citizens will live in households with an income below the minimum wage.
While 359.1 billion TL was spent on ‘combating poverty,’ it was revealed that the number of children unable to be cared for by their families reached 183,000, the number of households unable to pay their electricity bills reached 2.5 million, and the number of people in debt to the Social Security Institution (GSS) reached 8.2 million.
Citizens do not believe inflation will fall, expectation is 49%
The Central Bank’s Household Expectations Survey revealed that citizens do not believe the high cost of living will improve. Citizens expect annual inflation to be 48.81 per cent in 12 months’ time. Households’ expectations for the previous month were also 48.81 per cent.
According to the Central Bank, which also announced sectoral expectations, annual inflation expectations for 12 months ahead decreased by 0.1 percentage points compared to the previous month, reaching 22.10 per cent for market participants and 32 per cent for the real sector, down 0.90 percentage points. The Central Bank’s survey also showed that its own forecasts were not met. The market did not come close to the Central Bank’s forecast range of 15-21 per cent for the end of 2026 and 6-12 per cent for 2027.
Koç University’s estimated 50%, Bahçeşehir’s 50.8%
According to the results of Koç University’s Household Inflation Expectation Survey, the inflation expectation for the next 12-month period up to February 2027 is 50 per cent, while the inflation perception for the past 12 months was 58 per cent.
The results of the inflation expectation survey conducted by Bahçeşehir University’s Centre for Economic and Social Research (BETAM) remained high despite a decline. According to BETAM, citizens’ inflation expectations for the coming year decreased by 4.5 points compared to the previous survey period, reaching 50.8 per cent.
Growth of 3.6 per cent expected in the fourth quarter
AA Finance concluded its survey of expectations for the fourth quarter of 2025’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the participation of 19 economists. According to the survey, economists predict that the Turkish economy will grow by 3.6 per cent annually in the fourth quarter of 2025. Forecasts for this expectation ranged from a low of 3.2 per cent to a high of 3.8 per cent.
The median of economists’ growth expectations for the whole of 2025 was 3.7 per cent. Forecasts for this expectation ranged from a low of 3.2 per cent to a high of 3.8 per cent. Meanwhile, the median of economists’ growth forecasts for the end of 2026 was 4 per cent. The Turkish economy grew by 3.2 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024 and 3.7 per cent in the third quarter of 2025.
GDP increased by 3.7 per cent annually in the third quarter of 2025. TÜİK will announce GDP data for the fourth quarter on Monday, 2 March.
Prof. Dr. Hakan Kara: Gold smuggling will have exploded by 2025
Bilkent University Professor and former Central Bank Chief Economist Prof. Dr. Ali Hakan Kara stated in his assessment of customs data that ‘gold smuggling will have exploded by 2025.’
Prof. Dr. Ali Hakan Kara, based on information compiled from TCMB and customs data, and using a graph he prepared, assessed the rise in gold smuggling in 2025 following the introduction of quotas on gold imports in 2022, stating, “I have been pointing out for some time that the increase in the “net error and omission” in the balance of payments could be due to gold smuggling, but I had not been able to provide concrete evidence. The Ministry of Trade’s customs statistics support this view. Gold smuggling has exploded in 2025.”
Mint produced 49.7 tonnes, production fell short: Gold imports strain current account balance
Mehmet Yılmaz, President of the Turkish Miners Association (TMD), stated that according to 2025 data, every $100 increase in the price of gold per ounce creates a negative cost of approximately $400 million for Turkey’s current account balance. According to Türkiye Gazetesi, Yılmaz said that despite the increase in reserves, production had fallen, adding, ‘By the end of 2025, our total gold production had fallen to 28.4 tonnes, the lowest in the last five years.’ Yılmaz said, ‘While we produced 28 tonnes, the Mint alone minted 49.7 tonnes of jewellery and coin gold in 2025. We imported a total of 126.3 tonnes of gold in 2025.’
Morgan Stanley issues critical warning for Borsa Istanbul: “Not sustainable”
Morgan Stanley warned that the rapid rise in Turkish equities was driven more by increases in price multiples than by corporate earnings, indicating a risk of a downward correction in the market. While maintaining its overall outlook for Turkey, the bank sees further upside potential in banking stocks.
In its analysis note dated 25 February, Morgan Stanley stated that the optimism in the stock market and the 25 per cent rise in dollar terms do not fully correspond with macro indicators, and that they see potential for a downward correction in Turkish stocks to align with more ‘realistic’ macro expectations.
Everyone is rushing to gold and real estate
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) reported that in its Household Expectations Survey, the expected increase in housing prices over the next 12 months fell by 3.82 points compared to the previous month, to 35.41%.
When participants’ investment preferences were evaluated, the proportion of participants who said ‘I will buy gold,’ which ranked first, increased by 2.7 points compared to the previous month, rising to 55.5%. The proportion of participants who said ‘I will buy a house/shop/land, etc.,’ which ranked second, decreased by 1.2 points compared to the previous month, falling to 30%.
Our markets are in such a bad state that there is absolutely no trust in funds or stocks.
Investment expert Turgut Yıldırım said the following in his post on the subject:
“For years, we talked about saving and accumulating wealth; people saved money and paid off their debts, but when it came to accumulating wealth, they preferred to buy gold, land, or even cars. Because our financial markets are in such a dire state; there is absolutely no trust in funds, stocks, or anything else.
They accumulated shares; you deducted withholding tax from dividends, they accumulated funds, you deducted withholding tax, you floated indebted companies on the stock market and raised funds, you did not intervene while worthless companies were soaring, and you did not speak up when thousands of people were harmed. A country’s economy is only as strong as its financial markets. The situation is clear; go ahead, take pride in your work.”
Kahveci: The government still thinks high cost of living and inflation are the same thing
In his article criticising the economy, Karar writer İbrahim Kahveci stated that the economy cannot “again” be the main argument for the government going to the polls, saying, “The government still thinks high cost of living and inflation are the same thing. They cannot diagnose the problem, so they cannot solve it. The economic cost of the operations they have carried out against the opposition is very high. The cost of imprisoning Ekrem İmamoğlu alone exceeded 200 billion dollars. It is impossible to fix it…”
Coffee shop owner, citing examples from past elections, stated that the argument ‘We’ll eat dry onions, but…’ was being used and continued: “For example, the issue of unemployment is coming up now. It is impossible for them to solve this problem in a short time. First and foremost, the economy is a matter of trust, and there is no trust in the government. To sum it up: We cannot go into this election with a strong economic argument. In that case, the people need to be given other arguments to go along with the dry onions.
“Currency risk, interest rate risk or the country’s political risk”
In another article this week, İbrahim Kahveci pointed out that prices in the country are at historically high levels in dollar terms, that the currency market could explode, and that there is a possibility of devaluation, stating, “Interest rates are already excessively high, but they are not cutting it. While a real interest rate approaching 10% would be a major danger, we are currently living with a real interest rate of 15.2%. What can you produce with this interest rate… So what does this mean: Inflation will be reduced without supply (production)… It will fall, but it will fall very painfully… Exchange rate risk, interest rate risk or the country’s power risk. This is our biggest risk right now.”
Prof. Dr. Günçavdı: Election economy practices may begin shortly
World newspaper columnist Prof. Dr. Öner Günçavdı stated that there has been talk recently that the government will start implementing election economy measures shortly, saying, “Recent rumours suggest that the government will accelerate measures to boost consumption in the run-up to a possible election. Perhaps these measures may contribute to achieving the desired results in the elections, but it is unlikely that they will solve the current problems of the real sector. The problems of Turkish industry should be addressed in two stages. Accordingly, solving them will be possible with policies that can be implemented in two stages. In the first stage, the focus should be on measures that increase the ‘resilience’ of our existing industry in the short term. In the second stage, the emphasis should be on policies whose results will be seen in the medium and long term,” he said.
Red meat prices double those of neighbouring countries
Turkey’s red meat prices are double those of its neighbours. With a price per kilogram reaching $21.5, Turkey has become the most expensive country among its neighbours. In Greece to the west, meat costs $15.2, while in Iran to the east, it costs $9.2. Turkey’s red meat prices are double those of its neighbours. According to current data, Turkey has become the most expensive country among its neighbours, with the price of 1 kilogram of meat reaching $21.5. In our western neighbour, Greece, the price of 1 kilogram of meat is $15.2, while in our eastern neighbour, Iran, it is around $9.2. According to this table, the price paid for 1 kilogram of meat in Turkey is enough to buy approximately 2.5 kilograms of meat in Iran. The price per kilogram of red meat in Turkey’s neighbouring countries is as follows: Bulgaria 13.2 dollars, Iraq 12.6 dollars, Syria 12.1 dollars, Armenia 11.9 dollars, Georgia 9.7 dollars.
Agricultural expert Ali Ekber Yıldırım, commenting on the issue, said, ‘Imports, which began in 2010 under the pretext of lowering meat prices, have continued for 16 years. The result: we are consuming the most expensive meat in the world.’
31.5 per cent of the population aged 30-34 is unemployed
According to TÜİK data, 6 million 519 thousand young people aged 15-34 are neither in education nor in employment. 31.5% of the population aged 30-34 are not working in any job. According to a report by Nefes newspaper, 6 million 519 thousand young people aged 15-34 are neither in education nor in employment. Of this age group, which amounts to 24 million 61 thousand people, 27.1% are neither in education nor in employment. In other words, considering that there are 26.9 million households in Turkey, one in every four households has a young person who is neither in education nor employment.
Looking at the age groups in more detail, 2,567,000 young people aged 15-24, 2,002,000 young people aged 25-29 and 1,950,000 young people aged 30-34 are neither working nor studying; these young people are sitting at home. Of the 11,456,000 people aged 15-24, 22.4% are neither in education nor employment, while of the 6,411,000 people aged 25-29, 31.2% are neither in education nor employment.
If informal employment were eliminated, pensions could be increased by 31 percent
If all informal workers in non-agricultural sectors were included in the system, the Social Security Institution (SGK) could generate up to 1.5 trillion lira in additional premium and tax revenue annually. With this funding, pension payments could be increased by up to 31 per cent without requiring additional budgetary allocations.
According to a report by Habertürk, although the informal employment rate fell to 33.6 per cent in 2015 and 24.6 per cent in 2025, the rate in non-agricultural sectors stands at 15.9 per cent as of 2025. According to TÜİK data for the last quarter of 2025, a total of 8 million 37 thousand people are working informally. Of these, 3.5 million are in agriculture and 4.5 million are in non-agricultural sectors. The majority of informal workers outside agriculture are salaried and daily wage earners. Informal employment also takes its heaviest toll on workers. While they lose social security and pension rights, employers who comply with the rules face unfair competition. This situation also means a significant loss of revenue for the Social Security Institution (SGK) and public finances.
‘What a coincidence; TTK closed, and a private company that had been waiting for 20 years started production.
Immediately after the closure of the mines belonging to the Turkish Coal Mining Corporation (TTK) in Zonguldak, Hattat Energy began producing 4,500 tonnes per day at the Amasra-B site, where it had not extracted a single gram of coal for 20 years. This production volume corresponds to approximately twice the total production capacity of the closed TTK mines. Regarding its sudden commencement of operations at the Amasra B coal field, which it acquired from TTK 20 years ago, the company stated that it was ‘purely coincidental.’
Exports fell by 4% in January, while the trade deficit decreased by 11.6%
The January 2026 foreign trade data, prepared in collaboration between the Ministry of Trade and the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), has been shared with the public. Exports in January decreased by 4.0 per cent compared to the same period last year, reaching 20.3 billion dollars. As of January 2026, annual exports amounted to 272.5 billion dollars, exceeding the 262.9 billion dollars recorded in the same period last year. Imports increased by 0.1 per cent in January, reaching $28.7 billion. Annual imports were calculated at $365.5 billion. The foreign trade deficit increased by 11.6 per cent in January, reaching $8.4 billion. The annual foreign trade deficit was recorded at $93 billion.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat pointed out the upward trend in annualised data despite the temporary pressure of the calendar effect on export figures and emphasised that the calendar effect was decisive in the decline, stating, “Exports and imports remained stable in the first month of the year. Our exports decreased by 4.0 per cent in January due to the negative calendar effect of one extra day of holiday.”
Turkey ranks second in the world with one billion doctor visits
Hürriyet writer Noyan Doğan wrote that the number of doctor visits exceeded one billion in 2024, with over 116.6 million examinations performed. Doğan noted that 87% of total examinations took place in family medicine and public hospitals, while only 6% took place in private hospitals.
Reviewing the 2024 Health Statistics Yearbook published by the Ministry of Health, Doğan listed the following highlights:
“Health services are provided by a total of 1,562 hospitals. Of these, 941 are Ministry of Health, i.e. public hospitals, 69 are university hospitals, and 552 are private hospitals. Interestingly, in 2024, the number of hospitals increased by 8 in the public sector and by 1 in the university sector compared to the previous year, while the number of private hospitals decreased by 13. In fact, over the last 5 years, the number of hospitals in the public sector increased by 41, while 19 private hospitals closed down.
In 2024, the number of visits to doctors reached 1 billion 47 million. In other words, with a population of 85 million, we had over 1 billion consultations. In 2023, we had 973.5 million consultations. The number of consultations increased by 74 million in one year. In 2024, we had 2,870 consultations per day. Of these over 1 billion consultations, 450 million took place in family medicine. “
As income falls, healthcare bills become heavier
According to TÜİK data, 6.1% of households consider doctor’s examination and treatment expenses to be a ‘heavy burden’, revealing that the pressure of healthcare expenses increases as income levels fall. It was also observed that those at risk of poverty work in more demanding jobs.
Trump imposes 10% tariff despite Supreme Court ruling
Following the US Supreme Court’s reversal of previous rulings, the Trump administration officially implemented a new 10% global customs tariff based on the 1974 Trade Act. This move has led to a halt in trade talks worldwide and uncertainty in the markets, while the White House’s preparations to raise this rate to 15 per cent are escalating tensions in the global trade wars.
After the US Supreme Court revoked its broad tariff authority, the White House officially implemented the new 10% global tariff on Tuesday, resorting to alternative legal avenues to protect its trade agenda.
Financial writer Robert Kiyosaki: The biggest stock market crash in history is approaching
Financial writer Robert Kiyosaki has argued that the biggest stock market crash in history is approaching in global markets. Kiyosaki emphasised that strategic behaviour is needed rather than panic, stating that this period could present wealth opportunities for strategic investors. Robert Kiyosaki, author of ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’, suggested that a historic break is taking place in the financial markets. In a post on his social media account, Kiyosaki argued that the ‘biggest stock market crash in history’, which he predicted in 2013, is now imminent.
According to Kiyosaki, the markets are currently at a critical threshold and the pressure of uncertainty is increasing for many investors. However, in his view, this situation is not only a cause for panic but also a great opportunity for profit for investors who are prepared. The author defines the impending crash as ‘a decline in the prices of real assets’ and states that turning to assets such as gold, silver, Bitcoin and Ethereum during this period could be advantageous.
Global debt at historic high of $348 trillion
According to a report by the Institute of International Finance (IIF), approximately $29 trillion was added to the global debt stock in 2025, bringing the total debt to $348 trillion. The sustainability of the global financial system is being tested by the highest debt burden in history. According to the IIF’s latest data, the pace of debt accumulation reached its highest momentum since the pandemic, with developed economies struggling to close budget deficits driving the increase. Approximately two-thirds of the global debt increase originated from developed markets. This situation is considered a result of rising public spending and a tendency to move away from budgetary discipline. The total debt of developed economies rose to $231.7 trillion. Turkey ranks second in the world with one billion visits to doctors.
Hürriyet columnist Noyan Doğan wrote that the number of doctor visits exceeded 1 billion in 2024, with over 116.6 million examinations performed. Doğan stated that 87 per cent of all examinations took place in family medicine and public hospitals, while only 6 per cent were performed in private hospitals.
Reviewing the 2024 Health Statistics Yearbook published by the Ministry of Health, Doğan listed the following key details:
“Health services are provided by a total of 1,562 hospitals. Of these, 941 are Ministry of Health, i.e. public hospitals, 69 are university hospitals, and 552 are private hospitals. Interestingly, in 2024, the number of hospitals increased by 8 in the public sector and by 1 in the university sector compared to the previous year, while the number of private hospitals decreased by 13. In fact, over the last 5 years, the number of hospitals in the public sector increased by 41, while 19 private hospitals closed down.
In 2024, the number of visits to doctors reached 1 billion 47 thousand. In other words, with a population of 85 million, we had over 1 billion consultations. In 2023, we had 973.5 million consultations. The number of consultations increased by 74 million in one year. In 2024, we had 2,870 consultations per day. Of these 1 billion consultations, 450 million took place at family doctors.
As income falls, healthcare bills become heavier
According to TÜİK data, 6.1% of households consider doctor’s examination and treatment expenses to be a ‘heavy burden,’ revealing that the pressure of healthcare expenses increases as income levels fall. It was also observed that those at risk of poverty work in more demanding jobs.
Trump imposes 10% tariff despite Supreme Court ruling
Following the US Supreme Court’s reversal of previous rulings, the Trump administration officially implemented a new 10% global customs duty based on the 1974 Trade Act. This move has led to a halt in trade negotiations worldwide and uncertainty in the markets, while the White House’s preparations to raise this rate to 15 per cent are escalating tensions in the global trade wars.
After the US Supreme Court overturned broad tariff powers, the White House officially implemented the new 10% global tariff on Tuesday, resorting to alternative legal avenues to protect its trade agenda.
AI impact: IBM shares see biggest drop since 2000
IBM shares recorded their sharpest daily decline in 25 years on Monday after AI startup Anthropic announced that its Claude Code tool could modernise a programming language used in IBM systems.
Shares fell 13.2 per cent on Monday 23 February, while the company’s market value shrank by $38.4 billion in just one day.
IBM’s COBOL is a programming language widely used on IBM mainframes in banking, insurance and public systems.
Silver hit $90 and then retreated
Silver had a volatile week, but one dominated by gains. Starting the week at $78.90 per ounce, it rose rapidly, reaching a three-week high above $90 on Wednesday, before falling 2.54 per cent to $86.96 on Thursday. By Friday morning, silver had climbed to $89.80, gaining 6.2% on a weekly basis but losing 22% on a monthly basis.
Experts do not expect a rapid recovery due to the recent sharp fluctuations in silver. Analysts, noting that silver’s three-month risk reversal rate has reached its highest level in 20 years, state that based on the assumption that the gold-silver ratio is 60, the year-end silver forecast is approaching $100 per ounce.
JPMorgan forecasts a range of $60-90 for this year, while macro strategist David Hunter paints a more optimistic picture, arguing that the price could rise to $180. In technical terms, sustained movements above $90 would bring $100, followed by $118 and $121.67 into focus.
Other important developments of the week were as follows:
- Payments made with cards increased by 45 per cent year-on-year in January, reaching 2 trillion 326 billion lira. Approximately 2 trillion lira of these payments were made with credit cards, 322.8 billion lira with bank cards, and 7.5 billion lira with prepaid cards. During the same period, the payment amount increased by 46 per cent for credit cards and 55 per cent for debit cards, while it decreased by 77 per cent for prepaid cards.
- According to data in the February Turkey Report by Istanbul Economics Research and Consulting, citizens stated that when they received their salaries, they first paid off their credit card debt and then tried to get through the month with the remaining money. The percentage of those who said, ‘My credit card debt exceeds my salary,’ was 49.2%.
- According to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), confidence in the economy rose by 1.4 per cent on a monthly basis in February to 100.7. The index exceeded the critical level of 100 for the first time in a long time. Consumer confidence in the economy rose by 2.3 per cent on a monthly basis in February to 85.7.
- According to TOBB data, the number of companies established in January 2026 decreased by 13.1 per cent compared to the previous month, falling to 11,115. The total capital of the established companies also decreased by 39.9 per cent to 35.2 billion TL. During the same period, the number of companies that closed decreased by 78 per cent to 1,604. Compared to the same month last year, the number of companies established in January 2026 increased by 0.7%, while the number of companies that closed decreased by 18%.
- The Central Bank’s total reserves decreased by $5.706 billion compared to the previous week, reaching $206.078 billion in the week of 20 February. Gross foreign exchange reserves decreased by $5.941 billion to $73.645 billion, while gold reserves increased by $234 million from $132.199 billion to $132.433 billion.
- According to Central Bank data, in December 2025, compared to the previous month, foreign exchange assets of companies outside the financial sector increased by 7 billion 57 million dollars, while liabilities increased by 11 billion 189 million dollars. Thus, the net foreign exchange position deficit of companies increased by 4 billion 132 million dollars to 188 billion 551 million dollars.
- CHP Kayseri MP Aşkın Genç stated in his speech at the General Assembly of the Parliament that the budget deficit reached 214.5 billion TL in January, noting that this amount corresponds to approximately 80,000 TL per second, and that the deficit increases by approximately 20 pensioners’ holiday bonuses every second.
- CHP Niğde MP Ömer Fethi Gürer stated that citizens’ debts to banks had increased by 242 billion lira in 1.5 months and announced that 1 million 539 thousand new cases had been filed with enforcement offices in the first 50 days of 2026. Gürer emphasised that this equates to 21 new enforcement files per minute, adding that the total number of pending files has exceeded 24 million.
- CHP Manisa MP and Member of the Planning and Budget Commission Ahmet Vehbi Bakırlıoğlu said that 17 million 821 thousand people were unable to meet their basic needs, and that the poverty rate had risen from 10.1 per cent in 2024 to 10.7 per cent in 2025. He noted that half of workers are employed at the minimum wage and that the proportion of those receiving the lowest pension has risen from 7% in 2019 to nearly 30% in 2026.
- Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said, ‘We have reduced the share of indirect taxes, which have been high for a long time, from 66 per cent to 62 per cent of total taxes.’ Şimşek argued that ‘we performed very strongly last year,’ adding, ‘We managed to reduce the budget deficit to below 3% of national income, despite earthquake expenditures and the early retirement system we had previously implemented. Keeping the budget deficit below 3% is an important threshold for our country and its sustainability.’
- Deputy President Cevdet Yılmaz said at the Investment Environment Improvement Coordination Council meeting, ‘We are aware of the difficulties our real sector faces, particularly in accessing finance, and we continue to implement the necessary measures in this area, especially for labour-intensive sectors and SMEs.’
- Reuters news agency reported that Zorlu Holding has begun talks with banks to restructure its loans. According to the report, which cited two sources close to the matter, talks were held last week between the holding company and bank executives, with the sources also indicating that Zorlu Holding may sell assets to cover its debts.
- Minister of Labour and Social Security Vedat Işıkhan stated that, in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and Technology, they have made approximately 51 billion lira from the Unemployment Insurance Fund available directly to the manufacturing sector through the Manufacturing Industry Financing and Employment Protection Programme.
- The World Bank reported that laws aimed at providing equal economic opportunities for women are only implemented at an average rate of half worldwide, and that only 4% of women live in economies that provide full legal equality. According to the Bank’s ‘Women, Business and the Law’ report, it was emphasised that the barriers preventing women from contributing fully to growth and prosperity are much higher than previously thought.