Global hurricane also shakes Borsa Istanbul

BIST 100 index started the new week with a sharp sell-off due to the sell-off experienced in global markets. While global markets experienced record declines due to the possibility of a policy error by the Fed and rising recession expectations in the US, along with geopolitical developments, Borsa Istanbul also entered the new week with sharp sell-offs. BIST 100 index started the day with a 6.7 percent drop and the index-based circuit breaker was activated. Decreases in BIST 30 futures had reached 7 percent. The new week caused a historic hurricane in the markets with sharp sell-offs in Asia. Japanese stocks are facing their sharpest sell-off since 1987. The Kosdaq index in South Korea recorded a record fall. Stock indices that crashed in the US on Friday also entered the new week negatively. The decline in Nasdaq 100 index futures reached 6 percent. Along with pricing in the markets regarding the Fed's monetary policy path, geopolitical concerns also led to sell-offs. Following the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah’s senior Fuat Shukri in Beirut, a tense weekend has passed in the Middle East. While discussions continue on how Iran will respond to the attack in its own country, the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) announced on Friday that it will send additional warplanes and ships to the region to increase its support for Israel’s security in the face of “threats originating from Iran.” On the same day, news of flight cancellations came from numerous airlines around the world. Turkish Airlines canceled flights scheduled for Friday night and Pegasus postponed flights to Iran, Iraq and Jordan until Saturday morning. According to a report by Axios citing three sources with knowledge of the matter, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his counterparts at the G-7 that Iran and Hezbollah could begin attacks on Israel on Monday. The report stated that Blinken said the US did not know the exact timing but that the attacks were expected to begin within the next 24-48 hours. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who made a statement on Sunday, said, “Our defense readiness is high, whether on the ground or in the air, and we are prepared for both a rapid response and an attack. If they dare to attack us, they will pay a heavy price.” Meanwhile, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Öncü Keçeli announced on Sunday evening that Turkey’s travel warning for Lebanon had been updated via the X account. According to the post, the Ministry called on “people to avoid traveling to Lebanon unless it is essential,” and recommended that citizens whose stay in Lebanon is not essential “leave Lebanon if possible while commercial flights are still continuing.”