BlackRock, Amundi and HSBC Asset Management have halted primary market trading on their Turkey ETFs as the country’s stock market suspended dealing following the devastating earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria on Monday.
More than 20,000 people are known to have died in Turkey and neighbouring Syria following the two earthquakes which caused thousands of buildings to collapse.
The Borsa Istanbul implemented a market-wide circuit breaker almost immediately after opening on 8 February as the index dropped 7% and was quickly followed by an announcement the exchange would remain closed until 15 February.
The Turkish market was 16% down from Friday close to the time of the suspension on Wednesday.
BlackRock said its iShares MSCI Turkey UCITS ETF (ITKY) is closed for creation and redemption on 9 and 10 February.
The asset manager said it did not officially suspend trading but instead issued a 'non-dealing day', often reserved for public holidays, following the suspension of the Turkish stock exchange.
"iShares ETFs with Turkey exposure continue to provide price discovery and liquidity to investors on the secondary market," BlackRock added.
Amundi said creations and redemptions in its Lyxor MSCI Turkey UCITS ETF (TUR) were “restricted” until the suspension was lifted.
“Trading in TUR on the secondary market has not been suspended, and the ETF currently remains tradable across the regulated markets on which it is admitted to trading,” an Amundi spokesperson said.
HSBC AM also announced it had suspended primary market trading in the HSBC MSCI Turkey UCITS ETF (HTRD) after the Borsa Istanbul announced they were halting trading in stocks.
It follows a brief suspension of HTRD on Monday after a separate market-wide circuit breaker was implemented on the morning of 7 February.
Turkish stocks have been falling out of favour with investors in recent years, however, the country’s stock market saw significant gains in 2022 as local retail investors poured their savings into the market.
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