Cost of foreign debting will increase

       Standart and Poors's' "stable" rating for Turkey echoed in the banking circles as a warning to Turkey. Shifting of Turkey's rating to "stable" down from "positive" attributed in June thanks to steps taken in a bid to reach the targets set by an agreement with the International Monetary Fund, will increase the countries' costs in external debting, cause the high rate trade continue and give a blow to the stock exchange market.
According to bankers, the change of rating will mostly affect Turkey's external debting costs. Interest rates of debts that Turkey will receive to roll over its debts in 1999 - a hard year for repayments - will be more than the expected.
Ercan Uysal of the economic reasearch department of the Turk Economi Bankasi says: "Foreign investors will expect more incomes because they take bigger risks. Syndication credit rates will rise, which had already increased following the economic crisis in Russia. The Turkish banks, which will repay $5.6 billion this year, will replace the amount with further increased interest rates. There can be a money outflow from the stock exchange market."