Turkey's Borsa Istanbul up 0.52% at open

ANKARA

Turkey's benchmark stock index started Wednesday at 98,129.45 points, up 0.52% or 510.45 points.

On Tuesday, Borsa Istanbul's BIST 100 index decreased 1.34% to close the day at 97,619.00 points with a daily trading volume of 10.5 billion Turkish liras ($1.5 billion).

The U.S. dollar/Turkish lira exchange rate diminished to 6.9770 as of 9.30 a.m. local time (0630GMT) on Wednesday, compared to 6.9840 at the previous close.

The euro/Turkish lira exchange rate also fell to 7.5780, versus 7.5890, and one British pound traded for 8.6110 Turkish liras, versus 8.6300 at the previous close.

Oil prices plummeted again on Wednesday, with one barrel of Brent crude oil selling for around $15.98, its lowest since 1999.

As of 10 a.m. local time (0700GMT), one barrel of Brent crude oil sold for around $16.73.

Global markets are watching closely the negative effects of the sharp drop in oil prices.